WINSLOW -- Mother's Day lobsters are all the rage in central Maine.

At Winslow Seafood, manager Luke Hendsbee said orders this year are larger than in previous years. Where orders used to be for five or six lobsters, this year one person ordered 60 cooked lobsters and another person ordered 20 jumbo lobsters.

"Families are getting together more now," he said. "Maybe staying home and eating is more of a gesture than eating out is."

Kyle Riggs walked into Augusta Seafood on Thursday to order eight lobsters for a family Mother's Day celebration on Sunday. Turns out, Riggs isn't the only one who likes to honor his mother and wife with a special lobster dinner.

Local seafood markets say Mother's Day begins the summer selling season, and brings in droves of customers to make it one of their most profitable days of the year.

The Riggs family started the lobster tradition about six years ago. They celebrate Father's Day the same way. "It's only something you do once or twice a year," Riggs said. "You do it on special days."

Augusta seafood co-owner Bob Benedict said his first Mother's Day order this year came in for 28, 11/2 pound lobsters.

Benedict said lobster prices are lower this year, compared to this time last year, when prices hit $15 a pound. Prices at four local seafood markets ranged from $6.89 to $7.99 a pound on Thursday.

"This is the kickoff to the summer," he said. "It's when our season starts."

Down at Hallowell Seafood & Produce, Justin Underwood, who owns the business with his father Chuck, said business is brisk for Mother's Day, and people are looking for bigger lobsters.

"Everyone's trying to make it happen for mom," he said, as he dunked his hand into the tank and pulled out a four-pound lobster. He also said many of the preorders come from mother's themselves who end up organizing their own parties.

For him, Mother's Day is among the top five best days, behind Christmas Eve and the 4th of July.

At Sony's Seafood in Readfield, owners Michael and Chrystal Tripp said lobsters and steamers are big sellers. They too report increased demand for bigger lobsters and predict that their Clam Shack outdoor restaurant will be extra busy on Sunday. "We will be packed up top," Michael Tripp said, pointing up the driveway. "People come from miles."