For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. – Isaiah 9:6
Christmas is a time of joy and celebration for Christians. We exchange gifts with family & friends to show our love and appreciation. If your shopping list is growing into a financial or time-consuming burden, get creative this year!
Be Proactive
The Never-ending Cycle
Do you have a friend that always remembers you with a wonderful gift every December, causing you to feel obligated even if your budget is tight or you have no idea what to give them?
Send a sweet note now to stop the spending-giving cycle. Mention how you always delight when you hear the pretty wind chimes they sent last year, but this year your family feels so blessed and wants to exchange warm wishes & updated pictures only.
Your friend may secretly appreciate your initiative to take the burden off of them, too!
Secret Santas
Your small group, workplace, or gal pals draw names every year. One gift for this group and one gift for that party can add up in money & shopping time. You struggle to find something meaningful within the $10 limit.
Suggest early that Christmas be a little different this year. Everyone brings a white elephant item from their house for a gift-swapping game. Items can be random or a theme like a unused jewelry, a scarf, a homemade treat, or a dusty kitchen gadget.
The laughs come from the surprises inside the pretty paper and the swapping. Go a step further and have a fun raffle of white elephant items with the proceeds supporting a local charity or other agreed-upon organization.
The Cash & Gift Card Exchange
The baby that squeezed the stuffed toy with delight & the preschooler that got lost in picture books has grown into a teenager wearing brands you don’t recognize.
If your extended family’s Christmas has morphed into exchanging checks or gift cards, brainstorm about making a collective donation in your family name to the church building fund or sponsoring the hard-to-adopt large families on the Giving Tree this year.
Cashless Gifts: The Thought Really Counts
Teachers
Teachers touch our children’s lives in important ways. A handwritten Thank You note from you and your child will be treasured more than another apple ornament. Go one step further and write a formal letter of appreciation to the school principal, detailing the wonderful things your teacher does every day.
Projects of Christmas Past
Got a few projects that didn’t make the December 25th deadline? Find that shoebox full of materials and finish the projects for this year. You receive the gift of space while your friend receives a one-of-a-kind homemade gift. Host a UFO (UnFinished Object) party with other crafty friends now.
Food
Everyone loves food! The simplest cookies on a plate, with your handwritten Christmas card, makes a wonderful gift. While your friend is frazzled from a hectic holiday routine, she can recharge with a sweet treat and a cup of tea. Your famous candy is a universal gift for anyone you want to remember, even if you don’t know their favorite sports team or perfume.
Time is Priceless
Children
Make up coupons for playing a favorite game, making a yummy recipe together, serving breakfast in bed, or picking wildflowers in the spring – whatever is special to your kids.
Friends
Print up a coupon for two hours of deep cleaning help, yard work, or babysitting. For the older folks in your neighborhood, give coupons for rides to doctor’s appointments, the grocery store, or church services.
Aging Family
The eldest are sometimes the hardest to buy for if they are limited in their abilities or living space. Your grandmother will cherish the time you put into a long letter of your memories of her famous cinnamon rolls, fried chicken, and handmade Barbie clothes.
For a distant relative, promise more frequent phone calls, emails, or pictures next year. Mark it on your calendar and do it!
Many seniors want to jump into the computer age, but need a patient tutor. Give weekly lessons on how to use the internet and email. Grandpa wants to laugh at the kittens on YouTube, too!
The Greatest Gift
The greatest gift of all is God becoming flesh with the birth of Jesus. This year, you can set an example to your family and friends by simplifying the giving and celebrating the real joy of Christmas.
What is the best creative gift you have given or received at Christmastime? Meet us in the comments section!
Image by Ruth Black/Shutterstock
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
As a former teacher, I really appreciated the idea about writing a formal letter of commendation to a principal. It would be the best gift ever for any teacher.
We also have had the conversation with friends and siblings about not continuing the gift exchange tradition. Originally the conversation was in light of several spouses being unemployed, but it has been nice not to pick it back up. Now we can just focus on spending time together or writing newsy emails.
Great post…
Thanks for the post! I can’t believe Christmas time is already here. The year has went by so quickly.
Thanks for the thoughtful post Cherie. Similar to San I love the idea of writing a hand written note to a teacher.
Hand written letters have actually increased in value since we have all moved to email. It has become more rare, more special.
I often find myself composing a letter during boring meetings at my job. Just yesterday I wrote a letter to my Grandmother.
I met Jack Welch about 5 years ago. He said that he used to write 50 short hand written notes a day to people. Despite risking being a little overly analytical about this, the cost/benefit of hand written note is very attractive:
Cost:
- 10 to 20 minutes of your time
- Price of a stamp
- Time to look up the address (cause you know you’ve forgotten where your aunt lives)
Benefit:
- Strong positive emotional reaction from the reader
- Stronger relationship with the reader
- You feel great!
(The one caveat is that to write a really great note can take hours and hours. I’m sure you’ve experienced this. This type of dedication however should be reserved for condolence and important thank you letters)
I love your post. Remembering what Christmas is all about helps to put things in perspective. A thoughtful note and a gift of a special food item You took time to make along with a recipe has a special feeling about it. Someone once told me (a generous giver of gifts) that receiving a gift should not require reciprocation. If it does, it isn’t a true gift from the heart.