Are you too, faking your reaction to your Mother’s Day gift? Mother’s guide on how to react when receiving your gift!

Fact: A study from 2018 revealed that 40 percent of moms fake their reaction to their kids' Mother's Day gift!

Have you ever faked loving your Mother's Day gif?!

Well, you're not alone! In your child's eyes, you can see the emotions and excitement of watching you unwrap their gift. So, for the sake of saving feelings, you probably tend to go with "Aww, thank you" or "Wow, I love it, thank you." While you don't need another hand lotion or plant to take care of, you don't want to generate sad feelings. 

The opportunity on Mother’s Day!

Mother's Day is an excellent opportunity for children to learn how to make their loved ones feel loved and special and thank them (mom, especially) for all they do for them. It's not something children are born with, it must be learned and practiced, so Mother's Day is the perfect opportunity to celebrate their mom. 

But this is not an article about gift ideas for children to give their mothers. It's about how to react when receiving them.

What is the lesson behind it?

Receiving unwanted gifts might not be that easy for your little one, truth be told, not even for the older ones. While Mother's Day brings togetherness and celebration, it also brings stress and big emotions. In 2022, where moms all they hear is "I want more," "I wanted the other one," or "I want it NOW," raising an appreciative kid it's pretty hard. Shifting the focus from receiving gifts to giving it's an important milestone in their life progress and adult life. Gifts offered from the heart are priceless. Those handmade are even more appreciated, but you set the tone for that behavior. Spend time by doing family things, getting to know each other better, playing games together, and doing fun or crazy things on holidays to help shift the focus from receiving gifts to making memories that will outlast any other toy.

The egocentric stage will vary from one child to another, and learning appreciation might be hard or just complicated for some.

How to teach tinny humans to graciously and genuinely receive gifts?

Role-play it's the way to go and model how to receive gifts appropriately. This takes practice mostly with little ones, but hey, we all are a work in progress. It might not always be perfect or as expected, but it will surely help them cope with receiving unwanted gifts or gifts that don't appeal to them.

How to deal with gift disappointment?

First of all, you might skip that with a little heads-up. You may express before Mother's Day what would make you happy, like a family trip, a brunch, some ALONE time, or something with sentimental meaning.

But if that doesn't happen and you are offered something that doesn't produce much joy or happiness, you can get supportive of the gesture your kid has made and afterward try to make a plan with your little one to decide what to do next year, to make it better. 

Fact: Studies have shown that moms are looking for more sentimental gifts and memorable times with their families. 

How to respond?

First, say thank you with sincerity and appreciation. You express your appreciation for the ACT of giving instead of the gift itself. If it's a gift you don't like, try to be as discrete as possible to avoid hurting their feelings. You can say something like, "That's an interesting gift. Is there a story behind it?" You might get a pleasant surprise that what made them choose that specific gift was a memory of you two, or it might be something they want you to try or even something that they love and want to share with you. 

Some of the best memories are created when the family spends time together and do fun things. So, take every day as an opportunity to be part of their life story and bring some memorable moments into it.

What is the best gift you've ever gotten from your kids? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.