With Mother’s Day one week away, I wanted to introduce everyone to my mom: Angelina (Lin) Cortes.

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My mom has always been there for me…

– especially during my first year out of college (you can read about my first year in Corporate America here).  I really struggled in my sales job with PepsiCo and I decided that I needed to find a new job about 6-9 months into the job. My mom was there (on the phone) to listen, encourage, and guide me along the way. She continued to believe in me even when I didn’t believe in myself.

After months of interviewing, I was extended an offer and an opportunity to join a finance rotation program with the Boeing Company. While I was excited for the chance to come back to Boeing, I was also extremely scared to work in finance. In college, I had majored in marketing and sales and didn’t have any experience in finance. I called my mom to tell her the great news and also express to her my fears of joining the finance/accounting functions.

My mom encouraged me to take the opportunity. She told me to not fear finance because the company would teach me how to do the job. She told me that I’m smart and that I was going to learn new skills. She wasn’t worried about me taking this next step – which actually helped put me at ease. I ended up accepting Boeing’s offer, working only a year in finance, and rotating into a project management role that I’ currently in.

My mom has always encouraged me to be brave. Whether it was moving to California, moving into a finance role, and applying and starting grad school, she has always encouraged me to take a leap of faith. She also reminds me to take a day off from all my commitments and to actually get some rest. I truly lucked out to have such an incredible mother in my life.

So this Mother’s Day I wanted to take my mom out to thank her for all her love, encouragement, and support. With the help of the Tacoma Mall, my mom and I had an incredible Mother-Daughter day!

Here’s how we celebrated Mother’s Day at the Tacoma Mall this year:

Mother’s Day Activity #1: I took my mom to get her nails done at Gene Juarez.

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My mom is an accountant and a gardener – so she’s spent most of her career typing at a desk and her weekends watering and planting new plants. Her hands do an incredible amount of work in and outside the home. So for our mother-daughter day, we got spa manicures at Gene Juarez Salon in Tacoma Mall.

My mom doesn’t get her nails done very often – in fact she only goes if my sister and I take her to do so, so getting her nails done was a treat for her. She decided to pick out a pretty pink neutral color and I picked a berry reddish color.

The two ladies, Erika and Cayenne, who serviced us, were so nice! They grabbed us coffee and water and made sure we were comfortable the entire experience.

Mother’s Day Activity #2: My mom also got her hair styled at Gene Juarez.

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After our spa manicures, my mom and I moved onto get our hair styled. We both got treated to a shampoo and conditioner – which was amazing! I forgot how nice it was to get your hair shampoo and conditioned by someone else.

For my hairstyle, I got my hair blow dried and then curled – my go to hair style. And my mom got her bangs trimmed, her hair also shampoo and conditioned, and straightened out.

Our two ladies were so kind and accommodating to us. We had originally agreed that my mom was just going to get a hair style but the stylist went above and beyond and trimmed my mom’s bangs for her.

Overall, our Gene Juarez experience was incredible. From the front desk to the hairstylists and the manicurists, the entire staff was welcoming and flexible. They gave us a mother-daughter day I’ll never forget! And I would definitely come back to the salon for a manicure and hairstyle!

Mother’s Day Activity #3: And then we went shopping!

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After our hair and nails, my mom and I decided to do some shopping around the Tacoma Mall. We stopped by our usual favorite stores – like H&M, Nordstrom, and Old Navy. We decided to stop by White House Black Market because my mom was looking for a wedding guest dress for my cousin’s wedding. White House Black Market was having a great sale at the time. She tried on a handful of dresses and decided on a white floral lace blouse that she could wear to work instead!

Mother’s Day Activity #4: Starbucks Coffee Stop

After our eventful day, we stopped by the Starbucks at the food court for an afternoon coffee treat. I grabbed an ice caramel macchiato and my mom grabbed a coffee cake! We just needed a little pick me up snack and drink and Starbucks is always my go-to stop.

My mom and I had so much fun at the Tacoma Mall to celebrate Mother’s Day! I’ll be heading to Miami this week so I’m so glad we were able to celebrate it earlier this month.

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If you’re around the Seattle-Tacoma area and are looking for Mother’s Day plans, here are a few ideas you can do to celebrate Mother’s Day at Tacoma Mall:

  1. Reserve and have brunch at the Cheesecake Factory. My sister and I had brunch at the Cheesecake Factory once and it was so good! They have so many great dishes on their menu.
  2. Reserve and have dinner and desert at BJ’s Restaurant Brewery. You can treat your mom out with a pizookie after dinner!
  3. Take her to get her nails and hair done at Gene Juarez. She’ll feel pampered and taken care of!
  4. Take her shopping (of course). Whether your mom needs new hand soaps at Bath & Body works or wants a new outfit at Gap or Old Navy, the Tacoma mall has so many great shops!
  5. Take her out for dessert at Menchie’s, Baskin Robbins, or See’s Candies in the mall.

What are your plans to celebrate Mother’s Day?

*This blog post was made in collaboration with the Tacoma Mall and all my opinions are my own.*

Thank you for reading! And happy mother’s day to all the mom’s, aunts, grandmas, and friends out there!

Love,

Emma

Photos: Holly Phan

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