This is going to be my first mother’s day with a baby. We’re currently in Kyoto, and I just watched her learn to crawl on the tatami mat of our machiya, and, around the same time as learning to crawl, she’s also developed an awareness of object permanence. By which I mean, for the first time, she cries when I leave. Cries when she sees me if she’s in someone else’s arms (save when she’s meeting new friends for the first time, then she’s happy to be passed around!). And, stupidly, I’m surprised. I work. And I’m not fun. I’m a terrible clown; that’s dad’s province. So sometimes I wonder if she’ll like me. And then when she cries for me, reaches for me, snuggles up to me to sleep I realize that being mom & loving her is enough. I don’t have to be the funny one. It’s okay if I work. She loves me like I love her: unconditionally, no matter what.
I teamed up with Mother magazine (find an interview and photos of Eula & I in our Tennessee home here!) and Amazon to put together this Mother’s Day gift guide for all different sorts of moms. We have gifts for the gardener, gifts for the crafter, and gifts for the cook (that would be me!) Though I am partial to my copper watering can…
For the Gardener
1. Bosmere Watering Can
2. Zen Garden Terracotta Planter
3. Cement Ribbed Vase
4. Dewit 3-Piece Gardening Set
5. Bosmere Copper Plant Marker
6. Haws Compost Caddy
7. Chooka Black Rain Boot
8. Hanging Tray Bird Feeder
9. Harvest: Unexpected Projects Using 47 Extraordinary Garden Plants
10. Glass Hanging Terrariums
For the Cook
1. Iwachu Japanese Iron Teapot
2. Mepra 5 Piece Place Setting
3. Olive Wood Soup Ladle
4. Stone Washed Napkins
5. Kotobuki Fish Filleting Knife
6. Plenty More: Vibrant Vegetable Cooking From London’s Ottolenghi
7. Kitchenaid Stand Mixer
8. Iwachu Iron Cooking Pot
9. Digital Kitchen Scale
10. Cast Iron Dutch Oven
For the Crafter
1. Classic Wool Roving Yarn
2. Sketch Pads
3. Moleskin Journal
4. Wabi-Sabi : Further Thoughts
5. Takumi Knitting Needles
6. Tool Caddy
7. Multi Tool
8. Oak Easel
9. Sullivan Tailor Scissors
10. Washi Tape Set
