Do you buy gifts for other children? Nieces and nephews? Grandchildren? Friends of the family or co-worker’s children at the Christmas party? Everyone loves to get presents–especially kids! But as a momma of young children, nothing is worse than having to take back a gift. Whether it’s because we think it’s inappropriate for our family (oh, the tears!) or I have to fight the traffic and long lines because it’s just the wrong size or we already have one (or twenty!)–taking gifts back is a pain in the neck!

Here’s some tips to think through before buying for other children in your life this Christmas season. These aren’t meant to be yes or no, buy or don’t buy tips. These are things to think about when choosing your gifts.

• Is it age appropriate for the child? Don’t necessarily rely on the box for this, imagine the child actually using it.
• Is it age appropriate for the rest of the household? Is it something that can be easily damaged by or dangerous for younger members of the household? Will the child actually get to use it or will it have to be put away for safety most of the time? Does the child have their own room or do they share?
• How quickly will it be out-grown? Toy cars can be played with for years across age-groups. Ride-on toys usually have a life span of a year. That doesn’t make it a bad thing, just something to think about.
• Is it messy? This goes hand-in-hand with the next question.
• Is it noisy? People that don’t have children (or at least don’t have the little gift receiver in question!) think it’s amusing to give kids noisy, messy, pain in the neck toys that annoy parents. Creating stress in someone’s busy household isn’t amusing. All it means is that this toy will be put away most of the time and not used, or donated away at the very first opportunity. I’m not saying don’t buy finger-paint or drum sets. We love crafty, glittery, gluey, gifts! I’m saying think about it and chat with the parents first, or you may just be wasting your money.

I’d think hard about anything that includes projectiles for similar reasons. Enforcing rules and keeping track of pieces for items like Nerf guns is something a parent should only be subjected to if they were the ones foolish enough to buy them! {smile}

A good part of our Christmas shopping is already done this year.

• Does it take up a lot of space? Construction paper–very little space. Folding art easel–more space. Craft table with chairs–lots of space. (Don’t you love this one?) Again, maybe you should chat with the parents. It could be a great gift, but probably shouldn’t be a surprise.
• Does it take more materials or money from the parent later on? How much? For example, we bought my niece an American Girl doll. We knew she would want clothes and accessories later. We planned to buy some and knew that 18″ doll accessories were easily available at stores in a wide range of prices where she lived as well. Another example would be an eReader–the child or parents will have to continue buying books to read.

Another example of this is gift cards. Gift cards can be great, just keep in mind what the family has available to them. Getting gift cards for our kiddos means a special all-day trip across the bridge “to town” to spend it. And you’ll want to make sure that store is actually available to the child.

 This Christmas will definitely be filed under imaginative play and outdoor recreation for us!

• Does it have everything it needs to get started?  For example, does it need batteries? Tools for assembly? A special kind of book? For an eReader, maybe you include a gift card to get them started with some books. Or sometimes it’s nice to actually open the gift yourself and set it up for the child, then re-wrap it for them. A TAG reader is a perfect example. (We did this with digital frames for the grandparents a few years ago. They were new, but we opened them and loaded pictures onto them and then wrapped them up again, so all the recipients had to do was plug them in and voila!)

{And to give you a peek into some Christmas surprises hiding in my closet…a new .22 rifle needs ammunition, safety glasses and ear protection to be used on Christmas day!}

• Does it require more parental time? We’re going through this right now shopping for our own kids. Everything we’re getting them this year is as much a commitment of our time to them in the future as our money in the gift itself. A new video game doesn’t require much future parental time. Camping gear does. New matchbox cars don’t. Model car kits do.
• Does it meet the family’s values? This can be tricky, but I would say if you think about it and don’t know, don’t buy. No gift, regardless of the giver, is sacred. If it compromises our family’s values, we will absolutely take it back or give it away–yes, over howls of protest if need be. We run into this the most with media and clothing, but some toys too. For example, we don’t accept most Barbie, Monster High, or Bratz dolls, or most of the bad guys and monsters from the comic books, or anything that seems to glamorize illegal activity or denigrate law enforcement.Toy weapons are another one I would be careful about.

I think the biggest tip would be, if you run through this list and are not sure, just ask the parents. None of these necessarily preclude getting the gift–it will depend on the child, the gift, and your relationship with the family. But, being a momma now, these are the things I always try to think about when buying for someone else’s child.

How’s your Christmas shopping coming along? I’m pretty close to finished, but we’re going out one more time this weekend. Now I just have to get busy with the gifts I’m making!