Christmas Wrapping Ideas: Number Mystery
Christmas is fast approaching and I just came up with an idea for our girls that I couldn’t wait to share. Last year my darling Faith guessed one of her gifts based on it’s shape. She has a gift with spatial recognition and knew the box that was wrapped was shaped just like a Lego Friends set she had been asking for. She’s also the first that will spot a newly wrapped gift under the tree and checks the tree every morning (I typically wrap at night). I could wait to set out the gifts until Christmas Eve, but I don’t want to do that. I love seeing them excited each day as a new gift appears. We’re planning to do a Christmas Scavenger Hunt, but I still wanted to do more!
So, I decided to brainstorm some Christmas wrapping ideas that would help keep the gifts a mystery. I follow Becky on instagram, and she recently posted a photo of a numbered gift. It sounds like they have a fun tradition with drawing numbers, but I knew I couldn’t risk the random method with our gifts this year. Some of the gifts are extras to a big gift, and I didn’t want the accessory to be opened before the main item. But it helped me with my Christmas wrapping ideas brainstorming and coming up with this idea:
I’ve created a free printable that I’m using to keep track of the gift numbers, and I’m sharing it with you. How I’m using it is to write down the name of the person in a number spot then grabbing the gift and writing that number on the gift tag. You can then keep the gifts being opened in a specific order, and vary the people opening gifts. On Christmas morning I’ll have the master list and as my girls grab a numbered gift (in numerical order) I’ll name who the gift is for. I’m actually including William and my mom in the game too. I even thought that if William wants to make me a part of the game, he could number his gifts with 1/2 numbers. That way he can help incorporate my gift(s) into the game as well.
I’ve created two columns on the sheet for two reasons. First, you could write what the gift is in the second column. You just want to make sure you don’t let that column be seen on Christmas morning. Or, you could use that column as a new set of numbers if you have a lot of gifts/people. So number 1 becomes 11, 2 is 12… I’m sharing three similar forms that have just have some different colors/borders in case you prefer one over the other.
Don’t forget to check out my other fun Christmas Scavenger Hunt ideas! Do you have any fun Christmas wrapping ideas?
i use one wrapping paper per child then all thier gifts are alike
That’s a fun idea Kim. I have a slight problem with buying wrapping paper the day after Christmas, so I always want to use lots of types! :)
We get really frustrated when the kids (five of them) figure out what is what before the day. We have used several different ideas over the last eight years. I think we have just as much fun thinking up new ways to label as we do deciding what to purchase or make for each person! We have used different wrapping paper for each kid, a different color bow or color combo of different bows, several different numbering systems (sometimes the number means something to the child, sometimes not), and even switching the names so that child 1 is all labeled with say child 2s name.
Sounds like a lot of fun! I think I’m like you and would have fun coming up with new ideas each year – gotta keep those kids guessing! :)
We assigned each child a number. I did not do 1 for oldest 2 second so on. And when it came time to open they were wrong on what number they thought they were. I had five children and put the numbers reversed so oldest was 4 hope this helps someone