Making a memorable Mother's Day: Etiquette, gift ideas, and more
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - The countdown to Mother's Day is on and so is rising pressure to deliver.
However, did you know there's such a thing as Mother's Day etiquette?
Well, there is, and here's how you can screw it up - by inaction or listening but not properly interpreting the signs.
If mom says all she wants for Mother's Day is "peace and quiet" be careful.
"I wouldn't honor it by vanishing from her life, I wouldn't honor it by really leaving them alone," said Daniel Post Senning.
Daniel Post Senning is the great-great-grandson of manners maven Emily Post.
"Like, if I was imagining a breakfast in bed with a bouquet of wildflowers and a note or a poem, I might follow that up by saying hey, I'm going to take the kids and we're going to give you a morning to relax and enjoy yourself," he said.
With a name like Post, Daniel knows his etiquette about Mother's Day and the pressure that comes with it.
"Since we're talking the family scale, let's turn the volume up to 11," he said.
Post said it's about more than just your mom, how about your mother-in-law if you're married?
"She might be or might not be your favorite person in your life, but I guarantee it's an important relationship for just about everybody, and what a rich opportunity to invest in that relationship a little bit," Post explained.
Your wife might not be your mother, but if you have kids, Post said he would lean into working with the kids to help honor the wife and the family on Mother's Day.
He also said you don't have to go broke on the holiday.
"Shows them that you care, and a gift, it doesn't need to be expensive to be significant," he said.
If there has been a recent loss of a mother, that's amplified on Mother's Day.
"I think that a first Mother's Day without someone might be a real opportunity to connect with family, friends and family and other people that might also be experiencing that day a little differently," Post said.
Mother's Day is a chance, whether it's your mom, mother-in-law, wife, or daughter, it's more than a Hallmark Holiday. It's a chance to honor them for all that they do and a chance to really make a mistake if you don't do the right thing.
So, what do you get, and what if you're on a budget?
"[It's] less the specific thing that you pick and more that you put some effort into it and that you've invested some of yourself in it," Post said.
While some gift ideas might be a bit over the top, some aren't so difficult such as letting mom sleep in or simply a card. Those simple gifts and gestures are always appreciated.
"Giving someone a little bit of breathing room or a little bit of a break in their routine if that's something that they're looking forward to," Post said. "[Or] a quick note but one that comes from you. That's personal that references something unique about the relationship that you share with someone can go a long way that's a very personal gift."
If the children are small, flowers and candy might not be necessary.
"Who knows, those that dandelion bouquet from your child might just be the thing that you remember for a long time," he said.
The more personal, the better, and from the heart overrides the expense almost every time.
