I have gift giving on my mind lately, with Mother's Day and graduations and a friend who's having a baby in June. I'm making a baby blanket for the baby, already have feelers out for Mother's Day, so this article caught my eye: Creative Graduation Gifts

Some of those ideas can be used for other gifts, too. When my sister and brother in law were married (years ago!), I made them a laundry/duffel bag and filled it with kitchen and household odds and ends. 

I'm not always creative when it comes to gift giving, are you? What have you given that was your own stroke of genius?  

 We have a dear friend that lives a few blocks from us that is thevery definition of bachelor.  He and I dated in high school and remainedgood friends and now he is even closer to my DH!  He does not cook. period.  So for his birthdays and Christmas, I but disposable pans and make casseroles and dinners, and fill his freezer. 

Also we do a Christmas name drawing in DH family because of there being so many people and we always seem to get one of his sisters that are doing VERY well financially.  Since they buy what they want when they want it, we never know what to get them.  Last year she got a thrift store basket filled with hot cocoa (part of a three pack I seperated), a mug (dollar store), a fleece throw (clearance rack at JoAnn's), and a $15 gift certificate for Segaull Book(given to me).  The value of the gift is supposed to be $30 or less, and ours worked out to about $4 out of our pocket.  I wouldn't have used the gift card anyways because I am not a fan of that particular store, so it worked out great. 

 I do remember a very dear Aunt gave me a set of mugs and cocoa mix when I graduated high school and I took them along to college. They were used a lot.  A fellow teacher at work mentioned the very best high school  grad gift she received was a lawn (chair) lounger that folded up flat enough to put under her dorm bed. She said that she would take her lounger outside on nice spring and fall days to study. She now often gives these flat folding loungers to her own neices and nephews for grad gifts. For wedding/shower gifts, I make over the neck butcher-type aprons from bright fabric. This style, uses only 1 yard of material, and I'm always on the lookout for fabric at thrift shops and garage sales. In the pockets, I'll place utensils, cupcake liners, sprinkles, spices, package of napkins or whatever I've found on sale. Brides apparently do not receive aprons anymore. Many have said, my aprons are the only ones they have ever been given. Sometimes I'll make his and hers aprons, or make one in a general fabric and one in a Christmas fabric. I have made so many over the years that I can complete one in 27 minutes start to finish. These are also a nice end of the year gift for a teacher.  

 Food!  LOL  Does that surprise anyone.  : )))  I try to fit the ocassion, the gift and the person.  I just treated myself to a first time visit to a beauty parlor(I lost 120 pounds)and the youg lady did a wonderful job, I am thrilled.  She was so nervous because I walked in and told her to cut my hair to my shoulders, never in my life has it been that short.  There was enough hair for a wig left!  Anyway, she kept telling me she needed coffee and more coffee(a girl after my own heart), that she is a single mother with 2 kids, and that this was her second job.

I  came home so thrilled with my new look and so thrilled with the consideration and care she took with me during my 3.5 hour appointment I made her 1 dozen Latte Cupcakes w/chocolate covered coffee beans on top, put them into a lovely old picnic basket with a few goodies for the kids, added an old but nice checkered tablecloth and napkins, a few word search puzzle books for everyone, a couple of pencils and a map to a nice little park.  I dropped it off yesterday and she was more than thrilled.

I dont like to put a lot of long term thought into gift giving, simply because it is for the most part food items.  For graduations I always offer to make and deliver anything requested(no longer do cakes though)for the gift, same with weddings and anniversaries.  Everything always seems to be so appreciated and well within my budget.