11 Ways to Thank Your (Organic) Mom

I have always celebrated Mother’s Day with my own mom. It usually involves doing stuff together for fun but also small things to make her day less laborious – breakfast in bed, helping her weed her garden, picnic lunch. It sometimes involves stuff (a nightgown, a nice smelling cream, bubble bath, or, in recent years all new cleaning products, organic garden sprays, and the like) but more often than not it’s more about actions and being together than products.

I’m still a newbie at being the mom on Mother’s Day, even though my cat has given me lovely cards dictated to her father for years now. My daughter is now two and the past two Mother’s Days I have spent at my mom’s weekend house. I figured my bringing her granddaughter to her was a lovely action. And I’ve also gotten some action(s): I’ve been allowed to sleep in, I’ve been woken up with fresh-picked lilies of the valley, I’ve been taken out to lunch, I’ve been given an extra afternoon or two to sneak off to a long yoga class. And really, these little luxuries are all I’ll ever want.

Still, if suddenly I morphed (back) into a big consumer, I do have a Top 10 (ok, Top 11) wish list (besides putting a stop to global warming/war/this administration). And it mainly involves being rubbed. Running after and lugging around a small person makes me ache!

1. Any massage anywhere, but especially if someone wanted to send me to Weleda’s HQ just outside New York City where I’ve been dying to go.

2. A facial with Dr. Alkaitis products at Great Jones Spa.

3. A pair of Edun’s organic jeans.

4. A fry-oil car. I actually don’t drive but when the weather warms up, there are so many people to visit with lawns and pools and woods to walk in. Getting to them is always a bit of drama. Converting an old car to take fry oil would make me feel much better about the trips in and out of town.

5. A Brita-type water filter with a glass (not plastic!) pitcher. Why hasn’t Brita made one yet? Hello?

6. An organic mattress (and 10 "sleep in free" passes!) or at very least some new pillows.

7. A meal at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills, New York.

8. Any sort of treatment (perhaps a massage?) with Dr. Hauschka products.

9. A home seltzer maker. I love the bubbles but have given them up because trucking water around isn’t something I want to be involved in.

10. A (mixed) case of organic wine, preferably local and delicious.

11. A worm bin.

I left out the dream of taking a carbon-neutral jaunt to Paris (just me and the baby daddy) because that’s just clearly not possible for so many reasons including that our adorable offspring prefers to sleep with us. Oh and one totally not organic wish: I want a BlackBerry. I’m terrified I’ll become addicted and know very little about if they can be recycled or what their flame retardant or other chemical situation is, but I’d like to be able to respond to organic mom questions (and much more) while watching my daughter run around in the playground instead of sitting inside stuck to a computer. Anyone know of the greenest version? What are you all wishing for?

Happy Mother’s Day.