Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Last Minute Gift Ideas

If you are down to the last minute on getting a gift, here are a few ideas. 

You can give money.  You don't have to run to a store, go online or make a gift.  If you have money, you just give the gift of the money. 

You can give a gift certificate or gift card.  You buy gift cards at most stores.  You can buy them online.  You can even buy email gift certificates that can be sent by email to the recipient as soon as you buy them.

You can make a gift.  You can bake bread, cookies, or make a special dish.  You can print out cards or calendars or other gifts from your computer.

You can give a gift of service such offering babysitting or shoveling snow or a back rub or making a special dinner.

You still can give great gifts even at the last minute.  More ideas for last minute gifts can be found here.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Last Minute Memorable Gifts

When I was young I remember being taken to the city fifteen miles from our home on the Saturday before Christmas.  We would divide up and go shopping for other members of the family.  Then we would trade off and go with someone different so we could get a gift for the other person we had been shopping with.  It was fun to shop like that.  I didn't worry so much about getting the perfect gift.  I just tried to find something nice and something I thought would be enjoyed.

Sometimes now it seems hard to get good gifts.  Sometimes you're not sure what a person would like.  Sometimes you don't have a lot of money to spend.  And sometimes you're down to the last minute.

I just discovered today that you can give a gift certificate for a personalized gift.  This last minute gift can be customized by the recipient with a design of their choice or with their own picture or text.  This gift certificate is sent by email so it can be sent to someone far away even on Christmas Day and still be received on time.  If you want to give a wrapped physical gift, you could write a note saying to check their email for their gift and wrap the note in wrapping paper or put it in a box or bag.

It's not too late to give a memorable gift if you go to this site.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Making Your Own Music

I've always enjoyed making my own music.  When I was young I loved to sing.  We didn't own a piano, but I wanted to learn to play the piano.  A friend taught me a little bit, but I didn't have a piano to practice on.  When I was twelve my parents bought me a used flute which allowed me to join the school band.  Recently I came across Sonic Producer.  This software fascinates me as it allows one to create music using several different instrumental sounds.  I have tried creating photo videos, but I have found it frustrating when trying to add music because of copyright issues.  With Sonic Producer I can create my own music which is a lot of fun, and then I can use it as I see fit.

You could buy the software and create gifts with it like MP3's that could be saved to a computer or a MP3 player or burned to a CD.  You could add music to a photo video.  Then, of course, you could give the software as a gift to someone you know who loves creating music.  Sonic  Producer could be a very memorable gift.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

A Family Tree Calendar Makes a Year Long Gift

Memorable gifts are gifts that keep on giving.  A calendar is a year-long gift.  Creating your own calendar to give as a gift is a very personalized gift.  To make an even more memorable gift add family photos to your calendar.  Adding a family tree and pictures of your ancestors can make an especially memorable gift as it would remind members of your family of their ancestors who came before them.  Whether our ancestors were good upstanding people or whether they did some things you aren't proud of, still knowing who they are helps you to understand who you are and why things are the way they are in your life.  That can be an empowering thing to give to your family.  If you would like to see an example of a family tree calendar click on the picture below.  There you can create your own custom family tree calendar.  Also you can find more information on creating your family tree calendar here:  

Create a Family Tree Calendar


Monday, December 6, 2010

Using Personal Historian to Create a Memorable Gift

Personal Historian is a software program that helps you write and record your life story. The life story of a family member would be a most memorable gift. You can just start writing your own story or a family member's story, but with software like Personal Historian you get a lot of help. Personal Historian provided a time line with history information that can prompt your memory of what happened in a certain year. You can import family history Gedcom files that you already have. You can import photos, and you can import stories that are already written. You may already have a lot of your story done. Once you've finished your story you can print it out yourself or you can save it as a word processor document or a pdf file which could be submitted to be printed out as a book.

With Personal Historian you can create a story as a gift or you may choose to give the software as the gift itself. Giving the gift of a life story will be a most memorable gift that may be cherished for generations.
Here's more about Personal Historian.
Software

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Memorable Gifts for Veterans

We are fortunate to live in our free country, but it is only free because of those who have been willing to fight for our freedom.  If you have a veteran on your Christmas gift list, perhaps acknowledging what they did in serving our country could be a memorable gift for them. You can learn more at this site about patriotism.  Pins, patches, magnets, bumper stickers, flags and many more items could be given as gifts to let the veteran in your life know how much their service means to you.