How to Give Birthday Gifts that People Actually Want
Gift giving is an art. Some people have a knack for it and others . . . well, don’t. I am not a natural gift giver. I can handle the under 5 crowd but once they get past that my creativity is definitely lacking. I love making people feel special with gifts though so I really do make an effort.
I have a few tricks that help me come up with perfect birthday gifts. With 6 kids I’ll have plenty of opportunities to practice my gift giving skills so hopefully I’ll master this eventually.
Keep an ongoing birthday list. You know how you always have great ideas, think you’ll remember them and then don’t. I do that all the time! I’ve learned though. Now I keep an ongoing list of birthday or holiday gift ideas for everyone in my family. Anytime I get an idea for a gift (or even an interest that can help me choose a gift later) I add it to the list.
Look for something they need. There’s always fun ways to tie in needs as gifts (and it satisfies my practical side). Have a kid who needs new clothes? Look for some fun options they’ve been eyeing. Know someone having a new baby? Hunt for a great deal on a new camera so they can capture all those great “firsts”.
Look for something they want. We all need something fun sometimes too. Pay attention to things your child (or anyone else) is eyeing and notice the things they linger on when you go to the store. Fun gifts don’t even need to cost a lot of money if you are paying attention to someone’s interests. One year my son’s favorite gift was a slinky that cost under $5 because he had never played with one before. Get creative and figure out what the person you are buying a gift for would really enjoy.
Let someone else do the work. Now I’m all for coming up with well-thought out gifts that show how much you care, but there’s nothing wrong with getting some help with that. Best Buy has a great gift center that let’s you search for gifts for him, her, teens, kids, or even by the price you want to spend. It’s a great option when you need a gift and are short on ideas.
Have them create a wish list. My gift giving life got so much simpler once I started asking for gift suggestions. The gift is still a surprise, you just have some great ideas to get you started. Many stores, like Best Buy, have an online wish list option that lets someone add some gift ideas that they would love. You can keep this wish list up year-round and add to it when you have new ideas so it’s perfect if you need ideas for your kids.
