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Kids & Company Blog
A Gift Guide for Kids Who Just Want the Cardboard Box
I was literally looking for a light sabre that had a shark head as a handle this holiday shopping season and had to stop to give my head a shake. Gift-giving for young kids DOES NOT have to be this complicated and I guarantee you can bring ample joy with some grassroots, thoughtful ideas from my inaugural Gift Guide for Kids Who Just Want the Cardboard Box:
Gift Idea #1: Truly – wrap an empty cardboard box and once it’s open dare them to make the best pirate ship they can. If motivation runs low, let them know you’ve seen better pirate ships

Gift Idea #2: Dig waaaaay down to the bottom of the toy bin and whatever you find, wrap it up. 9 times out of 10 they’ll never notice they already had it. HOT TIP: if you’re worried this will be the 1 of 10 times, add a tissue or ‘invisible cloak’ for the toy to hide behind and say it’s something from an upcoming Star Wars movie.
Gift Idea #3: A booklet of coupons to use for things like: setting their own bedtime, one hour to climb on your back and jump off, dessert for dinner, no chores for the day, launching a dance party anytime/anywhere….you get the idea.
Gift Idea #4: A flashlight. You know you have one lying around the house and I’m telling you it is hours of fun for the standard kid so get that sucker under the tree.
Gift Idea #5: Give them a bug. Any kind. Dead or alive. Bonus points if it’s a bug you or your partner are afraid of.

Gift Idea #6: Wrap up a bag of trail mix and three cups. When they open it they’re allowed to separate the nuts, raisins and chocolate from each other and pick one cup to eat.
Gift Idea #7: Put a ribbon on a couch or bed or something they normally are not allowed to jump off of and give them The Magic Wand (a.k.a. a straw) that unlocks that item for one day of jumping.
Gift Idea #8: Pull together your finest, most expensive decorative pillows from all over the house and wrap them up as ‘building materials for a fort.’ You know they’ll get used for that eventually anyways so why not turn it into a gift?
Gift Idea #9: An old computer keyboard seems to be a great gift idea based on how desperately my one year old wants mine anytime I’m typing. That or the dishwasher but that’s harder to wrap and get under the tree.
Gift Idea #10: Rip whatever toy their sibling is enjoying from their hands and give to the gifted in a glorious act of NO SHARING for a day. No siblings? That’s ok. Use a cousin or friend or stranger who is enjoying a toy visibly enough that your kid really needs to have it.

Melissa lives in Calgary and is the Community Marketing Manager for Kids & Company in Alberta and BC. Her vision of what she would be like as a mom was shattered three years ago when she discovered nothing ever goes as planned for parents, but laughter and community sees you through. You can reach her at msawatzky@kidsandcompany.com.
Posted on: Thursday December 22nd, 2016
Posted by: Melissa Sawatzky
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Larry Uteck (Southgate Dr)
Pine Village South End, Part of the Kids & Company Family
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Pine Village Brighton, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Pine Village Brookline, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Burlington Children’s Centre
Burloak
Appleby
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Bow Trail
Eau Claire
Livingston
Midlake
Millrise
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Smart Tech
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Marda Loop
Evanston
Beltline
Aviation Crossing
Gulf Canada Square
Pine Village Kendall Square, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Pine Village Porter Square, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Canton
Jackson
Lincoln Park
Harrison
West Loop
South Loop
Fulton
Cochrane
Dartmouth
Dover
Eastern Passage
Ellerslie (103A St. SW)
Edmonton Ice District (104 Ave)
Baturyn
Diamond
Friendly Frog
Meadowlark Park
St. Charles
St. Dominic
Sunshine Factory
Tender Heart
Tamarack
Jagare Ridge
Horse Hill
Fraser
Islington
Etobicoke (Bloor & Islington)
ABC Kiddie Kampus Exeter, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Halifax
Hamilton
Hammonds Plains
Route 39
Schaffner
Swatara
Hummelstown
Pine Village JP Revere, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Pine Village JP South Street, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Kamloops
Eagleson (South Kanata)
Tyke Town Lake St. Louis, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Kids World
Langley (200th St.)
London Richmond
Sackville
Milton
Robert Speck Parkway
Mississauga Gateway Centre
Nanaimo
Pine Village Needham, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Ottawa Barrhaven
New Westminster
Pine Village West Newton, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Pine Village Newton Highlands, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Niagara Queen
North Vancouver
North Van Esplanade
Oakville Ford
Oakville Cornwall
Oakville Dundas
Joshua Creek
Oakville West (3471 Wyecroft Rd)
Okotoks
ABC Kiddie Kampus Old Forge, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Ottawa Albert
Ottawa Westboro
Palmyra
ABC Kiddie Kampus Pittston, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Port Moody
Marina Bay
Red Deer
Richmond
Head Office
Schaumburg
Sherwood Park
St. Albert North
St. Albert Grandin
Tyke Town St. Peters, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Stoney Creek
Morgan Crossing
Surrey Professional Centre
King George
Sylvan Lake
Bloor Christie
Bloor (Bloor St. East)
Consumers
Finch
Front
Wellington
Scotia Plaza
Stock Yards
St. Andrew’s Church
Liberty Village
Rosedale
Queen West
Tyke Town Troy, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Vancouver West
Langford
Victoria
Sunshine South, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Sunshine Country Day, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Waterdown
Tech Town
West Quincy
Whitby
ABC Kiddie Kampus East Mountain, Part of the Kids & Company Family
ABC Kiddie Kampus King’s College, Part of the Kids & Company Family
Winnipeg
West York
Queen Street