I know I’m a little early for this…most men will probably be hitting the stores on Sunday. Forget lingerie that requires an instruction manual to put on…I would like to offer this list of ideas for inexpensive gifts for the mother in your life:
1. Let her sleep in on the weekend. Feed the kids breakfast. Get them dressed. Keep them quiet.  For bonus points: bring her breakfast in bed after two hours.Â
2. Pick up your socks. Put them in a hamper near you. If you’re feeling really generous, do a load or two of laundry (in the correct temperature), fold it, and put it away.
3. Empty the dishwasher. Put the dishes in the correct places in the kitchen. Don’t leave the ramekins on the counter and claim you don’t know where to put them.
These are ramekins (the dishes, not the food)...put them in the cupboard...
4. Her own snacks. Does she love Ruffles Sour Cream and Bacon potato chips? Buy a bag just for her, and hide it from the kids.
5. An hour of uninterrupted bathroom time. Shaving one’s legs in the shower just isn’t practical sometimes. Threaten to subject the kids to watching golf on TV if they disturb her!
6. Fuzzy slippers. Check her shoes to make sure you buy the right size. Most of us have cold feet in the winter. If her toes are warm, she’ll be a happy girl.
Happiness is warm tootsies...
7. Make dinner for the family. Try to find the ingredients/dishes you need yourself. It doesn’t matter what it is (with some obvious exceptions)…food always tastes better when someone else cooks it.
8. Quiet time. Take the kids out for a minimum of two hours, and leave her with the house to herself. Give her a call when you’re on the way home, so she can avoid the kids catching her in mid-dance move.
Make sure if your kids are going to see this, that their friends are with them!
9. Movie night at home. Let her pick a movie she wants to see and watch it with her. Bite your lip if you’re tempted to complain about the lack of ninjas or machine guns. Agree with her when she comments on how attractive the male lead is.
10. Kiss her and tell her you love her. Cup her face in your hands and look deep into her eyes when you say it. Â
There’s nothing to keep you from doing the whole list if you want to…I’m sure your actions will be rewarded! If you print out this post and save it, these suggestions work equally well for Mother’s Day!
Herding Cats in Hammond River 
I love it, Wendy. This is the perfect list. And I hope you get every last one of these on Monday; you deserve it.
Happy weekend!
Thanks, Maura…I’d be happy with just a couple of them…have a fun weekend! Hugs, Wendy
Every one of these ideas is absolute GOLD … and better than getting actual gold, in my opinion. I would trade my weight in gold for the chance to sleep in!
Hope you get the whole list this year — you deserve it 🙂
Thanks, Amanda…there seems to be an echo in here (see Maura’s comment above!)… I hope you get to sleep in too! Wendy
sa-weet. I may need to print this out–although, thinking it will be a non-event here…hubby is working, I have choir, son has basketball…
just. no. time. for. love.
😉 not even over the weekend.
big sigh
blessings
jane
Like I said at the end, Jane…suitable for other holidays as well…print and save! Hugs, Wendy
Movie night can only be modified if the woman is much like me in the sense that they themselves would complain of the lack of ninjas or machine guns.
Oh, but you should ALWAYS agree that the male lead is attractive…particularly if the male lead is Christian Bale or Ewan McGregor. But maybe that’s just me…
Agreed, Suzanne! Wendy
Great Post Wendy! Last time I did a weeks worth of laundry I intentionally only washed what was in the hamper…when I had it all folded I put his clothes in a pile on the bed in front of him and acted clueless…”Umm, honey? I did the week’s laundry but all I found of yours was 2 pair of jeans, a shirt, two socks and a pair of boxers…odd huh?”
Nice, Melissa…I always get a kick out of it when one of the girls asks, “Have you seen my purple spangled T-shirt with the butterfly on it?” “No…was it in the hamper?” I ask. “It was under my bed, Mom! Why didn’t you wash it?!!” she whines. “Because it wasn’t in the hamper!” End of subject! Glad you enjoyed it! Wendy
I like this list! May I add something? Make dinner AND clean up afterwards.
If you leave a messy house for the next day so your mother can clean up, eh, no thank you very much. The same goes for Mother’s Day. A clean house at the end of the day without her lifting a finger should come without saying with all these options.
Since my husb will be out of the country, for the Nth year, there is no pressure for me to celebrate it at all. Still I got myself a camera. Yeah, Happy Vday to me! 🙂
Thanks, Lin! I didn’t even think of that! Sorry hubby’s going to be away this year…have fun with the camera though! Hugs, Wendy
I love the idea of looking deeply into each other’s eyes and saying ‘I love you’. How often do we stop to connect with each on such a deep level every day? It is such a simple gesture…and so powerful.
I hope you get all that you wish for on Valentine’s Day. Enjoy! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by, Julie! I’ll be happy with just a couple of them… Wendy
I am leaving this blog post on my computer screen in hopes the hubby will read it! lol
I hope he does, Kerri! Happy Valentine’s Day! Hugs, Wendy
LOL! This IS the perfect list! Especially love #8 and 9!
Thanks, Koreen…I figured that a lot of my readers could relate! Happy Valentine’s Day! Hugs, Wendy
I love this list! It is really nice. I hope when I am a mommy I will get a Valentine’s day like this. 😀 I do hope you will be getting every single one on this list!!!
I might recommend another idea: Tell your girl (gal, sweetie, woman, whichever you prefer) she is beautiful throughout the day, no matter what she is wearing. Bathrobe to sexy dress and everything in between!
I love your extra idea, NB! Thanks for your kind comment! Wendy
Great list..who doesn’t like fuzzy slippers!
♥
Thanks, Katybeth! Anybody who lives with as much snow as we have deserves warm feet!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Hugs,
Wendy
GREAT suggestions. And, of course, #10 is the best.
Thanks, Renée…#10 is my favourite too! Happy Valentine’s Day! Hugs, Wendy
I love the warm feet. For me a treat would be to spend an entire day in a clean house. It wouldn’t matter to me if I was the one who cleaned it first but to be able to enjoy it clean and quiet would be special.
I don’t have a bathtub deep enough for soaking but a nice uninterrupted hot bath would be delightful.
Thanks for sharing your special list. Blessings, Jeanne
Glad you enjoyed it, Jeanne…I’ve had huge cast iron bathtubs at previous places I’ve lived…heaven! Happy Valentine’s Day! Wendy
As the ranking proponent of all things Valentine’s Day, I’m sure you’re wondering what I think about this list. Okay, who are we kidding? You saw what I wrote earlier. Fear not, I was having fun with a theme.
I love that at the exact moment I was (like every other male) saying “what’s a ramekin?” that you had a picture that said this is a ramekin. Then like every other guy I thought ‘you mean the stuff in the cup?’ but you had essentially written “not the stuff in the cup.”
You knew.
I agree with you, Clay, about Valentine’s Day being a shopping fest created by marketers (I feel the same way about Christmas)…your post inspired me to write a KISS post for men on picking Valentine’s Day gifts! Aside from those trained as chefs, most men don’t know their ramekins from their Ram trucks! Glad you enjoyed it! Wendy
A winning list Wendy…and so simple to do 😀 LOL @ the ramekins…essential info that!
Hubby’s traveling on work this V-day, so for the next week, I’m going to have the bed to myself…and believe you me, sometimes that’s the best gift of all 😉
Have a great weekend 🙂
Hugs, H.
Glad you enjoyed it, Harsha! Enjoy your week! Hugs, Wendy
What a brilliant list, Wendy! We truly are almost-twins – those are all things that I value, especially number 10.
I sure hope Jim reads this (your post, not my comment!) and makes notes!
Have a lovely weekend, my friend
Sunshine xx
Glad you liked it, Sunshine…Jim has already read it, and declared he knows what he’s going to be doing on Monday! Hugs, Wendy
Love your ideas, all good ones. Wish I had someone who could do even one of these things for me…Sigh.
Glad you enjoyed the post, Monica! Wendy
Amen sister! No other words needed. I’ll be printing this for my husband.
Amy
Glad you liked it, Amy…hope hubby cooperates! Wendy
I have tried something like this in the past but I haven’t been able to convince him that, yes! doing the laundry would be a great gift. Or putting that molding up in the dining room would be really special. He always wants to give me chocolate or little wrapped up gifties. Now I can’t complain too much, he will cook something special BUT how can I get him to put a ribbon around his neck and clean up the kitchen?
Jeanne
Several of the other girls have said they’re going to print out the post for their hubbies, Jeanne…worth a shot! Wendy
Does he know where the dishes go??? That’s news to me!
A lot of times, my dad unloads the dishwasher…if he doesn’t know where something goes, he’ll leave it on the counter! He’s lived with us for twelve years…aargh!! Happy Valentine’s Day, Joey! Wendy
Oh my! This is MY top 10 list! Right down to the “pick up your socks.” If only!
We can dream, can’t we, Jane? Happy Valentine’s Day! Wendy
Great list, Wendy. I especially love the time alone! Hugs, Diane
Hope you get a few of these things, Diane! Happy Valentine’s Day! Hugs, Wendy
Oh love it! I could have done with some of that over the weekend.. unfortunately we’re postponing it till Tuesday night as that’s the only day we have free this week!
Happy Valentine’s Day – hope you have a good one.
Thanks, egills! Happy Valentine’s Day to you too! Wendy
Wendy,
You had me at #10. Best Ever. Happy Valentine’s Day to all. May you have great love in your hearts today.
Barb
Thanks, Barb! Glad you enjoyed it! Wendy
Love these, Wendy! We have the same fuzzy slippers but mine are blue! Happy V Day to you xo iz
Happy Valentine’s Day, Izzie! Glad you enjoyed the post! Hugs, Wendy
A great list. As a SAHD, my husband does most of these frequently. But he still hasn’t bought me the night in a boutique hotel with wireless…for me alone. I guess that’s not Valentiney.
Thanks, Leanne! Glad you can relate! Thanks for stopping by! Wendy
I’ll take one of each, thanks. There’s nothing more romantic than warm tootsies and sleeping in. Truly! 🙂
Glad you could relate, Amanda! Happy Belated Valentine’s Day! Wendy
I DO love this Honey-do list! You are so right about being clear-cut with men folk!
Thanks, RITY…feel free to print it out and save it for the next major holiday! Wendy