Why we Do Adventures OVER Gifts

Kids love toys!!  That is something that we all know, but how long does a child typically play with a certain toy? What happens to that toy when they are done playing with it? Do they remember who gave them each toy that they received? As we grow older we come to realize “Collecting Moments not Things” matters more than having the latest and greatest. Spending time with those that we care about has a lasting memory. So instead of giving toys why not give Adventures!  This is exactly what we decided to do for Christmas, Birthday’s, Easter, etc. we are going to give our kids Adventures Over Gifts.

Since Christmas just passed here is how it looked in our house, remember that we have three kiddos under three. 🙂  Santa gave the kids three presents/toys, since the wise men baby gave Jesus three gifts. Everything else came from Mom and Dad and were ADVENTURES!

The three presents from Santa were toys. They got a large tool set, a ball bin, and Color Wonder.  Their gift from us was a camping adventure to The Great Smoky Mountains in the Summer and an adventure over Spring Break which we haven’t planned yet, hehe. MeMe and Grand-dad got them swim lessons that we will go to as a family since the ratio is 1 to 1 when it comes to kids and adults in the pool. And from there Aunt Chelle Chelle and Uncle Mitchell got a day trip to the Virginia Safari Park.

We decided to take this a step further and also give Adventures Over Gifts to our siblings. So Mechelle and Mitchell are having a house built and will need help moving when it is done so our gift to them was babysitting services and Saturday night dinner. Their gift to us was a date night babysitter, which we often don’t get.

I can’t tell you how much easier Christmas was this year. Hunter still got overwhelmed with just the three toys that they were given but be bounced back really quickly. Especially since those same toys were there when he woke up and he could continue to play with them. And buying gifts for everyone was a breeze.

Here are some things to consider when giving Adventures Over Gifts

• When giving an adventure set dates and put them on the calendar. This will hold you accountable.
• Invest in a camera to document those adventures. The key to this is not just taking the pictures but getting them printed in some way.  You can see how we put all our pictures into Photo Albums and ChatBooks here. My kids love looking through their Chatbooks and pointing out things that they did and who they did them with, and remember they are under 3!! Can you imagine what the pictures they will have to look back on when they are school aged?  
• Even Garrett and Hunter at 18 months love opening things so to make sure they still had things to open on Christmas we created “Adventure Bucks”.  These are certificates that I created that can be wrapped.
• Not everyone has the same likes, so when picking adventures they don’t always have to be one’s for the entire family. I know that when Henleigh gets older she will be getting “Adventure Bucks” for manicures and pedicures, where the boys will get “Adventure Bucks” for fishing or hunting trips.

If you are looking for some ideas I have compiled a list for ya’ll.

• Ice skating
• Movies
• Art classes (pottery, photography, etc.)
• See a play or musical
• Go to a concert
• Visits to museums
• Sleep overs
• Manicures & Pedicures
• Fishing trip
• Hunting trip
• Ski trip

As I have gotten older it has become clear that “Collecting Moments not Things” is really what matters most. If you are tired of the toy clutter or are tired of trying to find the perfect toy, then try an Adventure instead. Gifts don’t always have to be tangible, they could just be spending time together doing something that you love.