DIY Wealth Creation

As a professional organizer, I work hard at being conscientious about not adding clutter when I give someone a gift.  There’s something a little magical about gifts that seem to make it even harder for the recipient to let go, because “someone gave it to me.”  I like to look for something that can be used up or even better, share an activity to celebrate special occasions.

Recently I had the opportunity to witness firsthand just how special sharing an activity can be!  A  little friend was celebrating his birthday and my daughter of the same age, invited him over to bake and frost a cake together.  No gift.  I found out later that his mom was a little skeptical about how baking a cake was going to go over.  We found out what kind of cake he wanted, what flavor frosting and bought some candles.  No toys, no games, not even a gift certificate to go buy himself something.

I let them do everything themselves, except take the cake out of the oven.  They read directions, they chatted, they laughed, they helped each other out and I took photos.  When the cake was cool, they frosted, cut the cake and we all enjoyed a piece or two.

It turns out when he went home, he couldn’t stop talking about it.  How awesome is that?  Two little kids making a cake and that was enough!   The next time you have a gift to buy, think about how you can declutter your gift giving and come up with a fun activity so you can enjoy some time together!