Mother’s Day is this weekend and so this week my posts will be strictly focused on mothers and mothering. Today, I present my gift guide for Mother’s Day.

1.) Sleep. If you know a mother she is not sleeping and more than likely she hasn’t slept in several years. As a matter of fact I’m surprised the military has not studied mothers in order to determine what biological factor allows them to seemingly function flawlessly on so little sleep.

2.) Silence. Although some people might consider silence torture, mothers are no longer aware of what silence sounds like. Silence is something she experienced before having children. Most mothers exist in an environment where there is always a constant stream of questioning or narrative happening ALL THE TIME.

3.) Shopping. I don’t mean give her money and let her buy things – I mean let her go by herself. Most mothers haven’t shopped for clothes, shoes, make-up, magazines, food, books anything without an audience in tow. The freedom to go into a fitting room without fear that little hands are going to open the door while you are half-dressed, or crawl under the divider and introduce themselves to the woman next to you would be heaven.

4.) Appreciation. Mothers love being mothers and will sacrifice themselves until it hurts. Show her and tell her that you know she does this and you are grateful for it. Let her know that you recognize all the little things she does (from putting away the laundry to making sure your favorite breakfast cereal is always in the house). Because at the end of the day all mothers really want is to know that their sacrifices are not in vain. That they have created a happy home, a solid family and good children.

If none of these ideas work for ya’ than flowers, a massage and take-out is always a good place to start.