Mother's Day Weekend

He's the man who blessed me with the gift of Motherhood.

She's the girl who made me a Mom.

I love them both more than they'll ever know ....

Mother's Day 2013

We had a wonderful Mother's Day 2013 at our lake cabin this weekend.

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We haven't been up to the lake cabin in a few weeks with Andi's busy work / travel schedule so we were all excited to get away and spend some QT together this weekend.

Andi surprised me with an appointment to get my car detailed so Friday afternoon before we left the Cities, we met at the auto place to drop off my vehicle. When Andi used to use my SUV for work, he'd always have it detailed afterwards because it received so much wear and tear during photo shoots. Picture a SUV jammed packed with a bunch of dudes working 18 hours days, who take infrequent showers and smell of farts -- my car always needed a good wipe-down afterwards. Andi no longer needs to use my vehicle anymore and I jokingly said the other day, "Hey! So, if you want to borrow my truck sometime and then have it detailed afterwards, I'm totally cool with that!" There were Goldfish crackers crunched into the floor mats from Tory and a general dirtiness from the winter sludge all over my car. So, super excited by Andi's thoughtful gesture to have my car detailed for me.

On our way out of town, we stopped by Home Depot to buy a new riding lawn mower for the cabin. One of Andi's favorite things to do at the cabin is to drink a cocktail while mowing the lawn. Two years ago, we had a riding lawn mower that was the cabin owner's; last year they took the rider back and bought us a push mower to use and apparently, that wasn't as leisurely to drink and mow the grass. Andi was determined to buy a riding lawn mower for this year and I let him win (I shall file this in my back pocket for when I really want something ... wink wink, Andi). We had some gift cards to use toward the purchase and that's why we opted for Home Depot. Anyway, Andi dropped Tory and I off at Chipolte down the street so we could get some dinner while he completed the big purchase. Apparently, the entire ordeal was a complete disaster and the Home Depot employees knew nothing about the lawn mowers they sell. Andi was pretty keyed up by the time he picked Tory and I back up from dinner. It was late in the evening (for Tory, at least) before we finally departed the Cities and reached the cabin. We unpacked and played a bit and then it was light's out for all of us around 9:30pm.

Saturday was a crummy day, weather wise. It was around 45 degrees outside and alternated between sleeting and raining for most of the afternoon. We ran into town and re-purchased Andi's mom's Mother's Day gift from Brickyard Pottery. (Tory broke the first hand-crafted water pitcher we purchased for Janie's Mother's Day gift the day before - lovely, thanks Tory). Andi picked out a neat chip / veggie and dip serving dish for Janie instead. We grabbed a few last-minute groceries for Sunday's Mother's Day brunch at the cabin and picked up the pontoon from storage. Nothing says "it's time for boating" like sleet and 45 degree weather! It was too cold to put the dock into the water though, so we hung around inside the cabin for the rest of the afternoon.

Chilly afternoon walk in the cabin woods

On Mother's Day Sunday, Tory woke up early around 6:00am. Andi offered to take her for a ride into town so I could sleep in, but I actually felt well-rested and happy to spend time with my two loves. Tory was in a great mood and the three of us played in the living room and opened my Mother's Day presents. Tory gifted me a new L.L. Bean canvas tote bag which I've had my eye on lately. I love it and think it'll be great to haul stuff back and forth to/from the cabin, take to swimming class and pack up with stuff for picnics, groceries, etc. this summer. Andi also gave me a new dress and two shirts.

Tory helping me open my Mother's Day gifts

Shortly after, Andi's parents and sister, Lindsay, joined us at the cabin to celebrate Mother's Day. I made this delicious and easy make-ahead French Toast recipe and served it with fruit. Andi's parents brought freshly baked croissants from two different bakeries in St. Paul because they know just how much I adore them.

After brunch, we all took Tory for a walk through the woods around the cabin. She was so happy to be outside, running and exploring nature. Andi taught Tory how to swing between two people's arms and she was obsessed with doing this over and over again.

When we returned to the cabin, Janie put Tory down for a nap (seriously the best treat all day!) while Lindsay and I chatted on the couch in the living room. Andi and his dad worked to put the dock and the pontoon in the water, though unfortunately it was still too windy and cool to go for a boat ride. The ladies sat on the deck in the sunshine and visited while Andi and Jim tooled around the yard with various manly things. Janie and I opened our Mother's Day gifts. I received some beautiful glass candle jars and a springy scarf from Janie and Jim and a very sweet card from Lindsay. We gave Janie a canvas tote bag in addition to the hand-made pottery and Janie also received gift cards for flowers and yummy smelling soap from Lindsay and Jim. It was the perfect amount of relaxation for me on Mother's Day. When Tory woke up from her nap, we played around in the yard for the remainder of the afternoon.

Ice is off the lake and the boat is in!

Flying through the air with Daddy

Learning stretches with Auntie Lindsay 

Andi's family left to drive back to the Cities around 6:00pm, and Andi and I decided to stay Sunday night and drive back early Monday morning. We both commented how much longer and relaxing the weekend seemed because we had a full day on Sunday at the cabin. I think we'll extend our weekend like this much more often this summer.

I had the perfect Mother's Day weekend with family. Andi worked so hard to make my day special and I felt very pampered and appreciated. The only thing that would've made it better would have been to spend the day with my own mama and sister, too. If only Mother's Day came around more than once a year ....