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Being a mom is hard, y’all. I mean, I think most of us know this, and yet for some reason, some of us keep having kids. My number 5 is fun, social, delightful, bright, and has taught me a whole new level of exhaustion that I didn’t know existed before. We have moved past the difficult pregnancy and the nursing/pumping/feeding issues we were having, and now are in the middle of sleeping/teething/baby-proofing issues. While most of us know all of thisis so worth it and that they don’t stay little for very long, it doesn’t mean we don’t get worn down and burnt out. It is so easy to put ourselves on the very bottom of the never-ending to-do list when there is a little person who is dependent upon you for everything.
When I got the opportunity to host a party featuring delicious new DOVE® Fruitchocolate-covered fruits, I knew just who I wanted to invite: all of my friends who have had a baby within the last year and are fighting the same daily battles that I am. I wanted to set aside the time and the space to pamper them a bit. You might think about doing something similar for your friends for Mother’s Day, because, no matter how much we love those handprint Mother’s Day cards and landscaping-gathered bouquets, what we would really love is a moment to sit down, relax, breathe, connect with other moms, and of course, eat yummy things!
Party Prep means shopping, which in this case meant a hot date-night with BSB to Walmart. He is actually more of the foodie than I am, so he worked with me to plan the menu and come-up with a recipe featuringDOVE® Fruit.We found the DOVE® Fruitdisplay at the end of the candy aisle. In a different Walmart, I found a display of smaller pouches near the check-out line. (I may know this, because we may have had too much fun sampling DOVE® Fruit before the party and ended up needing more for the event.)
In fact, I had a hard time photographing myDOVE® Fruitbecause it kept disappearing, thanks in large part to my party helpers. I purchased Cranberries, cherries, and blueberries. The DOVE® Fruit cranberrieswere featured in the parfaits we made (sharing recipe below) and all three kinds were placed in bowls around the room during the party, for the moms to nibble on as they were being pampered.
Aside from chocolate and other fancy and fun food, the highlight of the party was that each guest received a chair massage from my friend Sarah, who is a licensed massage therapist. Amazing! Right? We had everyone sign-up for their time when they arrived so we could make sure an accommodate anyone with a tight schedule. The other guests began with a foot soak (I’ll share the recipe in a following post).
While soaking they enjoyed hors ‘derves and chatting with other new moms. It was wonderful to see everyone taking a collective deep breath and soaking up the relaxation of the moment.
NOTE: I did send my kids away after we got going, so we could truly relax, but this one especially wanted to get in on the action. She made her own scrub she called: “Good-smelling Mystery!” My oldest was allowed to stay because she waited on everyone and ended up giving them all foot-rubs with a home-made lotion! Yep! She’s a keeper!
The menu was inspired byDOVE® Fruit.I wanted to serve food that felt very decadent and pampering but that we wouldn’t regret eating later. We served:
- Berry-mint infused water
- Bruschetta
- fruit skewers
- veggies and dip in personal cups
- DOVE® Fruit Chocolate Cranberry Orange Yogurt Parfait (recipe at the end of the post!)
My friends really loved their parfaits!
TIP: Food feels fancier when served in a fancy goblet or champagne glass. They even commented on how eating the parfaits made them feel so fancy–not something you feel that often when you are covered in spit-up or baby food half of the time.
I really think they would have enjoyed just sitting and chatting all night (without being interrupted with a million “mommies” or poopy diapers. But we also did a fun “Make and Take”. We set-up a DIY Beauty Bar, featuring everything you would need to make your own sugar scrub to take and enjoy at home.
I will break down the ingredients and the recipe we used for the sugar scrubs in my follow-up post. I really loved how this gave everyone the opportunity to pick their favorite scent combinations. I found myself wanting to make several different scrubs.
I sent my friends home with a few more pretty things, including their own box ofDOVE® Fruit (all three kinds mixed), for when they are having a “Mom Moment”–because you know you are going to been needing chocolate before long after entering back into the mommy zone.
And for you…I have our parfait recipe and a coupon you can use to go grab your own “Mom Moment” stash!
DOVE® Fruit Chocolate Cranberry Orange Yogurt Parfait
Ingredients
- 1 package DOVE® Fruit cranberries, coarsely chopped (reserve 8 whole candies for garnish)
- 1 cup cashews, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 large container vanilla yogurt
- 1 large container orange yogurt (can mix other favorite flavors)
- 8 glasses
Instructions
- Place 1 spoonful of orange yogurt in the bottom of a glass.
- Sprinkle with chopped nuts and candy
- Place 1 spoonful of vanilla yogurt on top of nuts and candy
- Sprinkle with chopped nuts and candy
- Alternate layers of yogurt and nuts/candy until glass is full
- Top with a single whole DOVE® Fruit cranberry, and sprinkle with nuts.
https://meandmyinsanity.com/2015/03/pampering-party-and-parfait-recipe.html
See more great DOVE® Fruit recipe ideas on theDOVE® Fruit social hub.
Here is thecouponfor $1.00 off of a Dove fruit pouchto help youstartpampering yourself!
Check back soon! I will be sharing more details about the beauty bar and our sugar scrub recipe as well as other party resources and printables! Let’s help take care of each other and ourselves!
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