Mother's Day Weekend

Saturday began with great plans. I was going to take the kids to get some donuts at the bakery we recently discovered. Then, Luke was going to whisk the kids off to the mall for a few hours to give me some "mommy time" to myself. As the kids and I were about to get loaded in the car, however, we realized that the car had been broken into during the night. The back window had been smashed, and the guy got our battery and $15! We know that car break-ins are fairly common in Barbados, but it was unsettling to know that the guy had been in our yard to do his deed. So, of course we couldn't go anywhere for the day as we waited for the police to come and Luke got a ride to go get a new battery. The guy at the battery shop said that a previous resident at our house got his battery stolen all the time. Great! So, until we can get an alarm or park nearer to the neighbor's dogs, Luke's been bringing the battery in each evening. So we spent the day at home on Saturday, trying to explain to Isaiah why people sometimes steal and trying to get his mind off the donut that he wasn't going to get. By the evening, things were sorted, we were tired of being stuck in a hot house, and we went to Oistins for a sweet Mothers' Day meal. We're still convinced the meals there are amazingly delicious (especially for the price!), and we love eating outside and seeing the occasional rooster wander by (Noelle has a great rooster noise). As I tucked Isaiah in that night, he told me "Mommy! I'm not going to tell you the secret, but tomorrow morning, our whole family is going to do something special in your bed!!"

So Sunday morning I got to stay in bed while my sweet husband and kiddos colored a card for me and prepared breakfast. They came in with muffins, fruit, and the card. Isaiah chose a picture of the two of them to be printed on it and they colored around the edges. Noelle brought me a thermos of coffee. Isaiah kept telling me about how special breakfast in bed was - "Mommy! That was your surprise!!!" We then headed to church for quite the Mothers' Day extravaganza. The holiday is a pretty big deal in Barbados and is especially recognized at church. The men's' ministry has been working, planning, gathering money for weeks! The church service was 3 full hours long, with the regular worship, communion, and sermon plus poems, songs, dances, flowers presented, a slide show, stories told, etc. Isaiah got to be on stage to sing a song with all of the young kids about being thankful for their moms. I was so proud of my little guy up there on stage! He kept looking down at the written words of the song on the paper he was holding, even though he can't read yet. He was pretty serious until each time he caught our eyes, then he'd light up with a huge, proud smile. It might have been my favorite moment of the day. So, after the festivities at the church, the party continued at a nearby beach house with a full lunch! They know how to honor "mudders" (as the Bajans say) around here.

We put the kids down for late naps, relaxed, and then had a family picnic of bagels and cream cheese in front of the tv, watching Planet Earth in the air conditioned room.

I spent the weekend feeling so thankful for my precious little ones and for my husband who blesses and encourages me so much in my mothering. I love being mom to Isaiah and Noelle. They are the most delightful, sweet, funny, smart, beautiful children in the world, and I can say that because I'm their mom :)

Here we are in the bright morning 80 degree sun before church -