Mother’s Day is a beautiful opportunity for us to celebrate mums and the amazing things they do every other day of the year. She doesn’t even have to be your own mum to want to make her feel special.
What do mums truly want on Mother’s Day? Breakfast in bed? Flowers? A scented candle? Whether it’s a gift for your own mum, or a little love and support for a friend who’s a busy new parent, here are a few ideas to help you support and nurture the mother figures (and other incredible women and caregivers) in your life.
Give pampering
What better way to spend Mother's Day than getting a relaxing massage or enjoying some spa time? And even better, if you join her you’ll not only get to spend time together, it’s a self-care opportunity for you too. Look out for two-for-one deals or other incentives to avoid breaking the piggybank.
Pampering doesn’t need to involve money changing hands either. What about treating her to a spa experience at home? You could run her a deep, scented bath, give her a mani/pedi, hand massage, facial or even a beautiful blowdry and make up combo – perfect if she’s being treated to dinner later.
Hyoumankind founder Stephanie Wyborn let us in on the way her kids make her day special. “I love spending time with my children on Mother’s Day, the idea that they care so much that they all show up, I say to them not to buy presents, it truly is their presence that touches my heart… I do love words, it’s my love language so a card is always so very special, but I get those on birthdays. Can’t be greedy right?!”
Sometimes pampering is simply a chance to put your feet up. We asked Hyoumankind Creative Director, and relatively new mum, Anna what she most looks forward on Mother’s Day. “Being a mum is still a novelty to me, so I haven’t had much experience with what to look forward to but I quite like the idea of having a day with my feet up, being excused from the daily grind of chores and dirty nappies, and maybe some quite time to myself... I’m sure as my children grow older I will look forward to spending quality time with them!
Give time
Speaking of quality time, for many of us (and especially mums), this is a precious and rare commodity. Alongside her kids simply being there with her, Stephanie says her most appreciated gifts are words of love, and sharing time. “I love sitting around our table together, sharing a delicious meal, beautiful wine and most of all lots of laughs. What I need as a Mum, is unconditional reciprocal love.”
As much as mums love to do things for their families, they need a break from being mum sometimes too. So if you know a woman with a lot on her plate, now is a lovely occasion to give her back just a little time. (It doesn’t have to be on Mother’s Day either – choose a day when your help is needed most.) This gives her a chance to spend time with loved ones (or alone) without having to cater to everyone else.
This gift can be simply about spending some of your precious time to ‘buy’ it back for mum. Whether that’s looking after the little rascals for a couple of hours, running errands, organising the family’s meals (and dishes) for the day, or sorting a mounting mountain of laundry.
As much as mums love their kids, if they still have children at home (especially full on preschoolers), they may like to have an “I’m not a Mother Day” – a chance to think about their own needs during some blissfully uninterrupted personal time.
Food is a great way to show love, so you may choose to prepare her absolute favourite dish or surprise her with a fancy lunch date somewhere she’s always wanted to go.
Or is there something – a film, the ballet, her favourite band in concert – she’d love to go to? Go with her, or surprise her with tickets for the two of you.
Give sleep
Enough sleep is essential to help her show up as the best parent she can be. Sleep, especially for new mums has to be the ultimate luxury. In particular, the early months of being a parent are often the most challenging time to get enough sleep. Where quantity may be lacking, there are ways to help new mums improve the quality of their sleep where they can.
For example, for a mum caring for a new-born and toddler, she may appreciate you popping to k keep the toddler busy (but quiet if possible) to let mum sleep while the new-born does.
Anna says, “Best gift? A sleep in! Oh how I miss the days of waking up at the weekend, and discovering that it’s well past 9am. These days seven is considered a luxury.”
Know a recent or expecting mum? Consider gifting a multi-tasking Go Pillow – for comfier breast feeding, extra support for a changing body or a compact pillow for grabbing a quick nap while staying close to baby.
Could you help mum transform her bedroom into a lovely, nurturing sleep sanctuary? As smell is such an evocative connection to emotion, a gentle, natural sleep spray made with essential oils (like our Auric Mist) is a simple but effective ingredient in creating the kind of calm environment that’s most conducive to sleep.
We’d love to hear how you show your appreciation to the mother figures in your life. Please let us know on our social channels: we are @hyoumankind on both Facebook and Instagram.
