Each year I compile a list of gift ideas and I enjoy it SO much! I’m pretty much like Buddy from the movie Elf. We always get an early start on Christmas shopping to spread out the cost. This year is a bit different for us because it’s our first Christmas as Catholics. I was surprised and excited to find out that Christmas is more than a day long celebration in the Catholic faith. We usually take our tree down late Christmas day or the day after Christmas and put it up before Halloween. Haha!
We are mostly following the Traditional Calendar… for us this means that our tree will be up through January, possibly until February 2nd – which is Candlemas. At the very earliest, it won’t come down until the Baptism of the Lord. We haven’t decided yet, but I’m excited either way. We will fully celebrate the season of waiting : Advent and then fully celebrate the season of Christmas! And we will be having our Christmas baby [baby number 5] on December 30th! So much to celebrate this year, so many blessings!
We used to keep to the “Something they want, need, wear, read” and then we would add something that would keep them active, like something for sports or something to play with outdoors. Sometimes we would buy a couple gifts from each category. We experimented with going way overboard in 2017 for Christmas and whoo boy… it was fun to watch them open but the kids actually prefer less things. It’s overwhelming for them. Even if it was fun for us parents.
So we have found a middle ground. We focus on what they will actually love and use and don’t do the four or five gift rule, but we definitely pared down from 2017. We keep in mind the words : simple, quality and minimalist. We don’t want to just purchase junk and we don’t want to over purchase.
Most of the following gifts are things we have purchased already this year for our children or that our children have owned or still own. All of these items have been heavily researched for hours through reviews and I just LOVE sharing what I find with you all! I will do a separate post on stocking stuffers and another on Catholic gifts from my fav small shops!
I also want to share that if you need to spread out the cost, we have used both Sezzle and AfterPay to do that. We have even done this with cloth diapers. No interest, no setup fee, quick and easy. I used Sezzle for Cotton Babies diapers for a large order and I used AfterPay for Sarah’s Silks items for the kiddos this year. They have tons of stores! And, no, they’re not paying me. Just thought I would share!
I hope that you all have a Merry Christmas this year! Enjoy!
Babies & Toddlers & Kids :
- Cleaning Toy Set [here’s an alternative]
- Aqua Doodle Mat
- Push Along Toy [Zephyr LOVES this thing]
- Play Silks [Budget Option Here] [All of my kids love these so it’s all ages! We have both sets]
- Ribbon Wand
- Foam Swords
- Wooden Weaving Loom
- Wooden Blocks
- Log Blocks
- Wooden Activity Gym
- Natural Teether Set
- Waldorf Balance Board
- Retro Style Bike w/Training Wheels [3-5 years old]
- Retro Style Bike [5-10 years old]
- Watercolor Paints
- Wooden Rosary [got one for Zephyr this year!]
- Wooden Market Grocery Set
- Play Doctor Kit
- Wooden Bird Calls
- Nature Explorer Kit
- Real Tool Set
- Saint John the Baptist Graphic Novel
- Brother Francis DVDs
- Nature Themed Word Search
Tweens & Teens :
- Fitness Tracker Watch [Keeps kids active! All 3 of our older kids have this.]
- Bluetooth Ear Buds [All 3 older kiddos have this as well.]
- Journal [this one is dot grid, but there are lined, plain and graph] [Budget Option] [Another Fav]
- Learn to Knit Kit
- Learn to Crochet Kit
- Pyrography Kit [don’t forget a book and some wood pieces]
- High Waisted Midi Skirt
- Blend Tees
- White Wave Bamboo Longboard [Option 2]
- Scatterball [hours of fun!]
- Watercolor Paints
- Peggy Dean’s Guide to Nature Drawing and Watercolor
- CD’s & Vinyls [my girls say the teens are buying these lol]
- Record Player
- Pullover Hoodies [my girls love oversized hoodies, but great for dudes, too]
- Nasa Hoodie or Full Zip Hoodie
- Take Ten : Daily Bible Reflections for Teens
- Shoes or Slippers
- 4 Way Cross Medal
- Survival Gear Kit
- Fjallraven Kanken Backpack [Budget Option!]
- Brush Pen Lettering Book [and Brush Pens]
- Notetaking Bible
- Audible Subscription
Thank you for your list. I was able to check some things off for our Christmas.☺