A “Greener” Mother’s Day!

Mothers are very special people; toiling away for our benefit for many, many years; well past our childhood and teenage trials.

Mother Nature has been personified as a female for thousands of years, representing the giving of life, sustenance and nurturing- and it’s quite fitting. If you observe Mothers Day, honor your mom and Mother Nature by giving her a green gift this year!

A Year of Fresh Fruit

If your mother enjoys cooking with seasonal ingredients, treat her to a year of locally raised fruits and veggies. Contact a local CSA farm to make your mom a member.

The Gift of Time

Skip the stuff and give your overworked mom a break by volunteering to run errands (on your bike, of course), prepare a healthy dinner, or tend the garden.

A Piece of the Planet

Help the Sierra Club protect the planet by sponsoring a wild animal in your mother’s name. She’ll get a photo, a certificate, and a cute stuffed animal.

Organic Cosmetics

Look for organic products and those based on plant materials, such as olive oil. Say no to cosmetics filled with chemicals that end up on our skin and in the environment.

Natural Perfumes

Perfumes are a perfect Mother’s Day gift, but they’re often filled with unregulated chemicals-not a great gift for Mom or Mother Earth. Try more natural options like those from Pacifica ($20 at amazon.com) or Burt’s Bees, which makes solid perfumes perfect for moms on the go ($10 at burtsbees.com or part of a Head-to-Toe gift pack ($15 at amazon.com).

Candles

Another Mother’s Day favorite – but did you know that many candles are made from crude oil byproducts. Burning candles releases all sorts of nasty stuff; including benzene, styrene, acetone and particulate matter.

The wicks on some candles may even contain lead! Additionally, scented candles may contain more synthetic chemicals. As a more earth friendly and healthy choice, soy candles or candles made of beeswax are the way to go and for scented candles, look for soy or beeswax ones that incorporate essential oils – and have a non-lead wick of course.

Sponsorships and Memberships

Mothers being the caring folk they are generally derive great pleasure from helping others. Perhaps a donation in her name for a tree planting or a conservation project might bring her joy. Maybe a membership to an online organic cooking club. A trip to a health spa. The possibilities are endless.

Fair Trade Clothes and Accessories

Look for items made from organic cotton and produced in fair trade conditions. “Fair trade” is a term applied to products that meet certain conditions relating to labor (non-sweatshop), environmental standards and social policy.

For example, if you wanted to buy your Mom a handbag as a gift, run a search on your favorite search engine for : fair trade handbags. Or “fair trade” preceding any product you’re thinking of buying – you’ll be surprised the range of items now available.

Green gift certificates

Sometimes its hard to decide on a gift for your Mother, especially a “green” one; so why not let your mom decide for herself.  Many green online stores now offer gift certificates and by giving a voucher to a store that specializes in environmentally friendly products, you might open up a whole new world for your mom!

Finding green gift stores online is pretty easy as so many stores with a focus on the environment have popped up in recent years – search on terms such as: green gifts mother’s day or earth friendly gifts mother’s day.

To all of our wonderful mother’s- Happy Mother’s Day!