# What should I get my brother's families for Christmas? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 18, 2007, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489 "2007-12-18T19:19:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/1 "2007-12-18T19:19:28Z")
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I left it until the last minute. So Christmas is at my house this year. I know my brothers will show up with something for me and Mr. Athena, so I want to be prepared. I have two brothers. One, who may or may not be coming, has a wife and two step-kids, 14 & 16. I’m closer to my other brother and his wife. They have 3 kids, all are college aged, but they all live with them. I’m thinking something gift-bagish. Previous years I’ve gotten them nice steaks, coffee & mugs, and bird feeders/bird seed. I’m sorta muddling on some sort of eco-home pack, but beyond those nifty compact fluorescent lightbulbs, I don’t know what I’d put in it. So… any ideas? Remember we live in the middle of nowhere, I have no Lowe’s or Barnes & Noble or Whole Foods to run out to. It has to be easily ordered (preferably from Amazon) or something I can get locally. Help! ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/2 "2007-12-18T19:32:20Z")
> [@](#): > > Remember we live in the middle of nowhere, In what country? Your location suggests Canada. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/3 "2007-12-18T19:36:57Z")
[QUOTE=Leaffan] In what country? Your location suggests Canada. [/QUOTE] Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I’m not entirely clear – are these to the family as a whole, or to individuals within the family? ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/4 "2007-12-18T19:52:30Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I’m not entirely clear – are these to the family as a whole, or to individuals within the family? [/QUOTE] Sorry, I’m looking for a gift bag for the families as a whole. It doesn’t have to be really geared towards the kids - I’ll probably get something additional for the younger kids, and the college-aged kids are all old enough to understand that they don’t get stuff geared exactly towards them anymore. That’s why stuff like gourmet coffee works… everyone can have a cup. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/5 "2007-12-18T19:53:36Z")
[QUOTE=Leaffan] In what country? Your location suggests Canada. [/QUOTE] What Twickster said. We have a WalMart and a Target and a Pier One. Other than that, assume we don’t have the usual chain stores. Especially if they’re interesting. The more interesting the store, the farther it is from where I live. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/6 "2007-12-18T19:57:07Z")
Maybe a family movie night theme – afghan to snuggle under, popcorn, netflix gift account… ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/7 "2007-12-18T19:58:45Z")
Wait a minute. This is two brothers? Your title suggests one brother with two families. (Brother’s as opposed to brothers’) Are they in the UP? Maybe you could do for each family what I did for my friends: I got them a home energy audit for their leaky energy-inefficient house. There are Canadian rebates and grants for both the audits and the following retrofits to make things more efficient. Perhaps there are similar grants in Michigan. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/8 "2007-12-18T20:06:34Z")
Man, I’m making no sense today. My apologies. For various reasons, my sleep schedule is off and it’s apparently made me unable to post coherently. Two brothers, two families. Two gifts, but I’m thinking they’ll be the same. That is, two identical gift bags/whatevers, one for each family. _crosses fingers in hopes that I make sense_ They both have netflix like things already. But that’s a good idea! Damn brothers, buying all the good toys instead of letting me give them it myself. I don’t think the energy thing would go over well, since they are both carpenters and built their own homes. Kinda a bit too much like criticizing their work, if you know what I mean. Also, I want to spend maybe $40-$50 each, but I’d go higher for the perfect gift. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/9 "2007-12-18T20:43:11Z")
Is there some recently released movie that you know they’d enjoy? Or a collection of classics? Throw in a DVD or two, popcorn, Twizzlers, etc., and you’re there. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/10 "2007-12-18T21:22:43Z")
Some tasty snacks from a smokehouse? > **[New Braunfels Smokehouse - Hickory-Smoked Meats Since 1945](https://www.nbsmokehouse.com/)** > > For more than 78 years New Braunfels Smokehouse has been the place for smoked beef jerky, turkey jerky, spiral-sliced ham, peppered smoke turkey, smoked sausage and much more! ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/11 "2007-12-18T22:55:56Z")
This probably won’t help you much, but I heard an opinion piece on NPR the other day where the guy was complaining about the number of gift cards he had on his desk and couldn’t remember how much was on each. Also the fact that gift cards encourage you to overspend (if you have a $50 gift card, then you need to spend a little over $50 to get full value.) His solution? Instead of giving a gift card, just put cash in an envelope. Give them both the same amount of case. Or, to make it more interesting, make the amounts slightly differen. One gets $47.32, and the other gets $49.83. Make up a story to go with it ( love you $2.51 more than your brother.) ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2007, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/12 "2007-12-18T23:00:20Z")
[QUOTE=Athena] I don’t think the energy thing would go over well, since they are both carpenters and built their own homes. Kinda a bit too much like criticizing their work, if you know what I mean. [/QUOTE] Well, there goes that idea. _Are_ their homes energy-efficient? ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2007, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/13 "2007-12-19T11:39:05Z")
Target has nice, boxed versions of games like Monopoly, Risk, etc. Why not get your brothers’ families a couple of those? That way it’s something the whole family can enjoy. If not one of those, there are a lot of good board games and card games out there. I particularly recommend Skullduggery, Gemlock, and Toppo if you can find them. Wizard’s also pretty popular in my family. I’ve also seen all sorts of radio-controlled helicopters, etc. around this year. They’re your brothers. You were kids once together. Why not give them something they can play with? ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2007, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/14 "2007-12-19T15:03:02Z")
[QUOTE=Siege] They’re your brothers. You were kids once together. Why not give them something they can play with? [/QUOTE] Actually, we weren’t kids together. They’re both much older than me, to the point that they moved out of my parent’s house by the time I was 8 or 10. But good suggestions, all! Keep them coming! ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2007, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/15 "2007-12-19T15:40:34Z")
Bacon salt and some steaks. What? I think that’s what I’m going to get for MY brother. Along with a case of seasonal beer. ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2007, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/16 "2007-12-19T15:52:45Z")
Get them nothing, teach 'em a lesson 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2007, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/17 "2007-12-19T16:02:16Z")
For an eco-home pack, how about a fire extinguisher? Even if they have one, it’s probably in need of a recharge or replacement, anyway. And lots of batteries. Everybody can always use more batteries. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2007, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-should-i-get-my-brothers-families-for-christmas/430489/18 "2007-12-19T16:37:15Z")
I just talked to my husband - he called me for some reason - he said get them an outdoor deep fryer for Turkeys and some good oil. Maybe some marinade/spices too. I don’t know - I love him but he can be kind of an idiot sometimes…