Meal & Memories with Mom at the American Girl Store Charlotte

When S was little it was just her and I. I shared in every moment of her day, from the time she woke until bedtime kisses at night. Now that she's seven, things are different - she's up and out the door to school before the darkness has lifted and I'm at work until dinner time, then it's off to soccer or errands - all the things that keep life busy. We've added two siblings to the mix as well, and now there is even less exclusively Mommy-S time than there was before. I carve out special time as often as I can so we can connect and share one-on-one. We plan specific Mommy-S nights, because at seven, she has a whole new cast of characters that make up her day and I cherish being able to sit with her at a special place and hear all the excitement without interruption.

For our most recent mommy-daughter pow-wow we were invited to Meal & Memories with Mom at the American Girl Store's Bistro in Charlotte at the South Park Mall. The American Girl store hosts all types of Mother/Daughter events throughout the year including painting, monogram painting and more. You can see their events by clicking on this link. 

Getting ready for a night out is part of our fun, we picked out our dresses together. S wore pink, and matched the American Girl Bistro's decor perfectly. The ambiance at the Bistro is 100% girly with bubble chandeliers and pink gerber daisy lights. The hostess showed us to our seats with an adorable place setting including hair bow for S to take home holding her napkin. S's doll Samantha even had a special chair at our table as well as a tiny cup and saucer so she wouldn't miss out on the dining fun. 

S was given an American Girl bag filled with goodies and ideas for us to start making memories throughout our dinner. There were three dice that we rolled with words and numbers and we could use them to make up silly or true stories. Some of them really got us giggling, seven year olds have such fun imaginations!

There was a Making Memories book that asked questions for us each to fill out and compare notes and thoughts. We answered which we liked better, books or magazines, flowers or chocolate. It was fun to talk about how we're alike and different and the reasons we chose our answers.

They included a dry erase board for her to decorate with stickers and use to answer the questions that were in a box on the table including things like "Which would you rather be - able to fly or be invisible." For the record I chose that I'd like to fly so I could avoid traffic. S chose invisible, and when asked why she said "so she could sneak out of her room and go to her friend's houses." Oh boy.. I'm in trouble. :) 

Amidst the memory making we were served three courses for our dinner. S chose the fancy fruit fondue which included fruit kabobs, mini banana muffins and yogurt in a flowerpot and I selected the  soft pretzel bites. S said the muffins were the 'best muffins in the whole world'. For our entrees S chose her favorite stand-by, Macaroni with Lots of Cheese and I went traditional fare as well with a Roasted Turkey Club Sandwich. For dessert we enjoyed the Chocolate Mousse Flowerpot - S loved the fact that each course came with a flower pot and or flower. American Girl does it up right, and knows how to cater to their audience. 

S said at least four times that it was the best night ever, I love seven-year-old exuberance, but I had to agree. We had so much fun together. We wrapped up in the playing games, answering questions, eating and laughing. After dinner we strolled around the store for a little while so S could make up her birthday wish list early.

Events at the American Girl Store in Charlotte range in price, this particular experience costs $40 per person. Other adventures like Leah's Adventure Academy running March 29th - 31st are only $10 per person and include adventures through four themed stations, an adventure journal, an undersea cupcake food craft, handkerchief decorating and a photo op. This is a great Spring Break idea! You can get more info and sign up here.

Our experience was comp'd so that I could give a review. As always my opinions are my own. Any experiences I attend and wouldn't recommend to a friend I don't write about and don't share with my readers. It's my promise to you, and why you'll only see what I've enjoyed and would recommend on my blog.