Mother’s Day Gift Guide
Who’s Your Mummy?
You might call her Mum, Ma, Mam or Mom (or Mother! in frustration). Whether she’s actually your mum or just feels like it, the odds are that there’s someone who fulfils the ‘mothering’ role in your life. Nurturing, guiding, offering words of wisdom and generally fussing over you. Whoever she is, the day we celebrate mothers and show them our love and appreciation is just a couple of weeks away.
This year Mother’s Day falls quite early, on 14th March. We’re still subject to Covid restrictions so you’ll need to plan ahead if you want to send a gift to your Mum. You can bet the Posties will be swamped again so, wherever you’re shopping, be sure to get your orders in early to avoid disappointment! You wouldn’t want your mum to think you’d forgotten her, would you? Our last date for ordering is Wednesday 10th March.
In this blog we’re giving you a brief guide to some of our products to help you chose the perfect gift but, first let’s have a quick look at how Mother’s Day began.
The Birth of Mother’s Day
Originally a date in the Christian calendar, ‘Mothering Sunday’ always falls on the fourth Sunday in Lent. Initially, it had no connection to the celebration of Mothers that we recognise today. It began in the Middle Ages when children who had left their families to work in domestic service were allowed to go home to their ‘mother’ church. It became an occasion for families to reunite and the custom of giving flowers arose from children picking flowers on their journey home as a gift for their Mothers. As it was also a day when the fasting rules of Lent could be relaxed, Mothering Sunday took on an even more celebratory air.
The American festival of Mother’s Day was created in 1908 and has no religious connections at all. It was started by Anna Jarvis as a memorial to her mother who was a peace activist and treated wounded soldiers during the American Civil War. After her mother’s death, Anna campaigned for a day to honour the role played by mothers and by 1914 it was so widely celebrated that President Woodrow Wilson declared it a national holiday “as a public expression of love and reverence for the mothers of our country”. Inevitably, it became a commercial opportunity, which Anna Jarvis hated. Hallmark started the ball rolling when they began making cards in the early 1920s.
By the 1950s the customs and traditions of the UK Christian festival and the American secular celebration had more or less merged and become the Mother’s Day we know today. It’s now observed in almost 100 countries around the world, although most follow the U.S. and celebrate later in the year.
Without Further Ado, Here’s The Guide
We hope this brief guide to a few of our products has given you some ideas. If we haven’t included your mum’s favourites here, there are lots more goodies in to choose from in our shop, including Dairy Free options. And if you still can’t decide what to buy, there’s always a gift card!