On May 9th, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation declaring the second Sunday of May a “public expression of our love and reverence for the mothers of our country.” Although much time has passed since its origin, and although traditions have changed, Mother’s Day continues to be a widely celebrated day where we take the time to show the moms in our lives how much we care.
Each family has their own special way of celebrating the occasion. For some, it is a holiday laden with lavish gifts and delicious brunches, for others a day for giving Mom some much-needed time off, or perhaps it is marked with macaroni necklaces and homemade cards. For families who want to recognize the occasion and get Mom something she truly wants, the most important question is “what should we get her?!?” What do you get the special person who is somehow multi-tasking as a caretaker, storyteller, nurse, chauffeur, finder of lost items, chef, household manager, and cuddler extraordinaire (or perhaps some combination of these, and likely a multitude of others)?
Personally, my own answer to this question has changed over the years. I have only had the privilege of being a mother for eight years so far, so my experience is limited at best. In the first couple of years, when my children were very young, I craved a luxurious morning of sleeping in and a little bit of precious alone time. Now that my children are a little older, I cherish their homemade cards and craft projects, and I even appreciate the at-home “spa” day that I was treated to this year, which included a somewhat clumsy application of sparkly nail polish on my toes, a hand massage with vanilla-scented lotion, a cup of tea and was accompanied by the “Spa and Relaxation” playlist on our Alexa device.
But I couldn’t help but wonder: what do moms REALLY want for Mother’s Day? So, I polled some real moms to find out what their answer to this question was. They answered anonymously so that they could be completely truthful, and the ages of their children range in age from 1 year – 18 years old. Here are some of their responses:
- “Would love breakfast in bed!”
- “A diamond tennis bracelet, a sleep-in, breakfast in bed, and lots of cuddles with the two best kids in the world (in reverse order).”
- “What I would like most is some me-time!!! A morning or an afternoon to myself to do whatever I want!”
- “I would love to spend some time with my kiddos / hubby, and it wouldn’t hurt to get a beautiful bouquet of flowers!”
- “Lots of kisses and a massage.”
- “I would love it if my family would do one thing that I usually do around the house to help recognize all I do, and help me out with it for the day / week.”
- “I would love a day where I don’t have to plan a thing, drive anywhere, and have healthy food that I like magically appear in from of me for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”
- “I would like a cozy robe, some homemade cards, and maybe a bouquet of flowers!”
- “This Mother’s Day, my husband is taking me for brunch, and then to a garden center so I can pick out new plants to put in our garden!”
- “I want to be woken up by running feet and giggles with homemade cards, have meals with no dishes to wash, and enjoy a bubble bath!”
Whatever this Mother’s Day has brought you, I hope that it was enjoyable, and that you were able to create some new memories. Part of my Mother’s Day present was to be able to write in peace long enough to finish this quick Blog post!