It’s that time of the year again– Holiday Gift Guides 2018!

One of our favorite things to do here at Play Eat Grow is to equip parents with great resources. We know that families are busy and the last thing many parents want to do is spend a hundred hours scouring the internet for the perfect gift.

Weirdly, we LOVE it.

Each year we do gift guides a little bit differently, and so this year, we’re creating 4 guides based on interests:

The Bookworm Edition
The Creator Edition
The Puzzler/Gamer Edition
The Faith Formation Edition
Stocking Stuffers

Next up: Stocking Stuffers

The definition of a stocking stuffer is a bit muddied these days. For some, a stocking stuffer is something that is small.

Diamond ring? Stocking stuffer!
Ozobot? Stocking stuffer!
$50 gift card to Barnes and Noble? Stocking stuffer!

I don’t know about YOUR stockings, but my stockings weren’t created to contain those price tags. Instead, we go for things that are:

• Fairly inexpensive
• Can easily be stuffed into a stocking
• NOT JUNK

Meeting these criteria is not an easy task. But for you, lovely reader, I found some options.

Socks

Socks disappear on a daily basis here at our house. I’m not actually sure where they go, but my best guess is that they are getting sucked into the belly of the washing machine. As a result, the kids are perpetually low on socks, so I can only assume that all kids are in the same boat :). Bookish socks are a super fun option for your little bookworms. And of course, there’s the ever-popular Harry Potter socks.

Book Darts

Book darts are small metal arrows that you can slip on a page while reading to help remember things: a good quote, a main point, a new vocabulary word, or where you stopped reading. Our family has several tins laying around the house so that we can easily grab one if needed.

$5 gift card

Tuck a $5 gift card to your local coffee shop, along with an invitation to a one-on-one coffee date with a parent!

Pens

Our family will forever and always love Staedtler pens, and so will you once you try them out. 🙂 The big packs are absolutely the most economical, but the problem: they don’t fit into a stocking. Solution: Give the whole family a few pens each– maybe shades of their favorite colors? Together the family has a whole new pack!

Icebreakers

Silly suggestion? Maybe not. I’m a little bit weird when it comes to candy and my kids. I’m happy to allow them to eat a piece now and again, but I’m against the Halloween to Easter candy pileup that happens around here. As a solution, I try not to give much (if any) candy in the stockings. Instead, icebreakers are my go-to substitute. They’re sugar-free and come in a fun container that for some reason my kids really love. I’m happy with them stashing their personal containers in their sock drawers, allowing them to eat one whenever their little hearts desire (something I don’t allow with other candy).

Backpack Decoration

My kids love to decorate their backpacks with zipper clips. Moosh-moosh have cute, squishy stuffed animals that kids can clip right on — some of our favorites are Oswald the bat and Vee the Bee. Buttons and patches are also fun ways to add some personal flair.

Magic Puffy Pens

Pens that write in 3D? You really can’t go wrong.

Face Masks and Bath Bombs

My girls LOVE face masks! We generally buy ours at Target- only a few dollars each! In addition, they have some super fun bath bombs: the earth, birthday cake, and snow.

Owl Pellets

I know, gross. But seriously, your kids might think this is AWESOME. Your kids get to pick apart a (sterilized) owl pellet and unearth the bones of birds, rodents, etc. that owl ate in the last couple of days of its life. Most of my kids LOVED it. One was a little grossed out until her curiosity won over.

Slime

Slime is super hot right now, and there are a hundred and one companies selling it. This is hands-down our absolute favorite pre-made slime. The first time we opened the bottle, I wasn’t so sure– it looked super liquidy and I was nervous about a mess. But it slides easily out of the bottle and it is perfect consistency. The kids LOVE playing with it, and the bottles provide generous portions, allowing the kids to share when a friend comes over. Original Super Cool Slime just came out with some fun bottles of slime that are packaged in unique ways:

• Glow in the Dark Slime: Turn out the lights and play with slime around the table!
• Unicorn and Emoji Poop Slime: My youngest especially gets the BIGGEST kick out of all things potty-related :). At first I fought her affection for potty-talk, but I found that just letting it run its course is the better choice. She’s going to freak out when she sees this in her stocking!
• Jurassic World Slime: for all of you who have dinosaur-loving kids!

You can also buy any of these at your local craft/ specialty store including Learning Express, Party City, Hobby Lobby, HomeGoods, Marshalls, TJ Max and AC Moore.

And of course don’t forget the mini snacks, chapsticks, nail polishes, toothbrushes, and other small items that your kids use up on a regular basis.

A huge thanks to TEDCO, Moosh-Moosh, and Kangaroo Manufacturing for partnering with me on this post! They provided a couple products for me to review (at my request). It’s important to us to only recommend products we love because we know that every dollar counts!