We ate, we drank, we birthday-ed
Right now, we have to celebrate differently. It takes creativity to find ways to make special events actually feel special right now, when you can’t travel, or have a party, or go out for a special meal. My mom celebrated a big birthday this weekend, and her planned trip to Europe was cancelled, so we decided to do a weekend at the lake instead.
My mom is the best hostess and entertainer I know. The pressure was getting to me to match her level of entertaining in the weeks leading up to this weekend - I wanted everything to be perfect, because she would make it perfect in my eyes, with daily checklists, elaborate decorations, delicious food, and just being incredibly extra. She’s truly epic.
My mom loves good food and good drinks. My dad is a master mixologist, so I left the drinks to him. My dad and I emailed to plan out a menu of sushi, seafood and an epic happy hour spread. My kids are very experienced happy hour participants, which might sound inappropriate. My parents host happy hour when they have the kids, put out snacks, give the girls apple juice or lemonade with a cherry, and have a cocktail. I feel like this is a level of parenting that could be inspiring to the rest of us while we are stuck at home with our kids. Missing happy hour after work? Just add the kids in…they love snacks and apple juice! A platter of snacks buys you a lot less whining and fighting and a chance to drink your cocktail in peace, mostly.
I ordered custom t-shirts. On Thursday, I tracked the shipment, and found it would arrive on the Tuesday after the weekend. I was so crushed to figure out that one of my big plans fell through, and now I would have a collection of Dodo’s Birthday Squad t-shirts that I couldn’t use.
Friday night, we ordered a large sushi omakase platter from Haru Sushi. Omakase would normally be served in a series of small plates, chef’s choice. But right now, they prepare a beautiful platter that is a work of art made of fish. It feels special because it’s beautiful. We decided to eat the meal piece by piece together, so we could all discuss each bite — ranking our favorites and our least favorite. The roe, the caviar, the fish…it was all amazing. It felt like being at a real restaurant, sharing delicious food. In order to allow for this adult meal, I fed the kids macaroni and cheese and peas, and sent them off to watch a movie. No guilt.
Saturday morning we got up to an excess of donuts. My mom usually makes homemade donuts with the girls, but since it was her birthday, she decided to just buy donuts. We brought donuts from Duck Donuts, which are so delicious. I don’t know what they do to them, but they are just better than regular donuts. My mom brought some really cute decorated donuts. I made some eggs too, and we had a leisurely, lake-view breakfast.
After too many donuts, we were ready for the first birthday surprise. Since we can’t all be together, we decided to ask people to make a short video or send in pictures for a video to surprise mom. The first video was from family. Over the years, my mom has hosted Thanksgiving every year, opening her home to everyone. She makes it fancy, not to show off (mostly), but to make it feel special to honor her guests. Thanksgiving is my favorite family holiday because it brings us all together in ways that other holidays don’t. Anyway, as I watched the video, I felt how much love and care my mom pours into our family, and what an honor it is to have her as my mom. She is so loved, and she has impacted the whole family through building traditions that bring us together.
Enough tears — let’s get out on the water. We headed out to tube and play. Lake LBJ has a sandbar in the middle of the lake with soft sand and islands, and it’s such a fun place for the kids to play. It’s almost like being at the beach. Theo wore himself out running up and jumping back into the water, digging in the sand, and kicking his legs around to swim. We all floated and talked. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day, perfect for lake life.
Baby schedule and an increasing number of Trump flags on the boats around us as more people showed up to party on the sandbar encouraged us to head back to the house. We got back and had lunch - fancy sandwiches and homemade pasta salad. The kids headed off to have quiet time, and we played games together.
My mom had promised Ruthie that she would watch Descendants (a made for TV Disney movie musical about the children of the villains) during this weekend. Harper helped me put up a few decorations for happy hour, and I prepared a big board of cheese, cured meats, olives, snacks, chocolates, fruit and veggies. I spent an hour at Central Market selecting the foods my mom likes best. It was the most epic happy hour board I’ve ever done.
We welcomed her out after the movie, and her face lit up with the simple decorations, fancy snacks, and good Champagne (thanks Dad!). We chatted and ate. Making it special and fancy was a way to show that I cared for her and wanted her to know it. She is special, and so special was perfect for her.
After the Champagne, my dad made some fancy cocktails, and we slowly got dinner ready (just some grilled seafood and shishito peppers). We weren’t hungry after all that food, so it was perfect.
We had one more surprise for my mom - another video from her friends. There were friends she had known from college, from law school, from her first job, from when Jack and I were in school, and from beyond that. My mom is a good friend, and it shows in listening to the funny stories and celebrations of her generous impact on people’s lives. It was a great reminder that little things we do for others last for them - making a meal during a hard time, sending a card, creating a party.
I hope that someday my friends will want to make a video like that - that I will have had an impact on others through my kindness, showing up, and bringing joy. I’m not the party girl or the entertainer my mom is, but I hope to be the kind of light in the world that she is.
Here’s to you, Mom. You are an inspiration.