Use your Christmas presents this week

Give yourself a little treat or adventure (or at least don't let those gift cards go to waste!)

While cleaning off my counter recently, I came across a curious artifact: A gift card my 9-year-old received for his birthday, which was in January. I guess it got lost in the shuffle, but the truth is we have several gift cards scattered around the house. We also have a handful of presents that just haven’t gotten used. One child reminds me, occasionally, of the sushi-making set he received that is still waiting in his room.

It happens. But there’s no point in padding Amazon’s bottom line, and if you received a present, at least someone thought you’d enjoy whatever it is. And maybe you would. So why not aim to use your unused presents over the next week? Call it Christmas in June. You might have a little adventure, or bring something new and fun into your life, or you might just get a good laugh, but either way it’s probably better than letting those gifts sit there.

Did someone give you a bottle of sparkling wine to celebrate something? You can celebrate Wednesday. Your bottle of bubbly probably goes great with hamburgers.

Did your insurance agent give you a Starbucks gift card for referring your neighbor? Maybe take someone out for coffee, and use the existence of those gift cards as an excuse to nurture the relationship.

If you’ve got a Target gift card, you could use it as rainy day entertainment. Stop by after camp and let each kid spend $10 on something random. If it’s a large enough card, you could get in on this too.

If someone gave you a book and you meant to read it but you’ve been, you know, busy, tell yourself to read 10 pages. You can donate it after that but you never know if you’ll be captivated.

If you have a restaurant gift card, well, you have to eat at some point this weekend. You and your spouse could go out for a very fancy late lunch while your kid is at someone else’s birthday party (for which you bought an Amazon gift card…).

And hey, that sushi-making kit (or air fryer, or bread maker, or butter churn, or teakettle) might be just the kitchen gizmo you didn’t know you needed. Or at least you can take pictures of your attempts at sushi rolls before you give up and order from your local Asian place.

There’s never a perfect time, or even a particularly convenient time, for using many presents. You need to invent one. This week is as good as any. So let me know what you decide to open up!