Am I late or is everyone else still Christmas shopping? I always promise myself I’ll be done by now, but I always end up with lots of last minute gifts to buy. Some people are so much harder to buy for than others, like my Dad, what can he possibly need?
I try to get thoughtful gifts, something people wouldn’t get for themselves but in this post I’m going to give you ideas for single moms and dads. As a single mother the gift I needed most all year long was time, there was never enough of it. It’s hard to ask for help, you never want to impose or make people feel obligated so one way to help, instead of just offering, is to plan for it.
Along with, or instead of, the gift you buy for their child give their child gift certificates for time with you. You can give as few or as many of these as you are comfortable with and your time allows. If you are really close to the family you could give one for every month, or just one or two for the year.
These certificates are easy to make with your printer and some stickers so the cost is minimal but the fun for the child, and the few hours of alone time for the parent are priceless.
Some ideas: a day in the park, lunch and a movie, a day baking cookies, a day making a gift for mom ( good for May for mother’s day or for the mom’s birthday month) an afternoon planting flowers- you can give them a little flower pot of their own to take home. The ideas are endless. Make sure you put a month on each certificate and then write it in your day planner. At the beginning of the month call your single friend and figure out which day works best for you to spend some time with their child.
Done this way the child looks forward to it and the single mom doesn’t feel like she is imposing on you. Every child loves one on one time with an adult who loves them. Think of some fun things the two of you can do together and make those gift certificates. Oh, also I’ve found if you give mom gift certificates for babysitting, she will rarely use them so give the certificates to the kids.
Gifts for Mom? How about a basket of bubble bath and a gift certificate to the book store? Or movie tickets for her and her little ones to have a day out. These are gifts that will be remembered and enjoyed for a long time.