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Jeanne Bice really had a special place in her heart for mothers. As a mother herself, she knew that raising children and sharing traditions and teaching them values and showing them love was a full-time job in itself. She also knew that in our modern world there were a lot of single mothers out there, like herself, who made the world more special.

I remember when I first met Jeanne in 2006, and one of the very first questions she asked me was: “Are you close to your mother Patrick?” I told her I was. She then asked me, “Do you love her?” I told her I definitely did. She then said, “That’s great news, Patrick! Make sure you tell her that you love her as often as you can – Mothers really love to hear that!”

So, I know that Jeanne really loved Mother’s Day and all that ‘Mother’s Day’ represents. She also told me when we had that conversation that she used to love hearing Quackers tell her stories about how much their mothers meant to them and how much those stories inspired so many of her creations.

I thought it would be fun to share with you some pictures of some of the Quacker Factory team members – and our mothers – and also some fond remembrances we have of how we each celebrated this special day with our own mothers!

Here’s a picture of me with my beautiful mother who I told Jeanne about when we first met. This picture was taken in October last year when Mom and I went on a two-week cruise through New England when the leaves were changing and in all of their glory. I remember growing up that each year on Mother’s Day, my brother and I would give Mom a fresh corsage – usually with a red rose in it – to wear to church. After church, we would all go out to eat brunch – and what a fun time that always was! I do love living in London, but I just wish it were closer to my parents in the States – especially at Mother’s Day!

Here’s a picture of Kristy and her mother – and her daughter. Kristy does so much for our team. Amongst many things, Kristy makes sure that the sets on our shows look extra special. If you see Angel drinking out of a fun and decorated mug or glass, then Kristy’s the one to thank! She’s also fantastic with a camera! (And she keeps Angel and me in line – which is a full-time job in itself!!) I love this picture of her. In November last year, she and her husband took the kids to Disney World, and her parents went with them. Kristy remembers when she was in 3^rd grade that her parents took her to Disney World with her grandparents. Her beautiful daughter Madison is in 2^nd grade here. What made this trip so special is that Madison was born on Kristy’s grandmother’s birthday – April 13^th – and that Madison got to enjoy Disney World with her Grandmother just like Kristy got to enjoy it with her grandmother at the same age! How wonderful is this picture of three generations with Cinderella?!

Here’s a picture of Page and her beautiful mother. Page has worked with Quacker Factory for many, many years. She manages our office and warehouse in Florida, and she used to be Jeanne’s right-hand gal. This is a picture of her and her mother that was taken in 1990. Have you ever seen a more beautiful bride in your life?! Page said that her mother always says that her happiest Mother’s Days are when she’s reminiscing about important events in her children’s lives. Her mother loves looking at pictures of the births of the grandkids, graduations, weddings, etc. Page told me that since they live one mile from the beach, their annual Mother’s Day tradition these days is to make a picnic dinner, grab some big blankets, and then head to the beach at sunset. They bring their favorite foods and champagne. Her brother brings his guitar, and they all share stories of fun times. Then, the ‘singers’ in the family belt out some tunes – sometimes remembering the words, and sometimes just making them all up as they go along!!

Here’s a picture of Jeanne’s grandson James. James is our newest member of the team and has been working on something that his grandmother created – The Quacker Community. This is a great place for all of you to gather between our shows – a place where you can chat with each other, share pictures, recipes and stories. If you haven’t joined the Quacker Community, what are you waiting for? You are going to LOVE what James has done to honor his grandmother! This is a picture of James with his mother and father, Karin & Tim Bice.

Another member of our team is John Mason. John and Tim were best friends growing up in Wisconsin. When John and Tim were kids, John used to cut ‘Mrs. Bice’s’ lawn! John’s memory of Mother’s Day was going to church and then coming home to plant flowers. His mother loved to have flowers in a wide variety of planters, and her favorite was hanging baskets. Here’s a picture of John and his mother on the day that John got married in 1988. Don’t they look great?!

And I just HAD to share this picture with you because, when John and his wife went to Florida on their honeymoon, they stopped by to see Jeanne, Tim and Lee. This was taken in July 1988 – look at how beautiful our Jeanne looked – and yep, even BEFORE QVC Jeanne was wearing her headbands!!

And, of course, I’ve saved the best for last – our own wonderful Angel and her memories of her beautiful mother! Angel and her sisters loved celebrating Mother’s Day and treating their mother to a really special day. They would wake up early and make breakfast for their mother – and deliver it to her in bed! Angel told me that her mother always gave them so much every day of the year, so it was their opportunity to treat her like a queen for the day. Here’s a picture of Angel and her mother. I really love this picture – you can just tell by the way that Angel’s mother is looking at her at how very much she loved her.

Here’s another wonderful picture of Angel’s gorgeous mother. It’s so very obvious where Angel gets her beautiful smile from!!

And here’s another picture of Angel with her mother, one of her sisters, her mother’s aunt, and two of her cousins. Can you guess which cutie is Angel?!?

How do you celebrate Mother’s Day?! We’d love to hear on our new and improved Quacker Community site! And if you have some pictures of your mother that you wish to share with all of us, please make sure to post them – we would LOVE to see them!!! 

To join the Quacker Community on QuackerFactory.com, just click here:  http://bit.ly/QF--Community

Wishing you all the happiest of Mother’s Days!!!!

Quacker Hugs & Love From Across The Duck Pond!!

xoxo

Patrick

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