Christmas shopping and those who are very difficult to shop for.

Does anyone else have one of these?

The wife and I are both difficult to shop for but I'm easier as I have tools that need replacement and I can always use clothing. She has Christmas shopping easy compared to me. I was told to find what I wanted for tools and order them.

I don't have a clue what she wants. I've been asking since October for ideas. Her Christmas list is still empty. During the year if she wants something she just buys it, but buys very little. In years past I've tried to pick things out of the blue that I think she would like and they were unused after the unwrapping, so that has never been tried since. One year she told me to get her what I would want. So I got her a gun. She didn't appreciate it and hasn't used it in decades.

I asked her today, what does she want... Jeans. She can't find anything she likes but I'm supposed to magically find them for her. I still owe her a jacket from last year, but you guessed it, she can't find anything she likes or that fits her.

OK, I'm not easy to shop for but only because my toys are so expensive and she won't buy me any guns at my age (I do enough of that on my own anyway since she has no clue and most stuff I want anymore requires ATF approval and paperwork), but she's impossible to shop for. It drives me nuts!

Do you have anyone like this in your life?

Oh yes. You're supposed to just know this stuff. Mind reader and all that. I bought my wife a case of wine this year - a collection of "greatest hits" from her favourite winery. Nothing expresses the Christmas spirit like the gift of booze.

Any gift I get for my wife I fully expect to have to return or get exchanged. I still try to make an effort, but I’m always prepared for the outcome I just mentioned.

I do know that she wants a bottle of Ouzo, but that's tradition for us and has been for decades now. Just like I always get a bottle of Chivas Regal.

I don't know why we even bother anymore. But we do like to get stuff for the dogs. This year they're getting a Giggly Wiggly (google it) among other treats. The last one of those we got for our dogs, they loved the thing. Picture a 150# Rottie taking it to bed with him. No kidding. It's a great toy for a dog if you can tolerate the noise at zero dark thirty while you're trying to sleep.

Mat' maybe that's what I'll do... just get her stuff that needs to be returned. :-) She'll love that! :-) But rather than get her stuff that's too big, she's tiny, I'll go to the childrens section.

I have to admit, I'm very lucky in this regard. My wife learned early on that if she doesn't give me a list...she's going to get something that she didn't really want. She's also now at the point where she tells me that if I don't get her a list, there probably won't be anything under the tree me

My dad once told me that he truly believes mom enjoys the "exchange" day. It's an excuse to go shopping . So one year, we gave mom alot of things we knew she wouldn't want. But then dad took her to the malls in order to exchange everything. They spent the day doing what mom loves to do - and that was the real gift!

Does anyone else have one of these?


I don't have a clue what she wants. I've been asking since October for ideas. Her Christmas list is still empty. Do you have anyone like this in your life?

Brian,
My wife's family is large. At Christmas they do a polly anna. It is a gift swap planned in advance. At the Thanksgiving gathering you put your name with a wish list into a hat. Names are pulled in secret and you purchase an item on the list for the recipient.
This way you only shopped for one person instead of dozens. The dollar limit was high - think VCR back in the 80s or a TV or etc.

One sister was notorious for putting nothing or silly items like Lifesaver Candys on her list. Since the polly anna was supposed to be secret you could not ask around for gift suggestions. Whomever pulled her name was guaranteed to be frustrated.

On Christmas day the first person goes by passing the gift they purchased to their secret recipient. The recipient opens the gift. It is oohed and aahed over. Then the recipient gives the gift they purchased to their secret recipient. This continues down the line until each person has opened their gift.

The notorious sister's turn came and she opened a ....... Chia Pet. A stupid one of a head where the plant became "hair". There was much laughter and some embarrassment as this broke protocol in terms of dollar limits being vastly undervalued.

Someone said it must be the gift for someone who has everything. The giver, in a annoyed voice, said "No, it's the gift you give when someone refuses to give a list". The notorious sister blushed and we all laughed. The giver pointed out there was a suitable check for the dollar limit in the box. So other than embarrassment the recipient was not out.

I'd like to say this episode led to a behavioral change in the notorious sister. But no - next year her wish list was empty.

Good luck with your wife.

I do know that she wants a bottle of Ouzo, but that's tradition for us and has been for decades now. Just like I always get a bottle of Chivas Regal.

I don't know why we even bother anymore. But we do like to get stuff for the dogs. This year they're getting a Giggly Wiggly (google it) among other treats. The last one of those we got for our dogs, they loved the thing. Picture a 150# Rottie taking it to bed with him. No kidding. It's a great toy for a dog if you can tolerate the noise at zero dark thirty while you're trying to sleep.

Mat' maybe that's what I'll do... just get her stuff that needs to be returned. :-) She'll love that! :-) But rather than get her stuff that's too big, she's tiny, I'll go to the childrens section.

A giggly wiggly doll?  Sounds like fun.  How long does it last?  We have a standard poodle (used to have two) and while they are generally pretty easy on the property, if you give them a squeaky toy or any kind of toy for that matter, they are hell bent on destroying it as quickly as possible.  The other dog was really good at this - a new stuffed squeaky dog toy would last under an hour before it was just shreds.  He'd tear it to bits and then tear the bits to smaller bits.  We figured that was throwing money away so we got him Kongs.  He couldn't destroy those at least not very quickly so he would lose interest in them.  The dog we have now isn't quite as bad but still will destroy the squeaky toys, it just takes a few days.  He was at the groomer last week and she gave him a little rubber squeaky chicken.  Man that thing was annoying but after 4 days the thing was dead.  Peace returned.

Here's Charlie back from the groomer - after a few weeks he looks more like Chewbacca but he has to be handsome for Christmas.

Well, it all depends on the dog how long it lasts. Our Rottie played with it for quite some time before he decided to chew it up. His jaws were big enough that he could put teeth into the various widely spaced squeaker holes and walk with it in his mouth. I don't think either of our dogs today can do that, so we'll see how long it lasts. Maybe I'll only give to to them under supervision though. We'll see how it goes. But in my experience dogs love them. I kept the squaker tubes that are pressed into it. When I bring one out the dogs go nuts trying to see what I have.

Here's the link to it. It's a ball. https://www.amazon.com/Wiggly-Giggly-Toy...B000RA1R5A

And on youtube: https://youtu.be/jorZ2YT7wjY

You might be able to get it for less $ I didn't shop around for the link, I just took the first one I found. It's also listed as being for children. They're identical. They also come in at least 2 sizes.

Marko, I like the woolen bow. He needs a jacket in that material. One of our dogs would tolerate that, the other would go nuts trying to remove it.

Problem solved. The wife suggested that after Christmas we'll go shopping for her gifts. She absolutely hates crowds as much as I do.

Problem solved. The wife suggested that after Christmas we'll go shopping for her gifts. She absolutely hates crowds as much as I do.

It all worked out for the best, you just have to wait long enough!

I'm not sure that Charlie would wear a coat. Something tied to his collar is about all we can expect him to tolerate.