Mother’s Day 2023

Mothers who are members of the military community deserve special recognition for their love, dedication and sacrifice every day. Mother’s Day is the perfect opportunity to celebrate and honor the military wife and mother and/or a service member who’s also a mom.

Mother’s Day is always the second Sunday in May. This year, it will be May 14, 2023.

Mother’s Day Gift Ideas for Military Moms

Flowers and Sweet Treats: ProFlowers offers customers up to 30% off orders of flower and chocolate arrangements. Get more discounts at 1-800-Flowers, FTD and From You Flowers. Shari’s Berries sells a variety of special Mother’s Day bouquets and assortments. Meanwhile, Edible Arrangements allows you to choose from a variety of chocolate-dipped berries and assorted fruits for Mom; delivery is free.

Pampering: Try making Mom feel special this Mother’s Day with a pampering session from Massage Envy. Or check out Bath & Body Works, which offers discounted prices on Mother’s Day gifts, including lotion and body mist, three-wick candles, hand cream, hand soap, travel mist and more. Score major points with Mom when you gift her a delicious new scent.

Jewelry: Jewelry is another tried-and-true gift, but you’ll get no complaints with this one. Many jewelry stores, including Blue Nile and Helzberg Diamonds, offer military discounts of up to 15%.

Clothes: Karen Kane (20% off), Kohl’s (15% off),  Lululemon (15% off), verabradley.com (15% off), Zappos (10% off) and Wilsons Leather offer military discounts. Here are a few sites that offer separate Mother’s Day specials for customers in general: L.L.Bean, Old Navy, Wilsons Leather, Zappos and Vera Bradley.

Shoes: An apocryphal quote attributed to Marilyn Monroe goes, “Give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world.” Receive a military discount at New Balance and Merrell.

Home Decor: Whether Mom loves home improvement projects or just a new decor piece, you can’t go wrong with a gift from Kirkland’s (10% military discount), Costco ($20 shop card for active-duty, veteran and retired service members and their spouses/dependents when they first join this warehouse club), Home Depot or Lowe’s (both of which offer a 10% military discount).

Java and/or Brunch: Give Mom some extra caffeine this year at Starbucks. Or take your military mom to a nice brunch. From IHOP to the local hotel brunch special, moms will delight in the effort, love and appreciation shown by taking them out.

A Night Out: Take Mom out for some fun without the kids. A movie is always a hit, and theaters such as Regal or Cinemark (both of which offer military discounts at many locations) are good options. For dinner, take her to Ruth’s Chris Steak House or Fogo De Chão, where special Mother’s Day meals are available at select locations or Bonefish Grill, which offers a 10% military discount.

Photography: Is your mom hard to shop for? Get her a photography package for the whole family that she can treasure forever! J.C. Penney offers military discounts at its portrait studio.

Homemade Gifts: Give Mom a made-with-love gift. If you’re feeling particularly creative, try getting some art supplies from Michaels or Jo-Ann Stores (both of which offer 15% military discounts) for your homemade Mother’s Day gift.

Request a Gift Box: Deployed U.S. service members who are far away from their moms can request a free Mother’s Day package, sent on their behalf via Full Circle Home.

Call Home for Free: Thanks to Google and Gmail  military personnel can call home for free!

Funny E-cards and Videos: JibJab lets you customize e-cards with pictures of your favorite people (your mom, for example) and create funny videos. Free, mobile app ($2.99 per month) and premium ($24 per year) memberships are available, and there are videos for every holiday. This gift can keep on giving throughout the year.

#HappyMothersDay: Reach out to that very special military mom through social media, using this hashtag, and thank her for all that she has done.

Other Military Discounts: Many stores and services offer military discounts year-round, and May also brings National Military Appreciation Month discounts. You can also call ahead and ask. You might be pleasantly surprised!

History of Mother’s Day

Mother’s Day has many different iterations going back to ancient times. Officially, it became a U.S. holiday in 1914, created by Anna Jarvis. However, her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, planted the seeds for the holiday when she started “Mother’s Day Work Clubs” during the pre-Civil War era. Ironically, Anna Jarvis later denounced Mother’s Day due to its commercialization and tried to have it removed as a holiday until she died in 1948.