The Minimalist Approach to Gift Giving for Kids…with a DO GOOD Twist

STW, STN, STW, STR & STGTTIN…WTH?

Yep…it’s all the rage this year.  Have you figured it out yet?  No, well let me help you out.

It’s the cool way of referring to the 4 Gift Challenge you may have heard about, the…

“Something They Want, Something They Need, Something To Wear, Something To Read” approach to gift giving. 

But wait, there are still a few more letters there that we didn’t explain.  Oh yes, that’s because we added a 5^th “Gift” to the 4 Gift Challenge.

Can you guess what that might be?  Yes, of course! It’s the…

“Something to Give to Those in Need.”

 An idea that fits in so nicely with everything we do here at For-Purpose Kids.

(And the WTH…if you don’t know what that means, you’ll have to figure it out for yourself!)

I came upon this idea within the last year or two, but this will be the first year that I actually try and do it.  And I’m lucky, as this will only be my son’s second holiday season, so it will be easy for me to set the precedent this year without yells and screams of, “Where are all of the presents?”

But I do love this idea…and for a couple of reasons.  One- because my son already has MORE than enough- of everything.  And I’d like to try and bring him up with the idea of “less is more”, that “things don’t buy happiness” and that “giving is better than receiving”, especially when giving to those in need.  The second reason I love this so much though is much more selfish.  I love it because it will help keep ME in check.  I’d love to say that I’m a “less is more” kind of person and that the idea of Minimalism is ever present in my life…but those of you that know me know that this is not the truth.  It's something that I’m working on and mindful of, but I’m the person who buys all of those last-minute things at the counter because I feel like I haven’t bought “enough”…and I want to make a change.

So if you feel like I do and want to give this “a go”, as my friends in the UK would say, here are a few ideas to get you started (with a shameless plug or two for our very own For-Purpose Kids products!).

1. Something They Want
   This one is pretty obvious and this would be something they’ve been begging for…that is not only at the TOP of their wish list, but is also the thing they think they might not get if they dare touch the “Elf on the Shelf”.  This would be something like the Fingerling Interactive Monkey, Hatchimals or the LOL BIG SURPRISE (WTH ARE these things?).

2. Something They Need
   In my family, this was (and still is) always socks & underwear. Things probably haven’t changed much, so I would assume these are the types of things that would fall under this category.  Although- you can probably take a bit of creative license with this one if you’re like me.  My toddler doesn’t really NEED anything…but as I already got him the cool Magnetic Blocks for the STW category, I convinced myself that the scooter I ordered (that will help him move a little faster on the way to the park) is something that he NEEDS this year.  (This is where I was thinking that our Global Kidizens would go…wink wink).
   
   
3. Something to Wear
   Again, the options here are endless and it’s typically not hard to find a nice outfit for your kids at this time of year. But here we’d like to provide a link to a list of items highlighted by DoneGood, an organization that is connecting consumers to unique mission-driven companies that strive to make the world a better place (we hope to be included with DoneGood soon!).  Click here to shop consciously this year. 
   
   

4. Something to Read
   There are some awesome books for kids out there this year so this one shouldn’t be too much of a stretch either. I’m still on the hunt to fill this category for my son, but the book, In My Heart: A Book of Feelings, was one of our favorites for years.

5. Something to Give to Those in Need
   My mom started doing this for my siblings and I a few years ago when really didn’t have a need for things like Cabbage Patch Kids anymore. We loved the idea and have continued it ever since.  She asks us which organization we’d like to support, so each year we get to spread the goodness around to different causes.
   This is something that can easily be done for your kids and the great thing is that you can start small.  For the first year or two, you can simply make a donation in your child’s name for a cause they care about (something to benefit other people, animals or the planet) and talk about how you can perhaps spend time volunteering in conjunction with that donation in the coming year.  It’s a great time to start this tradition and carry it on for years to come.  If you need help finding a cause to support, please visit our Give Back Organizations page here on our website, or send us an email and we’d be glad to help.

If you’d like to join us with our new Minimalist approach to gift giving, let us know how it goes on social media using #forpurposekids.  We’ll keep you posted on how we do as well…even if we go a bit “outside” of the lines.

We’d also like to offer you, our For Purpose Community, 15% OFF with code TOPTOY on our Global Kidizen Doll Collection this holiday season.  

Give gifts this year that will inspire the next generation of global citizens!