hand held electronic games? ipods, but they are pricey. tshirt or sweatshirt with a college or state name?

Any particular price range? The usual smart alec answer is 9 & 13 yo girls, but that's politically incorrect these days.

Clothes and food are usually good options with that age. Something that is compatible with hobbies? Sporting goods.

Also, is it intended as a souvenir or a more "traditional" gift?

My nephews always want Harley Davison T'shirts from different cities. They have the name of the city and store that you get them from. They have quite a collection now. Just a thought!

They would probably enjoy an assortment of brand name candies and cookies that are probably not available there.

This post was edited by lydia1959 on Thu, Dec 6, 12 at 16:48

My Grandsons are 9 and 11. The nine-year old wants every skateboard ever made and the 11-yr. old only wants cash and video games.

Lots of good ideas so far, but some are to pricey.

I haven't seen them since they were 5 and 9, and so far, I know they want peanut butter cups, aka reeses.

I might just give them some cash, when we are out and about...

Moni

Legos! They come in all age ranges up to 14. You'd probably have to check with Mom and Dad though to see if they have any, and if they have certain ones they want or what their interests are that way. For example Monster Fighters, Off Roaders, Star Wars, etc.

I recently gave a 12 year old friend an Amazon gift certificate, and he immediately found a Lego Set he wanted. His Mom had told me he was nuts about them, so I felt sure he would find something he wanted.

Good luck.

Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Legoes at Amazon

Ask them what they would like--clothes, games, food and be sure and check what you can take---and do they have any electronic items you can get stuff for? If they are reluctant, just be honest with them and ask--what do you really want that won't be too expensive. I find that most kids are honest and do respect your financial boundaries.

I have 10 and 12 year old boys. This is a hard year to shop. Mine are done with toys. You might look up some Oklahoma t-shirts or sports teams, etc. Sometimes stuff like that is considered to be pretty cool if coming from the US. Size wise, I'd look at Youth large and Adult small-medium. Post cards would be neat. Are our toys like an 8 ball or slinkies or even Twister available in Germany? They are fun.

Adding: Not sure of the availability of duct tape in Germany. It comes in all colors and sizes. My kids love it for all sorts of things including making duct tape wallets.

This post was edited by adellabedella on Thu, Dec 6, 12 at 18:38

My grandson is 13, he's into games and his GF. He wanted a Browning jacket this year. I got him all clothes. I was at a loss as to what to get him. He has everything.

For the 9 year old definitely Legos.

Vote for Legos! Actually I got my 9 year old grandson some NanoBlocks. The set builds to 7.5"x3"x3" and is 580 blocks in the set. They are so-o small.
Too cool and Toys R Us has them.
This is the one I got.

Here is a link that might be useful: Nano Space Shuttle

For boys in Germany, how about t-shirts or sweatshirts from American universities or pro teams? My 9 yr old grandson is getting a UC Santa Cruz Banana Slug t-shirt.

Last year I bought DH GIANT Reeses PB cups for $10. I think they were at CVS. Not sure how much space you will have-boys that age like Nerf guns. They also usually like funny tee shirts or some with logos Coke, maybe Reeses!). Sears might have those. Maybe they are just for older kids (logos), not sure.

I have 10 and 14 yr. old grandsons. They like cold, hard cash (to save up for video games, etc). As do the 10 and 12 yr. old granddaughters. I personalize the cash gifts by doing origami with the bills. And this saves me shipping costs, if I'd bought a present (that they'd then want to return for cash.) There are a ton of videos on the net about doing origami.

I have a 14 year old grandson, and he likes money or clothes particularly from Hollister and American Eagle.

I shot off another email to my brother.

Electronics are out, first of all, the expense, second the current in Germany is 220 rather than the US standard of 110.

Legos.... well, my brother had a HUGE selection of Legos, and I know, the boys got some for Christmas in the past. I hate thinking of how many rubbermaid totes they can fill now.

Thanks for the HUGE Reeces idea. I will look for them, and just slip some cash to them as well.

Thanks everyone for your ideas.

Moni

How about Itunes gift cards? Almost like giving cash, but not quite and easy to transport. And every kid uses itunes.