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If you
ran an ad in the paper listing the job description
of a Mother, you probably wouldn't get many
takers. For one thing, you could never
pay her enough for all that service. For
another, if she has the heart of a true
mother, she wouldn't take a dime for it.
This
week, we're thinking about how to pay Mom back
for even a sliver of piece of a crumb of what
she did in carrying us, raising us, loving us.
It's because of this huge debt that Mother's
Day is about the most sentimental (and celebrated)
day in the annual list of "Days". More
phone calls are made on the weekend of Mother's
Day than any other days of the entire year.
More flowers are bought, more smiling ladies
taken out to dinner, more inadequate gifts given
as a token of our respect and awe.
Don't know what to
get Mom this year? We
thought paybacks were worth a try, so we've
put together a list of some possible things
you can do to let her know you appreciate and
love her. Give her our
best!
Ed and Mary Longanecker
Iris City Cleaners and Laundering Company |
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Quote
of the Week
If
at first you don't succeed,
do what your mother told you. |
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Giving
Back to Mom Coupon!
If Mom is local, we'd
be proud to be part of your Mother's Day celebration.
We have gift
certificates, or you can prepay any amount of
cleaning in Mom's name.
It's like giving her a whole new wardrobe, if
she can get her favorites cleaned whenever she
wants! (No expiration,
this offer is good all year long.) |
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All
you can do is make down payments!
There's no way you'll
ever pay Mom back. It's just not possible.
But you can make small down payments, little
gestures that let her know that you appreciate
the sacrifices over the years, you recognize
what she's done, and you want to try to do the
same for her. Here are some ideas to help
you begin thinking of your own personalized
payback plan.
She
fed you.
The
Debt: Until you got out
on your own, or had your own family, you had
no idea how much energy and time go into just
getting meals on the table at regular intervals,
did you? The planning, the shopping, the
cooking, doing the dishes. It never ends.
The
Payback:
- Give her a gift
certificate to her favorite
restaurant -- or several of them to use throughout
the year.
- If you live near
her, take her out for a special meal -- not
necessarily on Mother's Day when it's so crowded
and rushed, but a
special time for just the two of you.
- Go through Mom's
local yellow pages and look for a Personal
Chef who can go to her home,
make tasty and nutritious meals that are put
in the freezer for her to enjoy all week,
and who will even clean up the kitchen before
leaving.
She
clothed you.
The
Debt: Kids grow like weeds.
What fits one week looks like waders the next.
Shoes don't last long enough to wear out.
But somehow she kept you decent through every
growth spurt and passionate designer craze.
The
Payback:
- Go
shopping with her and get
her things she would not normally get for
herself. Get her to try on things that
she'd never dare to without you there.
- Get
her a gift certificate at her favorite store.
Let her pick what she wants, instead of deciding
for her. Remember when she'd do that
for you?
- Give
her the gift of cleaning!
If she's here locally, we have gift certificates
for cleaning, or you can prepay any amount
of cleaning. If she lives in another
area, check the internet and you're sure to
find a reputable cleaner who does the same.
She
kept the house clean.
The
Debt: Dust bunnies beware,
Mom is near! She might have cleaned out
of frustration because you were driving her
crazy, but she did it and you benefited.
Now you call her to find out how to get tomato
sauce out of the carpet, or wine out of a table
cloth. And she knows!
The
Payback:
- Let Mom put her
feet up for a while. Set
up a housekeeper to come and help her out
every week for a year.
She's done her share.
- Get her a whole
box full of some of the new
cleaning gadgets and great new cleaning items
she's probably seen on TV and looked at in
the store, but decided were too expensive.
Offer to try them out with her.
- If she has a yard,
set up a contract
with a yard service to come
every month and keep it looking lovely for
her.
She
read to you.
The
Debt: If you were a good
student, chances are your mother read to you
before you ever went off to school. She
sparked your interest in reading and learning
and imaginary places. She opened the window
to Neverland and let you fly out with Peter
Pan. And part of you never came back.
The
Payback:
- Sign
her up for the Books
On Tape service and have the rental bills
sent to you. She can
have someone else read to her for a change,
and whisk her away to her own Neverland.
They have thousands of books all professionally
recorded and with 30-day rentals by mail.
- Take
a tape recorder with you for a week, and talk
to Mom on the tape as you move through your
life. You'll enjoy sharing
things with her as if she were right next
to you, and she'll be thrilled to receive
the tapes. If she doesn't have a player,
send or give her one with the first tape.
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She
took you everywhere.
The
Debt: It was no joke when
they came out with those signs to go in the
back window of cars: Mom's Taxi. From
home to school to soccer to ballet to music
lessons to sleep-overs to the mall to birthday
parties... you helped her run the rubber off
several sets of tires.
The
Payback:
- Buy
her a whole new set of tires for her car,
to keep her going safely to the fun destinations
she has now that you're out of the nest.
- Take
HER someplace -- a special
get-away for the two of you to enjoy.
It can be local or a cruise, a day trip or
a real vacation.
- Send
her on her way. Next
time Mom is going to travel, pick up the tab
for the airfare or the tour bus or the rental
car to make her trip that much more special
and allow her more to spend on having fun,
rather than on getting there.
She
cheered you on.
The
Debt: It didn't matter
if you were the star of the team or just a bench
warmer, she was proud. If you had an enthusiasm,
she was right there in it with you, learning
as you did. Sometimes she just tolerated
it (remember that collection of dead bugs you
treasured?) but she knew it was part of growing
into an adult, and she was eager to see who you
would be.
The
Payback:
- Facilitate
her current passion by getting
her books about it, videos that pertain, equipment
to pursue it.
- Make
a contribution to the cause
that really gets her heart beating, in her
name.
- Volunteer
time to her favorite cause
-- if she lives nearby, do it together.
But if she lives far away, you can probably
still find a local version of what she is
involved in and it will touch her deeply that
you care enough to give your time.
She
bandaged your knees.
The
Debt: Skinning your knee
was like a badge of courage... but it hurt a
lot! She was always there with a kiss,
some antiseptic, a bandage and a hug, and she
got you through the perils of learning to ride
a bike, climb trees and play sports.
The
Payback:
- Make
sure help is just a button away for her.
Sign her up for a service like Med-Alert,
so that she can reach help if she falls or
is otherwise incapacitated in her home.
The button can be worn around the neck or
as a wrist band, and eliminates the worry
of her not being able to get to a phone when
she needs it most.
- Keep
abreast of her health concerns.
If Mom has a problem, research it on the internet
and find out how you can best encourage and
help her. Send
her books or pamphlets that might be of assistance
to her.
- Make
a "date" to have your annual physical exams
either together or (if she lives in another
area) on the same day, so that you can hold
each other accountable for maintaining good
health.
She
loved you.
The
Debt: There is no doubt
about it, she thought of you all the time.
Her whole life, schedule and focus was raising
you. She still thinks of you, because a
mother's job is never done.
Paybacks:
- Everybody
likes to get mail! A
Mother's Day card is nice, but what about
a card a month?
These days, card sections are filled with
cards on every subject or no subject at all.
Just a whimsical card and a note to let her
know you're thinking of her will mean the
world.
- Buy
her phone cards so she can
call when she wants and not think of the cost
-- and call her often, yourself.
- Get
her wired! If mom isn't
already on the internet, get
her a computer -- basic systems
have come way down. If she doesn't want
to "mess with one of those computer things"
then why not look into just an e-mail
system like Earthlink's MailStation (link
takes you to a review of one system).
These units plug right into the power and
phone lines to send and receive e-mail so
she can instantly reach out and touch you
and her friends through the fun of e-mail.
There's a lot on this
list that you can do for Mom. Don't you
wish you could do it all? Probably too
expensive, though. Funny, but Mom was
doing all of that and more for you year in and
year out, and she never even thought about it.
Like they say, Motherhood
is not for wimps!
Happy
Mother's Day! |
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We
are enormously appreciative of the opportunity
to share our weekly newsletters with you.
We feel that much of the content is valuable
for anyone who purchases fine clothing and is
interested in their preservations and cleaning.
Click on the symbol to the right if your would
like to send this and future newsletters to
a friend.
Thanks a million, Ed and Mary
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The Iris
City Cleaners Connection
is
a weekly news letter dedicated to the interest
of fine garment care, restoration,
and conservation. It is published
in Mt Pleasant, Iowa by Iris City Cleaners and
is an extension of our services described in
www.iriscitycleaners.com
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