Whats the Best/Worst Gift Ever...

[Sun Runner Stables]

I pride myself on being a thoughtful and Useful gift giver... Often I am looking for months for the right gift, and waitng for sales so I can afford it... however sometimes, I Really screw up.

Like when I sent my Great Aunt an 100% real Angora sweater, and it turned out she was so allergic to it she had to go to the hospital...

Or when I gave my dad a new shirt, and it was Really the wrong size... (He's a bit um, pregers looking, and this shirt wasn't exactly in ... ah... Extra Medium...)

However I Love it when I get it right, like when I gave my boyfriend a great powertool set that he had been drooling over for Months...

Or my mom, the rare Orchid I had to send for from out of the country....

I have also gotten some really great ones... My dad when I was 14 gave me my first horse. He put a pile of horse poop in a shoe box, with a note attatched with my favorite horses name on it and simply saying "I am Your's, Love Mickey"

Wow wow wow. Honestly, best day of my life.

Or my beautiful running horse ring that I lusted after for close to a year that my boyfriend got me....

I have also gotten bad... The Way to big and 80's style clothing my grandparents never failed to send me Every Year, until my mom diplomatically mentioned something...

Or the Years of Dixie Chick or worse CD's my other family would send.. (No offense, I simply hated country for a Long time, funny though, I like it now, guess those CD's finally wore off huh?)

So Spill, I Know you guys have Lots of good stories for us!!!

 

[minih]

Well let's see, as far as good gifts I have given, my daughter had been wanting a pug for several years and I always said "No way", then one of our little house dogs passed on and the house was empty even with the one peke we owned, she even seemed upset being the only one. So once again my daughter asked for a pug and we said " No " but it was a yes!

We put the pups pic in a card (she was only three weeks old) and gave her some doggy things under the tree. She was so excited and about to bust!

Another time my husband who is a jeweler fixed my son a very pretty senior ring, diamond and his name in it, the whole works. He always loves chocolate covered cherries, so we very carefully undid the bottom of the box, pulled plastic cover off and took out one of the chocolate covered cherries and replace it with the ring. It was in a box that had two layers, we wrapped it and stuck it under the tree. You could not tell it had been opened at all, when he opened the gift we got a funny look like "why did you wrap those". It was the next day before he found the ring.

One year my husband wanted a 22 rifle, but I did notl want him to know I got him what he wanted (what fun is that) so I wrapped it and hid it under the bed. He had a gift under the tree that was a box in a box in a box type thing and then he had to go on a scavenger hunt til he found it.

I had to babysit my mom's yorkie one year while she went to a high school reunion. I took a good picture with my digital camera and had a friend of ours do the picture in a very pretty colored pencil sketch. She loved it so much I don't think she could tell you what anyone else got that night, she spent the whole evening looking at it.

Bad gifts I have given.....absolutely anything I have ever given my husbands mom ,apparently, because I never see them again after giving them to her.

I alm always very happy during Christmas with the gifts I receive, but have recieved one or two bummers. My husband one year when we were first married got me a floor sweeper

and then one year tried to buy me clothes. You have not suffered until you have to wear and act like you are enjoying a grandma shirt at the age of 20! He has gotten alot better with gifts tho after 26 years!

 

[lilhorseladie]

Hmmm...well it seems the older I get the more...ummm...disappointing Christmas gets. I mean, it is seldom that I get a gift that I didn't already know about. I hate that with a passion. I totally like the surprise of Christmas and I perfer to get my gifts on Christmas, not before.

That being said, some of my best gifts have been given when I least expected it. My first husband once sent me flowers on my son's birthday. He sent a card also that thanked me for our children. That was an AHHHHHHHHHHHH moment.

My current husband isn't good at keeping secrets and always tells my gifts or "brags them up" befor I get them. Recently, however, he brought me home this wonderful and huge winter coat in my size and color, just because I didn't have one.

My aunt is the best at giving strange gifts. They are always useful and what is on sale. One year, I got a bag of various sized hooks, like for the barn. Finally after having them around a couple of years we have used them all. That and my mother in law always gives me clothing that is frankly, not my taste! But, it is really the thought and my family is big on thoughts!

 

[Triggy&Blue&Daisy Too]

I can't for the life of me remember any of my Christmas gifts but one. When I was about 10 years old my mom knowing my deep adoration for horses got me a western bridle. I loved it so much I even slept with it. That became my first piece of horse equipment and I still have fond memories of the silly thing.

Now for a funny one my assistant was telling me about just today. Her sister is a royal pain in the arse to buy anything for and always takes whatever someone gives her back to the store for a refund. And it better be name brand and the store had better have a good return policy whether she keeps it or not or she has a total fit.

Being of evil humor, I suggested quite awhile ago that whenever they buy her something it should be the absolute most hideous thing they can find since she takes it back anyway. Well her birthday was just a couple of weeks ago and her husband really liked my idea and went to Burlington Coat Factory. By the way Burlington only allows an in store credit and the place is too beneath her to have anything from there.

Well he found the most disgusting coat ever created by man. They dubbed it the yellow HO coat because it was a sickening yellow faux fur thing with bid stupid ermine spots all over the collar.

Something any pole dancer would adore, I'm sure

To top it off he also got her some pajamas that had a monkey print with the words "Do you want to get lucky?" written all over them. Gawd I was in absolute hysterics when she told me this story today. Her sister now has a contract out on my life

 

[Sun Runner Stables]

He he....

That's great! I don't think I would have been smart enough to go to such lenghts, but it sure brought a smile to my face Triggy! Rude people are always such a pain!

 

[minimule]

The WORST gift I have ever received was from my In-Laws. One Christmas I got an 8 x 10 of each of them + a whole packet of other sizes.........that's it! Hubby, the ONLY CHILD got a blaze orange t-shirt with some stupid quote from SouthPark. They didn't even know what it was. I know it is the thought that counts but YUCK!

The BEST gift I ever got was my first own horse. I had met her a few months before and got to spend a lot of time with her. We had bonded from day 1. The owner went blind and the horses had to be sold. My Dad bought her for me!

The best gift I've given has to be a signed/limited print my hubby had been wanting. It was the cover of our SCI magazine. I searched for it, bought it, had it framed in a beautiful frame, and surprised him with it on Christmas. He didn't think he was going to get anything that year.

 

[Marty]

The worse gifts I ever got was from JERRY, MICHAEL, AND DANIEL two Christmas' ago and I swear I will never let them here the end of this .

Jerry had made this very stupid tradition to go shopping for me every Christmas Eve. I have begged him NOT to do this and NOT to use his imagination because then I end up with, well.........left overs and whatever else is still there.

First I will give you background: I used to always make Jerry a book of what I wanted. I couldn't make it any easier than that. I put pictures, store names, departments, and would even describe the location of the rack. I'd even get the name of the sales girl and times she worked! It could not be easier. He never screwed up.

Then two years ago I didn't make anymore lists. I just let them go and hoped that they had sense enough to use their brains between the three of them, but no such luck.

Ok first gift I opened up was a MAN'S (get this one), brown, waiste length jacket complete with about 20 pockets all over it. They said it was laying on top of a rack in the woman's department and thought I would just LOVE all those pockets! It was like a size 44 men's. !!!!!!! Waist length? With my rearend hanging out in the breeze chillin??? OH give me a break. It looked like something that a helicopter pilot would wear in World War II. Just give me a pith helmut to match why don't ya?

Next was the nightgown. Oh man, first it was so frilly with stupid lace high high high up on the neck, it would have given me a rash and choked me and itched me to kingdom come. That's IF I were able to get it on. Turned out, it was a size 14 JUNIOR!!!!! I couldn't even get one arm up the sleeve.

OH yes, it gets worse: Then they get me a new keyboard for my computer. The kind with all kinds of bling blings that you have to load a program with and I'd never know how to use the stupid thing if I had to. I asked "why, why why" there was not a thing wrong with my keyboard. What a dumb waste of money.

I also had asked for slippers that year. Just some nice cozy slippers and what do I get? Stripped knee socks with a Grinch that would fit a 10 year old.

Well I tell ya: that Christmas I pretty much cried forever because I didn't get anything that I could use. Jerry was like "what's the matter, don't you like the presents?" I didn't say a word for about a week to anyone and then next time he asked me, I finally just exploded with WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?????And then told them that I didn't appreciate being a "last minute thought" and that my feelings had been hurt.

Last year, they actually made me write a list so I did. They didnt' wait until Christmas Eve either.

It wasn't for much, but I wrote down 4 small things.

I got all four things and then other stuff too.

 

[Jill]

This just reminds me of something I've always thought would be funny. You know how at offices or other places, where people draw names and then exchange gifts in person?

I always thought it would be funny to get a chia pet (especially a chia head) and give it to someone, but then act like you were so excited to give them something that wonderful and how you just knew they'd love it and as soon as you saw it, you thought of them, etc.

Yeah, I know, I'm weird.

 

[Cronewolf]

My best was the year I got my pony Seafood on our porch worse would be anything my MIL gave me She always got something way too small. The first year I was married to her son she gave me a girdle for Twiggy. Never once in 8 years did she give me anything useful.

 

[Wee Mite Miniatures]

The funniest gift my H and I have ever given was to his sister. She was close to 60 at the time and was always on the conservative side.

In H's family we would draw names and buy for only one person. After Christmas dinner we would sit around and one person at a time would open a present. We had managed to slide our packages under the tree with no one noticing. Her package carefully wrapped in a paper that did not match our other gifts. Still to this day no one knows who had bought her the gift.

She was handed a package to open as she sat there chatting away paying no attention to what she was doing. She reaches in with out looking and lifts up this tiny see through chemise and thong in red and black. She turned 10 shandes of red and dropped in back in the box with out a word. Picked up the wrapping paper to make sure it really had her name on it. Then looked at my son and said " was this a gift meant for your girlfriend?" Then started the chants of hold it up, try it on, wow your H will have a fun time tonight. She then spent the next few hours trying to figure out where it came from. No one claimed giving it too her but we all got a good laugh.

That gift showed up for years at every bridal shower, birthday, and xmass.

 

[justanothercowgirl]

The best gift I ever got was my mini gelding Bud, I had some serious health problems in 2002 and my Dad and Sandy gave me my little Budler. I love him to death and always say he was the best gift I ever got!

The worst gift was a bridal gift, it was a kleenex box cover that was a pink satin sofa! It came from my friend Karen who had gotten it as a bridal gift herself from an aunt. It had come with some glasses wrapped up in paper towels that looked decades old and we laughed our butts off when she got them. We also laughed our butts off when she passed the pink couch on to me!! Maybe I will send it to her for Xmas this year!!

 

[whitney]

Jill I got the HOMER chia head from the guys at work!

It was the FUNNIEST gift I've ever received.

I grew hair out of every orifice. It still makes me crack up to think about it.

Homer had hair coming out his nose and ears. He had some kick butt back hair and a killer fu man chu. Some places grew hair better than others, the nose hair was kinda anemic looking kinda like boogers.

I highly reccommend it as a gift!

 

[chandab]

I can only think of a few worst gifts ever...

When I was living in CO I was dating this guy and for Christmas his grandma cleaned out the kitchen cupboard; we got a bag a chocolate chips and two or three more old food items and an ugly platter than she had gotten for a wedding gift, like 60 years before.

One of my best gifts also came from the same lady; she bought me a beautiful metal wall plaque of running horses (I was the only one who got something new from her).

For my 16th birthday, my folks bought me my first horse; a 3 year old green-broke half-Arabian palomino gelding (I got him early, but he was my b-day present). I still have him and he's looking good going on 23 years old.

 

[minimama]

I cannot think of worst right now as there are just so many to list. UGH!

But, best, my husband has becoem rather good at gift giving. Sure as heck didn't start off that way though.

He gave me a piano for my birthday one year. Last year bought me a new diamond to have a new wedding ring created adn buried is in a little clear plastic container, in a box filled with those darn styrofoam packing peanuts. Oh yeah, just try to find that thing in there. And, he also gave me loose stones to have a mothers ring made, something I have wanted for a long time.

My husband came equiped with a lot of baggage when we got together. He has boxes upon boxes of "stuff" from his past. Well, in one of these boxes was a scroll of paper. When it was rolled out it was a proof roll of pictures of him when he was about ten or eleven months old. There are about 15 different shots of him all on this scroll adn each shot is about 8x10 so you can get an idea of how big this thing is. My mother in law had always wanted to have it framed but it sat in a box for over thrity years. I snuck off with it one year and took it to the framers and had it framed. I had a peice of plexiglass made for it and then a special metal plate to go over where the photographers notes are at the beginning so I would not have to bend or cut it. Now, I actually hid this in HIS closet until Christmas. Then I made sure that he and his mom were sitting together and my daughter and I carried it out. He and his mom started crying and she say (still burns me up to this day) Oh, I finally got my picture framed. Anyway, that was one of the best I ever did. But this year plans to be pretty good too

My brother in laws favorite baseball team is the Dodgers. And one year I got him a banner that was given out on the opening day of Dodgers Stadium. He cried. I have a really tearful family. LOL

Two years ago my mother in law was really missing where she grew up, which is New Orleans, LA. So, I found a woman that lived down there and had her send me some special flower bulbs that grow there and some of the dirt from her garden so mom could smell the dirt from home. Yep, you guessed it, she cried!

Heres one more. My kids get gifts ever year in specific number. But, we realy spoil them with gifts for all teh kids combined, family gifts. So, I bought them all sorts of movies and board games, adn what not and....a video game. It was a Nintendo game. It was for Nintendo 64 but we did not have Nintendo 64. My youngest threw a fit and I said are you sure it won't work? She said no, it won't, so I said, well, check it adn see, so she opened up the cupboard where we kept teh system adn there sat a ewn Nintendo 64. All the girls were screaming adn jumping around. That was great fun! But, they are on to me now and I don't get away with as much as I used to.

 

[Sun Runner Stables]

These are cracking me up! I Love all these stories, they really make me smile and it can give Me some good ideas for pranking or real gifts!

 

[Feather1414]

The most confusing for me, not really worst - was the year my aunt tried to get me a beanie baby, but ended up getting me a dog toy... That was pretty bizarre. I didn't know if she was mad at me, or what.

 

[backwoodsnanny]

Maybe one of the best will happen this year but for whom Im not sure you see my son in law does not help my daughter with house chores at all. He has all he can do to watch the kids once in awhile. He is a wonderful provider but as for any in home help NOPE. Well several times in the last year he has nagged on her about towels, needed laundry done cause there were only one or two clean towels left. Then one night my granddaughter was here and again her Dad was angry about clean towels. Well I got thinking about this and I started back in July buying ugly but servicable new towels. You know the ones that no one will buy the red grey and mustard yellow striped ones and the brown polka dot ones the ones that always end up on the sale bin. Well I wrote him a poem and as of last night I think he will be getting 40 some odd towels. But I didnt stop there in the poem I have included washing instructions how to run the washer and dryer etc., He also is getting laundry soap and dryer sheets and a hamper and laundry basket. He wont be happy but everyone else is just dying to see him open this gift.

Oh and just so you dont think Im mean he also is getting the shower mirror radio he has wanted for over a year.

 

[nootka]

Not sure about the best gift ever, but maybe those ones my little boy gave me when he was just tiny, the ones he was so excited to see me open would qualify.

Not even sure I could remember what they were, but he was sure I would love them, and I did.

Just beginning to get to the same point w/my second son. I think he's going to really enjoy Christmas (the giving part) this year. I guess it's the gift of watching the grow up and learn the joy of giving and making others happy.

Liz M.