Every year, families all across America gather together to eat, drink, be merry…
And trade gift cards with each other.
To me, it all feels a bit obligatory. We’re just running around trading dollars with each other, which kinda defeats the whole purpose behind giving a gift in the first place.
But handing over cold hard cash to Aunt Jenny doesn’t just feel impersonal; it feels downright wrong. So you trade your cold hard cash in for an Olive Garden gift card and hand that over to her instead.
Likewise, Aunt Jenny completes the obligatory gift-giving circle by presenting you with a carefully selected Amazon gift card. (And by carefully selected, I mean hurriedly grabbed it off the gift card rack on her way outta Target and said to herself, “yeah, this’ll work.”)
It’s not that we don’t care about each other, because we do. It’s just that modern life is busy, and sometimes, especially during the holidays, it’s just easier to grab a random gift card from the checkout lane and call it a day.
But if the thought of yet another year of playing Gift Card Swap leaves you feeling not so merry and bright, here are seven gift ideas that are more meaningful than a thin piece of plastic.
Go Local
Fill a small basket or any other stylish container with goodies from around your town. They get a unique and thoughtful gift while you get the bonus of feeling good that comes from supporting local small businesses.
Who Doesn’t Love Getting Mail?
From cooking to cars, yoga to celebrity gossip; if there’s interest in it, there’s a magazine about it. Give someone a bit of joy each month with a magazine subscription on one of their interests or hobbies.
Speaking of Subscriptions…
How ‘bout a subscription box? You can choose from science experiments, international snack boxes, wine, creative art projects, and oh so many more. The possibilities here seem endless.
Let’s Get Cookin’
Are you looking for a thoughtful gift for the kitchen-dwelling foodie in your life? Consider indulging them with a meal service subscription like Hello Fresh or Blue Apron. For chefs still on the younger side, Radish Kids is a fun option.
A Day at the Park
You could gift day passes to the local art museum or go all out with an annual membership to a zoo or theme park. This gives the recipient an excuse to visit a place they may love but keep postponing because of the cost.
For the Kid in All of Us
As a parent, any gift that is something you can play or something you can do as a family is a win in my book. Games, puzzles, and unique activity books and kits give us the perfect excuse to put away our screens and spend time together with the people we love.
Adventure Awaits
Instead of stuff, give someone a memorable experience. Whether it’s tickets to go skydiving, an afternoon in an Escape Room, a brewery tour, or even a historical ghost tour of your hometown, these days, it seems like you can choose something from a never-ending menu of experiences.
So there you have it, seven gift ideas that are far more meaningful than yet another random gift card.
Do you have a non-gift card, go-to gift that you love to give people? ?
Share it with us in the comments!