My dad's in full support of the movement

My mother has been gifted this shirt:



I can't picture her wearing it, but never let it be said her sister has no sense of humor.

So, I spent the weekend "mother sitting." My dad was out of town, and when we set this up, the idea was that I'd be there if her health deteriorated quickly, and in general to wait on her and keep her company. Of course, she's recovered so quickly that she's pretty much back to normal and didn't really need me around, but we decided to stick to the plan and just have a fun time. We really did have a great time -- it was the sort of weekend we haven't spent together in years, where we started early (for me -- you know, 10ish) and crammed in a bunch of random stuff both fun and practical. The hilight of the weekend for me was spending a couple hours Saturday afternoon doing a massive amount of weeding. I got to spend some time outside in the sun, my mom hates weeding (and I like it) so I did her a massive favor, and the house looks SO much better. We have irises in that corner! I'd almost forgotten! And those lilies of the valley were planted to deliberately line the path! Who knew!

My mom, however, more than returned the favor this evening. My phone suddenly stopped charging, and while I was on said phone telling my mom I'd have to go in to get a new one, Garfunkel was doing his usual sit-on-the-counter-and-claw-at-your-shirt-for-attention gig. I picked him up and dropped him to the floor, but as I was letting go, he managed to get his claws into my [favorite Threadless covered with Pollock-esque paint splotches] t-shirt one last time, and ripped three sizable holes into the front. I screeched, swore loudly, and chased him across the apartment with a pillow while my mom waited on the phone. I came back, explained what happened, apologized, told her I'd be in touch later, and hung up to conserve my battery. 25 minutes later, the door buzzed, and my mother was standing there with her sewing kit and phone charger.

Phone: charged. Shirt: mended. Mom: awesome.

And snaps to her for having the self control not to even give me a look for screaming unmentionable phrases in her ear. She's amazing at not overparenting.