Mom’s Spa Trip Dream
by Debra Sansing Woods

For more than a decade, my friend Anna and I have dreamed of sharing a long, relaxing weekend together at a spa where we could unwind and rejuvenate while being generously pampered.

Such a weekend would provide a striking contrast to our normally busy lives, hers as a single professional and mine as the stay-at-home mom to five. Not surprisingly, our dream spa weekend has been put off year after year because neither of us ever actually seem to be able to afford such a luxurious vacation. Thankfully though, the thought of a future spa trip has, over the years, done much to sustain us as we try to keep pace with our hectic lives.

Then last summer Anna had an unexpected opportunity to go to a spa resort with her mom. She graciously invited me to go with them. I tried to find various ways to squeeze the trip into our family budget but none of them came close to working. Besides, the trip was something special for Anna and her mom to share.

One evening at the dinner table, I mentioned to my husband and daughters that Anna was taking a trip to the spa with her mom. My ten-year-old daughter looked at me with surprise and said, “Mom, aren’t you going? You’ve always talked about going to a spa with Anna.” I told her that I wasn’t going, that the timing wasn’t right for me, that we could afford for me to go, but that it was okay. I told her that perhaps I could create my own spa at home. “Besides,” I said, “I’m happy for Anna. I’m glad that she gets to go. I know she would be glad for me if I were going.”

My daughter looked unconvinced but temporarily satisfied with my answer. I confess I wasn’t completely convinced of my response myself, but I was trying to be nothing but happy for my friend and content with the thought of creating my own mini-spa at home.

Creating My Own Retreat

I tried to remember there were worse things than missing out on a trip to the spa, much worse to be sure. Even so, a trip to the spa represented something much larger to me than being pampered in style. It represented a longed-for and much-needed rest from an especially challenging few years.

So yes, I felt like I was missing out, but I was committed to handling my disappointment with as much grace as I could muster. As the weeks passed and the time for my friend’s vacation approached, I brainstormed ideas for creating my own spa at home.

My mom and sister had each given me some money to use to purchase something I might not otherwise indulge in. Their gifts were perfectly timed because the ideal spa resort of my imagination would most certainly include books. I couldn’t wait to take my own “Booklover’s Meditation Class” and browse the shelves of my favorite bookstore for hours.

My mother and sister weren’t the only ones who were inspired with their gifts. My friend Nancy sent me an email saying to be on the lookout for a gift that was coming my way. It’s hard not to get excited when you know that Nancy’s sending a gift. She’s always been especially thoughtful and this time was no different. Inside the box I discovered a lovely shrink-wrapped, red-lacquered breakfast tray filled with cocoa mugs, flowered linen napkins, and an assortment of small packages, which, added together, created a complete and inviting breakfast in bed.

How did my sister, mother, and friend Nancy know of my wish to create my own spa? I don’t think they really knew but their gifts served as thoughtful reminders that, even in the busyness of motherhood, it’s okay for us moms to pause to take care of ourselves sometimes. I could tell my kids shared in my enthusiasm for some “Mommy Spa Time” because they, along with their two visiting teenage cousins, smiled whenever they overheard me sharing my plans with my husband.

My Dream Day Begins    

As I headed out the door the morning of my “Booklover’s Meditation Class” I told my daughters and nieces that I would be back a little after noon. My oldest daughter stopped me just as I was closing the front door and asked if she and her thirteen-year-old cousin could make the breakfast in bed while I was gone, to have ready for me when I returned home. I was touched by her thoughtfulness and told her to go ahead.

I set out for the bookstore and there enjoyed the Booklover’s Meditation Class of my dreams. I was fairly floating on a sea of soothing and lively words when I walked out of the store with my beloved new books in hand. As I drove south on the interstate, my cell phone rang and when I answered, my oldest daughter, sounding especially giddy, asked how much longer it would be until I returned home. I told her about fifteen minutes and she abruptly said, “I gotta go. See you soon.” Hmmm? She absolutely loves surprising people so I couldn’t help but wonder if she was up to something more than the breakfast in bed.

When I opened the front door, all seven kids ran to greet me. Each of them smiled like they had been up to something and I was about to find out what. I didn’t smell anything burning and I didn’t see any obvious destruction, so I was pretty confident that whatever they were about to let me in on was going to be okay.

Even Better than the Real Thing 

First, they guided me into the kitchen. On the way, I noticed they had done a general tidying of the house, which, in and of itself, was a nice surprise. Once in the kitchen I saw the red breakfast tray laden with an assortment of breakfast foods including currant scones, vanilla biscotti, and gourmet pancakes along with pure maple syrup and raspberry preserves. Next, they steered me toward the bedroom but said not to crawl into bed just yet because they wanted to show me something else first.

The girls then led me into the master bathroom and there I beheld a luxurious and welcoming spa—one that I had not previously imagined possible in my own home.

The lights were turned down but the room was softly aglow with the warm light of seven or eight colored candles flickering around the room. All the lotions, massage oils, bath salts, and oils I owned but never got around to pampering myself with sat in a pretty display ready for me to use. My makeup was sitting out as well and I was told that I would be getting a foot, leg, and hand massage as well as a face and hair makeover. 

If you asked my kids, they would tell you I’m a very talkative mom who is almost never without something to say, but this time I was so overcome by their thoughtfulness that all I could manage was “Oh!” and “Wow!” and “It’s so beautiful!” again and again.

I couldn’t wait to ease myself into the bathtub, but the girls announced that I couldn’t because it was time for room service to deliver my breakfast. They led me back to my room where I crawled under the covers as the girls carried my breakfast tray into the room.

I felt like royalty and even better, a mother, daughter, and friend, who is very much loved and even occasionally wonderfully pampered. I may yet go to a real spa resort someday, but if I do I’ll remember this spa trip as my first and definitely the one that means the most to me. After all, no spa experience I know of could possibly be delivered with as much love and attention as this one.

LDS Living Magazine