Mum’s the Word

By Lisa Duncan

Mother’s Day at the Santa Barbara Polo Fields unfolded in glorious Riviera style this weekend, with champagne flowing, complimentary rosé tastings for mothers, children twirling, and the manicured grounds positively blooming with fashionable families gathered to celebrate the extraordinary influence mums have on the lives around them.

Among the celebrity guests enjoying the festivities was NFL Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Robert Woods, accompanied by his elegant wife Alexandra Woods and their lovely little ones, charming daughter Shi Woods and adorable little chap Dash Woods, both dressed smartly for the occasion. Woods has shared that his mother encouraged his catching skills from a young age – even turning grocery runs into impromptu football drills. “When my mom used to tell me to get the groceries, I’d toss up the watermelon and catch it,” remarked the star affectionately known as “Bobby Trees.”

Also attending was MMA fighter Jarred “Bear” Fiorda, who spoke movingly about his mother, Michelle Fiorda, and the tremendous influence she had on his life after the passing of his father when he was five years old. Fiorda was guided into martial arts by his mother, who worked extra jobs to keep him training during difficult years – dedication that transformed his future and ultimately steered him toward success.

The ladies arrived in floaty floral frocks, elegant fascinators, and sweeping hats fit for a royal garden party, while little girls skipped about in matching flowered dresses looking like tiny English garden sprites. Everywhere one looked there were babies, toddlers, expectant mothers, mums, and grannies basking beside the polo pitch beneath the honeyed sunshine.

Meanwhile, the match proved thrillingly neck-and-neck, with Santi and Theo Von Wernich battling it out with Nachi Viana before Carbenella claimed the towering three-foot silver trophy, hoisted by Ben Soleimani and sweaty, smoldering Segundo Saravi.

And so, amid flying turf and flowing rosé, Mother’s Day at the polo became something far sweeter – a tribute to the mums whose love changes the course of lives. Brilliant.