In case you weren’t aware, Mother’s Day is now less than a week away. If you haven’t done it already, now is the time to pick out a gift for the moms in your life! I know some times it can be hard to come up with ideas. You just need a little inspiration, so today I have 10 Great Mother’s Day Gifts for you.
The best part is, even if you’ve already shopped for Mother’s Day you can tuck these ideas away for the next birthday, anniversary, or ‘just because you’ve had a tough week’ gift! This should go without saying, but one key with all of these suggestions is to think about what the person really enjoys when choosing what to buy. If the woman doesn’t like jewelry, that’s probably not the best gift for her. If she isn’t into having her feet touched and looked at, you should probably skip the pedicure. Take a bit of time and put some thought into this and she will appreciate the gift that much more.
For your convenience (and to fulfill my deep need to ‘sort’ things), I have broken these gifts into three main categories. There are ‘traditional’ gifts, ‘just for fun’ options, and choices that give the gift of ‘time’.
Traditional Mother’s Day Gifts
These are Mother’s Day gifts that have been popular for years and have truly stood the test of time. Most of the time these are gifts that will serve you well as long as you fit them to the individual person’s tastes.
Pampering Basket
Motherhood (really, parenting in general) is stressful. When stress builds up it’s not good for anyone. It’s bad for the mom (stress takes a physical and mental toll on a person), it’s bad for her husband (stressed out moms are much more likely to snap at their loved ones and much less likely to be interested in romance or sex), and it’s bad for her kids (hello, ‘angry mom’). Help ease her stress by putting together a ‘pampering basket’. The best part about this gift is that it is totally customizeable. YOU get to decide what goes int he basket so you can tailor it to your budget, your wife’s likes and dislikes, any allergies, etc.
So, what can you put in the basket? The options are endless! A good plan, though, is to think about pampering different parts of her. What is her favorite drink? Gourmet coffee, tea, cocoa, or wine would all be great here. Next, pick up a favorite treat. Whether that means a bag of peanut butter cup, a cupcake from the bakery, or chips and salsa from the Mexican restaurant, get that little guilty pleasure of hers. Now that you’ve pampered her taste buds, move on to her mind. Grab a magazine, book, or ebook she would enjoy. To finish things off, add in something to pamper her body like a face mask, body scrub, or bath salts. The key here is to think about what she loves and won’t normally buy for herself.
Spa Treatments
Most of us love a little pampering now and them. Busy moms also typically enjoy taking a bit of a breather ot just relax away from our chaotic lives. This makes gift certificates for spa treatments a great option.If money is tighter you can go with a simple pedicure at the nearest nail salon. If you want to go all out, though, find a place that offers the works and book a manicure, pedicure, massage, haircut, facial, or some combination of these. One important thing to remember here if this is for your wife- book the appointment when you get the gift certificate! It will show her that you really care about her getting this time to take care of herself.
Jewelry
This is probably one of the most traditional Mother’s Day gifts outside of flowers. Many women enjoy accessorizing with jewelry or love special sentimental pieces like Mothers’ necklaces. Buying jewlery doesn’t have to mean shelling out a ton of money, either. Expensive pieces from the jewlery store are definitely an option, but it is not your only option. If budget and preference allow, go for it. Another great choice is finding a local person who makes their own jewelry or going to a salon and seeing if they have any connections.
Gifts Just For Fun
Not everyone wants a serious or romantic gift. Some women would rather something somewhat lighthearted and entertaining. That’s where these ‘just for fun’ gifts would be perfect.
Coloring Books
I know adult coloring books are a huge fad right now, but that is for good reason. There is something very calming about coloring for many people. It is a chance to turn the brain off for a bit, stop thinking about the million things weighing on your mind, and just RELAX. This is why an adult coloring book and some quality colored pencils can make an excellent Mother’s Day gift. Keep in mind I’m not talking about going down to the dollar store and getting a cartoon coloring book. Get a good quality adult coloring book. You can find them at most craft and book stores, Walmart, Target, and just about everywhere these days. They make them for pretty much every possible passion, too. I’ve seen coloring books for Dr. Who fans, ones with scripture verses, for gardening enthusiasts, and even with complex geometric patterns.
Mom’s Night Out Movie
If you haven’t yet seen the movie Mom’s Night Out, go watch it! It is such a fabulous movie. I can almost promise that you will laugh and cry at various points through out the movie. Almost every mom that I know relates to at least one of the characters. Not only is the movie downright hilarious, it is unbelievably encouraging for moms. At it’s heart the movie carries a message that the work of a mom is important, hard, and beautiful, and that no matter what, God loves us just as we are. Get the mom in your life this movie, some snacks (because movie should ALWAYS come with popcorn), a quiet room, and a box of tissues and she’ll be set for a fun and uplifting night in.
The Gift of Time
Time is probably the one thing there is never enough of, especially for busy moms. There doesn’t seem to be enough hours in a day to fulfill our responsibilities, show our husbands how much we love them, and still hold onto some piece of who we were before kids (you know, when we had interests outside of chicken fingers and diaper prices). By giving your wife, mom, grandmother, daughter, or whatever mother you are shopping for the gift of time, you are helping her to remember that she is worthy of time and attention.
Support a Hobby
Everyone has some sort of hobby or interest. It’s part of human nature to have passions and pastimes. Take a bit of time and think about what those are for the mom you are shopping for. What does she enjoy doing? What could she talk about for hours? Those are her hobbies. Mother’s Day can be a time to support those hobbies. If she’s into art, get her some new paints or sketchpads. For the mom who loves cooking, find a cookbook or kitchen gadget that fits her style. Loves to crochet or knit? How about a gift certificate to a yarn store? If she’s a fitness enthusiast, new tennis shoes or other workout gear is great. A small word of caution here.
Be careful to make sure whatever you are buying matches an actual passion for her! If your wife doesn’t like cooking, buying her a cookbook could be taken as a jab at her skills. If she isn’t into fitness and exercise, getting her new workout clothes will likely be taken as commentary about her weight. This is not territory you want to cross into! That said, if you can successfully match the gift to her hobbies, it can be amazing!
Girl’s Night Out
Everyone on earth needs a break from their responsibilities to blow off steam sometimes. Sometimes just a night out with friends is enough to shake off the stress of life. Take the initiative here and pre-plan a girl’s night out for your wife. Talk to her friends and make arrangements for something they would enjoy. If they are going out to dinner, get a gift card for the restaurant where they will eat. If they are heading to the movies, either buy the tickets (if they are already available) or buy a theater gift card. Fully arrange for the date, time, and friends to join. Trust me when I say she will feel incredibly thankful and valued.
Be sure to make real, tangible plans ahead of time for this, though, or it can easily feel like an afterthought as a gift. “Oh, your gift is going out with your friends some time” sounds more like, “I forgot to get you a gift and this is me thinking on my feet”.
Classes or Lessons
If you want to take supporting a hobby or passion to the next level, consider finding a place that offers classes or lessons in her passions and enrolling your wife/mom/whomever as a gift. I’m fairly confident that just about ANY hobby or interest out there has some place offering a class or lesson on it. Your local extension service might offer gardening, food preserving, and possibly cooking classes. Most community colleges and universities offer ‘community education’ classes on everything from cooking to foreign language to dance to creative writing. Craft stores often offer lessons on sewing, art techniques, and cake decorating. Even if you live in the middle of nowhere, there are now online classes available for most subjects that you can buy as presents.
I remember the year my husband enrolled me in a gardening class. It was so much fun! I got to spend a Saturday learning about something entirely unrelated to my kids, engage my brain in a way it hadn’t been used in a while, have adult conversation, and learn all kinds of fun things. It meant so much to me to know that he cared about me outside of just being a caretaker for our kids!
Cleaning Service
This might not be for everyone, but there are MANY women who would greatly appreciate the gift of time that would come from having some help around the house. I mean, if you have someone coming in once a week or once every other week to clean, that is time you don’t have to be spending on those activities. That means it is time you can spend doing something else that is important to you. Without a doubt, this is a gift that is going to cost a bit of money, but if you do have the money, it’s definitely going to be worth it! It can send the message to your wife that you value her time enough to want to take something off her plate.
Be sure you stop and consider your wife’s personality here. There is a chance that some women may take this as a negative comment about their housekeeping skills. Also, some people are very particular about how things get done around the house, so they may not enjoy having someone else do the work. That said, MOST people would love to have at least some of the tasks of keeping the house clean taken off their plates. If you think your wife might fall into that group, think about getting a short-term cleaning service as a gift.
Weekend Away
This is the most elaborate of the gift choices, but probably my favorite. It’s the gift I would absolutely LOVE to have. I would be willing to bet good money that most of my mom friends would love it just as much. Sometimes as moms we just get frazzled and we need a break. A real break that lasts longer than the time it takes to watch a movie. Time to escape the pressures of our life, sleep, eat junk food without tiny hands trying to steal it, and have full control of the TV. Sometimes we just need a weekend away.
It doesn’t have to be at a fancy hotel with a 5-star restaurant. If your wife is like most people, a decent hotel in a safe area of town with room service and cable TV would do just fine. I strongly urge you to consider this as a gift. I promise you that she will return much more relaxed, refreshed, and ready to tackle life. Stock her up with her favorite snacks, and be sure to book the date for the hotel room. Like other things, simply offering the idea of this up as a gift is not enough. Without a firm date booked there is a good chance it will never happen. Find a hotel and reserve the room. Put the dates on your calendar as blocked out so you will be home. Buy her snacks, and send her on her way. You won’t regret it! If you aren’t sure of the decent hotels in your area, go to a travel booking website and it should be able to point you in the right direction.