Updated 4-30-06

 

 

 

 

 

 

      A sweet little boy surprised his mom one morning and brought her a cup of coffee. He made it himself and he was so proud! Anxiously, he waited to hear the verdict. The mom had never tasted such bad coffee in all her life! As she forced down the last sip, his mom noticed three of his little green army guys in the bottom of the cup.

 

She asked, "Honey, why would three of your little army men be in the bottom of my cup?"

 

Her son replied, "You know, Mom. It's like on TV. 'The best part of waking up is soldiers in your cup!'"                                  

Mother's Day Cookbook Ideas

     I've been making the cookbooks every Mother's Day for more than 10 years.

     I begin by asking each child to tell me something their Mom makes that is one of their favorites. Sometimes you have to practically drag the answers out of them by asking some of these questions. "Where does she get ____? How long does she cook it? How long does it take to make it? What do you think the oven temperature is set at? What does she put in it? What else does she put in it? How much of that does she use in it? How does it taste? " You get the idea!

     I include the pages below at the beginning, then copy each child's recipe and bind them into a class Mother's Day Cookbook for each Mom. They love them!

 

 

This was the cover of last year's cookbook.

This was the introductory page.

 

This is the next page of the cookbook. A friend gave me this recipe and I adapted it for my class.

 

 

Last year I took each child's photo dressed in a chef's hat and apron, holding a bowl and spoon. I use a graphic near the title. I like to include an "About the Author" section and I ask each child to tell me why his/her Mom is special.

 

 

Mother's Day Coupon Book

 

Have students color small pictures for a coupon book for Mom. You should be able to get 3 or 4 coupons on one paper. Make a cover that says:

 

Coupon Book for the Best Mom in the World

Happy Mother's Day, 2003!

 

Some examples of coupons are:

I'll be quiet for 5 minutes. (zipper graphic over mouth)

I'll pull the weeds. (goat eating grass)

I'll sweep the floor.

I'll get the mail.

I'll walk the dog.

Good for one free kiss.

I'll sing you a song.

I'll eat all of my vegetables.

I'll shovel the snow.

I'll rake the leaves.

I'll do the laundry.

I'll clear (or set) the table.

I'll carry the groceries in.

I'll water the flowers.

I'll make you breakfast in bed.

I'll take the trash out.

Sunflower

 

This flower is similar to the coupon book in that the child promises to help with some chores around the house. The difference is that Mom can pull the petals off of a flower to "redeem" the flower petal coupon.

Use a small paper plate and copy this poem on yellow construction paper to be glued in the middle of the plate:

I love you for

The things you do.

Here are some things

I'll do for you!

Tear off a petal

Once in awhile,

And I'll do something

To make you smile!

 

The outside petals each list a chore. Here are some examples:

I will set the table.

I will clean my room.

I will dust the house.

I will make my bed.

I will fold the laundry.

I will pick up my toys.

I will take out the trash.

I will do the dishes.

 

Add a stem and leaves to make the flower.

Bath Salts with Card

 

 

 

 

Read the book, "Five Minutes Peace" as an introduction; this is about a mother elephant who would just like five minutes of peace and quiet to soak in the tub. Color a picture of a duck in a bathtub. Cut out the picture and glue on the front of a card. Make bath salts (see recipe below) and put about a quarter cup in snack baggies/. Staple or tape the baggie inside the card. Include this verse inside the card:

Here's a gift for Mother's Day.

I'll try my best in every way.

But if you get upset with me,

Relax and soak! Don't you agree?

 

Bath Salts Recipe

3 cups Epsom salts

1 tablespoon glycerin

perfume (or lotion)

two drops of food coloring

Place Epsom salts in a glass or metal container. Combine glycerin and food coloring. Add perfume to make a fragrant mixture. Then add to Epsom salts. Stir thoroughly.

Mother's Day Flowerpot Ideas

 

Use paint markers to make a picture on a flowerpot. You could also have children dip a finger into red paint and decorate the pots with ladybugs. Either plant a flower in the pot or include a packet of seeds for mom to grow at home. Tie a ribbon around the pot and attach this poem to the potted plant.

 

I'm your little flower, Mom.
Please help me grow and bloom:
Take the weeds but leave the roots
And give me lots of room.

Mom, you are my gardener,
My sunshine and my rain.
Too much will make me wither.
With enough, I'll bloom again.

I am your little flower, Mom.
I'm different from the rest:
Don't pick me Mom, just help me grow
To be my very best.

 

Here's another poem. You can change the name of the flower to match what you planted.

 

A Pansy for Mom

 

This flower is for you, Mom.

It's a pansy, you see.

It's growing more and more each day.

It's really just like me!

 

So I'm giving you this flower

With a note that's oh so true.

And when you watch this flower grow

You'll remember, "I love you."

 

 

Here is a poem to attach if you plant seeds and they don't come up in time for  Mother's Day.

 

I planted some seeds in hopes that they'd grow.

Something went wrong. I just didn't know.

Instead of some flowers, it's a cupful of dirt.

I love you! I hope your feelings aren't hurt!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

 

 

Mother's Day Photo Card

 

Take a photo of each child holding a bouquet of flowers and tape it inside a card with this verse:

 

 

 

 

Dear Mom,

 

I will love you forever

And forever you will be

The most wonderful mother.

You mean everything to me.

 

I thought of buying you flowers

In the usual way.

But I knew you would prefer

A FOREVER bouquet!

 

 

Dandelion Photo Card

 

Make some dandelions for the cover of the card. Inside, put the child's photo on one side and the Dandelion Poem on the other. The back cover has a copy of a comic strip showing a mom and son and a kitchen with vases of dandelions covering every surface and the caption,  "That's enough dandelions for now. These are beautiful, but let's save some for tomorrow."

             

Front of card              Back of card

Inside of card

 

Dandelions

Mommy,

 

Guessing your favorite flower

Shouldn't be all that hard.

I'll bet they're green and yellow

And grow all over the yard.

 

I only pick the special ones

Because they're just for you.

They're my way of saying thanks

For everything you do!

 

And even if these flowers

Only seem to last for a day,

The love that they are given with

Will always be there to stay.

 

For when it comes to picking

The mommy that's the best,

In my precious little eyes

"You" stand out from all the rest!

 

I really love you mommy.

Hope your Mother's Day is fun.

Here's hugs and kisses for you

From your "darling little one".

I'm Your Sweet Pea Photo Frame

 

Glue four large craft sticks together to form a square. Paint the frame yellow and let it dry. Cut out two pea pod shapes from green construction paper and glue only the bottom sections together to form a boat-like shape. After this dries, put 3 or 4 half inch green pom-poms inside this pod and glue them in place. Poke a short length of green pipe cleaner through one end of the pod and twist to look like a vine. Use a permanent marker to write, "I'm Your Sweet Pea!" across the top of the frame. Glue the pea pod to the bottom of the frame. Glue the child's photo to the back of the frame and attach magnetic tape to the back of the frame.

 

"I Love MOM" Badge

 

If your school has a badge-making machine, you can create a badge for every Mom. Trace around a heart sticker and cut a school photo into a heart shape. After cutting out the round white paper for the badge, write the words and glue on the photo to make the badge, which is covered with a clear cellophane sheet. A dotted or colored background circle looks nice also. I've seen some of my former Moms wearing these pins 10 years later!

 

 

 

Breakfast in Bed

 

Decorate a bag with wall paper to look
 like a bed and Mom's head. IN the bag we will put a napkin, a breakfast bar and a tea bag. This idea came from a posting on Kinderkorner webring.

 

Donna from New Hampshire wrote the poem in the next column to go with the Breakfast in Bed projects. Thanks for your creativity!

Breakfast in Bed


Since it is your day,
I have something to say:

 

Don’t lift your head.
Have breakfast in bed!

 

Just take a look…
You don’t have to cook!

 

I don’t like to brag
But it’s breakfast in a bag!

 

Happy Mother’s Day 2006