5 Things Mom Might Like More Than A Coupon Book For Hugs This Year

This Sunday is Mother's Day; a day to honor all women (whether by blood or by choice) who helped raise, guide, and lift you up.

As is the case with most moms, they are often the last ones on everyone else's list when it comes to just about everything, except Mother's Day!

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While coupon books for hugs, clay earring holders, and fridge art are indeed special treasures, if you really want to spoil Mom, here are a few things that might make her day extra awesome. ( And some of these things you won't even have to wrap!)

1.) Offer To Help Mom With...ANYTHING!

Do you want to give a mom in your life the best gift? Show up and start helping! (This is an especially awesome gift for moms who have younger kids.) Most moms are guaranteed to have a laundry pile that's out of control or a dishwasher that needs emptying, dusting that needs to be done, or lightbulbs that need to be changed.

Show up, and get to work taking care of those little things.

Blow her mind and offer to watch the little ones while she showers! If you have tweens or teens whose aid you can enlist, even better! Offer your services for an hour or two. There's not a mother in the world that doesn't have a backlog of little projects she hasn't had the time to tackle, that could easily be completed in an afternoon, had she just the time to concentrate! (Think sock piles, receipt scanning, a basement reorg...those types of things.)

If she's been meaning to fix something or has a dream to-do list that she hasn't been able to check off, help her. Giving her a sense of having less to do will be a gift in itself.

I once heard of a mom getting a gift certificate for a once-a-month maid service, to help do deep cleaning in places she never had time to get to. If you can't help yourself but can swing something like that, I don't know of any mom who couldn't use that kind of a hand.

2.) Keep Mom hydrated, caffeinated, or stocked with her favorite beverage!

Grab some hot coffee to bring her! Or get a gift certificate to a mom's favorite coffee spot, or guilty pleasure (wine of the month, a bakery, even a magazine subscription for her) are inexpensive gifts but go a long way to brightening a mom's day.

Comfort in a cup, and either the time to drink it in peace, or in the company of a good friend(s) is a wonderful gift.

3.) Help her to feel pretty.

Often, moms won't spend money on themselves or feel immense "mom guilt" on spending money on something they don't deem necessary. So giving them an avenue to treat themselves is a great way to spread that cheer throughout the year.

Many of the moms I know very rarely feel like they look good. When you're running ragged after kiddos, wearing shirts covered in boogers, baby drool, or whatever tiny hands have managed to wipe on you throughout the day, changing out of yoga pants into "real clothes" is a big step!

Brushing your hair and teeth is often a luxury in the busy day of a mom.

It takes time that moms often don't have. So getting Mom a gift certificate to get a haircut and color, or a makeover (add in a massage or a manicure for bonus points) and you'll not only helping her take care of how she looks on the outside, you'll be giving her a major boost of confidence on the inside. And when Mom feels good, everyone benefits!

4.) Make a photo book for her.

But here's the catch, and this one requires a little planning, so maybe put this on your list for next year; take pictures of her being a mom.

Moms take a million pictures of their kids, and often of their spouses with their kids. But aside from the awkward selfie angle, moms are seldomly photographed by others in the act of being a mom, mostly because who has the time for that? Not a mom!

Make a mental note, throughout the year, to catch the mom you love in action with her kids, or in moments you notice how awesome she is. Then put those moments together in a photo book. And prepared for the waterworks and hugs.

5.) Detail Mom's ride!

Do you know how gross that grocery-getter is? Food is stuck in places you can't reach. Smells! Oh, the smells! Take that Mom's van/car and clean it out!

And then take it through the car wash, for extra measure!

Even if the "clean" lasts only as long as the next trip from the house to the pick-up lane at school, for those few glorious moments she will feel like the belle of the ball in her clean, good-smelling ride.

Sure, breakfast in bed, chocolates, flowers and/or letting them sleep in are all great, too. And you know Mom will like anything because "it's the thought that counts"--but why not try to wow your mom this year? And really THINK about her gift?!