NATCHEZ — Ask almost any high school senior what they want for graduation and the answer is much the same.

“A car, a house, money,” Adams County Christian School senior Amber Taylor said. “But I doubt I’ll get a car or a house.”

Just in case you aren’t uncle moneybags, area stores offer quite an array of other — smaller, yet meaningful — gifts to choose from.

And this time of year leaves those retailers singing “It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” all over again.

“Graduation is a second Christmas for us,” Just 4 You Monograms and Gifts owner Susan Smith said.

“I come within $5,000 of Christmas (sales) at graduation. It’s really like having two Christmases.”

Other retailers agreed, saying graduation season is vital to their bottom lines.

At One of a Kind Gifts on Main Street orders are already beginning.

“A lot of people will buy for the entire class,” store employee Sarah Walker said. “Teachers will come and buy for previous students. (Graduation) is a really big thing here in Natchez. I don’t know anywhere else where people will buy for so many people.”

Some of the most popular graduation gifts are personalized ones. From garbage cans with the student’s name on them to engraved cuff links, just about anything can be painted, monogrammed or engraved in the Miss-Lou.

“We have monogrammed water bottles, coffee cups, notebooks, accessory bags, shower bags, clipboards, towels,” Smith said.

And Virginia Netterville Conn, owner of Netterville’s Jewelry on Main Street, can engrave what Smith can’t monogram.

“We have pewter bookmarks that are engravable with the name and graduation date. We have compacts with mirrors, julep cups, key chains, luggage tags, money clips, photo albums, picture frames.”

Conn too said graduation business is big.

“One customer faxes in a list (of names) to me every year, and he has a particular thing he likes to buy,” she said. “It’s convenient because we’ll call (the graduate) to come pick up their gifts.”

Many local stores can accept graduation gift orders over the phone, charge it to a credit card, wrap the gift and call the graduate to pick it up without the gift giver ever having to step foot in the store.

And that’s common, Conn said. But when it comes to graduation shopping, retailers do ask locals to shop at home instead of traveling out of town for gifts.

“Natchez is a smaller town and the merchants don’t always have the opportunity to carry everything, but if you give us an opportunity to order it, we can get it for you,” Conn said.

And if you still don’t know what to buy your favorite local graduate, here are a few more items that can be found in local stores: luggage, fleece blankets, tote bags, flat wallets, closet organizers, towel racks, shower caddies, personalized notepads, travel clocks, letter openers, freshwater pearls, manicure sets, umbrellas with matching bag, tumblers with college logos, duffle bags, camouflage checkbook covers and more.

For Taylor, who is holding out hope she’ll get that car after ACCS’ May 22 graduation, towels, hangers and household items are also accepted, she said.