Mother’s Day Gifts for Elderly Adults

Mother’s Day is the perfect opportunity to show the most important woman in your life how much you love her and care about her well-being. As she gets older, you may find it more difficult to find the perfect gift.

The best Mother’s Day gifts don’t always cost a lot of money. It’s more about the time and thought you put into a day dedicated solely to her. Whether you know the way to her heart or need a little inspiration, here are 4 categories of thoughtful gift ideas for aging mothers, grandmothers—or any of the influential ladies in your life—this May 13th.

Sweet Treats, Brunch, and Meal Delivery

Sitting down for a meal brings people closer to each other. “Breaking bread” together means sharing more than just a meal. You come together to enjoy conversation, bond, and celebrate.

Brunch is the perfect way to spend a Sunday morning, especially on a special day. A combination of breakfast and lunch, brunch originated in England in the late 19th century as a post-church meal gathering. The United States caught onto brunch in the 1930s, and the rest is history. So raise your glass to your mother, and enjoy all the indulgences lining the brunch buffet.

If you aren’t the ladies who brunch, you can still create a close connection by preparing a meal together at home. If your mother enjoys cooking, you could make her life a little easier with something like a meal delivery service, where all the ingredients and the recipes come neatly packed in a box and are delivered straight to her doorstep. Some of the more popular services include HelloFresh, Blue Apron, and Sun Basket.

If your mom has a sweet tooth and you want to send her treats, there’s no shortage of goodies to buy online. A favorite is Cheryl’s Cookies with mouth-watering, buttercream-frosted cookies decorated just for your occasion. If she likes tea, you could send her Varieteas, which delivers 3 new teas a month for $10 per month. Another cool gift would be to compile family recipes and put them into a hand-crafted, heirloom cookbook.

Music to Her Ears

One of the most soothing ways to relax and think about the days of old is to listen to music or play an instrument. Music therapy is beneficial for the elderly in long-term care, especially for those living with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. What’s really amazing is witnessing people with advanced dementia still remember how to play the piano.

Music has a way of boosting someone’s mood, reducing stress and depression, and encouraging positive social interactions. For the music loving mom, here are a few options:

• Pre-load an MP3 player with all of her favorite songs.
• Buy comfortable headphones or get a speaker dock for the MP3 player.
• Get a simple music player that has CD player, cassette tape player, and AM/FM radio capabilities.
• Find sheet music, CDs, records, tapes—whichever form they would prefer.
• Create music playlists on YouTube or Spotify.
• Buy a karaoke machine so everyone in the family can participate.

The gift of music promotes health and a higher level of functioning through the enjoyment of listening, singing, dancing, and playing an instrument. The benefits keep going long after the music stops.

Cleaning & Chores

Our moms want to be the master of their domains, but sometimes as they get older it can be difficult for them to bend down, lift heavy objects, maneuver a vacuum, or even change light bulbs. Vision problems and arthritis can also impede their ability to keep a clean house. Plus, cleaning just isn’t that fun for anyone.

Hiring a cleaning service to do a deep clean is a nice gift as long as you know it won’t offend her. Or you could take some of the pressure off by offering to help with regular chores once a month. You could also pick her least desirable task and do what you can to take it off her list.

Everyone, especially Mom, could use a little help when it comes to housework.

Not everyone can afford this, but a Roomba is a handy device that keeps floors clean. She can turn it on and schedule floor cleanings with the press a button. After the Roomba works its magic, it docks itself for recharging.

Another task helper is a reaching tool or “grabber” that can be used to reach items and make daily tasks easier. The Arthritis Helper Kit from GreatThinking comes with 3 helpers: a 26-inch lightweight grabber, an extra-long shoe horn, and a button hole hook.

Stay Connected Through Technology

If your mom doesn’t have a Facebook account, you could help her set up a profile, load photos, and add friends. As part of your tutorial, you’ll want to make sure she knows about internet safety and privacy settings. Cyber crooks prey on the elderly.

If your mom is already tech savvy and has a tablet, there’s an app called Oscar Senior that can help her manage communication, entertainment, and information. The large print and interface makes browsing seamless. She can read the news, play games, get the latest weather, interact on social media, and receive video calls and instant messages. It’s also a secure app that protects her from scams, unauthorized pop-ups, and alerts. What you do is download the app onto your phone—then onto her tablet. The app lets you become an administrator to help set it up and use the app to its fullest capabilities. Plans start at $4.99 a month for a single user.

Great gifts for elderly mothers can come in many forms and do not need to be overly complicated. You know your mom best and what’s going to brighten her day. Mother’s Day is yet another opportunity to show your mom how much you value the relationship. Spending time with her, if you can, may be the greatest gift of all.