How to Make an At Home Spa for Mom

The countdown to Christmas is officially upon us!  An important question your kids may be asking is “what does mom want?”

*Along with kids jingle-belling, there’s everyone yelling for mom to come here*

Mommy wants a break, a nap, or maybe a day that is all about her. Mother’s Day should not be the only day she gets some pampering.

Motherhood is amazing. It is also exhausting and at the end of the day moms just want to relax and unwind. As tempting as a mani/pedi/facial body scrub anything that does not involve tiny humans wanting or needing something may be, spas are expensive.

At somewhere between $80 to $180 an hour or $200 to $300 for a day package that includes separate charges (massage with a 20% tip) for treatments at the spa, it can get really pricey.

While she sits for even the least expensive spa treatment, mom will be tallying up how much it costs in terms of diapers, food, and childcare.

Between the expense and limited free time of moms year round, a day spa guilt trip may not be feasible but she may not want that anyway.

How to create an At Home Spa

Here are some ways to make your mom a day spa without leaving the house:

• Clean the bathroom. This is always a nice gesture but a clean tub will make the rest of these far more enticing and relaxing.
• Take a bowl full of Epsom salts or sea salt and a couple of drops of lavender essential oil and you have a bath soak. You can use any essential oil, lavender is just most common. By making this a DIY you know that it is natural and chemical free. Set this beside the tub.
• Bring the facial to her. There are plenty of DIY recipes for Bentonite clay masks out there. Simple and cost-effective as they may be, mom maybe wants this one store bought. A natural clay detox mask is pretty inexpensive anyway.
• Bring the pedicure to her. Because you have already cleaned the tub and bathroom floor mom may want to preserve the memory and avoid tracking in any residue from the house. It’s fine though because there is a foot bath waiting for her beside the facial mask. (right?)
• Take any container that holds water, put some warm water in it with a bit of natural foot soak and let her decide how long she wants to sit there before taking a bath in the salts you prepared.

Now it is time to have the talk with your children

It may seem counterintuitive to leave mom alone when you are trying to pamper her, but it is totally fine. In fact, see if daddy or grandma and grandpa will take you to the park, or the library, the zoo three towns over. Mom will be fine.

There are things Dad can do to make this experience even better. Having candles strategically placed in the bathroom and lit by dad will create the soothing glowing effect of any day spa. Candlelight is just visual ambiance so get some inexpensive tea light candles from any store and have fun with it.

Soothing Fragrances

For that spa fragrance, you can use essential oils. Even without an oil burner, you can infuse the room with the scent of lavender by putting a drop or two on a warm, wet towel or in the bath.

If you have little ones underfoot it may just be nice to put them up for approximately thirty minutes with a bentonite clay mask on them. This is one mom can do on her own without feeling guilty because tiny humans did a lot and all she wants to do is squeeze them tight for being so thoughtful.

While mom would really love an hour to herself in the bathroom surrounded by candles and essential oil infused water, what she wants more is a tiny bit of time for a face or foot mask once or twice a week.

By the way, moms if you are reading this, you can bust out a cheap DIY spa treatment just by having some super simple things on hand. And all without breaking the bank:

• Bentonite clay ($10-$20)
• Essential oils (this one varies greatly by brand and quality but they last a long time and a little goes a long way)
• Apple Cider Vinegar ($2-$5)
  Epsom Salts ($2-$5)
• Pinterest (it goes without saying that this will need to be done approximately 36 hours in advance or you will spend your entire chunk of time trying to figure out what to do)

It is really hard to do everything and take time for yourself. These are just a few ideas on how to do it at home guilt-free.