It happens every single year. You wake up, scroll through social media, and suddenly realize your feed is plastered with bouquets and sentimental tributes. The panic sets in. You forgot. If you are looking back or planning a retrospective gift, you need to know that when is Mother's Day for 2017 falls on Sunday, May 14.
It’s always the second Sunday in May in the United States. Simple, right? Well, not really if you're living in the UK or elsewhere. But for those of us stateside, May 14 was the big day back in 2017.
Why the date for Mother's Day 2017 feels so late
Some years Mother's Day feels like it sneaks up in early May. In 2017, it sat right in the middle. Because the holiday is dictated by the day of the week rather than a fixed calendar date, it can swing anywhere from May 8 to May 14. 2017 hit the absolute latest possible date.
This matters more than you’d think. A late Mother's Day usually means better weather for brunch and peak bloom for peonies, which are basically the unofficial flower of the holiday. If you remember that year being particularly warm, that’s why. The sun was out, the mid-May heat was kicking in, and the floral industry was working overtime.
Honestly, the "second Sunday" rule is a bit of a headache for planners. You can't just memorize a date like you do for Christmas. You have to check the calendar every single time. For 2017, that Sunday, May 14 slot meant it coincided with several college graduations and mid-month travel surges.
The messy history behind the day
We often think of this as a "Hallmark Holiday." That’s actually kinda unfair to the woman who started it. Anna Jarvis is the name you’ll hear most often. She campaigned for the holiday to honor her own mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, who was a peace activist during the Civil War.
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But here is the twist: Anna Jarvis ended up hating what the holiday became. By 1917—exactly a century before our 2017 date—she was already protesting the commercialization. She hated the pre-printed cards. She thought they were a lazy way to show affection. She actually spent the later years of her life and her entire inheritance trying to get the holiday abolished. Talk about a plot twist.
The 2017 celebration marked the 103rd official Mother's Day since President Woodrow Wilson signed it into law in 1914. It’s a century-long tradition that has evolved from a simple church service with white carnations into a multi-billion dollar economic engine.
Regional differences that trip people up
If you were trying to send flowers to a mum in London back in 2017, and you waited until May 14, you were way too late. Like, months late.
The UK celebrates "Mothering Sunday," which is tied to the Christian lunar calendar. In 2017, the UK celebrated on March 26. This is why the internet gets so confusing every spring; half the world is posting about their moms while the other half is just going about a normal Tuesday.
- United States: May 14, 2017
- United Kingdom: March 26, 2017
- Mexico: Always May 10 (which was a Wednesday in 2017)
- France: May 28, 2017 (they usually do the last Sunday in May)
It’s a logistical nightmare for international families. You've basically got a three-month window where someone, somewhere, is celebrating.
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What people actually spent in 2017
Money talks. And in 2017, it shouted. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), spending for Mother's Day in 2017 hit record highs at the time. We are talking about $23.6 billion.
People weren't just buying cards. They were buying jewelry, "experience" gifts like spa days, and high-end electronics. The average person spent about $186. That might seem like a lot, but when you consider that it covers jewelry (the biggest spend category at $5 billion) and lavish dinners out, it adds up fast.
Interestingly, 2017 saw a massive spike in "special outings." People were tired of just giving objects. They wanted to take Mom to a vineyard or a Broadway show. It was the beginning of the "experience economy" really taking over the holiday landscape.
The flower frenzy of May 14
You cannot talk about May 14, 2017, without talking about flowers. Roughly 76% of people who celebrated that year bought flowers.
The logistics are insane. To get a bouquet to your door on that Sunday, those flowers were likely cut in Colombia or Ecuador weeks in advance. They traveled in refrigerated planes and trucks to make it to a local florist who then had to work a 20-hour shift on Saturday night. If you’ve ever wondered why a dozen roses costs twice as much in May, that’s your answer. Supply and demand is a brutal teacher.
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Common misconceptions about the date
A lot of people think Mother's Day is always the second to last Sunday. Nope. It's the second Sunday. If May starts on a Saturday, the second Sunday is May 9. If May starts on a Monday, the second Sunday is May 14.
That was the case in 2017. May 1 started on a Monday. That pushed the holiday as far back as it can possibly go.
Another weird myth? That it’s a religious holiday. While it has roots in church services, it's a secular holiday in the U.S. There’s no "official" religious requirement, though many congregations hold special services. In 2017, many churches used the May 14 date to focus on themes of maternal lineage and community support.
Making the most of the memory
If you are looking back at 2017 to piece together a scrapbook or a digital archive, knowing it was May 14 helps anchor your photos. Maybe you have pictures of a brunch that felt particularly spring-like. Maybe that was the year you finally got the whole family together.
For those trying to plan future dates based on this pattern, the calendar repeats in a cycle. But you don't need to do the math. Just remember: if the month starts on a Monday, get ready for a late one.
Actionable Next Steps for Mother's Day Planning:
- Check the calendar early: For any given year, find the first Monday of May. The following Sunday is Mother's Day.
- Book reservations three weeks out: If you're aiming for a Sunday brunch, the 2017 data showed that most prime spots were filled by late April.
- Audit your international contacts: If you have family in the UK or Australia, set a separate calendar alert for March. You don't want to be the one sibling who forgets the "other" Mother's Day.
- Verify historical dates for records: If you are organizing old digital photos from 2017, search your metadata for "May 14" to find the specific celebrations from that Sunday.
Mother's Day remains one of the most significant dates on the cultural calendar, not just for the sentiment, but for the sheer logistical feat it requires from the floral and restaurant industries. Whether it falls on the 8th or the 14th, the pressure is always the same.