Gift Ideas that aren’t Just Stuff; Want ideas for things that will last? For things that won’t end up forgotten in a month? Ideas for kids and adults!
Need gift ideas that aren’t just stuff for the kids because they already have so much? Now don’t get me wrong. There is not a thing wrong with buying toys for kids! There are just times that a different idea is good.
Many of these ideas even work for adults! How many times do we wonder what to get Aunt Gertie or Uncle Bob for Christmas? They already have everything! There are also great ideas here for them!
Tips if your child already has “so many” toys:
When my boys were little, they did have so many toys. They were toys that were lovingly given to them and toys that they enjoyed. They were just too many to have out at one time. We did three things:
We did a swap with close friends.
Choose a couple of toys and swap them for a few weeks or a month. If the kids are real young, they may not even miss them and when they return, they will be like getting new toys again. You can do this with a few friends or just one. Do it with a few toys or a box, whatever you are comfortable with.
Put some in the attic or basement for a while.
Pack some up and put them away for a couple of months or even weeks. We would rotate toys. When new ones came out, the ones they had been playing with would go “away” for a while. The ones they hadn’t seen for a while were new and fresh and play time was fun again. There were always some toys that never went in the “away” box because they were favorites.
Give some away.
Of course, there is always a time to give some away and make room for more or different or just make room.
A fun way to wrap the gift:
My parents gave our boys a basketball net one year and it was just one big gift for all of them so to make it a fun thing, they made it a word scramble. They put each letter of BASKETBALL NET on index card pieces and they had to unscramble them to figure out what their gift was. It took a little longer and was a fun way to do it. It also took team work!
The Gift Ideas:
Experiences:
Time doing something as a family is memory building at its finest. Buy tickets for the family to do something together. If just the child is interested, just get him/her a ticket or maybe a season pass. Maybe get two tickets so they can take a sibling or friend.
Take pictures so the gift lasts forever!
Ticket to races
movie date
Go carts
Trampoline (affiliate link) park
Ziplining
Snowmobiling
Art museum
Broadway show
Amusement park
Laser tag
Paintball
Sporting event
Ice skating
Escape room
Bowling
Sledding
Rock Wall Climbing
Horseback riding
Train ride like Polar Express
Tickets to Christmas show
Family gift to community pool (maybe include swimsuits to unwrap for each person)
Zoo; we got the behind the scenes membership at the zoo for a couple of years and absolutely loved it!
Museum
Aquarium passes
Overnight weekend to ski resort or hotel with cool indoor swimming getaway like Great Wolf Lodge
Date night coupons for movie and ice cream, lunch and shopping, a day at the zoo or dinner at a fancy restaurant or whatever the person would enjoy most; the most important ingredient is time together.
Lessons for something they would enjoy:
Lessons for something a child has been wanting to learn could literally change their life!
If you want them to have something to open, you could always give them what they will need for their lessons; a swimsuit, the instrument, a helmet to ride, etc.
Swimming lessons
Horseback riding
Cooking
Karate or other martial arts
Sewing
Pottery
Diving
Instrument
Singing
Ballet/Dance
Art
Gymnastics
Subscriptions:
A subscription to a magazine for a subject they are interested in or fun box of goodies that comes in the mail is all kinds of fun! Kids love to get mail with their name on it and a monthly gift gives over and over all year long!
These are especially great if you can’t see them for their special occasion. It is like you are visiting them each time their gift comes in the mail!
Disclosure: This article probably contains affiliate links. If you click one of these links and make a purchase, I will make a small commission, at no extra cost to you.
Green Kid Crafts; ages 2-10, choose your age, get 4-6 learning activities and a 12-page magazine in each box, science or crafts, a green company and they plant a tree for every order
Reveal Book Box; Choose your child’s age, choose month to month or prepay for best discount; whichever suits you and best of all, for every box of books you get, they donate a box to children in need.
Night In Boxes; for ages 3-8 to help kids “play with a purpose” (This company also has Date Night boxes for parents 😊)
Up & Away Adventures; each box comes packed with things to take you to another country and explore it with all five senses! It includes games and activities and can be done with the whole family.
Monti Kids Box; Montessori toys and material designed for your child, ages 0-36 months
If you like this idea but none of these appeal to you, click to browse over 500 more ideas.
Magazine subscription
Highlights
Ranger Rick
Zoo Books
National Geographic for Kids
Cricket
LadyBug
Homemade Kits:
If a monthly subscription is a bit much for something, why not make your own? Here are a few ideas and I am sure you could come up with your own too. What is your child interested in? What smaller items would come together to make a fun project or evening that you could put together to make a kit? Have fun with this!
Campfire kit; marshmallows, chocolate bars, graham crackers, campfire sticks, etc.
Movie night kit; pj’s, new movie, popcorn, maybe special pillow or bean bag chair
Bath kit; towel and maybe pj’s, bubble bath, bath finger paint, bath toys
Baking kit: include things that will last and the child will have as his/her own like a mixing bowl and measuring cups, and then cake mix, frosting, cupcake shells and various candies to make cupcakes and decorate them.
Crafting kit: you could have a specific craft in mind here that you found on Pinterest and gathered materials for or go to Dollar Tree and have fun gathering colored paper, scissors, pompoms, glue, stickers, etc. for the child to make whatever they are led to make
Journal kit: journal, pens in different colors, mug child would like, hot cocoa mixes or tea bags; could be tailored to boy or girl’s taste
Useful items:
Many of these items can be used even as the child grows into adulthood. Some will just be enjoyed. My kids really enjoyed having their favorite characters on their bedsheets, towels, gloves and hats and they were useful and needed too.
Art supplies
Journal
Fun pillowcase or sheets for their bed
Fun bath towels, wash cloths
Walkie talkies
flashlights
binoculars
Telescope
Microscope
Family recipe cards or homemade book—I made this 3-ring binder recipe book for my new daughter in law for her bridal shower. She loved it! I added family recipes to start and it is easy to print off new recipes she likes, hole punch them and add them into the sections. I just got stickers and stuck them to the dividers to make them pretty.
Cookbooks
Building toys like Legos and K’nex
Models and Kits to encourage building and thinking
Wooden Brain Puzzles; challenge their minds with these puzzles!
Science kits
Board games
Fishing pole, tackle box, supplies and date to go fishing
Nerf guns and have wars
Bird house kit to build together
Camping gear, tent
Sleeping bag
Basketball net, basketball
Baseball, glove, etc.
Hockey net, sticks, puck, mask
Football and gear
Bike (an oldie but goodie!)
Herb or vegetable garden kit
Tools: either shop for car, woodworking or kitchen and if possible, teach them to use them. My sons were given real tools when they were young and a toolbox to put them in and as adults had a good start on things they really needed. That was good thinking, Grampa!
Story CD’s like Adventures in Odyssey or Your Story Hour
Many fast-food places have coupon books for treats (like Wendy’s frostys)
Shutterfly album of special memories of them
Photo album to add photo to throughout the year—my kids loved their own albums even when they were little. We knew they would be destroyed with use eventually but they enjoyed them so much.
Fun gloves or socks
Bathtub toys, bath finger paint or bubbles
Adopt or Donate something in their Honor:
Adopt an animal through a rescue in their name; they will get updates and pictures of the animal. Great for kids who love animals.
Adopt a child oversees in their name; they will get updates and pictures of the child. You can even search for someone with your same birthday!
Donate to World Vision to help someone in need. You can buy goats, chickens or other farm animals for families to help them be self-sufficient. There are lots of other ways to help too.
Need Gift Ideas that aren’t just stuff for adults?
Adults can be even harder to buy for than children! Many of the ideas above will work for adults on your list too.
If they absolutely just don’t need anything, donating something in their honor may be something that pleases them.
If they would love a gift but you are unsure exactly what to get or you don’t live nearby to deliver it, a subscription box may be just the thing. Some deliver every month, some bimonthly and some are a one-time gift.
I was shocked at the amount of choices that I found when I browsed through the pages at Crate Joy! There truly is something for everyone!
These boxes are packed with fun surprises and the joy just keeps coming. All you need to do is chose which you like for the person receiving and pay for it and then they do the rest; so easy.
Food; Wow, are there great food choices! And all kinds of prices too! Baking, jerky, teas, desserts, meal services, spices, bacon, snacks, hot sauces, coffees, cookies, wines, popcorn, hot dogs
And even food sensibilities like Keto, gluten free, vegan, paleo, etc. There is really something for everybody! Use the search bar at the top to find what you want.
Crafting; 100’s of different kinds of crafting boxes with a new crafting project every month for kids and adults
Books; kids to adults in all genres
Men’s boxes; 100’s of boxes for men; would he like the gentleman’s box, the rad dad, the grill master’s club, bbq box, scorchin’ hot box, bacon is meat candy, beard care, knife subscription, socks, fishing, golf, jerky, t-shirts, ties; again, so many! What does he like? Use the search bar and see if there is a box for him. There probably is!
Women’s boxes; 100’s of boxes for women; hair and body, plants, date night, bath care, lots of pampering, leggings, jewelry, tea break, teacher box, lingerie, nails, socks, fragrances and so much more.
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