We have been really trying to encourage experience gifts (see a great list of ideas for Experience Gifts here) and this Christmas the Grandparents knocked it out of the park. One set of Grandparents got the kids an Alberta’s History Annual Pass which allows us to visit numerous museums and historical sites across the province. Over the break we already used it twice (once for the Royal Alberta Museum and once for the Royal Tyrrell Museum) making it already pay for itself and it’s only the first month! You can learn more about these passes and buy your own here. It is only $120 for a family pass so if you plan on exploring the province this summer we highly recommend this pass.
The other set of Grandparents found another great gift idea. Subscription boxes. You remember how excited you used to get when mail came? Well these boxes make that happen every month! This year Grandma found Kiwi Co. and signed the boys up for a Kiwi Box (5-8 years old) and a Tinker Box (9-16+). We have received two boxes so far and I am so impressed with the quality.
Kiwi Box
The Kiwi Box was purchased for our 7 year old. He has been able to do all the activities *mostly* by himself (all himself if you ask him but he did need a bit of help tightening the bolts of one project when he wasn’t looking) using their easy Step by Step instructions.
The best part about these boxes is that EVERYTHING you need comes in one box. They really thought of small details too like adding stickers to hold the yarn down (first photo) so little fingers didn’t have to hold and wrap the yarn around at the same time. This cut down on frustrations and let him do it without help.
The box had everything he needed to make two pom pom monsters and a “Claw” for the arcade game. The Claw had a template to lay out all the pieces on making it easy to match up the shapes and screw the pieces together. The box it was shipped in even became part of the game saving you from having to go find one.
Tinker Box
Finding something for older kids is hard. I had very low expectations for this one but was quite surprised when our 10 year old started to build his Tinker Box. He received the Spin Art Box for his first one. He had to build the whole motor including learning about circuits to make it spin.
Again the box it shipped in became the box he built everything in. He was also able to do everything himself because the instructions were so well written and easy to understand because of all the photos. He has had a lot of fun changing the circuits around making it spin faster and slower to create different effects with the paint.
Overall Review
Kiwi Co. has a wide selection of boxes to choose from (see them all here) and it was nice to be able to find something for both of the boy’s ages from the same company because it ships out on the same day. They both spent a few hours building, making and creating with their boxes and have since pulled them out a few times to play with them.
The instructions are well done, everything you need comes in one box, and the boxes are age appropriate for what their website says. The materials aren’t cheap and won’t fall apart if they pull or push too hard on something. Once the project is built it is sturdy enough to be played with for a while not just a throw away toy. It also comes with a magazine with other activities related to the theme they got and online games/activities they can do as well.
They are a bit more than other subscription boxes coming in at just over $20 per month when you buy a 12 month subscription but I feel like the quality and amount of things you get are worth it. We have gotten two months now and each one has been really good quality.
This was not a paid sponsorship just a really great gift we wanted to share with you!
