Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products or services I use and love. At no cost to you, if you subscribe or purchase through my link, I may make a commission. This helps to support this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
When it gets close to Christmas time, I always try to come up with a new gift idea for my young adult, twenty-something kids. As they’ve gotten older, it’s been easy to choose a practical gift. And my kids aren’t shy about letting us know something they want. But I always try to come up with a surprise personal gift, one that I think they will like and appreciate for years to come.
Here are a few gift ideas for your young adult kids, with a personal touch that may inspire you.
Your Family “Cookbook”
Nothing means home for your grown kids like the home cooking or baking traditions they remember growing up with. Most kids have certain dishes they always want you to make when they are home visiting. Many of us have certain recipes we always fix around the holidays. Put together a notebook containing all those treasured recipes of dishes they love.
There are companies who will create a bound book for you, using digital photos, but it doesn’t have to be that fancy. Use a quality three-ring binder, you can personalize the cover if you choose to. Make copies of all those favorite family recipes and simply cut them out and attach to a piece of 8X10 paper. Slip them into some clear page protectors, so that any spills or drips won’t ever harm the recipes. You can use plain paper or make it fancier with bright colors or patterns. If you make a larger cookbook, use tabbed dividers with different categories like “Vegetables”, “Christmas” or “Soups”, whatever works for your family.
One reason I like using a three-ring binder, is that you can fill it with extra blank sheets and protectors so they can easily add their own recipes to it down the road. Write special notes about each recipe, like when you made the dish or what extra ingredient you liked to add. Have fun with it and enjoy knowing you’re giving a little of yourself to them.
A Special Framed Photo
Your young adult kids are just starting out and may like to have something to decorate their wall. Choose a special photo and have it enlarged and converted to black and white. Frame it for them as a gift. Maybe you have an old photo of a special family trip you took when they were younger. A picture of your kids with their siblings might work for you and you could give one to each child. Maybe they have a pet that they love. Any special photo, printed or enlarged to 5X7 or even 8X10 and converted to black and white looks so nice and updated on any wall. Just use a simple black photo frame with a white mat. You can find a nice matted, photo frame somewhere like Michaels, Amazon or Target for a very reasonable price. Put your new photo in it and you have a very nice and personal gift for them at Christmas.
Family Home Movies
Do you have old family home movies that you’ve been meaning to convert to digital? Times change with technology so fast, it’s been hard to keep up with modernizing our old home movies. Are your old movies stored somewhere on VHS? Consider having them converted to DVD format for easy viewing and gift them to your kids. Duplicate copies are very inexpensive once you have the master created. Give a set to each of your kids. It can also give you peace of mind knowing there are multiple copies out there so nothing can happen to ever destroy those memories, even in case of an emergency, like fire or flood.
Gift of an Experience
If none of the above ideas inspire you, or you really don’t have much time you can always give the gift of an experience. I think gift cards have a bad reputation as just an easy gift but they don’t have to be impersonal. Most young adults are just starting out with little disposable income. Give them a gift certificate or gift card for something they will really use and may not buy for themselves. Is there a nice hair salon your daughter might want to try? A new restaurant in town? Do they love going to the movies but just don’t have the extra money right now? Is there a coffee shop they like to frequent? Tickets to a concert they might like? Just be thoughtful about what they might like or need and they will be very appreciative.
The holidays were so special when our kids were small. But there is something particularly sweet about the times when those kids that you’ve “launched” can come back home for the holidays and you’re all together again. Personally, I can’t wait.
Leave a Reply