Mother’s Day Gifts for Mom

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As Mother’s Day is quickly approaching we’re sharing the best Mother’s Day Gifts for Mom. We thought about what we love to receive most and talked to our mom friends. We’ve collected the best of the best with an idea for everyone.

Let’s be honest, we might think we’re easy to buy for but are we really? As I think about it I often assume everyone knows what I would love to receive but maybe not.

These gifts would be great gifts for moms. Great gifts for mother in law, gifts for grandma, or even gifts for your wife – the mom of your children.

We could even call these the best gifts for women because I know we have something for everyone.

The Best Gifts for mom

Time was at or near the top of everyones list that we talked to. The great thing about giving the gift of time is that it can actually cost nothing! Here’s the thing though. It can’t be in passing it needs to be thought out, planned and you need to make it happen!

If you want to give the gift of time plan it out and present it as a gift. Map out how you’re going to remove distractions and demands. That may include arranging babysitting or taking care of dinner. You could even get others to help with chores before hand so she doesn’t spend her free time cleaning.

The gift of time will look different for different moms. Take your mom (or wife) into account and map out how you’re going to guarantee her free time. Then present it as a gift that she gets to spend however she wants. No expectations; even if she wants a nap. Which brings us to gift idea number 2.

Let mom sleep

Right up there with time was the gift of Sleep. Just like the time option above, this can be a GREAT gift but it has to be thought out and planned.

Don’t just say “I’m going to let you sleep in tomorrow” because rarely does that happen.  Have a plan.

It should be something like: “I am going to guarantee you 12 hours of alone time – from 10pm – 10am, you can do with it what you wish. Sleep for 12 hours straight, watch a few movies, whatever you want to do.  I’m taking all the kids down to the basement with me. We’re sleeping down there so no one will bother you.”

If you have a guest room set her up in there. That way if the kids wake up in the night they won’t wake her up.

If you have very small children who wake up and cry and you know mom can’t sleep through that but you know more than anything she’d appreciate a good nights sleep maybe opt for the time option above and get her an overnight stay at a nearby hotel so she can just have a night to herself. If you can swing it let her have from check in until check out!

Whatever you do, DO NOT present this gift with “you’re looking tired so I’m giving you the gift of sleep”. This is not the way to your mom’s (or wife’s) heart!

Plants make great gifts for mom!

Do you have a mom in your life that has a green thumb? Plants or flowers that live all year just might be the perfect gift. If she’s just getting started make sure you find a plant that isn’t too picky.

Bulbs that come back year after year. A plant like a Lilac or Honeysuckle smell amazing, are beautiful, and are relatively easy to grow.

Along with outside plants that come back and bloom every year there are so many fun indoor plants that are perfect for anyone with a green thumb.

If she’s a real pro try getting her a plant that takes effort to keep alive. A Fiddle Leaf Fig or Zebra plant we hear are just the thing for a pro.  Just be sure to supply care instructions when giving plants as gifts for mom.

Our next gift is a fun one. Give mom the gift of a Trip. This one can be hard but if you know your Mother it can be fun.

For instance; my family couldn’t go wrong with gifting me a pass to Disneyland.  I would HAPPILY take this gift even if everyone was invited to come along.

Gifting a trip doesn’t have to be as big as plane tickets and Disneyland park passes. It could be a trip home to see her parents. Even a quick getaway with a couple of friends to a nearby fun town.

Speaking of friends!

Girl’s Trip – Does your mom have a close group of friends?  Reach out to their families and plan a girls trip for them.

It could be as simple as a one night getaway at a hotel downtown. Include dinner and snacks and make a night of it. Or it can be as elaborate as a booked air bnb for a long weekend to their favorite place.

Years ago a friend’s husband surprised her with a plane ticket to come visit me for her birthday.  We had SO MUCH FUN and as the friend I’m forever grateful to him making that happen for us.

Mom’s don’t always have time, or I can even say don’t always make time for meaningful time with their friends. Give them a little getaway together and I promise you they’ll appreciate it forever.

The gift of a clean house

For a lot of moms the gift of a cleaning service would be GREAT. But be careful. This one is a little tricky so think it through before you start.  Will mom actually enjoy and appreciate this or will it cause her a lot of stress? Preparing for someone else to come into the home and CLEAN might not be fun for her.

If you think she would appreciate it AND that it might cause her stress make sure when you gift a cleaning service you make it clear to mom that you’ll be there to help get things ready for the cleaning day so she isn’t taking that on herself.

If mom is more like me it might be nicer for you to do one thing on her to-do list. Maybe this includes cleaning out the garage, gathering all the donations and getting them out of the house. It could even be just YOU doing the deep cleaning like blinds and baseboards. Remember to keep MOM in mind when you’re planning your gifts for mom!

The gift of meal planning.

The gift of a meal subscription could be really fun! – There are so many great options out there for meals being delivered directly to your door.

You may not realize how nice it is to not have to think about “What’s for dinner?”.  You could choose a meal subscription or even prepare some family favorite freezer meals ahead of time and give her a week off from kitchen duty.

The gift that keeps on giving

This one is a little harder for me. Giving Gift Cards. Typically I shy away from gift cards. They can appear to be thoughtless or too easy. I do believe if given the right way they can show you put thought into the gift.

Here are a couple examples for a thoughtful way to gift a gift card:

Favorite drink place. This could be a coffee shop or any of the speciality drink shops that are popping up all over.  I LOVE a Hot Chocolate with Almond from Dutch Bros. pretty much any day of the week. Even at relatively inexpensive price of hot cocoa that daily expense is something I’m not willing to do. When I go often I definitely start to think about where else more beneficial that money could be going.

If someone gave me a gift card to Dutch Bros. so I could go when I wanted without worrying about that and included a note that said something like “I know how much you love [insert favorite drink here] so the next 5 are on me” or something like that I would know they were thinking of ME and what I would enjoy when they purchased the gift.

Book stores – Here in Utah we have a pretty awesome library system.  Because of this we read a LOT but don’t actually OWN a lot of books.  When we find favorites that we have all enjoyed and would likely read again or know younger kids will read eventually we will purchase them but for the most part we take advantage of the library.

That being said there are few things I love more than a few uninterrupted hours in a book store.  When Nate and I were first married we would spend hours in a book store – often times on different aisles but perfectly content knowing we were both doing something we enjoyed.

A gift card to a favorite book store would be well received in our house and if you wanted to really make an event of it include a gift card for dinner at a nearby restaurant or better yet; if the book store has it’s own place to eat grab a gift card from there so she can make a day or evening of it!

Is mom saving up for something special? We often do this with our children but why not as gifts for Mom too?  Does mom want a new computer, purse, crafting supplies, or maybe a new piece of furniture that she wants to splurge on?  We can’t always buy everything ourselves but we can be aware of what they’re excited about and help them get there. Grab a gift card to the place the item they’re saving up for is being sold and let them know in the card that you had something specific in mind with the gift card.

Combined gifts for mom

Don’t underestimate a combined gift.  Do you have siblings?  Does mom have pretty much everything she “needs”?  Does she tend to buy the small little things that she likes and would make great gifts on her own?  Reach out to your siblings about a combined gift.

I HIGHLY recommend reaching out with a gift idea in mind.  It’s kind of easy for everyone to throw money to someone else and expect them to come up with a gift that fits the amount but that isn’t always easy.  I recommend having something in mind – for instance “hey everyone, I was talking with mom at dinner on Sunday and she mentioned this new bird bath she was wanting to get.  I looked it up and if we can each pitch in $50 I can pick it up and we can give it to her for Mother’s Day”. 

This way everyone knows exactly what is needed from each person to get mom something she would love.  I won’t tell you how to do things but I prefer an all or nothing approach – either you can pitch in the full amount for your share or you can’t.

It’s not really fair for one person to pay less than others because let’s be honest – no one is writing on the card “I paid $75 and sister only paid $25 so this is mostly from me.”  If you can’t pitch in the full share then just bow out gracefully and grab something that works within your budget.

Heck, if you know they’re buying mom a bird bath grab her a cute bird feeder to hang next to it.

If all else fails ask mom

Lastly, if none of these feels right it’s okay to ask mom what she would love to receive.  If she’s specific be specific in your gifting.

Did she ask for a new iPad pencil? If she did get her the one she wanted not something different.  If she’s generic, something like “I would love to try a new place for dinner” do some research and pick a place and then tell her in the card why you chose that place.

I think I can speak for all moms when I say we just want to know we were thought of.  Whether it’s mother’s day, birthdays, or Christmas take some time, think about YOUR mom (wife, mother in law, grandma) and let her know she was on your mind when you were thinking about her gift.  It will mean the world!