Gift Ideas: 11 Year Old Boy

Eleven is the age where gift ideas for boys are HARD to come up with.  All Caden really wanted this year was ‘video game stuff.’  So, after much poking and prodding, I finally got him to spew out some non-gamer ideas, but, it took a significant amount of brain-usage!

Gift Ideas: 11 Year Old Boy

Here’s the scoop:

Because the built-in speakers just aren’t cutting it.  And, if you have an old-school iPod, you don’t even have speakers.  These iPod speakers from iHome are under $20 bucks AND get spectacular reviews.  If junior would rather have a docking system, I think I would go for the Altec Lansing, based on the price and reviews.

If there is one thing I’ve learned as a mom, it’s that there is no point in making my kid’s rooms cute/cool until they’re older.  All of my efforts and money put toward cuteness have been squandered because my kids are kids…they kind of remind me of puppies.  I’ve got rooms where every picture frame has broken glass, nail polish has been dumped on the floor and used to paint the toys.  I have pen stabs in the wall and bean bag chairs that have been cut with scissors.  There is permanent marker on bed spreads and blind pulls tied in quadruple knots.  It’s funny though, not all of my kids are destructive like that.  Caden never was.  He has always been my borderline OCD child, loving cleanliness and order.  The destruction is usually at the hands of my more creative-minded children, one of which has been sharing a room with Caden.  Until now.  Caden is so, SO happy to finally have his own room.  So, for his birthday, I picked up some fun items to turn it into something that fits his personality.  And, it’s wonderful knowing that he’s old enough to take care of everything, from the carpet to the walls.  My whole point is…11 is a great age to change up their room.  Take it from ‘little kid’ to cool kid.  I found a great quilt from PB Teen, bought some Annie Sloan Paint to paint his nightstands to match, picked up some throw pillows, a few room knick-knacks, framed a couple posters, and bought a super cool wall sticker from Fathead.

Caden and most of his friends are still into LEGOS, but more specifically, Caden likes the brand called Mega Bloks because it has some of his favorite themes, like Halo and Warcraft.

Caden was ever-so-not-patiently awaiting the release of the 7th book in the series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, The Third Wheel.  He just got it in the mail the other day and he can’t put it down!  I love seeing him with a book in hand, even if it’s loaded with cartoon pictures.  The whole series is perfect for this age!

Yes, it’s pricey.  But, if you’re looking for that ONE sweet gift, the Nintendo 3DS XL would be it.  Both of my boys have been longing for one of these…hasn’t happened yet.  As far as games for it, they say, ‘Super Mario Bros 2, Mario Kart 7, Asphalt 3D, and Super Mario 3D Land.’

My kids love collecting.  At least once a week I hear, ‘This is going to be my new collection!’…and it will be stuff like coloring books, scratched CDs, candy wrappers, ya know.  But, Caden is finally at the age where he takes collecting seriously.  He loves to look up values of items, think about resale value, and search for missing pieces.  Lately, he has liked collecting his favorite movies and he has really been wishing for The Lord of the Rings DVD set.  It actually doesn’t make much sense to buy the set, because the DVDs end up costing significantly more than if you bought them individually…I mean, SIGNIFICANTLY.  So, with that said…here’s the links to the individual movies: Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and Return of the King.

Lastly, not very creative, but highly recommended by Caden is a gift card to Amazon.com.  You can literally buy almost anything on Amazon, read reviews, and his favorite thing…keep a wishlist.

I remember being little and wishing I could play the guitar…same for you??  So, it’s funny to now hear Caden asking to get his own guitar and take lessons.  Well, not funny…I think it’s really cool.  It’s a great instrument and a fantastic way to learn music.  I wouldn’t want to fork over gobs of money on an instrument until I knew he was really interested in it.  So, I found this highly rated 38″ student guitar for just $35.  If he ended up not wanting to play anymore, it wouldn’t hurt as much as if I had spent the big bucks.  …now, to look into lessons.

Hope that helps you with some ideas for your 11 year old boy!

* For more gift ideas for boys and everyone on your list, visit my Gift Idea Central!