Last-Minute Gift Ideas

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Are you one of the many people out scrambling to find last-minute gifts for your family? Are you looking for 'stocking stuffers' that your kids will like as much as the presents? Do you have to find a 'substitute' gift because the Latest Fad Toy your child wanted is sold out? Are you looking for a way to get 'last-minute' gifts that don't look like they were gotten at the last minute? Before you go fight the crowds, consider these ideas.

• Get a decorated mug or glass and fill it with candy or some other small treat. My nephews love Gummy Bears. For younger kids, perhaps use the drinking cup from a place setting made especially for them. You can find those at most 'big-box' stores (Walmart, etc) for a good price. It's fun to have presents 'split up' like that because it can build anticipation; 'hmm, I wonder what this thing goes with?' Make a game out of finding the rest of the set.
• On the same tip as above, get a nice basket or tin and fill it with trial- or travel-sized bath and body items. You can usually find these in the cosmetics section. This would probably work better for girls, but they do have items like this for boys. You could also do the same thing with small toys, candy or other snacks.
• Your son might like an electric razor or some nice aftershave, especially if he is That Kid Who's Been Shaving Since He Was Twelve that every school grade seems to have.
• Gift cards are your friend. Either get an all-purpose Visa or Amazon gift card, or find one for a particular store your child likes. Restaurant gift cards are good for teens who like to go out on dates. You can usually find a wide variety of cards in grocery, drug or 'big-box' stores. Now there are even cards for online stores such as iTunes that let them pack their devices with whatever songs or apps they want! This would be great for the many tech-savvy kids out there.
• We always enjoyed the 'retro' toys and candy you find in stores like Cracker Barrel. Remember 'Wooly Willy', that cartoon face you put a beard on with a magnet? Or those drawing pads you erased by pulling up the top sheet? You probably loved those; maybe your kids will too. The Fun Pad coloring books and small Etch-a-Sketches make for good stocking stuffers. As for candy, you can never go wrong with an Astropop, hard-candy sticks or one of those lollipops that are about the size of your head. :) Since stores like this are attached to restaurants and have specialty items, they might not be as crowded as other stores.

There, now you have a few ideas for last-minute presents your family will love. If nothing else, they will appreciate the effort and 'personal touch' you put into it.

Merry Christmas!

What *Not* To Get Your Teen For Christmas

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Here are a few suggestions about shopping for teenagers for Christmas.

1) If you get your child a car, get a used car in good condition rather than a fancy new model. I say this because a lot of teenagers are just learning to drive and are thus more likely to get into wrecks; it's a lot less expensive to fix and insure a used car than a new one. Even good kids like I was might still lack the control to handle some of the bigger, more powerful vehicles out there. My father fixed up one of my grandmother's old cars for me and my sister, and that was more than enough.

2) Don't spend a lot of money on the latest fads when it comes to clothes. With our luck, what is 'in' now will be out by the time they open their presents. That, and sizes can fits can vary among brands. What my parents used to do to solve this problem is to give us the money they would have spent on clothes for us-usually about $100-$200-and let us buy them ourselves. That way, we would know that what we got fit and looked good on us. If they didn't, we only had ourselves to blame. :) To be honest, half the fun was had in going out shopping with my sister and friends. You can't put that in a box!

3) Ditto the latest technology, at least sometimes. It's fine to get your kids an iPod or something like that, but it can get expensive if you have a child who insists on having the 'latest thing' even if what they already have still works.  Also, sometimes updates to operating systems or software are put out before the all bugs are worked out.  If you get your teenager something technological, get them something like an iPod or tablet that can easily be upgraded. After that, tell them they're on their own when it comes to apps and updates. Kids tend to find ways to keep using what they already have if they know that they'd have to pay for 'a new one'!

4) Don't buy your teen an exotic pet unless you've talked about it before and know that it's not a 'passing fancy'. I suppose you can think of pets in the same way as clothes and technology-sometimes a teen's tastes change so quickly that, by the time the gift is opened, they won't be interested anymore. My sister had a progression of rats (no, not hamsters, actual rats) that she cared for very well. I, on the other hand, would not have been as diligent because I had no attention span and was way too busy to even take care of a fish, let alone a rat! Once the 'novelty' wears off, the pet is left on its own, which isn't fair to the pet.

5) Gift cards are your friend. This is especially true when you find gift cards for online stores such as Amazon or iTunes. That way, they can load up their iPods or other devices with all the songs and apps they like without having to put forth a lot of money.