This is what I just did for a single Mom friend of mine going through a tough time. I needed fairly inexpensive items that would last for days at room temp. and would be fun for kids, too. I secretly left these all on the first night in numbered bags in a laundry basket with a note explaining to open one per day. I bought these items all throughout the year, especially looking for the 'easter' items.
The ideas are not necessarily my own, so I can't take any credit. Most of them were gleaned from various places, and I tweaked them a little.
These are the notes that I put inside each gift sack:
(I'm typing it from memory, so if I have messed up on the days, forgive me. It was right when I gave it to her, because I had a copy of the song in front of me!)
Day 1 On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree!
Did you ever try to sneak up on a partridge? Those birds fly fast! But not until he ate all the pears off the tree. So there we were, without a partridge or a pear as our gift to you. So please accept this can of pears and this deck of 'Go Fish' playing cards so you can make your own 'pairs'.
gift: canned pears, Go Fish card game
Day 2: On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me two turtle doves!
Now what on earth is a turtle dove? Have you ever seen one? Is it more like a turtle with white feathers, or a bird with a shell? We couldn't figure it out either, so please enjoy this box of Turtles and these Dove chocolates instead.
gift: Russell Stover pecan and caramel 'Turtle' candies, a bag of Dove chocolates
Day 3: On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, three French hens!
They LOOK French, don't they? And they speak French, too. While you're waiting for these chicks to grow up into hens, you can buy yourself some French Fries with the gift card! Bon jour!
Gift: I found a little box of 4 fuzzy Easter chicks at Big Lots last Easter. I cut out some little French flags and taped little paper berets to their heads. I also used a French language translator to tape speech bubbles to the box that said things like "Yes, we are french hens!' 'Merry Christmas!' 'Wait, aren't there four of us?' etc. Then I taped a McDonald's gift card to the box.
Day 4: On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, 4 calling birds!
They're calling, alright. Place them in your hands and see! But why are they calling? They're calling for pizza delivery, of course! Look, they brought you a coupon so you can call, too!
gift: I found four little fuzzy peeping chicks, the kind you hold in your hand and they peep, again at BigLots last Easter for $1 each. I put these in a bag with a Pizza Hut gift card.
Day 5: Five golden Rings
So, did you expect to find REAL GOLD? Have you priced gold lately? Call us cheap, but these golden pineapple rings are a much better deal ounce per ounce. Enjoy!
Gift: Can of pineapple rings
Day 6: Geese a'laying
Do you know where the term 'goosing' someone came from? Geese like to bite your rear if you try to sneak up on them! Don't ask us how we know. But before they flew away (and after the 'goosing'), they left these eggs, so we're giving them to you. Look, they're hatching!
Gift: Large sized plastic eggs (again from BigLots at Easter) filled with foil covered chocolate eggs (yes, saved from Easter. They last that long easily).
Day 7: Swans a'swimming
Where were they swimming? In our bath tub, of all places! They flew out the window just as we came in the door to catch them for you. Boy, do they leave a bathtub ring! But we did manage to grab a bottle of what they were swimming in, as well as one that was still in it's ugly duckling stage and couldn't fly away!
Gift: A bottle of bubble bath and a rubber ducky.
Day 8: Maids a'milking:
Now, if we did give you 8 milking maids, just where would they sleep? What would you feed them? They'd be more bother than they're worth, wouldn't they? You don't even have 8 cows to milk! So we settled for some of the gloves that keep their hands warm and their cows happy.
Gift: a warm pair of gloves for each member of the family (bought last year on clearance)
Day 9: Ladies Dancing.
If you don't have enough room for 8 maids, where would you put 9 more guests? We couldn't figure that out either, so we brought you something much more useful: tasty Pirouette Cookies, which just happened to be the ladies' favorite dance move. Enjoy these cookies while you dance around to music!
Gift: Can of Pepperidge Farms Pirouette cookies and a Christmas music CD
Day 10: Lords a'leaping
If you're like us, you have a hard enough time putting up with the sound of a house full of excited kids leaping around this close to Christmas. You certainly don't need 10 full grown men jumping over your furniture and knocking things over! So here's another reason for your kids to leap around. While they're burning off some steam, you can put your feet up and keep them toasty and warm in these cozy socks!
Gift: Jump ropes for each child and a pair of fuzzy socks for Mom
Day 11: Pipers piping
If you finally decide to add that new addition on to your home, then we'll talk more about giving you 11 pipers. Just make sure you add enough bedrooms! In the mean time, here are some musical instruments to pipe away on by yourselves, and some 'piping hot' cocoa mix to enjoy after the concert!
Gift: recorders (88 cents each from WalMart) and a can of gourmet hot cocoa mix
Day 12: Drummers Drumming (This note was put in a Christmas card, along with a copy of 'The Meaning Behind the Song' of the 12 days of Christmas that I found on the internet. It gives Christian symbolism for each day.)
The drummers had another gig and couldn't clear their schedule. Nor, of course, could they fit in this sack. So they suggested we give you a box of ice cream Drumsticks in their place. Oh, but ice cream melts at room temperature, especially after 12 days. You know that. We know that. That's why we ate them for you. But if you look in the ice cream box, you'll find a gift card to (a local grocery store). You can use it to buy your own ice cream. Or a dozen fried chicken drumsticks from the deli. Merry Christmas!
Gift: Empty Ice Cream Drumsticks box and a grocery store gift card
ackage:
