20 Great Gifts for Homeschool Moms
No more coffee cups. Or slippers. Or robes, wine bottle toppers or Yeti cups or stemless wineglasses with cute sayings. Please. I am begging you. I’m not a homeschool mom – but I was a homeschool mom.
We were all homeschool moms from the middle of March 2020 for a good eight weeks until the last day of school in 2020. From virtual field trips to Zoom classes, we did it all. The first day of kids going back to school in August of 2020 was the best day of all of our lives. You know.
We were all homeschool moms for a second, and we are all moms on a daily basis whether our kids learn from home and you teach them, they go to virtual school, or they are students who go to class each day.
I have four kids in three schools right now, and I can tell you that there is no mom who is not constantly busy, constantly on the go, and never has enough time – or coffee mugs or cutesy wine glasses or slippers.
If you are hellbent on buying the homeschool mom in your life a gift, please don’t get her the things that you think she wants. She doesn’t want more coffee mugs.
She wants good stuff. Whether she’s a friend, your mom, your wife or partner, or she’s just someone you admire, here’s what moms (and not just homeschool moms) really want when you’re picking out great gifts for them.
1. Airpods
Kids are noisy, and these drown them out. Seriously, though, what homeschool mom doesn’t want a pair of Airpods to wear when she’s working out, or when she’s making dinner and wants to listen to her favorite podcast or audiobook – or the Hip Hop BBQ Radio station on Pandora?
2. A Book Subscription
I gifted a friend a book subscription a few years ago for her birthday. They are all over the place, but I specifically chose a sweet little bookstore owned by two sisters in the Midwest.
They curate a monthly collection designed by the questions you answer for them, and they mail you their personal picks for the month, every month. It was the greatest gift, and she shared – so it was a boomerang gift because we all got to read some lovely books.
3. A Coffee Subscription
You heard me. No more mugs, but please do not hesitate to gift your favorite homeschool mom a coffee subscription. How fun to try new things, and how fun to have it delivered.
4. A Bandolier
There are a handful of things in life that I enjoy giving, and this is one of them. This is a crossbody strap that is also a phone case, but it also has just enough space for your license, a card or two, and you can attach your car key. It’s the greatest. Everyone I’ve ever gifted one to loves it more than anything else.
5. Lululemon Gift Cards
Listen. We are moms. We pride ourselves on working out and looking good, but also having cute athleisure to run out in when we have two seconds to get ready. Get the Lululemon gift cards.
6. A Kindle or Other eReader
The best gift I received for Christmas this past year was a new Kindle. I used my iPad Pro for downloading and reading books. However, it’s massive, and it wasn’t the most comfortable ‘book’ to read. My husband noticed, and there was a new Kindle under the tree. For the reader in your life, this is the greatest gift because it’s instant access to books – and that’s all readers want.
7. Wine Subscriptions
A bit of a wine snob myself, I’m usually only interested in trying new wines when I haven’t a choice (at a tasting, a friend’s home, etc.) because I keep my bar stocked with what I enjoy drinking and I don’t bottles I’m unfamiliar with when I’m out. A wine subscription is a unique way to gift something special to the wine lover in your life. They can curate their deliveries based on their preferences, and they always have something new to try.
8. A Weekend Away
Either with you, without you, or with some girlfriends, every mom – especially those at home with their kids all the time – could use a weekend away.
9. Cozy Blankets
Okay, so cozy blankets to someone else might be the equivalent of coffee mugs to me, and that’s all right. I am a sucker for a cozy blanket. I love them in all the colors. All the sizes. All the holiday themes. Moms love cozy blankets. They’re cozy.
10. Flowers – Always Flowers
The most thoughtful gift I have ever received is flowers. Not the standard flower delivery – I’m talking about something a little more special. For our 15th wedding anniversary, my husband gifted me a gorgeous, expensive, timeless crystal vase. It is the crystal anniversary, if you didn’t pick up on that. With the vase came a flower subscription.
Every two weeks, I receive a beautiful bouquet of the type of flowers I love the most depending on when they are in season. Peonies, begonias, lilies, whatever. But they are endless. They arrive every two weeks like clockwork so that I always have fresh flowers in my beautiful vase.
Flowers for the porch, the pool deck, the house…whatever. Women love flowers. They’re lovely, the smell delightful, and they never fail to make someone feel special. Sending someone a flower subscription is a lovely way of telling them you care.
11. A Housekeeper
Homeschool husbands, this one is for you. Your kids are always home. There is not a six to eight hour window during the day when they are at school and practice and your house is clean. They are always there. It’s not easy to keep the house clean with people living in it all the time, so gift your wife the magic of a housekeeper.
Just have her come once or twice a month and do the difficult stuff – deep cleaning the bathrooms, the baseboards, the blinds, the windows, the outdoor furniture, ceiling fans, light fixtures, the stairs…believe when I tell you that this is the single best gift.
12. Annual Passes
Does your wife love Disney? What about Universal? Do you have a local zoo your wife enjoys visiting? Perhaps a garden or another location that she is fond of? Why not gift her annual passes so you can all enjoy something with her on a regular basis?
13. Luxe Skincare
La Mer, anyone? Women love to feel good, and feeling good starts with taking care of our skin. If the homeschool mom in your life is in need of a gift, try some luxury skincare she can use at home. It’s the gift that keeps giving.
14. Botox Gift Cards
Hear me out, okay? If the homeschool mom in your life gets Botox, why not gift her something she’ll use and love? A Botox gift card is a great way to make her happy if she’s paying for it herself. I give these out as birthday gifts to my friends who go to the same aesthetic house as I, and it’s an appreciated gift.
15. Spa Days/Gift Cards
Much like a Botox gift card, these are useful gifts. The homeschool mom in your life might already get her nails done every few weeks or she might get a monthly facial. Do you know what that means?
It means she is going to love the gift of someone else paying for it on her behalf. Another great idea is to call her hairstylist and purchase a gift card for her next hair appointment. What a lovely surprise to find out her next hair appointment is on you.
16. Luxe Candles
Candles are the epitome of home goods luxury. They smell wonderful. They transport you to a place you love, and certain scents jog the memory just so. Luxe candles are expensive, but they make a lovey gift. If I may suggest, my favorite is the Hotel Collection (My Way is my favorite scent). However, Diptyque is another luxe brand, The Nest Candles, and Jo Malone are all good options. Choose a scent she’ll enjoy.
17. An Amazing Planner/Daybook
As a homeschool mom or just a mom in general, the calendar is always full. She’s got field trips to take, appointments to remember, lessons to plan, and a life to live. A great day planner or a gorgeous agenda is the perfect gift for her because it allows her to stay organized and on top of things when the world is busy moving around her.
18. Great Running Shoes
A homeschool mom is going to be up, down, around, and moving on a regular basis doing all the things that homeschool moms do, and a great pair of supportive sneakers is where it’s at.
Perhaps she’s also a runner or an avid walker, so they’ll do a lot of double duty. In fact, they might even go with her ‘I have errands to run and no time to get ready’ athleisure look in public. The APL line makes the best sneakers. They’re aesthetically pleasing, the price is good, and the designs are fabulous. She’ll want them in every color.
19. Time Off
Honestly, it might be the only thing she wants. A few hours here and there? It might be everything. This is not to say the homeschool mom in your life doesn’t love her family. She loves them more than anyone. But if she is homeschooling the kids, she spends ample time at home (with the kids) teaching them, cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, cleaning again, running errands, and taking the kids on fun and educational outings.
She might want some time off. Her day doesn’t really end when she’s on mom-duty 24/7 with the kids home. She’s not sneaking in an hour here or there while the kids are at school and she had the time. She’s in need of some time off, and you can give that to her. When our four kids were home for the two months between spring break and summer vacation during COVID, I was ready to tear my hair out. My husband and I both work from home (and always have, since long before COVID), and our kids were in sixth grade, third grade, and the twins were in kindergarten. It was…a lot.
During that time, my husband introduced me to daddy date night. Since he works for someone else and I work for me, I was the one whose schedule had to mold around the kids’ new schedule. I was overwhelmed and over it. Daddy date night was his weekly gift to me. He took the kids to dinner every Thursday night. He lets them take turns choosing the restaurant, and they’re all out of the house for a few hours. Bonus – he always made sure the house was clean and there was nothing to distract me while he was gone with the kids other than read and enjoy myself. It was a lovely gift.
20. Uninterrupted Quality Time With Her Family
Listen, moms love their families. We love them so much it physically hurts us, and spending uninterrupted quality time together is the greatest gift. The homeschool mom in your life feels the same. She’s constantly aware that time is passing faster than she can handle it.
This mom is always counting down “Three more spring break vacations as a family before our daughter goes to college,” and “three more Christmas mornings before she’s at college,” or “Is this the last Easter the bunny will be real to them?” Time is a thief, and it robs no one more viciously than the mother who sees time passing with no way to slow it down.
Gift the homeschool mom – or any mom – in your life with the gift of uninterrupted time. Quality time. She wants the memories of you all together. She wants the moments. Those are the gifts she wants.
But she’s going to smile, tear up, and tell you that her new (eight millionth) coffee cup is the single best coffee cup she’s ever received…because that’s what moms do.
