Shopping for Men...

Dear Savvy Stacy,

I’m having a really tough time coming up with some good ideas for Christmas for my husband. My clever daughter-in-law came up with one good idea already and I was able to score xxx as well as xxxx. Those are my only ideas so far, though, and I’m hoping that you can help me think of some things that I could add to my list. It’s not like we buy a lot for each other, but it would be nice to have a couple of things for him. This is an annual problem since he rarely mentions things that he wants.

Can you help me?

BrainDead with only a month to go!

*This question has been modified from its original version to avoid ruining any Christmas surprises.

Dear BrainDead,

It does sound like you have a clever daughter-in-law! Good question, though. I also have a hard time shopping for the men in my life. Does your husband like sports? If so, you could always look for an autographed item, which is unique. I'm always lenient to check out such items on Ebay because you want them to be authentic. The good news is that if you're looking for baseball items, you get a lot of these through MLB.com, which has an authentication program. For example, here's a link to the Milwaukee Brewers site. Under memorabilia, you'll find autographed baseballs.

http://shop.mlb.com/sm-milwaukee-brewers--bs-1452356.html

You're going to pay $70 to $100 for these, but it's a cool gift that could increase in value over time. Another good site for this is Legends of the Field, a place that I trust because they go to the signings themselves. Here's their link...

http://www.legendsofthefield.com/bensheets.html

Here's another idea that I'm getting for some of the men in my life...

http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2007/09/06/leatherman-skeletool.html

Here's another cool idea: a Life magazine from the year someone was born. They are available from the 1940s and up.

http://www.gifts.com/search/product/Personalized-Birthday-Gifts-LIFE-Magazine-Years-1940-Present?ideaID=3365&prodID=81422

And here's another idea that keeps on giving year-round. It's a monthly club where they get something shipped to them every month. Someone gave us a cookie club membership one time, and it was a lot of fun. You can do pretty much anything. And it's nice because they have it available in 3 months, 6 months, 12 months or seasonal...

http://www.amazingclubs.com/

It's always fun to look for gifts that are also experiences. Tickets to an event, a gift certificate to a nice golf club, etc. Those are good ideas that they'll really like.

Also, think about what they already have. This is a possible gift. Do they have some old something or other that's just sitting in the basement? They say they're going to fix it or have it fixed or whatever? Surprise them and get it fixed or polished up for them. Even something as simple as getting a display shelf. Or maybe they have an old collection you can help complete by shopping on Ebay. It's a great resource for old treasures.

Finally, don't forget the old standbys. They make DVD collections for just about ANY show now, new or old. And of course, electronics. Just remember, with electronics, they might appreciate the gift more if they already have a headstart on it. If you have someone that doesn't like to mess with technology, consider opening the gift, figuring out how it works and then wrapping it in that form. They'll appreciate getting a head start on it (unless of course, they like to figure that stuff out for themselves).