A Tribute to Tradition: Happy Mother's Day to Mom and Silver Valley Girl

A view from the deck of my mother's home.


Silver Valley Girl gave us our sibling assignment for today, which was to write a tribute to our mother for Mother's Day. Her post is filled with fantastic pictures which include our mother serving a volleyball! You can find it here.

Today is a special day to honor mothers. We celebrated Mother's Day with my family yesterday in Kellogg, Idaho. The word that kept rolling around in my mind as I relaxed in my childhood home, prepared a dinner for the two special mothers, and enjoyed time with my family was tradition. That is one reason why I love to go to my mom's house, especially after a very busy week of teaching.

Home is comforting and safe. Home holds traditions that I can always rely on. There is ritual in conversations, food choices, and expected events. Spending a day "at home" was a reminder of how important family traditions can be. They are the threads that weave our family together.
These were a few traditions we all enjoyed. When we arrived fresh flowers had been delivered from my brother and his wife. The new spring tablecloth was waiting on the deck if we chose to eat outside. Mom was ready to help prepare food even if the dinner was to honor her!
Traditional serving dishes were brought out including this vintage pitcher that I love. For this special dinner I served citrus white wine sangria. Favorite dishes were served, but often a new dish is introduced. For this dinner it was The Barefoot Contessa's Roasted Asparagus. Music is usually a big tradition at family gatherings. My three nieces kept things lively by serenading us after dinner with a roaring rendition of "Sisters" from White Christmas. We also got to enjoy a phone call from brother Raymond Pert and later a new dessert called Orange Blossom Trifle. Another big tradition in our family is appreciation of each other's company. It was so nice to watch my two favorite mothers open gifts, listen to singing, and visit on the phone with my brother. Mom took time to pose for a picture here between activities. Silver Valley Girl is appreciating her brother's wise-cracking words on the phone here.

Happy Mother's Day to my two favorite mothers that continue to keep tradition alive and well!