Totally spaced that it is my MIL's birthday today and I need to think of a gift that looks like I put effort into it on the fly!!! Any ideas of what I could make or buy that won't cost a fortune and can be done before this evening? LOL Help me stay out of the doghouse!
Jamie:
If you know her really well - think of something that she has said something to you about...
How about a gift basket from Bath & Body works?
How about a gift basket of chocolates??!??
Maybe even an Edible Arrangement? my mom LOVES those!!!
This is why I love the fact that I never remember birthdays unless you have a party to remind me. No one ever feels let down. :)
Jeez - wouldn't it be nice of your husband to tip you off?? Or buy his own mother a gift? HAHAHA - like that would ever happen. You must be married to my husband, too!
I like all the suggestions below - just do what you think she would like best.
Buy her dinner or I like the gift certificate. Bring her favorite bottle of wine and your golden :)
How about a gift certificate to go out to eat or to her favorite salon or a massage? Kinda wish it was birthday, I don't want to make dinner, I'd rather get my hair done or get a massage! You didn't blow it. We are all human & forget things!
Flowers! How about a new picture frame with a note where the picture should be saying "new pictures of the kids coming soon!"
Do you have a nice picture of your kid(s)/and hubby? Get a really nice one printed & put it in a nice frame for his office or bedroom.
***Whoops...don't know why I thought you said hubby---ok, same suggestion, just with pic of your MIL and kids.**
Do you live local to your MIL? If so call her and tell her she has an hour and a half to get dressed because you are kidnapping her. Then take her for a mani/pedi and lunch.
I used to work at Starbucks; so I used to buy a lot of gifts from there. You could do a pound of coffee and a nice mug or travel cup. Or do the mug with a gift card. Only if she likes coffee, though. Maybe just a gift card from a store she really likes and a nice card. I don't have a MIL, she passed, so I'm not sure. HTH :)
Godiva... good chocolate fixes anything!
Do you have an emprty basket at the house? Stop by Walgreens and buy stuff to fill it and a card. You could do a wine and chocolate basket, a relaxation basket, whatever she's into. It looks like you put effort into it and it's personal and thoughtful. super quick and easy.
QueenoftheCastle I like that...and to touch it off make a homemade card with your kid(s) fingerprints on it...
Update: I meant handprints not fingerprints.
One hour photo is your friend. :) Enlargements, collages - any framed family photos are something all parents love. Even if you normally hate WalMart, they have great looking photo frames that are really inexpensive. Or, if you want to spend more, get one of those electronic frames that will hold dozens of digital photos and play them like a slide show. They're about $50 and up, depending on size.
Oops! Tickets to something coming up in your area? Nice flowers or those edible bouquets delivered? Is she local? If so, y'all get dressed up and come over to sing Happy Birthday and deliver her favorite cake, ask her to dinner.
I don't know how long it takes to have a puzzle made from the Walmart photo lab, but we did that one time: made a poster that said "Grandma, we love you to PIECES!" and had a neighbor take a picture of us all with the poster. I ran it down and got it made into a puzzle. If it can't be ready today, you can at least print off a 5x7 and use a glue stick with some cardstock and attach the photo to that, then use a pen knife to cut pieces and make your own puzzle? (Get a cute little tin or interesting box like you'd find at World Market to hold the pieces).
If your kids are old enough to help, you can all pitch in and cut out a bunch of strips of paper (the more the better; I used construction paper for different happy colors) and write out all the reasons you can think of on why you guys love her, what she means to y'all, something cute or special about her. Stuff them in balloons and blow them up and fill her car, give her a card with a large knitting needle that says "use this to see how special you are to us" (and have a nice little box for her to put the reasons in afterwards).
Can't think of any actual gifts that she'd like without knowing something about her.......but you can bite the bullet and buy something she'd like (especially since you forgot until now...which I've done a few times, even with my OWN mom!) :)
Flowers are always appropriate.
She isn't your mother. He should be the one in he dog house.
How well do you know her? Get her something that would speak to her personally. If she is an avid reader perhaps a NOOK or Kindle. if she loves to shop and is out going, perhaps one of those ENTERTAINMENT books with the coupons in it for activities and food along with a Amex Gift Card. If she is a girly girl, a spa day for the two of you might be lovely if you like her enough to spend that kind of time with her. If she is not critical just tell her you couldn't think of what to get her and wanted to know from her what to get.
I'm in a family of upfront and honest people. That's just how we roll.
The photo idea is great. CVS and Walmart one-hour photo; you can upload online and pick up in the store. They have frames right at Walmart too.
Do you have any kid art lying around? My mom loves getting my son's paintings in inexpensive frames.
Or fresh flowers in a nice vase?
How about a personalized photo collage from someplace like Wallgreens. You can order it quickly and they are so fast, they'd probably only need a few hours to complete it. Pick out a beautiful frame and voila! personalized birthday gift!
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