10 great gifts for grandparents

Finding the perfect gift for the seniors in your life can be fun, but also a bit of a challenge. You want something thoughtful and practical, but also unique. These 10 gifts will check all the boxes and help keep the recipients healthy, sharp, entertained, well-fed and mostly, feeling loved.

1. Balancing Act

The GIBBON SlackBoard Plus provides at-home stability training to help strengthen balance. Made from sustainably cultivated American maple, each board comes with two straps to convert from two-line training for beginners to single-line as balance improves.

Available in 9 designs, each compact board supports up to 400 pounds, weighs 7.5 pounds and is 42 inches long. $199-$240, gibbon-usa.com

2. A Mental Challenge

The viral Q-Less crossword solitaire game, invented by 75-year-old Tom Sturdevant, has amassed more than 2 million likes on TikTok — and for good reason.

The 3-inch-round metal cannister contains 12 four-sided dice that bear six letters each, but no Qs, hence the name. Play is screenless and straightforward: Roll the dice and use all 12 letters to make words that connect, crossword-puzzle style, with no time limit.

There are only two rules of play: Proper nouns aren’t allowed, and words must have at least three letters each. $14.95, qlessgame.com

3. Always On Time

If you know someone who could benefit from medication reminders, the Nudge smart pill tracker will help keep them on schedule.

Set up a timetable with the accompanying free mobile app, then place a pill bottle on the coaster-like device, which will light up and beep loudly when it’s time for a dose. The green blinking light, visible from across a room, turns off when the bottle is removed so the user can see that the dose has already been taken.

Digital integration keeps track of doses, sends monthly statistics, emails and texts when a dose is missed and allows for information sharing with loved ones. $49.95, nudgedevice.com

4. A Taste of Home

For winter snowbirds — or those who have moved away permanently — consider giving a taste of New York from Katz’s, the iconic 137-year-old Lower East Side delicatessen.

The Holiday Gift Box contains everything needed to build a meal of four “Katz’s-size” sandwiches (or eight standard-size ones): One pound each of hand-carved pastrami and house-cured corned beef, a half-loaf of deli rye bread, 1 pound of Swiss cheese, 8 ounces of deli mustard, 8 ounces of Reuben dressing, 8 ounces of sauerkraut, a quart-sized jar of full-sour pickles and one package of mini black and white cookies. Includes free nationwide shipping. $140, katzsdelicatessen .com/holiday-box.html

5. Creative Zen

Painting is an artistic outlet that typically requires paint, brushes, a canvas, an easel and space to set up and store it, plus cleanup effort. It also usually needs to be done in one place. The portable Buddha Board, however, requires only water and a paintbrush.

Fill the well with water, dip in the brush and practice mindfulness while unleashing your inspiration onto the board. Within 30 seconds, your creation will begin to evaporate, clearing the way for your next masterpiece.

The set includes a 12-by-9-inch board; sturdy, waterproof stand with water reservoir and a premium bamboo paintbrush. $34.95, buddhaboard.com/products/original-buddha-board

6. A Puzzling Subscription

What do you do with a jigsaw puzzle after you’ve assembled it? Rather than having piles of boxes collecting dust in a closet, Completing the Puzzle, a new puzzle-rental subscription service, will let you return it for another, library-style.

Customize your subscription by choosing your level of expertise, from beginner (receive 200- to 300-piece puzzles that typically take 5-8 hours to complete), intermediate (500-750 pieces; 9-12 hours) or expert (1,000+ pieces; 12+ hours) and enter your puzzle-theme preferences. Then choose a 1-, 3- or 6-month subscription term for $30, $29 or $28 a month, respectively. Each subscription includes unlimited puzzles within the timeframe and auto-renews until cancellation. Round-trip shipping is free, and the catalog ensures variety, with more than 1,300 puzzles from 40 premium brands, completingthepuzzle.com  

7. Smart Sanitizing

Unlike other UV-disinfection devices, most of which emit invisible waves via a handheld wand, box or tray and require watching a timer, UVCeed offers the first AI-powered, mobile UVC disinfectant platform. It’s also the first to provide trackable, visual feedback in a portable unit.

Attach the credit card-sized device to the back of your cellphone via MagSafe or the included adhesive-backed plate, download the UVCeed mobile app and set your preferences, including disinfection levels for individual pathogens such as E. coli, Covid-19 and S. Aureus.

Then point your phone’s camera at your eyeglasses, keys, hotel remote control or other germy item, and tap the screen to start emitting hospital-grade UVC LED light. The app displays the device’s progress as it kills up to 99.9% of viruses and bacteria in as little as 30 seconds. $129, uvceed.com

8. A Cherished Keepsake

They carry their loved ones in their hearts; why not carry them around their necks? The custom Cahve Heirloom Impression Kit allows you or your gift recipient to create a one-of-a-kind, sentimental pendant necklace.

Capture an imprint — such as a child’s fingerprint, a newborn’s toeprint, a dog’s nose print or any small item of personal significance — on a wax template. Then mail it back for casting into a sterling silver necklace.

Give them the kit or surprise them with a completed necklace. Prices vary by size ($119-$139), with upgrades available for gold and platinum metals. cahve.com/products/heirloom-impression-kit

9. The Gift of Laughter

Can the packaging be the best part of the gift? Maybe! Prank-O gift boxes depict wacky fake products that will stun, perplex and then send them into hysterics when they catch on to the joke.

Each 11-by-9-by-3-inch empty box bears the logo and design for a ludicrous product, such as a wearable cat-tree hat, cheese printer, toilet treadmill, squirrel hot tub or liquor-dispensing vest. Place your own gift inside and enjoy their reaction when they unwrap and try to make sense of it.

Available in 53 product designs, each empty gift box is $9.99, but the laughs may be priceless. pranko.com/collections/prank-packs

10. Sail Swagger

Seafarers and landlubbers alike will appreciate these sturdy yet lightweight totes from Sea Bags. Each handmade bag is designed and sewn in Portland, Maine, from locally sourced, recycled sailcloth and has durable rope handles.

The medium (14-by-14-by-6-inch) tote is ideal for carrying personal essentials to the beach, on a boat, to work or from the store. Available in dozens of designs (blue nautilus is shown), including custom options. $160-$225, seabags.com