My darling son and his two children sent me a gorgeous bouquet today. The colors are just fabulous in my library and that purple stock fragrance is absolutely intoxicating! Hate to see him spend the money - flowers at Mother's Day are the highest price of the entire year. It was a lovely surprise, though, and I will enjoy them tremendously.

I hope everyone had a fabulous Mother’s Day! My girls and I got out into the yard- I planted 3 of the four Austin’s, finished mulching the main beds and fertilizing, and got the Barden Bed half weeded, so I feel quite accomplished. Still have more weeding, mulching, and edging but things are getting there! Lily planted her first plant- a tiny boxwood that came free with my polyantha order.

I was walking my dog yesterday. Typically in Florida, people wait until the sun gets low because its so hot and the sun blinding. While walking, I pass neighbors and we always chat briefly from a distance. I tell people my dog is not the friendliest and people respect that (not true). Yesterday a neighbor was walking on the opposite side of the street and we chatted briefly while walking. We were talking about how we were dealing with the virus and being isolated and how tired we were of the whole thing. Just chit-chat. Then she says, I think the whole thing is overblown and you'll never see me wearing a mask, gloves and all the crap. As I kept walking, I said, 'well, I certainly don't want to get it as I'm not a spring chicken.' She said, 'its all overblown and I wouldn't worry about it at all.' I'm 71 and my guess is she's about the same. We passed her house and I kept walking thinking, what makes her think it's all overblown? I have no idea but at my age, even if I survived, who wants to take the chance? Who wants to be sick for weeks? Not me, not worth it. I don't like being isolated, I don't like the restrictions its put on my life, but l also don't like the idea of catching this virus and its implications. Just not worth it. Jane

Happy Mother’s Day to all ❤️ We had a small group of DH, me, DS2and my mother. The kids nominated DS2 to buy plants for my mom and me. We had a very lazy day, with lunch of quiche Lorraine I had made yesterday, and a dinner of chicken prepared like schnitzel ( cutlets pounded thin, dusted with flour and paprika, dipped in egg and rolled in panko and cooked in the smallest amount of oil possible), on a bed of creamed spinach and mushrooms, served with saffron rice. Watermelon pieces as a salad and coconut cake for dessert, all made by me. Our club restaurant isn’t open for sit down meals yet, and I did not want to risk going elsewhere just yet, so I had this all planned and it took just an hour to put it together. We ate in the informal dining area and I used one of the azalea plants the kids gave me as a centerpiece. Nothing fancy for a change, and I found a box of unused tray liners from Hester and a Cook when we moved and used those as sort of faux placemats. So glad we did not have a big do that required a lot of cleanup, as after dinner DH got a call, his mother died on Mother’s Day evening. She was in her late 80s and had Alzheimer’s for more than a decade, cared for in her own home according to her wish by round the clock helpers. DH and DS2 had driven to Alabama to see her the day before and found her especially frail, so it was not a surprise to anyone. Still, any passing is a blow, a jolt in the road. I’m more thankful than ever to have my mother! DH’s brother, a physician, was with their mom at the end. We will have a very quiet family funeral in a few days. “A life well lived is not to mourn, but to envy and inspire hope.”