Here I sit in a chemo chair in February 2005, getting dosed with the toxic drugs that are hopefully saving my life, while my mom sits nearby, holding my baby niece Jordan. This lovely man toured the infusion center on this Friday, singing a personalized song to each patient in my similar predicament. He sang about me, my mom and Jordan — the two girls who sat with me for every chemo session. Click on the photo to start video.
Thanks, mom.
I love you.
Happy Mother’s Day.
I love to give baskets full of goodies for gifts. I love a good theme too. So I’m recommending you get yourself a basket (or a mini storage bin, tote bag, anything that hold goods — just don’t make it a laundry basket, OK?). Then get yourself a theme, and put together a little something special for mom on Mother’s Day.
Pick a healthy eating theme, and fill your basket with an assortment of fruit. Choose a summer reading theme, and stock your basket with a few books (try this one), a bookmark, a pair of sunglasses and a sun hat. How about summer movies? Gather some movie tickets or a Blockbuster gift card, some microwave popcorn and some not-so-treacherous movie candy (Milk Duds are better than peanut M&Ms). And my favorite: The R&R basket, complete with candle, bubble bath, body lotions and gift certificate for a pedicure. Your basket can be a hodge-podge of all mom’s favorite things, too. You get to decide — just get out there and decide, because Mother’s Day is on Sunday, and it’s Friday, and, well, you’re running out of time.
Are these not the cutest flip flops ever? They’d make a pretty nifty Mother’s Day gift, wouldn’t they? I’m thinking so. In fact, I know how comfy these Havaianas Fit cuties are — my sister won a silver pair in a giveaway recently, and she passed them on to me (she’d just bought herself some silver sandals and was feeling generous) — and so I can promise mom will love them. Well, maybe not promise. But chances are, she’ll feel pretty sporty and summery in her very own pair. All you need to do is shell out $30 bucks (she’s worth it, right?) and order a pair for mommy dearest. Pick from pink, white, black, silver or gold. Hey, get a pair for yourself while you’re at it.
I know moms and flowers go together pretty well, and you might be thinking of sending your momma a perfectly pretty bouquet of arranged flowers for Mother’s Day this year. But flowers are expensive, and they don’t last very long, and that’s why I suggest you head over to your nearest garden shop and buy a few plants your mom can plop right in her own yard. Hand deliver your favorite picks, and help mom bury them in the dirt. If you don’t live nearby, bundle up a few packets of seeds and some other garden goodies and mail them off to your special girl. Whether you live near or far, mom will get to watch your love grow.
Times are tough, and money is tight. But even though you might not have much to spend on mom this year, doesn’t mean you can’t treat her right. In fact, if you’ve got a TCBY nearby, you can get your mom something — for nothing.
TCBY is handing out a free cup or cone to all moms who stop by one of their stores on Sunday, May 10. I, for one, have this marked on my calendar, because I love frozen yogurt (try the non-fat, no-sugar-added flavor — it’s always yummy), and I don’t want to forget to get myself there for my very own freebie. Oh, and TCBY will be dishing out the same deal for Father’s Day, so mark your calendars for that too. But for now, plan to take mom for a frozen treat on Sunday. She’ll love you forever. Well, she’ll probably love you forever anyway, but just to seal the deal, get her something smooth and creamy, and maybe even sinful.
Here’s what TCBY says about their great gift to moms: “For the second year in a row, TCBY will open its doors to celebrate moms on Mother’s Day with a sweet tribute to the women we all love. And there is arguably no better gift than one that’s both delicious and healthy. TCBY’s yogurt is low in fat and calories, when compared to ice cream, and is loaded with plenty of live, active cultures (probiotics) to improve overall health and digestion.”
Thanks, TCBY!
If you’re a mom, or you have a mom, or you love someone else’s mom, then you know how important Mother’s Day is. Sure, we should honor the moms in our lives every day, but I like that there’s one special day set aside for celebration. Kind of like a birthday, where balloons and candles and mounds of gifts are the norm, Mother’s Day should be treated like one big party.
Let’s talk gifts — do you know what you’re getting mom this year? Do you know what you want this year? Between now and the big day — Sunday, May 10, 2009 — I’ll be naming some ideas and sharing them here and over here, at the PlanetKid Child Care Blog.
Today, let’s start with something for the foodie mom, the mom who is interested in food but wants to be healthy and maintain her weight too. How about this nifty food scale, which comes in all sorts of colors and is perfect for measuring out that exact one-ounce serving of dark chocolate, which, you know, is actually a healthy daily indulgence — you did know that, right? Makes a good case for buying mom some of the dark stuff too.
