With four kids aged 3 to 9, shopping for Christmas gifts can get a little overwhelming. As we lean more towards the minimalist lifestyle, we tend to limit the number of gifts and stocking stuffers and select more practical items or super open-ended toys. This year we are not doing any “toy” gifts for our children as they really play so well with what they have and don’t need any more. They may receive some from other family, but for our gifts we chose to stick to things they either needed now, or could use for years to come! Oh, and books are never limited. ha!
You can view all of these (except the Walker Family Goods Duffel) in my Amazon Storefront – Kids’ Christmas 2021 List!
*Some of these links are Amazon affiliate links.
Walker Family Goods States Duffel Bag: We travel so much as a family, and are getting to the point where we need a larger piece of luggage for all of the kid’s things. Instead of getting one piece of larger luggage, we opted to purchase (on discount!) each of them their own duffel bag (can be squashed a bit in the trunk) that they can use even after they’ve left our nest. Each child is getting one in a different color. Two will be delivered in the spring, but we have two that we will have them unwrap before Christmas so that they can pack for our holiday trip!
Simple Modern 14oz Summit Kids Water Bottle Thermos: Our kids need some new water bottles, and we like stainless steel ones because they tend to keep drinks cold longer. Each kid is getting a different pattern!
GPMTER Helmets: None of our kids have helmets right now. Whoops! We will put that right at Christmas.
Tovla Jr. Knives for Kids: Our kids really enjoy being in the kitchen and helping prep meals. This set will give me a little less anxiety when it comes to them using knives!
YOTO Player: I was THRILLED to win this YOTO Player in a giftaway on Instagram, as I was planning to purchase it for them anyway! My gift also included a starter music set of cards.
The Illustrated World of Tolkien by David Day: Our nine year old just finished reading The Lord of the Rings (including The Hobbit) and is currently obsessed. I saw this at Costco and grabbed it knowing he’d love all the illustrations and information! The version I found on Amazon has a different cover, but you get the idea.
The Complete Adventures of the Borrowers and Magical Animal Adoption Agency Book 1 – Clover’s Luck: Our seven year old is reading so well, and is working her way through the Magic Treehouse Merlin Missions books now (she already read the Magic Treehouse Series). We just get those from the library, but I wanted her to have some other series to start reading as well. We loved the Heartwood Hotel series by Kallie George, so I’m pretty sure she will love this series too!
Ready-to-Read Wonders of America and Living In… Book Sets: Our five year old is just in the beginning stages of learning (and wanting) to read, so I picked these up at Costco a while back to give her some extra reading practice once she starts picking up more skills.
The Jolly Postman and Little Blue Truck’s Valentine: Our three year old LOVES to be read to. He has every other Little Blue Truck book except this one, so I wanted to complete his set. The Jolly Postman is written by one of my favorite author/illustrator couples, Janet and Allen Ahlberg, and this book is so fun and interactive! They also wrote one of our family favorites, Each Peach Pear Plum.
Now, as for stocking stuffers, our kids usually get some new toothbrushes and other practical items. This year, we are sticking with that tradition, but doing bamboo toothbrushes and trying out a new toothpaste. It is yet to be determined if they will like the flavor. They also needed some fresh watercolor palettes, and I wanted to get some “nicer” watercolor brushes as well. There is always some candy included in their stockings, and I just selected a couple of their favorites to throw in.
We try to stick to $100 per child for their individual gifts and books. The shared gifts and stockings are separate from that amount. I did pretty well and stuck really close to that budget. The shared gifts and stockings only totaled up to $76. It certainly helped that I ended up winning the YOTO Player I was planning on purchasing. I do my best to save some money each month in our Christmas/Birthday Gift budget so that when those times of the year roll around I am prepared.
How do you do Christmas gifts for your kids? Do you purchase throughout the year and stash it away, or are you like me and wait until closer to Christmas time to make your selections? Fun fact: I do NOT enjoy Christmas shopping in general. ha! I feel like I never know what to get my kids, but I also just don’t enjoy the act of shopping. I’m all for experience gifts as well! Those are more impactful in my opinion, and usually the “gifts” my kids talk about for years and years!
I hope you all have a very blessed holiday season, and that the memories you make with your loved ones will be cherished forever!