Black Friday has come and gone. And for you other uncles out there, that means your time to forget to buy your听nephews and nieces entirely inappropriate gifts is rapidly drawing to a close. Allow me to help.
Their First Motorcycle
Everyone knows motorcycles are dangerous. Fortunately, young bones heal faster than old ones; there鈥檚 no better time to start riding than when you鈥檙e a kid.
How old does a child need to be before you can give them their first motorcycle? Harley-Davidson says its new range of electric balance bikes are听appropriate for children ages听three and up. So, naturally, I gave my best friend鈥檚 son, Wilder, his first Hog for his second birthday.
The IRONe12听($650) weighs just 17 pounds, so even Wilder鈥檚 dad is able to load it into and out of his truck with ease.听It operates with a twist throttle, so Wilder is learning real motorcycle control skills, as well as听balance, as he rips around trails on this thing at nine miles per hour, the top speed.
The two-amp-hour battery is only enough for about 30 minutes of riding, so in addition to a helmet, make sure you order your niece or nephew an extra one, too.
Their First Knife
According to a National Library of Medicine study, knives send to the emergency room every day. I gave Wilder that motorcycle because his mom told me two was too young for a first knife. What is听the right age? Every kid is different, obviously, but Boy Scouts start earning their Totin鈥 Chip (the equivalent of听a learner鈥檚 permit for knives)听at ten years old.
I鈥檓 pretty sure my biological nephew, Roscoe, is eight, so for Christmas this year, I shipped a听听($30) to his house in France. That鈥檚 the model I had when I was his age, and it comes complete with a saw,听scissors, and an awl (in addition to the blades and other tools), which听I remember using regularly听to construct a variety of forts and weapons.
There are听other knives out there and supposedly learner-friendly features, but in my opinion, as an avowed not-a-parent, a kid is better off learning how to handle the real thing. Pain remains an effective teacher. I still sport a scar from a Swiss Army knife saw across my left thumb鈥攂ut I haven鈥檛 injured myself with any saw听since.
A Trampoline
My two-year-old niece, Sarah, lives in Los Angeles听and doesn鈥檛 have a yard big enough for archery or motorcycle riding. However, trampolines can be stored vertically, meaning they take up no more room than a card table. The Academy of Pediatrics says trampolines are responsible for , a third of whom听break bones.
But they鈥檙e also a lot of fun. So听my wife and I picked out one for $90 that comes in bright colors and听is听appropriate for Sarah鈥檚听age. We look forward to seeing her parents鈥 faces on Zoom听after a long Christmas morning of nonstop jumping.
Camping Gear
There鈥檚 no better experience for a kid than a camping trip. Aside from weather, the primary determinant in the enjoyment of a night in the woods is the quality of your听camping gear. I figure most parents probably don鈥檛 spend as much time nerding out on this stuff as I do. And since I don鈥檛 have to foot听the bills for babysitters听and piano lessons, I figure it鈥檚 my sacred uncle duty to help out with equipment.
Big Agnes makes a handful of killer sleeping bags for kids听that pair with any 20-inch-wide rectangular pad. They鈥檒l keep children comfortable听down to 15 degrees (when paired with an insulated pad)听and use synthetic insulation that will remain warm if it gets wet. Better yet: they鈥檙e affordable, with prices starting at $70.
Kids can鈥檛 really go camping without an adult, so the biggest helpful hand you can extend听as gift-giver听may be with adult gear.听Sizing their tent up to a three- or four-person model might help,听as听might upgrading their sleep system to something warmer, more comfortable, or lighter. You can find my recommendations for two-person backpacking sleep systems here听and car camping setups here.
Of course, the best thing you can offer is to take your niece or nephew on a camping trip yourself.
Their First Bow
Once again this year, Wilder鈥檚 mom explained to me that he鈥檚 still听too young for a knife.听But听a National Library of Medicine study assures me that听. So I felt confident ordering Wilder a bow and arrow听for his third birthday.
The听 ($99) says it鈥檚 appropriate for kids ages听three through six. So听Wilder should be able to enjoy this thing for at least a year before he grows out of it.
Roscoe鈥檚 approximate age makes him too big for the Lil鈥 John, so for Christmas听I shipped him the ($110), sized听for听kids eight and up. The odds that my sister actually lets him听use听this thing are slim, but that at least means he鈥檒l be looking forward to archery lessons during my next visit.
Both bows include only three arrows. Kids learning archery lose arrows at a frightening rate, so I ordered six extra for each bow. Make sure you do the same, with arrows of the correct length. The parents will also probably appreciate a target. The relatively minimal draw weights for these bows means that a hay bale with a few dots spray-painted on it will work just fine.