A Twist on Classic Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

By Kathryn Trudeau

“A Mother is she who can take the place of all others, but whose place no one else can take.”

Candy?  Flowers?  Crafts? How do you celebrate one of the most important relationships you’ll ever have?  If you’re stuck in a gift-giving rut, try one of these ideas to put a personalized spin on classic Mother’s Day gift ideas.

Brunch… Revamped

If you’re a brunch-lover, you know that the #1 busiest day for brunch is Mother’s Day. Of course, you won’t have to do the dishes, but you may end up waiting an hour (or more) to get a table. This year, skip the waiting and make a brunch for mom at home. (But don’t forget to do the dishes for her too!)  Take it up a notch this year and do more than just toast and scrambled eggs.

Invite little kids into the kitchen, and let them help with age appropriate tasks such as peeling bananas, dipping bread into egg mixture for French toast, spooning yogurt into parfait cups, or washing berries.

Think big this year and test your culinary skills. Need some inspired Brunch ideas?

• Make French toast with Challah bread. For your egg mixture, use eggs, cream, vanilla, cinnamon, and the zest of an orange. Top with real maple syrup.
• Stay Calm And Make An English Breakfast: Sausage, sliced tomatoes, thick cut bacon, and roasted potatoes.
• Make homemade yogurt parfait cups. Top with granola, fresh fruit, chia seeds, and a drizzle of honey.
• Try your hand at crepes! If you can make a pancake, you can make a crepe!  Fill with fresh berries or go savory with scrambled eggs and cheese.
• Breakfast pizza
• Egg cups: Fill with Mom’s favorite toppings – sausage, spinach, cheese. You can use pre-made pie crusts cut to fit inside a muffin pan or you can go crust-less (just grease the muffin pans well!)

Whatever you make mom for brunch, don’t forget to serve it up with a smile, a big cup of coffee, and a handmade card.

Flowers … Revamped

Flowers are another popular gift for Moms on Mother’s Day, but bouquets aren’t the only way to give the gift of flowers to Mom.

• Take your child to hunt for wildflowers, and collect as many as you can. This is a great activity for younger children and toddlers.  Once home, press the flowers by laying them flat in between the pages of a big book. If you don’t have a big book, place the flowers between wax paper and set them under something heavy to keep them pressed flat.  In a few days, the flowers will have dried.  Use the flowers in a shadow box, ModPodge them onto a blank canvas, or glue them onto a handmade card.
• Buy mom flowers… from a nursery. If mom loves to garden, spend the day gardening with her and planting the new flowers.  Even small children can help out with this activity.
• Buy a special plant or flower and plant it for her. When she wakes up on Mother’s Day, take her outside to see the special garden you’ve created.  Add special touches with garden stones (some of them can be personalized with all of the children’s names) or statues.
• Plan a family outing to a botanical garden.

Photographs

There’s a reason moms love photographs so much.  Motherhood is often defined as a period in a woman’s life where “days are long, but the years are short.”  Photographs help moms freeze a moment in time – so even if the years zoom by quickly, she can return to her favorite memories easily. 

If you want to gift mom a photograph, make it extra special by incorporating some of these ideas:

• Don’t just give a print: frame it so it is ready to hang!
• Create a scrapbook. Print the images you want to include, but let your kids help glue the pictures to each page. Scrapbook kits often include all you need for decorating the pages.
• Order an album.Choose images from the past year that were memorable and special to mom.
• Create a collage. Glue several images onto a white canvas, and cover the whole surface with ModPodge.
• Plan a photo session for Mother’s Day! To make this gift even better, schedule a hair appointment for Mom before the session. A little pampering and a photo session? Yes please!

Jewelry … Revamped

Jewelry is another popular gift for moms on Mother’s Day, but this can be pricey, and often children are left out of the jewelry gift-giving process.  Of course, diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but this year, try a different approach to jewelry-giving.

• Pendant teething necklace: A necklace for mom that doubles as a teether for baby, this necklace looks stylish on mom while providing comfort and entertainment for baby. Win-win! 
• Charms with the babies’ birthdates engraved
• Friendship anklets: Ideal for older children (7+), this is a cute way to make matching “mommy and me” ankle bracelets

A Day of Pampering

You’ve probably seen the memes where moms say all they want for Mother’s Day is to sleep in, and who can blame them?  Sleep is lovely and oh-so-necessary for our bodies.  This Mother’s Day, why not take that idea and create a whole day of pampering for mom?  The trick here is to plan ahead and have her appointments scheduled for her.  There are a lot of ways to pamper a mom, so choose appointments that you know your mom will love.

• Massage: Lots of options here: full body massage, hot stone massage, foot massage, chair massage, Swedish massage, deep tissue massage. Does Mom stand on her feet all day? If so, go for the foot massage. Did mom just have a new little baby? Opt for a full body massage.
• Mani-pedi
• Facials: You can even do these at home too with Aztec Healing Clay and apple cider vinegar
• Hair salon

The Non-Gift Gift Ideas

These “gifts” fall under the category of experiences; it’s a not something that can be wrapped up in a box, but it can create some seriously awesome memories.  What should you do for your experience-gift?  The sky is the limit, and it can be as unique as your family. From hiking to spontaneous weekend getaways to the next state over, the idea here is to bond, create new memories, and enjoy each other’s company.

What are you getting your mom for Mother’s Day this year?

No matter what you decide to give, as long as it is given with love, it is a gift well-chosen.

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Kathryn is a self-proclaimed book nerd who has a passion for natural parenting and writing. As a homeschooling mother of two, Kathryn understands the dynamics of a busy family life. She is the founder of the Cor Domum movement, a mission that guides families through life so that they can parent with joy. Read more at  www.katietrudeau.com