Some background...

Last year MD fell on our W/E, OH tried and tried to make arrangements for her to have them for part if not all but no dice from BM. We had them ALL day, they were miserable little snots, my kids and I felt uncomfortable and couldn't do the "normal" stuff - breakfast in bed etc, felt awkward celebrating it with them there - you know?

FF to this year, again our W/E. Again BM with the No No NO. She's working apparently. So OH promised me that he would return them early and my girls, he and I would go out for dinner. NO dice again, BM is working the evening shift so we end up having them over night instead of til 8pm...

Last week OH was talking to my DD10 one evening (the day of the mothers day stall at school) and she was all excited about what they bought, and what they wanted to do for me etc. He texted me the next morning (leaves the house at 4:30am so we don't see each other in the morning) and said that after his chat with dd he decided he is going to MAKE SURE that BM takes the kids for part of the day as my kids and I deserve to have some special time just for us, without his sitting on the couch like lumps with miserable faces (he SAID that = small victory LOL)

I told him that my only real desire/wish for MD was that all the people I care about be there in the morning, not fussed if it's b'fast in bed or whatever, but I just wanted a nice morning with HIM and my kids there being happy. It didn't matter to me if the skids were there or not - that was the ONE thing I wanted.

FF again to Saturday. He tells me he has made arrangements (took all week of him trying to convince BM to take them - she kept saying "don't bother") He tells me that he is dropping skids off at 9am and we have to pick them up at 4:30..... It's an hour round trip... I was like WTF???? I told you my most important thing was to have everyone there in the morning, and now you are running around for BM and skids instead of giving me the ONE part of MD I wanted???? PISSED OFF. But to be fair, he was trying.

So, On Thursday when I went grocery shopping I took dd's 10 and 7 - gave them $30 and said what I really want for MD is a pretty special water bottle (everyone else in the fam has their own special big water bottle, I use bottled water bottles IYKWIM? The used bottle from when you buy the water.) So I thought it would be nice to have my own special one.... and a box of chocolates. $30 - well and truly enough for that. Right?

FF to Sunday morning. OH takes skids to BM's. Mine come in about 9am and give me their presents, the stuff from the MD stall at school some little bits they have made - all lovely, and a gift bag...

I open it! And inside we have a large block of chocolate (dd10 proudly tells me it was only $2.98...) and a small purple plastic drink bottle - the kind your kids take to school in their lunch box...

I was horrified (there was NO change from my $30 LOL) This stuff - $10 max. I asked her about what it cost, where were the receipts (oh this sounds so bad - I hope you all get it though LOL)

So, they trot off to make me breakfast. I have celiacs disease = no wheat. My normal coffee mug is enormous, so takes a very heaped spoonful of coffee... my special MUM mug is more tea cup sized.... So, you can imagine the coffee I got - talk about a jolt!! And jam on toast... cold.

So, they proudly hand me my breakfast on a tray, and trot off to make their own, and I admit to a few tears as I sat there by myself with my ridiculously strong coffee and cold toast that will give me stomach issues later in the day...

The bright side?

OH comes back, we laugh til we cry about the $30 water bottle - he got it. And he tells me about BM.

He dropped the skids off, and she texted him with "you shouldn't have dropped them off" Turns out her plans were to spend the day with her cousins, she is a good Catholic martyr and obviously planned the victim role for the day, woebegone expression and laments of "ex OH wouldn't let me take them on MD! He is playing happy families with MY kids and his whore!"

And we foiled that for her didn't we!

Sort of made the rest all right }:)