海角大神

I got some good intelligence from my sister last month when we were shopping for cards for our mom鈥檚 birthday. 鈥淪he really reads them,鈥� Karen told me. 鈥淪he likes the sappy ones; she hates the ones that are funny.鈥�

That mirrors the ethos behind Hallmark greeting cards, maker of about half the Mother鈥檚 Day cards you see on the shelves this week. 鈥淥n Father鈥檚 Day, you can say, 鈥楧ad, all you want is a sandwich!鈥� or 鈥楧ad, you nap a lot,鈥欌�� Tina Neidlein, a Hallmark greeting card writer,聽told Bloomberg. 鈥淏ut if you make fun of your mother, she鈥檚 going to cry. And you can鈥檛 even make fun of that.鈥�

Mother鈥檚 Day this week celebrates its 100th anniversary as an聽officially recognized holiday聽in the United States. Shoppers are expected to spend聽聽this Mother鈥檚 Day, according a survey by the National Retail Federation. Cards are, by far, the most popular gift to give our mothers鈥攇ood news for the card industry, which has been taking on the chin in recent years due to the explosion of e-cards.

Here鈥檚 the top gifts everyone else will be buying Mom this week, according to the NRF. But what Mom鈥檚 really want won鈥檛 cost you a dime.

Most popular gifts for Mother鈥檚 Day

1. Greeting cards.聽More than 81% of shoppers will pick up a greeting card for Mom.
2. Flowers.聽This will be a busy week for florists, too, as two-thirds of consumers surveyed plan to contribute to the estimated $2.3 billion spent on flowers and bouquets.
3. Brunch or dinner.聽Get your reservations in early鈥攜ou鈥檒l be fighting for table space. More than 56% of the people surveyed will be going to a restaurant to the tune of $3.8 billion nationwide.
4. Gift card.聽Don鈥檛 know what to buy Mom? Many people鈥�43% of those surveyed鈥攑unt on a decision and just get a gift card from her favorite store.
5. Clothing.聽About a third of shoppers surveyed 鈥渨ill look for spring sweaters and blouses, spending a total of $1.7 billion on apparel and accessory items,鈥� according to the NRF.
6. Jewelry.聽Bring on the bling鈥攏early 32% are planning to shell out an estimated $3.6 billion of jewelry for Mother鈥檚 Day.
7. Spa.聽More than one-fifth of shoppers plan to give a personal experience gift like a day at the spa.
8. Books and CDs.聽Nearly 20% of us will get Mom something to listen to or read.
9. Housewares or gardening tools.聽Items for the home and garden are popular among 18.2% of Mother鈥檚 Day shoppers.
10. 骋补诲驳别迟.听Personal electronic devices, such as smartphones and iPads, will be purchased by 13% of shoppers, for an estimated $1.7 billion in sales. That鈥檚 down from $2.3 billion spent on mother for gadgets last year.

BUT! Higher price does not equal more love

Here鈥檚 a common misconception when shopping for gifts for a loved one: the higher the price, the better the gift, the more I love you. Unfortunately, research shows the affection that may drive you to spend more on a gift doesn鈥檛 come across to the one unwrapping the presents.

鈥淕ift-givers assume that more expensive gifts convey a higher level of thoughtfulness. Gift-recipients, in contrast, reported no such association between gift price and their actual feelings of appreciation,鈥� researchers at聽Stanford University found in a 2009. A word to the wise when shopping for Mom: Just ask her what she wants. And more often than not, the answer will be time鈥攖ime alone if the kids are still at home, or time with children after they鈥檝e flown the nest.

That鈥檚 why author Liz O鈥橠onnell argues the聽holiday should be moved to Monday聽so that moms can be officially off the clock鈥攁t home and at work鈥攚hile kids are at school and husbands are out of the house. 鈥淚 asked working mothers what they wanted for Mother鈥檚 Day and I can assure you, it wasn鈥檛 brunch, flowers or jewelry. The top responses: alone time, a break, time with my children,鈥� writes O鈥橠onnell, founder of website,聽. 鈥淟et us nap, join our kids after school for some one-on-one time, read a book, relax.鈥�