Mother's Day Recap

I hope all you moms out there had a wonderful Mother's Day. I know for most moms, it's a day to be showered with love and attention from your kiddos, but I also know from experience that Mother's Day can be difficult for a lot of women.

My sweet Aunt said Mother's Day is very "bittersweet" since losing her daughter 4 years ago at the young age of 35. I have no doubt that the day brings some sadness to anyone who has lost their own mother, no matter how long it's been. And personally, I know the day can be difficult if  you have been trying to become a mother for years and years and still have not been able to conceive. There are many reasons why the day can be tough on some, but overall, the idea of Mother's Day is to celebrate the hard-working, compassionate, loving women in our lives. Whether they actually gave birth to us, or have been like a mother figure in our lives, a day set apart to thank these women is so important.

I count myself extremely blessed to have such a fantastic mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, aunts, and many other motherly figures in my life. They are all so important to me and they have all played a part in making me the mom that I am today.

For me, Mother's Day is a day (or weekend) to relax, take a little break from the day-to-day tasks of motherhood, and really enjoy my family. 

Friday morning, Parker's class had a special "Muffins with Mom" event where they presented us with adorable handmade keepsakes and had some little breakfast items for us to enjoy. It was so sweet.

That evening, Brian and I  attended an outdoor musical that was directed by one of our good friends. The weather was perfect, the venue was amazing, and we went with a few of our dear friends, which always makes for a fun time.

The amount of food we all brought was pretty ridiculous, but as I've mentioned before, I could make a meal out of appetizers, so I was in hog heaven with a whole table full of delicious bite-sized goodies. 

My neighbor brought little individual sized bottles of Prosecco and fresh raspberries, along with all sorts of little individual desserts. She went way above my box of Pepperidge Farm cookies that I brought. :)

Saturday morning, the boys got up on their own and let us sleep in. It was so nice (perks of having an older child in the house). Then Brian took the boys to church for a community service project while I got to enjoy some quiet time at the house. 

After my super healthy breakfast of coffee and macarons (ha, ha) the boys came home with the most gorgeous bouquet of flowers.

I have a pretty firm rule that Brian isn't allowed to buy me roses because they're so expensive and they die so quickly. But he made an exception this time because he found a little roadside stand that was selling them for SO cheap. They opened up pretty quickly, which was a bit of a bummer, but they still smell so amazing! Maybe I'll have to get rid of that "no roses" rule after all. ;)

On Saturday afternoon, we decided to go explore downtown St. Pete. It's very unlike me to be spontaneous, so Brian was excited that I was willing to just drive to St. Pete with absolutely no plan!

Our first stop was this awesome restaurant called "The Hangar" which is located at a small private airport. The outdoor seating looks right over the runway so the kids could watch airplanes and helicopters take off and land while we ate. They loved it! And my burger was AH-mazing!

After lunch we just walked around Beach Street, which is dotted with all sorts of cute restaurants, shops and a beautiful art museum. The boys discovered these gorgeous, giant trees along the path and of course had to climb them.

After all that climbing, the boys were ready for some ice cream, so we stopped at our favorite place, Kilwin's. Their fudge and homemade ice cream is so incredible.

That evening, Brian made sure that I had an uninterrupted bubble bath - complete with a glass of champagne! I felt so fancy. :) Later on we ordered in sushi and watched a movie. It was my idea of the perfect date night.

Sunday morning, I was showered with so many sweet handmade cards, hugs and kisses and lots of "I love you, Mom". I was in heaven! It was also very, very nice that Brian and Payton got me with several beautiful gifts. I felt quite spoiled. Payton even used his own money from his dog-walking business to buy me a pair of earrings. How sweet is that?!?

We headed off to church where the service was so powerful. The guest speaker talked about "How to Treat a Woman" and boy was it awesome. Made me so grateful for a husband who loves me and respects me and appreciates me.

They had a little photo area set up after service with cute little signs and props.

Much to my shock, Brian decided that he would prepare brunch for me. I have to be honest, my hopes were not set too high. The man burns scrambled eggs. I was a little shocked that he was taking on an omelette. But he poured me a mimosa and told me to sit back and relax while he took care of everything. Well... okay, I can do that!

Can I just tell you... it was the BEST omelette I have ever eaten. Seriously. That man stuffed that thing with all sorts of yummy goodness and cooked it to perfection. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. 

I know who's in charge of cooking Sunday brunch from now on. ;)

The rest of the day was the perfect mix of family time and relaxation. Brian really nailed it this year for Mother's Day. All my favorite things, all in one weekend, with absolutely no cooking or cleaning on my part... perfection!

And to my boys, who made me a mommy, I can only tell you that now I truly know the meaning behind Elizabeth Stone's quote:

“Making the decision to have a child - it is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. ”

I could never express the depth of my love for you. It is vast. It is fierce. And it is deep. 

I am so thankful that God blessed me to be your mom. 

Thank you Brian, Payton & Parker for one incredible Mother's Day!

Some Serious R & R

After a blurred week of volunteering, crafting, cooking and delivering teacher's gift, I was exhausted.

Friday mornings, I usually go to the YMCA with Parker and run on the treadmill while he happily plays in the nursery (our membership is so worth the free childcare!). However, when Friday morning rolled around, I just wanted to stay in my PJ's and enjoy a second and third cup of coffee...

So I did.

I told myself that I was kicking off my Mother's Day weekend with some much deserved "R&R" so skipping the gym was totally justified.

Around 10:30 a.m. when it started feeling a little absurd that I was still in my pajamas, I got myself dressed and rode up to the park with my little man. We fed the squirrels peanuts, played on all the equipment and then I said, "Hey, wanna ride up to Starbucks?" Of course his immediate response was, "YES! Can I get a cake pop?!?!"

He decided against the cake pop when he saw the giant sunflower cookies. And I couldn't resist, when he said, "Can I get that flower cookie instead Mama? Because I want to get one for Payton too." Melt. My. Heart. "Of course you can! It's only 8 zillion grams of sugar, let's get two of em!"

So off to the fountain we went...me with my iced latte and him with his enormous cookie.

But the delightful rest and relaxation was just beginning.

My parents took the kids for TWO WHOLE DAYS! WA-HOO!!!

I thought that maybe I should have felt guilty for not spending Mother's Day weekend together, but that thought quickly evaporated after driving them to Orlando and then returning to an absolutely empty, quiet house.

For anyone who is not currently a stay-at-home mom with little ones, you have no idea how rare it is to be home alone. It barely ever happens to me, so I was excited when the chance presented itself.

Of course I missed my kids throughout the weekend, but I think it's really healthy for all of us.

The kids get to go on a mini vacation and spend time alone with their grandparents (where they are spoiled out of their minds)... and Brian and I get alone time to be able to talk, stay out late, sleep in, do whatever we feel like at the drop of a hat... it's very healthy indeed.

And since we wanted to take full advantage of our free time, we went out on dates both nights and we went to the beach on Saturday.

Friday date night up at the Village

Let me tell you, it's quite a different experience to go to the beach alone with your spouse. Rather than lugging a mountain of sand toys, snacks, chairs, umbrellas, towels, etc. and then spending your time entertaining the little ones all afternoon...

We got out our chairs, opened our reading materials, and sat there. For hours. The only reason we got up was to go for a walk and to use the bathroom. It was heavenly.

This is actually a picture of the causeway leading up to the beach. I stayed off my phone as much as possible once we arrived and realized I never took any pictures. :)

After the beach, we went home and cleaned up and then I went for a massage. Seriously...not the most stressful weekend I've ever had. ;)

That evening, we had date night #2 where we met up with our good friends at a local Caribbean-themed restaurant.

But as Sunday rolled around and it became time to go pick up the kids, I started getting really excited to see them. So excited, that I had butterflies in my stomach when I saw my parents car pull into the parking lot. Which I think just goes to prove two things: 1. It's good to have some time apart because absence really does make the heart grow fonder... and 2. I really, really love my kids.

And I really love my Mom! It was so neat to be able to see her on Mother's Day and hug her and give her a gift. After all, they had just given us an incredible gift of a two-day vacation!

So we headed back home and I spent the rest of the afternoon lovin on my babies.

I was showered in homemade cards and gifts and lots of hugs and snuggles. It was perfect.

Brian even cooked my favorite meal that night:

Wood-fired cedar plank salmon with grilled asparagus and quinoa. Yum-O!
It was so delicious and the perfect ending to a fantastic weekend.

I am very appreciative of all the love and spoiling I received last weekend. It is so nice to be celebrated for all of the hard work us moms do all year round.

In fact...maybe we should celebrate Mother's Day twice a year? Yeah? Anyone else on board with that idea?? ;)

Thank you Mom & Dad for watching the kids. And thank you Brian for making the weekend so romantic and meaningful. Love you all!

Re-Cap: Mother's Day Weekend

I realize that this post will not interest a lot of you, but for my family that is spread across the country, and for my own virtual scrapbook, it's important for me to document these kinds of things.

My Mother's Day weekend was about as perfect as I could have asked for (minus the Friday I-4 traffic, it was perfect!).

I kicked off the weekend by getting a much-needed pedicure and catching up on all my gossip organizing magazines.

When I went to pick up Parker from Miss Patty's, she gave me the most wonderful homemade body scrub along with an adorable card that Parker made for Mother's Day. She's the best!!

We packed up and headed out that afternoon to go visit my parents for the weekend. My mom's company was having a big event on Saturday that she wanted us to attend, and it was Mother's Day on Sunday, so having them both fall on the same weekend worked out great!

About 10 minutes after arriving at my parents, the kids were in the pool. And then basically spent the rest of the weekend going from the pool to the hot tub, and back into the pool again. Here's some fun pool pics:

Parker did great swimming in the deep end of the pool with his floaties.

(Not sure the exact depth, but the pool is at least 10 feet deep.)

Then the boys would have little jumping/cannonball contests where we would rate their splash:

 

Friday evening, my dear friend since elementary school, Jenny, came over to join us for dinner. We had so much fun hanging out, catching up and reminiscing. I only wish that I had had enough energy to go out that evening and meet up with my other girlfriends who live in Orlando. Next time girls, promise!!

 

Saturday morning, I enjoyed my coffee pool-side as the kids splashed around making way too much noise for my parent's quiet neighborhood. :)

I could not get Parker to slow down to take a picture. He was all about swimming!

And then my Mom and I snuck off to do a bit of shopping and have lunch while Brian watched the kiddos. That alone, was such a great Mother's Day gift for me!

 Isn't this John-John adorable?!? I found it at a great upscale consignment shop in Winter Park. It's double-sided! How cool is that? Brian couldn't complain about Parker wearing it since it had both a Gator and a baseball. :)

 Saturday afternoon we drove out to my Mom's company event at a bed and breakfast in Geneva, FL. It was a bit of a drive, but the location was very fun and the kids had a blast!

Both kids loved the face-painting. But Parker preferred the clown to paint multiple things on his arms instead of his face:

And then he enjoyed the biggest cupcake I've ever seen in my life!

I thought I got pictures of Payton on the water bounce-house slide, but I can't find them. Maybe they're on Brian's phone, I'm not sure. But he basically played on that thing entire time we were there. He didn't even want to stop to eat.

When we got back that evening, the kids only wanted to do one thing...

Get back in the pool! This time, with Nana!

 

I love how they are both cracking up in this photo!

Then of course they went back into the hot tub. But Parker got distracted when Paca had all sorts of lollipops to play with:

These two have such a special bond. It's precious.

On Sunday, we went to church with my parents and surprisingly, a huge Christian singer/songwriter and friend of mine, was performing that morning! Karyn Williams is awesome and I am so glad I got to hear her sing.

Sorry for the cruddy picture, we were in the last row.

After church, we headed back to Tampa where I received such heartfelt beautiful handmade cards from each of my boys. 

  

 And I got to top the night off with an uninterrupted bath! 

Heaven!

 

It was a wonderful weekend and one that I will remember for years to come.

I'm so blessed that I got to celebrate Mother's Day as a daughter and as a mother this year.

Hope you all had a great weekend as well!