I had to laugh because I found this post in my ‘DRAFTS’ and I don’t think I ever published it or if I did I guess it didn’t go through… these have been some of our favorites throughout the year and may give you some gift ideas for this year.

It’s been a few weeks since Christmas and I thought I’d ask everyone about what their favorite gifts from Christmas were… this can help give me a better idea for future gifts and also let me know which things they may not have cared for at all. This past Christmas we were able to scale back quite a bit… the increased prices on everything helped with that as well!

We found that by putting together a Wish List on Amazon we were able to help get the items they have been asking for and it helped others buy what the kiddos really wanted… this truly made the gift buying a little easier. We have decided that all of our family members should create a wish list of some sort so we can access it for birthdays, anniversaries, special holidays, Christmas, or ‘just because’ gifts… the lists help to narrow down what everyone really wants or needs so that we aren’t just throwing money away on something they can’t or won’t use.

Here are a few of the answers I received:

• Life ** The kids had been relentless in asking for this game
• Lego Klutz sets ** What is there not to love about Legos? — maybe stepping on them but other than that they are always a hit with everyone
• Clue Jr and the Clue Disney Villains ** We got the Clue Jr for our home and big sister got the Villains but we played while she was here
• Battleship ** The older kids loved this game and they bought it for their younger siblings who now love it just as much!
• Cash Flow Game ** One of the older kids bought this and it has been a bit tricky to learn but everyone loves it — the junior version may be easier to start with and there is an online version as well
• Ticket to Ride ** We have seen this on several different videos and the kids really wanted to try it out, it was one that was a little tricky to learn but it does have expansion packs but we haven’t quite figured out how they work yet

Can you tell that they really love board games? Some of these were games that we had never heard of so the learning curve has been a bit hectic but they love playing them all!

Everyone also loved their new blanket throws that they got from Granny!

I also asked them individually:

• Mr. Awesome:
  • Smiles on faces
  • his new coffee cup (he gets a new one every year from one of my older daughters)
• Me:
  • Having the family together for the holidays
  • EVERYTHING!!!
• William (21 with Down Syndrome):
  • MP3 player **
  • Remote control car **
• Caitlyn (15):
  • Diamond Art Painting **
  • MP3 player **
  • books
• Isabella (13):
  • Diary
  • MP3 player **
  • books
• Joey (10):
  • pocket knife (the boys love the survival bracelets ** that they got last year so we found each of the boys one at the local flea market) – they have been taught proper handling and safety as well
  • Remote control car **
• Evan (9):
  • MP3 player **
  • Nerf guns **
• Jacob (9):
  • Nerf guns **
  • Remote control car **
• Shyanne (2 with Down Syndrome):
  • sloths — I believe she is trying to establish a stuffed sloth habitat in our home!
  • play phone/purse set ** – she can’t leave home without this!
  • books

Future Gift Ideas:

We also discussed the possibility of not doing separate gifts for birthdays but doing a big experience gift like going to the trampoline park. Everyone loved that idea as we could have a big birthday celebration for everyone. We did this earlier this year and it worked out GREAT!

We also love the idea of experience gifts as it can get rather expensive to buy passes to the zoo and/or museums for our large family. When we get any cash gifts we do try to put them towards a yearly pass so that we can enjoy special outings on a regular basis.

What were the favorite gifts that your family received that you would recommend to others?

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