After all of the difficulties everyone experienced this year, the holiday season is a time for everyone to safely enjoy themselves and hopefully be with family.

One of the most common ways to show how much you care about someone during the holidays is through gift giving. Due to COVID-19, some families and friends might not be able to celebrate together, so that means gift giving is extra important this year.

Giving a thoughtful gift can mean so much to someone because it lets them know that you are thinking of them.

“I love giving people gifts and seeing their reaction,” Nonnewaug junior Courtney Anderson said. “It is so heartwarming and I try to think of ideas for people that would be something that they want and need.”

Keep in mind that sometimes parents or grandparents may enjoy something handmade more than something you can buy.

Math teacher Nicole Cowles said that the best gifts she has received are anything from her kids.

“Especially the things they made or picked out when they were little — now that they are older (the youngest is almost 17), they still give me very thoughtful gifts and some of them are still handmade,” Cowles said.

When it comes to deciding between shopping online or in-store, there are many pros and cons of both.

“I enjoy both,” Cowles said. “I love the convenience of shopping online, especially during COVID, when I don’t want to linger in stores. “But I love seeing items in person — I buy my kids a Christmas book every year and it is so hard deciding if a book is worth buying without looking through the pages in person.”

Because of the virus, shopping fully online might be a better option for some people. Luckily, every store you can imagine is available online and there are a lot of deals going on right now.

One of the most convenient places to shop online is Amazon. They have great deals and fast shipping. The best gift ideas that I came up with and can all be found on Amazon were FitBits, Tile Mates, virtual reality headsets, and weighted blankets.

FitBits would be a great gift idea for parents, especially if they have goals to be more active in the new year. Another gift idea for parents is a Tile Mate. A Tile Mate is a small Bluetooth device that can be attached to keys, sunglasses, phones and other items that are commonly misplaced.

A gift that could be for a sibling or really anyone in your family would be a virtual reality headset. Usually these can be really expensive, but Amazon has some good options for $39.99. VR would definitely be such a fun thing for anyone. Weighted blankets would make a great gift for anyone, too. They are extremely relaxing and come in different weights and colors.

When shopping for gifts this holiday season, don’t overthink it. Remember that it will be meaningful no matter what because even the simplest things show you care.

This is the opinion of Kamden Bushka, an arts and entertainment editor for the NHS Chief Advocate and a junior at Nonnewaug.