I have two daughters, one 31 and one 15. The oldest one is so easy to buy for. Having her own home and loving to cook makes for alot of different ideas.
My 15 year old is a bit more difficult. She really isn't materialistic so it's harder to try to find something other than her CD's she wants. I ask her what she wants and she will respond with, I don't know..maybe toe socks. lol
I do have a few ideas but can't write them since she reads the forums.
My 20 yr old has her own place (with roommate) but doesn't cook lol i think for her i may just do clothes or household stuff.
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Originally Posted by CarolsCritterCare
We dont have those sort of games here.... if it can't be played on the computer you are SOL
When my kids were younger & nintindo was big i upgraded & what not, but as the raising of the two kids got more expensive so did these games & machines. so i stopped after buying the first playstation... my son saved & bought his ps2 & when that got broken (6 mos later) by my nephew, i replaced it as a birthday gift to my son. We then had a talk & an understanding that i would not be spending $ on such stuff again.
With the economy the way it is, a check or even cash might be safer than giving a gift card for a business that may be "out of business" after the holidays.
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Perhaps better to get rolls of new Presidential Dollar coins or temporary refillable Visa cards from your local bank.
Excellent advice. I did not think about how some stores are closing up. We actually had something similar happen to us a while back. We decided to go to a resturant that we coupons from the Entertainment Book and after we drove most of the way there we found out that the place was out of business. We pulled over and decided to try another place and called and found out that phone was disconnected also. So yes, be careful with store gift certificates and I would think unless you know the person will use it right away, get a refillable Visa Card. With a card like this they can use it anywhere.
Having worked in the pre paid (gift crds & debit) and credit card industry for years, i wouldn't suggest visa or mastercard gift cards myself & when dealing with visa or mastercard gift cards check on the fees & hidden expense involved (cost of card, fee per purchase, fee after 3 or more months, fee if not used within so much time of activation etc...), they wont have all the fees on one card, depends on the merchant you purchase it from.. Yes visa & mc are trustworthy however, depending on where you purchase the card, you may end up with more fees on the exact card purchased elsewhere, many people think its visa & mc charging all the extras, most cases it's the merchant (having been an employee of mastercard/visa i caught a lot of slack from cardholders due to this) for some reason many people feel if its printed on the card its the companies fault, these cards are printed for each merchant & imprinted with their choice of info & assessed the fees that merchant chooses... your bank is usually the best way to go with pre loaded & refillable cards. Even then, some banks charge fees, but not as bad since they arent trying to get that profit as much as say wal-mart or the grocery store etc... personally i'd give cash & save the $5 you pay for the plastic or add it to the gift.
Thanks latina for all the information and things to think about. I actually have never given a visa card to anyone but I do remember looking at one at Walmart a while back and noticed you had to pay for the card. I was silly because I actually thought you just picked the card up for free and then put money on it. lol Yeah right, something for free. What ever was I thinking?
Anyways, I was actually thinking of a bank visa card when I was thinking give a prepaid card. I'm guessing they are lower in their fees than the ones I saw at Walmart? Not sure but it is something to think about.
But now I thinking that maybe in the long run if you are thinking of a store gift card, or a visa card that maybe a nice Holiday card, cash tucked inside (instead of a gift card), and a small token gift to go with it or a homemade treat or something sounds the safest way to go now after reading all of this.
Thanks latina for all the information and things to think about. I actually have never given a visa card to anyone but I do remember looking at one at Walmart a while back and noticed you had to pay for the card. I was silly because I actually thought you just picked the card up for free and then put money on it. lol Yeah right, something for free. What ever was I thinking?
Anyways, I was actually thinking of a bank visa card when I was thinking give a prepaid card. I'm guessing they are lower in their fees than the ones I saw at Walmart? Not sure but it is something to think about.
But now I thinking that maybe in the long run if you are thinking of a store gift card, or a visa card that maybe a nice Holiday card, cash tucked inside (instead of a gift card), and a small token gift to go with it or a homemade treat or something sounds the safest way to go now after reading all of this.
You are welcome & beware that while some banks have less fees other banks may have more fees, you can usually grab a booklet from where the card is sold, read the tiny print & dont assume what it means, if need be call the toll free number and ask before you buy, you'd be surprised how many people call in to complain they held on to the card to save up for something not realizing they expire 3 months after purchase or what not and visa/mc have a no replacement for expired cards policy, (some go much longer, but 3mos is the minimum the merchant can choose to have it expire) ... i have found US Bank to be decent (I have a visa card from there to make online purchases), but still has fees, i think any card with any fee is a waste of my money, i will give cash before a card.
Speaking of cash in Christmas cards, I'll never forget: we bought out an attic at a household sale once. Included in all the stuff were several bags of Christmas cards. Turns out when we later opened the bags looking for collectible cards, many had money still in them (and Silver Certificate bills at that!)..
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Originally Posted by pk
But now I thinking that maybe in the long run if you are thinking of a store gift card, or a visa card that maybe a nice Holiday card, cash tucked inside (instead of a gift card), and a small token gift to go with it or a homemade treat or something sounds the safest way to go now after reading all of this.
By the way, thanks for the heads up, Latina.. always read the fine print!
I hate ATMs for that reason.. you don't use an ATM associated with your bank and you get hit with fees or even double fees.. I use the ATM at the casino and it's $3.75 from the ATM and another $2 from my bank for using a non-bank ATM!
Having worked in the pre paid (gift crds & debit) and credit card industry for years, i wouldn't suggest visa or mastercard gift cards myself & when dealing with visa or mastercard gift cards check on the fees & hidden expense involved (cost of card, fee per purchase, fee after 3 or more months, fee if not used within so much time of activation etc...), they wont have all the fees on one card, depends on the merchant you purchase it from.. Yes visa & mc are trustworthy however, depending on where you purchase the card, you may end up with more fees on the exact card purchased elsewhere, many people think its visa & mc charging all the extras, most cases it's the merchant (having been an employee of mastercard/visa i caught a lot of slack from cardholders due to this) for some reason many people feel if its printed on the card its the companies fault, these cards are printed for each merchant & imprinted with their choice of info & assessed the fees that merchant chooses... your bank is usually the best way to go with pre loaded & refillable cards. Even then, some banks charge fees, but not as bad since they arent trying to get that profit as much as say wal-mart or the grocery store etc... personally i'd give cash & save the $5 you pay for the plastic or add it to the gift.
Speaking of cash in Christmas cards, I'll never forget: we bought out an attic at a household sale once. Included in all the stuff were several bags of Christmas cards. Turns out when we later opened the bags looking for collectible cards, many had money still in them (and Silver Certificate bills at that!)..
nice!
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Originally Posted by CarolsCritterCare
I think the last time I used a ATM it was called a TYME machine.... back in 1985?? Maybe.....?
I remember those! i dont remember the last time i seen one.
I have only one and that goes to hubby's side for the secret santa gift exchange. It's for Texas Roadhouse. You have to get $25 gift card and then you get a $5 gift cert for yourself.
One of the gifts my daughter gave her brother for his b-day was a gas card. That always comes in handy to have when you are short on gas and short on cash.
I got a 25.00 gift card for an online photo store where I can get enlargements, reprints, making a photo album etc. That is always useful and very appreciated.
I also received and I also gave out Restaurant.com gift certificates. I always like to have these for the various places we like to go to. Since they don't expire for one year it's great to get/give them.
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