I have three of these brothers. Christmas is always a fun time. (Not.) Does he have Netflix or Hulu Plus? You can give him several months of streaming video, if he likes to watch TV. A "luxury" brand of something he uses often? Like gourmet coffee or chocolate or nachos? If he has a favorite movie or TV show, something related to that? I knitted one brother a Doctor Who scarf last year and he loved it. Even though he's not into gadgets, what about one of those emergency radios? The ones with a flashlight and charging port, that run on batteries but can also be hand-cranked. Nearly everyone has power outages at some point, and needs some emergency gear. Two places I've found good gifts for my brothers: Restoration Hardware and ThinkGeek. Check out RH's gift section--look at the stocking stuffers. There are a lot of ideas there. ThinkGeek does have a lot of techy stuff, but there's some useful home gadgets there as well. In addition to a cat hammock that my cats just love. (Would he like a gift for the cats?) It's a good place for outside-the-box gifts. Granted, he is probably not going to want the Zombie Apocalypse Garden Gnomes, but they have a lot of iPhone and iPad accessories, desk/office stuff, and a lot of things related to coffee and bacon, which a lot of guys seem to like.

I gave both of my kids a grad party when they graduated from HS. Both were essentially the same. Sunday afternoon around 2 pm. Lots (LOTS) of munchies - chips, dips, veggies, cookies, brownies, cheese, that sort of thing. No activities were planned. I invited my close friends, and they invited their friends. I served wine for the adults, cokes for the kids. Everyone sat around munching & schmoozing and a good time was had by all. Simple. For gifts, I recommend things that have to do with the college they will be going to (for those who are going). T-shirt, sweat shirt, rug for dorm room, blanket, etc, with college logo. If they are going away to another city, books with information on that city. Mostly my kids got checks for gifts, but a few people gave them what I just named above and they liked those gifts a lot.

This thread has been so helpful, thanks all! It led me to look for a dollhouse for my great-niece. In a strange turn of events, though, I found two houses that *I* want … as in, to actually live in. The first house I found has a working elevator, party patio, hot tub, potting shed, and third story telescope room. Party patio with lights: Built-in potting shed … heaven: Hot tub … I’ll get different towels: Thank goodness she checked with Design Dilemma first and didn’t make the fatal decision to put a mirror over the mantel: It really works? Look at that tile! The one above will be my city home. Here’s my country home: Get away from my house, kid! BUILT-IN STABLES HELLO … This stove is nicer than mine: Anyway, thanks to this thread, I will be moving into my dream homes after Christmas. I also found this for her, but again, might keep it for myself: (They have other animals, too.)

What a cute idea, Mtn... grandparents always love pics and the kids change so much in a year! I was in Barnes & Noble over the weekend to pick up some books and saw this candle and thought it was adorable. They have some other hand gestures also. "Love Ya" Impressions Candle Tobacco and Vanilla by Paddywax | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com) - And for stockings or a little something to add to a gift package, I always have a few Toblerones on hand to stick in DB's gift (his favorite). I can get them on instacart from a couple of stores ..