Heroes don’t always wear capes: 11 ideas for a very special Mother’s Day

Katrina Legault May 1, 2020 No Comments »

Editor’s note: This article was updated on April 21, 2023.

Mom’s probably a big deal at your house. She makes nightmares go away, heals wounds like no medicine can, and nothing is ever really lost until Mom can’t find it.

It takes a lot to be a superhero mom. On Mother’s Day, pull out your best and most creative ideas to celebrate all that Mom does for your family. Here are some ways you can get your little ones up and active to celebrate Mother’s Day at home.

Take the kids outside to gather supplies for DIY Mother’s Day gifts

You don’t have to go to the mall or turn to Amazon to find a great gift for Mom. Now that spring has finally sprung, it’s a great time to head outdoors on a treasure hunt to find some great arts and crafts supplies for an awesome DIY Mother’s Day project.

Encouraging your little ones to get outside and pick up things like pine cones, twigs, stones, or wildflowers helps them develop coordination and balance while getting sunshine and fresh air, and makes for a fun family activity too!

Here are some of our favourite ideas for nature-themed DIY gifts for Mom:

Stone garden markers: Gather medium to large stones, then set up an indoor or an outdoor paint station to decorate them. Some ideas:
- Paint Mom’s favourite fruits and vegetables on the stones to use as markers in her garden.
- Paint decorative stones for indoor plants or even set them up by the front door with your address or family name painted on them.
- Have kids paint fun images or inspirational messages for Mom to find in the garden for a cheery surprise.
Mother’s Day bouquet: Gather flowers and other greenery that you think Mom will love. You can arrange them in a pretty vase right away, or dry them in the sunshine first for a longer-lasting decoration.
Mother’s Day card: Try pressing flowers to glue into a card or a picture frame—the perfect way to show Mom how much you love her!
DIY picture frame: Start by collecting small twigs and branches around your backyard and glue them to make a frame for a photo or drawing. Use a piece of recycled cardboard as a sturdy base or make the outline of a frame from popsicle sticks. Mom will not only have the perfect keepsake for her office or her bedside table, but she’ll be reminded that her little ones made the frame all by themselves, just for her.
DIY mobile: Collect different supplies such as twigs, stones, leaves, flowers, and greenery and create your very own unique mobile that Mom can hang wherever she’d like.

Put on a show

Kids love to put on a show and moms love to watch them! Kids, big and small, can get creative and put together a dance show, talent show, concert, or even a puppet performance. Here are some showtime ideas for a Mother’s Day tribute:

Puppet masters: This one could keep you really busy if you decide to build your own puppet theatre and your own puppet characters. If you want to keep it simple, you can throw together some furniture and blankets to make a “stage” and use dolls or other toys instead of puppets. 3, 2, 1… action!
Dancing with the stars: And by stars, we mean Mom. Choreograph a unique dance routine to teach Mom on her big day. After a few practice runs, you should be ready to go for the big performance.
Mother’s Day Idol: Do you have some serious singing talent in the family? Why not pull out the lyrics to Mom’s favourite song and put on a mini concert for her?
Silly Sports Day: Time to show your best talents and get Mom in on the fun. You can set up a limbo station, show off your cardboard javelin skills, or cheer the kids on as they show off their bear crawl. You can find more ideas for more challenges like these in the Activities section on Active for Life.

Brunches of fun

There’s no better way to celebrate Mother’s Day as a family than with a delicious Mother’s Day brunch. Mom will love a brunch spread made just for her, especially if her little ones participated in the production.

Your kids can create their very own rainbow Mother’s Day brunch menu that they can colour and decorate with crayons and pictures. Your little waiters can even bring the menu to Mom in bed to get her special day off to a colourful start.

Here are a few fun brunch ideas that your kids will love to help out with:

Animal toast: We’re loving these animal toast ideas for a Mother’s Day surprise. Monkeys, bears, and penguins are welcome to the party, just be sure to have enough supplies on hand to go around.
Pancakes: Pancakes are a brunch staple, and we’re kicking it up a notch with rainbow-themed pancakes! This rainbow pancake recipe is sure to make everyone smile. Maybe you can test kids’ counting skills by getting them to guess how many pancakes the batch will make.
Fruit platter: You need some fruit to fuel the day, so make a list with your kids of Mom’s favourite fruits, and get them to help you set it up. How about a fruit platter in the shape of a rainbow? That’s a sure way to make Mom smile.

Happy Mother’s Day to all of you fabulous, superhero Moms!