It is better to give than it is to receive. Yes, yes this is true. But it is definitely easier to RECEIVE than it is to GIVE. Especially when your family won\u2019t tell you what they want and it\u2019s only \u2026 holy cow juice! \u2026 like a week until Christmas!<\/p>\n
Forget giving, I\u2019ve got to start BUYING!<\/p>\n
But I\u2019m stumped this year. It\u2019s always hard, but it seems this year it\u2019s been especially difficult to come up with ideas. Or pry ideas out of people. That includes my daughter, who turns 11 the day after Christmas. Maybe it\u2019s a tough age \u2014\u00a0an age when toys of yesteryear don\u2019t quite cut it. Instead, electronics and other big ticket items are more important. <\/p>\n
Conversations in my house sound like this now: <\/p>\n
Me: Child, why is your homework all over my desk?!?<\/p>\n
Child: Because I needed the computer for it AND I don\u2019t have a computer OF MY OWN in my room \u2026 hint, hint, hint \u2026<\/p>\n
Me: YOU\u2019RE NOT GETTING A COMPUTER FOR CHRISTMAS!!! AND YOU\u2019RE NEVER ALLOWED TO DATE BOYS!!!
\n<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the Christmas spirit! <\/p>\n
So I\u2019ve started looking for unconventional ideas in unusual places. A newspaper ad I saw said: \u201cThis holiday, make memories that last a lifetime. And plans that last even longer.\u201d It was from a financial services company. What?!? I guess a bond or some life insurance under the tree is the way to go?<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve gone to Amazon.com and started typing in random searches like \u201cbest holiday gifts\u201d and \u201cDoomed, desperate dad needs gifts!!!\u201d (No kidding: When I typed \u201cbest holiday gifts\u201d in Amazon, the number one item was \u201cThe new 2016 Hillary Nutcracker with Stainless Steel Thighs\u201d for $29.95. I am not making this up!) <\/p>\n
For Christmas, my mother has called me several times to tell me she doesn\u2019t want anything. Instead of presents, she wants the gift of manual labor from my brother and me to work in her yard. This worries me. She hasn\u2019t specified exactly what she needs us to do. And when my mother does yard projects, it\u2019s never as simple as mowing the grass or planting petunias. No, she\u2019s much more involved, and it ends up rivaling government work projects. <\/p>\n
Hurricane Matthew flooded her yard, destroyed her AC and nearly seeped into the house, so it\u2019s more likely to be something substantial. Like moving a full-grown pecan tree to higher ground. Or digging a trench to divert future floods \u2026 to Miami. Or raising the house by 2 feet using only the scraps of wood in the garage. Is it appropriate to ask for some kind of contract or stipulations before agreeing? Should I speak with legal counsel? <\/p>\n
Truth is, when you have a family that\u2019s more about giving than receiving, you have one thing going for you: They\u2019re all in the same boat! Short on ideas and just as likely to offer a hug on Christmas morning to make up for it. And that\u2019s a gift that is way better to receive. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It is better to give than it is to receive. Yes, yes this is true. But it is definitely easier to RECEIVE than it is to GIVE. Especially when your family won\u2019t tell you what they want and it\u2019s only \u2026 holy cow juice! \u2026 like a week until Christmas! Forget giving, I\u2019ve got to start BUYING! But I\u2019m stumped this year. It\u2019s always hard, but it seems this year it\u2019s been especially difficult to come up with ideas. Or pry ideas out of people. That includes my daughter, who turns 11 the day after Christmas. Maybe it\u2019s a tough age \u2014\u00a0an age when toys of yesteryear don\u2019t quite cut it. Instead, electronics and other big ticket items are more important. Conversations in my house sound like this now: Me: Child, why is your homework all over my desk?!? Child: Because I needed the computer for it AND I don\u2019t have a computer OF MY OWN in my room \u2026 hint, hint, hint \u2026 Me: YOU\u2019RE NOT GETTING A COMPUTER FOR CHRISTMAS!!! AND YOU\u2019RE NEVER ALLOWED TO DATE BOYS!!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[554,556,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1532","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2016-nutshells","category-holidays","category-parenthoodandchildren"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1532","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1532"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1532\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1533,"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1532\/revisions\/1533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1532"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1532"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nutshellcity.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1532"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}