Gift ideas for parents who still live in their own home?

I've given Mom mulch because she loved to garden. Always a hit is a current picture of the family. Or a picture of them from their youth and putting in a nice frame or a fridge magnet or onto mugs. If you have very young children or grandchildren, they could draw / make coasters or placemats. Lastly, homemade "coupons" for lunch, flower planting, yard cleanup, or anything related to "just because" time. I don't think they want anything expensive. At their age, they prefer our time. And our help without having to ask.

My mother doesn't see well, so we gave her a BIG digital picture frame. She loves it.

for the mother, try flowers or chocolate, but please, please, no more framed pictures. There is only so much space on a wall. My husband appreciates gift certificates to Barnes & Nobel or local restaurants. Fruit baskets are nice too, but most of all, we like visits and/or letters.
(We are the "old people" you are talking about.)

My parents no longer need anything either. But the gift they treasure the most is memories. So we take them special places, like a drive through their favorite park, visit a museum, "walk" through a formal garden or a woods. I put walk in quotes because they are both wheelchair bound, so we pack up the wheelchairs and take them to a paved path through the woods in a local park. We relive those memories many times after, so the gift keeps giving. And you're right about chocolate, Pam.

If they like to send greeting cards to family/friends, you could make up address labels for these people. Perhaps 10 each would work, so your parent(s) can just sign a card and put the address label on it. For my Mom her writing has become difficult to read and it isn't easy for her to write, so this is a good solution. Could they benefit from some adjustments around the house? Sturdy railings at stairs, better nightlights, deadbolt locks on doors, new double pane windows, etc. Have a room painted, give them new curtains, reframe their favorite pictures into a nice wall arrangement. Is there a family member or friend they haven't seen in a while? Could you afford to pay that person's plane fare to come for a visit? If their vision is a challenge could they do better with a larger screen television?

Gift certificate to their barber or beauty shop. Pay their cable bill for a month or two. Gift card at restaurant. Movies. (Netflix)

CHOCOLATE IS ALWAYS A WINNER!!!

Mom is 95 and likes to receive flowers, 40s music, DVDs of old concerts and TV variety shows, soft and fluffy throws to cover her when seated, shoes, slippers, colorful sun-catchers, fancy greeting cards with lots of glitter and especially visits from her daughters and their families.

CDs, DVDs are nice, but do you know what they already have? Trying to get our new system to switch from TV and then back again is such a hassle that we don't watch DVD's anymore. Kids used to get me CDs for everything until they finally learned that I don't have a CD player. We both love the lap blankets one d-i-l made for us. One of the best gifts we get is the daughter who shows up Sat afternoon to help put the clean sheets on the beds.

One more suggestion. Since they are in their own home, how about a bird feeder and maybe arrange with a neighborhood student to keep it filled. My parents have one at their assisted living facility that I gave them, and it became so popular, that the facility put them at various places. A group of students from the local elementary school fill the feeders twice a week.