There are are no shortage of possibilities for gifts for Mom that are also good for Mother Earth.  I always start with gifts of experience.  I know my mom doesn’t need any more stuff.  Her well known affinities for moose and Jimmy Buffett memorabilia have resulted in a house filled to the brim with parrots, palm trees, and moose figurines.

      Experience is the perfect gift for the mom who has too much.  Does she need a break?  A popular gift for moms of school aged kids is simply TIME.  An uninteruppted hot bath with a good book and a glass of wine.  A day out shopping by herself or with friends.  An empty house for a few hours.  It really depends on her individual personality, but for many moms, time is a very precious commodity indeed.

       Other great gifts of experience for mom include concert tickets; spa treatments (at a green spa, of course!); an outing to a museum, park, theatre, or beach; cleaning the house, doing the laundry, or doing some other housework she would normally do; visiting her, cooking her dinner, and cleaning up afterward.  If your mom is crafty, find a great craft to do (Pinterest is a good resource for ideas), and do it with her.

Gifts That Grow

      I am a big fan of plants as gifts.  Bouquets wilt in a matter of days, but plants keep their beauty.  If you’re giving your mom a plant that goes outside, why not plant it for her?  One year, we gave my mom a raspberry plant.  About a month later my brother, Boo, called to say it was still in her diningroom window, and it was growing fruit right there in the window.  She did eventually plant it, and we just found out over Spring Break that she ended up having to tear the whole thing out because it spread so rampantly and was taking over her front yard.  Ha.

      If you are going to give a plant, be sure to take into account the amount of light it requires, whether it’s and indoor or outdoor plant, and the amount of care it requires.  Stay away from genetically modified or hybrid plants.  If at all possible, find heirloom, non-GMO, or organic varieties at your local farmer’s market.  I know our Farmer’s Markets have a wonderful assortment of plants of all kinds.    There is also mail order companies like Organic Bouquet and Organic Style.  They offer plants and wreaths like these:

Get Creative

      Most 6 year olds can tell you that nothing is more meaningful than a gift from the heart.  If you’re really artistically inclined, what would be more fun that making your mom a gorgeous work of art out of macaroni and glitter like this portrait of Rosie O’Donnell by Jason Mecier:

      Of course, your creative production doesn’t have to involve dried pasta, glue, and construction paper, but kudos to you if it does!  (By the way, don’t feed your mother chocolate sourced from child slavery).  Leverage your own talents for you mom.  I am not a visual person; my realm is words.  I could write my mom a poem or a story or put a limerick devoted to her on a local billboard.

       If you’re an artist, create something for her.  If you’re a photographer, do one of those really fun pictures when you re-take a favorite childhood shot as adults (I sorely regret never having been able to do that with Boo, we often talked about it).  Show your mom that her parenting paid off.

Something Other Than Flowers

      I’ve written several times about the environmental impact and human rights abuses rampant in the commercial bouquet industry.  There are so many other wonderful gifts that can be delivered straight to your mom’s door or office, picked up at a local farmer’s market or craft show, or ordered from charity sites.  If your mom has a favorite cause, check out websites for that cause and get her a tote bag or other fun item that supports it.  Or check out the awesome fair trade shops that support various good causes through the Greater Good network.  That is always my first stop when I want to send someone something but am not 100% sure what they might like.

Better Flowers

      Sometimes, it just has to be flowers.  And if it does, please just put some thought into their source.  Check out local growers and farmer’s markets.  If you’re ordering them, order them from sites like Organic Bouquets and Organic Style (both linked above).  Don’t allow your Mother’s Day gift to contribute to the suffering of mother’s in Kenya or similar places.

And if you still need ideas, leave a comment!  I never know what to get for my own mom (or family in general), but I have a lot of fun trying to guess what other people’s loved one’s might like!

      A Happy, Sustainable, Green Mother’s Day to everyone!

The post Green Mother’s Day Ideas appeared first on Urban Earthworm.

1  DON’T SEND FLOWERS

      Or, if you know someone who truly loves flowers, use a little creativity, and a little conscientiousness.   The vast majority of bouquet flowers in the US are actually grown in other countries – primarily Kenya, where the predominantly female workers are subjected to deplorable conditions and exposed to toxic chemicals that are banned in the U.S. and Europe. 

      Plus, bouquets don’t last.  They are beautiful for a week or two, then they’re compost.  Wouldn’t a small, thoughtful gift be a much more meaningful token?  Consider purchasing a handmade and/or recycled gift from a local shop.  Or, if internet shopping is more your speed, order something from a site that supports a good cause, like The Animal Rescue Site, The Hunger Site, The Rainforest Site, or Global Girlfriend.

       Or a gift from a favorite charity – a t-shirt from the Human Society, a tote from Amnesty International, or a book from Citizens for Midwifery.

      Find more unique ideas for gifts that give back here.

      And if you absolutely must send flowers, there are plenty of resources for sending ethically grown flowers, Green Valentine’s Day gifts, and even bouquets that donate a portion of their profits to different charities!

2.  AVOID PAPER WASTE – RECYCLE, UPCYCLE, AND SEED PAPER  

      Typical Valentine Cards are just a pit of waste – printed on bleached paper, not from recycled materials, with inks that degrade the environment.  How does that show love?

       There are so many wonderful alternatives to boring paper hearts for V-Day.  For a mountain of card alternatives (including my favorite, home made recycled seed paper!), as well as crafty recycling and upcycling ideas, click here. 

      Or, forgo the paper products all together, and: 

3.  GIVE EXPERIENCE  

      Is more stuff really the answer?  People are accustomed to giving and receiving STUFF, tangible, material, stuff. But most of us have more stuff than we know what to do with, and science and religion both tell us that what we really treasure – what truly brings us joy – is experience. 

      Go on a date!  Check out a local, organic winery.  Volunteer together at an animal shelter.  Take kayaks out and clean up some litter.  Have a picnic – have a surprise romantic picnic.  Go to a museum.  Go hiking.  Go to the library.  Go to the planetarium.  Plant something together.  Watch a Roller Derby match or some other local sport.  Find a trivia night at a local Bar (we have been going every two weeks, and it is an awesome date night).  The possibilities are endless, and way better than dead flowers.

4.  KEEP CHOCOLATES SWEET

      Boxes of chocolate are another quintessential Valentine’s Day gift, but please thing twice before you reach for the box of Hershey’s.  Many major chocolate companies source their chocolate from plantations  staffed with child slaves.  Children as young as 8 are taken from their parents, forced to live in deplorable conditions, and given only enough food and shelter to keep them alive, all so we can enjoy cheap sugar filled junk food. 

       But there are ethical chocolate companies out there, and they’re not that hard to find!  Equal Exchange offers a ton of options, including Valentine’s Day candy.  For a long list of ethical candy companies, click here.

5.  SPREAD MORE LOVE

      Valentine’s Day is, in theory, a day about love.  But there is no rule that says it has to be limited to romantic love – especially cheesy, over choreographed B-movie romantic.  Grab those dear to you, and make this day deeply meaningful for a greater population.

      V-Day – Violence against women and girls, intimate violence between any two individuals of any gender, is really the antithesis of love.  So what better day than Valentine’s Day to take a stand against such acts? 

       A lifetime ago, as a budding feminist at Purdue University, I had the great joy of performing in the Vagina Monologues as part of the V-Day movement three years in a row.  It was an amazing experience, and one I miss powerfully every Valentine’s Day.  Perhaps one day, there will be a long post about the amazing experience and personal growth being involved in the movement and the affiliated groups gave me.  For now I will simply say, I can think of few more positive ways to spend Valentine’s Day, regardless of one’s gender.  Check out the V-Day website and find a Monologues performance near you – and don’t forget to pick up some vagina shaped chocolates (but be sure to ask if they used ethically sourced chocolate)!

      30 Days of Love – The interfaith celebration of the power of love to end oppression worldwide also culminated on Valentine’s Day, and there will be powerful and moving events being held all over the U.S. (and other countries) to mark the culmination.  With two weeks left in the campaign, join with your loved ones and integrate making the world a better place into your everyday life.  I will also offer a free guest post to anyone who wants to share how they embraced 30 Days of Love (or any other d0-good Valentine’s Day alternative).

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