According to the Insure.com website, your mother may not want roses or candy on Mother’s Day (May 11 this year). Of the 1,001 women surveyed, 38 percent chose “a day at the spa” over those stereotypical gifts.
In fact, blooms and bonbons didn’t even make the top five in terms of highest-ranked gifts.
The women were allowed to choose from among 16 possible gifts. In addition to the spa day, the moms also jonesed for “weekend getaway with the whole family” (32 percent), gift cards (25 percent), dinner at the best restaurant in town (25 percent) and weekend getaway with husband (25 percent).
Getting a restaurant reservation on May 11 might be tough, and getaways take a bit of engineering. But you could always give her a certificate for those things, e.g., “Dinner out at IncredibleFoodPlace on a date of your choosing” or “Over the third weekend in June the kids will go to the grandparents’ house. Pick a destination for us during that time frame and I will make it happen.”
Personally, I’d suggest the spa. It is one of the few gifts that a mom can’t turn to someone else’s use. Give her a gift card and she might use part (or all!) of it to buy a birthday gift for someone. Even the restaurant idea can wind up being a family-friendly chain vs. her truly favorite place, because she feels bad about leaving the kids with a sitter (especially if she works outside the home).
A therapeutic massage, facial, manicure, pedicure and haircut are just for her. And oh, can these things soothe the spirit. For a few hours (or eight of them, depending on how well-heeled the givers), Mom can relax and give in to the pampering she may otherwise deny she needs.
What NOT to give
Mothers who took the Insure.com survey ranked these as the least favorite gift ideas:
- Room remodel: 9 percent
- Electronics: 7 percent
- Household appliances: 5 percent
Also – and this is typical Momism – 70 percent of the women said they preferred homemade gifts from their children, and 17 percent said they didn’t need a gift at all.
I’m sorta-kinda with the latter group, because I don’t think you can demand a gift on Mother’s Day (or any other day). But I did love giving gifts to my own mother because it was one way I could show my appreciation for everything she did for me. Even although we weren’t able to talk about our issues, I couldn’t deny that she’d given up a lot to help her children even after they’d reached the age of majority.
And oh, how I wish she were still alive so that I could at least speak with her on May 11, if not actually go to visit her or fly her up here to visit me. I know she would have been delighted that I’d found love in midlife. She would also have loved DF’s appreciation of Clorox.
Full disclosure: I still have a couple of gifts my daughter made in elementary school – a clay bowl and a hammered-metal picture of a butterfly. And yep, I treasure them.
Readers: Do you give/receive Mother’s Day gifts?
Related reading:
I made it easy on my hubby when we bought the house 16 years ago. My Mother’s Day flowers are bedding plants, usually marigolds, for the front yard. The rabbits and deer haven’t eaten them (so far) and I get to enjoy them all summer long.
Flowers that don’t fade in a few days — what a concept!
I learned a long time ago with my husband that asking for plants – I’d actually get them. Ask for anything else and I wouldn’t (including the time I sent him to a store with the picture of what I wanted and he still came home empty handed) I got a cherry tree this year.
I can’t believe that only 9% would opt for a room remodel. This would beat out even a massage for me.
I agree totally! That would be a great gift!
Over the past 10-15 years we have given my mother pots of plants/flowers so she can put them on her patio. She says she has more “stuff” than she needs and she can enjoy the plants/flowers for the whole summer.
My kids/husband buy me flats of flowers and we plant the deck planters and the yard for the summer. Again, something that can be enjoyed for the whole summer, so it’s a gift that gives for a long time.
And forget taking mom out for a meal. We do brunch here and have the whole family over for a great time!
I don’t ask for anything and am grateful for whatever they come up with 🙂 I enjoy the heartfelt gifts….its as easy as a hug & I Love You Mom 🙂
I do agree with Donna ~ I wish I could just have the afternoon with my Mom. She has been gone since “2008” and just to sit, talk and rock on her front porch would be awesome!
I have two sons. One completely ignores Mother’s Day, the other usually sends a gift card, which I like.
I hope he never reads the above survey. Massages and facials are not even ON my lists. They both have always creeped me out.
Amen!
My Mom loves to go out to dinner, she just doesn’t want to be in the large crowd on Sunday. We are going to go out on Thursday night to a lovely local restaurant on the Delaware River. A beautiful dinner out is a fabulous gift that comes with a memory of family togetherness and it does not require cleaning, dusting, maintenance or create clutter:)
This! And yeah, I wouldn’t want to be out on that particular day/night, either.
Where on the Delaware River? I’m from Cumberland County, NJ, myself.
I like not paying the Mother’s Day Sunday price premium that comes with the crowds.
We live in northern Mercer County near the border with Hunterdon county. The restaurant is called Erini. I think it is in Ewing, NJ. So it is miles north from Cumberland. But if you ever crossed the Scudder’s Falls Bridge, I-95 from Jersey to PA you were within 1 mile of the restaurant and this beautiful section of the Delaware River.