By: Rifky Grossman

Like a mother’s love, some gifts are intangible and appreciated most of all! Here are the top 25 intangible gifts your mother wants.

To the tikes

1) One night of seven to eight hours is all I ask; sleep through one night, okay, sweet pea?

2) I know you can’t control when you spit up, but please, please next time, lean away from Mommy’s hair, okay?

3) This week is your big brother’s bar mitzvah. It’s okay to cry, just can you wait till the Kiddush and not in the middle of his leining?

4) You know how you “instantly fall asleep in my arms?” Try doing that in Daddy’s sometimes.

5) I wish I could bottle your scent, that wholesome, clean baby smell, for whenever I need a pick-me-up.

To the tots

1) I know you don’t like the bow/bowtie, but please can you wear it just for the family photo? Don’t throw it at your cousins, okay?

2) Any gift you get me is always appreciated…I love the daisies you handpicked from the backyard.

3) I know you think we need to feed the floor and the high chair and your stuffed animals, but when I put food on your plate, it’s for you to eat.

4) Don’t stand up and walk two-and-a-half feet without me ever again. Do you know what it feels like to hear from bubby (your Tatty’s mommy) that I “missed your first (or second) step?”

5) I wish you knew how happy it makes me when there is peace between you and your older/younger siblings; I know it’s not always easy to share – attention, toys, what have you – but when you all play nicely, this brings me the greatest joy.

To the teens

1) Of course, “mi car es su car.” Return it with the tank not on negative empty, is that too much to ask?

2) When you know it’s linen day and you take off all your sheets and help your younger siblings with theirs, this is so appreciated.

3) Of course, you can use my credit card for restaurants, but don’t make my number the reservation number. Otherwise, I’ll think you made a reservation for me.

4) When you dedicated the “free verse poem you had to write” on “someone you admire” to me, I read it and cried (even though it was cheesy).

5) When you are confident enough to admit, “Mommy was right,” that time I told you not to drive in the rain, and you listened; then come home and tell me that you appreciate my guidance even though you know you can do it? This maturity makes me so proud.

To the adult children

1) No, no, for sure – yes, take what you need, 100% my pantry is your food pantry (just don’t come Erev Shabbos for the last bag of cholent beans).

2) Your Malky reminds me of you when you were that age, I’m not allowed to have favorites, most definitely not a favorite grandchild, but it’s a special kind of treat reliving you as a young girl through her.

3) When the eineklech call Erev Shabbos, I know it’s a “check-off chore” at home, but I can’t tell you how much nachas it gives Zeidy and me to hear from the grandkids.

4) When I say I can babysit, the night is on me – go out with your husband, please don’t argue. It’s my absolute pleasure to see my kids go out and have a nice night out, please don’t feel guilty.

5) Seeing you running your own homes, when you pick up the phone to share (the good and even the not-so-good) – I’m your mother and you’re always my child. When you keep me in your life, I am rewarded.

To the teachers

1) I’m okay with summer homework; in fact, those booklets that require one book a week? Could you keep them coming?

2) Their homework shouldn’t be my homework, I didn’t know quantum physics then, and I sure don’t have the mindset to learn it now.

3) Thank you for not ending off the report card with “shows great improvement” like last time; a “he’s doing well” will more than suffice.

4) When you give a list of all the unacceptable snacks to send for the mesiba/party, please make our lives easier by saying: bring raisins, tangerines, a water bottle, and whole-wheat pretzels. Most grocers don’t know what I want when I ask for “gluten-free, no refined starch, sugar, nut-free snacks.”

5) When I bump into you in the real world, no formalities, just two mothers, and you look me in the eye and say you see what a great mother I am, how special my child is. That’s what I appreciate most. No grade technicalities or recess politics, just plain simple, mother-to-mother you’re doing a great job, your child is wonderful. Enjoy your summer!

There you have it! We guarantee if Mom gets just a couple of these things this Mother’s Day she’ll be pretty happy. But, if you’re already that unicorn child who does everything right, then a special gift never hurts!