How Much Should You Spend on Mother’s Day?

Birthdays, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and other special occasions often lead to spending of unnecessary money. Sunday, May 8 is Mother’s Day and many people are feeling the pressure of buying their mom a nice gift to celebrate.

Approximately 84 percent of the American population plans to celebrate Mother’s Day this year. Last year, the holiday sparked approximately $21.2 billion in consumer spending, and that number is only expected to rise. On average, each person spent about $173 on Mother’s Day in 2015. You may be thinking, “That number sounds pretty high,” so how much money should you spend on Mother’s Day?

The answer to this ever-so-important question is: spend what you can afford.“Keeping up with the Joneses” is how many people fall into debt. Don’t feel like you have to spend a ton of money on your mom to show her that you care.

It seems not so long ago a simple card and bouquet of flowers were a perfect Mother’s Day gift. However, as the years have progressed, Mother’s Day gifts continue to get more expensive.

Statistics say that 80 percent of those celebrating Mother’s Day will buy a card. Sixty-seven percent will buy flowers and 34 percent will splurge on jewelry. In addition to the “normal” gifts, many people will also be gifting clothing, electronics, housewares and spa treatments. Gift cards have also become an accepted Mother’s Day gift if you are looking for an easy gift for mom. All of these things add up and led to the $21 billion in spending for the holiday last year. However, not everyone can afford to spend $173 on their mom this Mother’s Day.

If you’re on a tight budget, you may want to try a few of these Mother’s Day gift ideas that I have tried (and they went over great):

Give her a stone with meaning

Research the meaning of different stones and find one that means something to you and your mom. My mother, for instance, loves turquoise, so one year for Mother’s Day I researched different meanings for the stone. As it turns out, turquoise represents change and the word “change” pretty much summed up our lives at that time. I bought her some relatively inexpensive turquoise earrings (less than $50) and wrote her a letter explaining the meaning behind the piece of jewelry. If you try this with your mom she will probably cherish both the piece of jewelry and the letter for years to come.

Dinner at home

Instead of dining out on Mother’s Day, make dinner for your mom at home. Pick out your mom’s favorite foods to make for dinner. Accompany the dinner with a heartfelt card, and you have a spectacular Mother’s Day gift. If you have siblings, you can get them to chip in for dinner as well to continue to keep cost down.

Keep it simple

Give your mom a gift card to her favorite restaurant for Mother’s Day. It will be something she uses if she frequents the restaurant and it will take the heat off of you for finding the perfect gift (and potentially spending too much money).

When it comes to Mother’s Day, don’t stress the small stuff. Spend time with your mother and cherish every moment of it. And, most importantly, don’t go into debt trying to find the perfect gift. Your mom wouldn’t be happy if you did that!

Photo: Flickr: Nick Kenrick