Don't Visit
It is clear during this crisis the older a person is, the more at risk they are. On mother's day there is a strong urge to visit mom. It's what we do. But tomorrow is different. How would you live with yourself if your mother got sick a week after you visited.
My mother reads my posts and would kill me if I mentioned her age, but I'll give you a hint, I'm the youngest of three and I'm 65.
We were planning to go to her house and sit in her backyard while she sat on her porch 15 ft away. The weather will preclude us from that (she lives in CT where it can be 5 degrees cooler). So we will zoom.
If anyone has special ideas on a socially distant Mother's Day, please post.
But remember, this is a chance to give your mother what she once gave you, the gift of life.
So You Want to Send Mom Flowers
Is it safe?. Well we bring food into the house and most of us are ok. But when I bring food into my house >I wipe down the food containers with disinfectant.
Do we know how long the virus is viable on flowers? No.
A lot of maybe and I can't find a CDC recommendation. Here is my thought extrapolated from what we know about virus transmission.
The main risk is likely from the packaging. Mom should remove the packaging outside if possible and throw it away. (Leave the front door open when you do are unpacking so you don't touch the door knob to get back in. Close the door with your foot or wait until after step 3)
Being careful not to touch anything else. Place the flowers somewhere where you will not bump into them constantly.
WASH YOUR HANDS.
And one last precaution, What is the first thing we do when we get a bunch of flowers? We smell them. NOT A GOOD IDEA. This is a respiratory virus. Sticking your face into something that might be contaminated and breathing in deeply, yeah, maybe not.
Without CDC guidance I can not be sure. This is what I came up with and then I found other articles on the web with the same thought. Here's the one I like.