A few days ago I blogged about thinking ahead and preparing for the holiday season. I think some preparation goes a long way to making gift giving less stressful and more enjoyable. But, it isn’t all about the future is it? You can’t plan for everything and sometimes you just need to step back and focus on the present in order to be a good gift giver. Just like everything else in life, gift giving requires balance.


Let me explain. Focusing on the here and now will make you more aware and a better sleuth when it comes to noticing things about your friends and family – the people at the top of your gift list!

Like many of you, I have a limited budget so I have three categories of gifts – presents, surprises and thoughtful things.

  • * Presents are the things I try to plan for – birthdays, holidays, celebrations like baby showers or weddings. Planning ahead for these things means I can often find something special and meaningful (or make it) without breaking the bank.  This is where reading the blog comes in handy because I will try to cover all of these and then some as time goes on.

  • * Surprises are the things that I find unexpectedly and are usually impulse purchases that are just right yet really inexpensive.  Like the miniature rubber ducks I found at the grocery store that light up for my boyfriend’s mom who likes to take a bath each day or the little soapstone heart I bought for my boyfriend that was a mere $3 but something I just knew in my heart he would love.  Surprises are those little items that may not be useful (though they could be! – like the cheese grater mouse I got at Pier 1 for less than $10 for my boyfriend’s father who grates cheese for his pasta each night – this was a double-duty gift since it was a nice surprise for his dad who is forever looking for the cheese grater – it is bright and distinctive – but served as a surprise for his mom as well who had to clean up after the old style cheese graters that don’t quite get all the cheese over your plate – this one actually catches the cheese in the body of the mouse and then you sprinkle it on via a little spout near the head) but immediately make you think of a particular person when your eyes alight on the item.

  • * Thoughtful things are the gifts that you bring to a dinner party, to your book club host or the thank you card you mail.

So, to improve your gift giving game, stay in the present and focus on your loved ones – you’ll be less stressed out and more likely to notice what will make a terrific present which will help your short-term and long-term gifting goals.

Happy gifting!

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