Tips for Mother’s Day

Ideas For Your Children to Make Mom Feel Extra Special

article by Cindy G. Foust

Warning: this article is intended for mature male audiences who take Mother’s Day seriously…otherwise, please turn the page to the next riveting BayouLife article. Yes, this article is written explicitly for the men in the BayouLife nation, and their little BL children. So moms, if you are reading this, close your eyes and walk this magazine (well, that’s kind of silly, because you can’t see where you are going) to your husband’s reading area (his bedside, his toilet or his Archie Bunker recliner) and dog ear this page! It may benefit you during the upcoming Mother’s Day festivities. Okay, now that I have the attention of the dads who read my column, I am starting this month’s edition with the gentle reminder that Mother’s Day is SUNDAY, MAY 10TH (my children have advised me that words written in all caps means the writer is shouting) and so that you know, that is my intention. I want our dads to prepare for this special day a little early this year, and I am prepared to give you some new and invigorating ideas to help you celebrate the day that honors your mother and the mother to your children (the one that gained 84 pounds and laid in a hospital bed for 48 hours to deliver your child). You can thank me later.

For starters, and to get one thing out there before we start plowing through the wonderful ideas I have come up with, moms love anything their children make for them. With that being said, they also love anything that has clearly had thought put into it. So, as the Mother Day’s Fairy (minus the wings, because they don’t come in my size of extra small) I am going to delight our dads with some EXTRA special ideas for you and your children to make mom feel EXTRA special this year.

First, and one of my favorites, buy a large Mason jar (or two or three depending on how many children you have). Finding Mason jars may sound like an overwhelming task, but you can find them at any hardware or hobby store or the local retail giant. Next, have your children sit at the table, with a notebook and write 52 things (one for each week) that they love about their mother. Next, and I feel confident your children will be top-notch scissor ninjas, have them cut each thing they love about their mom into strips and fold them up individually. Put them in the jar and close the lid. On the outside of the jar, either on a sheet of paper, a notecard or written directly on the jar, have them write, “52 Things I Love About My Mom.” I LOVE THIS! For the next year, your “mom” can pull out something their children love about them every week. This will help to remind mom, say if their darlings get in trouble at school or forget to take out the trash or get a bad grade on Edline, why in fact they appreciate their children!

Second, how about the age-old breakfast in bed? I truly feel this act of kindness is a dying good deed. I mean, who wouldn’t want to wake up to breakfast prepared by their children? What could be sweeter than a mom’s entire family bull dozing their way into her room and waking her to the song, in unison, “For she’s a jolly good mother!” Every mother, I suspect, would love this.

Third, (this might be the Mason jar holiday 2015), drag out another large jar and head to the store (for some, it might be to the discount stores, for others, it might be the mall) and get ready to shove anything “spa” in the jar. That’s right, the Mason jar that pampers! Before you get that overwhelmed yet again, just think fingernail polish, a Loofah (that’s a fancy washcloth that looks like your hair when you wake up in the morning), soaps, scrubs, or my favorite, gift cards for manicures, pedicures or facials. This jar right here might definitely earn you some brownie points, and the kids will love helping you fill the jar with pampering products.

Fourth, (and another writing activity, of course), have the kids back to the table and get those crayons and markers out. This is a much simpler activity than the above number one, but, just as sweet and endearing. This project simply needs a nice piece of card stock (Dad, this is a sheet of paper a little heavier than copy paper) and some markers and crayons. The theme at the top of the page is “5 Things I Love About Mom” and your child should write, in extra large handwriting, the numbers 1 through 5 on the left side of the page. Out beside each number your child can write 5 individual things they love about their mom. Now, if you want to get super sophisticated and make your wife think you are a gift giving genius, you can take the final work of art to Office Depot and have them laminate it. Dads, that’s my job as the Mother’s Day Fairy, to make you look super brilliant. Oh, and you are welcome.

Finally, and I saved the best for last for you dads who like to live life a little in the fast lane, but I’m going to tell you how to make facial scrubs. Homemade! It’s pure Mother’s Day genius! Before you bolt, and simply run out and buy a card and call it a day, this is much easier than it sounds. I think a great idea would be to send mom to get her toes done or to the movies with her friends, gather the children around the kitchen island, and let the awesomeness begin. You will need, and I know you will be shocked, several mason jars.  You will need to buy some honey (squeeze bottle works the best) and and some white granulated sugar. Find a small mixing bowl and fill it about 2/3 full with honey (for exact measurements, see Martha Stewart, for guesstimates, see Cindy Foust). Start putting a tablespoon of sugar into the honey bowl (sounds like Winnie the Pooh) one at a time, until you get a nice thick consistency. Spoon your science experiment, I mean your facial scrub, into the Mason jars and seal tightly. Finally, write a little note to mom, and quote me on this, to “Use to exfoliate your face and neck for five minutes to receive the full hydrating effect.” Let me tell you, when this is over, you might think about a second career at the Clinique cosmetics counter. Trust me, your wife is going to think you’ve been eaten by the brilliance bug.

And there you have it, the Mother’s Day Fairy (I guess I should really be the Mason jar fairy) comes through once again! Well, this is my inaugural role as the MDF, but I’m feeling pretty confident in my abilities. I really worked hard to hold these suggestions to a very basic, elementary level. Next year I’m going to graduate you to fingerprint key chains and hand dotted tumblers (that’s a cup, not an actual gymnast). So, gentlemen, start your engines, and get those creative juices flowing. Sure, everyone can be humdrum and just take their mother out to lunch (yawn). But with the input of this great magazine, you now have the tools to far surpass your wife’s expectations and with a little thought and preparation, make her feel like the wonderful, caring mother she is. Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful BayouLife mothers!