My Mother's Day, in many photos.

My Mother's Day was fantastic from start to finish. I took about a million photos to remember each moment with, and here are some of them. :)

As I mentioned earlier, I got breakfast in bed. It was amazingly good.. you could just taste the love that went into it. There is nothing sweeter than having your children and husband make something especially for you. I enjoyed every bite I had, and even those that I shared with a certain little someone or two (coughRhiannacoughTiernancough) or even three (Scootie cat 'shared' my toast with me.. she loves margarine and she's too sweet to say no to, so she licked a slice). I even enjoyed the bites that were ruined by the orange juice flood after Kyle accidently knocked my glass over onto my plate. Haha! I may not have eaten those bites, but I appreciated every single one of them.

Nothing beats the company I had in bed while I ate it either. ♥

I got some beautiful handmade cards from all three kids. This is the front of the one from Ave. Avery is not one to enjoy card making, so for him to go ahead and make one without being prompted? That means the world to me. He doesn't enjoy drawing or spelling... he'd rather be out playing sports. I LOVE that he drew the two of us holding hands since he really doesn't do that with me anymore.

Awww. What a sweet boy he is. He may be full on into the almost teen years (hello, eye rolling!), but he's still a really good kid.

I love Tiernan's attention to detail! The rainbow's colours, the height between us, the words 'red' and 'blue' being written in those colours, the heart instead of an 'o' in love. He's so thoughtful. I also love that he signed the back with 'love, TBone'. :D

Rhianna, in true Rhianna form, made me two cards. She made one at school (as well as the cutest CD photo), and then came home and made one more. This is the inside of the one she made me at home. So sweet! I love the little cut out hearts and extra messages.

This is the front of Rhianna's school card. How I wish I had lips like that! ;)

The letter she wrote for me on the inside brought tears to my eyes. Heck, all of the cards did that. I'm a big ol' sap.

And my most amazing husband gave me the most beautiful card I've ever seen. A perfectly beautiful card, and a perfectly beautiful day.

After breakfast and morning chores, I helped Rhianna with her school project of a map of her neighbourhood while I baked some date square for my Mum. She loves date square (as do I.. and all my kids I later came to find out!), but never makes it because my Dad can't stand it. Seemed like a perfect Mother's Day surprise. :) I meant to take a picture of a slice and put up the recipe on here, but blanked out. I'll add it to tomorrow's blog post.

We sat outside on the back porch for hours watching the birds. Okay, the kids sat for a while, but then went to ride bikes. Kyle and I on the other hand? We enjoyed every second on our porch. I was taking pictures of robins (and morning doves and crows and chickadees...)... but more importantly....

... I was waiting for birds to find my new bird feeder that Kyle and the kids bought me for Mother's Day!!! Oh, I am one happy woman. :) If I ever go missing you'll likely find me on my back porch. I love birds so much, and could watch them all day long. When this little sparrow landed and I managed to get a photo (or 15!), I was giddy!

One more bird picture because I can't resist. This grackle was fun to observe. He stood on my neighbour's chimney keeping watch and communicating with all the other grackles in the area. Very, very cool to listen to their wide array of calls.

My parents came over and Kyle cooked up his specialty - crepes! Oh my, you have not lived until you have eaten Kyle's crepes. Everyone loves them. People try them, and then they keep coming back for more. They really are that good. Anyway, we ate crepes, and then we headed to the 'cheese park' for a little while. I figured it was fitting to get a picture of me with my own mama. :)

After my folks left, the kids went into their rooms for some quiet reading time so Kyle and I could watch the latest Doctor Who episode, and then we brought the kids out of bed to watch the two hour season finale of the Amazing Race. What a way to cap off my day!

And because without this guy....

... or this guy....

... or these two, I wouldn't have been a Mummy in the first place. So a big thank you for being so wonderful, for making my job so easy, and for all your love you show me. Today was awesome. I couldn't have asked for a better day. I love you!

I love being a mummy!

What a beautiful morning! I'm currently sitting in bed with my blinds and window open, listening to the birds singing and my wind chime gently jingling. The sky is clear blue, the breeze is gentle and whispers promises of a wonderful day. Inside my house I hear some busy little bees whipping up a surprise Mother's Day breakfast for me which will be served to me in bed. I may not know what it is, but I sure know that something smells delicious! This is our Mother's Day tradition every year. I sleep in (or at least lay in) until they bring me my breakfast in bed. Each child picks out one item for me to eat.. something they know I love. I still remember the year that I ended up with pancakes (Avery), chips and dip (Rhianna) and some fruit slices (Tiernan). It was so sweet it brought tears to my eyes. I get the feeling that this year will not bring any chips and dip. ;)

My sister Carole came by yesterday with her friend Audrey. I hadn't seen Audrey since Tiernan & Grayson celebrated their first birthdays! That was in 2002. Time flies, but she hasn't changed one iota. She's still sweet, quiet, kind and has a fantastic laugh. We took a walk down to the "cheese park" (as my kids love to call it) and Carole and Rhianna were able to have some bonding time on the swings. It's not often that an Auntie can bond with a niece or nephew since there are often cousins around. And let's face it... Cousins > Aunties. It's just the way it goes. I'm very glad they were able to come over.

Food was a disaster yesterday. It was one of those days where it seemed like I couldn't do anything right in the kitchen. I made a dish that I got from a friend of mine and I don't know what I did wrong, but it was definitely not a hit for us. I may try making it again, but tweaking it to our tastes. I was glad that my sister and her friend didn't end up staying for dinner once I was sitting down eating. Tiernan was the only one who really liked the meal. At least the cucumber salad and buns were really good, right? It was also Date Night In. We watched 127 Hours (OMG!) and ate the Fudgey Brownie I made from The 100 Best Vegan Baking Recipes. I didn't expect the brownie to be so... gooey, so I ended up over cooking it a bit. The edges were too crispy, but the centre was delicious. It wasn't what I would expect from a brownie, but tasty all the same.

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Fudgey Brownie

3/4 cup flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

6 tbsp margarine

1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup chocolate chips, divided

1/4 cup baking cocoa

2 tbsp ground flaxseed

1/3 cup water

1 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease an 8x8 inch baking pan.

In a small bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

Heat 1/3 cup chocolate chips, margarine and cocoa over low heat (it suggests double boiler, but I just take time with it instead). Stir until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, mix ground flaxseed with water with a handheld mixer for about 2 minutes until it's a little gooey. Add the chocolate mixture, and mix until combined. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat again. Add the dry ingredients, and beat until thoroughly mixed. Stir in the remaining chocolate chips.

Pour into the baking dish. Cook for about 30-35 minutes. The crust should be flaky on the top. Don't overcook it like me!

Let it cool for 30 minutes on a cooling rack.

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And now I hear my busy bees coming with my breakfast in bed! Perfect timing.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL MY MUMMY FRIENDS AND FAMILY.