Arrows for Arrows

It’s almost Father’s Day! Finding the perfect gift can be a little tricky, especially when little kids are involved. You want something that Dad will genuinely love, but also something personal and meaningful that the kids have a big role in. Striking that balance can be an art form, but even more than that I find this as a character development exercise!

Teaching your little ones how to give (or make) a meaningful gift is huge. Over time, it builds thoughtfulness, creativity, and reinforces the real reasons behind these holidays. It isn’t about buying something—anything, hurry, it’s tomorrow!!!—it’s about blessing someone else as an expression of gratitude.

The best Father’s Day gifts don’t need to be expensive or complicated. It also doesn’t need to be a totally random homemade something or other that struggles to find a good home in your house. I love helping figure out what that can look like and I especially love when I don’t even have to because dear daughter has already been planning it for herself.

I’m listing some really cool Father’s Day gift ideas (some that we’ve done and some that are still in the queue) that work especially well when your littles are small. As a bonus, I’m serving up a free printable Father’s Day gift set to help make some of these gift ideas even easier.

Let’s get started!

Things I Love About Dad Time Capsule Page

If you start this year and fill out a new one (even if you re-design it every year or use the same format each time) every Father’s Day, they can all store together and capture the deepening, aging relationship of Father & Kids. A letter-size portfolio is a great first-year gift to start storing them all. This one is included in the free printable Father’s Day gift set at the end of this post.

Things I Love About Dad Love Notes

As a variation (or supplementation) to the above Time Capsule page, we printed out several pages of quarter-sheet notes and writing one thing we appreciate/love about Dad/Hubby on each one. Then, I challenged dear daughter to think of the coolest and most clever places to hide/place the notes throughout the house so that her dad would discover them all day long. Some took a few days, extending the impact even more.

This one is also included in the free printable Father’s Day gift set at the end of this post.

Hand-Painted Photo Frame

This is a really fun one for the little littles because you get to let them go crazy with paint! Grab a wooden photo frame at a local craft store, or online. It’s also a great idea to order them in bulk and split the cost with other families looking to do something meaningful for dad this Father’s Day. If you prefer not the split, a bulk buy can be useful for grandparents, aunts, and uncles at Christmas time.

Put down newspaper or a silicone mat (this is the one that’s held up for us for the last 6 years) and break out the acrylic paint. We have crafting aprons for crafts involving liquids and also have been known to paint outside to reduce the pressure of containing the paint. The good news is, acrylic comes out of hard surfaces pretty easily with a baby wipe or scratch from a fingernail. It’ll also come out of a lot of fabrics (blues are usually the toughest to get out).

Let the paint job be abstract for the littlest ones. If you have multiple, invite them all to contribute, one after the other, starting with the youngest.

Finally, print an old fashioned actual photo of everyone who helped make the gift with the dad in question to put in the frame.

Custom Grilling Apron

There are a ton of “Kiss the Cook” and “Grill King” aprons out there, but you can make one for the man of your house that is one of a kind. I suggest starting out with a high quality grilling apron that will stand the test of time, like this one from Carhartt.

Rather than go the assumed route of acryllic or puffy fabric paint, I challenge you to go a step farther and use screen printing ink. It’s made to be incredibly durable and flexible on fabric, as well as hold up in the wash. You want something that will last as long as the apron that it’s on.

If you have some artsy kiddos, they might want to make their mark by way of some fun patterns or doodles. Otherwise, a classic suggestion is handprints. You can use children’s disposable gloves if you’re worried about skin sensitivity. Given how quickly the process is, the gloves aren’t necessary if you don’t have any on hand and don’t want to splurge on children’s sized disposables. The ink I suggest is said to be gentle on skin and easily cleaned off.

Leftover ink (it’s the consistency of paint) will be useful for years for fabric projects.

Whoever has the neatest (or most fun) handwriting can write something like “Best Dad Ever” or whatever clever or sweet title you want to add, if that floats your boat.

Note that this needs to be done at least 24 hours in advance so the ink can set.

Coupon Books

They sell premade ones on Amazon, but—seriously—this is a super easy DIY. I’ve included a sheet of coupons in the free printable Father’s Day gift set at the end of the post but you can easily make your own with any thicker paper you have lying around, including index cards. Challenge the kids to think of things that their dad:

• really enjoys doing, but may not often get to do;
• something that they could teach dad (ex. Cooking Class: PB&J Edition – it can be cute and fun);
• something said child can do for dad to save him some effort (ex. wash the car, sort tools, mow the lawn, etc.);
• something dad has missed out on in the past (ex. was there a field trip that you went on that the kids think he will enjoy?)

Favorite Snacks!

This is a no brainer and a super easy way to show you know something about dear old dad. Buy him a haul of his favorite snacks and do your best not to help him eat them. You can easily pair each snack with one of the “Things I love about dad” notes.

Prayers of Blessing

Set up a special seat (maybe decorate it with streamers, balloons, or those “Things I Love About You” cards) and ask each child to prepare a prayer of blessing for their papa bear. This is a great opportunity to look at prayers of blessing in the Bible and study what kinds of blessings people gave. Additionally, this is a time to pray for things they have noticed their dad needs encouragement, growth, protection, and provision in.

We love T.A.C.O.S. prayers. I’ll break down how this prayer format can be used to help form a prayer of blessing for kids who may struggle to come up with one on their own.

Thank you’s to God (about Dad)

Acknowledgments of who God is (to and for Dad)

Confessions (of things we can do better in relation to Dad and things he needs help with, tastefully)

Others (prayers for others, in this case for Dad)

Self (prayers for self, in this case maybe prayers for self that would benefit dad)

What’s Your Plan?

These are just some ideas. I’ll be sure to write another post as we brainstorm more. Have fun coming up with ways to show appreciation! I love gifts that show that someone’s paid attention to my loves, needs, wishes, and struggles. It just means so much more. When giving, I find it helpful to ask, “How will this pour into them?”

Which of these are your kids most excited by? Drop it in the comments!

Free Printable Father’s Day Gifts

As promised, here are the printables!

♡, Michelle