An Un-Toy Holiday Gift for Children
November 19, 2008 by Mr. ToughMoneyLove
Filed under Spending
Having raised three boys of my own, I know the power of advertising in persuading children and their parents that toys must be at the top, bottom, and middle of all Christmas gift lists. The price we paid for falling victim to this power is measured by the many hours we spent wondering around Target and Toys R Us.
Recently, I discovered a company – OneShare.com – that sells individual shares of stock in framed certificates. Finding a stock certificate itself is unusual these days and OneShare has access to many companies that still issue them. Some of these companies are those that a child will recognize. It is a great teaching opportunity for you and learning opportunity for your child or grandchild. And, the value of the stock will no doubt increase over time, thereby boosting the value of your gift at no additional cost to you.
I am mentioning this non-toy gift option today because 11/19 at midnight is the deadline for guaranteed delivery by Christmas. If you click the link to OneShare.com in the left sidebar on this page, you will be taken to the OneShare site where you can browse the products and order if you like. if you do order using that link, Mr. ToughMoneyLove will earn a small commission which I will donate to charity. It doesn’t cost you anything extra to order that way. Everyone wins, including one of my favorite charities.
So consider the “un-toy” option this year. That way, your Christmas gift will probably hang around a while.
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So, I can get one share of $20.67 Disney for $118. Woo hoo!
That’s a pretty lousy financial lesson, and (hate to break it to you) it’s more branding, which is the last thing kids need. Rip-offs like this is why I don’t take ads.
Dogatemyfinances: First, you don’t need to buy a frame or other add-ons that jack the price up. Second, have you checked the prices of video gaming systems and other toys lately? Third – the kids already know the brand – this lets them own a piece of it. Fourth, running the link to OneShare.com gives me an opportunity to earn a little extra coin to donate to my favorite charities. But to each his own. Buy toys from China if that suits your consumer philosophy.
That’s what my grandpa did; that’s how I went to college.