My mother can be very hard to shop for.  Also, her birthday is very close to Christmas, so that’s 2 holidays I’ve got to buy at once.  Instead of buying her books or clothes or whatever, this holiday season my sister and I decided to give her a trip to Europe.  It was her Christmas + birthday + mother’s day gifts (and maybe next Christmas’ gift as well).

See, my mother might not need another set of placemats, but she’s always wanted to travel to Europe.  She hasn’t had the chance to hop across the pond, so Sis and I decided to make that dream come true sooner rather than later.  We would pay for all the accommodations and travelling, and mom would just have to buy food and souvenirs.

This led to a LOT of discussions about when should we go? Where should we go? What should we do?   Trying to plan a trip for 3 people, who all have various jobs and live in 2 different provinces, is more difficult than I thought.  But we got it sorted out.  Eventually.

So this was my mother’s trip – not mine (although we did things all three of us would enjoy). Thankfully, my mother is easy to get along with and up for most adventures (as long as it doesn’t involve eating strange food).  I’d definitely travel with her again.