landon and i are subscribing to the "want, need, wear, read" method of gift giving this year. every person in our little family of four gets four gifts -- something they "want," something they "need," something they will "wear" and something they can "read." it covers all the bases, simplifies the process of making a list and cuts down on the impulse buying that leads to hordes of gifts under the tree. so far, i love it.
here's what ellie's list looks like:
want: ikea art easel (hello, high impact gift for $14.99!)
need: big girl bedding (sniff, sniff)
read: a stack of second-hand books bought for anywhere from 10 to 99 cents at goodwill and the salvation army thrift stores.
that "read" is where my "green giving" headline comes in.
i could easily have bought a new book for $16.99. instead, i bought 21 for less than half that. many are wonderful, caldecott medal-winning titles, and several of them have been around some years, which we all know makes my heart quite happy. AND thrifting is THE very best way to recycle. why should i buy another "caps for sale" when a perfectly good copy, enhanced even by the little hands that've loved it previously, sits unused?
even in these stinky cell phone pictures, the stacks of books look just perfect under the tree, tied with twine, donning gift tags punched from, what else, but old books!
9 comments:
LOVE that...sigh...
Thrifting....yes, my heart beats faster.
I'm doing three gifts per child this year - three because that's what Baby Jesus was given.
Much simpler for sure. =)
Btw, how in the world do your kids not mess with the books under the tree? I've kept all of our wrapped presents stacked up in our bedroom because I just know that they would be all opened up otherwise!
la -- they don't mess with the wrapped presents. i guess because they just don't know what they are so they don't think about it. i do watch them closely, though, and redirect them if they're coming to close.
the books, however, were only under the tree for the photograph's sake. they would see those books and go straight for them!
i'm hiding those until christmas morn. :)
I am the ultimate Goodwill shopper, but yard sales are my favorite! It's so silly to spend a fortune when we have these amazing resources!
I love this!!!
Love this! Very awesome indeed.
We have adopted the same philosopy, but with three gifts. Next year, we are going to start taking a Christmas family vacation. With all of our Christmas gift savings.
as far as "not messing with the gifts under the tree," I think your streak was broken tonight. In the midst of three children and the mess of toys that they had drug out of Gray's room, I found a "To:" tag... no idea what it had come off of. Later, we realized it had come off of baby md's block tower that was once sitting nicely under the tree, but was now all. over. the. floor.
well, i went by this morning, (wed) and there those books still sat neatly under the tree and md's tower as well.
looks like perfect children to me...
well, maybe they hadnt been up long...
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