by Kelly Ismail

Created on: December 08, 2008   Last Updated: October 08, 2010

Christmas gifts come in all shapes and sizes. They come in different wrappers and bows. A lot of time and money is spent making Christmas everything it can be for the ones you love. And you do this because of your love for them.However, there are certain gifts that can have more meaning because not only were they given with love, they were also made with love.

I have a very simple and easy gift that can be made. It is great for grandparents and parents and anyone else that is close in the family. It doesn't cost that much to make and it is filled with love. I gave this gift to my parents last year and they absolutely loved it. It meant the world to them and maybe you will find someone that you can do this for and it will mean so much to them too.

Memories In a Bottle

This is a simple gift to make and it comes from the heart. It is also something that the whole family can do together. My kids loved being a part of this.

Here's what you will need.

* A bottle or jar with a wide mouth. The size is up to you because you will be filling it with memories.

* Paper - This will depend on what you want to use. I used plain white paper but you can use colored as long as you can clearly read what you are writing on it.

* Scissors - You are going to be cutting the paper into even strips.

* Ribbon - You can use any color. Since I made this gift for my parents, I used three different colors. One for my mom, one for dad, and one that was for both of them together.

Ribbon - This one is a wide strip. You will use this to tie around the neck of the bottle or jar.

Let's say you are making this gift for your parents. You would sit down and write out memories that you have being with them. These could be any kind of good memories that carry a special place in your heart. Each strip of paper you cut is a separate memory. For example: I remember when I was helping you move and it started snowing. We stopped what we were doing and went outside and tried to catch snowflakes.

Once you have all your strips filled out and cut, then you cut your thinner stripped ribbon into pieces. These pieces should be long enough so that when you roll your memories up into a scroll, you can tie it around the scroll and make a bow.

After you have rolled and tied your scrolls, you drop them into the bottle. Like I said earlier, if you want to make separate memories for mom and dad, you can use the same bottle, just use a different color of ribbon.

When you are done filling the bottle, take your large strip of ribbon that you are tying around the neck of the bottle and write on one part memories in a bottle. You can use glitter glue or colorful writing pens to do this.

That's it. Your gift is made and it is meaningful and full of love. It didn't cost you a lot to do but you put your heart into it. When you give the person or people the bottle, you can tell them that whenever they are having a bad day or just want to smile to pull a happy memory out.

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