A Mother's Day treat I started last year, but didn't get to finish in time.

Dedicated to all moms and female role models for kids. Grandmothers, teachers and aunties. Because love is often a mess, and that's what makes it beautiful.

I love reviews and Madam Secretary gave us such amazing characters to work with for fan fic.

Brenda

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Henry looked over at his wife and couldn't help but chuckle. She was a mess. Her foot was soaked in dog urine, there was syrup on her arm and shirt, some of which she had managed to rub onto her face and get in her hair- which was tangled and he saw some pink bubblegum stuck above her right ear. Her pj's were rumpled and her legs needed a shave. There was a little tar stuck to her right ankle. She smelled strongly of fake flowers and musk. She was the most beautiful woman in the world. She was his world.

--

She had arrived home from Iraq exactly 12 hours ago- the night before Mother's Day, and he had missed her terribly.

So had the kids and the dog.

Which is why everything was an epic disaster this morning because she had surprised her husband by arriving home a week early. Her dog Lady greeted her with a keening whimper, and a big sloppy kiss. Elizabeth had patted the dog and shushed her. "Please don't wake up the kids. I just want to see Henry first girl. It's late. We wake up the kids up and they'll be a mess. Thanks Lady! The dog quieted and settled back onto her bed in the kitchen.

Elizabeth left her kit bag in the laundry room and padded to the bedroom. The look on Henry's face as she entered the room made it all worth it. He cherished her, as much as she did him. Henry grabbed her and refused to let go. It had been a long 8 weeks- well 7 weeks. Elizabeth was home early.

Tearfully and joyfully the couple reunited in the most physically primal way any two people in love could. They knew one another intimately and this coupling made both of them come alive.

Somewhere around 2 am she was cold and so she found one of his old t shirts and a pair of her flannel shorts. It was a good thing too because six year old Allison had wandered in around dawn and shrieked with delight- "MOMMY! "

So after a huge family snuggle, complete with tears and laughs - Stevie remembered that it was actually Mother's Day and they did not have to postpone their plans to celebrate. Excitedly, three little ones had run to grab treasures from their rooms. Their dad had explained that their mom was not due home until the following Saturday and so while America would celebrate Mother's Day this weekend - the McCords would do it a week later. He felt bad that their excited mods and handiwork would have to wait a week. His kids were like military kids though. He had served and come home in time to raise the children; so his career was not something that impacted them the way their mother's did. Elizabeth did work a desk at Langley most of the time. But there were late meetings, unexpected late nights and sometimes a week or two in a conflict zone. Henry knew she was the analyst, the leader, the Interrogater. But she met the worst of humanity and she was on the bases, sometimes the embassy and always near the action. He was very proud of her and this time she was home to stay.

The children had produced some things and they were eager to show their mom

From Jason a painted handprint and crayoned letters "I love Momma". Squished and complete with a superman sticker and some sort of smiley face stamper. He also had a prized ninja turtle temporary tattoo which he had licked and was happy to put on her hand. He was 3 and loved preschool.

From Allison a beaded necklace and a card with a picture of the two of them eating ice cream. Elizabeth had to admit that her little Noodle could draw. The little girl had only turned six in March, the last day Mom had been home. Elizabeth had promised herself she would never have to rush Noodle's birthday again.

From Stevie, a bottle of drugstore perfume that seemed awfully big. " I bought it at Walgreens with my own money Mom. I know we fight sometimes but I really missed you this trip. I am glad you are back. Is it true you are done with Jordan and the CIA and that you are going to coach my soccer team this summer?" Ahh yes. Puberty had hit this almost eleven year old a little early; she reminded Elizabeth of herself at that age. All arms and legs. New smells and body hair, moody. One moment a girl the next a young woman. Elizabeth held a beat as she remembered giving her own mom a giant bottle of bad perfume around this age. How gracious Suzanne had been.

Henry grinned at his wife. He knew she was going to wear some of this new perfume and not embarrass Stevie in the least. Sure enough - she spritzed herself with it and the action elicited a proud grin from her eldest.

Henry noticed that Stevie had a mouthful of bubble gum and he wanted to ask her why she was chewing it early in the morning - but decided not to pick that battle. The girl was going to need braces in a couple of months and he figured this habit of hers would go away during the two years of expensive dentistry. It had kept Stevie from sucking her thumb and biting her nails.

Elizabeth looked exhausted so Henry told her to go back to sleep and that when she awoke next it would be to a delicious meal.

The kids were happy to do that as soon as they hugged Mom one more time. Ironically it was Stevie who sneezed as she got a whiff of mom's new scent.

Grinning - he kissed his wife and ushered the kids out.

He brought them to the kitchen to make pancakes and he heard Lady barking. She stopped - and he was relieved. Lady was getting older and had developed occasional bladder infections. When she was excited there were often puddles around the house. To prevent this he made sure the Bull Mastiff went out every couple of hours through the day. There would be so much more room for everyone on the farm he reasoned.

After the fight with his beloved wife about her career taking her to Baghdad - she had decided to resign. She had come home with a gleam on her eye and listings for a whole new life. They had sold their cozy Charlottesville ranch side split, and were headed about 45 minutes away. The crazy thing was - she was planning to pursue her PhD come fall, and teach a few classes. He had pointed out that staying in town might have made more sense - but she had said that they could manage the commute. Books on tape, careful planning, and with all the kids in school; they would make it work.

Crazy in love and so thankful that his ultimatum had not resulted in her leaving him to raise three kids while she got herself killed in the Middle East - well they could commute. Every couple needs new challenges he would say.

So now it was Mother's Day, May 8th 2005 and his wife had returned from a final deployment. Conrad Dalton is lucky she's in one piece.

Nicely played on Dalton's part , thought Henry. Elizabeth could quit - but Conrad had sent her home to announce that there was a catch; she had to help the new team and Juliet set up. Connect all the contacts and train some new analysts. What was he supposed to say to that? He had shaken his head and made the compromise. He prayed that it would be an uneventful eight weeks.

Thank Heavens for prayers, and for these beautiful kids. Between homework, ear aches, his own work and packing the house - the eight weeks hadn't given him a lot of time to dwell.

He was thankful she was able to cap off a 19 year career without too much trauma. Most of what she did was classified. He figured he would eventually find out. For now, there had been scrapes and bruises, she had gone missing once but he had no idea until after she was found. A burn on her thigh, and a little scar on her right cheek. Because she was such a good and skilled employee, and she had mollycoddled Conrad as well as written that huge report responsible for the changes in foreign policy with respect to torture - the CIA was going to credit her with 20 years service. There was a plaque, a letter placed in her file and a bonus.

She was home. He did not need to kill Dalton. Their pancakes were ready and their house was a disaster. Stephanie had misplaced her gum. All normal problems.

He knew she wasn't sleeping when he heard the washing machine start. She's restless, too much so to actually sleep.

She had changed the sheets from their lovemaking last night, and put away anything that the kids should not see. Now that the kids were older - read Stephanie- they had to make sure doors were locked and sheets were changed so the room would not smell of sex. They also needed a locked drawer for their lube and sex toys.

He could hear the washer going and he made a note to check the machine for sand after this load. He knew she did this to help out - and also to have him not see clothes with tears and gun oil, sometimes blood. When she did her own laundry she was trying to protect him. She was not the best at remembering to shake the sand out first - and they had to replace a couple of parts as well as upgrade their washing machine a little more often than their friends did. Henry McCord truly hoped they had bought their last washer.

A whiny Jason returned his focus to the kitchen as they put the finishing touches on breakfast. Something that was likely occurring in millions of homes around America this morning. Normal !

Thank God for horses, and whatever epiphany his incredible force of a wife had had after their argument about Baghdad back in February.

Instead of a broken family - here they were about to have breakfast in bed. It took a couple trips to get all the trays to the bedroom, complete with juice, and a bud vase. Henry asked Stevie to let Lady out.

Everyone crowded onto the queen sized mattress and tucked in to the meal. It was perfect for exactly two minutes.

Allison wanted to put more syrup on her pancakes and somehow managed to knock the cap off of the bottle. Maple sweet goodness, orange juice and chocolate chip pancakes made a quick escape from the tray and Henry saw where Stevie had lost her gum. Oh boy. He hoped that Elizabeth wouldn't notice for a while.

Lady began to bark and Elizabeth hopped up to escape the puddle of stickiness. "It's a good thing I never got a shower" she observed wryly - as she rescued her gifts. To top it all of the washer made a noise and the kids were fighting. Henry closed his eyes in exasperation and then let out one his famous whistle.

He shooed the kids into the bathroom and began to strip the sheets. She picked up the dishes and was returning them to the kitchen when he heard "Oh for Fuck- FIG's sake. Oh Lady Oh yuck. Come on sweetie"

He had to laugh. Eight- no seven weeks with marines, George Peters and Juliet Humphrey and there she was - swearing like a trucker. And he knew exactly who had forgotten to let Lady out. He didn't want to yell at Stevie though. She would be the one most affected by the cover story. Mom was back from "Jordan". Both Henry and Elizabeth hoped they could hold this story for a long time. He knew his wife worried that one day the kids would judge their actions in the military and the CIA and hate them for it.

But they couldn't live with that fear as their guide. They had to hope the sum of all their truths would be enough.

This summer Mom was coaching soccer, helping with a summer reading program and fun with Math for a reach ahead program at the new school near their farmhouse. Life had to move on. They wanted to focus on family and teaching and community life.

About half an hour later their three kids had been showered and were getting dressed in their rooms. This meant that it would be a while before they had enough hot water for he and his poor wife.

She was cleaning up the kitchen, and was OK with the news about the hot water. "Henry I am so thankful to be home - I can wait. I got some of the syrup off and after giving birth three times - plus sharing close quarters with George, Andrew and Conrad - well, a little dog pee is not such a big deal. The gum in my hair is a nice touch and if I have to cut off all my hair I won't be impressed; but I can literally feel my kids all over me right now. It's so normal. I don't tell you enough but being Mom and Mrs McCord- that's why I worked so hard to make things better Henry. So every mom can get covered in syrup, and open up a bottle of 5 dollar cologne on Mother's Day.

He told her about the busted washing machine and she groaned. Her face went red. They looked at one another and Henry just raised his eyebrows. She looked over his shoulder towards the laundry room and blushed. "There's a new shop in town. Repairs everything anyone can break in their home. . Dolly used them over Christmas. He charges for miles but he will service out where the farm is. I guess my bonus is covering our new horses and a washing machine repair. I want to name one of the horses Buttercup and the repairman is named Earl..."

Fin.

Hope you enjoyed this. I hope the spacing and spelling corrections all registered.

Xox Bren.