Among Friends

[Calcgirl]

My son and his wife are both very successful and can afford pretty much anything they want.  Question, what can i get them for Christmas?  I am a retired teacher on a fixed income.  If I ask them they always tell me nothing that my love is enough. 

[Little Way]

My family has a similar situation.  We tell our mom the same thing.  She now has started to select items she owns and she wraps them up as gifts.  Jewelry (some sentimental pieces, some more valuable), an old candy dish, a rosary, a framed photo,  etc.   She will tell us the story behind the item.  

[meallen616]

@Calcgirl,

Gift card to their favorite restaurant!

[staciesmom]

My daughter and son-in-law are the same. Both successful professionals with no children who buy what they want and have expensive taste. I struggle each year at Christmas and birthdays. Last year I enrolled them in a wine club from a popular local winery where each quarter of the year they get 3 bottles of wine shipped to their house. This year I got them a steak knife set from a cutlery maker they like. I really would like to stop buying for each other and adopt a needy family from our church.

[panda1234]

Give to a shelter in their name.

Since they most likely don't have time for home cooked meals, a gift card to a takeout place. We have What a Crock, which is a chain that does home cooked meals for the crockpot. 

It is hard, I know. 

[LizzieInSRQ]

Old family favorite or antique pictures in classic  frames. The gift of history.is a gift only you can give. 

Are they enthusiasts of anything? Into anything culturally, even silly like a TV show like The Walking Dead.? Go on Amazon or just Google the hobby + gift and then filter for price range you are wanting to stick with.

[OKPrincess]

We like to give and receive favorite gift cards (Cracker Barrel, Starbucks) and favorite treats, Last year DD mailed us unsalted cashews, caramels, gummy bears all from Amazon.

We don’t need things to sit around and we like to buy our own clothes and same for our grown kids.

Of course we buy for our almost 4-year old great nephew . That’s always fun. 

[kaydee50]

Believe them.  Accept whatever they give you with thanks and let them enjoy the pleasure of gifting you.  Haven't you given them enough already throughtout their lives?  If you feel you must give them something, give a donation in their name to their favorite charity or project.  Merry Christmas!

[brandiwine]

We donate to a charity that they like and give them a couple of small gifts.  We also do this with a very close friend who is  extremely wealthy and she does the same for us.  None of us really need more "stuff" and this way others can be helped.

[chrystaltree]

Gifts should never...ever be about the recipient's income or what they can afford to buy themselves.  When I give a gift, I never think "she's got a lot of money".  First, decide how much you want to spend on a gift or gifts for them.  That comes first with all gift giving.  You don't spend more than you can or afford or want to spend.  Then you think about what type of people they are, what they like, what they do for fun etc.  After that, it should be easy to find something nice that they would enjoy having.  We don't know anything about them, so it's impossible to give any suggestions.  We don't know how much you want to spend either.  "Retired teacher" doesn't mean anything at all to us.  You can't ask adult children what they want, especially ones who are doing well financially.  It's not fair.  It puts them on the spot.