Mother of: Hannah
Venue: Our Lady of Lourdes, followed by Lafayette Club, Minnetonka Beach, Minnesota
Vibe: Country club formal
Dress: Mac Duggal
This was not Mary’s first go as “mother of.” Her son, stepson and daughter had all been married in the couple of years leading up to her other daughter Hannah’s June 2025 wedding to Pat.
The two started dating their freshman year at Lehigh University, where they both played basketball. What started as a text to grab a milkshake turned into an enduring relationship that has spanned 8 years, 4 states, and 2 stints of international basketball.
They maintained a long distance relationship for nearly four years, once enduring 10 months apart while Pat played basketball in Tokyo and Covid kept Hannah from being able to visit.
In 2023, Pat started graduate school in Minneapolis, where Hannah grew up, and finally, the two found themselves in the same city. Which soon meant Mary was shopping for a mother of the bride dress.
“I’ve learned from being the ‘mother of’ several times that it is so much more enjoyable if I embrace the whole process,” Mary says. “I spent time with family and friends and shopping trips, ordering online, and then having ‘try on’ parties — taking so many pictures and sending them to Hannah for her thoughts. Those memories are so special.”
Mary was so in the zone on shopping that she said “yes” to a Mother Of photo shoot in fall, 2024. We asked her to try on a strapless floral brocade in olive and pink with a ruffled A-line skirt.
“I remember thinking you guys were crazy an that I would never look good in something like this,” Mary recalls. But she politely stepped into the fitting room anyway.
“I knew the minute I walked out of the dressing room that I was wrong and you were right. I sent a picture to my daughter, who loved it, too.” Mary ordered the Mac Duggal dress on the spot. (Here's Mary's dress in this season's print.)
“I don’t think the photos do this dress justice — the texture and colors are so rich,” Mary says. “I felt full of joy wearing this dress.”
The ceremony took place at a Minneapolis church followed by dinner and dancing at the Lafayette Club on the shores of Lake Minnetonka. “It was fun to share Minnesota Lakes with Pat’s East Coast family," Mary says.
Two accessories helped Mary stay fulling in the zone all day: sneakers and comfortable shape wear.
Her Cole Haan ivory and gold trim sneakers were dressy enough for the wedding (where they were barely visible under her floor length gown), but destined to be worn again and again.
She purchased a collection of shape wear for the wedding wedding an chose the Honeylove SuperPower Girl Shorts for the wedding day. “Definitely worth it,” says Mary.
Being comfortable in a dress she loved allowed Mary to focus on Hannah and Pat and being surrounded by all of their family and friends. “I felt like I couldn’t stop smiling,” Mary says. “Everyone embraced the moment.”
| Photography by Amanda Nippoldt