Hey Ladies -

I don't post often but knew this would be the place to ask...

My sister is turning 40 soon and she is the overwhelmed mother of 4 kids - ranging from 11 down to 4 months old. One of her kids has special needs and the baby was a surprise! She is a wonderful sister and mom - but does not take very good care of herself and is a bit stressed.

I'd like to make this b-day special for her - she lives in another state. I'm looking for gift ideas. Beauty, kitchen, organizational items that you love - or couldn't live without. I'm open to all ideas and price ranges as my parents could go in with me.

I wish that I could hire a maid for her or send her on a trip - but I know that she wouldn't go for that. Help!

Thanks in advance.
Amy

By Rayelle on Friday, February 29, 2008 - 09:18 pm:

How about a spa day? Those little things I forget about since I'm home with kids make me feel so much happier and reminds me of me! Someone could offer to babysit while she gets a mani/pedi, facial, hair cut or the works! I think part of why that works is it makes you feel like "maintaining" a little more than usual.

By Annie2 on Saturday, March 1, 2008 - 08:11 am:

With the little ones she might not feel comfortable living them for a long stretch for a spa day...how about a gift certificate to a local nail place that she can use, every other week or so for nails, pedicure, eyebrows, etc.
If she colors her hair/goes to a special salon for her cuts, a gift certificate to that place would be great.
Merry Maids are in most areas. You could hire them for maybe six months of service to clean her house...bathrooms, floors, kitchen, fridge, oven, windows, etc. The crap we all hate to do, takes alot of time but needs to be done. The big deep cleaning stuff not vacuuming or dusting...
Arrange a photo shoot for her family with a local photographer...

Good luck and let us know what you come up with

By Yjja123 on Saturday, March 1, 2008 - 12:30 pm:

When I lived out of state, my favorite gift from my sister would have been her coming to visit me.

By Vicki on Saturday, March 1, 2008 - 02:24 pm:

Well, If she isn't really into taking great care of herself, is it because she doesn't have the time to do it, the money to buy stuff or she just isn't into it?

If you think she would be into it but just doesn't want to spend the money on it, I think a gift basket with some nice soaps and lotions from Bath and Body works and maybe some skin care items from Clinique or something would be great. Maybe even a few tubes of a nice lip gloss!!

By Amyk on Saturday, March 1, 2008 - 04:13 pm:

Hey ladies -

I really appreciate the suggestions! As far as Vicki's question about pampering, no time, no extra money, and cannot seem to relax enough to enjoy it!

Sincerely,
Amy