15 Times Gilmore Girls Gave Us Mom Envy
We'll be honest, Lorelai Gilmore is not necessarily a model mother. In fact, one could easily make a case as to why she is actually a bad mother. There's the fact that she feeds Rory junk food 99% of the time. There's also the fact that she was immature and self-centered. Guys, I know. I love Lorelai just as much as the next person but she was flawed, as are all of us.
These shortcomings aside, it's really hard to not want Lorelai Gilmore to be your mom. Every time I watch Gilmore Girls, I'm completely jealous of the fact that Rory was raised by such a cool and interesting woman, who had the ability to make any mundane task seem magical. Also, the fact that Rory is basically a perfect human being makes me jealous too. If Lorelai raised us, would we all also be beautiful, witty, well-read, ambitious women like Rory? One can only dream. Not that we aren't all perfect in our own ways, but Rory is perfect, perfect.
With the Gilmore Girls Revival ramping up (it'll be back November 25th, y'all!), Gilmore Girls has come back into our lives. We nearly forgot about Stars Hollow in all its glory. Just kidding, we could never forget about Stars Hollow and sweet, sweet Jess. Side note: Rory totally belongs with Jess, right? Team Jess forever!
Anyway, before November 25th, we'll be dreaming about Stars Hollow and wishing Lorelai was our mom. Here are 15 times Lorelai totally gave us some major mom envy.
15 When They Celebrated 4 Thanksgivings
Oh, to celebrate four Thanksgivings in one day. It seems like the food marathon of everyone's dreams. The Gilmore ladies are known for the insane amount of food that they can ingest and still be, like, a size 2. Admittedly, in the course of this episode, they eat a lot of food, even for them. We're down with that, though. Bring on the mashed potatoes, baby!
The reason it gave us so much envy is not just for the food, though that's definitely part of the reason, but rather because of Lorelai's unrelenting way of being there for the people she loves. Once you're in with Lorelai, you are family and so Rory was raised with a huge 'family', even if they weren't necessarily blood related.
Almost no one that I know has four different Thanksgiving celebrations to go to but Lorelai and Rory did and instead of shying away from one or two of the celebrations, they rocked all four. I'm forever jealous of the amount of mash potatoes they probably ate during that episode.
14 Every Morning At Luke's
I'll never understand the timeline of Gilmore Girls but whatever. Somehow Rory and Lorelai managed to have breakfast at Luke's before Rory had to be in school almost every single morning.
When I was in high school, I was eating something on the way to school but Rory and Lorelai had enough to time get ready, go to Luke's and eat. It's safe to assume that because of the copious amounts of coffee that they drank, they didn't sleep much and therefore, woke up early to have waffles at Luke's every morning. Timeline aside, what we envy is the way they managed to make time for a morning tradition. The effort put into making a little time for each other every morning warms our hearts. This willingness to maybe wake up earlier just to spend some time with Rory before school is what we really envy. Well, that and Luke's bacon.
13 How Nice She Is To Rory's Boyfriends (Most Of The Time)
Lorelai is like the queen of cool moms everywhere. She is the type of mom to whom you'd never be embarrassed to take a boyfriend home. In fact, the only reason I'd probably not want to take a boyfriend home to Lorelai would be because she's the young, hot, cool mom. I'd legit be afraid that my boyfriend would like her more than he likes me, which would be understandable. I mean, I sometimes like Lorelai more than I like myself.
That being said, Lorelai was always pretty fair to all of Rory's boyfriend. She didn't like Jess for obvious reasons (um, he crashed Rory's car that Dean built her) but once Rory and Jess started dating, she made an effort to be kind to him. Also, when Rory tried to date Dean after breaking up his marriage, it was doomed but Lorelai was friendly. It was actually protective Luke who was mean to Dean after that.
Logan was basically the opposite of everything Lorelai would ever want for Rory but she still managed to be nice to him too, except for when she found Rory mackin' with him that one time. Overall, Lorelai is the type of mom you wouldn't be embarrassed for your boyfriends to meet and that's pretty awesome.
12 When She Takes Rory To Harvard
Lorelai was not always the best role model. Case and point: when she called off her wedding and basically, runs away with Rory. That had to mess Rory up, right? Lorelai, however, made the best of the situation. She took Rory on a spontaneous road trip, which made us pretty jealous just for that fact. How awesome would it be if your mom just took you on a road trip because she felt like it? I mean, it was obviously done to avoid the post-wedding drama, but still.
The road trip got even better when Lorelai surprised Rory by taking her to Harvard. This is so sweet on so many levels but the best part of it is certainly the way in which Lorelai supported Rory's dream. Rory always wanted to go to Harvard and by taking her to see the school, Lorelai was showing her support for Rory's future.
Also, Lorelai is, like, the most fun ever at Harvard. She tells Rory to sit in on a class and sneaks them through dorm rooms. Lorelai, just be our mom already, will ya?
11 When She Makes Rory A Dress
This dress may not have been Chanel or anything but it is so the thought that counts. For Rory's first dance, Lorelai literally made her a dress, like stitched it together and everything. Most kids are lucky enough to have their mom make them dinner and Lorelai was making friggin' clothes that Rory could actually wear. To top it off, the dress looked totally cute on Rory. Doesn't everyone wish Lorelai was there mom so she could make them adorable dresses for all of their dances? I know I do.
This gives us the same feels as the time Lorelai decorated Rory's hammer when she was making a house. Of course, the hammer was a bit embarrassing but when asked about it, Rory explained that her mother likes to take things that aren't beautiful and make them beautiful. That is such an accurate description of Lorelai. Just think how many quirky, beautiful things you would be surrounded by if she was your mother and let the envy wash over you.
10 When She Freaked Out About Getting Rid Of Rory's Room
Lorelai and Rory were having their one big, awful fight, which we're glad they had because otherwise, they would be too perfect. During this time, Luke is in the process of moving in with Lorelai. In order to make Lorelai's house a home for the both of them, they renovate, which is mostly hilarious as Lorelai is besties with the construction workers and there is a hole in the side of her house.
In a more serious scene, Lorelai has a meltdown about changing Rory's room. This is such a gem because even though she wasn't speaking to Rory, she couldn't bear to change her room one bit. Some mothers switch their daughter's bedrooms into guestrooms, home gyms or offices the minute their daughter leaves for college. Lorelai's pain in letting go of how her and Rory's relationship had been for so many years is tear jerking.
9 Rory's Graduation
All. The. Feels. If you could watch this speech without just crying a million tears, you might not have any feelings.
During Rory's speech at her Chilton graduation, she calls Lorelai her best friend and her inspiration. She then talks about her upbringing, as their home was full of love, books and music. Rory goes on to say that Lorelai always supported her and made her feel that she could be whatever she wanted to be in life. (Are you not crying yet?) Rory wraps it up by saying that the person she wanted to be all along was her mom. Oh, so many tears.
This is such a great moment because it's one of the only times that one of the women is so very vocal about their extraordinary bond. Also, the way Rory describes her mother just makes it seem like Lorelai is the best mom in the world and, well, she pretty much was.
8 When She Yells At Jess In A Cool Way
For the most part, Lorelai was nice to all of Rory's boyfriends, despite how she may have felt about them. The only one she seemed to fully genuinely like was Dean, but that ended after he cheated on his wife and took Rory's virginity. She was almost always kind to Jess and Logan, even though Jess was a brooding rebel and Logan was a charming, entitled rich boy. For the record, she was actually pretty mean to Jess before Rory dated him but once Rory started dating Jess, Lorelai softened up.
However, she did lose it on Jess one time. While Rory and Jess are dating, Jess leaves Rory completely hanging on the weekend. She literally sat by the phone. Due to Lorelai's urging, Rory finally goes out with Lane to a hockey game. Of course, then Jess finally shows up to see Rory. Lorelai explains that Rory is out and tells Jess that he was being a jerk, but she does so in a cool manner by quoting a Beach Boys song. I wish I had a mom who yelled at my boyfriends with song lyrics.
7 All The Junk Food Ever
This might not really make Lorelai the best mom in the whole world but we don't care. Lorelai and Rory ate all the snacks ever in just about every single episode. Luckily for Lorelai, Rory had the metabolism of gold so she remained a size two while eating pizza, burgers, Pop Tarts, French toast and everything else that the two ladies consumed on a daily basis.
I'm really not sure how there was never a plot about one of them, you know, gaining weight or something because that's what would happen to a normal person if they ate like this. Of course, both Lorelai and Rory were exaggerated versions of people in many ways. Rory especially, as there was no way anyone could be as well-read, witty, beautiful and up to date in pop culture references. Seriously, Rory was too perfect. Regardless, we're still jealous of Lorelai and Rory eating all the snacks ever made.
6 When She Made Candy Sushi
Speaking of all the snacks ever, remember when they made candy sushi? After Logan and Rory's trip to Asia falls through, Lorelai throws her an Asian themed party. While it's not as great as, say, actually going to Asia, Lorelai's attempt to make Rory feel better about the let down is truly sweet.
For her to have transformed her home into an Asian oasis just to make Rory feel better about a disappointment was very nice. I would take a mom who threw me a party just because, I don't know, it was my birthday or something but here was Lorelai throwing a whole party for the two of them because Rory was bummed out. Oh, and to top things off - she made candy sushi! How very them! Lorelai had the ability to make any day into a magical event.
5 All Of Their Cool Plans
Whether they fulfill their plans or not, Rory and Lorelai had so many dreams about the future together. They planned to backpacking through Europe and go on a roller coaster tour of the US. On Rory's 21st, they planned to be in Atlantic City, sipping martinis and playing 21.
Of course, not all of these plans played out. Lorelai and Rory did backpack through Europe after Rory's high school graduation and had an amazing time. However, their roller coaster tour was cut short when Rory was offered her dream job and had to start in three days. They also didn't celebrate Rory's birthday the way they had planned, as this was while they were in that big, awful fight.
Whether or not they actually did fulfill these wild plans they made up, it was more the making of the plans that we envied. We can only imagine a young Rory giggling as she and Lorelai cooked up that 21st birthday plan. Sometimes, it's the actual making of plans that is the fun part.
4 Rory Talks About That Time They Lived In A Shed
When Emily visits Stars Hollow, Rory takes her on a tour of the charming little town. During the course of the tour, Rory shows Emily the shed behind the Independence Inn. The shed was where Rory and Lorelai lived when they first moved to Stars Hollow. Emily is obviously upset by this, as Lorelai choose to live in a friggin' shed rather than the mansion in which she was raise. Rory is pretty oblivious because she doesn't see the shed as a bad thing. In fact, she details the whole layout for Emily with pride, as Lorelai made the tiny space feel like a lovely little home for young Rory.
While we don't really envy the fact that Rory lived in a shed, we do envy the fact that Lorelai made it a home. Home is truly about the love inside a house, not the actual house. The fact that Lorelai could even make a shed such a livable space is just a testament to how much love she had for Rory.
3 When She Reconciles With Her Parents For Rory
After having gotten away from the clutches of her parents, Lorelai did the unspeakable in the pilot of Gilmore Girls. She willingly let them back into her life, all to better Rory's life.
When Rory gets into Chilton, Lorelai doesn't even think twice about sending her there. Rory is a great student and should be among other great students. Plus, going to Chilton would increase Rory's odds of actually getting into Harvard, which was her dream of all dreams. When Lorelai sees the tuition, she's thunderstruck, as she could never afford that. How she even afforded the beautiful house they lived in is beyond me but that's another story.
Lorelai asks her parents for help and in exchange, allows her parents into her and Rory's life in the form of Friday night dinners. While this may not seem like such a big deal to some, to Lorelai it was like making a deal with the devil but she was willing to do it for the sake of Rory.
May we all have a mother who would make a deal with the devil for us.
2 All The Glorious Genes Rory Got
I get that this point is fictional in a way, as Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel aren't actually related, but we still want all of Lorelai's genes. Every single one of her genes.
First of all, look at them! Just look at them! They might be one of the most beautiful mother-daughter duos of all time. Give us Rory's blue eyes, Lorelai's beautiful smile, either of their complexions. If being Lorelai's daughter means inheriting these genes, sign us up. Sign us up right this minute!
That's just the looks. Now, let's talk about the metabolism. Somehow, both women can eat whatever they want, whenever they want and never gain a pound. They're so effortlessly skinny that they mock working out, tricking guys into giving them massages at the gym instead of actually using the equipment.
Oh, then there's the intellect, the wit, and the work ethic. Those have to be hereditary too, right?
1 Basically, Every Single Episode
There many have been some episodes and moments that made us want Lorelai to be our mom more than others but really, we wanted Lorelai to be our mom in, like, every single episode.
It doesn't just have to do with Lorelai being so great, but it also has to do with how amazing Rory is. The fact that she single-handedly raised such a great human being is really a testament to what a wonderful mother she was. And, she was such a great mother at such a young age!
Obviously since Gilmore Girls is a show about a mother and daughter with an unbreakable bond, it was more or less written to give us mom envy. We love our own moms a lot, but watching the sacrifices Lorelai makes for Rory throughout the series, we can help but have all the feels. We'll keep being envious until it's back in November.