If “Acts of Service” are your love language, this is the gift inspiration for you! Mother’s Day is only a few days away, but it is not too late to do something Mom will really appreciate this year, like fixing one of those things on your “Honey-Do” list that you’ve been putting off. As home inspectors, we might also recommend that these be on your “things to do before you sell your home” list, but that’s another column. Here are a few things we’ve found in the field that might inspire the perfect last-minute Mother’s Day gift for the mom in your house.
Clean Up The Yard
Nothing says, “I love you,” like a freshly mown, edged, and weeded yard. Put some sod in the bare patches, like this homeowner has done (there’s still some living grass there!). But for heaven’s sake clean up the MOUNTAIN OF POOP.
Plant a Garden
A lovely last-minute Mother’s Day gift for moms with a green thumb might be a starter garden. Find a good patch to till, and plant some seasonal plants, flowers, or even a nice little vegetable or herb garden. The rain gutter, however, is not a good spot for this.
Rain gutter weed gardens seem to be all the rage this spring in North Texas, y’all. We’re seeing a lot of this out there. So if you haven’t cleaned out your gutters in a while, take a gander up there. I wouldn’t suggest presenting Mom with only a cleaned-out rain gutter for Mother’s Day, but it might make a nice combo gift along with a more appropriately placed starter garden.
Drywall Patch and Repair
Every mom hates an eyesore, and this is not a DIY project for just anyone, as this photo so aptly shows. You can purchase a drywall repair kit at your local hardware store and use a video like this one to help you out. Of course, you’ll eventually need to repaint to truly fix a drywall hole, which may be more than you can manage pre-Mother’s Day, but mom will appreciate the effort. Especially if she’s been looking at something like the above for a while. Maybe throw in a pretty portrait of the kids or another wall hanging to cover it up in the meantime.
Fix an Eyesore
There are a couple of problems here that an enterprising gift giver could find inspiration to surprise mom with a last-minute Mother’s Day gift. In this video, we see a home that has overgrown landscaping that has created a feeding ground for termites, which has in turn damaged the cabinets in the garage. Flower beds next to the house should never have growth right up against the structure, and you want the dirt, mulch, or ground cover to start with about 4-5 inches of foundation showing. There are certain kinds of plants that are deterrents for termites, or having regular pest control treatments is of course a great option. Another great surprise for Mom would be to replace those deteriorated garage cabinets, but the source of the problem will need to be addressed soon, or you’ll end up with the same issue.
We hope some of these examples have given you the inspiration you need for a great last-minute Mother’s Day gift. Take a look around the house and see if there are some ways you can surprise Mom with something she’s been hoping you’d fix, or maybe just a simple improvement she’d love. And of course, if buying or selling a home is on the horizon, obviously a home inspection makes a lovely last-minute Mother’s Day gift as well. 😉
