Husbands get stuck on the mother of all dilemmas
As I write this, there are just four days left to make a decision, and the pressure is getting to me.
I blame Anna Jarvis who, in 1907, gave birth to Mother’s Day. Husbands like me have faced the challenge of coming up with just the right gift to show our love and appreciation for the moms in our lives ever since.
It wasn’t a problem when we were kids. We could pick up a rock in the backyard, paint it pink, hand it to our mom on Mother’s Day and she would declare it was the most beautiful rock she had ever seen. Try that with a wife and the rock will wind up bouncing off your noggin.
When we became fathers, we could share the pressure with our kids, although we might have had to help them paint the rocks.
But once the nest empties and the woman in your life is not necessarily the mother of your children, Mother’s Day gets tricky. Are we obligated to also send a gift to former wives to show our appreciation for them bearing our children, even if those children turned out to be louts? And what about stepmothers?
We could just ignore Mother’s Day completely, I suppose. A lot depends on how much we enjoy a week or so of frost. So we better come up with something.
Unfortunately, picking out suitable presents is not one of my strengths; just ask my ex-wife. One year I actually bought her a vacuum cleaner. It’s not necessarily the main reason that wound up being our last year together, but it probably didn’t help.
There seems to be no perfect answer for husbands like me. Candy and flowers show we lack imagination. A gift card means we’re lazy. Something slinky from Victoria’s Secret proves we have one-track minds. Expensive jewelry indicates we probably have a guilty conscience about something.
We could take them out for dinner at a fine restaurant. But most really fine restaurants are closed on Sundays, and watching the NBA playoffs at BW3’s might not thrill her.
In search of the best Mother’s Day gift, I went online and entered Best Mother’s Day 2022 gifts. The first suggestion that popped up was a 65-inch QLED TV. Not a bad idea. Mom could stay home and watch the NBA playoffs.
But I’m leaning toward a suggestion marketed this year by Kentucky Fried Chicken. They’re calling it a “buckquet,” and it consists of a glass vase containing a dozen roses along with eight wooden skewers on which the Colonel’s tenders can be impaled.
Nothing says love and appreciation like a chunk of fried chicken on a stick.
When it comes to most of our moms, nothing is too good. And when it comes to Mother’s Day, for many of us it feels like it should be celebrated every day.
There’s nothing better than making o ne of the most important women in your life feel doted on and spoiled, especially when it’s just because. When it comes to mom, a great way to celebrate her today or any day is relaxing over a spot of tea.
Whether you’re raising a glass with her or to her, here are some inspired destinations to enjoy a tea set- ting and a little lunch or a fresh scone to accompany it.
These three options are local shops for you to plan the ultimate tea for your mom, for your friends or for whoever else you can think of that’s deserving of a treat.
Central Perc European Cafe 2315 Far Hills Ave #1513, Dayton
http://centralperc.restau-rantwebexpert.com 937-299-5282
This is a sweet little spot on Far Hills Avenue to take refuge when the hustle and bustle of the day demands a break. It’s a small spot with a mighty menu.
A recent stop for lunch found me enjoying a wonderfully satisfying carrot soup and a cheese and onion sandwich with a spot of tea and hopping back out
30 minutes later ready and rejuvenated for the rest of the day’s activities. There’s a nice sandwich list, soups, salads, coffees, teas, lattes and Rosies’ scones are there to enjoy with some jam, butter and cream.
An afternoon tea is available between 2 and 4 p.m. consisting of finger sandw iches, small pasti es, cream, scones and a pot of tea. Famished lords and ladies should call ahead to be sure this Victorian Brit- ish tradition is available that day depending on product availability and crowds.
Communitea Cafe
100 Watervliet Ave., Dayton
937-476-7434 www.tea-makesmehappy.com
Reservations are required at least 24 hours in advance at Belmont’s cozy and ador- able Communitea.
Go all out for a high tea service at $19.95 a person with assorted tea sandwiches, sweets and savo- ries, includinga scone with English clotted cream and unlimited tea.
Sandwiches, soups, salad combos and cakes and scones are available for a la carte purchasing.
Remember When Tea Room
370 Old Stage Rd., Waynesville 513-855-1135 www.rememberwhentea.com
If you want to go all out locally, this is the spot.
Reservations are required if you want to get in for a tea at this charming Victorian-style home in Waynesville, and spots fill up fast, so start planning now.
The tea room just released its menu for May, and it’s a themed Downton Abbey tea party. There’s a petite tea option for ages 7-12 for $16.95 a person, a light tea for $21.95 a person and an ultimate tea for $26.95 a person.
The ultimate tea menu sounds positively dreamy:
■ Mr. Carson’s smokehouse bacon cheeseball and crackers
■ Cora’s creamy garden soupBate’s
■ berry almond salad
■ Daisy’s cucumber cream sandwich
■ Edwardian’s egg salad sandwich
■ Coronation chicken salad croissant
■ Baroness butterscotch chip scone with chantilly cream
■ L ady Mary’s lemon chiffon trifle
■ Earl of Grantham’s Earl Grey macaron
■ Lady Sy b il’s shortbread bars
■ Featured seasonal teas are Mrs. Patmore’s pudding tea, English rose tea and Bate’s brambleberry tea.
For Downton Abbey fans, a stop here during the month of May is a must!
They also rent spaces for an event for a two-hour tea time for larger groups if you are in need of some- thing extra special.
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