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'Busiest Mother's Day ever' for one Scranton flower shop

It's no surprise that flower shops are busy ahead of Mother's Day. But this year, the reasons are a bit different.

SCRANTON, Pa. — The showroom of McCarthy Flowers in Scranton is filled with bright bouquets - completed orders waiting to be delivered before Sunday. 

Don't let the lack of people inside fool you; the shop has no shortage of customers this Mother's Day.

"More than busy. It's the busiest Mother's Day I've ever seen in my 30 years of being in flowers," said general manager Kathi Gnall.

Gnall says since many people can't see their moms in person this year, they're sending their love to their mother's doorstep instead.

Rather than the typical "Happy Mother's Day" note attached to the bouquet, customers are asking to write things like "I miss you" and "I can't wait to see you."

"This one girl just called a little while ago, and she couldn't be with her grandmother, and she was so upset that she can't see her, she was in tears. And she said, 'how do I say this?' And I said I would just say to her, 'you mean the world to me and I can't wait to hug you, and I miss you, and I love you.' She started crying a little bit," recalled Gnall.

Adding to the Mother's Day madness is the fact that many other local flower shops are closed, putting more pressure on places like McCarthy Flowers.

Gnall also says Mother's Day is typically a last-minute holiday.

"So it really hasn't even hit us like it's going to. It's busier than normal in the beginning, but I'm sure we haven't seen the worst of it yet, you know, what is gonna come in. But we're here, we have flowers, we're gonna take care of everybody," said Gnall.

The store itself is closed to the public, so all orders are being placed either online or by phone.

All deliveries will be contactless - the driver will call, rather than ring the doorbell.

Employees inside the store are practicing social distancing - spacing out between different rooms, and wearing masks. 

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