Being a new mom is hard. Really hard. So let the new mom in your life know what a good job she’s doing by giving her a great first Mother’s Day. Giving gifts for first-time moms can be tricky, as they are usually responsible for catering to every whim of a helpless tiny human. Here are some ideas of what would make a good Mother’s Day gift for a first-time mom (or any mom, really).
First Mother’s Day gift ideas
Photo: Deposit Photos
Personalized and sentimental
These first Mother’s Day ideas will go straight to the heart of a new mom.
Jewelry. Birthstone jewelry is a nice gift for a new mom. The piece could feature baby’s birthstone or a birthstone for each member of the family. Other first-time mom jewelry ideas include a hand-stamped necklace or bracelet with the baby’s name and birthdate — or even his or her fingerprint — printed on a charm. This is a great option, but you may need to order personalized jewelry weeks ahead of time.
If you’re limited on time, initial necklaces or earrings to represent baby’s first name are a good option and can be found in stores. Personalized jewelry is a keepsake — she isn’t going to want sell it at the next garage sale, and charms can be added for any subsequent children. Hand-stamped, initial and birthstone jewelry can be found on Amazon, Etsy, and most stores that sell jewelry.
Hand- or footprint crafts. One lesson that I learned about arts and crafts with an infant is that it’s much easier to get a footprint than a hand print. Infants like to keep their hands clenched, and even if you get them open and get paint on them, getting them to press down evenly (or at all) is nearly impossible.
Luckily, there are a bunch of footprint crafts that are just as cute and perfect for spring, like footprint butterflies or bees. They’re like Mother’s Day gifts from baby, and will be a meaningful gift for years to come.
Photo shoot or canvas photo. A mother can never have enough photos of her baby and family. Schedule a family photo session so she can have an updated family portrait to display. You can often purchase a small package of photos at most department-store photo studios.
If you already have a favorite recent family photo, have it printed on canvas for a professional and elegant look. Artscow.com offers inexpensive photo canvases (and often has deals on them). Be sure to order them “stretched” unless you plan to build a frame to display them.
Photo: Deposit Photos
If Mom is the one who is always behind the camera, take a nice photo of her with the baby on Mother’s Day, and every Mother’s Day to come, so she can look back and see how much her little one has grown each year.
Gifts of time
Adjusting to motherhood is difficult, but the biggest challenge that I faced, especially after returning to work, was that there’s not enough time in the day to do everything I wanted to do. Even with an extra-helpful husband, I still struggled to find time for cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping and gardening. These are some first Mothers Day gifts that will give a new mom the most valuable commodity of all: time.
House-cleaning certificate. This is perfect for spring cleaning. Who has time to think about dusting baseboards or cleaning windows when you’re just getting the hang of taking care of a tiny human being with lots of needs? If the price of a professional house cleaning isn’t in the budget, take a day and do it for her (but actually do it — don’t just promise to do it). It doesn’t have to be perfect, but try to focus on the easily overlooked and tedious tasks, like cleaning windows, baseboards, the oven, etc.
Dinner’s on the table. Let Mom take a couple of days off from dinner by buying a meal delivery certificate, take-out certificates from her favorite places (cheaper than dining out), or prepare a few freezer meals like lasagna, casseroles or soups for her to pull out and heat up at her leisure.
Planted flowers or a garden. Flowers and plants are a common gift for Mother’s Day, but a first-time mom may have trouble finding the time to plant these gifts (or keep them watered if they are indoor plants). Instead of just giving her these items, plant them for her (after she approves the location, of course). If she has a vegetable garden that she hasn’t gotten around to planting or tending, buy some seeds or plants and plant them for her.
Photo: Deposit Photos
Personal care
These first-time Mothers Day ideas emphasize how special she is as a person.
Massage. Birth is hard on the body, as is carrying around an 8- to 25-pound baby all the time. Let mom enjoy the gift of personal time with an hour-long massage while you watch the babe. Price too steep? Dim the lights and light some scented candles while you give a massage during baby nap time — even just a shoulder, hand and arm, or foot massage will make any mama feel better. You might find a great massage deal on Groupon.
Pedicure. I got a pedicure the day before my son was born and I finally took that polish off when he was two months old. Luckily, it was during winter, so the polish was still fairly intact and very few people were seeing my toes. Since then, I’ve only changed the polish twice, which is way less than I did BC (before child). There’s just always something else that I think needs done, so if someone “forced” me to get a pedicure, I wouldn’t be mad. Again — if the price is too steep, give her a pedicure yourself! Think homemade sugar scrub and massage, and a re-polish. It doesn’t have to be perfect — men are perfectly capable of painting their ladies’ toenails.
A “new” her. It’s common for a new mom to be more focused on her new baby and the household than on herself. Get her a certificate for her favorite salon for a new haircut (or other spa treatment that she prefers), or to a favorite store to buy some new clothes. It’s probably been close to a year since she wore her pre-maternity clothes, and even if they fit again, she deserves something new that will make her feel great.
Date night. Arrange for a babysitter (one both parents trust) and take her out for an activity she enjoyed before baby, like the movies, sporting event, a concert or a wine tasting. Some moms aren’t ready to leave their babies for more than a couple of hours for a few months, especially if they have to account for breastfeeding/pumping, so keep that in mind before purchasing nonrefundable tickets if the event will fall in the first couple of months postpartum. You can always print off a certificate for the event and get mom’s approval before buying the tickets if you aren’t sure. If money is tight, here are some inexpensive date night ideas.
Sleep. The ultimate first-time mom gift! Let her sleep in (or relax in bed if she’s an early riser) and get up with the baby. At the very least, make her an extra-special breakfast for Mother’s Day, and plan or prepare the meals for the rest of the day as well, so she doesn’t have to think about feeding anyone except the baby.
What not to give
These first-time Mothers Day gifts aren’t likely to go over as well as you intended.
I’d shy away from suggesting exercise classes or equipment, even if a new mama talks about wanting these things. Most moms want to lose the pregnancy weight and will talk about it, but lack of time and energy can make it hard to follow through, and giving those as gifts may give the message that you think she needs to lose weight. Instead, get her a gift that she’ll enjoy, and the next time she mentions wanting to go for a walk or run, or to a yoga class, offer to watch the baby, or encourage her to purchase the membership or new clothes/shoes that she may need for this.
If you put a little thought into a Mother’s Day gift for a first-time mom, chances are good that she’ll appreciate it. After making her new baby her primary focus, she deserves a day to celebrate her new role as a mom.
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