Memorializing Young Mother to Her Children

I would maybe send a gift card of some kind. Maybe google things in their area like inflatable places, indoor water parks, amusement parks, etc. He will not feel like planning or organizing anything for a while and maybe this will help him find something fun for his kids to do.

I also like the idea of an Omaha Steak gift box or what about Schwann's...do they ship?

I like the gift box idea and dinner idea and the quilt. Kids love getting things in the mail and if he wants to have something to cheer them up, sending a photo of their mom is not going to help. I know it's lovely, and if you have it, send it to the father to show the kids when they are older and would like to see more photos of her but I know that when I lost someone, I felt it and I know I'm not interested in "having fun" yet but it helps to not have to worry so much about other stuff, I just didn't want constant reminders of the loss. I get that enough from myself.

That's my opinion on the matter. Different people react differently but I just see the kids missing their mom more if they were sent photos of her.

A quilt (if you're a quilter) is a great idea.
I also LOVE the idea of sending any pictures you have of their mom, mom and dad, you & your husband with their parents to them. You can get copies of them if you don't want to give them up.
The children of my friend that recently passed, although older by 10 years , seemed most interested to hear about their mom through the memories of others, and to be told how much she loved them, and stories about when she was their age. A note/homemade journal of thought their dad could share with them could be wonderful.
Appropriate books, also.
OR a decorative tree/rhododendron for their yard that they could plant in her memory.
Really, I suspect they most want to hear about their mom, that she was lived and touched the lives of others and in what way/s.

My mom is a firm believer on providing cookies for kids that lose a mom! A little touch of normal as their world is turned upside down. I know they live far, but if you know of a great bakery near them, or an online source, I'd bet they'd love that.

Check out the meals from Omaha Steaks. It must be overwhelming for the father to have to do everything by himself now while trying to cope with his own grief. Very sad.

Go to the dollar store and get two handbaskets. Fill one with "5 year old boy stuff" and one with "10 year old girly stuff."

Then box each of them separately and mail them TO each of the children (c/o their dad, but put their names on the "to" line).

Children LOVE getting mail, and getting an entire FULL box of stuff they can play with and distract themselves with? Wonderful...plus, none of it is "keepsake" or fragile, so if they break an item there's no hurt feelings.

I think it's wonderfully kind of you to be thinking of them.

a book about a mothers love for her kids//

there is probably a book taht would be appropriate..

Do you have any pictures of her and her kids that perhaps he doesn't? My friends have some pretty crazy pictures of me that are funny as heck, really show my personality that my kids have never seen.

If you have pictures like that, send them to him. That is probably what he is looking for. I am pretty sure it was a blanket request so he will understand if you don't have anything like that.

You can invite other family members and friends to sign up on www.mealtrain.com to get the family some meals for awhile so they don't have to cook. Then you could get the 10 year old a nice new journal to write in and the 5 year old a nice small toy.

Hi there C.,
So sorry for your situation. Hopefully I can be some assistance. My brother died 8 month's ago leaving behind my niece's, ages 8 and 10. I bought them little craft kits. Wonderful for taking the mind off things for a bit. Also, I found they liked little colorful 'five and dime' toys. Example, during the wake, my younger niece loved showing me her pink, tin purse, that she could store treasures in. For a boy.. well... we don't have many boys in our family, but these little treasure's and trinkets are colorful, distracting and give kids a conversation starter. Don't worry, they are strong and will be able to mourn when they are ready. Hope this helps. It seems simplistic and tiny , but it cheers them up.

A tree would be a blessing. I also make and sell to hospice clay angel ornaments.
I have heard about making stuffed animals out of the shirt of the loved one who has passed. Something you could search. A statue of a happy angel for the yard. a quilt for each child.

Loosing a mother at any age is a tough one, I lost my mom at 24 and I still struggle with the loss. I would suggest for the 10 yr old a cool journal and a fancy pen. Include a little note saying that this is a special place where she can write all her memories of mommy and any feelings that she has. It is so important to acknowledge the feelings that you have about loosing a loved one. For the 5yr old maybe get a special photo album that he can fill with pictures of him and mom.

Since they are so far away, and they probably have their fair share of stuffed animals and toys, how about a Disney gift card? If he ever plans to take his girls to Disneyland or Disney World, he can use the gift card towards the purchase of the park tickets or anywhere at the park.

Also, if you have any photos of his wife, you should send them along with a note to the kids about any happy recollections you have of her. My mom died when I was 11 years old. I didn't know much about her life before motherhood, so I was so appreciative when I met some of her cousins and childhood friends at a relative's wedding. They told me about what a smart and popular girl she was when they were growing up.

Kids around here love Five Below. (If you don't have one-its like a dollar store with nothing over $5 so they have some better merchandise) Maybe send a $25 card for each kid...they can have a shopping 'spree'.
Or you could do the spree yourself and send each kid a care package filled with lots of fun stuff that you could get at a store like that...also some goodies/candy, etc. Pack it in with lots of colorful confetti.

Or maybe a card for Build a BEar.

"Cheer Them Up".....Children who have lost their mother need more. They are young now, but if you write a letter telling them how much you love their mother and how much she loved them from the time she knew they would be born and all the way through their lives, and perhaps have photos of happy times that will become a most cherished keepsake. Life is not always cheerful, but it is up to those who are family and close friends to give comfort and let people know Gods love will get them through difficult times.

I know this is a heart breaker...thoughts and prayers are with you and this family.

Bless you and them. How about a box of child-friendly dvds?

I love the quilt idea. There are also beautiful, soft, lovely colored blankets in the stores these days. I also love the journal idea with a special pen. A couple ideas I have is to give the kids special boxes (hobby lobby) to fill with stuff that they'd like to share with their mom (like rocks, pictures they draw). Also, amazon has a beautiful crystal rainbow window cling solar powered by the sun. On sunny days they can chase the rainbows around the room in celebration of their mom. http://www.amazon.com/Kikkerland-1588S-Solar-Powered-Rain...

Your title suggest memorializing while your descriptions sounds more like something fun for the children instead of flowers. There is a difference between those two requests. Unless he's wanting ways for his children to remember their mother I would not send pictures or letters about memories. I would send toys instead of flowers.

Try http://www.cookiesbydesign.com/ A friend of mine sent cookies to another friends children when they had a death in the family and it was all the kids talked about.

I posted a very similar situation some time ago, and oddly enough, I was just thinking about the family this morning! One idea I received was giving materials for a memory box. I just loved this idea! The memory box is a place to go filled with postive memories of the person. I gave stickers, glue, paint etc from Michael's..to decorate the box. The children can put any mementos from their loved one, pictures, write letters to that person etc..Good luck, C.. It's very thoughtful of you to do something for them.

Send them tickets or a gift card to do something:
Movies
Museum
Pottery Place
Kid-themed restaurant (Dave & Busters)

If you knew their mother or could share a story with them, include that in the card. Otherwise, just send them a "thinking of you" card along with the gift certificates.

You can also call a local restaurant and explain the situation. Ask what they would charge to have dinner delivered to the house or call a diner and ask if they could do a weeks worth of "brown bag lunches" from you. You know, sandwiches, chips, dessert, fruit cup, etc that dad could redeem when needed- one less thing for him to worry about.

When my nephew died at age 2 my BIL's company did this and it was a really wonderful idea. All they had to do was call the local diner and say "we need two lunches for tomorrow" and they picked them up (prepackaged and ready to go) 15 minutes later.