A Celebrating Youth Gift Guide
Gift Ideas for the Tweens and Teens in Your Life
As we enter the winter season, many families are celebrating various gift-giving holidays. When it comes to tweens and teens, deciding on a gift that feels appropriate to their age as well as their individual interests can be challenging. To give you some inspiration, OP has put together a “gift guide” to help celebrate the young people in your life (one that you can actually use anytime of year). Depending on the type of youth, you can find some ideas to get started.
The Activist
So many young people are passionate about causes that support the environment, race and gender equity, animal rights, and more. Their dedication to these causes is inspiring—they are change makers today and in the future and deserve to be taken seriously. Listen to the young person in your life and find out which causes are closest to their heart. Consider making a donation in their name or signing up to volunteer together.
“The best thing to do, always, is to listen to young people and learn about their interests. From there, you’ll be guided to the right gift. Remember, in addition to the pleasure of receiving a thoughtful material object, the real joy is in the time we spend together. ”
Some suggestions:
The Overachiever/Big Feeler
Young people have been through a lot the past two years. In addition to the range of stressors and challenges that come with growing up, remote learning and the isolation that came with the pandemic added to their stress. For girls who always want to do their best and those who feel everything, some serious self-care is needed. Remind them (and yourself!) to slow down, take breaks, and wrap up in comfort. Plan a day to wear pajamas and watch favorite movies together, bake some cookies, and have conversations about being “good enough” just as we are.
Self-care ideas:
At-home relaxation day— get supplies to make lip balm, bath salts, relaxing teas and more (Mountain Rose Herbs has everything you need and can help you put it all together)
Pajamas, cozy blankets, oversize hoodies, huggable stuffed animals (try Squishmallow and JellyCat)
Candles, twinkle lights, artwork, plants, to make her bedroom feel like a sanctuary
Journals—journaling is a great way to process feelings and get clarity in our thoughts so we can regulate. Check out kits like this that include prompts and creative elements.
Give a book that encourages creative coping skills like this one.
The Nature Lover
Oregonians are blessed to be surrounded by the beauty of our natural landscape, and a lot of youth gravitate to outdoor spaces and activities for fun, exercise, and community. For the hikers, kayakers, and campers in your life there are myriad opportunities to enjoy the outdoors and build a lifelong love of nature. In addition to making sure they have good shoes and equipment (you can find a lot of great equipment used at places like Play it Again Sports!), you can encourage more exploration and adventure…and maybe learn together!
Exploring suggestions:
Books of hiking and camping trails, like this one and this one. (There are also some great memoirs by female hikers like this, this, and a helpful guide for girl hikers.)
Give the gift of a registration for a skiing, kayaking, or other trip through your local Parks and Recreation (check out the Eugene Rec’s activity guide here)
Park passes are a great way for teen drivers to take advantage of our scenic spaces and hiking trails without worrying about having money on hand for parking. Consider supporting our local treasure, Mt. Pisgah Arboretum, by getting your youth a membership, which includes a parking pass and admittance to annual events like the wildly popular Mushroom Festival.
Don’t forget a high-quality water bottle (like the ever-popular HydroFlask), which can be personalized with stickers
The Reader
If you’ve got a voracious bookworm in your life, celebrate her! Reading is a place of learning, adventuring, growing, and solace...your reader may or may not hand you an annotated list of book requests. You can support local bookstores by buying books or purchasing a gift card so your bibliophile can get lost in the stacks. And don’t forget the library! Plan some library-and-hot chocolate visits together, see if your library has a youth book club, give her the occasional pass on reading at the dinner table.
Bookish suggestions:
Find your local book stores! In Eugene, try Smith Family Bookstore, Black Sun Books, J. Michaels Books, Tsunami Books, and Browsers’ Bookstore in Albany.
Books with Pictures, Eugene is a wonderful woman-owned comic book store for fans of comics, manga, and graphic novels
Amazon and Barnes & Noble are always options
For book listeners, a subscription to Audible (or to Hoopla through your library) paired with good headphones
The Gamer
Videogames are a huge part of life these days and offer the chance to interact with friends, explore creativity, problem-solve, and blow off steam. While new consoles and computers can be expensive, small upgrades and components can make a big difference.
Gaming suggestions:
Good quality headphones—even just upgrading from old ear buds to wireless headphones can improve sound quality and comfort. If it’s a special gift, high quality headphones are a treat. Check out online rankings for “best gaming headsets” and find a range of price points.
Pre-owned consoles and accessories
Encourage creative or collaborative gaming with games like Animal Crossing, MineCraft, Stardew Valley, Hoa, Spirit of the North, Forager, and Everdell
Fun lighting can allow teens to customize their space and enhance their gaming
These are only a few suggestions—you may have an artist, engineer, scientist, or cook in your life. The best thing to do, always, is to listen to young people and learn about their interests. From there, you’ll be guided to the right gift. Remember, in addition to the pleasure of receiving a thoughtful material object, the real joy is in the time we spend together. You don’t have to spend money to share an experience that the youth in your life will treasure. A long drive to look at holiday lights, an afternoon spent walking in the woods, an evening of brownies and cheesy Netflix romcoms, these are as precious as any gift wrapped in a bow and the memories will last even longer.