What do you buy your parents for Christmas?

[bettyann29]

I got my mom some nightgowns.. she loves to wear them around the house, but wont buy them for herself.. I got her 4 of those and I got her a nice, soft and warm blanket- more of a throw blanket.. also planning on getting her a chain for her necklace and some warm socks and then some giftcards..

I got DH's mom a weather radio station..

 

[tink2dw]

I Did when I had them. My Mother died when I was 14. And I Lost Daddy in 2000.

 

[mjbaby]

The trouble with my parents is that anything they want that they can't afford, I can't afford either! They have pretty expensive tastes, but luckily are gracious, loving people and appreciate that "it's the thought that counts". This year I'm giving them a $30 gift card to Friendly's, of all places, since that's where they go to meet their friends for ice cream, a set of homemade luggage tags since they like to travel (using this tutorial: http://www.skiptomylou.org/2009/11/09/fabric-luggage-tags/), and a bunch of lottery scratch offs (they insist they have better luck with my state's over their own!)

Then for my mom I'm giving her one of those cake pans that makes giant oreo-looking cakes since she saw that on one of her visits and suggested it would be fun to make those for the grandkids. My dad will get a framed photo of all his grandsons together, taken on an outing he took them on to a professional baseball game. (He'll also get a bottle of scotch from my husband, but that's a separate tradition between them.)

My inlaws are trickier since they're of the "I spend $50 on you and you spend $50 on me" school. I don't really buy into that kind of thinking but I also don't want them to feel slighted. Whatevs. This year I'll give them a set of luggage tags, too, a tea tray that has the grandkids' handprints on it in paint and then sealed (better looking than it sounds!), and $30 gift card to their favorite lunch place and a set of movie passes. My husband and his siblings usually go in together on something special from the three of them, too, but I haven't heard this year what it is. One year they had a picture taken and another year it was a painting of their house...something like that.

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

Since you said they are starting to get fit I would suggest you get them a giftcard for some good walking shoes or a nice track suit. DH walks every morning and won't pay the money for good walking shoes so his joints suffer, so this year I got him a good pair for Christmas. We are also giving these to most of our extended family http://www.shopfitandfresh.com/products/water_bottles/filter

We are giving my parents a Netflix subscription. We got them the Wii last year and they LOVE it!

 

[rusty4]

I forgot that I bought my DM some puzzle squares. She loves puzzles.

http://www.amazon.com/Dazzle-Planets-Scramble-Squares-Puzzle/dp/B000BX78Q0

 

[ssawka]

I'm getting my parents (both turning 70) a Kodak Pulse picture frame. It's a 7" digital picture frame that you can set up an email account for and pictures are automatically down loaded from the mail server. So all I need to do is send them an email with pictures of DD and they will automatically receive them.

 

[NCHuskers]

We are giving my parents a Netflix subscription. We got them the Wii last year and they LOVE it!

We also got a Wii for my parents (Dad is 73 and Mom is 64) last year for Christmas. They also love it! It is a daily rountine for them when my mom gets home from work. We got my dad a Cabelas hunting game this year for his birthday. It definitely is providing an avenue for gifts for awhile.

I also think the Netflix subscription may be a good idea for them. They could use it thru the Wii.

I love this thread...I am still struggling with ideas but this is helping! Thanks all!

 

[mom2t]

Dad golf cart certificates and made a grandparent brag mini-scrapbook of my mom's favorite things - her 3 grandsons My parents are hard to buy for and buy what they want

 

[Swimalie]

Our square1 art order came yesterday. We always get each of the grandparents an ornament for their tree. It's small, but since DD drew it, they seem to appreciate it. .

I'm glad to hear you do it every year. My son is in kindergarten so this is the first year we have done it. The artwork was interesting to say the least. hee-hee

This year I'm giving them a $30 gift card to Friendly's, of all places, since that's where they go to meet their friends for ice cream,

Oh... I love Friendly's. I would go for a gift like that as well

 

[DominicaAnne]

We also got a Wii for my parents (Dad is 73 and Mom is 64) last year for Christmas. They also love it! It is a daily rountine for them when my mom gets home from work. We got my dad a Cabelas hunting game this year for his birthday. It definitely is providing an avenue for gifts for awhile.

I also think the Netflix subscription may be a good idea for them. They could use it thru the Wii.

We got a Wii for my parent's last Christmas and my Mom bought my Dad Rock Band 2, which Mom doesn't like, but she LOVES Rock Band Beatles. They play the Beatles together all the time, Mom sings, Dad plays the drums (he's a drummer). If your parents are Beatles fans, they might really enjoy this.

 

[MEM]

My Mum is 74 and a widow. Her eating habits are deplorable but at least she's finally given up eating chicken McNuggets every night! A Panera Bread recently opened within walking distance of her house so she's getting a gift card for it. Of course, knowing my Mum, she'll use it to buy dinner for my sister and her two grown daughters (who now live with Mum) but I can't control that. My DH parents are long-gone so no worries on that side of the family.

 

[DawnM]

Dad has a buffet place he likes to go to, seniors are $5 and he goes around 4pm so he has late lunch/early dinner and eats tons. He is thin and in excellent health, so it isn't an issue.

Mom is often ill and she wants him to go so she doesn't have to cook!

So, I need to order some gift cards from there for them.

Mom likes nice face cream and CVS just had L'Oreal's over 60 face day and night cream on 75% clearance, so from $20 down to $5. I stocked up and plan to give her a nice set for Christmas and another one for her birthday in April.

I plan to spend around $100 for them as well.

Dawn

 

[C&G'sMama]

Some great ideas. My mom is 93 and lives in an apartment. We get her a gift card to the local grocery store. She doesn't want or need any more stuff at this point in her life. My sister pays for a cleaning lady for her apartment, my SIL does the Harry and David Fruit of the Month that someone mentioned and she gets a kick out of that. Someone else gets her a tree but she asked to not get one this year because she didn't like having to pick up the needles. One year one of my brothers gave her an automatic car starter.

My inlaws are late 60's and we usually get them a Walmart gift card. They go to Myrtle Beach for the winter and again, they're done accumulated stuff though we have bought them books and DVDs in the past. This year we gave them a basket of German Specialty food items.

In 2012 we're taking them to WDW (more than $100 and not something we do every year.)

 

[C&G'sMama]

Great thread and some great suggestions!

My mom is the type of person who measures your love by how much money you spend on her which makes every gift a test. So much fun. /sarcasm I've done a Shutterfly book every year since my oldest came along, which she fawned over at first, but now thinks they're old hat because "she's already seen these pictures".

No idea what I'm getting her this year (other than the Shutterfly book she'll look at perfunctorily) but I'm enjoying reading the ideas!

How about making a donation to your favorite charity in her name. Sounds like she'll complain about whatever you get her anyway, somebody may as well appreciate the gift.

 

[Shleedogg]

Do they link wine? I think that's what we're doing for DH's parents this year. They are so hard to buy for. They're in their mid-60s, have enough money to buy whatever they want throughout the year and really have everything they could possibly want. They travel 4-5 times/year too. They also do not believe in making lists as my parents do. They love wine so we're buying them 3 months in a wine of the month club. It runs anywhere from $100-scary amounts of money . We usually spend $75/parent, so the club we're looking at is around $135 for 2 bottles a month for 3 months. If you google it, there are a lot of options. We still haven't decided which one yet.

 

[leadfootlevi]

I didn't read this whole thread, but you mentioned restaurants and loosing weight/controlling cholesterol...how about one of the places where you put together frozen meals? One in our area is Seattle Sutton's. They offer low-fat options. You choose the ingredients, the meal goes in the freezer, and it's a quick dinner option.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

We got my in-laws a Roku box and 6 months of Netflix. I got the box for $59.95 on Amazon about 6 weeks ago. I'm very excited for them to open the gift because I KNOW they are going to love it! [snip]

I am giving my parents an Apple TV. They already have a Netflix subscription that they love and I think they will eventually appreciate watching video form thier iPad on the big screen -- Suzanne

 

[sherry7]

I didn't read the whole thread yet. I got a 12" digital photo frame earlier this year, and every time my parents visit my house, they literally drool over it. So, that is what I bought them this year, along with a couple of pair of house slippers.

 

[Kate and Pete]

Because of this thread - I think we're going to give my parents Omaha Steaks (They have all sorts of packages in all price ranges!).

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

you would have to know them to understand -- they are elderly and want nothing. They are simple, simple people. I bought them a case of chunky soup for one of their gifts.

They will be thrilled!

I will make sure they have several bags of grands biscuits in the freezer to go with them since you can make just a few at a time.

Does that sound like the craziest gift ever? Well, like I said....you'd have to know them.

They are not our much so I may get thgem some Arby's gift cards since they come by there on their way back from the dr and they have a drive thru. For some reason, they LOVE Arbys.