Spring brings a pair of annual holidays that honor the roles many people hold dear—Mother’s Day, celebrated on the second Sunday in May, followed by Father’s Day on the third Sunday in June.
According to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, Mother’s Day and Father's Day recognize and honor parents and, respectively, celebrate motherhood, fatherhood, maternal and paternal bonds, and the influence and positive contributions of parents on their families and society.
With these related holidays coming up, children, stepchildren, other family members and friends may want to acknowledge and actively observe these special days by sharing time, experiences, and, maybe, giving presents to their mother or father.
But not everyone may have extra money available for gifting their parents during these regular holidays. Given many other necessary fiscal responsibilities, additional funds for parental celebrations may be lean or just not exist. But not to worry, there are plenty of options for honoring parents without having to spend much cash or credit.
Here are just a few ideas for doing something meaningful for a parent that shouldn’t have to cost a lot of money
Hang out at home and watch a favorite movie or show, or play a card, board or video game together. You can watch a favorite or new movie with your parent or binge a few episodes of a show streaming online while munching on tasty snacks that you’ve brought to the event. You could also play a card, board or video game with your parent, either competitively or cooperatively, but focus on having fun and don’t get too serious about it—enjoy the experience but don’t be overly and unnecessarily competitive with gaming.
Prepare a special food or entire meal—or treat them to a meal at an inexpensive favorite restaurant. Plan and cook a special food or entire meal at home for your parent—or bring them a take-out meal from a favorite restaurant. Another option is to take the parent out and treat them to lunch, brunch or dinner at their preferred (and reasonably priced) restaurant to honor them on this special day.
Rather than a material gift, a present of your time by taking on tasks for parents such as running errands, doing home maintenance or assisting in other ways. Your parent probably has a few household tasks that they prefer not to do or have difficulty getting them done; and it always seems there are more required chores and activities than there is time to do them. For Mother’s or Father’s Day this year, volunteer to manage some of their more disliked or challenging responsibilities. To make your task volunteering a little more special, you can also create coupons to give your parent, with each coupon representing a different chore you’ll take on.
Examples of activities that you can perform for a parent could include—but are certainly not limited to—these everyday tasks:
- Grocery shopping
- Running errands
- Cleaning the furnace and replacing filters
- Blowing leaves
- Trimming branches
- Planting or fixing up a garden
- Mowing, raking, watering or seeding the lawn
- Wiping windows
- Cleaning their home or just dusting or vacuuming
- Doing dishes
- Taking a car in for service or just gassing it up
- Washing and folding laundry
- Paying bills
- Cleaning the bathroom
- Walking a pet (or taking it to a groomer or veterinarian)
- Painting a room
- Assembling forms, statements, receipts and reports and then filling out taxes
- Assisting them with a computer, mobile phone, television or some other technology problem
- Making minor, simple home repairs or improvements such as sealing doors, replacing light bulbs, hanging pictures, replacing screws or oiling hinges
- Tidying closets, rooms, basements or attics
- Having trash or discarded furniture removed
Give a handmade card, note, or letter or upload a personal video message for them. A wonderful personal gesture to a parent is a heartfelt, handmade, written card, note or letter expressing gratitude, love and encouragement. A more contemporary version of a message would be to create and share a video telling your mother or father how much you care for them.
The sound of music may be sweet and inexpensive. If your parent enjoys music and listens to it digitally, you can create a custom playlist on a music streaming service to share with them.
Alternatively, buying and downloading sound files of songs and music to give to a parent can be relatively inexpensive. Purchasing and downloading 8-10 songs to give to your mother or father to use on their computer, mobile phone or tablet computer could cost less than $15, including taxes, an amount that may be realistic and doable for many children.
Exercise or play sports indoors or outdoors together. Get outside for some fresh air or go inside to share time with a parent, relax, and maybe get some exercise. Depending on the activity, exercise or a sport can be an inexpensive and healthy way to enjoy sharing time together. Some possible activities include:
- Walking
- Running
- Hiking
- Biking
- Swimming
- Aerobics
- Weight training
- Yoga
- Fishing
- Hunting
- Tennis
- Golfing
Put together a comprehensive family memory book of photographs, tickets, event programs and other mementos of your parent’s life. The memory book can be passed on and expanded for other generations of the family.
Plan and host a family video call catch up with your parent’s siblings, their parents, other children, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. A surprise live video call from far-flung family and friends can be an exciting treat for an unsuspecting parent. Several of the well-known video call services offer some levels of free calls, but a stable, relatively fast internet connection is required for the service to work well. You can start by writing a simple script and agenda, then reach out to prospective call participants and begin reconciling time zones, days, times and personal schedules to bring everyone together for the holiday. If it’s possible, try to have a test call in advance of the actual call to work out any technical hurdles so that when the call happens no one is disappointed by a computer, connection or mobile phone not functioning as planned.
Instead of buying a gift, design and craft a present for them and install it. For children who are talented and creative do-it-yourselfers, one way to express affection to a parent is for the child to use their artistic ability to create a unique gift. A child can use their skill and experience—along with planning, time and effort—to craft a memorable, one-of-a-kind present for their mother or father. Just a few starter ideas for gifts from artistic children are:
- Knitting a scarf, cap, sweater, throw or blanket
- Designing and building furniture
- Having a favorite photograph or memento framed
- Painting a picture or taking a photograph for them of a subject they enjoy and frame it
- Making pottery, a statue, jewelry, a wall or window hanging, or another type of art object
Co-volunteer with your parent to assist a non-profit or community service group for Mother’s or Father’s Day. Have a good day with a parent by doing good. You can make a meaningful impact—on yourself, your parent, and your community—by spending part of the day volunteering together at a nonprofit or community service organization. A food bank, homeless shelter, children’s hospital, animal shelter, land preservation society, a charity homebuilding organization or many other types of groups supporting worthy causes can almost always use extra hands to help accomplish their mission of aiding the local community.
There are many, many other ways to enjoy a day with a parent
There are plenty of fun and budget-friendly ways to celebrate Mother’s or Father’s Day, but the focus doesn’t need to be on spending money—instead, it’s a chance to invest your time with someone you share a meaningful history and connection with. Consider thoughtfully what your parents mean to you, and determine what you think is the most appropriate way to honor them.
Looking for more ideas for managing money responsibly for you and your family?
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