Do you take gifts with you when you visit friends during the holidays?

**ajrsmom** · #1 (**permalink**) 12-05-2009, 04:54 PM

All of the cooking shows and crafts shows always talk about making little gifts for your friends when you visit during the holidays.

Do you do this? I don't think that I know anyone who actually does this. It would be nice, though.

debknechtel · #2 (**permalink**) 12-05-2009, 04:58 PM

Tami we take a bottle of wine or a plate of home baked goodies when we visit friends......

hugs debbie

HAPPY6 · #3 (**permalink**) 12-05-2009, 05:34 PM

Tami, We always bring something when we visit. Some things are, a small gift basket of cheeses, a box of candy, a Christmas scented candle, a platter of homemade cookies and I've been known to stop at the local bakery and buy a cheese cake. I try to bring something that I think the people that we are visiting will enjoy......

kathymac · #4 (**permalink**) 12-06-2009, 05:54 AM

We will usually bring something with us, usually homemade cookies or candy, maybe a bottle of wine.

BuddyBeanieBaby · #5 (**permalink**) 12-08-2009, 12:32 PM

Depending on where we are going...I usually do up a basket of homemade cookies and candies and a small homemade ornament for the kids and another basket of homemade flavored butters,homemade breads,cheeses and a bottle of wine or Apple Cider for the adults...

Smiles & Hugs...

**Bilby** · #6 (**permalink**) 12-11-2009, 09:33 PM

I make little christmas fruit cakes, (muffin sized) to take as gifts and if we are staying for morning or afternoon tea we always take a plate with us to put on the table.

If you get invited to a party over here if on the invite it says "take a plate" that means a plate full of food to share not a plate to eat off.

There are 4 of us so I don't expect people to feed us all unless they specifically say not to.

ezlivinginvt · #7 (**permalink**) 11-18-2011, 05:08 AM

I feel it is a nice jesture to offer something personal. If your short on time, wine works fine. If you have the time something more personal is nice. Depending upon your length of stay with your host should depend upon the jesture. For a meal only, bringing a dish that would compliment the meal, as well as a small flower arrangement is nice. A plate of cookies for the family is also nice. If the stay is more than just a meal, something that means "you took the time" to really be thoughtful. The basket full of butters/breads are very nice, bakery variety is nice as well. We live in VT so I often bring a homemade dry mix for pancakes w/a bottle of our maple syrup, as well as some maple candy.

KSJEn6891 · #8 (**permalink**) 11-18-2011, 10:22 AM

I know it sounds sort of weird, but I actually do bring a "generic" gift to the host/ess home (if I know them well enough) during the holidays. One year we brought wine at Thanksgiving, and another year it was a snowman ornament for Christmas (a side from the normal Christmas and "White Elephant" gift).

apricot · #9 (**permalink**) 11-19-2011, 03:44 AM

We're going to my sister-in-law's for Thanksgiving. My husband chats with her all the time over the computer but we haven't seen her in person in over 15 years. There will be other relatives there too. I would like to take something but am at a loss as to what since they aren't wine drinkers and are kind of particular about what foods they will eat.

ezlivinginvt · #10 (**permalink**) 11-19-2011, 04:06 AM

My suggestion would be flowers. However, over 15 year.... If you have the time make a "Remember when..." booklet. If you don't have personal photos to add to it, just pull random pics off internet that doesn't show faces. Such as; Cover Reads "Remember when...." open first right hand page says "We used to go to the beach and I buried you all but your head and left you there for 20 minutes" Paste a sand pic and use scrapbooking paper. Continue as many remember whens as flows from your husbands recollection. It would be a great conversation starter as well. If time is limited he could do this on his own simply by purchasing a small novelty stationery notebook and only writing his recollection of each event on a page, leaving room for her to write her recollection of the same memory and sending it back at a later time.

It reminds me of once for Christmas, knowing my mom was on a fixed income I gave her a "mothers journal" kind of thing. It had prompts for her memories of her past both while I was younger, prior children, highschool years and sibling/family growing up for her. I gave it to her on Mothers Day and asked for it to be completed by Christmas and that that was ALL I wanted for Christmas was a piece of her; a memory. I cherish that book to this day.

Hope you enjoy crafting this as much as she will recieving.

If this kind of thing is not your husband, let me know I'll keep thinking.

Brenda