MothersDay

Lucky Ducks: DC welcomes its newest VIDs

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Pets

It's not everyday that one can claim to have been born at The Ritz-Carlton. For the sixth year in a row, Mother Ritzy Duck has returned to The Rtiz-Carlton, Georgetown, to honor her standing reservation and lay her precious eggs. Just in time for Mother's Day, seven bouncing baby ducklings were born, each deemed healthy by a local wildlife expert.

This year, "Ritzy" the VID (Very Important Duck) opted for a tall planter, located in the hotel's courtyard area off the main lobby. Hotel Security provided 24-hour service and offered velvet ropes and stanchions to keep curious guests at bay.

To ease Mama Ritzy's concerns during pregnancy, the hotel's "Just Ducky" Concierge issued a standard operating procedure to hotel staff - as per Ritzy's preferences, she was to enjoy only Ritz-Carlton bottled water and absolutely no "people food" to ensure that her figure would remain slim and healthy. During her daily lunch walks and swims with "Baby Daddy Duck," Ritzy's nest was monitored by a security camera and extra staffer. During the final days before hatching, Ritzy opted to enjoy gourmet organic duck pellets to ensure that she could rest in comfort as well as have food for her new ducklings at the ready.

When Ritzy and her ducklings are ready to leave the nest, they will enjoy red carpet treatment - a specially-designed duck crate will be placed into one of the hotel's private sedans for transportation to her permanent home in a nearby park.

To honor Ritzy's delivery, the staff at the hotel bar, Degrees Bar & Lounge, brought back her signature cocktail - The Duck Duck Goose - made with Grey Goose L'orange, pineapple juice and a splash each of grenadine and Sprite. And, out of respect for the nesting mother, the hotel has also opted to temporarily remove all duck-based menu items from the restaurants.

Tags: dc, ducks, georgetown, MothersDay, ritz carlton, washington dc

Swatch Heartfelt Watch For Mother's Day Is Easy Gift

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Mother's day is tough for gift giving. If you are anything like me, you don't want to spend too much money, but you need to show mom that you care right? It is basically like Valentine's Day, without any romance (and all that comes with it). So what is someone to do who doesn't have a mom who is specifically asking for that new toaster oven? Well Swatch has you covered with a new limited production watch for Mother's Day this year. A nice baby blue numeraled Swatch watch with an easy to read, but feminine dial, and a matching textured blue leather strap. The dial is in steel and polished, with a Swiss quartz movement. Size is 33mm wide which is good for just about any female wrist (while not being too small a watch). The Swatch Heartfelt comes complete with a shopping tote - because all moms can find good use for another tote bag. Really a well designed piece that is good enough to leave most any mother satisfied. Get a Swatch Heartfelt watch online here.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: gift, heartfelt, mothers day, MothersDay, Swatch, watch

A Delicious Spring Bonnet at Bouchon

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining

Nearly too cute to eat, this Spring Bonnet Cake is a Mother's Day offering being sold at Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery in New York City. The bonnet cake comes in two flavors lemon cake with fresh blueberry compote and almond Streusel and a vanilla angel cake with fruits of the forest and almond Streusel. Individual cakes are $9 each.

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Tags: bouchon bakery, BouchonBakery, cake, mothers day, MothersDay, sweets, thomas keller, ThomasKeller

Phyto Universe and Four Seasons Team Up For Mother's Day Package

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spas

For those in New York City you can spend a day at the spa with your mom at Phyto Universe, a Manhattan spa that focuses on your crowning glory. The Mother's Day Royal Treatment package includes a conditioning hair treatment, super-charged anti-aging facial, complimentary champagne, and cocktails around the block at Four Seasons Hotel New York. The Botanical Bliss hair treatment is designed for dry hair and uses jojoba oil plus sage and rosemary essential oils. The calming decor of Phyto Universe includes a two-sided vertical garden and each treatment is lavished with plant extracts and botanicals. The total package price for this Mother's Day special including the cocktail at the Four Seasons is $260.

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Tags: four seasons, FourSeasons, manhattan, mothers day, MothersDay, phyto universe, PhytoUniverse, spa

Mother's Day Hotel and Restaurant Packages

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Spas

A recent survey indicated that Mother's Day spending will be down by 14.7 percent this year. Purchases of electronics, jewelry, books and other items are all expected to fall. And fewer mothers will be taken out for a good meal. It is predicted that spending on dinner and brunch outings will fall 9.6 percent.

For those still planning to take mom out for a meal or even for a weekend there are some great hotel and restaurant packages out there. The Fairmont Miramar in Santa Monica, California offers a great package for a family that includes accommodations, a Mother's Day brunch and a treasure hunt adventure. Rates start at $449. Check out more great options in the gallery below.

Gallery: Mother's Day Hotel and Restaurant Packages

Tags: hotel packages, HotelPackages, mother, mothers day, mothers day brunch, MothersDay, MothersDayBrunch

Maine Inn Offers Mother's Day Essay Contest

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Mother's Day doesn't have to cost you a dime if your essay wins the Captain Lord Mansion's "Mother of the Year" award. The bed and breakfast in Kennebunkport, Maine is offering an essay contest that gives the winner a two-night stay valued up to $1,000. The package includes luxury accommodations for the winning mom and a guest, daily breakfast, a pampering spa experience and a special gift. Captain Lord Mansion will choose a winner to be notified on Mother's Day so you might want to get a back-up gift just in case you don't win. To enter send an email to innkeeper@CaptainLord.com.

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Tags: contest, inn, maine, mothers day, MothersDay

Mikimoto Pearls for Mother's Day

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Jewelry, Charity

You can buy your mother Mikimoto pearls and help fund breast cancer support this Mother's Day. Mikimoto donates 20% of proceeds from Everything is Possible With Hope, a special collection inspired by the pink ribbon, to the Young Survival Coalition. The YSC is a non-profit network of breast cancer survivors and supporters dedicated to young women, pushing for an effective breast cancer screening tool for women under 40 and research and support for this younger population of breast cancer survivors.

Gallery: Mikimoto Mother's Day

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Tags: breast cancer, BreastCancer, mikimoto, mikimoto pearls, mikimotopearls, mothers day, MothersDay, pearls

Candle Trousseau by Jo Malone

by Star Sutherland (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Cosmetics and Fragrance, Preferred

Jo Malone is famous for their luxurious skin care products and delicious fragrances. Products are always presented exquisitely, the signature cream packaging evokes a similar response as the little blue Tiffany & Co. box! This mothers day, Jo Malone has designed the perfect luxury mothers day gift. Candle Trousseau offers a collection of the most popular scented candles (Pomegranate Noir, Grapefruit, Wild Fig & Cassis) and Jo Malone matches, along with a sterling silver candle snuffer and a key, all presented in a timeless leather box. This is a stylish and stunning gift that will be remembered for a long time. Available on BergdorfGoodman.com for $575.

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Tags: candles, gift set, gifts, GiftSet, jo malone, jo malone candle trousseau, JoMalone, JoMaloneCandleTrousseau, mothers day, mothers day gifts, MothersDay, MothersDayGifts