 
Being a mother is hard, but being a military mom is one of the toughest things around. Biologically, women are connected to their children in ways science cannot even understand and it is unlike any connection children can have with their fathers. Not to say that mothers have deeper connections with their kids, but there is a unique relationship that blossoms when someone is nurtured in the womb of another human.
Military moms face unique challenges in their relationship with the military and their families. As service members, like their male counterparts, they might have to leave their children and possibly deploy. Military moms must also train, and that can lead them away from family for an extended period.
That said, shopping for these tough women who wear the uniform can be easy with a little thought. So, the venerated veteran employees of USAMM, some of them former military moms, headed to a meeting room where they discussed what would be the best military mom gifts. Below are their ideas of the top military mom gifts, in no order of precedence. We hope it will help folks find military moms great military mom gifts for Mother’s Day.
Personal Military Mom Gifts
One veteran employee at USAMM mentioned that in the summers when on vacation as a child, he and his mother would wake before the rest of this family and walk the shoreline on the beach. One morning, he and his mom found two perfect sand dollars. Years later, he put them in a shadowbox and gave it to her as a Mother’s Day gift. He instantly became her favorite child, or so he says.
The point is, military mom gifts should be meaningful and sentimental, so consider that when you are looking for gifts for military moms. Military moms wear uniforms but it doesn’t mean they are emotionless robots as Hollywood sometimes likes to portray veterans. Finding a nice shadow box and filling it with meaningful mementos will never be a bad gift.
One USAMM veteran employee talked about his spouse whose father had served and died in a training accident. He assembled his father-in-law’s militaria which he had collected by doing research and talking to family members. He placed all of it in a shadow box and presented it to his wife. Gifts of this nature are deeply personal military mom gifts and USAMM’s team of experts can help assemble a great shadow box for any veteran.
Service-Related Military Mom Gifts
Shopping for military mom gifts is actually pretty easy for children whose mothers are in the military. Military uniforms always need something. Whether it is new ribbon racks, badges, rank, hats or boots, these items tend to need replacing regularly. It seems there is always a need for something.
However, giving uniform items as gifts is a slippery slope. For starters, selecting the wrong size or the wrong uniform item will force the purchaser to have to manage a return, or worse. The return will be put on the military mom and she will have to manage it.
This is why every top gift list written by the staffers of the Depot Blog always includes gift cards. Gift cards are useful and practical military mom gifts because it enables a military mom to purchase what she needs, when she needs it. USAMM gift cards are ideal military mom gifts for Mother’s Day.
Mothers who are in the ranks can benefit from other military mom gifts that are more oriented to their assigned duties and not necessarily uniform related. Multitools, knives, and any gear that makes their jobs easier to perform are also solid military mom gifts.
Service Pride Military Mom Gifts
Service pride military mom gifts are the most fun to purchase and give because they allow military moms and opportunity to express their personalities. T-shirts, stickers, hats, and other types of gifts are fun and the best part is since many of these military mom gifts are affordable, several gifts can be presented or they can be included in a nice gift basket along with some of the military moms favorite treats.
Drinkware
The military is a coffee-fueled environment so getting military moms high-quality military coffee mugs are great military mom gifts. USAMM offers customization on many of their items such as tumblers.
But there are military moms who aren’t coffee drinkers. If that’s the case, then consider purchasing quality drink sets so she can keep her military mom spirits ready to go when she is off duty.
Undecided about coffee mugs or cocktail glasses, then consider the Battle Mug which can handle both hot and cold beverages and it is fully customizable. Personalizing these mugs makes great military mom gifts and even better keepsakes. She can either raise a toast at the unit cookout or start her day with a steaming cup of joe.
Car Bling
Military moms, like other military personnel, take pride in their rides. USAMM offers a lot of military related car gifts that would make great Mother’s Day gifts. License plate frames, decals, badges and other items can help a military mom show her military service pride.
Shopping for a military mom does not have to be difficult and break the bank. Gifts that recognize a mother’s military service are always going to be welcomed by the recipient. As we know, less than one percent of the U.S. population will ever wear the uniform. A fraction of that one percent are military mothers so they are a unique group and they deserve gifts fitting of who they are and what they do.