Give and Receive
Despite my best efforts, I almost always end up waiting until Christmas Eve to complete all of my holiday shopping. I panic my way throughout the month of December, and yet somehow, I never learn from my previous bouts with procrastination. That sense of urgency starts in mid-November and each year, I have to remind myself that it’s not about finding the most expensive gifts, but rather the ones with the most meaning. To put myself in the gift-giving mindset, I think of the best presents I’ve received and why they were so special. Here are just a few that stick out.
- Personalized stationary. A few months after I graduated from college, my parents gave me a beautiful set of cards with my name embossed in thin, gold letters and it made me feel so grown-up and official.
-My Nikon D40. A nice camera truly shifts the way you see the world and the one my boyfriend picked out for me has captured so many significant moments.
-Caesar salad. My uncle once wrapped up little packages filled with the ingredients for his famous Caesar salad. He then took me into the kitchen and taught me how to make it on my own.
What’s the most memorable gift you received during the holidays?
55 comments
gotta go with my son who was born on the first night of hanukkah, and my daughter born on dec. 26.
btw, just wanted to let you know about beauty giveaway:
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We got a hot tub as a family one year. It was so magical sitting out in the snow, in our new hot tub, as a family on Christmas night.
The best presents are getting to see the ones you love! While my sister was studying in France, we enjoyed splurging on tickets to see her for a few days. Presents will fade, but family never does! Happy Holidays Emily
One year, my cousins bought me two pairs of huge knitted woolen socks as a joke Christmas present.
The joke was on them, though, really, because I loved them. I’m always freezing in winter, and those socks keep me SO warm!
My grandmother makes me two things every year: the first is always some sort of hand-made scarf or blouse and the second is always some sort of food that is “just” for me. Last Christmas we had a traditional dinner and she pulled out a hand-rolled sushi platter all for me. : )
Those gifts are all so lovely and thoughtful! My favorite gift is my engagement ring. B. and I were at his mom’s house for the holidays, and he made me wait until the morning AFTER Christmas for my present. When I woke up he had breakfast and coffee all made, with a little blue Tiffany’s box sitting on the table next to it!
best give i’ve ever received: first v-day with my husband (at the time we were not married) and he bought my favorite candy (pink kit kats) and filled them up in a red bag and then on top of those crumbled up conversations he printed and cut out that we had had from the beginning of our relationship. so sweet
Best gift I’ve ever received.. Definitely the Europe trip my family and I went on to celebrate my and my sister’s graduations. It was the first time we went there as a family, which made it all the more meaningful.
A little gold key necklace with the end shaped like a heart from my boyfriend…
so cheesy but what can I say, I’m a cheesy romantic.
One year, my older sister gave me some Strawberry Shortcake dolls (including the Purple Pie Man) for Christmas. It was a thoughtful gift since we had recently chatted about our fave childhood toys, and it was a special gift because it had some how made me for little again on Christmas, just for a few happy seconds. =)
Last year I was really missing my family and my husband gave me a round trip ticket to Brazil to spend the holidays with my them
Honestly—the gift the comes to mind first would be a massage gift certificate from a dear friend. I adore massages but don’t often indulge myself in this luxury. She knows this about me and got a certificate from my favorite day spa. It was perfect!
My boyfriend at the time (now my husband) wrote 365 little remember whens, quotes, etc. on 365 indivual little slips of paper and placed them in a jar. I opened and read one day for an entire year. It was the highlight of my day!
I will always remember my 3 Cabbage Patch dolls, one of which I very wisely named after my Gram {and I’m stil considered her favorite
}. I randomly also loved the box of fun, colorful socks my aunt and uncle gifted me. She has always been my stylish, spunky aunt, and I loved her creativity. I could go on I’m sure, but these pop into my head first.
Btw, which lenses do you use on your D40? I’m going to ask for a lens for my D60 this Christmas.
the best presents are the ones you would never buy for yourself! Or the ones that are made from the heart… for my 10th birthday (many many years ago) my mom spent months collecting pictures and stories from my family and friends of their memories from being 10 years old.
http://secondstoryview.wordpress.com/
The best gifts are just being able to visit your family if you live far away =) Great post Emily!
http://www.fashionsnag.com
The Caesar salad gift is so sweet! My most memorable gifts are my first bicycle – it was magical – and one of my first christmas presents from my now husband. When we were in high school, I organized a movie night at my friend Megans house to watch The Evil Dead because none of my friends had seen it and it was one of my faves. One of my friends brought my husband and thats where we met at my Evil Dead movie fest. For our first Christmas together he bought me an Evil Dead metal lunch box. (In high school I carried them as purses)
oh emily- you are so darn lovely.
most precious gifst- homemade video sent to africa from my gf’s…. a engraved keychain… homemade cards…. a plane ticket to nyc….countless books…. any + all gifts as they come from the heart!
have a wonderful weekend.
A gold cross pendant necklace from my mom. I wear it everyday.
My best Xmas gift was probably my chihuahua puppies (each different yrs) – they were what I wanted the most! And years after I had gotten rid of the boy, my puppies are still here and provide countless hours of happiness and love!
I love the salad gift you mentioned.
Mine would be this little person-shaped pin cushion that the boyfriend made for me for my birthday. And tall Oreo Frapuccino that my friends got me for my birthday as well. There were cakes and gifts but the coffee drink was the best.
-meream
What a lovely post! My best friend is in a very tight financial situation so for Christmas she makes baskets full of home-made goodies. The BEST baskets. Caramel corn, chocolate truffles, apricot jam, gingerbread men, little Moroccan cookies… I’m always ecstatic to receive one! Aaaww… I heart her!
http://idlefascination.blogspot.com/
Awww, what a great idea! I’ll never forget the Christmas our parents bought my sister and me our very first Nintendo set – the VERY first kind! I still have it in my basement!
love this post. it is always the small things and the thought that the person who gave it that counts the most. =)
Great post!
One year it was a scavenger hunt for all my little gifts and I got cards with clues. The cards rhymed, so cute! Another, important gift was roses tacked to the ceiling all over the house! Those kind of thoughtful gestures make such an impact.
Great blog! Are all your photos taken with the Nikon D40? I’m looking to buy an SLR…
That caesar salad gift is so touching, I absolutely love that idea. What a sweet way to pass on a family tradition! It’s funny you should ask because my wedding anniversary is next week and I was just thinking about some of the nicest gifts we received from our friends for the occasion. I’ll post my favorite next week;)
When I was 5 years old I walked out to the tree to see a complete Hello Kitty Vanity waiting for me….oooh the 80’s
http://cupcaketrash.blogspot.com
When I was younger I remember my brother wasn’t going to come home for christmas one year because he had to work. My favorite gift to this day is when he showed up!
my parents got me a guitar for christmas when i was in 8th grade. i was going through a phase where i wanted to be a punk rocker and impress boys and all .. and they got me a guitar and carol king’s tapestry album. even though i never quite mastered the guitar (too stubborn for lessons), i still remember the excitement.
My mom found the most beautiful rolling pin for me last year – very similar to my great-grandmother’s pin that I grew up with. It’s the perfect present.
I like the salad thing your uncle did! That’s so fun. I think the best gift I’ve gotten would have to be the gift of life honestly. I almost didn’t make it into this world due to complications but somehow the doctors worked magic and now I have the opportunity to experience everything I do. How lucky we all are to be here!
I’ve got several favorite gifts that I will always remember. My parents got me my Canon Rebel XSi for Christmas last year, and my life has definitely been enhanced with it. A few years ago, my boyfriend at the time decorated my locker with handmade hearts with things he loved about me on them for Valentine’s day. This year, my current boyfriend got me the most amazing leather bound journal and wrote a few things for me inside. All of the presents were so well thought out, and I cherish them all!
Such a fantastic post. I think one of my most memorable gifts is the year my mom went to a bookstore with a list of books I loved and had the people there pick out several more for me. They were so spot-on I read and reread them. It was so thoughtful and I got so much enjoyment out of them.
So many amazing stories on here, nice post! Ridiculously, I think my favorite gifts were G.I. Joe toys… I don’t recall a specific one. I think these gifts arrived before I had any concern for price or quality, not to say they weren’t great, but I was just thrilled to play with them – a pure untainted joy to play and be a kid. Very cool.
Mine is actually not a gift I received, but one a gave. Years ago when my best friend turned 21 I decided to get her 21 gift cards from different stores. They all had different amounts of money on them. She said for the next year she would pull out a gift card whenever she went into a store and get a surprise when she learned how much money it had.
She still talks about it to this day. It was a lot of fun.
http://www.mock-off.com
As you know Emily …. I’m the uncle and I’ll make you a Caesar salad anytime you want. It’s nice to be appreciated. I’ll make multiple salads for you if you tell me when you’re coming home. Love, Pic.
I love your uncle’s gift. That is truly beautiful! Am off to go Christmas shopping today – here’s to hoping I find something kind of meaningful!
My husband proposed to me at the end of December, four years ago…it was pretty memorable : )
So, I need to enlist your help. I am looking to create a world wide hair stylist guide to post as a permanent fixture on my blog. I know you’re in the “know” so I thought you could come on over and contribute any info you have….also if you’d like to spread the word to anyone with a passion for beauty/hair, I would really appreciate it! Here’s the link:
http://thebeautyfile.blogspot.com/2009/11/whos-your-hair-stylist-class.html
i’ve been given so many beautiful gifts i couldnt choose, i always feel so lucky at christmas time!
You have a really cool blog!
To be honest, my favorite gift wasn’t given to me directly… My brother received a kitten for christmas from his friend Peggy and he couldn’t take it with him back to California so the kitten stayed with me and my parents. He lights up my life everyday that little Sparky! I love my cat and he is probably the best gift me and my parents have gotten.
last year my boyfriend and I agreed that we wouldn’t spend much because we were moving in together over Christmas and needed money for our first rent! but he got me a big basket ( I love baskets!( and filled it with loads of things that he knows I love – bottle of my favourite wine, a really nice emroidered notebook for my lists, some framed photos of us, my favourite chocolates scattered around and lots of candles and other cute things..it was so thougthful and meant more than a really expensive gift..
I always buy gift bags every year for my mam, aunt and god daughter and just fill them with all sorts of goodies like pyjamas, new lotions and creams, little trinkets, picking up stuff as I go shopping from November, it’s so much fun seeing every delve into a bag of fillers..I’m half way through my shopping this year already!
I love getting chocolate oranges.
this boyfriend I had gave me as a present this delicious homemade chocolate chip cookies (which are my favorites) and it was so special because he made them himself. now, when do you get a guy go do something like that for you? specially when you’re 15
for valentine’s day, my boyfriend got a box of kiddie valentines. he addressed every single one to me from him, and put them in a cute little bag.
^ in reply to Nicole…ahhh young love, don’t you miss it.
my favorite present was when my best friend surprised me with plane tickets for she and I to go to Puerto Rico for 4 days. What a surprise!!
Ah, Xmas procrastination, I know you! I usually think about gifts like 3 months before Xmas, then I forget them.. I should’ve learned and write down my ideas, but no, I always think I’ll remember!
My favorite gifts would be.. My Pentax. Definitely my Pentax
Also, an unlimited card to go to the cinema whenever I want. That’s paradise 
As always, great post.
Thanks for the smiles you give us!
I love getting books. I never buy them for myself – why spend $20 when the library is free? – but a book is something I’ll keep forever. it’s the perfect gift for a cook, gardener, sports fan, photographer, language nerd, anyone! be sure to add a nice inscription in the front cover
My most memorable, thinking back now, is a little bike that I got when I must have been about five. It had a little baby seat on the back that I sat my wee little doll in it.
Christmas now is less about me, and more about my little girl. I’m excited to see how she reacts this year {she’s almost 2}. That is the best gift of all. xx
The salad gift is so sweet – love it!
My favourite gift – my Nikon d5000, from my fiance – it is fabulous!
have you entered my fashion giveaway to win a custom made dress yet? http://www.friendinfashion.blogspot.com
x
What a wonderful blog =)
I like that Caesar salad idea! The best gift I ever got had to be… I love all gifts I get, I can’t pick just one! I love pajamas, soaps, sweaters, blankets… cozy things! Except, a couple years ago I got this not gigantic gorgeous mobile that looked like a chandelier of shimmery stars. I put it over my bed, I love it!
that caesar salad idea is so great and thoughtful! last year my roommate got me these amazing slippers because she saw how raggedy my old ones are getting and i wear them everyday. still wearing them and they still look brand new!
The Caesar salad idea is absolutely adorable!
this was one of my best Christmas’s yet!!! My brother is an amazing pianist and this year he played for a salon/spa several times over the coarse of a few months in order to earn $300 worth of spa/salon time for my mom and me. It was so sweet that he devoted his time to play piano so that we could enjoy some relaxation!!! He’s the best baby bro in the world anyway tho.. for my college graduation he found an awesome vintage lamp and candle holders for me. So great!
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