Single Moms: How are you celebrating this Mother's Day? 

My first Mother’s Day on my own, I will forever be grateful to my father for coming to New York City to spend the weekend with us. He took Mae and me out to brunch. Then we walked over to the playground, where Mae, who had just turned one, piled sand onto Grandpa’s black dress shoes.

Mother’s Day has always been bittersweet for me. Whenever a stranger says about Mae, “She’s beautiful!” I want to plume my feathers. Nothing else comes close in my pride department. I often add, “She’s smart, too!”

When Mother’s Day arrives, it’s not like my kid is going to set her alarm, wake up, and serve me breakfast in bed. (Do you get that honor? Do tell!) The day will begin like any other Sunday: “Mom, I’m hungry!”

When my dad called this week to ask if he could take us out for brunch, I thanked him over and over. Maybe he’ll come and watch Mae play soccer; he hasn’t seen how fast she flies in her cleats yet.

There have been couple of Mother’s Days when I happened to be dating someone. Those boyfriends let the day come and go, and I tried to hide a tad of disappointment. Sure, Hallmark holidays annoy me, too — but don’t all moms want one day out of the year to feel appreciated?

Maybe it’s hard for someone “on the outside” — say, a boyfriend or a single girlfriend without kids — to appreciate what being a mom means. Or, maybe there’s something intimidating for a guy who took no responsibility for the fact that you’re a mom.

Tell me, mamas: How are you spending this Mother’s Day?

With family? Friends? Over hot cocoa in front of cartoons?

Is anyone getting a little break to go to the spa? Or, to dash off to see an adult movie?