The Right, Meaningful Gifts for a Mom in her 50s

Mother’s Day is always a difficult holiday for which to shop. When we were kids, a handmade card, breakfast in bed or a cheap, stuffed animal was sufficient. If we went out on a limb, we got a Whitman Sampler or a butterfly pin. Now, as we’re getting older, so are our mothers. By now many of us are mothers, and they are grandmothers. So what do we get for our moms?

The easy answer is a card and some flowers. They’re traditional. They don’t take much time and they can range from five dollars at Sam’s Club to several hundred from the FTD. But let’s be honest, they’re also boring. Here are a few more interesting ideas.

Give her a gift certificate packet of your time. With life being busy and schedules tight, time is a precious gift. Go to the craft store and pick up some fancy paper. Cut it into a series of 3×5 rectangles. Punch holes in the corner and tie them together with ribbon. On each “certificate” write out something to do together. For example “Good for one walk in the park,” or “Good for one trip to the museum.” Check out PaperAddict for fabulous papers.

Or you can make a one of a kind present for her by first visiting your local stationary store, or an on-line source like Recycled Paper Stationary for a scrap-book. Then, chose some of your favorite family photos. Add them to the pages of the book along. Be sure to write up your memories of the event, or the feelings the pictures invoke and add those to the pages. It will not only preserve your family history, but it will open up conversations when you go through it.

If you’re not particularly crafty, you could get her tickets to an event that you think she’d like. Get two tickets and make it a special trip for just the two of you. If you don’t share her taste, so what? As a mom she often sat through children’s programs, recitals, and movies to give you a good time. Do the same for her. You might be surprised. You can get event tickets from TicketMaster. Fandango is a good source for movie tickets. And you can always try Craigslist for discount tickets.

If your mom isn’t the concert and play type, give her something to pamper herself. You can get gift certificates to many spas, hair-stylists, and nail salons. If you don’t know of a local spa, you can use Spafinder to not only find a spa, but also to purchase gift packages. However, you don’t need to go to a spa for pampering. You can easily create an excellent pampering gift basket. Include a candle, some tea or hot cocoa, a fun book like Eat Less Cottage Cheese and More Ice Cream by Erma Bombeck, a soft pair of slippers or snuggly socks, an individual bottle of whine, hand cream, bubble bath or bath salts, and maybe a CD of soothing music or nature sounds. It’s all the fun of spa in her own home.

Some moms are not the gift basket type. For these moms, you can go for something more unusual. How about a gift of stock in her favorite company. You can find many options for framed stock certificates and stocks at One Share. Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, as well as Martha Stewart, Tiffany and Coach are all represented. The stock certificates come framed or unframed. Or you could get her a hand-made piece of jewerly or art from etsy.com.

Of course, there is something to be said for tradition, but no one ever said you had to be traditional about it. Send her a bouquet, but don’t buy flowers. You can send her a bouquet of fruit from Edible Arrangements, or candy from Candy Bouquet, or even cookies from Cookies By Design. And if you want to get her candy, forget Whitman and go to Vosges Chocolate. You’ll find posh truffles with a wide range of choices. For those with an adventurous palate, choose something from the Aztec collection. If she loves wine, you could get her one of their wine and chocolate gift combos.

Remember, no matter what you give her, the best gift in the world is your love. After all, that’s what Mother’s Day is all about.