Seven Portland Stoner Moms Describe Their Ideal Mother’s Day

It may be a strange time to be alive and an incredibly trying time to be a parent, but at least the ganja is plentiful.

Tara and Susan Phillips of Phillips Field Facility.

If there were ever a year for moms to unapologetically lean into their namesake Hallmark holiday, 2020 is that year.

Mother's Day was created to celebrate mothers and maybe—just maybe—give them one solitary day of rest. But what does "rest" even look like during a global pandemic?

Mothers and primary caregivers nationwide are homeschooling their children for the first time while simultaneously juggling everyday family stresses and attempting to maintain some semblance of normalcy. Further destigmatizing parental cannabis use feels especially meaningful right now. It may be a strange time to be alive and an incredibly trying time to be a parent, but at least the ganja is plentiful.

Related: How to Survive as a Stoner Parent While Schools Are Shut Down.

I spoke to a few of Portland's other canna-moms about medicated spa indulgences, spiked cocktails and, most importantly, making time to celebrate ourselves—but not without a little help from our favorite strains.

Tacarra Shaw

Founder, DiversifyPortland.org

Cannabis advocate Tacarra Shaw's Diversify Portland events have included Family Days, Kids Days, and panels in which parents and children talk candidly about the risks and benefits of cannabis use. Even her yearly National Cannabis Diversity and Awareness Convention counts all three of her children as co-founders. So it's no surprise that when asked about her plans for Mother's Day, she prefers family togetherness rather than solo pampering. "We'll be with Nana [Shaw's mother] making aprons for her new YouTube cooking show, Cooking With FIYA!—you know, like fire," she said. "And then we'll sneak off to smoke a joint." That joint is likely to contain Shaw's current favorite strain, White Papaya.

Shop those faves: AmeriCannaRX, 8654 NE Sandy Blvd., 971-254-4581, americannarx.com.

Susan and Tara Phillips

Owners, Phillips Field Facility

Another family proudly heralding cannabis normalization is the mother-daughter team at Phillips Field Facility, a micro-tier craft cannabis farm in Eugene. Together, Susan Phillips and her daughter, Tara, will spend Mother's Day elbows deep in farm work. "We'll be adding amendments to our topsoil, transplanting our plant babies into bigger pots, and finishing off the day by harvesting garden veggies and having dinner in the sunshine," Tara Phillips says. Naturally, the duo's top recommendation for a Mother's Day toke is one of their farm's most popular strains. "We've been loving our Harle-Tsu, which has 4.6 percent total terpenes," Susan Phillips says. It's notably high in beta myrcene and terpinolene, both of which are associated with relaxation and lowered anxiety. "It's been a powerful ally during these uncertain times," Susan Phillips says.

Shop that strain: Oregon's Own, 7881 SW Capitol Highway, 503-244-1273, oregonsown.com.

Bria Bronwyn and Ashley Mack

Dopeafide Marketing 

There is a very specific, enthusiastically feminine subculture within the cannabis industry that Dopeafide is steadfastly creating content for. And since two-thirds of its team are mothers themselves, it's easy to presume their Mother's Day plans would be prime social media fodder for influencers and private gallery revelers alike. "The women of Dopeafide are kicking off our Mother's Day with a FaceTime mimosa and smoke sesh," says Bronwyn. "Then Ashley and I are both treating ourselves to some quiet self-care time." For Bronwyn, that means some at-home spa action complemented with a pre-roll of Garlic Cookies, a euphoric indica with a velvety body high and coolly relaxing head high. For Mack, a medicated soak from Cannabombz is on the agenda, along with and a supply of Tav flower from Sound Cannabis.

Shop those faves: Green Hop, 5515 NE 16th Ave., 971-301-5859, gogreenhop.com.

Casey Wiser

Chief administrative officer, Tokeativity

Since the national cannabis sorority's beloved Mother's Day social has transitioned to an online happy hour, Wiser hopes to enjoy her day from the comfort of her own backyard, weather permitting. "I'm crossing my fingers for sun," says Wiser, "so I can hang outside and enjoy a Magic Number canna-tail and several joints." Her canna-tail recipe is simple and classic: "I usually do 30 mg with soda water, which is lovely, but if I have juice on hand I add a splash to jazz it up."  Her strain suggestions, Silver Hawk and Durban Poison, are both energizing sativas, which she loves for "keeping my mood up and my house clean during all of this." Same, girl. Same.

Shop those faves: Pacific Green, 710 NE Killingsworth St., 971-242-8535, pacificgreenpdx.com.

Jade Daniels

Founder, Ladies of Paradise

The Ladies of Paradise branding agency has a signature girl-gang vibe that has become a ubiquitous presence in the Portland cannabis industry. This is most easily referenced by its website's staff portraits. Each image glistens with feminine mystique, but it's Daniels' portrait that holds the most weight, with the founder posed tenderly holding her infant son to her chest. By featuring, rather than downplaying, her motherhood, Daniels sends a clear message: She's one badass mother. "Nothing makes me happier than a scenic drive," she says, "so for my first Mother's Day, I'll be going on a little Oregon road trip and staying in Bandon with my family." True to her brand, Daniels will be enjoying a pack of Ladies of Paradise's Lady Lady Jay pre-rolls—specifically, the one packed with Cake Bomb strain from Tree Top Farms.

Shop those faves: Electric Lettuce, multiple locations.

Leona Thomas

Co-owner, ReLeaf Health 

Thomas expressed perhaps the most common Mother's Day fantasy of Lockdown 2020: "No Kids Allowed!" "With the quarantine, momming has been taken up a notch," she says. "So I plan to be pampered to the fullest. I am enjoying breakfast in bed, naps, and to-be-determined movies." Her Mother's Day product of choice is Cherry OG Live Resin. While it's not a replacement for bistro brunches or macaroni picture frames, it is a smooth vape her store currently has in stock.

Shop that vape: ReLeaf Health, 3213 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 971-255-1447, releafhealth.green.

Sam Montanaro

Founder, Prism House

As the founder of 420-friendly event space Prism House, Samantha Montanaro makes motherly cannabis consumption her literal business. Prism House hosts monthly events specifically for canna-moms, and though Mama Sam, as she's known, is missing her matriarchal stoner community, she is enthusiastically looking forward to spending her day however the heck she feels like. "Mother's Day is a day I try to truly do what my heart desires, and I ask my home and work life to respect that," she says. Montanaro's indulgences will include a fat Meraki pre-roll and her favorite CBD cocktail. "I love ending the day with a cocktail," she says. "My favorite recipe lately has been Crater Lake Vodka, ginger beer and a few drops of the rose-flavored CBD bitters from ZVeda. Shake and add a splash of lemon."

Shop that pre-roll: Gram Central Station, 6430 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 503-284-6714.

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