I don't know about you, but I have a lot of kids to buy gifts for. And some of my friends are amazingly generous. Thankfully so far my daughter does not have too many toys (by that I mean I don't yet feel overwhelmed by them). And I think this is a combination of being lucky with relatives primarily and exercising some self control with birthdays and holidays.
Caia's grandparents keep pretty cool about birthdays and Christmas. They are very generous but they tend to focus on one special gift and some books and clothes. For example, a special gift she received in the past was a lovely little buggy for Caia's dolls. It is not terribly plasticy and not super cheap so we can take it outside for little walks, it is pretty, and we hope it will last as long as Caia wants it and then some.
We try to maintain this same philosophy for Caia's gifts and what we give her friends. My new favorite store to buy children's gifts is Dilly Dally. I can pop in with Caia and they have some fun things for Caia to play with while I look around. I can make a decision without feeling stressed to leave or to buy Caia anything. But I do let her choose a 25c sticker set.
Their general philosophy makes sense for me too. They mostly have wooden and fabric toys but if the toy is more functional and durable as plastic then they stock in plastic. A good example are bigger toy trucks. They just function better as plastic. They also keep track of where toys are made, what paint is used and so on. It is not a cheap store, but there are many reasonably priced items. And it is local (not a big chain). So it fits with my philosophy too.
I try to have a little theme for a children's gift and if possible stick to around $25-30 plus a nice little card. When Caia is older we will start making more cards. But until then I am coughing up the dough!
As for wrapping paper, I will use what the store provides free or pull from gift bags and tissue I have saved. Sometimes I buy inexpensive coloured tissue paper. I have not bought a gift bag in years because I have saved all of the ones Caia receives and then I reuse them.
Part of the reason Caia doesn't have too many toys so far is that she has never really had a birthday party. At 1 and 2 years old she was more than content to celebrate with family. We also travel when its her birthday (August) so it hasn't been too much pressure in the past. But she is turning 3 this year so she is quite aware of the whole party thing. This year will be her first official birthday party.
However... we plan to keep it quite small. Just close friends of Caia and us, and perhaps a few buddies from daycare (maybe only one). It will be in our house and backyard. And we will serve veggie dogs, home made macaroni, and home made pizza. Plus home made cupcakes (her absolute favorite). I will plan one special craft but let the kids play outside. Hopefully it is sunny so we will have water and sandbox play!
What about random gifts at other times of the year or other holidays? Well, Caia got chocolates, a bunny, a few Beatrix Potter table pieces, and a little tea set for Easter this year. I can't exactly call that minimal, but other than the little bunny and chocolates I think they were gifts that will stand the test of time and will get a lot of use. I kind of have a thing for Easter. Many other holidays come and go without gifts. And very very rarely I will give her a little random gift- say a hair clip if I think she needs it. But it is so rare she has yet to expect it.
I would rather buy one decent quality toy that will grow with Caia rather than a bunch of cheap plastic toys. Toys that grow with her- like puppets, doll related toys, books, sand toys and so on. So far so good. But maybe check in with me in another year or two and we will see where we are at!
So what's my philosophy? Good quality, stands the test of time, adaptable to different ages if possible, local where possible, minimal plastic, reasonably priced.
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