My oldest sweetgirl turned 16 recently and I wanted to give her something that was different but memorable. So I headed to Pinterest to scour for ideas. I found some cute ideas here and here and decided to combine them and add some of my own. I wanted to include little sayings on everything that were funny, inspiring, informational or sentimental. I got all of the supplies at the Dollar Store. Here's what I did:
We bought her an older (as old as her) used car from my brother. To encourage her to take care of it and keep it clean:
"Because you'll need a clean vehicle"
She has been asking for a four sided fingernail file so we gave her this one:
"Buff away the bad days"
To remind her to dream big and believe her dreams can come true:
"Because Fairy Tales do come true"
A journal to keep all her favorite thoughts and moments in:
"To write down memories you don't want to forget"
Swedish Fish are her favorite candy:
"Because it's your Sweet 16!"
We all know teenage boys can be frustrating sometimes:
"Because that boy will drive you Nuts sometimes"
A huge eraser to encourage her to not let her fears paralyze her and to move past any mistakes:
"Erase your fears and mistakes"
So she'll remember to enjoy this wonderful time in her life:
"because you shouldn't grow up too fast"
She always has to have gum:
"To help you Stick to your goals"
I found this old key at my parents house and painted it with silver fingernail polish:
"Your key to Success"
A small flashlight for her purse:
"To light the way when things look dark and depressing"
The headaches will come:
"For those headaches along the way"
I'm always teasing her about kissing her boyfriend:
"Because you'll need fresh breath for all those kisses ;)"
A small mirror because she is beyond beautiful to me and has a beautiful, compassionate heart:
"Because you are beautiful, inside & out!"
Again, teasing her about kissing her boyfriend:
"Because you'll need soft, Kissable lips"
Our home state and her name:
"Never forget where you come from"
Up to this point, I had 16 items but she loves these Veggie Stix so I included them:
"Because We Love You!"
I also attached 8 pipe cleaners to the top of the basket and each one held 2 rolled up $1 bills for a total of $16.
She loved it! She kept thanking me!
Has your family celebrated any milestone birthdays recently? Do you have a fab idea for unique gifts? Please share by commenting below!
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I love this post. I really love how you added that personal tough to each item. It reminds me that this something my Mom would have done. I think adding the personal touch is something that makes the present so special. Thank you for sharing this.
ReplyDeleteThis is so cute! What a great idea! Thanks so much for sharing! xo xo
ReplyDeleteSo cute! This could be something for all ages! thanks!
ReplyDeleteThis is so cute and by making it your own, you would have saved a lot of $ rather than buying big or premade gifts and it was probably received better
ReplyDeleteThis is so sweet and thoughtful. I'm very impressed by all the thought, love, and care you put into each item. She's a lucky girl to have you as her mom. ~ Bobbi
ReplyDeleteOH my goodness. I love it. Such clever ideas. I'm going to pin this for when my daughter gets older. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou are so sweet!
ReplyDeleteThe gifts are all nice but what I was touched most of all - was the part where in you also had post-its giving a few words of personal messages. What a lucky child, indeed! I wish you were my mom haha!
http://www.aishakristine.com
What a great way to celebrate a milestone birthday! I'll use your ideas for my grandkids.
ReplyDeleteWow! I absolutely LOVE this idea! But it makes no sense without the little notes! This would make a great basket for a graduate, too. Definitely something I'll keep in mind.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great idea!
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge fan of homemade gift baskets and while I don't have any teenagers in my life, I'm thinking I can adopt this for younger kids, too. Thanks for sharing!
Such a great idea! I loved the meaning of each item.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great idea! I will have to remember it. I received a similar gift when I graduated from HS back in 2000. My childhood friend created a memory box containing items like printouts of yearbooks, umbrella and such. Each item had an index card attached to it by a string of ribbon describing a memory. (ie. When we were young we had decided to play in a broken down car in the garage. The umbrella represented this time because I put the sprinkler in the garage to pretend it was raining. Boy, did I get in trouble.) I will never forget this gift as I am sure your daughter will never forget hers. Thank you for sharing a piece of her special day with us.
ReplyDeleteWhen people say "It's the thought that counts" this is what they mean! I absolutely love the thought that you put into each item, and just how personal you made it for her. She is so lucky to have a loving mother like you!
ReplyDeleteI love love love this post. Very creative and fun. It's too late for me my children are young adults now but I'm definitely going to share this with my daughter for my grandson.
ReplyDeleteThe quotes with items Amazingly brilliant. Happy Belated Birthday to her she has a wonderful mom!
Kimberly Ann Hawes
http://over40andkillingit.wordpress.com/2013/09/09/lets-get-it-achieve-the-over-40-and-killing-it-lifestyle-today/
This is so great. I love homemade gift baskets because they are so unique and usually well thought out. You're not only giving a gift you're giving the memory of a mom who cared.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this idea! My niece turns 16 soon and I am definitely doing this!
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome. What a great idea. Meaningful, personal and not overly expensive. To me, this is better than some expensive piece of electronics or something. I hope your daughter appreciated. Gives me ideas for things to do for others, too!
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute idea. I love it. I used to do the big poster board with candy bars on it. The one where you make sentences and substitute the appropriate candy bar for a word in the sentence. Those were always fun to do, but you had to have a little bit of a poet in you to make some rhymes and figure out sentences that you could use the candy in. I usually had some idea of what I would say, and then go to the store and see what was available. I bet they wondered why I was buying so many individual candy bars. It was always a lot of fun for me and for the person receiving it.
ReplyDeleteI am sure your daughter loved this, I know mine would have.
Thanks for sharing. Have a fabulous day!
that is super cute!!! so creative. love the fun dollar bills too!!!
ReplyDeleteSuch a lovely idea, and a very special present. I imagine she will keep those post-it notes for many years to come :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun idea! LOVE it! Thank you for the awesome ideas! Can't wait to make gift baskets for some birthdays soon! :)
ReplyDeleteLove this cute and thoughtful gift! Might have to take notes for my kiddo's someday 16th.
ReplyDeleteI think sweet and thoughtful gifts like this are the best kind. Thank you for sharing with us.
ReplyDeleteThat's such a fun idea. I love how you did the post-its, making it so much more personal. Awesome gift!
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet idea! I love the way every item was personalized especially for your daughter. She'll always remember this special day.
ReplyDeleteWhat a thoughtful gift! So respectful of her growing into womanhood and so much to be appreciated. I'll have to try to remember this for when my (2yo) girl turns 16!
ReplyDeleteShe is blessed to have you as her mom. How sweet and beautiful...and fun!
ReplyDeleteSo cute and clever! I'm tucking this idea away for future use. Love the pipecleaners clutching cash - decorative, festive and practical! I imagine she loved the whole thing, and you for thinking of her in this personal way.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun idea! I'm planning a surprise 30th birthday party for my husband right now, this could be ALOT of fun to put together for him :)
ReplyDeleteDawn from I Think We Could Be Friends.com
That is so wonderful! I will have to wait until March to implement ideas for my son who will be 14 at that time. There will be a lot of things I could come up with at that point.
ReplyDeletewhat a cute and thoughtful gift! I'm glad you took pictures of it and shared them! She'll want to remember this gift too!
ReplyDeleteI love special gifts like this with so many personal touches. So special!
ReplyDeleteI'm a big believer in these types of gifts, but I also like to buy tickets to something so that I can share in an experience with the person. They may not remember the gifts, but they always remember the special occasions you spent together.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a cute idea! I'm a big fan of meaningful gifts like this.
ReplyDeleteLove this! What a precious gift! I must remember this post for my son for when he turns 21 (21 is a big deal here in SA) but of course make it masculine. (he is only 1 now so that's a long way off...)
ReplyDeleteWhat a thoughtful and personalized gift. I'm so glad she loved it!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea--it would also be a great idea for a friend to take to another friend for their 16th birthday!
ReplyDeletePersonal, cute and very creative! Wishing her many more happy birthdays.
ReplyDeleteMy sister recently did a wonderful gift for my oldest who turned 9. She got him 9 balloons and put 1 dollar bills in each of them, then I discovered one was a 10 bill...which made him super-happy. The anticipation of popping the balloons to collect his dough, was his favorite part of the day.
ReplyDeleteThat basket is perfect. I love it. You could have done anything for her and you picked the best gifts! Good thing you know who to call for car repair history!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat an adorable idea! I have ten years to figure out how to tailor this to a boy. :)
ReplyDeleteI love posts like these! Now I just have to find someone who is turning 16! Great ideas!
ReplyDeleteaww... that's really sweet. Happy sweet 16 to your daughter!! Maybe i can do this with my daughter too in another 10 years time!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun idea for your daughter. I have two daughters but they are only 5 and 7. I will have to tuck some of these ideas away for later! :)
ReplyDeleteMy youngest son just turned 16. We didn't do anything near as cute as this for him. Ha!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful way to celebrate her 16th birthday. I gave my little sister a sweet 16 gift on a similar train. I am 10 years older than my sister and I was living in Europe when she was going to turn 16. I hated missing this milestone so I wanted to do something special for her. My idea was to write her 16 letters that she could open whenever she was missing me or feeling low while I was away. She still has the letters:)
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this idea! I would have loved to get this when I was turning 16 and maybe it's something I can give to my niece who is turning 16 soon. I can't believe how time flies! This is a really neat idea though and really special in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteHow cute. Love the meaning behind the gifts!
ReplyDeletePinning it from the Ultimate Pinterest Party!