What She Really Wants for Mother’s Day

One Instacart Dad Shares His Tips for How to Make the Day Extra Special

By Tyler Renaghan, Dad and Senior Director of Retail Accounts at Instacart

My wife Meredith and I are outnumbered with five kids all under the age of 6. As you can imagine, it’s rare to find a quiet moment in our home. We’re constantly coordinating schedules, driving from one practice to another, and running errands. Meredith is at the center of our household and does so much for our family, so when Mother’s Day comes around, the kids and I do everything we can to make it extra special.

Instead of going the traditional breakfast in bed route — trust me, we already have enough food in our bed — I like to give my wife a little bit of “me-time.” Here are my tried-and-true tips for how to make mom feel special, loved and appreciated:

• Take on the morning routine: On Mother’s Day morning, I wake up early with the kids, prepare their breakfast, play the “please get dressed” game, and brush their teeth all before mama wakes up! There’s a good chance she’s awake anyway (do moms really ever sleep?) and giggling at my efforts, but I know she appreciates a quiet minute to herself and the chance to get out of bed when she’s ready.
• Make a plan for dinner: Meredith does most of the grocery shopping and cooking for our family, so I always plan to either take her out to dinner or take on the cooking responsibilities for the day. Pro tip: a lot of grocery stores offer a hot bar with ready-to-go homemade meals, so not only can you take credit for a delicious meal, but you’ll also save a ton of time on clean up!
• Do the grocery shopping: If you want to achieve true hero status, do a full grocery shop too. This way you’ll be stocked up for the week and can give her a little time back in the day! I also like to include a bottle of rosé or sparkling wine in my Instacart order and request for my shopper to pick it up from the cooler section so it’s chilled upon arrival.
• Cards and cookies: It’s important for the kids to express their love and gratitude on Mother’s Day, so I always have each kid write a card and share what they love most about their mom. For my youngest children, I ask them what they love most and write their answers down verbatim. Another great activity is decorating cookies for mom. Not only does this keep the kids occupied, but they’re able to express their love (and creativity) in a fun way!

There are so many ways to celebrate mom, but I think the important thing is to show her how much you love and appreciate her. They say actions speak louder than words, and I think that’s certainly true, especially for Mother’s Day! How do you celebrate the mamas in your life? If you have any favorite tips or tricks, please share in the comments — we’d love to hear!

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About Tyler Renaghan

As a dad to five kids under the age of 6, including two sets of twins, Tyler Renaghan is an expert on organization, prioritization, and making quality time for family. When he’s not taking the kids to soccer, ballet, and gymnastics or spending time outdoors with his family, Tyler is the Senior Director of Retail Accounts at Instacart, a North American leader in online grocery. He leads a team of five people and manages relationships with Instacart’s top retail partners.

As a busy dad, Tyler is constantly juggling to-dos and looking for ways to streamline and prioritize. He was an Instacart user even before joining the team, and it’s the first company he’s worked for where he actually uses the service regularly, averaging about 11 Instacart orders per month. If Tyler could have one superpower, it’s a toss-up between the ability to hear what everyone in his family is saying when they all talk at once or the ability to clone himself.

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Instacart is the leading grocery technology company in North America, partnering with more than 1,400 national, regional, and local retail banners to deliver from more than 80,000 stores across more than 14,000 cities in North America. To read more Instacart posts, you can browse the company blog or search by keyword using the search bar at the top of the page.