5 Simple Ways to Celebrate Mother’s Day

We love moms, grandmas, aunts, cousins, girlfriends, and chosen moms! So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we cannot wait to celebrate Mother’s Day in less than two weeks on Sunday, May 9. This year, we’re imagining many more (safe) gatherings and time spent together after a year mostly spent apart. And, we think you might feel the same way. This year, more than ever, we want your favorite gal to feel loved and celebrated. Below, you’ll find five easy ways to spread the Mother’s Day love!

Get Cooking:

Whether mom typically creates meals in the kitchen or she’s a foodie at heart, think about cooking breakfast, lunch, and dinner for her! For breakfast, we’re eying a little something indulgent, like this French toast casserole. For lunch, why not make one of these savory toast recipes? Once dinner rolls around, think about whipping up a family-style favorite, like burgers, taco, or pizza.

Frame Kids’ Art:

Kids are only little once, and we have a feeling mom has a favorite piece of art made by the littles she adores! So, frame it! You can purchase a frame at Target or Walmart, opt for custom framing at a craft store, like Michaels, or send off the piece to become an heirloom with Framebridge. For an added surprise, create a new art piece for mom. Anything with hand or footprints is always a great idea!

Create an At-Home Retreat:

Moms love family time, but sometimes they crave a little time and space away from the chaos. So, create an at-home retreat that encourages mom to step away to read a book or magazine, indulge in a bubble bath, sip on wine or coffee, or catch up with a friend. She’ll come back feeling refreshed and grateful!

Pick Flowers:

Rather than picking up flowers from the grocery store or a florist, think about visiting a you-pick farm and cutting your own flowers for mom. This would be a great outdoor activity for a warm spring day. Plus, you’ll likely capture a few great shots for Instagram too! Quality family time + flowers? It sounds ideal to us!

Send Her to the Spa:

Similar to our suggestion to create an at-home retreat for mom, present her with a gift card to visit a spa or nail salon on Mother’s Day. Many of us have missed our pampering sessions throughout the past year, and Mother’s Day is a great day to resume self-care.

How are you planning to celebrate Mother’s Day? Let us know on Facebook!

The Best House Plants for Your Home

While we have been spending more time at home, we have been looking for ways to bring nature inside. It’s felt like a welcome respite to see plants and flowers throughout our homes! In order to source new house plants, we have been looking for online options with great selections. And, we have noticed 1800Flowers.com has plenty to explore! After searching through their inventory, we thought we would share some of the house plants we have discovered that promise to last for years while only requiring you to follow simple care instructions. 

The Best House Plants for Your Home | www.shopkick.com

Dieffenbachia Plant:

The Dieffenbachia Plant is available in three sizes on 1800Flowers.com – floor, table size, and shelf – which means you can choose the best option for your home. The leaves feature a variety of green and yellow tones, which we’re drawn to. Plus, the plant loves indirect sunlight and evenly moist soil. The care is simple, but it will require a little more effort than other options on our list.

The Best House Plants for Your Home | www.shopkick.com

My Pet Plant:

We spotted this Pet Plant, and immediately thought of dog and cat lovers as well as kids. The plant that arrives in the cat or dog planter is a spider plant, which only requires water when the soil is dry. Spider plants don’t love direct sunlight, but any other kind of light will work! If you opt to purchase this house plant, you can also choose to have it arrive with cat or dog treats for your real life animal.

The Best House Plants for Your Home | www.shopkick.com

Pilea Peperomioides Plant:

If you have heard about propagating, which means starting a new plant using a leaf and roots from an existing plant, the Pilea Peperomioides Plant might be for you! 1800Flowers.com describes this plant as one that has extra bright and airy green leaves. It requires water when the soil is dry, which means the care is very simple! Plus, it doesn’t grow too large, which means it will always look wonderful on a table, desk, or counter.

The Best House Plants for Your Home | www.shopkick.com

Snake Plant:

Snake Plants grow vertically, so they will always feel like 1800Flowers describes – modern and architectural. Similar to the other options on our list, snake plants only require water when the soil is dry, and they do enjoy indirect sunlight the most. A bonus? They purify the air! 

The Best House Plants for Your Home | www.shopkick.com

Fiddle Leaf Fig Floor Plant:

If you have spent any time reading blogs or exploring Instagram, you have likely seen Fiddle Leaf Fig trees! They are one of the most popular house plants, but be warned – they do require a bit more work in order to truly thrive. According to 1800Flowers.com, Fiddle Leaf Figs do best in inside spaces that offer indirect sunlight, watering when the soil is dry paired with daily misting, and space to grow. Humidity is also a bonus for Fiddle Leaf Fig Trees, so you will definitely benefit if you live in the south!

Do you like to grow house plants at home? What plants would you recommend that are easy to care for? Let us know on Facebook!

4 Mother’s Day Crafts for Kids

Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 10, so we are a little more than a week away from celebrating our favorite ladies. With that in mind, first grade teacher Mrs. Lamb was back on Facebook Live today to share four fun and sweet crafts your kids can make for any and all ladies who are impacting their lives. Let’s take a closer look at Mrs. Lamb’s ideas below! 

4 Mother’s Day Crafts for Kids:

Interview: 

Mrs. Lamb’s first suggestion is one of the easiest! Ask each of your kids a series of questions about each of their favorite ladies. You can either type their responses or ask them to write down their answers. Once the interview is complete, ask them to draw a portrait of the subject of their interview! Make sure to frame the final piece before mailing it or dropping it off on their favorite lady’s front porch.

I Wished for You Fingerprint Art:

This art project looks like a dandelion blowing in the wind, and kids will love adding their fingerprints. Mrs. Lamb said she and her kids dipped their thumbs in watercolor paint to create the piece they made, but any water based paint will do the trick. This is another craft you can easily frame and ship to a happy recipient. 

Simile Poem:

A simile poem is a great idea for older kids! Talk about similes. Then ask them to make comparisons. Your kids can also create patterns when coloring in the border, and they can also draw a portrait of their recipient. This is another piece you can frame and keep or drop into the mail.  

Heart Photo:

Mrs. Lamb’s final Mother’s Day craft suggestion is her favorite, and we love it too! Start by cutting hearts out of construction paper. Mrs. Lamb’s kids used red, but any color or a collection of colors will look wonderful. Once you have a group of hearts in various sizes, tape them onto your wall. You will want to place them slightly higher than your kids, and you will want them to start at a point and float either out or up. Finally, capture a photo of your kids “blowing” the hearts out of their hands. The result is a photo that looks like they’re making a loving wish for their favorite ladies. This is a great project to text or email to friends and family, or you can print the photo and send hard copies in the mail.

What will your kids make for their most-loved ladies in honor of Mother’s Day? Let us know! Make sure to watch the full Facebook Live, and tune in next week for more fun learning tips from Mrs. Lamb.

Top Five Mother’s Day Deals

Aren’t moms the best? I think so too! I count down until Mother’s Day every year, and my plans always change slightly. Whether my mom and I set aside time to go to brunch, share a meal with a larger group of family, spend the afternoon reading in her backyard, or plan a complete experience to enjoy, the key thing is we almost always plan something we can do together.

Even if we have something in mind to share together, I typically purchase a little something extra too. So, whether you’re seeing your favorite ladies in person or hoping to send something straight to her door, there is still time to shop and prep before Sunday, May 12.

Today, I thought I would share how you can shop for Mother’s Day and earn big kicks through Shopkick’s Countdown to Mother’s Day! Gift ideas, retailers, and the specifics are all below for you. So, let’s get our Mother’s Day gift on!

LOFT:

Up her style with a gift from LOFT! My mom and I are known for our online shopping, so we were both thrilled when LOFT was announced as a new Shopkick partner. I would describe my style as preppy and feminine, while my mom’s style is more classic and casual. Without fail, we always find something we have to have from LOFT. They have an excellent selection of shorts and t-shirts perfect for summer, their Lou & Grey line is a must-experience, and we’re both fans of their dresses for everyday and events. It’s impossible to go wrong with anything from LOFT!

Nike:

Encourage her fitness journey! Nike has some of the best gear for working out, and you can earn BIG KICKS right now when you shop for Mother’s Day gifts. The warmest months of the year are quickly approaching, so push her to spend more time working out outside with a new pair of sneakers. Add to her workout gear with new athleisure pieces because few things make you feel motivated to work out quite like a new outfit. Whatever you choose, you will be helping her to meet her fitness goals!  

Sam’s Club:

Say “thank you” with essentials! Sometimes the best gift is the feeling of receiving items you truly need. Sam’s Club has nearly everything you could ever need for day-to-day life, thanks to their wide selection of products. Purchase groceries in bulk, outfit her backyard with new furniture, treat her to new beauty products, make her feel loved with jewelry, and so much more. With Shopkick, Sam’s Club is about to feel like your one stop shop for Mother’s Day!

QVC:

Treat her to luxury! QVC is known for their wide assortment of brands and products, and you may be surprised by the sheer volume of brand name pieces you will discover on their site. Think about her wishlist, then pop over to QVC’s site from your Shopkick app. While you’re there, you will discover plenty of ideas from luggage for summer travel to jewelry and bedding.

1800Flowers:

Send her flowers! Moms love receiving flowers, especially when they’re chosen by you. Shop for a bouquet for your favorite lady on 1800Flowers from your Shopkick app and earn kicks! Gifting blooms has never felt better.

Stay tuned for more deals to drop over the next few days. Rumor has it that kicks will be dropping from Sephora, SeatGeek, and Groupon soon! And, a note to all moms – You are loved.

Make sure to download Shopkick for free, and join us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more shopping inspiration!

What’s Keeping Mom Up at Night?

This Mother’s Day, we decided to look above and beyond what moms are hoping to receive as gifts and dig into the pressing issues on their minds as they raise their children.

In a survey of over 5,600 moms across the country ranging from ages 18-71, Shopkick
uncovered how moms really feel about raising children today, how their values affect their
spending habits, and more. From Millennials to the Silent Generation, from Californians to
Floridians, moms are engaging their children in dialogues about what’s happening in the world and their communities.

On Mom’s Mind

  • Biggest Concerns: Physical safety of their children is the #1 concern for moms today (30 percent), followed closely by financial security (26 percent), according to survey results. For single moms, specifically, financial security (33 percent) is the predominant concern, while physical safety remains a close second (30 percent).
  • Fostering Conversations: Seventy-five percent of moms are engaging their children in conversations about such current events, with school safety as the #1 topic of discussion (37 percent of moms engaging). Racial equality (25 percent) comes in second, followed by gender equality (11 percent), and presidential politics (8 percent).
  • Generational Differences: The up-and-coming generation of mothers in Gen Z are
    most concerned with financial security (38 percent), and the most likely to discuss
    gender equality with their children (17 percent). Millennial moms place nearly equal
    emphasis on discussing school safety and race equality (31 percent and 30 percent
    respectively). Moms that fall into the Silent Generation spend the most time of all age groups discussing presidential politics (25 percent) and racial equality with their children (38 percent).
  • Regional Insights*: New York moms are the most likely (80 percent) to engage in
    conversations with their kids about the outlined issues (money, physical safety, online behavior and privacy, health and bullying), topping Florida (78 percent), California (76 percent), Illinois (75 percent) and Texas (73 percent).* Moms in Illinois spend the most time discussing and teaching their children about school safety (44 percent).

Managing the Family Purse Strings

  • Shopping Their Values: When it comes to managing household finances, the
    overwhelming majority of moms (78 percent) state they shop their values and are
    impacted by a brand’s ethics when considering where and what to purchase. However, only 25 percent of moms change where or how they spend based on their political beliefs.
  • Generational Differences: Silent Generation and Gen Z moms are more likely to adjust their shopping habits based on their political beliefs (35 percent versus 25 percent of moms in the middle generations).
  • Regional Insights*: Floridians are the most likely (80 percent) to match their shopping habits with their values and to be impacted by brand ethics. Moms in Illinois are second only to those in California in their likelihood to change where and how they spend their money based on political beliefs (28 percent and 31 percent respectively).

Shopkick conducted a survey of over 5,600 users who self-identified as mothers to uncover the issues of most concern and their shopping decisions. Shopkick classifies age groups as: Silent Generation (over 71), Baby Boomer (54-71), Generation X (42-53), Xennial (33-41), Millennial (20-32), and Generation Z (under 20). The survey was conducted between April 6 and 12, 2018.

*Based on the top 5 states (California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Illinois) in terms of volume of respondents.