What the actual hell to get my mother for Christmas? Serious inspiration needed.

[GranOakley]

I have no idea what to buy my mum for Christmas. I mean, no idea.

I've already got her a whiskey selection box
And an air fryer cook book.
But I can think of nothing else.

She's in bad health so doesn't really go anywhere or do anything.
She has diabetes so lots of easy presents are off the menu.
She doesn't watch TV.
She can't read very well.
She recently sorted her bathroom out and has a metric tonne of smelly bath shit.

She needs shit loads of work doing in her house which I've offered to help with and pay towards. I've even offered to buy her a new house.
She doesn't want these things.

Please, please give me some inspiration.....

An Alexa? And some of the plugs / light bulbs that are compatible with it so she can turn lights on and off, adjust the heating etc without moving? I mean, it's amazing for my disabled mate but possibly not great if she needs to be up and about!

And a Tesco voucher.

Oooh, I like that!
Unfortunately, she's on a bit of a "declutter before I die" vibe so I don't know if she'd thank me for bringing in new things when she's palming her old shit off onto me trying to pare back.

I love that idea but there are multi-faceted reasons why it won't work...

Trouble is that my mum can't use anything more complicated than a calculator. She has a tablet through which she can access YouTube (see above re. conspiracy nutjobs) and can just about check her emails (she hasn't mastered sending emails yet).

Although Alexa is very simple, she'd be very resistant - "I can't use that".

Plus, she's full to the brim on conspiracy theories about Bill Gates harvesting all our data and constantly listening to us so I don't think she'd welcome Alexa into her home.

Plus, I'd have to travel to her to fit all the compatible plugs and lights.

It doesn't take up much room at all and it's pretty interesting to see it change so might give her something to get involved in.

An amaryllis in a pot.

A pretty tree for the garden that she can see from the sofa.

Arrange delivery for when you next visit & can plant it for her.

My Aunt loves her zwitscherbox, though it may come under your Mum's clutter edict. My Aunt's eyesight isn't good enough to read for long and doesn't get out as much as she'd like but the sounds from the box make her almost believe she's out in the country, she says.

A lovely seasonal planter pot for the doorstep

I got my mum some thermal tops as she's always cold. Also heated throw, audio book, posh chocolates. She asked for mugs with the children on so I got some from Moon pig

Another vote for a dressing gown.

If she uses an air fryer.... tongs and a silicon oven glove?

Some come pillows for the settee?

What's a cone pillow, please? I just googled and this was one of the search results. 😅

These are great ideas, thank you. Giving me some great starting points!

I'm looking at a nice sherpa fleece blanket now. I don't think a heated blanket will work too well. She started menopause in 1995 and has maintained a core body temperature of basically boiling point since then

Carafe. She can have water next to the sofa or in the fridge on hot days. That's my idea for my mum!

Freddies Flowers do gifts or subscriptions. The flowers are gorgeous and last for ages!
Freddies Flowers

My referral code is on the referrals board for bloom and wild. £10 off

If she's worried about being spied upon, maybe she'd like a device from here https://www.spycraft.co.uk/counter-spy-gadgets/ 😁

One of those picture frames that you can link to your and other family members phones so you can 'push' photos to it for her. Needs no skills from her end apart from the initial switch on and connect to WiFi which you could do for her. A disabled relative I have absolutely loved this!

Alex's or Google home to listen to stuff on?

Audio books, podcasts.
Can you get wheel chair and get her out?

help with house still.. What a wonderful daughter you are.

Also cashmere socks and fingerless gloves.

What about a subscription to Audible?

Digital photo frame? You could upload all her favourites & she could enjoy the rotation of all the family photos?

My mum is similar this year and not in best of health, I've gotten her a heated throw because she sits a lot with a light blanket anyway, I'm also not sure what else!!

Gather together all the nice family photos from the year, especially the children, and pics with her in, and then have them printed into a lovely hard back book. She will love that much better than some unnecessary item.

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone!
I've ordered a pair of cashmere socks, a blanket, a posh bottle of hand soap, and a fancy box to store her medicines in.

She wouldn't appreciate photos at all. She's not big on sentimentality and not actually very interested in us or our lives, so I think she'd be totally baffled as to why I'm giving her pictures of our heads as a gift 🤣

She's had a few issues this week at her house so my main aim at Xmas is to persuaded her to move house - taking out a mortgage for her has got to be a top-tier Christmas gift, right?! 🤷‍♀️