The Free Stuff
Hotel At Home
A full night of sleep is hard to come by as a mom. And a hotel can be a little cost-prohibitive. However, with a little creativity, you can create a “hotel-like” experience for a mom in your life in the comfort of their own home. We’re lucky enough to have a guest bedroom in our home which is a bit further from the kids’ bedrooms than the master. It also has a lock on it. For my own “hotel at home” experience, I was provided the luxury of escaping to the “in-house hotel” before the kids’ bedtime with a glass of wine and a laptop full of Netflix shows I needed to catch up on. Dad was on-duty for the rest of the evening, and for any middle-of-the-night wakeups. I got to sleep in in the morning, and “came home” to clean, happy, and donut-stuffed children. If you don’t have a guest room, you can try and get creative with the space in your home (I used to have a very comfortable basement couch I wouldn’t mind spending a night on), or you can enlist the help of a child-free friend or grandparent. Remember, the gift isn’t necessarily the “luxury” of the space, but the alone-time, and the full night of rest.
No Chores For A Day
Can you even remember the last time you did NO CHORES for an entire day? I can’t. While we’ve never done this at my house, I love the idea of putting dad, the kids, and/or grandparents in charge of ALL the chores for the day. Worried about nothing getting done? Make a list for the crew and ensure that the dirty laundry doesn’t go moldy while you’re on “break.”
Girl’s Night
A lot of moms desperately want some adult time, but sometimes the planning and logistics are a real stumbling block. This gift would require dad to rally the troops, find a location, and solo parent for an evening so that mom and her pals can have some down time. If he’s really on top of it, dad might also provide a charcuterie board and some beverages.
The Things
I’ve linked a few of my favorite giftable items below. From a self-heating coffee mug, to the best, organic face serum, to my favorite book for the women in your life–I’ve got you covered.
Haverhill Birthstone Necklace
The only necklace I ever wear is my birthstone necklace from Haverhill. A few of my real-life friends, as well as a bunch of my internet (#instagram) friends, have been sporting these necklaces for a while, and it took me a whole year to bite the bullet and drop some hints to my husband.
Honestly, these necklaces are expensive. As a perpetual loser of nice things, I don’t normally buy, or ask for, expensive jewelry. However, this necklace is so beautifully understated that I literally never have to take it off (and thus, will hopefully never lose it). My necklace has one birthstone for each of my kids, but I also know folks who have purchased a couple necklaces (each containing one type of birth stone) and layer them. If you’re not into birth stones, Haverhill also makes gorgeous engraved initial bracelets and necklaces.
I can honestly say that this necklace makes me smile every time I notice it in a photo, or the mirror, and can not recommend this brand enough.
Car Detail
If your car is anything like mine, it’s covered in cheerios and mysterious stains… One of the greatest “gifts” my husband and I gave to each other immediately after bringing baby #3 home from the hospital was to hire a mobile car detail service to come to our house and scrub the s**t out of our very dirty car. I can only imagine the thrill of waking up on mother’s day to find someone else cleaning out my car for me…
If You’re Local…
A few of my favorite shops in Long Beach are Blue Windows in Belmont Shore, as well as The Better Half Boutique and And Then in Bixby Knolls. And Then has adorable clothes, gifts, and vintage items, and is connected to The Better Half Boutique, which is chock full of cute giftable items (think personalized jewelry and wine glasses, candles, bags, decor, etc.). Blue Windows is one I’ve hyped before (I love it that much)–it has tons of cute food-related items, clothing, jewelry, kids items, and some cool stuff for the men in your life as well.
Book of The Month
I love my book of the month subscription because it takes a lot of the guesswork out of choosing a great book, and motivates me to read at least one title a month. If you have a mom in your life who also loves to read, this is a great idea. (You might want to give them some “quiet time gift cards” as well, so they actually have some time to sit down and crack open their selection.)