Children's Birthday Gifts

Sharon says,
I find that as the temperature warms up, the number of birthday parties I am invited to increases as well. Often, the biggest dilemma is what to get for a gift and how much do I spend? I remember when I was a little girl, I received toys from my friends and clothing from relatives.
It seems today that it is not uncommon for parents to request gifts for their child. I myself find it offensive to see “Jeffrey would love to have gifts cards for the Gap” scrawled on the bottom of the invitation. This year, I have decided that my gift will consist of a small toy along with a small item of clothing, whether it be a sand pail and a swimsuit, or pajamas and a small teddy bear. I think this will satisfy the needs of the child and the parent.

Rachel adds,
I have to admit that I am mostly very lazy about getting gifts for my sons' friends. Usually it is a last minute trip to Wally world for a box of Legos or some sort of action figure. But once I had a great idea for a friends daughter's birthday. She was about 5 at the time and I got her a whole collection of things for baking. I found a mini muffin pan, a small whisk, mixing bowls, measuring cups and spoons and a couple boxes of cake mix. I packed it all up in a basket from a discount shop. To this you could add a little apron made from a square of cloth and some ribbons, and even a chef's hat made from white cardboard stapled into a tube. My friend's daughter loved it and they had a great time making cakes and muffins together! And if you do your shopping at a dollar discount store, the whole gift would be very inexpensive.