Three fathers! Because that little baby is now a father of two… sniff…
I'm excited because the girls and I have thought of stellar ideas for a Father's Day gift for those of you who can't think beyond an apron that says “World's Best Dad.”
I have you covered. Usually I'm not like this, right? So on top of things! You have plenty of time to consider, for Father's Day is a whole week and a half away! (If you order something from Amazon via our links, we get a little commission, so thank you!)
- My tippity top idea — provided Dad loves baseball — is a subscription to Michael Brendan Dougherty's The Slurve. This is a daily newsletter that comes right to his inbox with “essential news” and “original insights” and fun recaps. Plus, it's safe for work and for kids looking over his shoulder — love that. The Chief says: “The Slurve, every day, links to the most sensational plays and the best commentary, along with wrap-ups of all the games. For a true baseball fan, everything in one place.”
And, if Dad loves it, which he will, you can give it every single year! (We don't get anything for telling you about it — we just think it's a great idea!)
Okay, here are our other thoughts. Yes, your kids should be in charge of Father's Day, but maybe they are infants and maybe they need a little help, so that's why we are here, whispering sweet nothings gift ideas in your ear.
- In case the kids really can handle it: Go to my Pinterest page for what I call “meaningful crafts for children” — because if they are going to make something, it should be awesome or at least not another paper-plate-and-pipe-cleaner craft.
In the category of cool stuff he will love:
- A wind chime. Rosie says: “These are expensive wind chimes. But they're perfectly tuned and beautifully made – a pleasure to listen to. Because they're tuned to the pentatonic scale, when the kids grab the flapper and swing it around, it sounds like music instead of noise. They're sturdy and substantial. We've taken ours down during a few tornado watches, but other than that we've left it out during all sorts of Oklahoma winds and they're as good as new. They have different scales and registers (we have the pentatonic alto, but this soprano version is smaller and thus less expensive). I've also thought these would make a lovely housewarming gift or even a wedding gift for the hard-to-buy-for.
In case you can't tell, I love mine!”
- Not so unpredictably, perhaps: Good booze. We recommend going to the liquor store and buying a smaller bottle of the booze that is on the shelf above the booze he currently has in his liquor stash. Or another one of the one he loves that is almost out.
- Booze accessories. Our current faves, which we have found at HomeGoods (and its ilk): A good ice bucket (good is defined as insulated and nice looking); a cocktail shaker; a vacuum wine stopper. A measuring cup for mixed drinks (you can get this for cheaper, I think, at Target, but that's problematic).
- Also a bottle opener that goes on the wall. If you can manage it, put the recycling bin directly underneath. If you can't, how about this opener-and-catcher. (Bonus: if you keep the caps, next year the kids can make a (cheap, not tuned, multi-quasi-tonic) wind chime out of them!)
- An icon of St. Joseph. You are on your own to find one — let us know if you come across a beautiful one!
- Fishing tackle.
Books:
- Walker Percy, Lost in the Cosmos — A whimsical book about the death of Western Civilization — not a novel, not a treatise. Sort of a unique existential musing wrapped in a strange kind of personality test. Any other book by Percy will also do.
- Thomas Boswell, Time Begins on Opening Day — Well, I guess this is out of print, but this is a great read about baseball. The Chief loves it and everyone in our family enjoyed it thoroughly. I have given you enough time to get it from a seller who ships reasonably fast.
- Lawler and Clayton, The Little Oratory — Last year we suggested our book as a Father's Day gift and the crowds went wild! Why not? Dads enjoy exact directions and keen insight/prose to get their families on the road to prayer. Adorable drawings by Deirdre.
- Michael Foley, Drinking With the Saints — This is another one that is not going to go out of style for Dad. Most men I know covet this book.
- Eric Severeid, Canoeing with the Cree — The CBS anchor/journalist from a bygone era recounts his boyhood odyssey with a friend, canoeing thousands of miles from Minneapolis to the Hudson Bay. This adventure turned out to be more than a little escapade — it's a must-read. (This doubles as a great gift for any teenage boy you have languishing about.)
- Phil Lawler, The Faithful Departed — The most thoughtful book about the scandal of abuse by priests. Not a cheery book, but one that goes deeper than all the others.
- Steven Pressfield, Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae – war-heavy guy book that Capt. P (Rosie's husband) loves and gives to his friends. Excellent historical fiction.
- Michael Shaara, The Killer Angels — Another excellent dramatization of history: I wrote about it here. Get another copy for your teenage boy while you're at it, and they can discuss it together.
Items that will enable fun with the kids but that he'll secretly be delighted with:
- Wiffle ball set. I usually pick these up at the grocery store — they are cheap enough so that the kids can pool their quarters together and buy it themselves. With this and a bocci ball set (below), you are ready for your Independence Day celebrations!
- A squirt gun — get a couple of good ones.
- A Bocci ball set. What I like about this game is that you can play it just about anywhere.
- Zoo or museum memberships.
- A stereo microscope. (I wrote about why this is the microscope you should have in your home school here.)
Something that you yourself will enjoy so why not give it to him since he's happy and gift-receiving isn't his love language:
- A good camp chair or two. (But they are less expensive at Marshall's etc.)
- A hammock.
- The kind of cart/wagon that garden centers use.
If his love language is service (you do have the book, right?):
- Clean/tidy up his workbench in the garage.
- Detail the car/truck (any child loves playing in the car — simply add bags for trash, windex and paper towels, and a vacuum for a clean car).
- Polish his shoes.
- Finally dust and arrange his dresser top.
- Send him to a movie by himself (you know, if he'd like that, and one you are not interested in).
We hope this helps you with what can be a difficult time, what with men being, you know, men, and so hard to find gifts for. We aren't great fans of Hallmark holidays but we do want Dad to feel honored!*
*These are all our good ideas. As in, the only ones we will ever have. So expect to see this post again another day!
Theresa says
Do you know how ON TOP OF THINGS I am? I gave him The Slurve on Valentine’s Day! This is the one time Auntie Leila told me to do something and I already did it! ::Happy Dance::. Now, if only I was so attentive on that house cleaning advice…
Leila says
Theresa, you are so ahead of the SLURVE CURVE!!
Donna L. says
Thank you for this! I need to get working on the tool box and garage cleaning! My Sweetheart is an “acts of service” guy for his love language–so I need to get busy!
Where does one mount the bottle opener? Kitchen? Front porch? I have never seen one at a residence….only pubs….
God bless you all~
Grete says
Hi Donna, The kids and I got my husband two mounted bottle openers. One for the deck and one for the wall next to the garage fridge (where the beer resides).
Leila says
Donna, we have one on the deck and one at the end of the kitchen cabinet, over the recycling bin — so yay! bottle caps fall right where they are supposed to go. We consider it a sobriety test LOL
Katie says
An anecdote in support of the idea that the bottle opener would be popular– my husband spent quite some time last year engineering his own to be magnetized, such that it could go right above the proper bin which is on one side of the fridge (i.e. not a place we could screw it in sturdily to wood). He used a few of those super-strong button-type magnets, fitted and glued flush to the back of a small piece of wood (call it 1″x3″x10″, thick enough to conceal both magnets and screws), which he also stained in a nice pattern. Amazingly (to me anyway; he was confident throughout), the magnets really are a match for the force required to pop off a bottle cap. Plus it’s quite attractive to complement its utility. =) Given the steps involved, I’m not suggesting it as a thing to be made for Father’s Day, but rather as proof of concept that it can be done unconventionally too!
Cami says
Auntie Leila, thank you for this! Excellent ideas from a trusted source! I’m thinking of The Slurve for sure but hubby got laid off (and I raise/school our little people at home aged 4,3,1) so I probably can’t buy him the gift until he gets a job. We’ve had a 6 year marriage of constant challenges including 4 moves in 3 years… Could be 5 moves in 3 years if the job doesn’t happen locally. So please pray for Tim in Colorado Springs! We need swift employment that is a great fit for him and our family! We also need patience, wisdom, and peace! Many thanks for all the ways you support us!
Leila says
Oh, Cami, prayers for Tim and your whole family! St. Joseph, swiftly come to their aid!!
Charlotte says
Can you tell me what else one might need to make that spiffy microscope work in my homeschool. I am completely helpless when it comes to stinky stuff. It’s been waaaaayy too long since I took a lab class. Slides? Slide covers? Anything else you can think of?
Charlotte says
^^^ That was supposed to be “science-y” stuff!
Leila says
Charlotte, I think you can do fine with a few petri dishes. I really recommend that you read the whole article that I linked in the post about the microscope (linked in this post). It will give you a good idea of how simple the microscope is to use.
Good luck!
Rachel says
Something my husband loves is called whiskey stones – inexpensive but fun gift if your husband likes his nice liquor – little ice-cubed shaped stones that you keep in freezer to use in your whiskey (or whatever) instead of ice so it doesn’t get watered down.
Heather says
What a fantastic list. Rosie, I love the precise language (flapper!) for the wind chimes. So glad to know what that is called!
I have been admiring these statues on etsy for a while. Linking to St. Joachim also–those beautiful faces!
https://www.etsy.com/listing/76763604/patron-of-fathers-protector-of-houses?ref=shop_home_active_2
https://www.etsy.com/listing/76878904/patron-of-grandfathers-st-joachim
Polly says
I will add my gift for this year (can’t blog about it because I don’t want to spoil the surprise!)–my husband is a distance runner who runs mountains without any GPS, cell phone, etc….20 miles on remote mountain ridges on a Saturday morning, for no reason except fun? Yep, that’s the standard here. My professional triathlete cousin gave me the idea–I got my husband a Road ID bracelet he can wear–it has his name, medical history and emergency contact numbers, plus a little private joke phrase we use. It came in the mail today and the quality is excellent–I am SO pleased! My husband is very hard to shop for b/c he doesn’t drink and running is his only “hobby.” This would be a great gift for any dads who are into running, hiking, or cycling, and it provides peace of mind to wives who don’t have any way of keeping track of these mountain runners. 😉 (Actually I never worry because I don’t see the point, but I like that he’ll have this in case he runs into a log and is out cold in the snow one day…oh wait, that already happened a few years back…..)
I think the website is http://www.roadid.com. Reasonable prices and such a fun company (they give a portion of every purchase to a charity, and you can choose from their list). Anyhow, just another little potential gift idea!!
I love the wind chimes–I am going to ask for those for my birthday, I think!!
Maya says
Another” fun w kids” gift is a good nerf gun. My dad and husband have really enjoyed them…
Mary says
I think another good idea would be pickle ball racquets and balls. Pickle ball (http://pickleball.com/pages/about-what-is-pickle-ball) has gotten very popular around here (inland NW). I can hold my own with my husband at pickle ball even though he plays tennis and I don’t. I don’t think the supplies are very expensive, and our community has even built a few pickle ball courts. Otherwise I think you could probably draw lines on a paved driveway or something and just whack the ball back and forth.
Joy in Alabama says
Well! Here’s what I’m doing! I’m framing 2 of the icons from your wonderful book! My husband is a United Methodist (conservative, just so you know!) pastor. We’re moving to a new church in 2 weeks and I thought he would like to have a couple of new things to hang in his office. I think they are beautiful!
Leila says
Wonderful, Joy! I agree — they are lovely. God bless!