Graduations, Mother’s Day, Memorial Day—there are so many important occasions in May that you might forget to celebrate something just for fun—National Pet Month! It’s a favorite of ours here at The Retreat at Mountain Brook in Birmingham, Alabama, because we are a seriously pet-friendly high-end apartment home community, complete with a large fenced pet park.

Love Is A 4-Legged Word

Our Idea Specialists™, who consider cat hair to be a fashion accessory and never met a dog they didn’t like, spent a little time on the old Google looking for some fun ways to treat themselves and their fur babies. While on the search, they learned that National Pet Week is also a thing, always observed during the first full week of May. It’s sponsored by the Auxiliary to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) to foster responsible pet ownership, recognize the human-animal bond, and increase public awareness of veterinary medicine.

Could the theme for 2024 be any better? It’s “Love is 4-legged word.” Hugs and pets all around!!

And biscuits, dog biscuits, too! From Birmingham’s own Blind Dog Biscuit. You can’t go wrong ordering their special “Bee Ham Biscuits” (country ham and honey).

Gifts For Grads & Moms

The Retreat at Mountain Brook Idea Specialists™ found the perfect combo of pet love and a present for your favorite moms and grads in a custom watercolor painting on canvas. Just upload a photo of your four-legged friend and Texture of Dreams will do the rest!

While the traditional gift of cash to graduates might seem boring, it doesn’t have to be if you put it in a pop-up bouncing gift box filled with confetti. Fun!!

The Idea Specialists™, some moms themselves, think these packages from Spoonful of Comfort will help the strong feminine presence in your life have a “soup-er” Mother’s Day! (They also understand that you might just be tempted to treat yourself to of their yummy goodies to enjoy in your comfy clothes in the privacy of your own luxury apartment.)

Food & Flowers

You can’t go wrong with taking Mom out for a special meal on her special day, especially if you’ve given her some flowers first. And the brunch at Trattoria ZaZa is extra-special, with their signature breakfast pasta and pizza, polenta, and cherry rosemary scones. Mimosas are a must!

The Idea Specialists™ know it might seem a little early in the month to be planning your friends and family Memorial Day gathering by one of The Retreat at Mountain Brook’s three gorgeous saltwater pools, but advance planning is never a bad thing!

This year, they’re for sure including grilled peach caprese salad on the menu, with the freshest of peaches and tomatoes from The Farmers Market at Pepper Place. There are lots of recipes out there for this spring and summer classic, but our group is particularly fond of this one at How Sweet Eats (and not just because food personality and cookbook author Jessica Merchant says glitter is her middle name, LOL). Also, be sure to check out this guide to Alabama’s peach season, and give SoulGrown a follow if you haven’t already. They’re always posting great stuff!

We’re also fond of a nice sangria by the pool, and Southern Living has a great piece on which wines to use for it. If you don’t already have a favorite way to make yours, check out this white sangria on Dinners, Dishes & Desserts.

Honoring Their Memory

Watching the National Memorial Day Concert, featuring the National Symphony Orchestra with guest performers, is an annual tradition for the Idea Specialists™. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Joint Chiefs of Staff also participate in the concert, offering their leadership perspective on the value and honor of military service and acknowledging the challenges that veterans and their families face.

Always broadcast and streamed by PBS the Sunday night before Memorial Day, the concert honors our country’s veterans, servicemen and women, and military families, and all those who died in America’s wars. Its goal is to unite the country in remembrance and appreciation of those who gave their lives for our nation and serves those who are grieving through the mission put forward by Abraham Lincoln in his second inaugural address, “Let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan.”