I had a teacher post on the Teach Preschool facebook site a request for new and fresh ideas for parent Christmas gifts. This got me thinking and I wanted to share a few personal and professional thoughts on the topic of parent gifts.
Photos are always treasured
Hanging on my tree are many ornaments that my daughter, now age 23, made when she was little. The one above is a photo of my daughter taped behind a paper plate. What makes this ornament so special to me? It is the photo of course, but I have kept it over the years and each year I enjoy looking at the photo once again.
On the back of the paper-plate framed ornament is written my daughter's age and the date. And my daughter printed her own name - I recognize her handwriting.
It isn't that the ornament is a fabulous piece of art - what matters is that it is a little piece of my daughter and creates a memory that is special to me.
Simple art can mean a great deal
A little squiggle of glue and some glitter and a memory of my daughter at age two. Again, I place this little paper star on the tree every year and love it.
Notice the date is 1988 - I am always thankful that the teacher took the time to clearly print my daughter's name and the date on the ornament. I would never be able to remember what year my daughter made this but because the date is on there - it makes this little yellow star all that more special.
A Star for the tree
This has been the star on my Christmas trees for over 19 years. It is simply two stars cut out and wrapped around a cardboard tissue tube then glued together. It doesn't make our tree fancy but it brings us joy. For this my daughter also added some glue and glitter.
When planning a parent gift...
Feel free to keep it simple: What may seem like an old worn out idea to you is often times new and fresh to your preschoolers and parents. What may seem too simple may be something that a parent will treasure for life.
Add the child's name and a date: Over time, parents will appreciate having the date on the gift - it helps them remember how old their child was when the gift was made. If they have more than one child it will help keep it straight as to which child made the gift.
Involve the child in the process: It isn't how cute or expensive or creative the gift is as much as that it was made by and comes from the child. Looking back, I love the funny little glitter designs on the star - I am sure my daughter loved playing with the glue and glitter and I fondly remember her preschool years each time I place the star on our tree.
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