For children, gifts are what Christmas is all about - receiving them anyway. In order to keep them happy, many parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents tend to spend entirely too much, but the reality is that you can spend very little and still keep most children very satisfied.
Age grouping helps a lot when it comes to ideas for what to buy, especially if you don’t have children of your own, and aren’t sure if the gift you’re eyeing is age-appropriate.
Children under 1 - Well really here, you’re not buying for the child, but for the parent - even if that happens to be you. Just be sure that whatever you’re getting is needed and doesn’t cause more stress in the household (no loud noisemakers). Try Wal-Mart, Big Lots, or other sell-it-all stores for well priced sets of blankets, onesies, socks, and stuffed animals.
Children 1-3 - In this case you’re buying half for the child and half for the parent. Wal-Mart actually has an entire isle of toy sets from dress-up to cars to plastic food items that run anywhere from $5-$20. Coloring books are also a great inexpensive option, and coloring helps kids learn and control their hand-eye coordination. Children this age are going to be far more interested in the pretty wrapping paper and bows than the actual gift itself, so just be sure to wrap it brightly.
Children 4-6 - As bad as this may initially sound, video games are a great option. Nick Jr., Disney, and a million other companies make great computer games for children that are completely educational and help them get ready for school. There are dozens of Blue’s Clues, Dora the Explorer, counting, ABC, and math games aimed at children of these ages that keep them more than entertained while teaching them, and can go for as low as $5 a game. You can also find out if the child owns a Leapster - made by LeapFrog (it’s like a GameBoy, but for younger kids) - the games for it are pretty cheap and still educational. Movies are also a great option, as long as you’re looking for the right ones. Again, look for educational stuff. Anything from Nick Jr. or Noggin is great, and Nick Jr. even puts out a bunch of videos that each have an episode from each of 5-7 different educational shows for about $10.
Children 7-10 - The educational video games and moves are still a good option here, but it can be more difficult to find them that are made for kids of these ages. Find out if the child has a video game console, like Game Cube, Playstation, Wii, or Xbox. You can easily pick up games for these systems for next to nothing at used game stores like Game Stop or Buy Back Games. These stores can be found stand-alone or in some movie rental places like Hollywood Video or Blockbuster. Just make sure you’re not buying a game they already have, and talk to the person helping you with your purchase - they can be very knowledgeable as to what is popular. Gift cards are also available at most of these game stores, and that way you know the child will pick a game they’ll love. If you’re sure of the child’s size, you can also try clothes. At around 6 or 7 children tend to start becoming interested in what they wear, and whether it’s “hip” or not. Again, ask someone who works in the department for advice on what’s “in”.
Children 11 and up - I honestly have never found a pre-teen or teen who wasn’t interested in clothing or shopping, so if you know their size, and what’s “in”, pick out a few items from Wal-Mart (always so cheap for clothes compared to department stores, but still up to date on style), and if you’re unsure, you can’t go wrong with a gift card. The option above to grab a gift card from a used game store also works wonders with kids this age. It’s pretty hard to find a child that doesn’t like video games, and the card really doesn’t have to be for much, as these stores sell games for so little - even $10 would buy a game or two from a place like this.
If it comes down to it and you’re still completely unsure of a gift, buy a funny or cute card, throw $10 inside, and give them that. A child’s eyes will light up at green bill no matter what the number is on it - they’re worse than us adults when it comes to money.
Happy Holidays!
