What's your most meaningful & affordable gift you like giving to family members for Xmas

[mtnsnake]

or whatever holiday you celebrate this time of year?

When it comes to my wife and 2 kids, who are both grown up now, it's a challenge to come up with meaningful, affordable gifts that aren't repeats from previous years or extraneous in themselves.

The gift that I enjoy buying the most for each of my family members each year is a good book. It takes some time & thought picking out the rigt book, and it's fun to try and match up each person with a book that they'll love sitting down with. This year, I got my wife the novel, "Best Friends", by Martha Moody. Last Christmas I got my son "Deception Point", but Dan Brown, a great read. For my daughter last Christmas I got her, "Beyond the Limits: A Woman's Triumph on Everest" by Stacy Allison, the first American woman to climb Everest. I read it after she did, and it was awesome. This Christmas I bought her a mystery novel that takes place in the late 1800's. I forget the name of it and it's already wrapped, but it looked really good in the book store.

Anyway, I'll be off to the book store tonight when I get done working to do some last minute matchmaking in the book store again. Maybe I'll even buy a good book or two for myself while I'm there, probably a book by Obama.

I love it when so often one of my family members tells me after they read it how the book that I bought them for Christmas was one of their most enjoyable gifts they got.

If you have any ideas for some other last minute affordable/meaningful gifts, please post them here.

[NMDemDist2]

1. warm snuggly stuff

good slippers, gloves or a thick terrycloth robe all work well at chritmas

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Stuff I can make in the kitchen

Home made breads, brioche, cookies, pepper jelly, candy, novelty foods

[magellan]

3. Food!

A nice batch of cookies that everyone can enjoy, or a favorite dish to go with Christmas dinner.

[bicentennial_baby]

4. I'm cooking for my family

'Cause I'm broke, and food is love :)

[Stevepol]

5. I like to give "alternative gifts."

In case you haven't heard about them, they are gifts of $5 or $10 which have a card that says in effect: "In honor of ------ (name of receiver of the gift) a children's book has been bought to fund children's libraries in Nicaragua." Enclosed with the card is a small slip of paper detailing how the book is benefiting the kids of Nicaragua. There are hundreds of such gifts that can be given: gifts for medical supplies in Bolivia or for conservation organizations, tree planting organizations, etc.

I usually give the gifts in addition to another gift of course, but even for pretty young kids. They might not think much about the gift at the time, but later on they might recall it, and at least for a moment it helps them focus on the needs of others who might be less fortunate.

[mtnsnake]

15. That is nice.

Is this something that's mostly obtained online?

[quispquake]

6. Calendars

I make family specific calendars with all the family birthdays, and every day highlighting some odd holiday or birthday (i.e. Dress Up Your Cat Day, Bob Denver's Birthday, etc.). I put pictures of what our family did during the year at the top...everyone LOVES these, and they are not too expensive to make (total cost is around $6.00 plus LOTS of time...). I admit, it's not a good 'last minute' gift (I start these in October usually!), but they are VERY meaningful (and good from a computer geek like myself that is horribly inept with craft tools).

pp23

[mtnsnake]

7. My daughter made me a calendar a few Xmas's ago & it's my favorite gift ever

The photos she used for each month were of past hikes that we had done up mountains in the Adirondacks. It was one of the most meaningful gifts I ever got and she put a lot of thought and effort into it.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

10. I'll second calendars - from my niece and nephew.

They're getting older now though and figure I have only a couple more years of my favorite gift!

[wicket]

8. Giving my grandparents a gift card to the grocery store

They're farmers and have been hurt hard.

[gollygee]

9. I got my husband Keith Olbermann's book

You don't have to spend a lot of money - or any if you're more creative than I am - just get people something that shows you thought about what they'd like.

[mtnsnake]

11. "just get people something that shows you thought about what they'd like"

Amen amen amen!

BTW, I was thinking of getting my father that same book and then reading it myself after he's done with it.

He's in his late eighties, and still gets a kick out of people like Olbermann. Thanks for reminding me!

[jody]

12. For those 4-13, National Geographic for Kids or National Geographic. n/t

[Neecy]

13. Here's an easy one...

My sister typed out all of our family recipes, from both sides of my family and her husband's family, encased them in plastic sleeves and put them into a notebook. It was a labor of love and you know what? That was 20 years ago and I still use it frequently throughout the year! Without question it's the best and most-used Christmas gift I've ever gotten - and it cost very little.

[mtnsnake]

14. What a unique idea, and useful!

I'll be passing that idea on, for sure.

[bleedingheart]

16. I buy gift cards for local restaurants for retired folks

my in laws are trying to pare down their "stuff"...so they don't want any more stuff...so I give them the gift of an evening or perhaps lunch out together...

[maveric]

17. Books

A gift that keeps on giving.

[MamaBear]

18. I give gifts of food.

I like sending food things because my family (except my Mom) has stuff they don't have time to enjoy because their work schedules are so severe. And Mom is at the point in her life when she really doesn't want any more stuff, including even books and DVDs, which she rents from the local library.

So I send them stuff they can eat and enjoy, and share with their friends and neighbors, and don't have to dust or take care of or find a place for in their home.

Because I had a pretty good year, and lived simply and saved up, this year I was able to send organic fruit baskets.