Choose Your Own Themed Christmas Gifts, White Elephant Style

I did something completely different for my inlaws' Christmas gifts this year: I created six themed gifts (each with a single word clue as to what was inside), then let them pick which gift they wanted, White Elephant style. I designed the gifts so that each was similar in value and would appeal to multiple relatives. The gifts included: Savory, Furry, Playful, Sweet, Pampered, and Faithful. 

In Steve's family, the youngest person opens their gifts first. So his younger sister got first pick. Being a proud Dog Mom of two, she guessed (correctly) that Furry contained dog-themed items and chose that one. It included a super soft blanket with dogs on it, a mug with a paw print at the bottom, dog-themed playing cards, and a donut-shaped dog chew toy (affiliate links here and below).  

Steve's older sister opened Savory next. It was filled with meats, cheeses, crackers, and mustard. 

Steve's brother-in-law chose Playful. He got Raptors playing cards, IQ Puzzler Pro, Eight Eighteen, and I Know.. You Don't.

Steve's aunt stole the Furry gift, so Teri opened Pampered. She got a pack of winter-scented foaming body scrubs, a battery operated candle in birch wood, and a 'Fresh Cut Roses' candle. Roses are a thing in our family because of our last name.  

Steve's mom chose Sweet. I included only a single edible item, the Maple Baking Chips. The other items were Sweets by Hershey lip balms, a Pillsbury Cinnamon Roll Candle, post-it notes that look like candy, Holiday Cookie hand soap, Sugar Cookie hand sanitizer, and a s'mores snowman ornament. 

Steve's dad opened the final gift, Faithful. It had been completely ignored up until that point, yet when he opened it almost everyone in that group of faithful 49ers fans wish they'd chosen that one. It included a 49ers drink cozy, 49ers buttons, and a 49ers nutcracker. 

It was a lot of fun putting these themed gifts together. I enjoyed thinking up each theme and then trying to find items to fill the bags. And it was just as fun seeing who picked each bag as their gift.