My Holiday Gift Guide: For Teachers, Babysitters, and Co-Workers
We Went to Source and Asked Teachers, Babysitters, and our Co-Workers their Favorite Presents and Compiled their Answers Here for the Ultimate Gift Guide!
Every year, I really struggle with finding the perfect presents for the kiddos’ teachers, the nannies, and my co-workers. These are the very special people that put up with us all year long, so they need to be celebrated and thanked. I want to get them the best presents, but I always run into the same problems. First, I never know the right price range. Second, I know them well enough to know what they like, but not enough to know what they really want or need. Then, the worst part is I never even really know if they like their gift or if it shows up weeks later at a White Elephant Party or re-gifted the next year.
In order to avoid any confusion or stress this year, I decided to go to the source. I asked my all of my teacher friends to tell me their favorite gifts from students in past years, so now I know we will nail it. *Note this post contains affiliate links that will take you directly to Amazon to purchase.
For Teachers/ Baby Sitters
Gift Cards- When I asked my two best friends, sister in law, and mom, who all happen to all be teachers what their ideal gift was, they responded unanimously “GIFT CARDS!” I was shook. I was always too nervous to give a gift card because I thought it seemed impersonal or unthoughtful. Well, it turns out gift cards are always the right size and never disappoint. The preferred gift cards are to Amazon and Target— no surprise there. Other options are Visa gift cards or gas gift card. Any price range works here and you can do what fits in your budget. For ease, I linked Amazon gift cards here. Note: Extra Credit if there is a parent in the class who can organize one gift card from all the parents in the class and each parent can contribute whatever amount they can without the teacher knowing who did what to alleviate some of the pressure. The teachers I spoke to all said even $5-10 helps so don’t feel pressured to have the gift card be an exorbitant amount or more than what you would normally spend.
Cute Accessories- This is another one that shocked me, but the teachers said they enjoyed getting cute accessories. For instance, their favorite sports team hat or winter poofy hat, a pair of nice texting gloves, cute scarves, or even an umbrella. These items are pretty generic so it is easy to pick out a cute pair, buy you know the gift will be used.
Personalized Gift- Teachers actually love personalized gifts from their students. An easy, yet meaningful gift could be something as simple as a picture in a cute frame, a personalized Christmas ornament, or a card or letter. The teachers in the younger grades especially love these gifts so they can look back at this momento when the student is graduating 8th grade or High School. So sweet!
Classroom Supplies- Obviously this gift is for teachers. In the beginning of the year parents are so great about purchasing needed school supplies, but as the year goes on the supplies dwindle and are not replenished. Now is a great time to make a cute gift basket filled with some of the school supplies that were originally requested in the beginning of the year.
Movie Passes, Amusement Park Passes, etc.- The summer is a perfect time for teachers and nannies/babysitters to do activities with their own families, so why not give the gift of a fun experience. I grew up on the Jersey Shore, so a great gift would be for the rides on the boardwalk, or in Florida something like passes to Busch Gardens. Anything would work wherever you are, for the zoo, botanical gardens, movies, boat ride, or museum! Anything goes, as long as it is a fun activity for the summer months!
Co-Workers
This is another tough decision, however, I think it is easier than the kiddos’ teacher because by circumstance you have more interface and know them a little bit better from interacting with them day in and day out. The hardest part is being a sneaky detective to figure out what exactly what they want. I am always asking inconspicuous questions and peeping when they are online browsing at work to figure out the best present. This is important because not only do they deserve a nice gift, you want to motivate your co-workers or staff to keep up the good work for another amazing gift the next year. It’s all around positive for morale and sets the right tone for the next year! Here are some ideas for staff (i.e. administrative assistants, bosses, associates, etc.) that are deserving of a little gift this holiday season.
Cute Stemware/Glasses-I know most of my co-workers would prefer alcohol as a gift. However, I will never do that again after an incident one year when too much of said gift was consumed before the Christmas party. So, learn from my mistake! Or at least make sure they take it home before they drink it! One way to keep on the alcohol theme is to gift really pretty stemware. If they are a wine drinker, these glasses are amazing. If they are a beer drinker, I bought these Kate Spade beer glasses for my legal assistant last year and she loved them!
Wireless Headphones- Did I mention I love AirPods? It really has been a game changer being hands free. I think this is the perfect gift for anyone, but within a price point that makes it a wow gift for your co-worker.
Amazon Echo, Google Home, etc.- At first I was skeptical about our “Alexa,” but we use ours mostly for music, to check the weather, and morning news brief. It is great with the kids, they love listening to the music and impromptu dance parties (hint: say “Alexa, play songs by Super Simple Songs” and it is a bomb playlist for toddlers). Anyway, of course if your co-worker is philosophically opposed to a listening device, then this is not the gift, but if they are OK with it, I think the Echo would be a really fun present and would get a lot of use.
Amazon Fire tablet or Audible Subscription- The new Amazon Fire 10 is so hot right now. It is a much more reasonable price point than some of the other tablets out there, great storage, and a lot of the same capabilities as the other more expensive tablets. I think this is the perfect gift because you know it will get used, it is a reasonable price point if you are looking to spend around $100, and it seems like it is fancier gift than the price suggests. Another option is a trial Audible Subscription if they are into audio books or love books and have a long commute!
Travel Gift Cards- We all know everyone needs a vacation! My legal assistant loves to travel to new places and always stays in an Airbnb. I think a good idea for that would her would be an Airbnb gift card, or maybe a gift card to Delta or Southwest because those are the airlines she usually will fly. Another option is if you know a particular co-worker is planning a cruise, you can buy them a gift card for that cruise line to use for on-board purchases.
I hope you all find this helpful and can get some inspiration from this Gift Guide! Remember to stay in budget and that the best gift is always the one that comes from the heart! Happy Holidays!
-Lindsey
