Happy Mother's Day!

Our moms can be young or older, live nearby or far away, and be easy or difficult to buy for, but one thing is for sure, they need to be celebrated.

Little known fact that you may know, but let’s find out. What is the official flower of Mother’s Day (Bonus points if you know the color!)? The answer is ahead, but Mother’s Day has its roots, if you will, in West Virginia. An activist named Anna Jarvis finally gave in to her mother’s long held wish to have a day commemorating mothers everywhere. To honor her mother’s passing, Anna sent hundreds of flowers to her mother’s church in West Virginia. The flower? Carnations. The color? White. So if you said “white carnations”, you’re a good child. 

Over the years, the popularity of Mother’s Day increased until it was declared a national holiday in 1914 by President Woodrow Wilson. Interestingly, Mother’s Day became so commercialized that Anna tried to have the holiday status revoked. Today, Mother’s Day is the biggest flower giving holiday, even surpassing Valentine’s Day. Go Mother’s Day!

If money means love, we definitely love our moms!

Being the biggest flower giving day isn’t the only accolade Mother’s Day can lay claim to. Here are some more fun Mother’s Day facts. According to the National Retail Federation, Mother’s Day spending reached $31.7 billion in 2022 and 84% of us will celebrate it in 2023 and spend, on average, $245.76 per mom. That’s a lot of motherly love!

Most of us will get a gift for our moms. Here’s a breakdown of the top gifts in 2022.

• Greeting Cards 75%
•  Flowers 72%
• Special Outing (like taking mom to brunch) 57%
• Gift Card 52%
• Clothing/Accessories 45%
• Jewelry 41%
•  Personal Service (like a spa day) 30%
• Houseware/Gardening 28%
• Other 28%
• Books or CDs 24% (CDs?)
• Electronics 22%

Spending on Mother’s Day gifts is only outpaced by back-to-school/college spending and gifts over the winter holidays and celebrations. Moms really do rock.

The biggest percentage jump in spending from 2021 for a particular type of gift was jewelry (7%), so it looks like more moms are getting more bling for their special day. And lots of us give more than one thing to our moms. For instance, it’s popular to take our moms to dinner and give her flowers or a gift as well.

Enough about money. It’s the thought that counts!

But whatever you give, make it something special as in NOT a gift card (nearly half of you ungrateful children resorted to a gift card. Lame.). Put some thought into it! For you grateful children out there, 46% got your mom something unique or different. Here’s a tip for unique and different… get your mom anything, that’s right, anything, and send it with a VideoStamp attached. Whether it’s a note card, greeting card, or sticker, a Mother’s Day VideoStamp lets you add a personalized video message that will for sure put a smile on her face! 

Speaking of personalized gifts, maybe go with birthstone jewelry or flowers of her birth month along with a carnation or two. Many online retailers specialize in Mother’s Day personalization, like Etsy and Uncommon Goods. If you can afford it, nothing says “I love you, Mom” more than the little robin’s-egg blue box from Tiffany & Co.

If your mom happens to be environmentally friendly and you want to get her something unique and usable, we recommend something from Out of the Woods. They make bags and totes from a type of sustainable paper that looks and feels like leather.

Don’t forget! If you’re planning on taking your mom out for dinner or brunch this Mother’s Day, remember that it’s one of the most popular “dining out” days of the year, almost as much as Valentine’s Day. Make reservations and take her somewhere she wants to go. Wings and beer may not cut it (but it would be great, right?)

Also a wise and wonderful gift is the “Mother’s Day Off.” She loves you and the kids, but not having to deal with it all for a day is a gift she will cherish. Send her to the spa and on a shopping spree. While she’s gone, you clean the house, do the laundry, wash her car… use your imagination!

Mother’s Day is special because it’s hard being a mom.

Okay Significant Others out there. A few words of advice. Mother’s Day is more important than birthdays to many moms. What do you think she cares more about – getting a year older or being remembered by her kid(s) and spouse for all the effort she puts in being a mom? She may say she doesn’t care about Mother’s Day but trust us - she does. So do the right thing and make it memorable. The effort you put in with the kids will pay off. And we have just the thing…

Make it really special with a VideoStamp note card or greeting card.

Whatever you give your mom this year, attach a VideoStamp to the gift. Check out our Mother’s Day Collection. We have note cards and foldable gift cards to choose from with lovely, original designs you will find nowhere else. And our stickers can stick to just about anything. So if you decide on flowers, jewelry or even something you made that she can put on the fridge, make it even better with a VideoStamp. She will be so delighted to watch a personalized video of you telling her how much she means to her. And if you live far away and can only mail her a card, a VideoStamp will mean more to her than you know. And yes, they are so easy to use, that even your mom can do it!

Happy Mother’s Day!