Gift Giving for the Very Busy!

I travel over 50% of the time, but as the female of the family, I am the one whose responsibility it is to make sure that birthdays, Christmas, and other occasions are remembered and rewarded. I have developed strategies over time to make sure that I take care of these things thoughtfully in a time efficient manner.

With two kids and a stressful job on my mind, I can't expect myself to remember every birthday, anniversary, etc that comes up. I use the Franklin-Covey day planner system and make sure I mark these clearly on the day pages. As a back-up - I also use a Google calendar that is part of a family Google group with all dates clearly marked. This way if I miss it on one, I catch it on the other! If you have Microsoft Outlook, you can use this too to set reminders several days in advance in your calendar.

Buying gifts AND taking them to the post office is really time consuming. Luckily, the Internet comes to our rescue! There are many places to locate unique and thoughtful gifts on the web, and some will even gift wrap them for you and include a nice greeting card.

It may seem tacky to send something from eBay! , but there are now many eBay stores that feature gift baskets and more at a fraction of the cost of a local boutique.
Try doing a search for gift basket, collectables such as Dept 56 houses (great for an older female relative), jewelry, or perfume. A gift wrap icon identifies the auctions that will gift wrap for you, and an eBay store is just a click away. I use eBay a lot for my gift giving, and I haven't received any complaints about the quality of my gifts.

Another site that I use frequently is www.AAAfruitbaskets.com . Fruit baskets are healthy, attractive, and always appreciated. This company also has fruit and wine baskets, which add a gourmet touch to your gift. This is a great gift for both males and females on your list.

If you have a frequent traveler on your list - The Tech Geek is another great place to shop online. Portable DVD players can make an airplane trip go by much
faster, and prices have dropped quite a bit on them.

Click this link for a 10% off coupon for the Tech Geek:Get 10% discount off everything with order over $50 at TheTechGeek.com! Maximum discount is up to $20. Code: "THETECHGEEK10OFF".

If you do have local gifts to buy, check out Yahoo Local first before leaving home to see who carries the gift you are looking for. Malls are the best bet for busy people, as you can go from store to store without driving time in locating your gift. I always buy gift bags with a draw string to save the time involved in wrapping - they are neat and attractive and not too expensive.

Gift certificates or cards are also easy to find and take the guesswork out of buying a gift. Our local grocery stores carry gift cards for everything from Southwest Airlines to Home Depot in the check out line.

There are always ways to streamline your time while still being thoughtful!