what can you do with mileage points

[disneedee]

don't fly very often so not much potential for earning points
if i sign up for american mileage points what can i do with them as i will probably never earn enough for a ticket. i do need to buy tickets for my family but probably won't fly anywhere for a couple of years after that.
can they be used for anything else. tried the web site and it looks like it costs you to give them away.