3 Mother's Day Traditions I Refuse to Waste Money On

In 2022, the average person spent about $246 on Mother's Day, according to the National Retail Federation. When you think about it, that's actually not such a large amount of money to spend on the person who raised you and has taken care of you throughout your life. But for many people, that's a credit card charge they can't afford.

Now, if I'm being honest, my family can afford to spend something in that ballpark on Mother's Day. But we generally don't come close. In fact, our typical Mother's Day tradition is spending the afternoon hiking and picnicking in the woods, which is basically a free activity minus the negligible cost of gas to get there.

A big reason my family doesn't spend a lot of money on Mother's Day is that most of the traditions or spending opportunities associated with that day are things I'm not a fan of anyway. Here are three traditions I won't let my family spend money on.

1. Brunch

I'm not anti-brunch as a general rule. In fact, I'll sometimes go out for brunch with my kids, husband, or friends.

What I am opposed to are those overblown Mother's Day brunches, where you pay a small fortune of money for a pre-set menu that isn't very good and are forced to sit in a jam-packed restaurant while frazzled waiters run around knocking into your chair and antsy toddlers make noise. And to be clear, I don't fault the toddlers.

All told, I find the idea of Mother's Day brunch unpleasant, so I don't see why I'd agree to have my family spend any amount of money on it. If anything, we could always save brunch for another day.

2. Flowers

Some people enjoy getting a bouquet of flowers for Mother's Day or on other occasions. But I'm just not someone who enjoys flowers. The way I see it, I have a hard enough time making sure my kids and dog are taken care of. I don't need something else to have to take care of on top of that.

3. Jewelry

Many of my friends love getting jewelry on special occasions and showing it off. Other than my wedding ring, I don't wear jewelry, and it's not something I've ever really liked so much.

As a busy working mom who's constantly doing things around the house and running from place to place, I actually find the idea of wearing jewelry cumbersome. Who wants to deal with a bracelet moving around your wrist while you're trying to type on your laptop or do some cooking?

Because I'm not a fan of jewelry and it tends to be expensive, my husband knows not to buy it for me. And while I know my daughters would love for me to own more jewelry (so that they could ask to borrow it), they accept that it's just not my thing.

Spending on what's important to me

I have no problem with my husband surprising me with concert tickets or a fun day trip, whether as a Mother's Day gift or for another reason. But Mother's Day brunch, flowers, and jewelry are high on my "no thanks" list, so those are things we won't be spending on anytime soon.

If you're someone who feels similarly, talk to your family about what's important to you and what isn't. Your kids might buy you flowers on Mother's Day with the best of intentions. But if you'd rather they not spend the money on something like that, it's probably best to just speak up and be honest about it.