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Dine and Dish

Food blog with family recipes

December 22, 2015

The Joy of Choosing Experience Gifts Over Things

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Choosing experience gifts over things could make you happier this holiday season.

The Joy of Choosing Experience Gifts Over Things on dineanddish.net

Like many of you, I have spent much of the past year following the KonMari Method of decluttering my home. What I learned from reading The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up has been a constant theme in my life. “Does this item spark joy?” is a question repeating over and over again as I’ve been faced with the decision to declutter something or even bring something new into my home. It’s a method that has worked wonders in my life…until Christmas.

As I look at the giant stack of boxes that keep coming into my house for Christmas presents, I wonder where I went so wrong. How did I once again get caught up in the value of “things” over “joy”? Simply seeing these boxes and knowing the impact the clutter inside will have on our house makes me anxious. In fact, many of the things I’ve “KonMari’d” from this past year were Christmas presents from past years. Why did I allow myself to get caught up in shopping, shopping, shopping, yet again?

I’ve already made the mistakes I’ve made this year, but I vow right here and now that next holiday season will be different. Instead of choosing things, our family is going to choose experiences. It’s the experiences we share together… from big to small… that brings happiness to our lives. By not allowing more clutter into our house and by bringing more experiences to our life, we will be released from the stress of being suffocated by a house full of things.

As I think to next year, some ideas I have for experience gifts for my family are:

Princess Cruise Deck

The “Get Away” Gift: This past year I had the amazing opportunity to go on 2 different cruises with Princess Cruise Lines and each time I thought about how much my family would love that experience. Whether we choose to go over the holidays next year, or I decide to use this vacation as a future gift, there is nothing better than a family vacation as an experience gift. (PS… it’s not too late for you to decide to do this as your gift this year. Princess Cruise Lines has both digital and plastic gift certificates you can gift to others!)

Whether you choose a ski vacation, a beach getaway, or a simple “staycation” near home, experience gifts of time away with your family and loved ones will definitely bring joy.

worlds of fun

Theme Park Gifts: One of the best days my family had this summer was the day we spent at Worlds of Fun, a local amusement park. In fact, I don’t remember laughing quite as much together as we did on this day. We had a blast riding roller coasters, water rides, and eating bad theme park food. Whether you do a seasons pass or just a one day ticket, theme park gifts are great experience gifts for any family!

Classes

The Gift of Learning: This past year I took a photo organization class through Life Captured Inc, and it was one of the best experiences I’ve had. This class helped me to declutter my online photos, as well as develop a photography work flow that helps to keep me work and personal photos in order. I can’t think of a better “experience” gift than the gift of learning something new. Whether it’s a cake decorating class, a hand lettering class (I took this one and LOVED it), a craft beer 101 class, or something else, giving the experience gifts of bettering yourself by learning something new is an awesome idea.

Concerts and Live Events

Concerts and Live Events: I love live music and live theatre. Most major cities have “traveling Broadway shows” as well as live music events. Fun experience gifts would be tickets to a favorite concert or seasons passes to a local theatre league. You can find both family friendly shows as well as shows for future date nights out! And season passes are a gift that can keep on giving, all year long.

sporting events

Sporting Events: Since winning the world series, all my son has asked for for Christmas is a bundle of tickets to next years Royals games. Give your favorite sports enthusiast tickets and I’m sure they would be a very happy camper. Another idea is if you have a runner in your life, pay their entry fee to a race they might be interested in. This would provide some great motivation to them to better themselves as they train for their next big event.

Joy Doesn't Come From Things But The Experiences We Share Together dineanddish.net

As you think about what brings you joy this holiday season, I think most of you will agree joy doesn’t come from things, but the experiences we share together. The chance to bond with my family and friends over an experience brings me so much more happiness than any single thing possibly could.

What do you think? Have you ever chosen to give experience gifts over things? Next year, mark my word, my family is going to discover the joy of giving experiences over things, and I know it will make us all much happier!

 

Disclosure: This blog post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

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Filed Under: Family, Happiness, Life, Previous Tagged With: Christmas, decluttering, gift giving, joy, konmari, presents, simplifying, travel

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. annie says

    December 22, 2015 at 12:22 pm

    I couldn’t agree more! Organization is something that’s hard for me, so the less stuff I have, the better. I adore live music, but with my favorite guys getting ever more popular, their ticket prices are going up too. Surprise tickets made my Christmas last year.

    Reply
  2. Kari says

    December 22, 2015 at 1:50 pm

    Experiences are my favorite gifts to both get AND give. Our homes are too filled with clutter, but an incredible memory will be cherished forever!
    Kari
    http://www.sweetteasweetie.com

    Reply
  3. Linda says

    December 22, 2015 at 2:27 pm

    JOY ; this year our Pastor’s message was on not letting the things of the world distract us from the Gift of Christmas ; Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. We had three areas of giving we could one or all as the Lord led us.

    Gift one : give to the Syrian refugee fund through one of the Pastors serving over there

    Gift two: give a gift to men from the Shelter we sponsor and have a ministry with; 186 men going through the recovery program that have never had a Christmas present

    Gift Three: Ask the Lord whom you should give a gift to someone anonymously

    That is Joy and the True meaning of the Gift of Christmas ( that puts stuff into perspective)

    Reply
  4. Barbara | Creative Culinary says

    December 22, 2015 at 5:28 pm

    I don’t buy gifts for Christmas and haven’t for years. I make everything! While that might seem like a lot, the truth is that few people I know need much so a small gift basket of some homemade jam, cookies and a small bottle of cranberry liqueur delight more than anything I could buy them.

    Now that my gift giving list has grown with the advent of the neighbor kids I give them the gift of my time. One little boy just wants to bake with me and decorate cookies…all my himself. Done. Another wants to spend the night without her twin. Easy enough right?

    I have found that since I quit buying gifts and instead give of my time that each year they are highly anticipated. They are little baskets of love…and that’s what I really want to give.

    Reply
  5. Liz says

    December 22, 2015 at 8:32 pm

    You are so right! Memories of past experiences is a wonderful life-long feeling to have. Thank you. I enjoyed your article.

    Reply
  6. Joanne @ Fifteen Spatulas says

    December 22, 2015 at 9:36 pm

    Yes yes all the way!!! I’m such a big fan of experiences over things, and I also loved the Marie Kondo book. Experiences bring so many more memories than things 🙂

    Reply
  7. Janell says

    December 23, 2015 at 5:42 pm

    LOVE your post. I started doing this with my niece and nephew about 3 years ago. Instead of more stuff on their birthdays and at Christmas, I give them a day out with me. For my niece that usually means a concert, and my nephew usually some type of sporting event. I think they will remember those times more than if I gave them more stuff!

    Reply
  8. Lisa says

    December 25, 2015 at 9:47 pm

    ❤

    Reply
  9. Michelle Rittler @ Taste As You Go says

    December 26, 2015 at 8:24 pm

    Despite piling presents under the tree for C this year, Stephen and I both agree that we want to build her childhood around experiences rather than things. Especially when it comes to her relationship with other members of the family. We’d rather work with grandparents to plan special outings for her with them to celebrate birthdays and other special occasions than work with them to buy items off a wist list. Of course, we understand that part of being a grandparent is being able to spoil as they see fit… But we’re stressing from the beginning that *time* with them is gift enough.

    It’s a beautiful sentiment, Kristen, and I know you and your family are going to make the most of whatever experiences you choose! XO

    Reply
  10. tahir bahi says

    February 23, 2016 at 1:47 am

    Excellent, really liked the article and glad to hear really nice tips from the experts. Will follow their path.

    Reply

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H is for...high!
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It was so strange being on a plane again. I’m so thankful I have the antibodies because the flights were full, which seemed wrong, but everyone around me did seem to keep their masks on, so that was good.
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I can’t wait until travel becomes a regular part of life again. I’ve missed it so much!
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G is for...oh so grateful!

I flew to South Texas yesterday to visit my parents whom I haven’t seen in 2 years. They live around 17 hours away from us. We typical get to see each other a few times a year but with the pandemic and other health issues it just wasn’t able to happen and I’ve missed them soooo much.

Grateful to have had COVID last month. Although it was not at all fun, it gave me the antibodies to make this trip possible. My dad is having surgery tomorrow so I’m helping with my mom so my dad can recover without having to worry about her.

Kansas is enjoying frigid temperatures and snow. I picked a great week to head south.
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F is for...food photography.
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This time of year especially, food photography (and I guess all photography actually) is a tug of war with time and light. I had planned on making and photographing a delicious pasta recipe, but my grocery delivery ran a couple of hours late because of snowstorm. So, at the eleventh hour I decided to make a cake...that took over an hour to bake and I had about 90 minutes of natural light left...leaving me with about 30 minutes of ok light to work with.
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Anyway, this wouldn't work for a client shoot because the cake, although delicious, didn't turn out looking so great. But it will work great for today's F photo for the @kimklassen_innercircle A-Z photo project:) Lemon Citrus Yogurt Cake from this weeks @cabotcheese newsletter. So good!
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E is for...Excitement!
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There’s a lot of excitement in Kansas City as our beloved @chiefs head back to the Super Bowl this weekend! #runitback 🏈
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It’s so strange because winning the super bowl last year was the last “normal” thing that happened before the pandemic hit. We went from a city full of excitement to shutting down and sheltering in place. Maybe when we win and bring the trophy home this year, it’ll be the start of something great. Let’s hope!
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Who are you rooting for Sunday? Chiefs, Buccaneers or tacos? 😂
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D is for... Dreary (and Dog)
February has always been my least favorite month. I have a special name for this month that may start with another not so nice F word...🤭.
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In Kansas, the sun usually doesn't shine that often, it's cold, and just kind of gray and blah.
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My indoor jungle makes me happy though...especially this space in my office. Houseplants almost makes me forget we’re in the “F” month 😂.
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Also, my dog (my favorite d word) would not sit still for a picture when I had my tripod set up, but I finally caught her sitting on her bed and had to catch a picture with my phone. Swipe and you’ll see she is much overdue for a haircut.
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C is for Coaching, Coffee and Crystals! Lots of C words today. My @rockyourhappy coaching practice has been the best thing. I am so lucky to be working with really great clients who are doing the hard work and making big changes in their lives. It’s been the perfect fit for me and I know it’s what I am meant to be doing. Coffee, of course, is my favorite C word and Crystals…my daughters got me into the energy powers of crystals and it’s been really fun to learn all about them.
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My beautiful, custom, Rock Your Happy bullet journal is from @maisielaneco . Coffee/espresso is from @mistoboxcoffee Fabulous photography backdrop is from @poppybeesurfaces . Crystals are from a wonderful local shop here in town.
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There’s still time to join in the @kimklassen_innercircle photography group, where this months theme is A-Z. Join us!
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It wasn’t until I was an adult, and my kids began to sleep through the night, that I started reading for fun. Now, I read all the time and it’s one of my favorite pastimes. I love talking books with people and sharing recommendations. I really don’t watch TV, so books, especially right now, is my main form of entertainment.
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This is why for the @kimklassen_innercircle A-Z photography challenge, I knew that Books would be my B. It’s my favorite B word (beating out Bullet Journaling, Bread, Blankets, Be Happy, etc).
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A is for Alone. I think one of the hardest things for me to get used to this past year is rarely being alone. My husband used to travel all the time. My school aged kids were in school all day while I worked. I’d even get several days a month in a hotel room by myself for my work travels. I like my alone time and it’s definitely something I miss.
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I’m easily distracted so you will usually find me working in complete silence…maybe just the hum of my essential oil diffuser and the sound of my fingers on my keyboard. I need the quiet and treasure silence.
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With that said, I’ve loved the extra time with my family - and we’ve all learned over the past several months how to give each other space and recognize when we need that space. As of today, my kids all are back to school full time in person 😢. Nick is still working from home and will be for the time being, but now the aloneness feels strange. I’m sure we’ll get used to this “new normal” yet again!
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This month in @kimklassen photography Inner Circle, we’re tackling the alphabet, with an A-Z photography challenge (interpreting that however we see fit). If you want to join us, check out this wonderful community of photographers at @kimklassen_innercircle 📷.
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