I meant to do a lot more gift-idea posts this year, but time got away from me. I did a lot of my own shopping last-minute, and now I have that frantic feeling of the final days just slipping down the drain, with most sites already no longer possible for Christmas delivery. I will at least post a jumbled assortment of some of the things I have recently ordered, just in case I am not the only one who seems to be about to drop the ball this year.
(image from Amazon.com)
Set of three Fidget Jr. toys for William. I don’t know! I don’t know! He said he needed fidget things, and that they had to be quiet ones because of his roommates, and I didn’t know what to choose, and so I wasn’t going to choose anything, and then I was looking over his gifts and they were ALL practical (boots, meal-replacement powders, an educational book), so I panicked and spent $15 on this set of three little toys. The reviews were good, at least.
(image from Amazon.com)
Two pounds of chocolate-covered espresso beans for Paul’s sister. Paul’s sister isn’t married, doesn’t have children, isn’t very social, and she and Paul have hardly any family left, so I am really careful when choosing her gifts: I try to do an assortment that could Make A Christmas (something cozy, something fun to do, something to read, some treats), in case they’re the only gifts she gets. I was going to put a regular-size package of chocolate-covered coffee beans in the box we sent, but I couldn’t find them at the store where I got them last time, and I thought that was fine and we just wouldn’t do those this year, but I KNOW she loves them, and so I panicked and ordered two pounds of them shipped directly to her. Also these slippers from her wish list.
(image from Amazon.com)
Word-a-Day calendar for Rob. I picked up Rob from college and we were driving home and he mentioned casually that a word-a-day calendar would be a good gift idea for him. He is IMPOSSIBLE to buy for, and also his birthday is close to Christmas so all the year’s impossibleness is clumped together, so although I didn’t order the calendar while actually still driving the car, I did order it within fifteen minutes of arriving home.
(image from Amazon.com)
Pretty Ticonderoga pencils for kids’ stockings. This is the brand I always buy, but I hadn’t seen these pretty ones before. Target had four packages of them and I needed five, so I ordered a fifth along with the word-a-day calendar.
(image from Amazon.com)
Working Hands hand cream for Paul. Paul was using some of my hand lotion and he said wistfully “I like that round tin you got for my stocking last year, but I have that at work.” I couldn’t remember if I bought that at Target or at Home Depot, and I wasn’t sure I was going to get to the store before I needed it, so I ordered it. I impulse-added the matching manly lip balm.
(image from Amazon.com)
Dungeons & Dragons Spellbook Cards for Henry. I thought I’d already ordered them!! I’d added them to my “gifts purchased” list!! Then I saw them in my cart, way down the list in items saved for later!! I double-checked to make sure it wasn’t something I’d re-added to the cart instead of taking them out of saved-for-later, but no!!
(image from Amazon.com)
DreamSky radio alarm clock for Edward. Edward has had “radio alarm clock” on his list for like three years now, ever since his old one broke (via top-bunk plummet), and I keep dithering and not finding any with familiar brands and not wanting to risk it, and this year I was like “THE CHILD WANTS A RADIO ALARM CLOCK, THAT IS SUCH A PITIFULLY REASONABLE AND PRACTICAL REQUEST, GET THE CHILD A RADIO ALARM CLOCK,” so I bought this one. The reviews are pretty okay. We’ll see.
(image from Amazon.com)
Mpow wireless Bluetooth earbuds for William and Elizabeth. They both wanted some wireless Bluetooth earbuds, and that is sooooooo boring to choose and there are sooooooo many choices and I have no idea what’s best, and finally I just chose some that were the same brand as the extremely successful over-the-ear kind that Paul and Rob and Edward all use and love, and we will just hope for the best.
(image from Amazon.com)
404 Not Found coloring book for Henry. He’s had this on his wish list since his birthday, but I once saw it as low as $8-something so I kept waiting for it to go back down, and finally a couple of days ago I thought “SAVING TWO DOLLARS IS NOT WORTH SIX MONTHS OF MONITORING” and ordered it.
(image from Amazon.com)
Cat wizard t-shirt for Henry. Pretty much all of Henry’s Christmas gifts were last-minute this year; I just had a particularly hard time deciding on what to get him. I needed a clothing gift for him, and nothing seemed right, but then I saw this shirt and ordered it so fast. He is very into wizard-type stuff and also cat-type stuff, and we have a fair number of shirts by The Mountain so I know they’re nice and cottony.
(image from Amazon.com)
How To by Randall Monroe for everybody. This is another item I thought I’d already ordered, then found it still in my cart. I do not know what my problem is this year.
(image from Amazon.com)
Dungeon Mayhem game, for a gift-swap party. Henry was invited to a somewhat impromptu party for 7th grade boys who like D&D, and there will be a gift-swap, and this is what he chose to bring.
(image from Amazon.com)
20-pack scrunchies, for Elizabeth. Love of scrunchies continues in her age group; she wears one or more from this pack of velvet scrunchies every day (in her hair, on her wrist, littering the entire house). I saw these and considered them, but the fabric looked a little iffy—kind of slippery/dressy rather than what I thought she might like. Then she and I were in Claire’s yesterday shopping for her friends’ gifts, and she saw scrunchies JUST LIKE THESE and said she loved them and that she liked the fabric, so I went home and ordered them. I’m also writing “$25 Claire’s shopping trip” on an index card; I was going to buy a gift card, but Claire’s wanted $6.95 to ship it to me, and this way we don’t end up permanently carrying around a Claire’s gift card with, like, $1.27 left on it.
(image from Amazon.com)
Wee rolling pin, for Paul. He was making pizza and said with some exasperation that what he really needed was a small handleless rolling pin for getting the crust how he wanted it. I made a bored, not-really-listening sound, and then scooted sneakily into the other room and ordered this.
(image from Amazon.com)
Garnier rose facial mist, for the cleaners. I primarily gave them cash, because I have read enough articles now on that sort of topic, but at the last second I wanted something slightly more festive and fun than a couple of envelopes, so I added a rosewater mist and a bar of nice chocolate each, and it did look much more festive and fun.
(Also, I cannot proof-read this because my family all came home while I was writing it, and they keep walking into the room as if they’re doing it on purpose to mess with me. So if any links don’t work or pictures aren’t right, I will fix it later!)
I can totally picture you sneaking out of the kitchen while acting bored to order the rolling pin. You little elf, you!
I think I should get that hand cream for myself because I change diapers and wipe snot noses all dang day long and my hands are like sandpaper. I have dropped a few hints about wanting an apron for YEARS and I wonder if this will be the year Coach figures it out. Mostly I buy myself a few things and wrap them up. Sort of sad, but then I buy more things and don’t wrap them up as a consolation and I feel better about it.
I still don’t have enough for Tank. He saw me checking out a voice recorder in Sharper Image catalog the other day and he was very interested. He could use it to record lectures – mostly in college but possibly in his one AP class in high school. He is a junior, I am not sure it is worth the $80 because I am guessing that he will lose it by the time he hits college.
I once thought I bought the kids an indoor lazer tag set. Their big gift. On Christmas Eve I realized that I had researched it on line and then reduced the window each time a kid came in and interrupted me and I never actually chose one. (This was before Amazon). I ran to Target in a panic on Christmas Eve.
I have a few other ideas that are still up in the air. Not sure when it will be sorted out. I am finding it tough to juggle everything else (ie: today is Curly’s bday) with the Christmas stuff. Sigh.
Oh, and I wanted to commend you for being a very sweet sister in law!
I have those Fidget jr toys. A work friend had one for years & I finally brought them as stocking stuffers last year for the kidlets and myself. We all enjoy playing with it for what it’s worth.
I love these posts!!!!!!
Glad to know I am not the only one panicking over here! For some weird reason, I was fixated on the idea that Thursday was Christmas Eve…until Man-Child said he was coming to stay over on Tuesday. WHAT???!!! No where near ready! Particularly regarding The Husband’s gifts – he has dropped zero hints all darn year – now what?
I love you so much. I also love the tiny rolling pin, and that I’m not the only one buying panic gifts. I’m even considering going to a mall (gasp) on the 23rd.
Thank you for this! I ordered How To for my stepdad
Oh yes, panic mode. I too have a spreadsheet where I type out everything I got for everyone and make sure that I have an even spread of gifts/money spent on each kid and yet a few days before Christmas (aka NOW) I start panicking and want to rush to five stores to get a few more last minute things. :(
Also a warning if anyone has babies in the house, those worm-fidget things can be snapped apart into a hundred tiny choking-hazard-sized segments by bored kids. Ask me how I know.
Yes I, too, waited until almost too late to finish my shopping! I used to be so organized, and I’d have it all done by October, and now . . . not so much. Regarding the fidget toys, if I may make a plug: one of my daughter’s teachers invented fidget pens that are silent (https://www.mesh-it.com/)! They won’t arrive in time for Christmas obviously, but maybe for his birthday?
My husband’s sister sounds similar to Paul’s, and she is so hard to buy for–last year I got her a box of her favorite Celestial Seasonings tea with a pretty mug to go with it plus a Target gift card, and this year . . . I’ve not gotten anything yet. I should probably do something about that. (Why is it my job to buy something for his sister? A question for the ages, friends.)
Maybe you can innocently ask him “so, have you gotten something for your sister yet?”. Not necessarily because he’ll then rush and get something, but so at least he’s aware this is actually a thing that needs thinking about and also be done, and not something that just magically appears all chosen, bought and wrapped, under the tree come Christmas. It’s way too easy to discount how much brain space the whole task actually takes up when you’re not the one who actually does it.
I always have to think of the mental load-comic when stuff like this comes up. I don’t have a partner, but I do see it happen in my sister’s relationship quite a bit.
https://english.emmaclit.com/2017/05/20/you-shouldve-asked/
As for the present, does the sister like baking? I once saw a recipe on The Pioneer Woman where she used a super pretty bundt cake pan, this one:
https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/B00EA4BL96/
I couldn’t find that post right now, but found it used for a delicious looking lemon lime pound cake:
http://www.foodnetwork.co.uk/recipes/lemon-lime-pound-cake.html
Or if that pan is beyond the budget (it’s not in mine, I’ve had the pan in mind in ages, but it’s even more pricey here in Germany), the swirly one that also appears in that link looks very nice also.
I also really like this one: https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/B00005NCWY/
and it’s even $9 off, down to $23!
Maybe together with a general recipe book or one for baking in particular, so it works with the bundt pan. Or, for a personal touch, some recipes like the one above printed out and put together – possibly by your husband.
There is, by the way, a hilarious short story by Eleanor Porter in which the husband waves his hand and takes over the last of the Christmas present buying when his wife is stressing out about how impossible it is, because surely buying presents for a short list of people can’t be that hard and won’t take him more than a couple of hours… and then he realizes that, actually, no, his methodical and businesslike and efficient habits do not actually make this easy, as he had expected it to be, and his gradual collapse is beautifully depicted. (that said, because this is a Happy Ending Story and all that, then the gifts he ended up selecting half at random in the pressure of the last-minute rush end up being unexpectedly enjoyed)
Anyway, it’s “A Matter of System” in Eleanor Porter’s “Tangled Threads” story volume, the text for which can be accessed at https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19336/19336.txt And I endorse it for anyone who wants to cackle with glee while at least *one* husband slowly realizes the challenge and chaos of gift-buying. :-) (unfortunately, I think one has to have actually experienced the process to understand the story, so it is not a functional “see! this is how it is!” educational story. But it is a hoot, anyway.)
Thank you for this link. We had a family story time on Sunday afternoon so I could share the fun … everyone loved this story. All the extra stories were a welcome bonus. I have kept reading and am thoroughly enjoying them all. Thank you :)
Thank you for the pen idea!! I ordered a 3-pack for his birthday!
I love this. Thank you.
Just wanted to say thanks for the idea on the D&D cards. I was going to give my 15-yo nephew money, but this is perfect. Ordered it as soon as I saw it here!
OMG, you just saved me and I didn’t even KNOW. The catgalph tshirt for Gregory!!!! I ordered it just in time for Christmas Eve delivery. WHEW!!!!!!
And I added the hand cream to my list to order when it’s not Christmas. I think Kevin would like it. “Manly lip balm” hahahahaha
The sheer GENIUS of writing “$25 Shopping Trip of Claire’s” or wherever is blowing my mind right now. I have three kids who are hard to buy presents for for various reasons, and I was last minute Christmas gift panicking, but now, I’m just doing this.
Thank you!
Last minute gifts are stressful, but may I say I think you are doing an EXCELLENT job. Look at you, hearing what people say, and noticing what they like, and getting them nice presents! You are so nice!
I got an MPOW product too! I hope it’s a good brand!
My mother to keep her hands busy as she talks on the phone, and gets a lot of little cleaning chores done during our conversations, so I got her a headset with a boom microphone so she can use both hands to do stuff while talking comfortably with me (or her many friends that call her). I am a sweep-the-floor, and dust, and give-the-sink-a-swipe-with-a-brush while talking person myself, and I love my hands-free headset (made by Jabra and supplied by my work).
Merry Christmas Swistle!
Can’t believe I’ve been reading your site for about 10 years now. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us and hosting this little community. I’m finally relaxing for the first time in ages and re reading some of Maeve Binchy’s “this year it will be different” which I first learned about on you site. Hope you are sleeping or relaxing too right now.