Remember it is a gift. To me that means it is given freely without expectation of anything in return.
I give gifts out of gratitude -no strings attached.
Originally Posted by mm-good
I agree with you and I think this very important piece is often forgotten.
It isn't a gift if it's given with expectations to follow. Now, when a gift is given it might encourage the person on the receiving end to return the favor in some way; but if it's expected for the person on the receiving end to follow up and do something, that isn't fair, that isn't how gift giving works. I love to give gifts and surprises, but it's hard when the person on the other end is always... expecting special little things. Makes it not as special. Especially if the gift or surprise is the same all the time. Such as always giving a cash tip to a provider, I think eventually she wouldn't consider it a gift, but she would come to expect it. Or if you got her a card every time, she may grow to expecting a card. With this in mind, I think the best way to go about gifting is to change it up, always something different, sometimes cheap, just so to not set the wrong... expectation.