![Christmas presents](https://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/pinellasco/files/2010/11/Christmas-presents-200x300.jpg)
Gifts you make yourself are more personal, can be less expensive and don’t have wasteful packaging. Take those treasured family recipes and copy them into a colorful journal or print them on festive recipe cards. Pack them up into a basket with various kitchen items. Small herb plants nestled together in a pretty basket with a favorite recipe card for using each herb is a great gift idea.
If you are not the crafty type there are many local art and craft shows that help you find that special something. Buying from local artists helps support the local economy. The Florida Botanical Gardens is having a special gift and plant sale on December 12. Visit http://www.flbg.org/ for information on the event.
Give your time
The holidays are about giving and sharing. Make a coupon book filled with orders for good deeds. The coupons could include a home-cooked meal, car wash, a day of babysitting or several trips to the grocery store for that elderly neighbor. Volunteerism, especially around the holidays, offers an ideal opportunity for families to have fun and feel closer to each other. By reaching out to others in the community you drive home the message that giving is much more than laying down cash for the latest hot gift of the season.
Give an experience
An idea for giving without all the wrapping is the gift of “an experience”. A gift certificate might be just the thing for someone who would like to begin a new hobby, polish the skills they have already learned or go some place new. A membership to a gym, museum or the zoo is could be a perfect gift for a family member or friend. Consider signing someone up for lessons in music or a foreign language or sport like golf or tennis.