Choosing the perfect gift for a loved one is one of the great challenges of the holiday season. And, with the holidays fast approaching, time is of the essence. Without fail, I have found that family and friends near and far cherish most the gifts that remind them of happy times in their lives and times we have spent together. Below are five of my favorite gift ideas sure to bring back wonderful memories:
(1) Photo Calendars – Create a photo calendar with easy to use kiosks or online software. You can find this service at your local drugstore / discount store such as Walgreens or Walmart and on photo sites such as com and Shutterfly.com. Use photos from the last year to share your family’s milestones with family members far away. Or create a memory calendar using a lifetime of old family photos. Whatever photos you choose, you can look forward to monthly memories and conversations with your family members as you turn the page to the next month in the calendar. And, the best part is, you can create and pick up your calendar the same day if you order through your local drugstore or discount store.
(2) Digital Photo Albums – Scan pictures from an old family photo album to digitally preserve your cherished memories. Use an application like Photomyne (photomyne.com) to scan and enhance the quality of your pictures with the touch of a button on your smartphone. You can load the digital images onto a digital photo frame or just wrap the USB drive full of images as your gift.
(3) Family Recipes – Gather favorite family recipes from your childhood and create recipe cards or a recipe book to share with your loved ones. You can create a personalized family cookbook at sites like com. Pick a favorite family cookie recipe and make a tin of cookies to send along with your recipe gift. The first bite of those cookies is sure to bring back happy memories!
(4) Memory Quilts – Create a throw blanket or quilt using old t-shirts or fabrics from the past. This is a perfect way to preserve memories for the teenagers and young adults in your life using t-shirts from their high school activities. You can use t-shirts collected at concerts throughout the years for the music lover in your life. And, you can use shirts from a loved-one who recently passed away to create a memory quilt for children and grandchildren. If you don’t know how to sew, you can order memory quilts through artisans on Etsy and websites like com. Since you probably don’t have enough time to order or create in time for the holidays, give your loved one a “gift certificate” for the quilt and let them help you pick the t-shirts or fabrics to include in the quilt.
(5) Childhood Favorites – Find a nostalgic game, book, or product from the past to give to someone who will share the memory with you. Shopping sites like com make it easy to find products from the past and can ship the gift directly to your loved one in time for the holiday!
Never underestimate the value of a gift of memories. While recently shopping for something on Amazon, I stumbled across my mother’s favorite bubble bath. On a whim, I ordered a bottle for myself and was thrilled when it arrived. When I used it for the first time, it took me back to my childhood and made me feel like I was getting a hug from my mom who has been gone for more than 25 years. So, for anyone who is still shopping for me, I would be thrilled with a bottle of Vitabath Spring Green!
Happy Holidays!
Written by: Darra Wray
Darra Wray is a Care Consultant and Certified Senior Advisor with My Care Companions in Boise, Idaho, a company she founded to streamline and simplify the administrative side of care. You can learn more about My Care Companions and the My Data Diary+ family information management software solution at www.mydatadiary.com.
