For Mother’s Day, stay in or go out?
NEW YORK Leslie Young is the California mom of three kids 9 and younger. For her, Mother's Day is far from serene.
“Just because it’s Mother’s Day doesn’t mean the nurse, chauffer, chef, janitor, hair stylist or activity co-ordinator get the day off,” she said of all the hats she wears.
In fact, her Mother’s Day will begin the Saturday before, when she’ll organize a gathering for her own mom, then a Sunday, after-church affair for her mother-in-law, typically in a fancy restaurant around Carlsbad, north of San Diego, where she lives — and the 36-year-old Young considers a fancy restaurant “nothing short of a circus.”
“I would love to spend Mother’s Day at home, where my kids can run amok and it doesn’t matter because no one else is there to judge me,” she said.
Sorry, Leslie, but do know that you're not alone.
Staying home for Mother’s Day versus going out for a special meal is befuddling for others as well, and especially families with small children. On the one hand, yay! Fancy outing. On the other hand, yikes! Who’s got the energy and wants to spend it chasing little ones around a restaurant? And it’s not always just about little kids around white tablecloths and spillable drinks.
Denise Wilson, 47, has two teens, 13 and 15, and still wants out of the restaurant outing for Mother’s Day. In New York, where she lives, that usually means a hectic chase for a reservation, long lines and huge crowds. This year, they’ll head to their weekend house in East Hampton on Long Island for relaxing, family fun.
“Life is super hectic and not being beholden to a clock or having to make a decision, and enjoying simple and relaxed moments, feels almost a luxury,” she said. “It’s essentially a weekend of no obligations. My husband will cook.”
Another New Yorker, cookie-baking entrepreneur Zenobia Dewely, builds her family's collective sweet tooth into her Mother’s Day. For six years, the 44-year-old mom of three — ages 18, 16 and 12 — has been on the opposite end of the Mother’s Day spectrum.
“I look forward to going out with my family every year,” she said. “We have an Outback and Dylan’s Candy store tradition. We usually get ice cream and then we dip strawberries, bananas and rice crispy treats in the chocolate fountain.”
According to National Restaurant Association research last year, the latest available from the trade group, 35 per cent of Americans said they planned to dine out on Mother’s Day, with 13 per cent choosing buffet style restaurants. About 13 per cent said they would opt for breakfast, 26 per cent brunch and 46 per cent dinner, with some planning multiple restaurant or order-in options.
Liz Vaccariello, mom of twin girls and editor in chief of Parents magazine, hears a lot from readers on the stay home versus go out Mother’s Day front these days.
“I often hear that Mother’s Day is more stressful for mothers than you would think,” she said. “Often, they are caught between celebrating their own mother, their mother-in-law and some big shindig that their husband might have planned. I’ve had readers tell me that they’d enjoy a pass on the day, just stay at home and be with their children for some quiet time. It’s rather counterintuitive, but I’m hearing this more and more.”