Happy (Hawaii) 5-0! Milestone gift

While in Utah, my sister-in-law had a major milestone birthday...the big 5-0! She is not the kind that appreciates a big fuss (no wild 50th birthday parties), but I, being who I am, could not let the occasion pass by with out giving her some sort of cheesy gift.

Not being keen on a big fuss, I wasn't sure she would be excited about all of the gag gifts you can find at the party store that make people feel REALLY old. I'm not sure I'd be ok with those if it were my birthday...so I asked my reinforcements (Twitter friends & Facebook friends) for ideas that were fun, but not cruel.

Cheryl (@CherylStyle) was full of great ideas! She was the one who suggested the Hawaii 5-0 idea. I thought it was the perfect blend of cheezy and clever (and non-offensive). And anyone turning 50 is sure to know all about Hawaii 5-0.

I didn't have a lot of time or money to throw the gift together. I designed a simple card to say 

"Happy (Hawaii) 5-0!"

Then went to the dollar store to load up on luau goodies. I used an old basket my mother had to support the straw hat. I added a lei, some plastic coconut cups, the tropical drink sunglasses, pineapple straws, etc. My SIL is practical enough, that I knew there had to be at least one thing in the package that would be consumed and enjoyed, so I added the macadamia nuts. (NOTE: these are pretty pricey here on the mainland!) I wanted to get some of the chocolate covered macadamia nuts, but couldn't find them in the time I had.

What would you put in a Hawaii 5-0 basket? Have you done any clever gifts for a milestone birthday? Do you go for clever or cruel or both?

For more Milestone gifts, check out the 30 sucks I gave my sister and the flippin' 40 gifts,

Susan made for her girlfriends.