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Gift giving for to me opens up a host of emotions.  If I have figured out the perfect present to get my recipient, I’m overjoyed, and can’t wait to get out there and make the purchase or pull the trigger on the website.  Sometimes, I have a great gift idea, but it’s out of my budget range.  Well, that’s just disheartening.  Back to the drawing board.  Then there’s the frustrated and clueless feeling I get when I have no idea what to get someone.  There can be so many reasons…they are picky, they have everything, or I don’t see them often enough to get a good idea of what they might want or need.

To help you out a bit and curb the emotional roller coaster, I put together a little list of ideas for the adventure families out there.  When compiling, I had adventure kids, and adventure moms and dads in mind, but you may find that these gift ideas work for just about anyone!  The idea is to make travel and getting out and about a little more fun and a little easier (and also not break the bank).   That way, maybe you can just stick to that overjoyed feeling that is what gift giving is all about!

1. The Kiddy Platter by Smarty Parents

This is no ordinary placemat.  The platter has a rubber rim making it super sticky, and thus allowing it to cling to any surface.  It’s easy to clean and dishwasher safe.  I love it as a gift for adventure kids because it fits easily in any bag or suitcase or in the seat-back pocket of your car.  As Bergen gets older, he’ll be able to put this on his lap to do projects in the car.  I’m all for making car travel more fun!  The gutter is removable, and kids can draw and write with dry erase or window markers (and the surface wipes clean).

2. Annual State Park Pass

Here in Washington State a mere $30 gets you into any of our state parks and recreation lands for an entire year.  Anytime your recipient wants to head to a state park, instead of paying the usual onetime $10 fee, they’ll be good to go for “free”  thanks to your gift.  Of course, the gift also supports our wonderful park system; making sure that future generations get to enjoy the great Washington outdoors.  Think of all the awesome hiking, birding, biking, nature discovery, and all around outside activity you’ll be encouraging!  I know other states have annual park passes, and from just a small sample of 1 or 2 states, I found out that the passes are much pricier in other states!  Take advantage of this great deal, Washingtonians!

3. Coupon Savings Book

What adventure lover wouldn’t love to save on some of their adventures?  Just make sure the person you’re thinking of doesn’t already have one! Every year, we get two books:

• Chinook Book: Includes coupons for local restaurants, shops, products, and family fun entertainment (like the zoo and aquarium!).  Coupons included are from local companies and businesses that do “good”.  You can read all about it on their criteria page. So far, the following cities have a Chinook Book: Denver, Twin Cities, Portland, Seattle & Puget Sound, and San Francisco Bay Area & Santa Cruz.
• Entertainment Book: The more well-known of the coupon books, we rely on this for 2 for 1 deals when eating out, saving on rental cars and hotels, and great 2 for 1 deals at museums and parks.  Books are available in almost every state in the U.S. & are also available in 7 Canadian provinces.

4. Built Origami Wine Tote

I came upon this awesome little holder as I was figuring out gift ideas for my mom! She was looking for a good way to bring wine to parties and gatherings.  I had never heard of such a thing, but thanks to some searching around in some local kitchen shops, I found the perfect wine transporter.  The origami folds protect the bottle of wine, and the whole thing folds down flat for easy packing.  Great to bring along in the suitcase if you think you’ll want to bring wine back from your destination too.

5. Travel Booster

Bergen was given the booster pictured on the right (fisher-price) as a gift when he was just a wee baby, and we use it often.  It goes with us on road trips, picnics, parks, and friend’s houses.  It’s easy to clean, and folds up for handy transport.  I’ve also had my eye on the brica version (right)  since it would easily fit in a suitcase for plane travel.

6. Sound Spa

You can give the gift of peaceful sleep.  The sounds that come out of this machine induce a good night sleep.  The pleasant sounds can also block out some not-so-pleasant sounds  (or sounds you just aren’t used to) heard when traveling.  A sound spa is also helpful when the little ones are sleeping, and parents are still up.  Parents don’t have to worry as much about the slightest noise waking up the kids.

7. L.L.Bean Tote Bag

Such a handy tote for travel and just everyday outings.  We put all of Bergen’s special plane toys in the bag, and then it fits nicely into our carry-on backpack.  It’s also great for toys in the car, and can just be thrown in the backseat.  We love the monogram option.  When we go to activities around town like the Y, we don’t have to worry about getting bags mixed up, and teachers/helpers know where to find Bergen’s stuff!

8. Rain Suit

A must here in the Pacific Northwest, but handy anywhere it might rain.  I love how we can just throw the rain suit on over Bergen’s regular clothes, and not worry about him getting sopping wet.  Outside play is so much more relaxing!  It also folds up small making it easy to stuff into the diaper bag without taking up too much room.    The suit pictured here is from a local company out of Vancouver, Washington (Oakiwear), and is on sale right now for just over $30.  Rain suits are also great for hanging out on the boat in colder weather!

9. Travel Bucket

Most recently, we took this “scrunch bucket” along with us on our trip to Kauai, but it’s gone on road trips to the lake, to the pool, and is just fun to have around the house for the bath and backyard.  As the name implies it scrunches up so you can stuff into your suitcase.  It’s also super light.  Pack it with some fun water or beach toys, and you’ve got the perfect gift for a young adventurer!

10. Portable Speaker

Adventurers can bring their tunes along no matter the destination.  We have a similar product, the Memorex Portable Travel Speaker, but if I could go back on my purchase, I’d definitely go with the candy-bar speaker pictured.  I like that you don’t have to dock your ipod or iphone, and the smaller size can’t be beat.  Can you picture a fun impromptu dance party at the beach, park, rental house…?

Got a great gift idea for under $30 (or two or a whole list)  for an adventurer ? Go ahead & add by leaving a comment!

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