<p>It’s nice to know I’m not the only one struggling with gift buying. There are some good ideas on this thread, too. One of my, admittedly self-imposed, constraints is that I won’t buy anything made in the PRC. Well, to be honest, I will buy an item that’s made in China if an alternative is not available and it’s a need vs. a want. As you might guess, there’s not much that fits that criteria.</p>
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<p>I hope it is only the full set of books for kids, not the complete Dahl …</p>
<p>For people who have the funds to buy themselves what they want, I think consumables and experiences, like gourmet food gifts, parent-funded family travel, or theater tickets make nice gifts. And if you can hit on that one item that someone looks forward to receiving from you every year, you’ve taken the pressure off going forward. My husband’s grandmother used to send a box of See’s chocolates (which, at the time, were not available everywhere) and the family looked forward to that every year. If she’d searched for a new idea or “something different,” they would have been disappointed. We had a few years of sending a box of steaks to my sister-in-law and her husband and them sending us a box of fancy pears. We agreed this would make a lovely gift every year. (Eventually we decided to stop sending one another gifts at all…but, honestly, I’d never buy myself a box of Harry and David pears so anyone who wants to send me a box, that would be a lovely gift!)</p>
<p>If there is something I’d like to have but wouldn’t buy for myself, not because I can’t afford it but because it seems too indulgent, or because it’s kind of a pain in the neck to get it, that is the perfect gift, and a number of the gourmet food gifts fall in that category. So, these days, do theater tickets a lot of the time! I get my husband uber-pricey soap that I have to order from the Virgin Islands every year for Father’s Day. It’s not just the cost, but also that I go to the effort to order it that makes it a gift. And what makes it perfect for both of us is that he needs more every year. </p>
<p>Of course, some people have enough money that nothing is an indulgence to them. Then, things that take effort (like compiling family videos onto DVDs, or scanning photos, collecting family recipes, etc) make a nice gift. My mother-in-law, who needed little and had no room for anything, appreciated it when we hit on giving her a photo calendar and a photo brag book to carry in her purse each year. I collaborated with my sister-in-law.</p>
<p>I realize some ideas are better executed as a gift sent to the recipient’s home and don’t address the need to have a box under the tree that will be unwrapped at a particular time, but they could work for families that are dispersed at this time of year.</p>
<p>sorghum,
Thanks!! See, that is what happens when I write early in AM, pre-coffee. </p>
<p>So, has anyone else looked at those Brookstone projected keyboards?</p>
<p>Was having this conversation with D1 a couple of weeks ago with this context: D2 has a SO now of seven months and they are now living together and have already talked wedding; so it is very serious. We have met SO once. In passing, I asked D1 (who has also met SO) if she thought it would be appropriate for us to get SO something for Christmas, although he won’t be here (D2 will be here and could take back a present to him from us). She said when she met SO, one of the things they had in common was West Wing, so D2 suggested a season of West Wing DVDs. Now I just need to confirm with D2 that he doesn’t already have any (D1 was under the impression that he didn’t). D1 has often asked for DVDs of certain series that she likes for gift-giving occasions, so that might be a good idea for those here looking.</p>
<p>If your kids and their SO’s are flying in you might want to order gifts online and have them shipped to where they live. It’s hard enough to fly at the holidays without having to haul a lot of extra stuff. Also as someone pointed out upthread, some items (food and such) can’t be put n carry on bags. I realize that this might not work if the people involved are into having stuff to unwrap on the holiday.</p>
<p>We will probably give S (HS senior) money toward a weekend trip as he loves to travel. D is out of college and working and we already gave her some money for furnishing the new apartment. I will mostly stick to doing stockings for the two of them as well as for D’s fiance. Most likely will end up buying each a few clothing items, they like that. Both kids will have gifts from family to open. My parents always give cash and the kids NEVER complain about that. My MIL will give some cash, but also likes to buy something for them to open.</p>
<p>S’s SO is coming at Thanksgiving but will be with her family across the country for Christmas, so we will celebrate then. We got them Wicked tickets where they live together. I know they will be thrilled. I will also get a small Vera something to send to her home for Christmas. We love her dearly. S wants help paying for a new computer, check that one off, now the college bound daughter who never wants a thing but rest from senior year classes, college & scholarship applications :)</p>
<p>teriwitt…Amazon has the whole complete West Wing series (reg. $229) on sale for $75…</p>
<p>Any idea for how long??? I would love that!</p>
<p>After watching 60 Minutes last night, I now have an idea for my D(who is a mom) and her H. And while they are not surfers or mountain climbers, they are parents who will be able to record terrific video of my grandbabies with the GoPro camera. :)</p>
<p>Theatre tickets are always a hit in our family. One D loves antique needlework and I found her a perfect piece a couple of months ago at an antique show. Another D and her significant other love to ski so they’re getting season passes to the mountain where they ski. Two of my sons-in-law are golfers so the possibilities there are endless. </p>
<p>And we always give each of them a check to deposit into Tax Free Savings Accounts (we’re in Canada). </p>
<p>DeskPotato, those pears are delicious, aren’t they? Have never tasted pears as good anywhere else.</p>
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<p>Wow!! Unfortunately, I don’t know if he has any seasons at all. Will try to talk to D2 tonight and get an answer from her. Thanks for the info!!</p>
<p>^^^ And if you order it within the next hour, you get free shipping to arrive tomorrow! </p>
<p>Just called D2; her first words to me were not hello, but, “Can I call you back in a minute?” So I’m waiting, patiently.</p>
<p>Youdon’tsay - here’s the link </p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> west wing complete series: Movies & TV](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_9?url=search-alias%3Dmovies-tv&field-keywords=west+wing+complete+series&sprefix=West+Wing%2Cmovies-tv%2C226]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_9?url=search-alias%3Dmovies-tv&field-keywords=west+wing+complete+series&sprefix=West+Wing%2Cmovies-tv%2C226)</p>
<p>D2 just called me back and it’s a go! Just ordered it. </p>
<p>When I told her what I was calling about, she shared that her SO had dropped a comment to her that he was probably going to send along something with her for us, so I’m glad I brought it up.</p>
<p>Added bonus: when I signed onto my Amazon account, I discovered I still had credit with them from a gift card, so it ended up costing me less.</p>
<p>This year I will have my daughters BF to shop for too. One of them is spending the holiday with us so that means I will get a stocking for him in addition to gifts. Guy stockings are challenging for me.</p>
<p>I got one! Thanks!</p>
<p>lje, the stocking gift my ds1 loved a couple of years ago what this cheap, plastic container of colored zip ties. He’s used them for all kinds of things. And the container took up a lot of stocking space. ;)</p>
<p>My kids like those multitools and mini flashlights. Food items also take up space in stockings and are very welcome.</p>
<p>My mom gets all the men in the family new fleece grinch pajama pants every Christmas. She bought them for my dad once as a joke, and then started buying them for all the boyfriends, and now it’s a yearly thing. My fiance has quite the collection.</p>
<p>Eventually I think my mom will transition to getting us couple gifts, probably when she has grandkids to spoil instead of us (a year or two!?). We both get a bunch of little nice things now. We are pumping FMIL for info about my fiance’s favorite toys when he was little, my mom wants to get him something “nostalgic.” My mom gets a lot of material for him from my dad, as they are a lot alike. They bought him some sort of fancy hard drive or something for his birthday last year, this year he got an electric drill. Mom always asks me for ideas for myself but by the time I think of anything she’s already figured out a bunch of stuff herself. I’ve really wanted some nice driving gloves the last couple of years but no one will buy them for me… I had them in my hand to buy them for myself last year and put them down.</p>
<p>My fiance and I did stockings for each other last year. He got a lot of candy in his, but I also got him a nice measuring tape (he had a tool kit without one), christmas socks, some lottery scratch off cards, and some restaurant gift cards for places near his work so he could go to lunch. Guy stockings are hard but not too bad once you get going.</p>
<p>My West Wing DVD set came today!!</p>
<p>As I get older, the last thing that I want is more “stuff.” I don’t have a lot of storage space where I live, have everything that I really need, and absolutely hate waste. Sure, I’m still in my thirties, but I much prefer things that I can eat or do, rather than more stuff.</p>