There is no order in my life; there is only chaos, and boxes, and dust. When oh when will it end.  You can be frank with me if the answer is never.

I’m not even going to try to be orderly with the gift ideas; I am just going to post them one after another and then go pack another box.

I was going to unintentionally lie to you and tell you I bought these small French Bull bowls last year for myself after not getting them for Christmas, but right on the product page it says I bought them December 2nd so apparently I was impatient.

I spent nearly $18 for them, and I thought that was a very silly price to pay for four little plastic bowls, but Paul and I each have our own little allowances for exactly this kind of purchase, and I am so glad I sprang for them because I use them ALL THE TIME. Furthermore, it’s been a year and I still get a little heart-leap every time I choose one from the stack. I have other perfectly good little plastic bowls but I always choose one of THESE. I meant to recommend them to you before but I’ve had them in my cart for months and months waiting for a good price and they’ve been in the Really Truly Unreasonable range, like $35 plus $6.99 shipping. Now they are hovering around $20, $21, $22, and that is in good Gift Territory. (I just ordered the four matching spreaders for myself. It’s ludicrous. When do I use little spreaders? But they have been making my heart leap for a YEAR in the Amazon cart, and it is TIME.)

 

My sister-in-law bought Paul a giant bar of Duke Cannon soap one Christmas and now he is spoiled and uses nothing else. I’m thinking of getting him this three-pack of new scents (these are the scents he’s been using):

They are expensive but they are huge, and he does not have many things in his life I would categorize as Indulgences, whereas I am surrounded by French Bull bowls and deep-conditioning hair masques and forty different coffee mugs.

 

We are trying to decide if $50 is too much to spend for this Galton Board for one of our older boys (19 and 17):

It’s really neat, and I saw a large one in a museum and found it hypnotizing for longer than I would have expected, and we are desperate for gift ideas for them, and they like stuff like this—but on the other hand, it’s kind of a one-trick pony.

 

I am planning to get lenticular playing cards for all three littler kids (13, 13, and 11):

The main problem is deciding who gets the cat ones, since those will be the favorite. I’m also considering dogs and motion and birds. (There are also dinosaurs, which makes me a little sad because it wasn’t so long ago that those would have been the obvious choice for Henry, and that was such a fun stage but it has passed.) Maybe I will wrap three different decks and then give them randomly. Or maybe I will instead buy three packs of cat cards. Or maybe I will freeze with indecision and not order any after all.

 

I can’t tell you why Edward (13) wants this Otamatone so much, but he does, and my parents are giving him one:

You can search “Otamatone” on YouTube to see how ridiculous these are. I am glad we are moving to a larger house, so that I can send Edward and this toy to the other end of it.

 

I’ve mentioned this shower radio before, but I continue to love mine and listen to it every morning, and it would be a nice gift for someone who doesn’t really need much or have room for much:

Getting ready in the morning is SO BORING, and this makes it somewhat less boring.

 

William (17) loves Taco Bell Fire Sauce, and I have searched all our local stores and can only find bottles of Mild and occasionally Hot, but the Fire is available online so I ordered him a couple of three-packs of it for Christmas.

 

I ordered Adam Ruins Everything for Rob (19):

Have you seen his videos around Facebook or Twitter? I love them. They’re like Snopes, but videos.

 

I ordered Manifold: The Origami Mindbender for William.

He likes origami, he likes puzzles, it seems like a good fit.

 

I’m not saying bowl covers are the hottest gift, but I’m getting a pack of them for Paul’s stocking now that they’re back under $5 (for awhile they were around $20, which, what?).

He uses them all the time, and I like this retro pattern. I should warn you that the smallest ones in the set are REALLY SMALL, like shower caps for dolls. Hey, gift idea if your kids have dolls!

 

William had The Little Book of Thunks on his wish list so we bought it.

 

Henry (11) had Island of Fire on his wish list (it’s book 3 of The Unwanteds series; he got book 1 and book 2 on previous occasions), so I bought it and also book 4 because it was on a good price (the hardcover was only a couple of dollars more than the paperback); if I end up with too much stuff for him for Christmas, I’ll give him book 4 for his birthday.

 

Edward and Henry both wanted the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, so I got it.

Basically if there is a book on a child’s list, I will buy it. Oh, speaking of books, I just got this from the library, and it’s a little too soon to call it but so far it seems like a GREAT gift book:

What We Keep: 150 People Share the One Object that Brings Them Joy, Magic, and Meaning, by Bill Shapiro and Naomi Wax. Nice hardcover, illustrated with photos, good general-interest topic.

 

We’re getting The Indispensable Composers for Rob, who likes classical music and has Opinions about composers. At worst, he can scoff at how wrong the book is; at best, he will love it.

 

We also got him The White Box: A Game Design Workshop in a Box, suggested by commenter Slim after the post about how impossible Rob is to buy for. This looks like exactly his kind of thing.

Okay, back to the packing that will never be finished.

I would like to discuss Rob, who is 19 years old and impossible to buy for.

Before I launch into the reasons he is terrible, I would like to say that he was home for a few days for Thanksgiving break and he was an absolute treat. Well, there were a couple of moments that were less than treatlike, but he IS a college sophomore and we must expect that. In general he was funny and chatty and nice to have at home, and I enjoyed his visit.

And we got done the two major and important tasks I’d set for that time: (1) family Christmas card photo in front of the new house and (2) Rob’s flu shot. My dad said he’d think it would be in the college’s best interest to sponsor a nurse to just go around and give the shot to every student who doesn’t object, and I QUITE AGREE. (A pharmacy does come to campus and set up a station at certain times, but they charge for that and they don’t take insurance, and also last year Rob claimed to be unable to establish when they were there.)

Where was I? Oh, yes: Rob is impossible to buy for. Here are the things that make him impossible (some of which might be harvestable as ideas for the less-impossible or differently-impossible teenagers in your life):

1. He is in that stage of life when toys no longer appeal but household stuff is not yet exciting.

2. He lives mostly at college so he doesn’t have a lot of room/need for stuff.

3. He is of a minimalist/ascetic nature, and doesn’t WANT much stuff, and seems to be making a point of it. Remember this is the child who refused a second set of bedding/towels for college. (He has experienced zero regret and says he has never yet needed a second set of either. I sent him a Christmas-themed pillowcase and he got rid of his other pillowcase so he wouldn’t have two.)

4. He has declined “better version” things such as: better winter boots, better gloves, more-luxurious sheets, an expensive pillow.

5. He has declined “good for now and also for later” things such as luggage, a digital camera, a nice lamp, a tool set, a nice clock, dishes, spices, silverware, baking pans, kitchen appliances, a mini-fridge, minor pieces of furniture.

6. He says he has plenty of clothes and there are no special/expensive clothing items that appeal.

7. He doesn’t drink coffee. He doesn’t want a travel mug. He doesn’t get a thrill from eating out, so he doesn’t want gift cards to restaurants or pizza places. I asked if there were stores he would want gift cards for; he said no, he doesn’t need/want anything. (Plus, that’s sad/boring to unwrap.) I suggested Expensive Treats and he says he DOESN’T REALLY EAT SNACKS. I mean.

8. He plays a fair amount of music, so I asked if he wanted sheet music or another instrument or musical recordings or a stereo. No.

9. He’s not at all interested in grooming-related stuff—no fancy razors, no cool hair products, no nice face masks, no fancy shower products, etc.

10. He’s full-up on things such as Rubik’s Cubes and logic puzzles.

11. He doesn’t want puzzle books or regular books.

12. We already got him a portable phone charger and a super-fast plug-in phone charger.

13. There are no subscriptions he wants. He’s tried some of those in the past (audio books, study services, access to sites) and doesn’t want/need any right now.

14. I thought he might want money to put towards Reddit Gold or phone apps or some other such online thing, but no.

15. Normally a person like this might be a good candidate for Experience Gifts, but he is up to his hairline in Experiences right now: he’s taking classes, he’s taking voice lessons, he’s taking fencing lessons, he’s going to the campus gym, he’s attending meetings of various campus clubs. He has TOO MUCH to do, not too little.

16. Normally a person like this might be a good candidate for charitable donations in their name, but he is not yet at the stage where he wants this.

17. Normally a person like this might be a good candidate for NO PRESENTS AT ALL, but he is my child and I am fond of him and also I feel a certain obligation.

18. I suggested savings bonds, which is what one set of grandparents got me when I was a child. It’s a nice way to say “There might not be anything you want NOW, but I assume you will want things LATER.” He found this idea about as thrilling as I did when I was a child, which is to say not thrilling at all. Then he made a cynical remark about the possibility of our government/banks/money existing in the same way by the time the bond matured.

19. His birthday is very close to Christmas, so we need double ideas and we have almost none.

 

We have two ideas. One is his idea: a bike. One is my idea, but he said yes: a video game system to play with his roommates.

Problems:

1. We have an approximate budget of $100 for him for Christmas and another $100 for birthday. The video game system is $300 and that’s without additional controllers (it only comes with one controller and he has three roommates), cables, or games. (I’d thought the retro NES would be perfect for this at $80 for system/controllers/cables, but he’s meh about it: he wants to be able to buy current/new games.

1b. I mean, we could make the video game system a joint Christmas/birthday gift and just plan to spend more on him because he’s older and more difficult to buy for…but then he gets, what, one gift at Christmas and nothing on his birthday? This is probably our frontrunner plan but it seems sad.

1c. Another idea is we could buy a used system and buy him additional controllers/games.

 

2. I don’t know how to choose a bicycle or what it would cost, but he goes to college in a location with a lot of winter, so we think he is unlikely to use it as much as he thinks he would. And when we were like, “Where would you store it when you weren’t able to use it?,” he was like “Uhhhh….” Also he came late in life to bike-riding, and when he was home for the summer I had to take him to the ER because he didn’t know you can’t make a sharp turn in a sandy area, so I am in general Not Keen on him having a bicycle in a CITY. I mean, at this point I’m willing to consider it, but the idea makes me feel anxious and unhappy.

 

What I WISH I’d done was NOT ASK HIM. I could have just bought him some things I thought he could use, and too bad if they failed. But I wanted to be sensitive to his age and personality, and also I wanted to get him some things he would be glad to have, instead of some things he’d sneak onto our basement storage shelves, unopened. (I’ve been packing, and I’ve been finding a lot of those things.)

This Ecosphere is surprisingly expensive, but William wanted it last year so we got it for him:

It’s a 4-inch glass sphere. Inside there is some vegetation, a nice little branch, some gravel, and two or three tiny shrimp. You can’t open it; it’s a contained system that runs on The Right Amount of Sunlight (you watch the vegetation, and if it gets too big you reduce the sunlight, or if it gets too small you increase the sunlight). William’s had it for a year, and two of the three shrimp are still alive.

The biggest pain is that you have to be available to accept the delivery in person when it arrives: it can’t, like, sit outside in the freezing cold. The second-biggest pain is that it needs some light every day, so you can’t store it in a closet until Christmas. Each day when William went to school, I’d take it out and put it near a window; I had an alarm set to remind me to pack it back in its box before the bus came back. …Boy, I am probably talking you right out of this. But William has really liked this gift, and especially in the beginning spent a lot of time watching the shrimp and monitoring the vegetation and being generally interested in the whole thing. One of the most enduringly successful gifts we’ve gotten him—and, once the gift is given and you no longer have to sneak it in and out of its box, a lot easier than a fish tank.

 

The pink wig I was so pleased with is marked down to $12.99 now. I bought another for myself but in sky blue.

I am this close to buying it also in violet and dark brown.

 

The concept/cover/title of this book appealed to me, so I got it from our library:

How To Be a Good Creature: A Memoir in Thirteen Animals, by Sy Montgomery. It took me a little while to get into the writing style; it’s fairly sentimental, as you’d expect. But I read the whole thing and enjoyed a lot of it, and it struck me as a very good gift book: great cover, general-interest topic, appealingly illustrated, good animal stories.

 

Friends gave me these flameless candles as a housewarming gift, and they are so great and so pretty (the candles, I mean, though also of course the friends):

Several people in the group already owned them, and several more bought them after seeing mine, so now they’re The Official Flameless Candle of Our Group. The little “flame” wiggles around randomly so it seems like it’s really burning/flickering, and there is a REMOTE CONTROL so you can turn them on or off from your comfy chair, and best of all there’s a timer so you don’t forget and leave them on all night and wear out the batteries. They also come in a birch version, and in other colors including pink, yellow, and green. One friend bought the burgundy ones so I can tell you those are also super beautiful.

A timely suggestion considering the recent government report that climate change is “an immediate threat, not a far-off possibility” and that we can expect to see an uptick in natural disasters: the Life Straw!

It’s at $12 right now, which is a pretty good price for it. I think lowest I’ve seen is $10 and the highest was $20.

 

The paint-by-sticker category has a new book: CATS.

I will probably get this for Elizabeth. Or maybe it will have to be a whole-family gift.

 

I was going to get this NES Classic video game system for Paul so he could re-enjoy his youth, and I consulted with Edward (our household video game expert) about whether I should get the NES Classic or the Super NES Classic. Edward thought the NES Classic was better than the Super (it had to do mostly with the pre-loaded game selection), but he was so into it and so excited about it that I consulted with Paul and we decided to get it for Edward instead. (“As long as I can still play it too,” Paul clarified.)

After reading the reviews, I also bought a second controller and a two-pack of extension cables. (The games are all pre-loaded, so you don’t have to buy any games, and in fact CAN’T buy any more games.)

 

If you don’t already own MasterMind (it’s a game like Monopoly or Sorry, where even if you don’t think you own it, you might very well own it), I recommend it—and as I’m posting this, it’s down to $9.50 which is a good price for it.

My nephew, who was six years old at the time, taught me to play it. It’s quick and simple to learn, but then it’s like Sudoku or one of those other games where you keep figuring out new strategies. I find it mind-stretching in a way that is probably very good for warding off Alzheimer’s / counteracting the effects of vodka tonics.

 

If you have kids who like to talk constantly about what the household cats are doing/thinking and what their facial expressions and postures are communicating, I suspect your kids would enjoy the book Breaking Cat News:

Mine sure did, and “Ma’am? Ma’am?” is a frequent part of our familyspeak now.

 

If you have a cat who’s a bit on the chonkers side, or a cat who needs to eat slowly for some other reason, or a cat who has a high need for digging/playing, may we suggest this Catit cat-feeding device?

I’m not saying Elizabeth and I attended a presentation given by a cat therapist on the topic of how to make your cat’s life happier, except we absolutely did do that, and this was one of the cat-life-improving items the therapist recommended. Apparently cats have an instinct/impulse to dig rodents out of holes, and this feeder satisfies that urge. We have two cats who would prefer to eat the easiest way possible and they just use the bowl, but we have one cat who gets bored and then finds her fun by tormenting the other two cats, and this feeder keeps her occupied many times a day. She will be up to her armpit in it just like the cat in the product photo.

 

What I like in a jigsaw puzzle is being able to pick which part I want to work on (a specific ornament on the tree, a specific compartment of the shadowbox, a specific bird, etc.) and work on that, and then pick another thing and work on that, and then join those things together. If you like the kinds of puzzles I like (as opposed to the kinds with vast expanses of sky/sea/foliage/mountain, or the kinds that are like just an impossible picture of a bunch of candy corn), may I recommend this doughnut one?

And it only has 300 pieces, so it’s good for working on with mid-age children. (I also loved this 500-piece Pantone one, but I only see it available from third-party sellers with high shipping.)

 

I’m not saying this is an EXCITING present, but this small Honeywell is my favorite fan and at time of posting it is on sale for $9.99:

I have it on my bureau at home. I bring it with me when I travel. (Except when I visit my brother/sister-in-law, because they already have the same fan in their guest room.) It can be tilted to various angles, and it has three speeds. I’ve had mine for years. I bought one for Rob for his dorm room. I bought another one just now because $9.99 is a nice price and there are a lot of rooms in our new house.

I just bought myself a little present to celebrate this past Tuesday’s elections:

Sienna Sky Blue Wave earrings.

 

Which reminds me of two other pairs of earrings I’ve bought recently, both of which are bee-themed. If you are not friends with any pissed-off progressive women, you may not have heard that bees are the current symbol of how very pissed-off the progressive women are. Plus, bees are cute. Plus, bees are crucial to our survival and also endangered, so it’s Bee Awareness too.

Vintage Bee Leverback earrings and the matching adjustable ring and necklace from Ruby Spirit Designs. The way Etsy works, if someone buys the exact earrings or ring or necklace I linked to, it’ll show as sold when you click through—but that doesn’t mean there are no more available: go to the shop’s link and see if another of the same item has been re-posted (sometimes it takes a few days). This seller is in the UK, so if you’re in the US and you want these as a holiday gift for someone, it would be wise to order early.

 

Brass honey bee earrings from Jen’s Bead Box. They also come in a silver version. These are small and pretty, and my mom commented that she kept noticing them moving near my ears as if they were hovering buzzily. Mine arrived looking shinier and more golden than I’d expected, but the brass has gradually darkened.

 

If you’re shopping for someone who likes charity gifts, a $50 donation in their name to PlanUSA.org will protect a girl.

 

Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World, by graphic novelist Pénélope Bagieu. A thrilling selection of women throughout history, comics-style. I loved it. And it makes a nice gift book: it’s a fancier/larger/denser paperback, with a textured cover.

 

Rad Women Worldwide: Artists and Athletes, Pirates and Punks, and Other Revolutionaries Who Shaped History, by Kate Schatz, illustrated by Miriam Klein Stahl. Paul gave this to me and it’s still in my to-read pile, but I can tell you I certainly enjoyed receiving it. A nice hardcover.

 

The Power, by Naomi Alderman. Revenge-fantasy fiction about what might happen if women developed a power that meant suddenly men were the ones who had to be scared about walking alone at night, while women could walk freely and comfortably.

 

Why Liberals Win the Culture Wars (Even When They Lose Elections), by Stephen Prothero. Like many non-fiction books, this seems to me to be two essays’ worth of material padded to book length. I read until I caught the gist, then kept reading the point-reinforcing examples for awhile, then skimmed for awhile to more interesting examples, then felt in no need of further examples and stopped reading. Well worth the cost of the book: the gist has stayed with me in times of trouble, and it is a very reassuring gist.

 

This is Swistle from the future adding this next suggestion, which wasn’t yet published at the time of this post:

The Future of Another Timeline, by Annalee Newitz. See review post.

 

I have been acquiring a collection of political/fundraising t-shirts. Most such t-shirts are unisex sizing, which generally means men’s sizing, which means they poof out around my shoulders and grip too tightly at the hip; those end up at the bottom of the drawer, or transferred to Paul’s drawer. (Can you imagine men putting up with “unisex” shirts that were baggy in the chest, narrow in the shoulders, maybe with a nice scoop neck and little cap sleeves? With a few organizations offering a “men’s” style option, which would only be available in limited sizes and would cost more money?)

Where was I? Oh yes: here are two shirts that are better than the usual unisex:

ACLU basic tee. I’m not saying it’s fancy, but it’s a soft, comfy, drapier knit and I think it’s cute. It still looks like I’m wearing my boyfriend’s t-shirt, but it looks like that was a good idea instead of a bad one.

 

Human Rights Campaign Everyone Rainbow t-shirt. Almost as good fit-wise as the ACLU one. It’s kind of like CHILD-fit rather than boyfriend-fit or whatever: it reminds me of how it felt to wear clothes when I was a child and didn’t spend any time thinking about how annoying it was that unisex clothing was fitted for men. And it’s a more decorative/fun design than the ACLU one, if you’re looking for gifts. The Rainbow T-Shirt is another favorite; I have it in grey.

 

Speaking of everyone/equality/rainbow, I am not really a bumper-sticker kind of girl, but I have one of these equality stickers on the back of my car:

I like that it’s very, very simple but also A HUGE AND IMPORTANT CONCEPT COVERING MULTIPLE CURRENT ISSUES. Also: the way I feel when I see the same sticker on other people’s cars is the way I want those other people to feel when they see the sticker on mine.

Speaking of stickers, I also ordered a bee sticker. I’ll put it on the other side of the bumper.

It feels like a secret and subversive signal to other members of The Hive.

 

If you haven’t already, I suggest spending time on Emily McDowell’s site. There you will find excellence such as:

American Values tote bag.

 

Everything Will Be Okay mug.

 

Patriarchy tote. I like the mug even more, but it’s out of stock and I didn’t want to get your hopes up with a picture of it and then say “Ha ha but you can’t have it right now!!”

Dystopia napkins.

 

Perhaps you know someone who still plays solitaire old-school:

The Woman Cards.

 

This nail polish is a color I don’t even particularly like, but I have two bottles: one among my other polishes and one tucked away with my Hillary Clinton on a unicorn t-shirt (made of really wonderful-feeling cotton, but 100% men’s fit so it’s in a drawer) and 2016 campaign pins.

OPI nail polish in Madam President. Within our lifetime, perhaps.

If we are really going to move between Thanksgiving and Christmas, that is going to cut into gift-post-writing time. I’m going to see what I can get done early. Here’s a bunch of stuff we got the twins for their 13th birthday, in case you have any kids of the same approximate age and interests to buy for:

Kawaii Doodle Class. My 9-year-old niece had this book and was making sheet after sheet of the cutest drawings ever, so I bought the book for Elizabeth. SO MUCH CUTE. Highly recommend.

 

Cute cat pens to wrap up with the book.

 

Edward got Kanoodle last Christmas and wanted Kanoodle Genius for his birthday. We’re getting him Kanoodle Extreme this Christmas.

 

Oh my gosh, Chameleon pens are amazing. They are so expensive but when Elizabeth colors with them, the resulting pictures look like illustrations in a book. My parents bought her a 22-pen set to start with, and then she puts smaller sets on her wish list when she notices there are colors she could use more of. We got her skin tones and floral tones for her birthday.

 

Kinect Sports and Kinect Sports 2. Edward is an Indoors Type, so I will buy him almost anything that makes him willingly move around.

 

Kawaii Alpaca coloring book. There was a bit of a kawaii/alpaca/art theme to this birthday.

 

Alpaca page-markers, to go with the coloring book, not that they really go with the coloring book but they didn’t seem like enough to wrap on their own.

 

Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. We bought a Nintendo 3DS for Rob a long time ago, and now Edward has it as a handmedown.

I have two kids home sick from school, but they only had one barfing session each (one kid last night, the other kid this morning), and since then they have been absolutely well enough to play video games, so I am hoping hoping hoping that they just had too much dinner last night or something.

Every year at Christmas I re-read This Year It Will Be Different. This time I’m deliberately reading one story each night, after it’s dark enough outside for the Christmas lights to look peak beautiful. This has been a very pleasant way to do it, as it turns out.

Certain Christmas carols bug me; I won’t list them all, because one person’s teeth-clenching irritant is another’s sentimental favorite, but I did want to mention a little issue with Do You Hear What I Hear. That’s the one where the night wind tells the lamb about a special star, and then the lamb tells the shepherd boy about a special song, and then the shepherd boy tells the king about a special baby, and then the king tells his people about the special baby too. But in the actual Bible story, what the king actually does upon hearing the news of a special baby is order the execution of all boys two years and younger. I can see how that wasn’t as nice a verse for the song, but what if the shepherd boy had instead continued the game of Telephone with a grown-up shepherd or a magi or something? Then we could have had another good verse without the story veering.

We are right at that point where “There is PLENTY of time to prepare for Christmas” has the potential to turn into wild panic about how little time there is left. Rather than trying to make idea lists around a certain type of person, I am going to just show you what I’ve been buying and trust you to figure out which person on your list it might work for, if any.

 

Pokémon wallet for my six-year-old nephew who just started getting an allowance. I had Paul and the three youngest kids all weigh on the decision, because there were several pretty good ones; this one was the winner, but not by a lot. The runner up was this one. Arguments for the one we got: it’s cuter; it’s a more attractive design overall; you can act like you’re putting your money into a Pokéball. Argument for the runner-up: more Pokémons is better.

 

Pokémon Throw ‘N’ Pop Charmander and Great Ball, also for the six-year-old nephew. I thought this looked really cute and fun. The hardest part was picking which Pokémon/ball combination.

 

Pusheen 12″ plush for my eight-year-old niece. I hope I made the right call on this. Elizabeth thinks the ones eating things (cookie, cupcake, sushi, doughnut, pizza, ice cream, chips) are cuter, but I thought a more basic edition would have more long-term cuteness/appeal. (By the way, there is a 41″ version too if you are of the go-big-or-go-home temperament.)

I also bought the Pusheen stamp set, which by the way is TINY—tinier than I was imagining, because I failed to read the perfectly clear description. It’s a nice stocking item, though. And if you’re thinking of buying some Pusheen stuff, I definitely recommend the Pusheen book. All my kids love it.

 

Nerf Dart refill, for ten-year-old Henry. When we are old and moving into a nursing home, they will clean out our house and, one assumes, find thousands of Nerf darts, because where do they all go?

 

OPI in Madame President. For me. I had a bottle already, but Elizabeth uses up a lot of nail polish and so when the price dipped I bought another bottle to set aside and not let her use. I’ll have Paul put it in my stocking.

 

Pizzacraft dough docker, for Paul. He likes trying new kitchen toys, even if they don’t end up being useful.

 

LEGO Space Shuttle Explorer / Moon Station / Space Rover. For Paul, who recently said he was in the mood to build with LEGOs again. I like that you can make three different projects with the same set.

 

Portal the board game, for either Edward or Henry, depending on who has fewer presents. The video games Portal and Portal 2 have been extremely and persistently popular at our house, so even if the board game ends up being terrible it’ll be fun to open. I’m also buying this little LEGO Portal set; probably I’ll give it to Paul because he can be relied on to share graciously.

 

Dixit, for 16-year-old William. I am picky about games, and I do like this one. I like that it’s low-pressure, and everyone plays for themselves so you don’t have to worry about letting teammates down, and it’s relaxed and creative, and it allows time to pause and chat for awhile mid-game-play. I was explaining the game to William (I played it at someone else’s house) and he really liked the sound of it so I’m getting it for him.

 

Chicago Cutlery Fusion II 5-inch utility knife and 7-3/4-inch chef knife. We have the 3-inch paring knife and Paul commented recently that it’s one of his top favorites and he wishes he had a second one so he didn’t have to keep washing it. So I’m buying him a second one, and also these two different knives from the same line so he can see if he likes those too. I see they say hand-wash only, but we have been putting the paring knife through the dishwasher daily.

 

Hedgehog journal, for niece who loves hedgehogs. Also hedgehog stickers.

 

Melissa and Doug Giant Deer. For me, and as a friend for my giraffe. I can’t fully explain myself, except that I saw him in a store and his nose was perfectly off-center and he was looking at me like this:

 

You should have seen all the adoring looks he got as I wheeled him around in the cart. Everyone who saw him wished they’d seen him first! Everyone! I have him standing next to the Christmas tree with Christmas lights draped over his antlers, and I have no regrets.

NO REGRETS.

We have people working in the yard today (they are clearing out a small wilderness of overgrown and uninvited shrubbery), and I cannot settle. It’s not as bad as when there are people working in the house, but it’s a similar feeling. I keep worrying they’ll ring the doorbell when I’m in the bathroom or something. And soon comes the awkward time of writing a check.

Wouldn’t this be a perfect time to clean the dining room for Thanksgiving, or work on Thanksgiving plans, or make a Thanksgiving shopping list? But here I sit, too unsettled to do anything productive. I am the princess, and the pea is working in the yard.

Shall we discuss some gift ideas? I will show you some of the things sitting in my shopping cart:

Hexbug Nano Launchpad, plus I’m considering extra hexbugs and replacement batteries. This is for my six-year-old nephew. My kids had a lonnnnnnnng Hexbug Nana stage; each time we considered getting rid of the stuff, there’d be a fresh interest in playing with them.

 

Song of the Lioness box set, by Tamora Pierce. There was a discussion on Twitter about this author that made me immediately want to see if Elizabeth would like the books. I normally just buy them ONE book for Christmas, so maybe I’ll get just the first book instead.

 

The Mountain Catzilla vs. Robot shirt. We have a bunch of these shirts by The Mountain, and they’re so thick and nice and cottony. This is one I’m thinking of getting for Paul. He already has Krakitten and Lincoln the Emancipator in heavy rotation, but says he’d like one more.

 

Oggi 25-ounce insulated bottle. Paul has tried many different ways of transporting his iced coffee to work, and this is by far his favorite so I’m getting him a second one.

 

Eight-pack of clip-on bow ties. Henry is very fond of snazzy clothing.

 

Planet Plates. I don’t have anyone on my list to buy these for, but I leave them in my cart because it seems like one day the perfect recipient will come along.

 

Magpie Jay Cosmos Big Mug. Same with this mug: no recipient in mind, but it’s so retro and cute!

 

Ava & Viv olive anorak. For me! It’s even cuter than in the picture, I think, with a cute hood.

 

KitchenAid immersion blender. For Paul’s sister. She wanted an immersion blender, and this is the one Paul uses and likes, so I figure it’s a safe bet. Because liking things is on the DNA.

 

The Little World of Liz Climo page-a-day calendar. For the household. Page-a-day calendars are persistently popular with the kids (and I like to put the best pages in care packages to Rob), so every year we get one cat-related one plus one other. Last year I waited too long on the Liz Climo one and it sold out, so this year I’m ordering earlier.

 

Plague, Inc., the board game. Edward and Henry both want this, so it’ll go to the one we have fewer other good gift ideas for.

 

This is the book written by someone I know and love, and also it is a really good book and my kids really liked it and so did Paul and I, and so I plan to keep recommending it until it eventually goes out of print.

Hi Swistle, I’m hoping you and/or your readers can help. My daughter turns 13 this month and I am at a TOTAL loss as to what to get her.

This is a hard age I feel like. My mom wanted to get her an iPhone and I told her NO. I’m trying to hold out as long as possible, because once you cross that line, there is no going back. Besides, Sophie is not really home alone (I pick her up from school every day and continue my work day at home), and she literally only has one friend and so…it’d be pointless. Not to mention that we have – let me count – SEVEN digital devices already in the home for TWO people.

Sophie doesn’t like to travel. Or Shop. Or do scary things. Or do adventurous things. Or have any desire to get her ears pierced. Or her nails done. We just moved in here in May, so she just redid her room. She’s not really into American Girl Dolls anymore; she doesn’t really play. I’m at a complete and total loss, and so is she as far as giving ideas. HELP??!!?

Let me know,

Much appreciation,

Farrell

 

I love cool coincidences, and this email came in THE DAY AFTER I CHOSE A GIFT FOR A 13-YEAR-OLD GIRL. Also, I’ve been working on ideas for Christmas, because the three eldest kids are getting really hard to buy for, and one of those eldest kids is a girl of approximately this age. So I would love to collect some ideas.

Here is what I bought for someone else’s 13-year-old girl, on the advice of her friend Elizabeth:

An OPI mini nailpolishes set. It was not a Hello Kitty one, but similar, with six different colors. I found it at Marshalls for $6 on a post-Christmas clearance last year and bought two, one for Elizabeth and one to set aside for a future birthday party she might attend, and finally the birthday party presented itself. This might not work for Sophie, since she’s not into having her nails done, but I list it anyway in case it might help with someone else’s 13-year-old girl.

 

Paint-by-Sticker book. I am a little concerned about giving a potentially frustrating craft to someone entering the peak door-slamming years, but on the other hand it will happen at someone else’s house, so. Also, the easier ones are marked “for kids!,” which I suspect would be displeasing to a 13-year-old. I do recommend having someone TELL the 13-year-old girl that there are grown adult women who found the craft so hard they wanted to cry, because that seems to set expectations at the right level.

 

Would she like Thinking Putty? There are a ton of kinds to choose from: iridescent, heat-sensitive, magnetic, metallic. But I recommend this only for a Very Careful child. One of my children got some into one of his dresser drawers and onto one of the recliners, and this stuff is TERRIBLE with fabric.

 

Duct tape crafts are still pretty popular at my kids’ middle school. Can anyone recommend a particular book of duct tape crafts that their child used/liked? If so, I can add a link here later.

 

Does she like puzzles? Elizabeth has this Ravensburger Happy Animal Buddies one. For her, it’s difficult enough that she needs to work on it with a grown-up or else she gets discouraged—but puzzles are one of the things I like to do with her, so that’s okay. If she wants to do one on her own, she does a 100-piece one; I looked for the ones we have and like, but I’m not seeing them. We have a bunch of Crocodile Creek 100-piece puzzles, but I’m not seeing many of those at all; it looks like they’ve switched mostly to smaller numbers of pieces. Ravensburger is a brand we liked, and Mudpuppy, and Springbok. If I were buying her one now, I’d get her this Mudpuppy Forest Friends one.

 

Here are a few of the things I’m considering getting for Elizabeth for Christmas:

Clip-in colored hair streaks. She keeps mentioning wanting a colored streak in her hair, but she’s indecisive, and the last time we had color put in her hair (teal ends) they washed out so quickly. This seems like a fun way to avoid those issues.

 

Pusheen plush. I think I’ve mentioned this one before. We still haven’t bought it for her, because it is my feeling that we have already reached Maximum Stuffed Animal.

 

Nerf Rebelle gun and darts. Elizabeth and I are of one mind on this issue: (1) We are offended by this marketing. Oh, we’re girls so we have to be appealed to with PASTELS and PRETTY PATTERNS? We’re girls so “rebel” has to be spelled “rebelle,” because a word always means boys by default, and has to be changed if it’s going to refer to girls instead?? (2) Sheepishly, we both suddenly want this Nerf gun and these Nerf darts. (It is the same for me with “women’s” tool kits.)

I have mixed feelings about toy guns to begin with, but Henry is SO KEEN on them that I made some decisions I would completely understand if you came down on the other side of. I don’t think Elizabeth wants this toy enough for me to make that same decision—but on the other hand, I don’t like the idea of being like “yes for boys, no for girls,” even though that’s NOT what I’m saying. Also, I want an excuse to buy the pretty darts. Also, I already floated the idea with Henry and he’s very keen to help me choose WHICH of the Rebelle guns I should buy, and he has many opinions about what makes each one good/bad and knows all about which non-Rebelle Nerf gun each Rebelle Nerf gun is based on, and it appeals to me to call in his expertise on this. I don’t know. We’ll see when we get closer to Christmas.

 

Tiny Hats on Cats book. This I purchased within 30 seconds of learning of its existence. Then I told Paul NOT to get it from the library if he sees it there. Every year, EVERY year, I buy a new and interesting book for each child; and every year, EVERY year, Paul sees one or more of those books at the library in the week or two before Christmas and brings it home.

 

Rad Women Worldwide. This isn’t something she added to her wish list, but it’s something I’d like her to have.

 

More nail polishes. We both like the OPI brand, and I can find them for about $4 each at Marshalls and TJMaxx, so I’m planning to buy some and put them aside. My favorite would be to buy her Christmas-y ones—but then she receives them too late to use them that year.

 

Footless sleeper. She is 5’4″ and getting perilously close to being too tall for these, but still fits into the biggest size.

 

I’ve been thinking about a coloring book; she still has and uses these glitter pens (she has a set of warm and a set of cool). I’m not sure about this book in particular, but it’s the sort of thing I’m looking for; I’d love to get more recommendations. I’m also looking for recommendations for coloring implements. I use colored pencils but I’ve heard about…is it gel pens? Is that what people use for coloring books? If so, I’d like to get her a nice big set of those. The glitter pens are really fun but there are only ten colors, and they’re all glittery. I’ll come back and add some links here if some favorites emerge in the comments.

 

We’re also considering getting older-model Android phones for both twins. Paul handles this completely so I have no link. It’s gotten to the point where them NOT having phones is causing ME inconvenience and stress (they both do assorted after-school activities, and Elizabeth recently went to a sleepover and then I had a concern that could have been alleviated by a text but was not worth a phone call to the other girl’s mother), which was our deciding factor when considering phones for the older boys. So we could relieve a fair amount of our Christmas stress by getting them each one of those plus a Google Play card to buy apps and app-related merchandise.

The problem would be that we’ve set up a precedent for A Big 13-Year-Old Birthday Gift, and if we give them phones for Christmas we need to come up with something else for the birthdays. So maybe we should just hang on awhile longer.

********

That’s what I’ve got so far. She might want another outfit for her cat, but she hasn’t put any clothes on him in ages so that might be over. I am hoping some of you with children this age can give us more ideas.

Edited to add: People in the comments section are talking about what they wanted/got at that age, and that is such a fun idea. When I was around 13, I got a desk blotter set I really, really wanted (pink, with multicolored hearts, and pink paper, and a pink pen holder that held a pink pen); a pink backrest; pink Reebok sneakers; a pink electric blanket (what, do you think, was Young Swistle’s favorite color?); a boom box (BOOM BOX) that had TWO cassette players (CASSETTES) so you could record from one cassette to the other (MIX TAPES); a little starter make-up set geared toward adolescent girls; a jewelry box; a music box; a purse; pretty stationery; a 110 camera; Bloom County stuff (calendar, books, Opus plushes).

Big hits were ANYTHING chosen by my aunt, because she had a daughter four years older than me, so she gave me things that thrilled my early-teen soul: perfume, a thin gold bracelet, a hot-turquoise button-down shirt, a tapestry vest, a plastic double-strand pearl bead necklace—all stuff my older cousin was interested in and that I was a little too young for but recognized immediately as COOL TEENAGER STUFF.