• No Clutter Gifts 
• Less Clutter Gifts 

These are some of the best non-toy gifts that I have given to my kids. This list has wonderful gifts for kids of all ages, older children to little kids alike. New toys are always a hit with the kids but often for the parents they can be a burden. Obviously the gift is for the kids not the parents but I would hope you would want to bless the parents as well as the kids.

But First, Talk To The Parents

When giving gifts we want to give from the heart and if we truly want their well being we will give appropriate gifts. Knowing not just what the kids want but what the parents allow is important. Your niece might tell you she wants a toy microphone and speaker but will that annoy her mother…? your sister…? Yes it will. So I bought it for her. Do as I say, not as I do. 

Sometimes we can get carried away and give gifts that the parents were trying to avoid bringing into the house. Gifts like Lego are great if they already are a Lego family and some families are not. Some families are not into Disney princesses or barbies and for some those are perfect gifts. Know the kids and know what the parents are okay with introducing into the family.

When you want to gift a need, ASK to make sure they parents/child need this item. Do they need clothing? or do they not want anymore. Do they need more art supplies? or do they have enough. Do they need more books? What do they need? Don’t just assume everyone needs new shoes or more markers. 

No Clutter Gifts

These gift ideas are here and gone again. Perfect for the kids who has everything or for the minimalist family. Gifts that will make the day special without the fuss of finding a place to keep store it. 

Balloons

Balloons are fun and don’t last forever. They make a day/week special.

Bubbles

My kids love bubbles they are typically a one afternoon outside fun. Nothing I have to find space and it gets them outside.

Bubble Bath

My little girl love bubble baths. I do not buy bubble bath regularly but they become great Christmas morning stocking suffer or birthday gifts for fun bath time. Bath salts, face masks, nail polish and lotions are also a perfect gift for older girls. 

Flowers

Those little girls feel so loved when given a sweet little bouquet of flowers! They light up when the flowers are for them. Household plants or garden plants or even seeds can be just as fun for your kids to take care of and watch grow.

Foods, Snacks, Treats

Candy, snacks, favorite foods are another fun gift to give. Be sure to make sure over sugar someone else’s kids and ask the parents if they have suggestions or restrictions that they give their kids when it comes to food.
side story: For my oldest sons first birthday his aunt got him a banana. He was so excited he cried when I tried to get him to open the next gift. We had to take a break and let him eat his banana before moving on with the party! It was hilarious and has become a tradition with our family to give a banana for the first birthdays.

Ice Cream Money/Gift Card

My son was so excited when he got a card from his great-great Aunt with $5 in it specifically for ice cream. He love’s going out for ice cream at our local creamery and it made for a great gift. 

Tickets to Events

Children’s Museum, plays, movie theater, aquarium, zoo are great ideas for experience gifts.  These are great gifts to talk to the parents about first. If you are giving the gift of an event or experience gift make sure its something the parents approve of. Also don’t leave out the parents from experiencing the adventure with their kids. These gifts are great for the whole family. Don’t take your grand kids to the zoo for the first time without their parents, unless the parents wish it. 

Scavenger Hunt/Treasure Hunt 

Adventure! You can make up your own scavenger hunt or treasure hunt that geared to your child or check out these 35 awesome scavenger hunt ideas for kids. Scavenger hunts can be so much fun for all ages. You can adapt you hunt to being in one room or a whole town. This gift can be very simple to extremely extravagant. Some treasures can be toys that they can keep or candy and treat that goes away when finished. 

Sidewalk Chalk

My two oldest boys have a great time and will spend hours outside with chalk. Making rocket ships, race car and car tracks, even numbering all 84 squares in the side walk to the corner of the block. Kids love chalk. A great gift that once is done its gone

Water balloons

Water balloons are an amazing gift in the summer. On a hot day the kids can have a epic battle while cooling down in the water. One used they are done. 

Less Clutter Gifts

Most of the gifts ideas on this list take up some space but not a lot and not always for long. Too much of a good thing can get overwhelming at times. When shopping for a minimalist family or a kid who has everything already, ask yourself if they will use this gift or if it will just become another thing to store. Giving from the heart is giving something they will use. 

Audio Books

For the younger kids who can’t read yet, audio books are a great gift. Starting that love for reading early can be done with audio books. Listening to a book in long car rides, or during quiet time/nap time while they color or play with legos is a great way to introduce a love for reading. You can get gift cards for amazon to use towards audible or purchase a monthly subscription for someone. For other audio books apps check out Everyday Reading’s review.

Board Games

Even with our 3 and 4 year old we like to introduce board games, even if we don’t play exactly by all the rules with the little ones we have a lot of fun.

Books

One of the best gifts you can give is books. Books form people and character. A love to read can produce a love for knowledge.

Camping Gear

If the family is a camping family then their kids will love items like a compass, flashlight, binoculars, or a magnifying glass. These gifts make the family activities even more special. 

Clothing

Something practical can also be special meaningful gifts. A sweet little dress, or cool new pair of rain boots can become a very special outfit when given from someone they love. 

DVD’s

In a world of streaming this gift my seem out dated but my kids love being able to pick out what they want to watch by looking through their DVD’s. I feel more comfortable that ad’s I don’t approve of aren’t randomly popping up and shows they are not allowed to watch aren’t an seen as an option. They also get to take their favorite movies to their grandparents and cousins house for fun movie nights.

Flower/Plants

Those little girls feel so loved when given a sweet little bouquet of flowers! They light up when the flowers are for them. Household plants or garden plants or even seeds can be just as fun for your kids to take care of and watch grow. The gift of flowers is also a great gift for older kids and even adults. This Christmas my dad got me money for two fruit trees of my choice. Now every time I water my trees I think of my dad’s love for me. 

Fun Money

I remember getting $2 dollar bills in Christmas stockings or for my birthday, they are rare and exciting and you want to save them instead of spend. My brother in law once made a treasure map and hid a treasure chest full of $3 works of pennies that his son and my sons (ages 4-5) got to split up between them. They love the adventure and 100 pennies is a lot of money for a little boy. 

Piggy Bank

Now what to keep your treasure in? A piggy bank! It doesn’t have to be a pig, there are lots of cute ideas out there. I personally like the ones that easily open so that my kids can count their money over and over again (homeschooling points) or the ones they can see through and see grow as they save their money. Kibelly Wooden Banks are a great example.

Photo Album

My daughters loves looking though my wedding photo albums and their baby albums. You can create personal photo books at Shutterfly, Snapfish, Mixbook, Chatbooks or even Walmart for less than $10. This year my kids and I made “cousin books” and gave them to our extended family. Photo albums are great for family that lives out of state, especially if you can get photos of their family and your family together in one book. When family is separated by distance its always a meaningful to see each other on the same page of one book even if not the same photo. 

Mail

Personal letters from you can be very special especially if you live far away or like to travel. Postcards, birthday cards, drawings and art can be very exciting to receive in the mail. Sending mail monthly can be something those kids can look forward to

Subscriptions

There are lots of wonderful creative kids subscriptions you can sign up for. Magazine subscriptions like National Geographic Kids, Highlights, and more. Activity boxes like KiwiCo, Little Passports, Highlights High Five and Lovevery. Something new every month that produces creativity and learning. 

Scavenger Hunt/Treasure Hunt. 

Adventure! You can make up your own scavenger hunt or treasure hunt that geared to your child or check out these 35 awesome scavenger hunt ideas for kids. Scavenger hunts can be so much fun for all ages. You can adapt you hunt to being in one room or a whole town. This gift can be very simple to extremely extravagant. Some treasures can be toys that they can keep or candy and treat that goes away when finished.

Art Supplies 

Acrylic or Watercolor Paints

Fun fancy paints for older kids a great way for them to feel older and take seriously their art projects. Don’t forget a few nice paint brushes that go with out fun paint. 

Art Paper

Water color paper, thick card stock, sketch pads are wonderful gifts for artists of all ages.

Coloring Books

Coloring books for any age! There are so many different types of coloring books out there I’m sure you can find something they will love.

Journal

A journal can be a great way to encourage creative writing or simple finding words to express yourself. For younger kids you can get a drawing journal or a journal with prompts. 

Photo Album/Scrapbook

You can make your own photo album as a gift or but a blank album that the kids get to fill in themselves. Print pictures for them and let them make their own memories.

Sticker/Sticker Book

Sticker books are a lot of fun and a perfect gift as long as the kids are old enough to know the stickers don’t go on the furniture. 

Science Projects

Like Doctor Jupiter’s Science Kit, or Stem Robotics Kids or a gardening Root Viewer Kit. There are lots of different ways to experiment and grow your kids knowledge while having a lot of fun! 

Sidewalk Chalk

My two oldest boys just spend hours outside with chalk, making rocket ships, race car and car tracks, numbering all 84 squares in the side walk to the corner of the block. A great gift that once is done its gone.

The post 31 Exciting gifts for kids, clutter-free, non-toy appeared first on Embracing The Home.

Embracing Peace, Not Overwhelm

Keeping my kitchen cabinets organized is not always easy but so very rewarding. In my kitchen I have few cabinets and little counter space. With a space things can pile up really quickly. Cleaning up after every meal or cooking time in the kitchen is necessary which leads to tip number 1.

Tip number 1: The One Touch Rule

The One Touch Rule is once you’ve touch something you put all the way away the first time you touch it. Don’t create little piles to be put away at a later time. Wash that one dish right away to avoid fifty dishes to wash later on. Put the toys all the way away, the rags to the laundry basket not a pile on the floor…etc. These are real life tasks that I struggle with finishing. So I remind myself, “one touch” and finish the little task it keeps things from building up and causing stress and overwhelm.

Imagine you have a list of all the things you need to put away and every time you pick something up you put it in another spot closer to where it should go so that its “easier” to put it away later. You will never be able to actually check anything off the list because every time you pick something up you aren’t actually putting it away you are just reorganizing your mess but never cleaning it up.

Now don’t get me wrong, sometimes we do need to organize and sort through the mess. Like when my kids dump the Lego’s, cars, play food, and blocks all out in the living room floor. In that case sitting down with the kids and sorting through the toys is a great method of cleaning.

The One Touch Rule applies when I’m washing dishes and one of my daughters toy dishes appears in the sink. I wash it, dry it, and put it away in the toy box right away. Now I’m tempted to put the clean toy on the edge of the counter thinking I’ll put away later… but then I forget… I think I wont but I do. Now her toys are sill in my kitchen, I’m running late, I making dinner and I need to stay focused on the meal… So I toss it into the living room, still not putting it away… teaching my kids its okay to just throw toys in another room in order to say that you “cleaned up”. The one touch rule saves me from this cycle.

Tip Number 2: Keep The Sink Empty

This rule is huge for me. Not having a dishwasher I wash all our dishes by hand in the sink. I like washing dishes and I’ve never cared to have a dishwasher. The one thing I hate is when my kitchen sink is so full of dishes that I can’t wash the one pot or bowl or knife that I need. To get what I need I first have to empty the sink so I can wash the one bowl.

There are two things to keep this from happening. 1, wash dirty dishes right away with the one touch rule. 2, Place dirty dishes on counter not inside the sink. Washing dishes right away keeps them from piling up. Setting dirty dishes on the counter for later make it so the sink is always available a quick wash.

If you do have a dishwasher I suggest you never put dirty dishes in the sink or counter. Rinse and place them in the dishwasher right away, even if you are not turning it on till the end of the day. Don’t make a habit of creating piles in your kitchen to do later. This will just cause stress at the end of the day over all the thing you’ve saved for yourself to do. Finishing the little tasks throughout the day for simpler living and avoid the overwhelm and stress.

Tip Number 3: Relationships Over Cleanliness

When the kids are crying, the house is messy, food is burning on the stove, we moms sometimes get stuck. Unable to focus and we don’t know what to do next. Trying to focus in we get frustrated with all the distraction and interruption. Instead of focusing in, broaden your view.

Remember relationships are more important than the cleanliness of the home. Your relationship with your husband and kids is more important than a clean house. Broaden your view, look for ways to build up your relationships instead of focusing on the chores. Focus on relationships over tasks. If the kids are upset, love on them. When your husbands is coming home from work and the house is a mess and your hair is a mess. Brush your hair first. He wants to look at you, not the house.

When focused on building up your relationships within your family you can then decided on what tasks are most important. Cleaning the same thing over and over again can get discouraging. But when we have the right mindset and motivation we can love and serve others selflessly. The chores become acts of love, giving us joy and purpose in doing them.

Tip Number 4: Declutter Often

Every couple months I like to go through a drawer or cabinet and clean it out. Throw away any junk, reevaluate if any of the items in the back of the drawer or that mug in the back of the cabinet is actually worth keeping. I don’t get rid of everything but consider what works and what doesn’t for your house using wisdom. I encourage you go through the whole kitchen at once (unless necessary) but one or two drawers or cabinets a month. Making it a quick job of it, maybe 30 minutes of decluttering and deep cleaning that area of the kitchen. Rather than a days worth of going over every cabinet, nook and cranny of the kitchen in one full swoop.

Keeping the clutter down by going through my kitchen often keeps me from wasting my limit storage space. We have a cabinet that is deep with a narrow door so its hard to see and reach items in the back. For the longest time I stored tea cups and small items in this cabinet. This week, as I cleaning it out I realized I never use my pretty cups and plates. So I switch things up a bit. I moved my pie dishes into the small cabinet and the tea cups and pretty items to a more convenient shelf. The pie dishes take up the whole shelf leaving no room for little things to be hidden. It’s perfect! I only need the pie dishes when I make pie and I now I have the opportunity to use the pretty plates and tea cups when ever I want.

Tip Number 5: Romance The Ordinary

Keeping my cabinets clean and organized doesn’t just improve the function of my kitchen but adds beauty and peace, it adds romance. It brought me joy to move my tea cups to a cabinet they can be seen in and easily accessed. Eating a simple snack of almonds or a rice cake off of a pretty plate energizes and fills me up so much more than eating off a paper plate. It feel romantic to eat and serve your family in a beautiful way. The going above and beyond to make something beautiful for someone is a way of showing love.

Whenever I bring flowers in the the home or make eye catching meals my kids get excited! They enjoy beauty even at a young age. My son is always asking to pick flowers to have on the kitchen table. I have to remind him that we can’t have flowers and decoration around if the table is going to be messy. We first need to clean the sticky oatmeal or dinner dishes or arts and crafts off the table and then add the beautifying elements.

I love adding the romantic beautiful elements to my home but they are only effective with a clean house. So first we clean, we keep up on the clutter and do our do diligence. Have you ever notice all the pretty inspirational photos of kitchens on Pinterest are clean? Clean the kitchen and then add beauty. Creating inspiration for your family to see and enjoy.

In Summery

I hope you are encouraged and ready to embrace the kitchen with all its messes. I hope you are able to embracing cleaning consistently with love and service towards your family. Remember the “One Touch Rule” and simplify your cleaning with habits that benefit your whole home. Declutter often and save things that bring joy not stress. Embracing your family with beauty for them to be around, romance the ordinary. Keep your mind on what’s most important, your family. Build up your family with love as you create a clean and peaceful home for them.

Please share in the comments some encouragement that you have found helpful when it comes to keeping your kitchen/house clean. Sharing can be so powerful and you never know who you might be able to help with a encouraging comment.

The post How to Keep Your Kitchen Clean appeared first on Embracing The Home.