Gifts For Older Adults - Seniors

SENIORS - GIFTS

Dad is eighty-nine and Aunt Margaret is eighty-five and both of them have more ‘stuff' than they need. It's always a fun challenge to find a gift they'll enjoy. My Dad and Aunt live hundreds of miles away from us, but if they lived closer I'd take them for an evening out. Maybe a special play at a local theatrical group, a trip to an art museum and lunch, a baseball game or just a nice dinner together would be their choice as well. But, since that isn't possible, I've found other ways to make them happy.

My Dad loves to keep busy. For his birthday this year I had a jigsaw puzzle made from a family photo taken at our last reunion. You can have these made by many sites on-line, but I chose Kodak because I've always been confident in their quality and speed of delivery. Dad loved the puzzle and the metal tin with the photo on the lid that it came in. The puzzles cost about thirty dollars, but there are often discount codes for up to thirty-percent off available. I've also given him a photo book made up from those I took of the reunion photos. You could have several items made up from photos and design them yourself on sites like zazzle.com. They have hundreds of shirts, hats, mugs, aprons, mouse pads and many other items to choose from and it's very easy to do.

One year I found out that he was fond of one particular fishing lure that he'd used decades ago. I found two on Ebay and he was thrilled! So, the item doesn't have to be new to be appreciated. He's enjoyed tapes and now CD's of his favorite old Westerns.

The year after my Mother died, I sent him a little live Christmas tree that was already decorated and had a string of lights on it. It was only about a foot tall, but he said it really cheered him up as he hadn't bothered with any Christmas decorations that year.

Aunt Margaret is an avid note sender. She uses email a lot, but still likes to send personal notes and cards. I had some printed up (again at Kodak.com) from photos of the roses in her garden that I'd taken during the summer. I included a book of stamps, a good quality pen and made up a little gift basket.

I made a bird-feeder wreath using sunflowers and other flowers with seed heads. She hung it on her front door and discovered that was one of the few places where the squirrels couldn't get at it. She didn't have to fill it and could throw it into her compost pile the next spring.

Many sites like zazzle.com and kodak.com have numerous items that you can add your own photos or art to. Put a photo of the grandkids on a coffee mug, key chain, apron, puzzle or even a pillow case and make a truly personal gift.

I've also given her a CD player and several CD's of her favorite albums from the past. She was particularly fond of Perry Como and Patsy Kline and was thrilled to be able to listen to them again. Or bring them into the 21st century and buy an inexpensive MP3 player and download their favorite tunes.

A gift of time and attention is the best, but not all of us have that option. I hope some of the ideas in this article are helpful to you in making the older person on your list a little happier.