Celebrate Mother’s Day differently this year with one of the ideas in this article. Each one includes a special activity to help you reconnect with your mother on one of the most important days of the year.
Have an Adventure
This Mother’s Day, treat your mom to something out of the ordinary: a campout at the San Diego Safari Park. The park hosts “Roar and Snore” sleepovers on many occasions in their campground, overlooking the African Plains field exhibit. Your mother would love to wake up to the sounds of elephants and roaring lions. This Mother’ Day, the park is hosting a special event with dinner, special animal encounters, and a special VIP viewing of the Butterfly Jungle.
If you can’t get to San Diego this Mother’s Day, your mom might still like to celebrate her day in a zoo closer to home. Check your local zoo’s calendar of events. Many around the United States are planning something. For example, the Denver Zoo, the Oregon Zoo, and the Green Bay Zoo (in Wisconsin) are celebrating Mother’s Day with brunch and other special events throughout the day.
Still others offer free admission for moms on Mother’s Day. For example, the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Rhode Island and the Kansas City Zoo are letting all moms in for free.
Give Back
Volunteer opportunities abound, and each allows you to spend some quality time with your mother while helping others. Together you can enrich the lives of others and grow together as mother and daughter. Check out opportunities at your community center, with a local church, and in the Local section of your hometown’s newspaper.
One very special volunteering opportunity involves traveling to the no-kill animal sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. Best Friends Animal Society takes in animals that no one wants, not even animal shelters. Cost is no option, and they will do whatever it takes to get animals rehabilitated and back into a loving home. That is why they need volunteers to help feed, groom, and socialize the animals. You and your mom can volunteer on Mother’s Day, helping out with dogs, cats, rabbits, pot-bellied pigs, birds, or horses.
Watch the National Geographic television series “DogTown” to get a better idea of the work these people do for animals who have nowhere else to go. You will be inspired to help. As an added bonus, you can deduct your travel expenses (actual cost of gas, plane fare, etc.) for volunteer services from your tax bill.
Take Your Mother to New Heights
Spoil your mom rotten this Mother’s Day with a ride on The London Eye. With plenty of options to choose from, you’re sure to find the right package for your mom. Whether you choose the Green and Black’s chocolate tasting, wine or champagne-tasting, or afternoon tea capsule, your mom will know just how much she means to you by the end of the rotation.
Get Crafty
Mothers love photographs of their children and grandchildren. Get together with your mom this Mother’s Day for some scrapbooking fun! Plan ahead and get some of your favorite digital photos printed or bring over your lap top so the two of you can create a digital photo book to order later. Even with a digital photo book, you still have the option to create your own page layout and add comments and captions. Walgreens, Tiny Prints, Snap Fish, and many other vendors offer great deals on photo books and other photo gifts.
Go Cruising
Another idea for how to celebrate Mother’s Day is a relaxing cruise. If you live near a harbor or in a city along a river, you are sure to find a special Mother’s Day-themed cruise. Many cruises offer dinner and live music and end with a fireworks show.
Whatever you choose this Mother’s Day, be sure to try something new. Perhaps you will find some inspiration in your local newspaper. Show your mom she is worth more to you than cliché gifts of flowers and candy. Give her a time she will never forget and valuable time with one of the people she loves most. Happy Mother’s Day!
