PDA

View Full Version : Christmas Presents



Skysue
12-03-2011, 11:10 AM
Hi do you purchase presnets for clients or there kids? What do your buy and what is your limit?

Last year I bought presents just for the kids and sent homade cookies home for the parents. Most praents only bought a gift for my daughter. All my daycare kids got a cd with kids songs and a book from Chapters.

What do you ladies do?

mom-in-alberta
12-03-2011, 02:58 PM
Last year I got something small for all the kids. The boys got mini-sticks (little hockey sticks). They were all older, and it was something they did EVERY day when home from school. For the little girl I had at the time, I got her a book. Nothing fancy, but letting them know I was thinking of them.
I haven't decided what to do for this year. I have both my dc boys on the 22nd, I will send the gift home that day. Probably a little toy and some cookies or treats for the parents.
Last year, I think 2 families gave me something. Wasn't expecting it, but it was nice. Okay, maybe I was expecting it a little bit! :p

Errbear
12-03-2011, 05:37 PM
Last year I found this great little company in colorado that makes sandblasted ornaments, They had "Merry Christmas", their names on it, the year and a picture of santa. I'm doing the same thing this year with the same company but have changed the picture. I also bought them each a sticker book from the Toronto Samko and Miko sale. Each kids gift works out to be about $15, so $45

We also make a big craft for the parents from the kids. Last year was little carpet mats with their hand and foot prints in paint in assorted holiday themes. This year we've made reindeer clay pots and filled them with candy. The antlers are the kids' handprints. They're pretty cute.

playfelt
12-03-2011, 09:13 PM
I cheat in the gift department because of my felt business and usually just choose something and sell from one business to the other - the nice thing is that I know it is something they don't have. This year I using the Night Before Christmas set. We will play with my set and do related activities for a couple weeks and then at the end of the unit they will get their own felt set to take home. Works out to $15 retail for each child (but I do sell to myself at wholesale so it's cheaper). We are also making lots of little crafts - ornament type things and they will take home a collection. I got tins from the dollar store to store them in. I will also add a few things that we will use in lessons such as I make crochet stars and I made some bells with plastic canvas that have a jingle bell attached to them we will shakes these while we sing. Then they will go in their tin to go home but be a surprise for when they open the tin at home. At least one of the crafts will be a hands or foot craft and one will have their picture. All will have their name and year on the back of them. I like doing it this way because of having part time kids not here all the time so that I am not trying to catch people up. This way they go home with stuff in proportion to the amount of time here which works out cost wise too - the more I make from a child the more is spent on craft supplies.

Play and Learn
12-03-2011, 09:15 PM
$10 max per child = $50 (enough to spend in my opinion!). They get books, playdoh, and the parents get all their December arts and crafts. I'm thinking of having a little get together (with parents/siblings) from 3:30-5 p.m. on one afternoon close to Christmas.

Spixie33
12-06-2011, 12:06 PM
Geesh you guys seem to be so economical....no wonder I feel so broke.
I spend around $15-$20 per child. I think this year I am at about $80 and I was thinking of still adding some kinder eggs to everyone's bag.
Great thread. Gave me some good ideas and food for thought

lori123
12-06-2011, 01:14 PM
Hi all, I usually do a video of each child with all the photos from the year and then a montage video of the whole group but who has time for that this year?? lol....so, I got wagjags for photo books and created one for each - cost me $13 for each child .... and then, with all my normal crafts for christmas that i do with the children, i hold them back, keep them (ugh, where to put them all!) and then gift wrap them - mostly are decorations for the tree with photos of the kids that they have decorated - and then it gives something for everyone...just thought i would share :)

playfelt
12-06-2011, 02:12 PM
One trick that has worked for me in the past is to hand out your gifts the week before Christmas not the week of Christmas. The idea here is our gift contains decorations so they get to put them up for a week at home BUT more importantly it gives parents a weekend of shopping and helps guilt them into a little something for the caregiver even if they weren't planning to but you have to give them shopping time or it doesn't work. It won't work for all parents but at least more than if you wait.

mom-in-alberta
12-06-2011, 02:59 PM
Hahaha.... playfelt, you are a genius... :)

zen39
12-07-2011, 10:49 AM
I don't buy presents for the children. Instead, I'll melt down all my old broken crayons and make Christmas molds with them and give that to the children along with green and red homemade playdough. We are also doing a little craft and I send home a dvd with photos to music from the year.

sunnydays
12-07-2011, 12:24 PM
What a lot of great ideas! I love the tin full of crafts idea and also the playdough. I plan also to make gingerbread men with my kids and give each child one. I don't want to spend a bunch of money, so I love all the homemade ideas here :) I also love Playfelt's idea of giving early....hahahha...y ou know parents sometimes actually appreciate that. I know when my son was in daycare for the first year, I didn't realize that his caregiver was going to give him something and it was very awkward because I didn't have anything for her...I had to rush out and get something and deliver it on the weekend! I would have liked a heads up...parents don't always know what the protocol is ;)

playfelt
12-07-2011, 01:41 PM
I bought the crayola crayon maker and hope to use it to create new stuff from the bits we have around. I have an entire 4 litre ice cream pail of bits I can't bring myself to toss so will start with those. I used to have an old muffin tin for making the crayon blocks but it rusted out too bad. Hoping this machine works the way it is intended.

CPST_Manda
12-07-2011, 05:53 PM
I'm planning on gifting a box of home made cookies to the kiddos. I only have 3 that I watch so this will be relatively inexpensive. I bought some cute Christmas tins at Dollarama to dress them up a bit.

lilac
12-07-2011, 09:02 PM
Playfelt-I bought a Crayola Crayon Maker too! I'm excited for Santa to give it to the kids... cant wait to try it!

This year the school sent a list home for ideas for stocking stuffers. Basically, it was all school supplies that they use. I thought this year since all my kids are school age that I would do something like that... all of them including my own have a multitude of toys that at least it is something useful. I dont know, do you think thats boring for the kids? Also, I'll only officially have 1 dck by the time xmas actually gets here (my others have moved on due to my mat leave) although i've been looking after them for well over a year, I feel like I should (and kinda want to)get them something for xmas (even though they are leaving me early and in a bit of financial stress). Should I?

playfelt
12-07-2011, 10:06 PM
I would give only to the kids that are still in care as of the week of Christmas unless there are extenuating circumstances like the parents are off for two weeks such as my husband for the military block leave period. You could also have some things in the house ready to give in the event that those that have left early bring you something then if they don't use the items in your daycare.

lilac
12-08-2011, 07:49 AM
These are the kids that have left me early due to my mat leave in Jan, and although they said originally they would be back, they now say they wont. Maybe I'll just bake cookies for everyone and do the present for the one child that I have left. I want to have them all over the week of xmas for a xmas party so that should be enough do you think?

Thanks ladies!

playfelt
12-08-2011, 12:29 PM
The party with cookies is enough. If you wanted to give to all what about just christmas colouring books from the dollar store or make a large cookie for each child and decorate with a few candies and wrap in cellophane and a ribbon as a treat.

VictoriaChildCare
12-08-2011, 08:11 PM
I order each child the same book from Scholastic (usually the $1.99 sepcial) and I usually make something for my dck. One year it was sock monkeys, I crocheted each of them a 12" Elmo. This year I had to buy because I just ran out of time. For the parents I do a craft with the kids that involves their picture, a drawing and something that measures how much they have grown in the past year. My favourite thing to do is get the clear glass ornaments (@ Micheals on sale) and put a photo of the child inside with glitter and usually a ribbon cut to the length that they have grown this year. We keep a growth chart in the playroom and I measure them each month (permanent chart, wide masking tape beside it) It works out to about $1 each. I must say that all of my parents are very generous and appreciative. The most generous Christmas gift I've ever received was a week's pay which I was specifically told not to include on the tax receipt. I love the idea of sending cookies home!

ETA: I'm a little selfish in that I love to see the children open what I've given them. I take pictures and video. I love to see their reactions so I would never send the wrapped gift home with them :)