I LOVE the idea of gifting an experience to our grandchildren, especially now as they are getting a little older. Our five grandchildren range in age from 8yrs to almost 3yrs old. As very young children we would get them a few toys and would just love to watch them unwrap their gifts with so much joy and anticipation! However, as toys were passed down to younger siblings their toy boxes became overflowing and many pieces lost forever.

One cool October morning while chatting over a cup of coffee about the upcoming Christmas shopping frenzy, my daughter said to me, “Mom, all the kids have enough toys to open a toy store, why not gift them an experience this year?” It was an “ah-ha” moment for me and made so much sense. A clutter-free Christmas and a gift that’s not materialistic. So this Christmas, our gifting would look a little different. We decided to give them one small toy to unwrap, a gift experience and a Christmas stocking. I have to admit that finding the perfect experience for each of our five grandchildren took a little extra thought and research but that’s what makes it really special and we get to enjoy the memory of taking them to their “experience” or watching them participate in it and having fun. We thought about their individual likes and dislikes, a gift they can learn from, eat and enjoy, or a gift that allows them to branch out and try something new. Once we decided on a meaningful gift we printed out the tickets, vouchers and customized our gift by writing out exactly what they would get to experience with us!

Sometimes many material gifts may go unused or forgotten but gifting an experience that we can do with our grandchild will always be remembered. Here are the experiences we came up with this year:

Our 8 year old grandson – Tickets to a Super Cross race, which he has been loving to watch on TV. We purchased him earmuffs and a t-shirt to wear!

For our 5 & 4yr old grandsons (brothers) – Tickets to Paw Patrol LIVE and lunch downtown afterwards.

Our Fearless 4yr old grandson – We signed him up for Flag Football at our church sports league and included a junior size football.

Our youngest sweet little 2yr old granddaughter (she turns 3 just three days after Christmas) – We made reservations to take her to her very first Tea Luncheon and included a very pretty dress and hat to wear.

There are so many gift experiences, but here are a few others we came up with:

City Pass – Offers many popular attractions and restaurants at half off. Simply buy a voucher to gift them.

City Bus Tours – Hop on Hop off are available in many cities.

Resort Pass Gift Card – Gift them a day of pampering with you.

Sporting Events, Concerts or Broadway shows!

Masterclass – Offers online classes taught by instructors who are famous for their craft.

With so many great ideas and a little thought you can find the perfect gift experience to provide a lasting memory for your loved ones.

The best thing about memories, is making them!

Xoxo

Mimi Jackie

Originally Published on https://www.gigiconnection.com/

Gigi Connection Grandparenting

With decades of friendship between us, we aim to empower and encourage women of all ages as we share, from our hearts, topics relating to health, beauty, fashion, reading, cooking, faith in God, travel and the joys of aging gracefully as we live life with our friends, family and adoring grandchildren.

Our greatest hope is that with almost 200 collective years of marriage wisdom, 20 grandchildren between us (newborn-12 years of age) and friendships lasting since 1989, our blog encourages you in some way in your friendships, your relationships, your faith, your self and in this wonderful journey called grandparenting.