Garga Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 (edited) It IS only 3 months till Christmas! And I need some ideas so I can get started on this...see my problem below. Problem: My in-laws have given my dh and I thousands of dollars over the years to help us out. My MIL takes me shopping and buys me new outfits every season change. They put money toward curriculum for the kids, even though they really don't understand why I homeschool, and are possibly against it, though they would never intrude enough to say so to me. There are no strings attached for any of these gifts to us. They are sweet and generous and gentle people. However, I do know that my mil loves to get lots of gifts at Christmas. (I mean, obviously gift giving is her love language-what with all the stuff she gives to us.) So, this Christmas I would love to be able to give her lots of stuff. I'd love to have a big pile of presents for her to open. But, I don't have a lot of money to spend. Question: What are your ways of beefing up your gift pile? For example, I'll probably add a bag of homemade chocolate covered pretzels to everyone's gifts. What other inexpensive, but nice, things can I give her, so she has a bunch of things to open on Christmas? I know she'd love it and I want to do it for her. Edited September 25, 2009 by Garga_ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 brag book photo album filled with photos: to save money on photo printing you can put kids' drawings, messages or quotes every other page (sometimes you can get one that has a cover you can change to one you've made/printed yourself) I know this doesn't help now but...in the future, hit holiday clearance sales and collect dish towels for each holiday or season (or other holiday items she might like) some favorite recipes along with a cool kitchen gadget Hope you get lots of great ideas...it's really sweet of you to want to do this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 What ages are your children? Depending on their ages and art and crafts abilities, they could make some cool things that would be much nicer and more meaningful than anything you could buy. My Mom and MIL like things from Snapfish and Kodak's photo site, they love pictures of the kids, they have some reasonably priced items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 You could collect favorite recipes from everyone, and make them into an attractive scrapbook, maybe with photos of the finished dishes. Be sure to include anecdotes or family stories--you'll have something really special! When I was a kid I made my grandmother decorated notecards. They were very simple white cards with a cut out piece of felt enhanced with pen drawings around it. She saved them all; I found them at her house after she died. What about embroidered potholders? Or the kids could make her those loop potholders? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dayle in Guatemala Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 We don't have a lot of money either and have a very generous family as well. What I usually try to do is buy one really nice thing (usually a good family photo framed beautifully). We've also put together a calendar with each month being a different photo of our family or dc. I love the idea of a recipe book--you could collect old family recipes and put them into book form. Another thing, keep an eye open for good deals at places like Bath and Body Works and candle stores, Linen and Things, and good department stores. Sometimes they have just incredible deals and you can buy a lot of things and put together a basket for her to pamper herself. Homemade treats are always a plus too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougarmom4 Posted September 26, 2009 Share Posted September 26, 2009 What about doing the 12 Days of Christmas for her? If she lives close, you could deliver a gift each day; if she is far away, just wrap everything & put a number on it. Most of the gifts can be small...leading up to a nice gift on Christmas morning. Think stationary, lotion, gloves, a calendar, picture frame, snuggly fleece blanket, homemade goodies, game to play, etc. A few years back when we were extremely low on cash, I did this for my grandma...only instead of gifts I did letters for her to open. A few of them were drawings from the kids or stories of funny things they have done; also did a few with my memories of time spent with her when I was a child. She absolutely loved it...she kept them and re-read them over and over. Hmm...now that I think back to this, I think I'm going to do it again this year! Maybe you could come up with a gift that has several pieces to it and wrap them individually...and put them all into a huge gift bag. If it's a kitchen appliance, then a few ingredients (smore's maker with graham crackers, marshmallows, chocolate, etc...hot chocolate maker with hot chocolate mix, mugs, marshmallows...cookbook w/hot pads, utensils, ingredients...). My husband's work always gives out huge gift bags with tons of stuff inside...it looks like tons but isn't really that much when you add it all up...the boss's wife shops all year and finds good deals on stuff to stick in the bags...last year we had a fleece blanket (usually on sale around the holidays for $5), family DVD (it was obviously a cheaper one...but still fun), popcorn tin, candy bars, game (it was skipbo...the card games tend to be around $5). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison_B Posted September 26, 2009 Share Posted September 26, 2009 Gifts that were appreciated by my MIL (and Mom as well) ... - Poems written by your children on why she is a wonderful grandmother, printed nicely and framed. - If you can afford a digital frame, pictures of your family and grandchildren for her to view. - I don't know if she collects the Willow Creek figuerines, they are relatively inexpensive and you could buy the grandmother w/ grandchildren figuerine. - Find out her favorite foods or shows from her childhood. - A Christmas ornament that includes all the family members Good luck to you --- Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted September 26, 2009 Author Share Posted September 26, 2009 These are all wonderful ideas! She goes on and on about how she loves my soup recipes. I emailed her the recipes a long time ago, but she's not computer savvy, so I don't think she ever printed them. I think she'd LOVE it if I made her a beautiful recipe book. And for some of the soups I could gather the dry ingredients for her in a jar and she could just add the liquids. And the idea of the kids writing a poem and framing it would be wonderful. In fact, everyone gave me lots of wonderful ideas. I'm going to print these out and do a lot of them. Thank you, hive! The hive always has the answers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secular_mom Posted September 26, 2009 Share Posted September 26, 2009 If you knit or crochet you could make a scarf and hat set and a set of dishcloths. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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