Regifting Birthdays. Or Not.

Luke was invited to a birthday party recently. While I knew about this little event well in advance, I tend to procrastinate. A lot. I didn't get a gift for the birthday kid until the day of the party. I had plans to go to town early, stop by Wal-Mart, buy a gift, wrapping paper, a card, and hastily wrap that thing in the van on the way to the party. I'm stellar at planning like that.

But then I had an even more genius plan. I'd raid the gift closet.

I have never gone Christmas shopping with a list of things that needed to be purchased. Instead, I start at the post-holiday clearance sales and shop all year for things in clearance bins and sales racks. Hey, this would be awesome for my niece! And I get it, and squirrel it away in my gift closet. You get the picture, because you're not dense.

I had purchased a dart board for next to nothingness with the intent of gifting it to my nephew for Christmas this year. It's the exact same dart board that we bought for our kids a few years back and they love. The nephew loves it, too. It would be a winner of a gift. We'd be the favored aunt and uncle. Boo-yah! And then my sister decided that we wouldn't exchange gifts this year, thereby sucking the fun right out of Christmas.

So there sat that dart board, and it was a great gift for a little boy for a birthday party. I wrapped it, tucked it under Luke's arm, and sent him off to party.

After the fun, I asked him all the parentally required questions. Did you have fun? What did you do? Did he like his gift? And Luke being Luke, he shared every tiny little detail. Including the fact that he informed the birthday boy, the birthday boy's mom, the birthday boy's guests and parent who stayed to help out that Luke gave him the dart board we'd been using for years. I think it went something like this, "So that's where our dart board went! I was wondering because I hadn't seen it in a while."

Niiiiice.

Does one call the birthday parents and explain that no, we most certainly did not recycle a gift? Or does one simply assume that the birthday parents are astute enough to realize that the box is still brand-new, the darts still straight, and the whole thing is indeed new?

Kids.

15 comments:

Viv said...

Sweet! Boys and their social graces always amaze me. ;) If I had been birthday mom, I'd be blogging about this right now, laughing...but, blogging about it all the same.

Chelsie said...

Mmm tough call. I imagine they will realize that it's a new one that is the same kind as the one you have.

Michelle said...

OMG, I love it. I am not a stranger to raiding the gift closet, but I can't wait until the wee ones figure that out and start tattling.

Should we ask what happened to that dart board? :)

HalfAsstic.com said...

Oh, man! Kids! I am sure that the parents realized that it was all new! I mean the whole thing was all in the packaging and you have to be a rocket scientist to figure out how to put anything back into the packaging it came out of now days. Plus there were no holes in the dart board!

the planet of janet said...

well, bless his heart!

Heather said...

LOL! I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you happen to chat with the parents I would mention it, but wouldn't go out of my way to call them. I am sure they figured it out.

Heather said...

LOL! I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you happen to chat with the parents I would mention it, but wouldn't go out of my way to call them. I am sure they figured it out.

Annette W. said...

I wouldn't worry about it. Maybe Luke can let the boy know that his is still, in fact, at home. And his mom just knew how everyone loved it and wanted to pass it along...but new!

Trisha said...

I would think that anyone looking at the dart board in the brand new box would be able to figure out it wasn't regifted! How funny!

CanadianMama said...

I think they will know that it's new when they don't see holes in it. Either that or they will think that you are a super crafty person and you recovered the board that well! Either way you're a winner LOL!

ps. I totally gift/shop like you do!!

caramama said...

Hahahah. That's too funny! Luke always cracks me up.

Hopefully the parents realize its new because of the box and the newness. I'm with whoever said it above: You can always mention it as a funny things kids say next time you see the parents.

aspiritofsimplicity said...

Out of the mouths of babes.

Flea said...

I HATE it when my kids do that kind of thing. Happens way too often. Blick. let 'er go.

Roger Miller said...

That is awesome - both the buying gifts year round, and being able to use them for any occasion (making a mental note to myself, via your blog, to remember that.) And for Luke sharing the (false) details about the gift's origin. I repeat, awesome!

Shellie said...

I'm sure they'll figure it out.