I have a story to tell.
My one nephew is 13 and is a good kid.
He is really into this game where you can buy figures and game pieces for it.
We only have one store locally that sells the pieces, the guy had told us that his order was coming in Dec 23rd (my nephew already had the pieces he had in stock).
We show up about 1/2 hour before closing on the 23rd to be told the order didn't arrive.
We come back on the 24th to find the store closed.
My wife and I had looked for another gift since the 23rd but were unable to find one, so we decided to give him money (I hate giving or receiving money).
I had been teasing my nephew for a while that I was going to get him something educational for Christmas because of his grades.
I went to a couple of dollar stores looking for a cheap educational toy like a bug zoo to give him as a joke with the money inside.
Couldn't find one, so I settled on this $1.50 boonie hat with a zipper pocket in the side. I placed the money in the pocket with a note that said please open.
I placed the hat in a little box with the price tag showing (and the pocket/note)
When my nephew opened the box he saw the CHEAP HAT and $1.50 price tag, he didn't notice the open me tag. He just put on a smile and said thank you uncle Bill like it was something he really wanted.
Unless you knew the kid you couldn't tell he was disappointed, I then told him to open the pocket, well the $30 inside really made him smile.

As his uncle I knew he was a good kid, but to be honest he surprised me with the way he reacted to the gag gift.