I’ve never sure what my mom would like for Mother’s Day, so I asked a mother of 3 to help with some ideas!
Spring is (finally) here and Mother’s Day is in 2 weeks. Have you thought about gifts for the special women in your life yet?
Mother’s Day isn’t just about your own mother or the mother of your children. Step-moms, mothers-in-law, grandmas, aunts, sisters, and mommy friends all deserve to be treated to a special day.
Treat the Special Moms in Your Life…and Earn Extra Points!
Some moms might argue that the best gift on Mother’s Day would be a day off! Unfortunately they don’t sell days off at office supply stores! 😉
But if you’re looking to buy the mom in your life a special treat, here are some ideas for gifts that will bring her joy and get you a few extra points.
1. Flowers
You could surprise your favorite mom with a bouquet of fresh flowers on Mother’s Day. There are promotions and increased shopping portal bonuses that will earn you lots of extra points when you buy flowers.
I’ve written about earning extra Southwest points at 1-800-Flowers.com and how those points count towards the Southwest Companion Pass. The promotion codes for this deal seem to change often, but you could try code “RR29” to earn 1,750 points or “RR22” to earn 1,000 points when you spend at least ~$30.
You can also earn 15 American Airlines miles per $1 spent using code “ADDV.” Or 15 Alaska Air miles per $1 spent using code “AKA6.”
But 1st go through a shopping portal, because you can earn cash back or points in addition to the points from the Southwest promotion. Check Evreward to to search for the best deals. Heels First Travel has a list of more bonuses for buying flowers!
If you have an American Express business card, you can save 5% or get 2 extra Membership Rewards point per $1 spent at 1-800-Flowers. Or you can sign into your American Express account and look for an offer for $15 back after spending $50 at 1-800-Flowers. These offers are usually in the “Offers For You” section when you log into your AMEX account.
I also searched for FTD and discovered deals for up to 25% cash back or 35 Delta miles per $1 you spend. 35 miles per $1 spent on a $100 order is 3,500 miles (35X miles from shopping portal x $100 spent on flowers)!
You can also earn 30 miles per $1 spent on flowers with American Airlines or United Airlines (if you don’t want to earn Delta miles)!
If you prefer Chase Ultimate Rewards points, there are deals through the Chase Ultimate Rewards shopping portal. For example, ProFlowers and FTD are both offering 15 extra points per $1 you spend.
If you spent $60 on flowers for Mom and used your Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Freedom, Chase Ink Bold, or Chase Ink Plus card, you’d earn a total of 960 Ultimate Rewards points! (16 Ultimate Rewards points X $60 spent on flowers).
Some folks might prefer 15 Ultimate Rewards points per $1 spent, but I think 30 American Airlines or United miles per $1 spent or 25% cash back is a much better deal.
2. Restaurants
One of the best gifts for the mom in your life is just spending time with her. You could take her out for dinner to her favorite restaurant or treat her to a spectacular meal.
Make sure you use your Chase Freedom card, because this quarter your restaurant spending will earn 5X Chase Ultimate Rewards points or 5% cash back. Did you remember to activate the bonus?
If you don’t have the Freedom card, you can use your Chase Sapphire Preferred card to get 2X points on dining.
If you can’t take your mom out for a meal, you could always buy her a restaurant gift card. Use the Chase Freedom card if you’re buying directly from a restaurant. Or, use the Chase Ink Bold or Chase Ink Plus at office supply stores (which sell chain restaurant gift cards) to earn 5X Chase Ultimate Rewards points per $1 you spend.
Or you can buy restaurant gift cards from the supermarket and get up to 4.5X American Express Membership Rewards points with the AMEX EveryDay Preferred card.
Note: You normally get 3X Membership Rewards points at US supermarkets (up to $6,000 a year) but you get 4.5X points when you make 30 purchases in 1 billing cycle, less returns and credits.
Remember you can transfer your American Express Membership Rewards points to certain airlines and hotels to get Big Travel with Small Money.
3. Travel
If the beloved mom in your life lives far away, you could redeem your miles and points for a plane ticket or hotel stay. Maybe she doesn’t get to see you often, or wants to visit her grandkids.
But if you can’t find award tickets or hotels in 2 weeks, you could splurge on travel using your Chase Sapphire Preferred or Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® to earn 2X points per $1 you spend. I don’t think any mom I know would refuse a vacation!
Remember, if you use points to book travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal, your points are worth 1.25 cents each (instead of 1 cent each). And you could potentially get more value by transferring them to airlines or hotels.
4. Lowe’s
A home improvement store might not be the 1st place that comes to mind when you think about buying a gift for Mom. But you can find lots of Mother’s Day gifts at Lowe’s (where you earn 5X points or 5% cash back for $1 you spend this quarter using the Chase Freedom card) or other home improvement stores.
Maybe the mom in your life is an avid gardener or cook? You could buy her some new gardening gear or kitchen gadgets. And most Lowe’s have a garden center where you can buy plants, flowers, and pretty hanging baskets.
Lowe’s also sells gift cards to lots of other merchants and restaurants, so you could buy a gift card for Mom and let her pick out something she likes.
Don’t forget, you can shop online through a portal and get extra points for Lowe’s spending, too.
5. Jewelry and Perfume
Maybe Mom has had her eye on a necklace, a new pair of earrings, or a bottle of her favorite perfume. Most department stores sell jewelry and perfume, so you could pick up a department store gift card from Lowe’s using your Chase Freedom card and earn 5X points or 5% cash back. Or at an office supply store using the Chase Ink Bold or Chase Ink Plus card.
Then, you could use the gift card online through a shopping portal, and earn even more points or cash back.
6. Amazon…for Books, Chocolates, or Just About Anything
Does your favorite mom like to read? Maybe she loves mysteries, biographies, or romance?
You could stock up Mom’s library by shopping at Amazon. But 1st, buy an Amazon gift card at an office supply store with your Chase Ink card, or at Lowe’s with your Chase Freedom card. That way, you’ll earn 5X points.
Amazon really does sell just about anything. And you can have the gifts shipped directly to your favorite mom, too. Or, you could give her the gift card and let her pick out something she really wants online. That way, you won’t have to know she’s reading a steamy romance novel! 😉
7. Movies
Is Mom a movie buff? You can buy movie theater gift cards at Lowe’s (and earn 5X points with the Chase Freedom card). I’ve also seen movie gift cards at office supply stores, so you could earn 5X points there with a Chase Ink card.
You could combine this with a restaurant gift card and treat Mom to a night out! I’ve even seen combination gift cards that work for both dinner and a movie.
8. Technology, Music, and Accessories
Do you know a mom who loves her smartphone, e-reader, or tablet? Or maybe she likes downloading music, movies, and games from iTunes or Amazon.
You could pick up an iTunes gift card from an office supply store and let her use it to pick out a new album, movie, or e-book. Or perhaps she needs a new case or set of headphones to use with her iPhone or iPad. You can find all of these things at office supply stores, and earn 5X points when you use your Chase Ink Bold or Chase Ink Plus card.
Whether your favorite mom is a fan of Green Day or Frank Sinatra, she’ll probably make good use of an iTunes gift card!
9. A Day at the Spa (and Maybe Some Wine!)
With all the stresses of parenthood, I bet most moms would love a day of pampering at the spa. You can buy SpaFinder gift cards at Lowe’s (with the Chase Freedom) and office supply stores (with the Chase Ink) and earn 5X points.
SpaFinder cards are accepted at over 20,000 locations and can be used for massages, facials, manicures, pedicures, yoga, and other relaxing spa services. That said, you can also look for SpaFinder gift cards for less on gift card sites such as Gift Card Granny etc.
While you’re at the office supply store, you could pick up a Whole Foods gift card and use it to get mom a bottle of wine to enjoy on her relaxing day. See, they do sell days off at the office supply store!
10. Magazine Subscriptions
Does Mom like to read fashion magazines or catch up on entertainment news? Or is she into current events and politics? Either way, you could pick up a magazine subscription or 2 and she’ll get a gift to enjoy the whole year.
There are some huge shopping portal bonuses for Magazines.com and on top of that, they often sell heavily-discounted subscriptions. So you could save a lot of money and earn a lot of extra points. For example, if you go through the Chase Ultimate Rewards mall, you’ll earn 30 points per $1 you spend!
Bottom Line
When you’re thinking about what to get the moms in your life for Mother’s Day, remember you can earn extra points or cash back by maximizing the bonuses on the Chase Freedom, Chase Ink Bold, and Chase Ink Plus cards.
You’ll earn 5X points or 5% cash back at restaurants and Lowe’s this quarter with the Chase Freedom. And you’ll always get 5X per $1 you spend at office supply stores when you use the Chase Ink cards.
By purchasing gift cards, then going through an online shopping portal, you can earn even more bonus points and cash back for your Mother’s Day shopping. That said, be sure to shop around. It’s not worth paying more just to get a few extra points.
You only have 2 weeks to find Mom that perfect gift!