Celebrate Mom!
For all the things she does, Mom deserves some pampering. Giving the gift of spa is an excellent way to show your mother how much you care and appreciate all she’s done.
To create a spa environment at-home, you can give Mom a gift basket filled with all things "spa" --candles, a robe, massagers, bath salts, journal, and a relaxation CD. For a more experiential gift you can honor her with a gift certificate for a massage, a full day of pampering, or a spa vacation. Better yet, you can plan a spa getaway for you and your Mother. After all, the gift that mothers appreciate the most is quality time with their children.
Here are my thoughts on why a Destination Spa vacation (for you and her) is the best gift you can give your beloved Mother this Mother’s Day.
- Stress-free vacation. The key to a successful vacation is making it as stress-free as possible. Destination Spas are very relaxing – a home away from home without the responsibilities of home. No dishes, no cleaning, no planning. Mom can just relax and enjoy herself while someone else takes care of all the responsibilities.
- Disconnect to Reconnect. With limited phone, e-mail, TV, blackberry… A Destination Spa vacation allows Mom the quality time to reconnect with herself and you. When else do you have each other’s undivided attention?
- Time dedicated to catch-up. The reality is that staying connected to our loved ones is a challenge. Yet, staying connected is essential for a healthy relationship. Destination Spas ensure there is bonding time -- everything is planned for you and you don’t need to leave the property.
- Talk about what matters. In our daily lives, we have a tendency to talk about day to day matters and not dive into deep conversations. Time for more sensitive and intimate conversations is built into a Destination Spa vacation. You will have amazing conversations you wouldn’t have at home.
- But not too much time. The variety of activities allows Mothers and Daughters to do their own thing, yet catch up with each other every couple hours to share and compare notes. Each of you can explore your own interests AND share similar interests and activities without suffocating each other.
- It’s FUN! New adventures/experiences await – mud wraps, hikes, salsa dancing, cooking classes, star gazing. You will create special shared memories that you will treasure for the rest of your life. [I personally experienced this with my mother while on a hike in New Mexico].
- See & relate with each other in a new light. As 2 individuals, not parent/child. Often through other people’s eyes, children will experience an A-ha moment where they realize Mom is not so bad.
- Ultimately ---- great memories & strengthened relationships.
Any time of year (not just Mother’s Day), a Destination Spa is a great place to renew your relationship with your Mother and catch up on each others lives. For those interested, many of the Destination Spas offer Parent/Child weeks and programs throughout the year.
As one of the few spas exclusive to women, Green Mountain at Fox Run is able to create a safe environment to explore the mother-daughter dynamic that has influenced their relationship and the behaviors and attitudes around food, weight, body acceptance, self-esteem to name a few. Many of these food and body issues have been areas that have separated mothers and daughters over the years... not discussed, ignored, but a source of discomfort or loneliness.
Green Mountain at Fox Run offers mother-daughter weeks throughout the year and new this year is the Mother-Daughter-Sister month. Enjoy a 10% discount on stays during the month of May.
May 6-June 2, 2007 -- Explore more deeply the complex ways in which food and body shape/size impact women of all ages today. If you're the mother of a college-age daughter who struggles with eating and eating disorders, you can learn how to be supportive, to make a big difference for your daughter who is under much more pressure to 'be thin' for today's standards of beauty.
Twice annually The Oaks offer a 50% discount for each daughter sharing a room with their mother (January and September). Each May they offer it again with a 40% discount. During theses discounted periods approximately 80% of the guests are Mothers and Daughters.
When mother and daughter share accommodations for up to seven nights, including Sunday, May 13, one pays the regular package rate and the other receives 50% off the nightly rate. You can share the package allowance for spa, sports & integrative wellness services.
Offering Mother's Day Gift Certificate Packages so Mom can celebrate with a gift and choose a date to visit the spa that fits her busy schedule.
- European Elegance: 7 Night Spa Package gift certificate will be sent with an exotic Diptyque scented candle, a set of Earthworks Rose Bath Truffles, and offers a complimentary added Rose Mud Treatment during the spa visit. ( $225 added value!)
- Indulgent: 4 Night La Petite Spa Package certificate will be sent with a set of Earthworks Bath Truffles and offers a complimentary added Rose Mud Treatment during the spa visit. ($175 added value!)
- Escape: 3 Night La Petite Spa Package gift certificate will be sent with the exotic Diptyque candle. ($60 added value!)
Offering a package to spoil Mom during the week of May 6-13. Reserve a minimum three night stay for you and Mom, from Sunday May 6th to Sunday May 13th at Spa Eastman, and they will offer a free Relaxation a la carte package for your Mother. Lodging, meals, evening workshops, guided walks and all physical activities will be at no cost to your guest.
Offering a Mother’s Day Coupon for 15% off any stay between May 13-27, 2007. You must print out the coupon and present in person.
The Mother/Daughter Weeks have proved to be so popular among guests, that they have added more weeks and special guests in 2007. During the Mother/Daughter weeks, the mother pays the private rate on a three-night or longer Refresher Package, the daughter stays with her for 50 percent off that rate. The package includes unlimited fitness classes and activities, three healthy gourmet meals daily, as well as a spa and fitness allowance which can be used in the resort’s LakeHouse Spa. The programs explore nutrition, self-esteem, body image, transforming rituals and of course special topics presented by special guest speakers throughout the year.
Core Program Offered Every Mother/Daughter Week:
- "Body Image – Facts and Fiction" with licensed dietitian Terry Shaw who facilitates positive change in health styles.
- "Transforming Rituals" with creative presenter Liz Bila is a class that explores how rituals can deepen our connections to our values.
- "The Mother/Daughter Diet Legacy" with dietitian Lora Edwards, a class that helps mothers pass on a healthy attitude of food and body image to their daughters.
- "Yoga for Two: The Mother/Daughter Connection". In this class Anne Irving helps mothers and daughters explore the push and pull dynamic of their relationship.
2007 Special Guest Presenters:
May 7th – 13th -- Special guest Peggy Post will present three workshops: "The Real Emily Post", "Your Professional Image" and "Relationships: Successful Communication". Through these sessions, Post will help mothers and daughters sharpen their image and learn how etiquette can build confidence and help achieve goals.
July 30th – August 5th -- Special guest celebrity makeup artist Michael Kier’s relaxed methodology to makeup application has garnered him a unique style accredited to his talent. With 18 years of professional makeup experience, Kier has worked with Bobbi Brown, Chanel, and Lancôme and on numerous films, television and fashion shows and magazines.
August 6th – 12th -- Special guest author Karen Koenig will present "Quit Fighting with Food" and "Feelings Not Food". Both sessions show how to improve one’s relationship with food and maintain a healthy, comfortable weight, as well as how to live an enjoyable life by turning to and not away from one’s emotions.
Rona Berg, author of Beauty: The New Basics and Fast Beauty will present "Beauty Tips for Teens: When to Save, When to Splurge" and "Stress and Beauty Burnout", focusing on how to get the most bang for your buck with beauty products, as well as tips for self-care and nutrition under stress.
