Okay, I give up -

[kyburg]

What DO you get someone for their 80th birthday?

Comments

[secanth.livejournal.com]

As I recall, I got Mom a plant...or maybe it was flowers. By that time, she had anything she might have wanted, or could go buy it herself. I kept telling myself it was the thought that counted. (grin)

[lolleeroberts.livejournal.com]

Some philosopher was asked what he would do if the world were going to end tomorrow, and he said "I would plant a tree."

Buy her a sapling and plant it for her. I think she'd understand that.

[rosminah.livejournal.com]

Consumables, and/or help out with the food for the party, if there's a party. My grandmother also appreciated a trip down to the hairdresser's.

[feyandstrange.livejournal.com]

My darling's grandma just had a 90th birthday, and my grandma's is in August.

For darling's grandma, who is a bit senile, most of the gift was simply to get him there for a visit, but he took the digital camera along and took lots of pictures of the family. These will get printed up and made into a book for her to keep.

Since I nicked that idea from my own mother, who will probably do something similar for *her* mom (not to mention arranging the whole party for her, and Mom takes better pictures than I do), I'm still thinking. I made her a custom necklace for her 85th, to match the dress she planned to wear.

Bridge game accessories? (I found out for Christmas that sushi plates were just perfect for bridge snack plates; Mom still raves about them.) Assistive hobby devices? There's handy arthritis-friendly tools and helpers for sewing, gardening, you name it, and most of the older folks see no reason to buy themselves a fancy hobby light or arthritis-friendly kneelers and trowels when they still have a perfectly good fifty-year-old light bulb and heavy trowel. Find a hobby that's gotten harder lately and make it easier - big print or audiobooks, arthritis-friendly cooking gear, stuff like that.

Fortunately, my grandma is in really excellent health - possibly in better shape than me or my mom, in fact - other than a hearing aid, I'm stumped on the 'assists' front, and will have to check with Mom on her current hobbies. (Oh, baseball! Hmm... I can't give her a Cardinals-to-the-World-Series, but I wish I could.)

Nor am I ready to give her great-grandchildren, which is a shame, as I may be the only one who can. The only other grandchild is fighting through adoptionland.

...sheesh. Thanks for giving me a heads-up; I clearly have some digging to do on what to get Grandma. Best of luck on your gift search!

[cyclometh.livejournal.com]

Some cake mix and 81 candles. ;)

[elfwench.livejournal.com]

A framed portrait that has meaning, in a really nice frame. Maybe one of her in her youth, or a family portrait.

[cowgrrl.livejournal.com]

My cousin invited guests to bring photos, anectodes, stories, etc. for a scrapbook to give the birthday boy (her father) on his 80th birthday.

[washuotaku.livejournal.com]

A Stripper! ^_~

[unclejimbo.livejournal.com]

I think I can imagine her face when a stripper showed up... *snort*

I don't think she'd disown us, but Donna's sister and brother would KEEELL us... :P

[annenahaymus.livejournal.com]

If it were my grandmother I would have said a trip to the casino. She loved the slots.

Oh, I have to ask what is that icon you have?

[inagawayuu.livejournal.com]

Haha! My mom loves casinos!

And the icon is from Ebichu Minds the House. A very strange show indeed... (http://www.themanime.org/viewreview.php?id=139)

[redqueenofevil.livejournal.com]

Your icon is awesome!

This non sequitor was brought to you by the letter Y.

[actionjbone.livejournal.com]

Four twenty-year-olds of the opposite sex.

[inagawayuu.livejournal.com]

Winner!

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

No - no.

She'd feed them. Danish mother, yanno.

[mycroftca.livejournal.com]

viagra

[being-homeless.livejournal.com]

Viagra is so 1999. Cialis is the latest and greatest.

[mycroftca.livejournal.com]

I'd NEVER prescribe Cialis, due to the risk of priapism, and the longer half-life of the drug. Stupid marketing people....

[inagawayuu.livejournal.com]

Tickets to the Blue Man Group, the severed head of a Lucky Bingo Troll, and one of those 6-in-One Atari video game plug ins for the TV that has Ms. Pac Man and Yars Revenge on it!

...hmm, something tells me that my mom is the only senior citizen that would like those gifts.

[redqueenofevil.livejournal.com]

Slippers, a blanket, and maybe an outing somewhere beautiful (like an arboretum).

[lesliepear.livejournal.com]

Pictures, a scrap book of letters/photos of the family (we were looking through my late grandmother's 90th yesterday).

For my grandmother's 85th we got her a Vermont Teddy Bear.

[moropus.livejournal.com]

I took my Granny to a spa for one of everything. Hair, nails, steam bath, massage, etc. and that's a good excuse to have one yourself. It would be rude to just sit there and not have anything done.

[ceolyn.livejournal.com]

Rey and I borrowed all of my grandmother's photo albums and scanned in roughly 600 pictures. We're working on retouching and color balancing them. When we're done she'll get a DVD that she can put in her DVD player and look at them. We will also burn copies of this for everyone in the family. We're insane. We also made a digital slide show of her at various stages in her life starting from the first picture she had of her self at age three going up to her birthday last year. If I had been made of money I would have bought her 7 brand new archival quality photo albums and moved all of her pictures. Alas I am NOT made of money. But that's what we did for my Grandma Jeanne for her 80th birthday last month.

[ceolyn.livejournal.com]

Hit post before I was done...

For her grandfather's 80th my ex-roomie collected a favorite picture and/or story from each of her grandfather's children and grandchildren. She then created a scrap book that told the story of his life through the eyes of his family. She said that he loved it so much that when he traveled he took it with him.