It started on Mother’s Day.

My mom started saying that she wants to go to a restaurant.

She wants to go out.

She wants to go somewhere, somewhere other than here.

Now, in the pre-pandemic days, taking my mom out of the house was a ten or fifteen step process.

Did I mention she’s 90?

Also, the restaurants around here aren’t open for dine-in…yet.

And, even when they do reopen their doors, I won’t be taking my elderly (read high risk) momma to one for a meal.

Don’t get me wrong — we’ve been getting takeout pretty much every weekend from a number of local eateries such as Twin Oaks, Avvio, Garden Grille, Hometown Poke, and most recently, Zooma, but anything beyond that is off the table indefinitely for her.

Yup, my mom has quarantine fatigue, but where to take her?

It has to be a situation where she is safe but that will leave her with a feeling that she’s escaped isolation, that things are back to normal-ish, if only for a few minutes. (Hey, she’s earned it!)

So, I have opted for the no contact Wicked Tulip experience circa May 2020. (We’re all having to ramp up the imagination and innovation this year.)

A lotta people took their moms for the holiday, but I feel like going now has more of a whimsical and spontaneous energy to it.

I mean, who doesn’t love fresh, locally grown flowers, and supporting Rhody small businesses? (Also, whilst we’re on the topic, my mom and I both adore flowers.)

I mean, Wicked Tulips, they were there for us in good times. (They’re in Exeter this year too btw — before your GPS mistakenly guides you to Johnston.)

For our family or IG blogger photoshoots which were hands down the hottest things to do around these parts every spring.

For our faux candid (fandids anyone?) phone photos.

For all of that fun and frivolity.

Not to mention the cars full of people who inevitably popped up every season without any tickets to speak of, but I digress…

Anywho, you can go to WickedTulips.com to reserve your purchase and pick-up slot at the farm.

Think they may be able to scan your receipt through the car window?

They will place your bundles of tulips — no tip toeing through the fields this year, folks — in your trunk or way back, completely contact less and without any CV related stressing.

You can also probably snap some pretty photos of the fields from your car windows.

PS ~ I’ll be sharing more on the @PattyJDotCom Instagram later today.