10 Wonderful Ways To Celebrate Mother’s Day At Home
10 Wonderful Ways To Celebrate Mother’s Day At Home
Mother’s Day is celebrated at different times around the world. In the UK we celebrated on Sunday 22nd March in 2020 but elsewhere, Americans, Germans and many other countries are celebrating this May.
When I wrote this blog the UK was on the brink of lockdown and it had a huge impact on our normal traditions. It's still going to be a very different type of celebration for countries celebrating this may, still affected in some way.
In the UK and Ireland, Mothering Sunday has been celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent since the 16th century. It was traditionally a day to visit the church where people were baptised.
However Mother’s Day celebrations date back to the ancient Greeks where they would celebrate Rhea, the Mother of the Gods and Goddesses every spring. The Romans also celebrated a Mother Goddess, named Cybele.
In 2020, Mothering Sunday is a very different affair as we’re in the midst of an unprecedented global pandemic. This means that instead of the usual trips to restaurants or theatres to celebrate Mother's Day, it's going to a less social occasion. Most of us still can't travel unnecessarily or gather in groups but I guess people are interpreting advice not to kiss, themselves. 🙊
All of these rituals and activities are ingrained in our culture as things to do to show our Mothers or Mother figures, how much we appreciate them. We might even enjoy being treated to a special day out ourselves.
Although I’ll do my best to give accurate information, please take your information from a trusted, accurate source, such as the NHS Direct website - 111 NHS or https://coronavirus.gov
“Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother”
Mother's Day in 2020
We will celebrate Mother’s Day in 2020 in a manner never experienced my most of us. As we continue to work from home and many countries still ensuring that schools are closed, I'm sure most of us have had to adapt our plans in some way.
Those of us with pre-existing chronic conditions and the vulnerable, especially elderly parents and grandparents, have to be especially careful. Whilst those who are especially susceptible are, and have been, isolated for months
Joel (my husband) thought he had an extra week to prepare for Mother’s Day here in the UK, until I started writing this 😂.I was still treated to flowers, cards and chocolates and as I had high pain, we watched a movie in bed. It was wonderful!
As a mostly bed-bound Mum, the rare days I can get out are few and far between. Even when we have gone out to celebrate special days, it’s to a local rural pub for lunch instead of the days we’d head into London or Brighton.
All of this aside, the most important thing for me is to be able to spend time with my family and have some fun with my boys. We’re now well practised in finding ways to celebrate special days, even when I'm stuck in bed.
*Disclaimer this site does not offer medical advice and with the nature of this ever-changing situation the guidelines I’m referring to are likely to change. Please check the most recent guidelines and seek medical attention if needed.
Keeping Positive on Mother's Day This Year
This is so tough for all of us around the world right now. The best way to beat this is to find boredom busters and new forms of entertainment. Keep positive by adapting from your ''normal and make the best of whatever your situation is.
I know this is a very uncertain time but I want to offer you positive alternatives, many of which are free, for those of you who aren’t used to being stuck at home. I hope my ideas can help you celebrate Mother’s Day at home in 2020.
However, If you need more support with remaining calm this Mother's Day then please grab a copy of my Meditation For Well-Being Guide by clicking here. It helps you take some time out from the stress, even if you think you're fine, you may have a delayed reaction of you don't look after your well-being now.
As an experienced stuck at home mum on Mother’s Day, I’m sharing my top 10 favourite gifts to receive and my favourite activities to do at home.
Please use these ideas for celebrating Mother’s Day in isolation from the world, social distancing or keep them in your back pocket for the many weeks ahead.
You may want to nudge and wink and land a massive hint drop at your partner i.e. get them to read this. Some ideas are ways to have fun whilst spending the day together. If you or your Mother is finding this situation very stressful I have these two amazing blogs for developing coping strategies for stress and anxiety.
The Surprising Benefits Meditation Can Have On Your Well-Being Or
10 Wonderful Ways To Celebrate Mother’s Day at Home
Firstly, I’m writing these as a mum at home with my young(ish) family but there are suggestions, if you or a loved one is considered to be in a vulnerable category or lives far away after in the section below.
Mums/Guardians will appreciate anything to show that their children have thought of them so any gesture, big or small, can make their day.
Personally, when my boys were little, I loved all their homemade cards and gifts from school or nursery and things they made for me at home. I still have some of these displayed years later.
Mum’s/Guardians love seeing their child’s imagination, so if the kids go big help them create their vision. I still use the mug they painted for me with Joel’s help.
Get the children to design something and send their design off to be printed on a T-shirt or notebook.
If you're feeling brave, make her smile by letting the kids make her something they take full control of. Hazard!!! Good luck if you go with this one! 😂
I don’t know many Mums or Mother figures who don’t love receiving a bunch of flowers. It may be an easy option, but it's oh so lovely. It would cheer any mum in self-isolation up, that's for sure! Traditional flowers for Mother’s Day are: -
Carnations were given to all Mothers at a local church forthat service in the USA by Anna Jarvis. a famous campaigner. This is now the most popular choice.
Gerbera Daisies and Tulips both represent happiness, so if your Mum is a bubbly one, or she needs cheering up, these are a great choice.
Lilies symbolise a mother figure in many Asian cultures, making these an ideal choice for a Mother's Day bouquet.
Make her a traditional breakfast in bed. The children can decide and could even make her a menu. Spruce it up with a fancy folded napkin or a handmade flower. See these links for instructions: Easy Tissue Paper Flowers or DIY Paper Flowers Craft video
Let older children plan, buy, prepare and cook lunch or bake a cake for her. Just make sure she doesn't get involved. If the kids need help, still try to let them solve problems themselves unless it involves not knowing how to use a knife/pan/oven etc safely.
Remember, this will require a mountain of patience and heaps more time than if you were doing it.
Give Mama a pamper treat. You may want to drop some hints about the pamper products you like, especially if you can't use certain products. I highly recommend Green People Everyday Organics Purify & Protect Collection Gift Set.
Give her a gentle shoulder massage, this is great if you have one of those massage rollers
Run her a bath, using lovely bubble bath or rock salt and essential oils (10 drops in total)
Have a girly afternoon doing face-masks and foot massages
Paint her nails, maybe use a colour she wouldn't normally use to help her feel positive - maybe a yellow or bright pink. if she’s not going out - play!
Play cards or board games. Let Momma choose the first game, it is her day after all.
If your country is allowing it, you could go for a walk in the local countryside, somewhere off the beaten track where you can stay the recommended distance from each other.
If you're allowed to drive, be it essential journeys only even, you can go on, what we call, a secret destination drive but staying local or as part of an errand.
Play is everybody taking turns to give the driver directions. if you're the only adult join in too. (Check travel guidelines in your country of course).
When approaching a junction the player gets to choose whether you go left, right or straight over. Obviously only follow instructions if you can do so safely. If you get stuck in a dead end, don't worry, just turn around, We ended up at an army barracks once, the guns made us turn around rather hastily.
You can decide the amount of miles or a time beforehand or you can just go with the flow and say that _____ will have the last turn when you've had enough or reached the shops.
Have a garden picnic if the weather’s good or a floor picnic if not. The kids can make a tent for you to go in, take some snacks and teddies too if they want to join in. You could all tell stories or take turns making up a story , one word at a time.
With younger children you can play storytelling games, such as 'I went to the shops and I bought (something beginning with a) and so on. Or play Kim's game: 10 objects on a tray, covered with a cloth. An adult removes an object and hides it whilst everyone else has their eyes closed. The kids have to guess what’s missing.
Create a treasure hunt. Younger children could hide 10 dolls/cars etc or make it more like a scavenger hunt where the kids write 10 things she has to find beginning with... Slightly older children could write the names of 15 items to find.
Older children could write a set of clues leading to a gift. Great ways to do this is finding a book and a word/letter on a page or hiding something in the biscuit tin. .There are so many options with this and the beauty is, probably, that the kids can do it all.
If you need any more ideas think classics, such as having movie night with sweets, popcorn and the kids making the tickets. Mummy gets to choose the movie for a change. In the spirit of the day, get the kids to do the cleaning or let her have a long lie in. Make her a cocktail or her favourite snack. You can still make this a day to remember.
Ways To Celebrate Mother's Day When You Can't Be With Your Mum or Mother Figure
If you're wondering what you can do if she’s vulnerable or she lives far away, and you haven't already, get her set up on Skype, Zoom or Facetime and eat brunch together. You could sign up to an online choir or exercise group.
Send a gorgeous hamper or something to look forward to, like a spa treatment or a pottery class, for when this is over. Choose the destination wisely and make sure the expiry date is many, many months away.
Sign her up to an online yoga class, mindfulness course or buy a craft 'how to’ guide, so she can learn a new skill. While you're there why not sign up to and learn together.
If your Mother lives nearby and you're allowed to go for a short walk, why not visit her, lockdown style. Agree to call when you get there and then have a chat the path. If you can sit outside and share a cuppa through a window (take your own tea in a flask). Be sure to follow your government guidelines or laws.
Above all, give her a phone call so she knows that you're there for her whenever she needs you. Brighten up her day!. I hope these ideas help you find ways to celebrate Mother's Day in the most positive way that you can.
Have you get any ideas that I haven’t mentioned? If so pop them in the comments below so we can all see them.
Wishing you all a happy and above all, safe Mother's Day.
Best Wishes,
Laura 💜
✋ Hey there! I hope you’re feeling stronger now. If so, sharing the love will help me help other mums with chronic invisible illnesses. ⬆Hit one of those sharing buttons or save the images to Pinterest and I’ll do a bed-bound happy dance - there's an image for you!
