Non-Toy Gift Ideas for Kids
Whether it’s for a birthday, Christmas or another event, you need to give your kids a gift. But what do you give kids who have everything? And, what about non-toy gift ideas? What should you give your kids this year?
Let’s face it. Kids get toys for everything—Birthdays, Christmas, Easter. And before you know it, their stuff takes over their rooms—and your house!
Then, there’s the toys that they only play with once—after begging for it for months. There’s nothing more aggravating than getting that must-have toy for your child and seeing them play with a few times and then casting it aside. Or, the toy breaks or stops working completely.
I’m not suggesting skip the toys. In addition to that hot and new must-have toy, add some non-toy gift ideas as well. These are the best gift ideas that kids will truly love and treasure—without all the missing pieces.
Kids Non-Toy Gift Ideas
Magazine Subscriptions
My kids receive a few magazines in the mail each month. They’re always excited to see something arrive for them—and with their name on it! They all sit down and read it cover to cover as soon as it shows up each month. This is a gift that will make both your kids and you happy. They get something special in the mail and you get to encourage a love of reading.
There are a lot of titles that you can try. Some that you may want to consider include: Jack and Jill, National Geographic Kids, Ranger Rick, and Sports Illustrated Kids.
Some of my kids personal favorites are High Five (good for ages 2 - 6) and Highlights (good for ages 6 - 12). There are magazine options available for kids of all ages, so you can rest assure that you will find the right one for your child.
Classes
A fun gift is a class that will help your child enhance his or skills, whether it’s music, dance, cooking or even woodcrafting. a class helps them learn even more about something that they already love.
Check with your local recreation center, stores such as Michael’s or local parenting groups to find a class that is right for your child.
Membership
If your family loves to visit local museums or zoo, a membership would be a great gift. You can experience the venue throughout the year, together as a family.
Monthly Subscription Boxes
You’ve probably seen these boxes all over the place. If you haven’t yet these are creativity boxes that are shipped to your house in your child’s name all year long. They get to try new and different things with an art box, cooking box, STEAM box, and more.
Games
We love playing games—it’s a wonderful way to spend family time together—and it’s perfect for both boys and girls. As a mom, i love that games teach my kids good sportsmanship, as there can only ever be one winner. Some of our family’s favorite games include Hedbanz, BrainQuest, and Uncle Wiggly.
Books
Books are always a popular gift ideas. When your children are young, board books are a great fit. As they get older, there are many chapter and series books that can encourage a love of reading.
Event Tickets
My oldest daughter loves baseball, so for her birthday this year, we bought her tickets for her Dad and her to see a few games. Tickets to events can be a great gift can help create memories that will last a lifetime.
Audiobook Membership
I mentioned books above, but audiobooks are also popular. My oldest daughter loves listening books while she sketches. This is a great way for kids to hear their favorite stories read to them. It’s fun to read, but can also be enjoyable for someone to read to you.
Art or Crafting Supplies
My daughters love making all different kids of crafts. There are so many crafting kits to choose from, such as jewelry making kits, sewing kits, origami kits, and much more.
Dress Up Clothes
Dressing up is a lot of fun for kids. Create a fun collection of costumes that they can use to dress up in an array of characters and occupations. Make sure to add some accessories like costume jewelry, hats, scarves, etc.
Pajamas
I don’t know about you, but my kids would live in their pajamas if they could. Each year, we buy new PJs, and as soon as my kids unwrap them, they put them on and we sit around and watch a few movies.
Watch
I don’t know many kids who don’t love watches. And, they don’t have to be high-tech or expensive. There’s also the bonus of teaching your child how to tell time by getting them an analog rather than a digital watch.
Socks or Slippers
We bought our daughter these fun animal printed socks for her birthday this year and she loved them. Find socks and/or slippers for your child in all sorts of colors, designs or characters.
Umbrella and Galoshes
Kids love splashing around in puddles. I have pictures and videos of my own kids doing this and they still make me smile whenever I look at them. Find a fun umbrella and boots that they wear the next time that it rains.
Personalized Book
Personalized books are fun because your child gets to be IN the story. We purchase these for our kids and they loved them. The looks on their faces when they saw their names in print was absolutely priceless.
Kitchen Kit
Purchase an apron, new kitchen tools and ingredients and spend the day baking with your child in the kitchen. If your child is older, add some cake decorating tips and frosting and let them get extra creative.
Nail Polish Kit
Girls love to paint their toenails. Make up a fun kit with kid-friendly nail polish, remover, nail file, and other items to make the perfect gift.
Headphones and Earbuds
My kids love playing games on their tablets. However, I don’t like to listen to them playing them. Kid-friendly headphones or earbuds are perfect.
Bathrobe
A bathrobe is a must-have after their bedtime baths. Add in some slippers (as mentioned above) and you have the perfect gift idea for both boys and girls.
Calendar
Each year, we get our kids a calendar that features their interests. We’ve bought themes like Secret Life of Pets, Fantastic Beasts, Trolls, Royals Baseball, and more. Include fun stickers for them to mark special occasions.
New Movie and Snacks
Set up a movie night at home by picking up the newest movie that they want to own. Add some popcorn and snacks and cuddle up on the couch for a family movie night.
Travel Cup or Water Bottle
You can create personalized cups or find one in their favorite color, team or character.
Monthly Date
With five kids, it’s quite challenging to give each of them one-on-one attention. One way we do that is with a monthly date. Each month, i give one of them an afternoon or evening alone with mom or dad. they can go out to dinner, out for ice cream, play games—whatever they want.
Your Game, Book or Movie
We all have a favorite game, movie or book from when we were growing up. Find a copy and share it with them.
Garden Set
If your child likes to get his or her hands dirty in the garden, purchase the tools that they need. Get some kids sized garden tools, gloves and seeds. When spring arrives, spend an afternoon planting together.
Luggage
There are a lot of cut kid-sized luggage items available. Add in a toiletry bag with some travel-sized products such as toothpaste and shampoo. Then add a personalized luggage tag.
Clothing
Now, before you roll your eyes, this isn’t just any clothing. Maybe it’s a more expensive jacket or pair of shoes that they want. Christmas may be the perfect time to spend a bit more to get them that one article that they really want, but you normally would never buy them.
Camera
Kids love to take pictures. They have cameras designed for younger kids or you can purchase the Instax for older kids. For more fun, purchase a gift card so that they can print the pictures to add to a photo album.
Hats, Mittens and Scarves
My daughter has these cute animal face gloves with a flap that folds over the top, to make them into mittens. She loves them. In fact, she’s taken them out in the summer to play with them. Winter items that your child needs is a great gift.
What ideas do you have?
Hello, I’m Kelly, a regular contributor on this blog. I live in Pennsylvania with my loving husband and our five beautiful children. I have a background in early childhood education, but I am currently homeschooling my kids. From pregnancy to postpartum to toddler life, I love sharing advice with other moms who are having a challenging time with this crazy but wonderful role of motherhood.
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