In my town the public library sells worn-out books for 50 cents or so. I bought lots of ragged children’s books, and the girls never seemed to mind. The ones they have been willing to part with have since been passed along to other families.

When I have children, I will ask that the grandparents and other relatives do the same thing-1 or 2 toys and then contribute the rest of the money to their college fund. I would have been so happy when I started college to know that I could pay for it instead of worrying about paying off student loans for the next 10 years.

Years ago, I was in the Air Conditioning business & had a very large box that either needed to be broken down or delivered to my brothers 4 blocks away. They said bring it on over & my young niece had most of the neighborhood there as I pulled up & unloaded it onto their covered porch. The kids drew the windows and doors & I made the cutouts & that became the focal point for the neighborhood for the summer. Cost? Nothing! Benefit: Spending time with family providing something truely appreciated & never forgotton. That summer was back in 1985 & is still talked about.

Just an idea from when my kids were little. They always had tons of extra toys for many reasons. I would tell my kids that when Santa came to bring new toys he would also take old toys they no longer played with. I explained that he “recycled” them and used them for other kids next year. The were very concerned that he would take their favorite toys. I assured them that Santa knew exactly which ones they didn’t play with anymore! :-) It worked out well for our family.

Ann

When our child turned 2, we bought her finger paints, a pad of paper, a pianter’s apron, and a ball. She had 4 presents to unwrap, and she was delighted.

We also don’t do big birthday parties. When our daughter turned 2, we baked a cake and had the cake and presents at her great-grandfather’s house. She had a terrific time blowing out the candles and sitting on her great-grandfather’s lap, opening her 4 presents. There were only 4 of us there; but it was all the audience she needed at age 2.

Even now that our daughter is in grade school, we still have small birthday parties (she gets to invite one guest per year of her age, and parties are at our home), and we still give fewer, smaller gifts to her. And she’s still very happy.

Another, similar thought: We didn’t take her to expensive events and activities until she was old enough to remember them. My theory was, why waste money on an amusement park when she’s thrilled to play at the local park? Why take her to see the Wiggles when the Wiggles on video make her completely happy?

We spend much more on activities now, though, bnow that our daughter is older, has developed interests in history and ballet, and remembers the fun stuff we do. We gladly spend the money to buy tickets to performances, to visit historical sites, and even to buy a season pass at a local amusement park.

How about a scrapbook, and the grandparents start the first several pages with memories about them, photos, momentos, etc., then perhaps some photos of you or your wife when you were younger. Then you can take photos of the grandparents with your kids and add them to the book.

How about a toy that grandma or grandpa used to play with, along with a note about why they enjoyed it so much. Put the note and a photo of the child with the toy in the scrapbook.

How about a keepsake to put away for later that relates to the grandparents’ hobbies, like a small gardening set or a nice piece of pottery or something like that. If it is something not appropriate for play, it can be displayed on a high shelf for all to enjoy.

But I agree that a small gift, plus a contribution to the college fund, is a great gift, and you should try to encourage people to do that.

I loved SJ’s idea of the museum/zoo membership. I hope I will remember that one once my friends have children.

if the tons of superfluous toys we donated or threw out while our son was growing up were still on the earth, their vast weight would knock the planet out of its orbit.

The other thing we ask for for birthdays/Chanukah in lieu of more toys (without asking directly for cash) is a membership to a musuem or zoo – my parents have paid for our museum of science membership for the past two years and since it is a fabulous place to take our son (even at 2.5), we get a ton of use out of it, especially in the winter. My in-laws usually get him a small toy but also a savings bond.

There was also a great Parenthacks post about no clutter gifts:
http://www.parenthacks.com/2006/11/noclutter_gifts.html