5 ideas for Gifts with Presence

Your children need your presence more than your presents. – Jesse Jackson

I think a lot about how I can make the gifts I give more meaningful during this time of year, especially for my children.  I enjoy giving them what they wish for as much as the next parent, but I also wish for them to have lasting memories connected to them if possible.  As a child I received countless gifts for various reasons, many of which I have no memory of.  Most of the gifts I do remember allowed me to spend more time with the giver.

One year my parents gave my siblings and me a board game to share.  I clearly remember spending an entire morning and part of the afternoon taking turns with them trying to defeat my dad.  I don't remember anything else about that Christmas, just the fun we had spending that time playing.  Memories like these influence my gift giving decisions, so I try to look for things that will get me more involved with my boys...

1. A children's book series: Pick an older series you read as a kid to share, or a new one that includes topics your child would be interested in.  Set a time and place each day to read the books together and enjoy the laughs, mystery, or adventure!

2. Board games: Two or more players, a favorite snack or drink, and an opportunity to talk as you play.
3. Passes to a local zoo, museum, theme park, or other attraction:  Whether it's a place they've been begging to go to, or a place you frequent, it's time spent having fun together.

4. A hobby or model kit: Age appropriate build or create-your-own ________, and Lego sets you can work on as a team.  Large puzzles that may take a period of days to put together fit in this category too, and then you can frame and display your collaborative masterpiece.

5. Tickets to a movie or live show: They can't go alone, so share in their interest and find out what it is they love about those talking animals.

Are you giving the gift of presence this year?  What do you plan on giving?