Give the gift of time, no batteries needed
无毛视频楾is the season for gift giving. While kids typically ask Santa for the latest toy or gadget, parents (and grandparents) searching for other options might consider giving an experience they can enjoy alongside their child.
While nontraditional gifts might be hard to wrap up and place under the Christmas tree, they offer the potential to create special family memories long after the last holiday tune is crooned.
Ideas range from enrolling a young person in a class they might like to try to buying passes for a local recreation outlet to simply giving some uninterrupted time with a parent or loved one. The ideas vary and suit every budget.
Marsha Pratt, director of Kingdom Kids Christian Preschool in Mt. Lebanon, has raised five daughters with her husband, Tom. She无毛视频檚 worked with children for nearly 15 years.
无毛视频淚 think experiences are huge. What they say they want, what is on TV or their iPads versus what they will remember later are two different things,无毛视频� said Pratt. In the case of her own family, each of her children was given a letter that contained the gift of one-on-one time with their parents that they could 无毛视频渃ash in无毛视频� later.
无毛视频淚t could be anything from going on a specific bike ride somewhere to a park, to seeing a movie or a play,无毛视频� said Pratt. 无毛视频淚t could be going to the museum without everybody. And they loved that. Their friends would say they wished they could do that, too.无毛视频�
A former elementary school teacher and mother of four, Erin Ritchey of Upper St. Clair and her husband, Stephen, plan something similar each year.
无毛视频淪anta always brings some toys, but my husband and I want to give something from us as well, and that无毛视频檚 where we usually try to do the nontraditional type of gift. We try to focus on experiences, quality time together, and we especially like to do things that involve a choice for them because, we feel like, as a kid, you don无毛视频檛 get to choose all that much in your life,无毛视频� Ritchey said.
无毛视频淥ne of their favorites is a 无毛视频榶es无毛视频� day, with parameters (we are not adopting a giraffe or anything like that). Those are the gifts they remember 无毛视频� they will say, 无毛视频楻emember the year we did that and we got to eat ice cream for breakfast?'无毛视频� Ritchey based the day on the 无毛视频淵es Day!无毛视频� picture book published in 2011 by Amy Krause Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenhled.
Pratt said her kids enjoyed 无毛视频測es days无毛视频� as well, with boundaries.
无毛视频淚ce cream for breakfast, PJs all day, just time when the kids kind of feel like they are in control. Depending on their age, you can guide them in things they can choose,无毛视频� she said.
Pratt recalled her grandmother, when on a tight budget, giving a box 无毛视频渨ith Scotch tape, paper, sticky notes, glue 无毛视频� things that were disposable, but as a parent we would dole out carefully. It was like a 无毛视频榶es无毛视频� day in a box.无毛视频�
Passes to their local recreation center to swim or take lessons are great, especially with something they just want to try out, Pratt said.
For kids who like to cook or be in the kitchen, Crate, located on Greentree Road in Scott Township, offers Cooking with Kids classes for ages 6 and older and camps for kids ages 9 and up during the summer.
It无毛视频檚 a way to create memories in the kitchen.
无毛视频淚n my opinion, food memories are the best memories I have with family members, friends, whether we are creating food together or sitting around the table chatting. And whenever they take these recipes home and re-create them, they can talk about the experience that they无毛视频檝e had together in our kitchen,无毛视频� said owner Jen Clark.
Classes are two-and-a-half hours and include eating what is prepared. Classes fill up quickly, and gift cards are available. For more information go to www.cratecook.com.
To teach your child about investing, consider purchasing a share of stock. The company, GiveAshare, sells single shares of stock, allowing the recipient to become a real shareholder and receive a framed certificate.
无毛视频淥ur goal is make it easy for people to buy shares as a gift,无毛视频� said Erin Clerici, co-owner of GiveAshare.
The intention is to primarily teach kids, but they have found adults can benefit as well.
无毛视频淲e really want to use it as a tool to teach kids, or anyone, about stocks and investing and give them a tangible piece of a company they can relate with 无毛视频� a visual representation that they can put on their wall reminding them about the value. And then every mailing from their company becomes a learning experience,无毛视频� said Clerici.
The cost depends on the stock无毛视频檚 market price. The lowest stock available is priced at about $48, and with fees costs about $94 for an unframed certificate. GiveAshare is based in Arizona, www.giveashare.com.
Passes or tickets to museums such as the Carnegie Science Center, Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium, The Pittsburgh Children无毛视频檚 Museum, Heinz History Center or Kennywood are options for spending a day or multiple ones with your family or one-on-one.
无毛视频淚t seems to be a very trendy thing right now, giving the gift of experiences, so Kennywood season passes are the perfect kind of gift,无毛视频� said Taylor Bulischeck, marketing director for the Kennywood Park.
无毛视频淥ur season passes that you can buy during the holiday season are good for the entire next year, so that includes our core summer season as well as our Halloween event, fall fest and Christmas event holiday lights. With select passes, the gold and platinum, you get all the events all year long, unlimited admission to the park plus great perks, depending on which pass you purchase,无毛视频� said Bulischeck.
For information, go to https://www.kennywood.com/.
无毛视频淭he memories that families make at the zoo last a lifetime,无毛视频� said Katie Hughes, director of marketing for the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium.
无毛视频淎s a Pittsburgh resident, and from people who come to visit us regularly, anyone you talk to in Pittsburgh talks about times they came to the zoo and the excellent times they had had with their families,无毛视频� Hughes said. 无毛视频淎nd it无毛视频檚 a great way to connect with wildlife.无毛视频� December through February the zoo presents 无毛视频淧enguins on Parade无毛视频� Saturdays and Sundays.
The zoo offers tiers of membership, including family memberships that includes two adults and all children in the household under the age of 18, as well as a grandparent membership for two seniors plus grandchildren under the age of 18. For more information, visit https://www.pittsburghzoo.org/.
无毛视频淭he experience gifts stretch out the magic of christmas. It无毛视频檚 not something they 无毛视频榦pen无毛视频� that day, but it无毛视频檚 something they still get to look forward to,无毛视频� said Ritchey.