My mother, Jimmy Harvey, was the first “health nut” I knew. Because of her, at my age of 65 years old, my doctor says I have cholesterol like a teenager and my bone density is like a 20year-old. Thank you, Momma. Your daughter, Jeffie Carol Harvey Pewitt Ventura

Darlene Uyemori, who passed away on Aug. 20, 2008, was my best friend, confidante and biggest supporter. She was also my mother. She was a loving, caring wife; mother of four; and grandmother of 10. And she taught me the importance of love and family; I am who I am because of her. I miss her terribly but will always love her, and she will forever be in my heart. Her birthday was May 9, so I’d like to wish her a happy birthday and a wonderful Mother’s Day. I love you Mommy! Diane Uyemori Camarillo

My mother is amazing. She has seven kids and loves each and every one of us with unconditional love. She works as hard as she can, and when she gets home she still works. No one can stop her, no matter how hard they try. My mom is beautiful, caring, smart and fun all at the same time. She is the best mom anyone could ever have. If we have a problem she is always there. I love you, Mom! Kira Marshall Camarillo Dear Mom,

Happy Mother’s Day! I thank you for being there for me throughout the years. Thank you for pulling me through the hard times and being there with me at the joyous moments. I realized that I would not be who I am without your care, support and love. I would treasure our memorable moments forever, and I will always support you. You have given me so much, and now is time to repay you the love you’ve given me, although it will not exceed the amount you have given me. I will love you always. Jessie Wang Camarillo

Uniquely My Mother Joyful Happy Full of energy Helps out at school Makes anything possible See her a mile away Remembered by her Hair and Laugh A multi-tasker at Heart Fantastic mother to only one My Best Friend Has been through a lot in her life Has great strength As tough as a Rhino My mother is my World I am her World Thankful for what she has Gives great advice Tells the truth Is a great friend Is very smart Uniquely talented Without her I wouldn’t be here I could never survive without her I Love her truly Amy C. Camarillo

Dear Mom,

I love you so much. The stars remind me of your eyes. The sound of the blue birds reminds me of your sweet sweet soft voice. The sun reminds me you will always be with me no matter what. Love, Kylie Speth, 8 Camarillo

Dear Mom,

Just wanted to say thanks for all the things you have done for me and still do for me. I know I don’t always say thanks, but I do appreciate all the things you do for me, Greg and the kids. Now that I have three kids, I can see how hard you worked all those years, hauling us to school, sports, friends’ homes and all the other places we needed to go. Also, thanks for all the sacrifices you made so that we could do all the things we did. Happy Mother’s Day. Love, Debbie Speth Camarillo

My mom is super because she takes care of me when I need it and makes me the best dinners. I love her very much! Alissa Tryforos Camarillo

My mom is super because she’s a great cook and she protects me. I love my mom! Nick Tryforos Camarillo

Dear Mom,

I know that this is the first Mother’s Day since Dylan passed. But why wouldn’t it be? You will always be in my heart, and you still have one son left. Eventually the pain will become less and less until it is tolerable. You’re the strongest woman on this earth, and I will always love you. Happy Mother’s Day, Jodes! Love, Nic Pendleton Camarillo

Everyone always brings up the saying, “You don’t know what you have till it’s gone.” They’re right. Even though I was only 4, I still have complete recollection of Sept. 3, 1999, Labor Day weekend, of my mother’s tubal pregnancy. It feels like it was only yesterday, the night of the second, rushing my mother to the hospital because of the loss of blood she had. I thought I would never see her again, but those thoughts also brought me to think of how important my mother is to me and several other people. Thank God my mother is still alive to this very day as healthy as ever can be. So right now, I want to take this opportunity to say that I love you and everything that you do.

Thank you for always being there for me, even when I was in trouble, disappointed or even hurt.

Happy Mother’s Day!

Sarah Ake Camarillo

My mom is a super mom because she single-parented me when she was about age 22. She must have done a pretty good job because I turned out all right. My mother has done a lot for me throughout my life. Mom, I want to thank you for all that you have done and will do for me. My mom does an amazing job of caring for my two little sisters, Brandee and Haylee Smith, and I.

I love you, Mom! Happy Mother’s Day. Jasmine Garcia Camarillo

This is just one story of why my mom is special:

One day she said she was taking me to the mall. But before we went to the mall we went to Chuck E. Cheese’s. I was very exited. I got a pack of stuff with my tickets. After that we went to the mall, but in the mall there was a place called Kookie Krazy. My mom took me there too. Then I thanked her so much. I love my Super Mom. Marshall E., 8 Camarillo

My mom is very special! I like when my mom cleans my room with me. I help my mom do the laundry. I love my mom because she is sweet! Every day I tell her I love her 100 times! I give her hugs and kisses every day. She is the sweetest, best mommy in the world! Colten Pittman, 6

Our mom is amazing. My brothers and I can’t describe her. She is always there for us. She takes us wherever we need to go from soccer to basketball. When people meet her they want to stay and talk with her as long as they can. She always puts a smile on my face. She loves everyone. She is loving, kind and caring. She loves us, and we love her.

We love you, Mom! Love, Kayla, Kyle and Ian York Camarillo

What makes our mom so super?

Beach days, bike rides, back scratches, special dinners, snuggle time, walking to the park, singing in the car, movie nights, sleepovers, chocolate chip pancakes, forts, hugs, kisses, love and the list goes on and on . . . We love you, Mommy! Marina and Tyler Ventura

My mother-in-law is the best. First of all, she raised my husband, who is a wonderful husband and an awesome father. Secondly, she took very good care of me when I had to move to Sweden five years ago. I had just gotten married to her son and was already pregnant with her first grandson (one month after our wedding). She taught me how to make swedish meatballs and rice just the way my husband likes it. She taught me how to make coffee cake shaped in a wreath. She helped me learn Swedish and hugged me when I cried because I couldn’t even read a book in the children’s section of the library. She is hardworking and dedicated to her children, all four of them. She managed to raise four kids, two daughters and then twin boys (my husband is the youngest twin), on a very slim income, sewing their clothes, baking incredible food and letting them all sleep with her at night on her side of the bed. She helped me to take care of her grandson and rejoiced when I gave her a granddaughter. She taught me how to knit with great patience and kissed me goodbye when we moved back to California. I miss her very much. Tack sa mycket farmor! (Thanks so much, Grandma) Love, Jennifer. Jennifer Molin Camarillo

I should’ve thanked you for my life the day I was born . . . Thank you!

I should’ve noticed how hard you struggled to raise me . . . Thank you!

I should’ve thanked you for the beautiful birthday parties you gave me as a child . . . Thank you!

If only I could thank you for sending me to a different high school when I was failing miserably . . . Thank you!

If only I could have remembered to thank you for forcing me to attend a small Christian college in California . . . Thank you!

I wish I could remember to give you the credit for the fact that I speak Spanish . . . Thank you!

I love the way you grandparent my children . . . Thank you!

I love the way you always forgive me for being a selfish child even as an adult . . . Thank you!

I have a chance right now to tell you publicly that you are and always have been an awesome mom.

So, I am saying thank you . . . for every moment of my life. Love, Jennifer Molin

I love my Mom because she is loving, caring and super! She gives me warm fuzzy hugs. She tells me she loves me more than six times a day. At school, she comes for field trips and parties.

If I am sick, she will help me until I am all better.I love my mom very much. She is my life! Madison Pittman, 9

My mom is amazingly kind and always listens to me. She is 100 percent supportive of my dreams and has the biggest heart bursting with love. Suzanne Camarillo

Men and women, dressed in suits and holding briefcases, walked down city streets en route to work as offices reopened Wednesday. Street vendors unfolded tables and chairs on sidewalks. Mario Antonio Figueroa, a juice vendor, says he’s never been so happy to wake up at 4 a.m. to get to his spot on the street. “I just hope they let us keep working,” he says, rinsing off a half-dozen oranges.

Restaurants also open Wednesday, as workers cleared off tables that were stacked away while takeout was the only service permitted. The next wave comes tomorrow, when high school and university students head back to class. Museums, libraries, and churches will also open doors. And by next Monday, elementary school students will be back on their playgrounds.

Residents have been eagerly awaiting the resumption of normal life. Health officials say the flu crisis, which had its epicenter here, is for now on the wane, although the death toll jumped from 29 to 42, as tests confirmed additional cases.

But while business will bounce back for many, Mexico still will contend with stigmas and diplomatic rifts that may take much longer to resolve.

“There is the cost associated with the interruption of economic activity; however, there is a second effect that is more permanent, and that is the psychological impact on people, on Mexicans in Mexico and international tourists outside Mexico,” says Alfredo Coutino, a senior economist for Latin America at Moody’s Economy.com. “My impression is that the impact is going to last for the rest of year.”

The hardship that Mexicans have endured, which authorities cite as a main reason the flu has been controlled, was acknowledged this week by Mexican President Felipe Calderón. “This extraordinary situation has signified important costs for the economies of the states and especially the population in general,” Mr. Calderón said.

$1.3 billion stimulus package

To aid in the recovery, the government announced a $1.3 billion stimulus package in tax breaks and funds for businesses, including hotels and restaurants, said Mexican Finance Minister Agustin Carstens. Mr. Carstens said the crisis will cost the country about $2.2 billion, or reduce GDP this year by 0.3 to 0.5 percentage points.

For those in the informal economy, like Mr. Figueroa, the statistics mean little. “We live day by day,” says Figueroa, who sells juice for about 75 cents per glass. “The government officials that make the policies don’t live off the pesos they earn each day.”

And stigmas will be much harder to fight, especially in the tourism industry. Mexican Tourism Minister Rodolfo Elizondo has said that they anticipate tourism revenue to fall by 43 percent this year, as airlines cut their flights to Mexico, companies cancel their conferences, and honeymooners opt for other beach destinations.

Tourist cancellation rate soars to 70 percent

In Cancún, Mr. Elizondo said, cancellation rates are as high as 70 percent, and hotel occupancy rates for the first 10 days of May dropped to 44.8 percent; typically they are almost double that. In Mexico City, the normal hotel rate of 55 percent fell to just 15 percent at the end of April. Sixty-four port calls were canceled for cruise liners, meaning the loss of up to 134,000 passengers who could have stepped in Mexican territory to purchase food and souvenirs.

Four conventions were also cancelled, which would have brought in 47,000 visitors.

“No one loves us anymore,” quipped a Mexican migration official as a visitor entered the country Monday evening.

Stigmas will be hard to fight even for Mexicans in Mexico, though, says Mr. Coutino. “For the restaurants and bars that open in coming days, they will not be working at full capacity because consumers are scared to go back,” he says.

Diplomatic spats

The crisis has caused some diplomatic havoc for Mexico. Cuba and Argentina temporarily cancelled flights – a move heavily criticized by Mexican officials. In China, dozens of Mexicans were quarantined without evidence of being ill with the swine flu. Mexico sent a charter flight to retrieve them, but registered its dissatisfaction with the way China handled the situation.

Not all things are back to normal. It is still unclear when gyms, movie theaters, and bars, which were all forced to close their doors, will be allowed to reopen.

And for those heading back to work today, not all agreed it was for the best. Rafael Lopez, a lawyer, says he feels office openings are too rushed. “I think it would be better to wait a few more days until this calms down,” says Mr. Lopez, whose business attire was complemented by a face mask.

But Israel Acevedo, who hauls supplies for a construction company, says he couldn’t be happier to get back to work – even though, unlike many in the informal economy, he expects to be paid by his company for the days missed.

Mr. Acevedo says there was an upside: he finished housework that had been sitting around for weeks – like fixing a doorknob on his front door – and spending family time with his wife and kids. “We are all ready to get back, though,” he says.

Folger McKinsey Elementary reopened early today as state officials expressed confidence they responded appropriate to swine flu fears.

“It’s an issue that evolves, it’s an issue that we take seriously,” Gov. Martin O’Malley said yesterday. “As the science evolves, so too will our public policy response.”

Four people have tested positive for swine flu in Maryland, including a Severna Park toddler, and there are 15 probable cases. Three suspected county cases are awaiting results from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The 2-year-old county child who tested positive for swine flu is a relative of a Folger student and a 7-year-old student received a nonpositive reading, which does not definitively say whether the child had or avoided the illness.

The school was thrust into the national spotlight when Energy Department Special Agent Marc Griswold, whose three children attend Folger, traveled to Mexico on a security detail with President Barack Obama. Griswold returned with a cough and a fever, and his wife, 7-year-old son, and 2-year-old nephew showed the same symptoms.

Griswold’s three relatives tested positive for influenza A, which could include a subtype of the swine flu strain, although his test was negative. All have recovered from their illness.

While no one required hospitalization, state health officials said they still did not know why cases in the United States appeared to be less severe than those in Mexico and warned that the outbreak wasn’t over.

“I don’t think we have reached the crest yet,” Maryland Health Secretary John Colmers said.

The other confirmed cases are in Baltimore County – a Milford Mill Academy student and two adults.

O’Malley said the state closed Folger and the other schools after the CDC changed its guidelines on Friday. He acknowledged it was a “confusing moment” for parents but the CDC had moved to a “much more mandated” directive to close schools with probable cases for up to 14 days.

“I think we adjusted very, very quickly,” O’Malley said.

The closure has forced many Folger parents to scramble to find care for their children while they are at work.

Heidi Beatty, an appraiser and Realtor, called her mother to watch her second-grade daughter Monday. But for yesterday, Beatty said she had to send her daughter to her son’s child care provider, who charges $10 per hour per child.

“It’s just a little expensive when it’s more than one kid,” she said.

Other parents who already stay at home during the day said the school closure wasn’t a major problem.

Kathie Hamlett, president of the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization and a stay-at-home mom, said she spent three hours Monday going over math facts, flash cards and a language-arts project with her second-grade son. But she said some parents who work are relying on their neighbors for help.

“Parents are finding family and friends and neighbors, trading children,” she said. “We’re a small community and we all try to work together. It’s a family.”

Like the other parents in their neighborhood, the Griswolds will have to find something to do with their children during their time off. Marc Griswold said he has made plans to take them fishing this week.

On Monday, he coordinated with some parents to send their children over to his house to play with his children. He was pleased about the testing results.

“We’re happy with the negative,” he said. “We’re relieved to have had that. (The illness) just didn’t show up. Who really knows (how these things happen)?”

Critics have emerged over the state’s ability to respond to a flu pandemic, however. Last week the Senate Republican Caucus pointed to a 2008 study which ranked Maryland at the bottom of states in terms of preparedness for diseases, disasters and bioterrorism.

The study from the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation said Maryland met only half of their benchmarks and Republicans questioned the adequacy of antiviral medications the state has on hand.

“True to form for Maryland’s media, they accepted without question the puffed-up press releases and press conference hyperbole issued from the gubernatorial media relations machine,” the caucus said in a statement.

The state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene says it has 1.2 million complete courses of antiviral treatment on hand or available. David Paulson, a spokesman, said the data used for the study was inaccurate.

“(The stockpile) is more than adequate to serve the needs and protect the public of Maryland,” he said.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has a recommended target of 1.4 million courses for the state to reach by September, but an additional 200,000 are in the pipeline, Paulson said.

“It is either on the way or on the way shortly,” he said.

Administration officials contend they have improved several parts of Maryland’s homeland security system, including port security, the National Guard and emergency room reporting.

O’Malley cautioned against focusing on a single “snapshot in time.”

“The degree of preparedness in our state for emergencies when this administration started was lacking in almost every area,” he said.

Staff Writer Elisabeth Hulette contributed to this story.