Mother's Day Flowers

Many people are very vocal in criticising the commercialisation of Mother’s Day, but I think it is a good thing, if only to remind us all to show our appreciation to our Mums. Lets face it, how many of us, even the Mums among us would remember and make the effort to treat our own mums without a little prompting?

I am sure we can all recall our own Mums saying “it is the thought that counts” and “don’t waste money on expensive cards, I’d prefer you to make one”. I guess it is now our turn to continue that tradition with our own kids. For those with little ones, I call on all you Dads, childminders or family members out there to get the craft box out or even bake something…the handmade approach is always appreciated and if time doesn’t allow these things, a pampering gift is perfectly wonderful too!

Over the years, I think I have developed a winning formula with my Mum. I generally invite her to our house for a roast dinner and take huge pleasure in spoiling her.  We always decorate the table with potted roses, the pots of which we either paint or wrap and tie with ribbons. Mum enjoys being around her family with lovely food plus she gets to take the pots home and more often than not plants them in her garden (with help from the grandchildren!).

Of course, having a mother whilst being one yourself raises the question of who now gets the attention – that is unless you opt to go out! Personally, I prefer to stay at home on Mothering Sunday and  to share the day with my mum (I do expect my own share of treats too!) my perfect day would involve staying in bed and reading whilst my children bring me breakfast in bed and home made cards. Following this late start, a long soak in the bath would be my idea of bliss, after which, I am ready to begin cooking and preparing an afternoon treat for my own mum.

I was brought up in my parents’ country pub, and my childhood memories of Mother’s Day are of one of the busiest days of the year, the bar and restaurant were packed throughout the day and evening with families ‘taking mum out for lunch or dinner’ this meant that no matter what we as children planned, our mum was pretty tied up and we had to get up very early indeed to take her coffee in bed!  Mum always went the extra mile to ensure that the Mum’s who came for lunch had a great day out and every detail was planned with precision. Each table was decorated with a pretty rose in a decorated pot which the lucky mum could take home after her meal.

I guess these childhood experiences are behind my aversion to going out on and joining the throngs of other families on Mothering Sunday and my desire to keep things calm and special for my own mum and make sure she gets her own roses to take home each year.  This association between motherhood and roses also inspired my baby gift company Babyblooms which specialises in bouquets of baby clothes and silk roses.