{"id":53,"date":"2011-06-06T06:18:50","date_gmt":"2011-06-06T10:18:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/dadequate\/?p=53"},"modified":"2011-06-05T22:36:02","modified_gmt":"2011-06-06T02:36:02","slug":"fathers-day-gift-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/dadequate\/2011\/06\/fathers-day-gift-ideas.html","title":{"rendered":"For Father’s Day, You Get $106.49"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tie\"photo \u00a9 2006 Kris Arnold<\/a> | more info <\/a><\/span>(via: Wylio<\/a>)<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>Father’s Day is less than two weeks from today. <\/strong>If you are an average dad, according to the National Retail Federation, you can expect your family to spend $106.49 on your gift(s).<\/p>\n

From the Chicago Sun-Times<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n

Shoppers are forecast to spend an average of $106.49 each this Father\u2019s Day, the greatest amount in the eight years that the National Retail Federation has tracked Father\u2019s Day spending. Dad hasn\u2019t caught up with Mom, however. This year\u2019s Mother\u2019s Day spending averaged $140.73.<\/p>\n

Spending for this Father\u2019s Day, June 19, is forecast to grow 13 percent from last year\u2019s $94.32 average. The most popular gifts will be clothes, gift cards, tools and appliances, each with a collective $1.4 billion outlay nationally, followed by electronics ($1.3 billion), sporting goods ($653 million), books and CDs ($598 million) and auto accessories ($593 million), the retail group reports.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That amount seems pretty high to me. <\/strong>But in our family, we aren’t huge gift-givers for Father’s Day or Mother’s Day or even birthdays (at least for us parents).<\/p>\n

Part of it is a conscious decision not to be too focused on material things. Another part of it is that my wife and I are both pretty thrifty. Let’s be honest: any Father’s Day gift I receive is one I’m pretty much paying for myself. If I really want $106.49 of something, I can just save up and buy it.<\/p>\n

And a third part of it, I guess, is a little counter-cultural. We try to appreciate each other on a regular basis. Not just on culturally obligatory days.<\/p>\n

So if it’s the thought that counts anyway, instead of spending $106.49 on each other for Father’s Day and Mother’s Day, we take a simpler approach. My wife will take the kids to the local dollar store and let each kid pick out anything they want for me. It costs us $2 and change. We do the same for her on Mother’s Day. And on our birthdays, too.<\/p>\n

Over the last few Father’s Days, I have received:<\/p>\n