It's a challenge to come up with gifts for Hanukkah when (1) we're already tripping over the kids' overloaded toy supply and (2) we--the parents--don't want any more stuff for ourselves. Giving experiences has become one of our favorite ways to celebrate. But sometimes, you can combine a fun experience with choosing something small (and not pricey) to take home with you.
Case in point: Last Sunday, we combined something that we (our family of four) all love--books--with someplace we all love to visit--Strand Books in New York City. I've written about it before, but it's hard to capture the essence of the Strand in photos because it's just soooooo big and sprawling--four floors of books (most of them secondhand, many out-of-print or rare) taking up a full city block. Yet it's somehow cozy at the same time, as you blissfully meander around the chock-full stacks with everybody else who loves books just as much. It's our collective Happy Place, for sure.
We each chose a book that we instantly loved. (Actually, the kids chose three each, but they bought their other two selections with their allowances.) My 10-year-old son chose three spectacular pop-up books by Matthew Reinhart and Robert Sabuda. My seven-year-old daughter chose beautifully illustrated versions of The Hobbit, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and a 3-D version of Cinderella.
I chose a book that's technically for children but I love it nonetheless: Maps by Aleksandra and Daniel Mizielinska. (I love a book that teaches me a hundred new things on every page.) That's a book I can put on the family room coffee table for everybody to pick up from time to time and devour.
After a quick bite and drink across the street, my husband suggested we walk down to Washington Square. I'm so glad he did (and not just because I love the Henry James book!). The arch was all lit up, framing the big Christmas tree under it. It was already almost impossibly festive, and then a big group of joggers (all wearing Santa hats) launched into "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" to take it right over the top. Even though we don't celebrate Christmas, the sparkling city filled with music and lights was a beauty to behold.
At home, we hid our Strand books away until the first night of Hanukkah (yesterday). It was the perfect day in the city together, and we all agreed it'll be our new holiday tradition.
How 'bout you? Do you have a favorite holiday tradition? Let's hear it--I'm all ears!
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Holiday gifts without mall madness...
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