Create a Tradition of Annual Father’s Day Gifts
I would say that buying a Father’s Day gift is more difficult than buying a Mother’s Day gift. Gifts to show mom that she is appreciated are quite standard and welcome every year: jewelry, flowers, a plant, gift certificates for a pedicure or massage. But then Father’s Day comes around and we are bombarded with rubbish, like pens or grilling utensils. (How many stones does one man need? The answer is zero. He doesn’t need zero whiskey bones.)
A good Father’s Day gift is ideally a sentimental hint of his fatherhood and something he really likes. He doesn’t want the “World’s Greatest Daddy” trophy. So what you need is an annual gift idea that you can develop every year, and it becomes so ingrained that it is almost a joke, but something that it looks forward to. The annual gift will put an end to all those frantic Google searches for “Unique Father’s Day Gift Ideas” at the last minute.
Annual photo with a twist
A friend of mine started the tradition of Father’s Day when her oldest child was still a baby: paint them big D and As and create a photo collage of “Daddy” (this is her daughter pictured above). You can get these letters from any craft store, or simply print them out of cardboard and let your child decorate them.
I happily stole the idea from her (thanks Chris!), And every year in June since my son was little we went outside for dad’s photo shoot. Every year I put a new set in a frame and leave the old ones behind (and every year I look at them all and rejoice and cry for life). One year in the photographs was our adopted son. Two years later, our dog appeared. Last year my son spent all the shooting in karate uniform. And this year, well, my husband could read it, so all I say is that his son developed it himself as soon as he did.
My husband keeps a frame on his desk at work, and I’ve been doing this for so many years that he knows to bring it home a week before Father’s Day so I can upload new photos and rewind it like it’s a brand new gift.
There are many fun variations you can make with your annual photos. Of course, you could use the standard idea of ”sit a child next to a teddy bear to see how old they grow up.” Or you can do your best with the theme, for example Stephanie Boron, a member of our Offspring Parenting Facebook group, wants:
“My weird idea is that maybe she dresses like a different superhero every year,” says Boron. “How stupid it would be if I could make her keep doing this even as she gets older?”
And don’t worry about grumpy moods or bad luck with these photo shoots. I use frames to create a gift card every year so my husband can see both a happy framed version of his son and a slightly annoyed version of his son. In fact, as another member of our group suggested, finding a funny picture of your child from last year, turning it into a meme, and creating THIS might be a good idea for your annual gift too.
Configure something strange
I have good news and bad news. The bad news is, it’s too late to order these custom face socks and get them for Father’s Day. The good news, as you can already see, is that they are 100% worth the wait.
You can customize these socks made by DivvyUp for up to three faces. You know he wants to get a pair of these every damn year with any brand new goofy face your kid / kids adopted.
For a long time, my son was missing both teeth on either side of his two front teeth, and he got into the habit of closing his eyes and making a bunny smile, which we found funny and looked SO GOOD, splattering all his socks. (Mike, just say a word and the couple will be on their way.)
To customize something in a truly unique manner like this is a win. To be successful with a personalized photo gift, you have to go out of your way – the brighter the better. Surely you could give him a personalized bottle opener . He loves beer, he loves his kids, he will drink, that’s okay. OR you can give him an apron that will spread his baby’s giant face all over the surface, from top to bottom. Who wouldn’t want that?
So choose a tradition that you know will make him smile, laugh, or even cry a little, and all of your future Father’s Day gift shopping will be much easier.