My 16 year old daughter is having surgery on her foot on Thursday and will be out of school for a week and a half. I would like to give her a little something as a "surgery gift"... not a keepsake type of thing, but something more along the lines of comfort and/or entertainment. There's only so much Netflix a person can watch and she's going to be bored... especially when all of her friends will be tied up at school. She has a few coloring books, but she doesn't really get into coloring. She's not a reader. She is sort of crafty... but she usually needs a point to her crafting. I'm at a loss. I was considering getting her a Comfy, but the color she likes is pre-order only. Any great ideas out there? Thanks!
Tracie, does she journal and/or draw? I recall that you both worked on a travel journal. Maybe a journal, pens in fun colors, a glue stick, washi tape, some stickers, scissors. Sorry I'm not much help, no kids here... She could save "ephemera" from the hospital, meal requests, hospital info (maybe even something that has a photo of the hospital to glue into it?) Plus she could put her get-well cards into it as tip-ins. Visitors could sign and/or write in her journal, kind of like signing a cast. Wishing her well in her surgery. That can't be fun for her (or you).
Whenever my sister has surgery, her basket has a puzzle book (she likes word searches), her favorite chocolate, and usually some random dollar store or Target dollar spot things. Usually, I can find something silly like slime or silly putty, or a maze. Once I bought her army guys and a little gun. She lined the guys up and shot them off the table. It amused her for quite awhile! I was surprised. Even as an early 20 something, random dollar store toys seem to make recovery pass.
Oh... that could be fun! I actually have a traveler's notebook I bought a while back and never used... that could be a fun size for her to work with! She likes to save all of those little bits, so this would be a good way for her to keep everything together. And I really like the idea of her friends writing in it as well. Thanks! We're hoping this will give her some relief. The initial injury was back in February and she's been in and out of boots since then... she's been in her current boot since the first week of August. They're still unsure of the cause of her pain, so they're hoping they will be able to tell once they have her opened up. That's hilarious!! You know... she might actually enjoy that! Our dollar store by us closed last year, but maybe I'll take a hike to the other one tomorrow. Thanks for the suggestions!
This might sound odd, but does your salon offer at-home services? She could get a manicure at home. I know she'll be kind of bed-bound for at least a little while, so it might be nice to get pampered.
No... but the nail salon we go to is actually just a block away. It might be a nice, get out of the house outing for next week! Thanks for the suggestion!
Being house bound/bed ridden after surgery is hard, cause you really need to heal! Here are some craftier suggestions... though I really, really love @bestcee suggestion with the Army men! lol! I love puzzle books, and even board games if others are around! Single person games - solitaire, electronic slots or chess? Button art on canvas... her colors or design. Yarn Poof Rug Oragami Let's Make Art Kit - https://www.letsmakeart.com/ All the examples are huge images, lol! PS hoping all goes well, and she has a speedy recovery!
My sister sent me a box of little goodies after my kids were born, where I could grab something to cheer me up if I was feeling overwhelmed by baby responsibilities. Maybe do something like that for when she’s needing a pick-me-up? Simple things like a fun novel, word search book, chocolate (as has been mentioned), certificates for a special meal or snack... Sometimes Michaels has some great things in their dollar section. If it were me I’d be knitting up a storm (I’m easily amused!), so I’ll keep thinking of ideas which will pop into my head at random moments.
being a crafty person myself, I would put a craft kit together that I know the other person would enjoy. When my mum was stuck in hospital I put together some collage supplies for her to make a batch of ATCs with inspirational quotes and things to look forward to.
Maybe a bit pricey for a surgery gift, but what about the Instax cameras that are out, a take-off on the old Polaroids? It might be fun for her to take photos, watching them develop and have something tangible to hold. I'm seriously considering one for myself, I just love the colors they come in.
At first glance I thought your title said Sugary gift ideas. Yum. yum. LOL! Does she have an iPad? Maybe a new app that she can try out that you otherwise wouldn't invest in? Procreate or something like that? Is there any online learning subscriptions that she'd like to try out? Some of those crafty sites have everything from cooking, crochet, to photography and painting ... I do like the little gift basket filled with inexpensive pick me ups. Besides dollar stores, target has the dollar spot and so do's Micheal's if you have one near you. Another idea along those lines is to do a gift basket with the presents wrapped and make them themed with: "Open When". So you get various little gifts (food, lipstick/gloss/nailpolish/a new perfume stick/silly little pins/etc) - open when you feel sad, open when you need a laugh, open when you are missing your friends at school, open when you are feeling hungry, open when you need a smile, etc. Pinterest has a ton of lists already thought of that you can pick from. My daughter did this for one of her friends last year and it was so cute. Good luck with the surgery, may she heal quickly!
Thanks everyone for the well wishes and suggestions!! Oh... that is cute! She just moved to a new room and is in the process of decorating it... that button art could be fun! That's a great idea! I'm leaning towards this... I'm thinking that she could really enjoy the new loop blanket yarn that is out... that way she can make something without having to know how to knit or crochet. I played with some the other night and it's really fun to play with! She has one... but maybe I'll look for some fun film (there are different themed packs). Just looked at Michael's online and it looks like my store has several options in stock! Sugary gifts would be much more fun!! That's a great idea too! I love this idea... I'll have to see what I can come up with! Having everything wrapped and labeled with "open when" will make the basket last longer too since she won't see it all at once!
Oh, I love all these ideas! I don't have much to add, but being mostly couch bound for quite a bit with a bad knee...and I'm old. Haha I have a new appreciation for games on my IPad, especially ones I can play against my daughter/husband. I have rented some new movie releases via Amazon or other apps. (I usually don't do that since they seem to go to the apps quickly these days) We had a movie night and my friends also brought over some games. "Head" game (Ellen Degeneres) was easy to play even for me. Lol Hope she recovers quickly, sending all good vibes your way.
Puzzle books are absolutely one of the things I would advice. And also some cool knit or crochet projects? (Or something similar) They sell kits with everything in it, including patterns and in awesome colours, and I always want to buy it for myself. I don’t knit or crochet or anything. But I’m definitely drawn to them!
You have lots of great suggestions above. I'm sorry to read that she needs surgery... blah, but hopefully they'll find a solution to her pain and she'll feel better after recovery. When I had foot surgery about 3 years ago I got into Zentangle, so I used some little paper cards and pens and markers to color them in. Of course, I didn't get much done the first few days because all I wanted to do was sleep. I couldn't even really concentrate on TV for very long before I just wanted to nap again. Lol. Since she's young, she will probably bounce back quickly and want to be up on her feet and moving and doing again. One thing that I used a ton was a light weight small ottoman that I could use to prop my foot up wherever I landed around the house.
Thanks for the suggestions @Danyale, @bcgal00, @berniek and @Karen! I didn't manage to get to the store before her surgery today... but now I'm fully armed with ideas for when she gets bored! Surgery went well and we were home by 10:30am... she's slept most of the time and we spent a few hours watching Disney Park videos together on YouTube (character costume evolutions, ride evolutions, character/cast member fails, etc.). We had lunch as a picnic in her room so she didn't have to move much. Thankfully her school has Friday and Monday off, so her friends plan on spending most of the day here tomorrow. Wednesday they have a half day as well, so I think I'll bribe them all with the promise of pizza to come straight here after dismissal. Oh... her other entertainment today was to online shop for "good shoes"... her doctor is insisting on good quality, supportive shoes once she's healed. So finding a teen approved pair of shoes like that is going to take some time. Yes!! Thanks for that suggestion! I had an item in mind ahead of time thanks to your suggestion. It definitely came in handy as her foot just throbs if it's not elevated.
