I know the holidays are behind us, but gift-giving opportunities — birthdays, anniversaries, etc. — come up throughout the year. But I'm also curious about your thoughts on my approach for the holidays this past year.
As someone who is childless, but with an ever-growing collection of nieces and nephews (six and counting, all of whom I adore), I decided to forego traditional gifts in lieu of something homemade. I have a deep passion for baking, so I opted to put together treat boxes for the kiddos. This included some recipe research for one with certain dietary restrictions. Believe it or not, you can make cookies that have zero sugar added and still taste great. (Seriously, though. I like them so much, I baked a batch for myself a few days later.) Who knew?
My thoughts behind this approach were threefold:
- My nieces and nephews want for nothing. That's not to say they're spoiled. They are just fortunate enough to have all of their needs (and many of their wants) covered.
- It's much more personal and actually requires a lot more time and effort than, say, dropping a handful of gift cards into my shopping cart.
- It saved me a whole lot of money since I always have these supplies on hand. They may be (mostly) little, but those dollar signs start to add up.
So what say you, Community members? Did I make the right move this year? Or am I just a cheapskate? (For the record, I still love and stand by my decision, and I plan to continue doing it moving forward.)
