Posted on 12/13/2018 5:09:13 PM PST by super7man
On occasion our kids, when little, received Christmas gifts from Grandparents that our kids were not expecting and frankly had no idea of what to do with it.
A wood box to our 5 year old son, with nothing in it. Just the box. But it had been his Great Grandfather's and Grandma wanted him to have it. Hope dashed, a tear welled up in his eye but he did not cry.
OR the silver Victorian shoe horn that our 6 year old got; it was pretty but she had no idea of how it should be used at Christmas dinner. Oh, and the proud announcement that this was the first item of a 12 piece set that my daughter would receive for the next 11 years.
I realize that it is difficult for Grandparents to know what a nice gift would be for Grandchildren whom they see twice a year and don't really know. And requested gift lists were generally ignored.
So this is what we did. We told our kids that if they received a gift from Grandparents which was not what they had hoped for, after Christmas we would buy that gift for $20. BUT they had to be gracious when receiving the gift. Maybe something was said about "It's the thought....."
They did not have to lie. If the gift was beautiful like a Victorian shoe horn, say so and thank them. If the gift was practical like the socks our son got from Grandma, tell them how you will enjoy using them when you go hiking. All the while, visions of a new GameBoy game danced in their heads.
It solved a lot of problems.
Drum sets for a three year old are good too.
Oh... I like the investment angle. Yes we have held on to all those gifts. And the truth be told, it was not an ongoing problem. Just once in a while. But we were prepared for it.
My grandkids are grown also,but I still do the checks.
They do SOMETHING on their smartphones and deposit them immediately.
Astonishing—to me.
.
How sweet is that!
“Mom was touched by our grown up gift...leau de toilette”
Evening In Paris?
The Christmas spirit got knocked out of me decades ago.
Along those lines, when my daughter was about 14 she tried to invoke the $20 gift turn-in clause. She tried to redeem a $15 check for $20. We informed her that the deal had expired when she was 10. She had not read the fine print.
With LOTS of cymbals. Hey, at least they're not bagpipes.
Our grandsons have enough toys and clothes for 3 kids each.
So this year we decided to deposit some money into an individual savings account that their uncle (our youngest son) has already set up for them. They will still get a little something under the tree but the majority of the money that I would normally spend is going into the account. I have the total support from the parents. They agree that their two have way too much stuff.
Our youngest is the executor and has already decided that they are to use it for a down payment for a car or a house.
A few years ago, one of my kids told my mom that my son loved pickles. He got a big jar of pickles for. Christmas.
He hates pickles and it became a huge family joke.
The brick is painted as a 1930's car. His Dad always said all he had to play with when young was a brick.
Brother and I are breaking out our buddy from the assisted living center around noon.
The brick goes back his room when we return.
One year , I was seven, my dad gave me a pair of woolen Norwegian ski socks. It was my first lesson in being polite.
Those socks were not what I wanted or even needed. Dad was pleased with them. He picked them out. That was good enough.
Nice story. Thanks
;o)
I used to work with a Federal Agent who grew up in Texas.
He once told me that his only toy as a kid was a toy pistol molded from sawdust formed into that shape with glue.
One year, I got it in my mind that I had to have a 10-speed bike. Nothing else would do. I was probably 13. My dad encouraged me to look at other bikes but I didn’t want to and finally, I was a real snothead and declared that if I couldn’t have a 10-speed, I didn’t want anything.
Christmas morning rolled in and there was a really nice bike waiting for me. It wasn’t a 10-speed but it was really nice. Somehow I had completely forgotten my selfish and rotten attitude and I was very excited. Then I happened to turn around and catch my mom and dad’s faces and a big ol’ lump came up in my throat and tears started coming down my face. I was so ashamed of myself. I told them I was sorry and they said everything was fine, but I think I cried off and on the rest of the day because I was so embarrassed at how ugly I had been.
My dad is 85 and my mom has been gone for 20 years now but I’m still ashamed of myself about that.
Peach
One year, I got it in my mind that I had to have a 10-speed bike. Nothing else would do. I was probably 13. My dad encouraged me to look at other bikes but I didn’t want to and finally, I was a real snothead and declared that if I couldn’t have a 10-speed, I didn’t want anything.
Christmas morning rolled in and there was a really nice bike waiting for me. It wasn’t a 10-speed but it was really nice. Somehow I had completely forgotten my selfish and rotten attitude and I was very excited. Then I happened to turn around and catch my mom and dad’s faces and a big ol’ lump came up in my throat and tears started coming down my face. I was so ashamed of myself. I told them I was sorry and they said everything was fine, but I think I cried off and on the rest of the day because I was so embarrassed at how ugly I had been.
My dad is 85 and my mom has been gone for 20 years now but I’m still ashamed of myself about that.
Peach
I was with my college-junior nephew over Thanksgiving and he had a cast on his right hand/wrist. It was explained to me that he punched a wall. So he’s getting a drywall repair book.
I never got a single gift from any of my grandparents, for any occasion. I didn’t even know that was a ‘thing’ until I was well grown.
I guess they loved us in their own way, but they left that sort of thing to my parents, who always came through with the goodies.
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