A/N: A bit late, but it's the thought that counts, right? Happy Mother's Day to all the special momma's and ladies in your life.
Enjoy!
Sundays were meant for sleeping late, eating a huge brunch, playing at the park (if the weather was good), and not doing anything remotely involving work.
But this particular Sunday was special.
A bouquet of flowers lay, still wrapped in the paper from the store, on the kitchen table. Two cards, sealed in their envelopes, lay next to it. And five three year-olds sat at the breakfast bar, whispering very loudly.
"Okay. Ready?" Rick Castle addressed his kids as he finished wrapping an elastic around his daughter's hair.
"What are we doin', daddy?" Liam piped up, sitting on his knees on his bar stool.
"We're gonna make mommy breakfast for Mother's Day," he reminds, gathering the tools and ingredients required to complete his task.
"We made a project in school for Mother's Day!" Danielle shouts, looking behind her at the craft her and her siblings had made in pre-school for their mom.
"I know. We're going to give it to her with her breakfast. So I need your help. Should we make mommy pancakes or French toast?"
"Pancakes!"
The decision was almost unanimous save for one little boy who insisted they make his mommy eggs for her special breakfast. But after taking some time away from the group to throw his temper tantrum, he came back ready to help.
Rick used an assembly line, every kid getting to do one job in the preparation of the meal. From grinding up the coffee beans and filling the kettle with water to measuring and pouring the ingredients of the pancake batter, everyone got to do at least one job.
Of course the job involving sharp knives or a hot stove, Rick did that himself.
Eventually a stack of warm, fluffy pancakes sat on a plate ready to be devoured by a deserving mom. Strips of bacon were added to the spread along with a bowl of fruit and a cup of warm syrup. All of this was placed on a tray along with cups of coffee and orange juice.
"Okay, go grab your projects for mommy," Rick directs his kids, helping them off the bar stools and watching as they go and get the projects they had worked so hard on at school and had been itching all week to show them to their mom.
"I will carry the tray for you," Finn offers, holding up her hands, having handed off her present to her sister. The toddler looks up at him so confident in her purple monkey pajamas, her glasses covered in dirt spots.
"Thank you for offering, Nemo. But I think I'll do it. Don't' want it to spill, do we?"
"No," Finn agrees.
"But you know what would be a big help? Can you carry mommy's flowers for me?"
Nemo jumps at the job, taking the flowers off the table and heads for the stairs, but stops at the bottom where her dad tells her.
"Austin hit me!"
He knew it was only a matter of time.
Rick steels his son with a hard glare, his mouth in one line. Austin knows he's in trouble: folding in on himself, not meeting his dad's eyes. "Austin. Look at me." Slowly the boy looks up, feeling ashamed for being naughty. "We don't hit anyone, okay? Not me or mommy or any of your siblings. Okay?"
"Okay," Austin nods quickly.
"Alright. Tell you sister you're sorry."
After Austin apologizes, and the siblings share a hug, Rick picks up the tray and heads for the stairs, the other four quints following him like ducklings.
"Be really quiet," Rick whispers, making his kids giggle. "This is surprise for mommy, right? We gotta be quiet."
And, as quiet and five three year-olds can be, the father and his kids troop up the stairs. At the top, Rick lets the kids pass him and they pile up in front of the closed bedroom door. "Mia, open it," Rick tells his daughter and the next second, they are bursting through the door and shouting "Happy Mother's Day!" and dashing to their mom, waving their projects in the air.
Kate, who despite her best efforts, had been awake since her kids had been awoken by their father. But for their sake she had pretended to be asleep before they ran into her bedroom.
"Wow! What is this?" Kate asks, sitting up, raking her hair out of her face.
"A 'Happy Mother's Day' for you," Liam smiles, handing over his present.
"Thank you, baby," Kate smiles, taking her son's face between her hands and kissing both of his round cheeks.
"And we made breakfast," Rick pipes up, raising the tray for Kate to see before setting in on the dresser. "But you should probably look at what the kids made you first."
"Let me see." She takes the five nearly identical art works from her kids and admires each one in succession.
The kids had painted their hands and stamped them onto paper then that paper was glued together to form a butterfly. The body was decorated with a pile of sprinkles and pipe cleaner antennas were attached. On one wing was a tiny picture of the child's face and on the other was simply written: 'Happy mother's Day.'
It was cute; in a pre-schooler sort of way.
"I love it. Thank you," Kate smiles, hugging each of her babies in turn.
"Flowers too!" Finn cheers, stepping up and handing over the arrangement.
"And flowers? My goodness I'm being spoiled today!"
"Happy mother's day, mommy!"
"Thank you, Nemo girl."
"Ready to eat?" Rick asks, picking up the tray again and bringing it over.
"Yeah. Let's see what we got." She lets her husband set the tray on her lap and steals a few kisses in exchange. The first thing she does is take a sip of the coffee, made just the way she likes it.
"We helped!"
"You did? Thank you." Another baby kiss.
"Alright, let's let mommy eat in peace. We have our food downstairs." And almost as fast as they came, they left and the room was once again quiet.
"Happy mother's Day, Kate," Rick says to his wife leaning over for a kiss.
"Thank you," and she kisses him. Her lips were sticky and sweet from the pancake syrup and he savored every second her could taste them.
"I love you."
"Love you too."
Another kiss.
A crash and a scream come from downstairs and both parents look to the door, eyes wide.
"You should go," Kate tells him, taking another bite.
"I probably should."
Another kiss.
"After this."
And another.