Can you spell "Mom"?

I don't see a lot of movies, so the ones I do actually go buy a ticket for are ones I think will be worth the price. Today I took my mom to see such a film. AKEELAH AND THE BEE is probably one of the best movies I've ever seen. I laughed, I cried, I clapped - and one very enthusiastic lady behind me yelled out "You go, girl!" It was terrific! Lawrence Fishbourne and Angela Bassett, the guy that plays "Crabman" on My Name is Earl, a bunch of people I've seen but have no idea what their names are... they were all great. It's this year's Whale Rider. I took my mom and my dad and they had the same reaction I did. We were expecting a sweet little movie and got this power-house. I learned a long time ago not to wear much eye makeup to the movies (I seem to cry at the drop of a hat these days), so went with just a little eyeliner pencil. Mom, unfortunately, actually put on mascara...

Afterwards, we went across the way to have little salads and split an apple crisp three ways. We talked about all kinds of things. I was telling a story about Zach and my dad looked at me and said that I sounded just like a mother. I told him that I was a mother. Zach's not just a kid extension - he's my son. Dad got a little misty-eyed and said yes, that's right. Then he told me the story of the first time my brother John picked up the check and how weird it was to realize that his son was an adult who made his own money. And I'm a mom - with my own child. It must be really strange for them sometimes. So much of their lives have been invested in being the PARENTS. 38 years, all told. That's from the birth of me to the sixth child leaving the nest ( I think I have this right). That's a long time to be Mommy and Daddy. And of course, they still are. It doesn't matter how old your children get - they're still your children and you are still their parents.

I had a lovely Mother's Day in addition to the movie with my own. Slept in late, nice hot bath. We were trying to decide what else to do when Mom called and said she wanted to go to the movie after all (she'd earlier said she didn't really feel like going anywhere). After some deliberation about food, we decided to go eat a late lunch. Zach wanted to go to the place-with- the-green-thing-that-you-can't-see-through. You know, next to the grocery store? It took us a while, but we finally came up with Hobbit Hoagies as the restaurant in question. It used to be a great sandwich place (and the food is still good), but it looks more like a NASCAR bar now. Still, lunch was pretty darned good!

After the movie, I came home, called my granddaughter Kylee (returned her call, actually) and thanked her for the card. Then I listened to Zach read his "Avatar: the Last Airbender" book and put the "boys" to bed. I will finish off my day with a diet coke and the first part of the season finale of "Grey's Anatomy". It is the one show I try to watch consistently.

It's been a lovely day.