Monday, November 10, 2008

Christmas Ideas - I Need Your Help!!!

Let's start with a story, shall we:

Back in the late 80s, I was a HUGE Lakers fan.  Back in the days of Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, AC Green, James Worthy, Byron Scott, and Pat Riley - of course.  I was young enough not to know about all the "moral corruption" surrounding that team, and I just loved watching them.  Christmas 1988 - I was eleven years old.  Christmas that year was on a Sunday, and I remember that my parents let us open one present before church.  I opened a box containing two tickets to the Jazz-Lakers game.  Actually, I opened the huge box and it didn't look like there was anything in it.  You should have seen my dad rip that package apart looking for the pricey tickets (they were hiding in the fold of the box).  

That was also the year that Gavin (one brother surrounded by four sisters) opened Alexie's Christmas dress and he started sobbing, "Santa doesn't even know I'm a boy."  I guess Santa's workshop ran into some labeling snags that year.  But I digress...

I remember going to that game (in the Salt Palace - remember when) with my dad and how much fun I had.  I wore a Lakers t-shirt I got for Christmas, and I sat by a woman who was also a big Lakers fan.  The more beers she had, the more of Laker's fan she became, but it was still fun.  I don't remember many of the "things" I got for Christmas over the years, but I will always remember being with my dad, at that game, in that "intimate" arena.

So, this year, I got Austin tickets to "Walking With Dinosaurs" hoping that he will also cherish the memory just like I did when I was younger.  The show is coming in January, and I actually got the tickets for my birthday so we can have a fun "Birthday Date." 


Here's where I need your help:
When I bought the tickets, I looked at the website under "Merchandise" to find something fun to get him and put the tickets inside.  I found a "Paleontologist Bag" complete with the logo, pencils, paper, etc.  It was $20, so I thought it would be fun to put the tickets inside one of the pockets.  I went to buy the bag a couple of weeks ago, and guess how much shipping costs?  

Just guess.

Do you have your guess?

That's right - $15!!!  Hello!  Suddenly a 20 dollar bag turned into a 35 dollar bag!  I did not buy it.  So, does anyone have any creative, relatively inexpensive ideas on how I can "wrap" these tickets on Christmas morning?!?  Please dig deep into your creative registry because I can't think of anything.  Thanks!

6 comments:

I AM JOE PESCI said...

How about wrapping them up with a dinosaur DVD? Kinda themey. Otherwise, you might check out oriental trading company and see what kind of dinosaur type stuff they have.

Or, how about wrapping them up with some dinosaur pj's or a dino t-shirt (that he can wear when you go!).

Great gift idea Em.

Alexie said...

Don't paleontologists keep all thier tools in some kind of case or nifty tool bag? What about something like that? You could even get some old tools and put in there- like a chisel and a wide bristled brush and a magnefying glass?

Marianne said...

You could hide the tickets in a thing of sand and he has to "find" them like they do with fossils.

Jana said...

Do you have a dinosaur museum close? You could probably find some cool stuff there...

Kristy said...

Could you buy some cheap dinosaur figurines at the store and wrap them in a small box and maybe finagle one of the dinosaurs into gripping the tix in their teeth or claws?

Jen-ben said...

oooh, I like everyone's ideas! I on the other hand am pretty clueless. In more ways than one really. :)