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| Photo by Nathan Lemon on Unsplash |
Welcome back to another episode of Blog with Friends - this month's theme is Gifts from the Heart.
What better way to give from the heart than to offer free hugs?
And it doesn't stop there.
I am a fan of vouchers. Not because they're the easy way out (you don't have to hit the mall or rack your brain to come up with something nice, and if you're lucky the person will never even redeem it. Of course this only works for home made vouchers. Just kidding.) Personally I love to have my Starbucks card charged, and a gift card for a department store will always make me smile.
The older I get, the more appalled I look at thoughtless consumerism. Give stuff just for the giving's sake?
Makeshift baggies, dust-catchers and random plastic sh** that will be thrown out at the next opportunity?
Does it make sense to stress ourselves out and give something to the kids' teachers, the yoga instructor, the dental hygienist (sorry, Beth!), the postman, the dry cleaning lady and basically everyone who ever did something for us during the year, or should we limit ourselves to give something meaningful to the inner circle? (Not that this makes it easier because some people are really hard to shop for.)
In my opinion a gift from the heart is something thoughtful that the person will really, really love. And it may not be an item. More often than not it's actually not an item. Of course everybody loves chocolate or a cashmere sweater, but there's only so much you can eat because you're already stuffed during the Holidays. And you can't put cashmere in the laundry, you have to take it to the dry cleaner's, which adds another errand to your busy day, and then you need to pay for it, plus you have to come up with a Christmas gift for the dry cleaning person, hahaha!
If possible I they to give "experiences" en lieu of items.
It can be a simple dinner and a movie voucher, but what it really means is I'm taking a night out of my busy life to go out with that special person, connect, talk, laugh.
There are cool ways to give movie vouchers, btw. You can put them in a popcorn container, screen role (model) or write It on a head slate.
One of the nicest gifts I think I made was a voucher for my friend's twin girls' first carrot puree. I figured she'd be so busy with her babies she wouldn't have time to peel, chop, steam and mash veggies. Especially times two!
And sure enough when they were five or six months old she texted me "we're so ready for your delivery!"
By that time Colin was 15 months old, almost a big boy. We loaded a large cooler bag that contained about two dozen jars of frozen organic carrot puree and were on our way to meet the twins!
So for a couple of weeks every morning as my friend got up she would remove two jars from of the freezer and let them thaw on the counter, and come lunch time, all she had to do was to put them in the microwave and boom, food on the table!
How do you feel about gifts? Can't get enough? Is quality more important than quantity? Let me know down below. And please make sure you check out my blogger friends' posts on the subject:
Please don't leave without visiting my friends' posts:
Karen of Baking in a Tornado made some delicious Espresso Truffle Cookies
Kia of The Ground Beneath my Feet tells us everything about her Cousin’s Magical Unicorn Wedding.
Tamara of Part-time working Hockey Mom thinks there is too much thoughtless consumerism going on and pleads "Free Hugs"
Minette of Southern Belle Charm talks about Gifts of the Heart, Giving What You Can
Dawn from Spatulas on Parade made an orange cheesecake and says Sharing is Caring
Melissa of My Heartfelt Sentiments has come up with no title yet.
Lydia of Cluttered Genius has made some wood slice ornaments.
And it doesn't stop there.
I am a fan of vouchers. Not because they're the easy way out (you don't have to hit the mall or rack your brain to come up with something nice, and if you're lucky the person will never even redeem it. Of course this only works for home made vouchers. Just kidding.) Personally I love to have my Starbucks card charged, and a gift card for a department store will always make me smile.
The older I get, the more appalled I look at thoughtless consumerism. Give stuff just for the giving's sake?
Makeshift baggies, dust-catchers and random plastic sh** that will be thrown out at the next opportunity?
Does it make sense to stress ourselves out and give something to the kids' teachers, the yoga instructor, the dental hygienist (sorry, Beth!), the postman, the dry cleaning lady and basically everyone who ever did something for us during the year, or should we limit ourselves to give something meaningful to the inner circle? (Not that this makes it easier because some people are really hard to shop for.)
In my opinion a gift from the heart is something thoughtful that the person will really, really love. And it may not be an item. More often than not it's actually not an item. Of course everybody loves chocolate or a cashmere sweater, but there's only so much you can eat because you're already stuffed during the Holidays. And you can't put cashmere in the laundry, you have to take it to the dry cleaner's, which adds another errand to your busy day, and then you need to pay for it, plus you have to come up with a Christmas gift for the dry cleaning person, hahaha!
If possible I they to give "experiences" en lieu of items.
It can be a simple dinner and a movie voucher, but what it really means is I'm taking a night out of my busy life to go out with that special person, connect, talk, laugh.
There are cool ways to give movie vouchers, btw. You can put them in a popcorn container, screen role (model) or write It on a head slate.
One of the nicest gifts I think I made was a voucher for my friend's twin girls' first carrot puree. I figured she'd be so busy with her babies she wouldn't have time to peel, chop, steam and mash veggies. Especially times two!
And sure enough when they were five or six months old she texted me "we're so ready for your delivery!"
 |
| Photo by Jonathan Pielmayer on Unsplash |
By that time Colin was 15 months old, almost a big boy. We loaded a large cooler bag that contained about two dozen jars of frozen organic carrot puree and were on our way to meet the twins!
So for a couple of weeks every morning as my friend got up she would remove two jars from of the freezer and let them thaw on the counter, and come lunch time, all she had to do was to put them in the microwave and boom, food on the table!
How do you feel about gifts? Can't get enough? Is quality more important than quantity? Let me know down below. And please make sure you check out my blogger friends' posts on the subject:
Please don't leave without visiting my friends' posts:
Karen of Baking in a Tornado made some delicious Espresso Truffle Cookies
Kia of The Ground Beneath my Feet tells us everything about her Cousin’s Magical Unicorn Wedding.
Tamara of Part-time working Hockey Mom thinks there is too much thoughtless consumerism going on and pleads "Free Hugs"
Minette of Southern Belle Charm talks about Gifts of the Heart, Giving What You Can
Dawn from Spatulas on Parade made an orange cheesecake and says Sharing is Caring
Melissa of My Heartfelt Sentiments has come up with no title yet.
Lydia of Cluttered Genius has made some wood slice ornaments.
I love the idea of giving experiences in lieu of items. My guess is that these are the kinds of gift that recipients remember through the years.
ReplyDeleteVery sweet gesture with the carrot puree. When the boys were little I had an older mom offer me free baby sitting. Once a week for 2 hours. THE best gift ever!!
ReplyDeleteAs I get older and my kids continue to accrue more "stuff," I am becoming a much bigger fan of events, services, etc.
ReplyDeleteOh I get you! I had to convince certain family members to stop gifts as it was really getting silly. I LOVE your idea about the baby puree, so clever!!! I for sure don't need more stuff!
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of giving a voucher for a night out with a friend. And yes, I couldn't agree more about giving experiences rather than stuff. My kids have got so many toys they don't play with, mostly gifts from last Christmas!
ReplyDelete