One of my favorite roles as wife and mom is that of gift-giver. I love choosing the perfect gift as a way to express how much I love and care (and pay attention to) my friends and family.

When I met my husband, he didn’t understand this part of me. He’d never had anyone care enough about him to choose gifts that he actually wanted, and he saw it as a waste of time. “You make lists?” he said. “Who cares what goes in an Easter basket? Throw in some jelly beans and a stuffed bear.”

The man had a lot to learn. But learn he did, and now he looks forward to Easter morning and his birthday with the glee of a five-year-old.

I recently went shopping with a friend for Easter basket stuffings. I saw the latest Mitch Albom book and threw it into my cart. “Mike loves his books,” I said. “It’s perfect for his Easter basket.”

She looked at me like I was crazy. “You give Mike an Easter basket?”

“I also give my parents, brother, and nephew a basket,” I said. “You don’t give your husband one?”

She shook her head. “Easter’s for the kids, isn’t it?”

Not in our house. Give me an excuse to give a gift, and I will. And why not? It’s fun and doesn’t have to cost a lot. I try to keep each basket to $20-$30. So what goes in the baskets for grown-ups?

1. Snacks. Better than candy and great for the men. Tailor it to their personal tastes. My husband loves sriracha and Tabasco, so anything I find with these flavors is fair game, even bottles of the stuff itself.

 

 

 

2. Lottery Tickets (Scratchers). I’m not usually a lottery player, but these are a lot of fun, and who knows? Maybe the recipient will strike it rich!

3. Fun in the Sun. Admittedly, we live in SoCal, and by Easter, we’ve already been using the pool for a month or two. But even if you’re knee-deep in snow, it has to melt sometime, right? Give beach towels, a pool raft, sunscreen, a visor or hat, or buy them a new cooler to act as the Easter “basket.”

4. Games. Here are some of our favorites.

 

5. Alcohol. Why not? An interesting bottle of wine, a unique liqueur. Ever tried one of these?

Viniq Shimmery Liqueur

 

Thatcher’s Blood Orange

 

Caravella Limoncello

 

Pama Pomegranate Liqueur

OR-G French Liqueur

 

TY KU Asian Citrus Liqueur

Stoli Sticki Honey

SKYY Barcraft Margarita Lime

6. Make it a theme. All Tabasco items. Hundreds of guitar picks for the guitar player. Twenty different packs of gum for the gum chewer. You get the idea. 🙂

Now go forth and play Easter Bunny!