Mother's Day 2016

Yesterday was Mother's Day and I had a really lovely day. At the risk of sounding like a Debbie Downer, I'll admit I had some pretty low expectations for a day devoted to the celebration of mothers. See - Andi left on Saturday (the day before Mother's Day) for a three-week stint of work travel and while his jet-setting ways are nothing new for our family, it has been a while since he's been gone for such a long period of time. Couple that with his absence on the actual date of Mother's Day, and I'd basically written off any chance for pampering. A regular ol' day-in-the-life of cooking, cleaning and care-taking it'd likely be for me.

I woke up early to exercise since I knew that'd set my mind in a good place for the day, and crossed my fingers for 40 minutes of uninterrupted time. Wouldn't you know it? Tory and Aden woke up as soon as I did, but they allowed me to workout while they ate breakfast together. That rarely happens, so it was much appreciated.

The minute I finished my program, Tory barreled toward me with Mother's Day presents in hand and her chosen outfit for the day. "Happy Mother's Day, Mom!" she beamed. "Are you ready to open your presents?" She'd been planning this Mother's Day moment for weeks, and busily crafted handmade presents with Grandma Janie the last few times she visited. Tory helped me unwrap the paper and proudly pulled out a bouquet of flowers she'd made from recycled egg cartons, paint and wire. They were adorable! She also made me some flowers on construction paper and listed some of the things she loves about me: "I make her breakfast, lunch and snacks," "I wash her blankie," and "I do crafts with her." Handmade gifts are seriously the way to my heart, so I appreciate Janie taking the time to make these with Tory.

Later that morning, Aden, Tory and I drove over to Andi's sister Lindsay's house. She and her husband Kyle invited Andi's parents and I over for a Mother's Day brunch. The weather was absolutely beautiful on Sunday, so we ate and relaxed in their backyard all afternoon. It was perfect!

Around dinnertime, we all headed over to Andi's grandma's house for a pizza cook-out. One of Andi's cousins built a wood-fire pizza oven in the back of a pickup truck, and offered to make pizzas for his entire family. Quite the commitment considering there's 50+ people at any given gathering! Leave it to Andi's aunt Barb (who works in foodservice) to have every kind of pizza topping imaginable and even a professional dough ball press to really kick the party up a notch.

 
The pizzas were better than restaurant quality -- they were so good! I made mine with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, basil and mushrooms and could've easily eaten a dozen pieces.

For dessert, they served root beer floats which were a big hit -- especially with the kids.

The little kids were obsessed with Barb's fish pond. It kept them entertained for hours. 

 

Kiera is Tory's favorite cousin. She has helped Janie babysit the kids when Andi and I've traveled without the kids, and she absolutely idolizes every single thing about her. It's so cute! 

Shaun, the pizza chef, was hard at work. He deserved an ice cold beer at the end of the party!

 

Tory, Aden and I ended a wonderful Mother's Day cuddled up with books in bed. It was a full day's celebration, and one I felt so fortunate to be apart of. I only wish Andi could've been there. On this day and always, I'm thankful for the wonderful gift of motherhood: the toughest and most rewarding thing I've ever done.