Mother’s Day…Oh Yay or Oy Vey
Growing up Mother’s Day was always a day filled with joy, love, happiness and terrible angst
Mother’s Day is around the corner and I am still figuring out what to get my mom. Being (not in my 20’s) and having a child of my own Mother’s Day looks a lot different than it did when I was young and school aged.
That time when I fretted and worried about the perfect gift.
When I toiled over what I could possibly get that would convey the depth of my love?
How could I show that I had spent the necessary time in picking out said gift? Was it too expensive? Not expensive enough?
Father’s Day was around the corner and I would need money for that too. I drove myself a bit batty with the thoughts and expectations swimming around my head and I can see now how absolutely silly that was.
As a parent I see my role as a daughter shift and my priorities as a daughter purchasing for my own mother have shifted as well. I look through a dual lens of both parent and child and realize what I most value when Mother’s Day comes around.
So when your munchkin, tween, or teen asks what they should get you for mother’s day what do you tell them?
Make them a list
Do you like candles? Bath salts? Perhaps a favorite coffee or a lotion company or brand that you love but never get around to getting.
There are great items that won’t break their budget but may put a smile on your face for their thoughtfulness. Maybe they got you the candle that was on your list but the scent was a special touch because they picked out the one that you always say is your favorite. Or that coffee that you loved? Perhaps they wanted you to two to go to that coffee place you had always wanted to try and spend the afternoon chatting away like you usually do only on special occasions.
Hint at something in the weeks leading up to the special day
Kids are smart!
And often much more perceptive than we give them credit for
So if you know your child may not be one to ask or would feel uncomfortable taking a list or perhaps buying from a pre-made list you can always hint at what you most want.
It does not need to be grandiose but even making off the cuff comments like…Oh shoot, I just ran out of that coffee I love so much or I really need to get myself a new lipstick might be enough to get them thinking about something to get and feeling like they owned the whole experience.
Tell them you Want Nothing but Hugs and Kisses
Isn’t that all we really want from our kids. Hugs and kisses and maybe a few more yes’es and fewer eye rolls.
Sometimes it’s a hard sell. Telling our kids we just want to know they love us in todays society that relies so heavily on the best, biggest, and most expensive may get you an eye roll and an… Ok, but what do you really want response?
But it is always worth a try!
Ask for a Handmade Gift
This is my favorite! And the category I refer to every year for Mother’s Day, birthdays and any other gift giving moments.
Gifts that munchkin pie has made me through the years. There is still an art piece hanging on the wall that she made me years ago in art class and gave me as a present. I framed it and hung it on the bathroom wall. It has a simple flower motif that works perfectly with the colors and hangs there to this day.
I have been given everything from art to coupons for experiences (everything from an hour of family game night without complaining to walking the dog with me (yes, that is her job but I will take it!). One year I received a jar with 100 quotes and memories and I was to open one a day until I had opened them all. I still have that jar and will keep those quotes and memories forever.
I will most likely not make my mom a coupon book or a jar of memories but as I sit bombarded with suggestions emailed from Bloomingdales, Apple, and Burke Williams or ads for jewelry, flowers, and mom’s favorite gift emitted via radio waves or televised for your viewing pleasure I know that as nice as a massage or a gift card may be what I will give my mom is my time. An uninterrupted opportunity to sit over brunch and really connect, smile, and laugh over the trivialities, the joys, and the seriousness of life.
And what she wants more than a trinket, expensive or not is to know that I love her, that I will always be there for her looking out for her best interest and treating her best interest with love, and that I enjoy those moments spent together without rushing but with fully committed enthusiasm.
