|
Is your extended family growing by leaps and bounds? Are you having to spend more money on Christmas gifts than your budget allows? Is it difficult to buy gifts for people that you don’t see very often or know very well?
If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then I have a solution for you. Host a Yankee Swap!
When my mother’s side of the family grew to a huge number of people, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents and their spouses, that only see each other several times a year, Christmas being one of those times. They decided instead of a typical gift exchange or the drawing of names, to hold a Yankee Swap at our family Christmas party. We generally hold this after dinner, but it can be done at any time.
We do not include children in this swap: we still generally purchase an item for each child since the children are basically what Christmas is all about. But this swap is for the adults of our group.
Each adult that is participating in the swap will bring a gift to the gathering. They should include a gift tag, which gives the name of the giver. My family is really into hand crafted gifts, so that is generally what is swapped. Also be sure to give a price range for your gifts, lets say $20.00 for example. Please make sure that you stick to that amount, it really is not fair for someone to have purchased or crafted a gift worth $20.00 to end up with something much less expensive. Now count up the number of people participating and make a number for each person, on a small piece of paper. Put the numbered papers in a hat, or bowl and instruct each participant to take a number.
Place all of the gifts in a grouping in the center of the room and have the participants sit where they can all see the gifts and each other. Now the person holding the number 1 will select a gift and open it, in plain view of all of the other participants. Some participants will want to cheat here, and not show what they have opened. This will generally mean that they have gotten a really good gift!
After person #1 has opened their gift, person #2 can either take the gift that person #1 has opened or select another gift from the grouping. If person #2 has taken the gift from person #1, #1 is now to take another gift from the grouping and open it. If person #2 has selected from the pile, it is now person #3's turn. Person #3 can take a gift from the grouping or take the gift that either #1 or #2 has opened. This will continue until all of the gifts have been distributed.
This may sound a little confusing at first, but just remember, if a gift has been taken from the grouping, the turn moves to the person holding the next number. If a gift has been taken from a person, that person can take either a gift from another person or a gift from the grouping. It is actually rather humorous to see adults acting like small children to be able to get and keep the gift they really want. There will be the typical hiding of the gift behind the chair and even major pouting. Of course on their turn, they can immediately take the gift back.
This idea will work well for a family Christmas party, a group or organization’s Christmas party or even a Christmas party at your place of employment. Also try to find or make gifts that you think people will really like to have for themselves, it make the party much more interesting.
|
| |
