Christmas is coming....My favourite gifts to give.....

So do you have a creative little girl on your list?  Is she also into make up and all things beauty?  Why not get her a gift that combines the two?  I love these KISS Naturals Crafty Kits to make your own : bath soaps, lip balm, lip gloss and bath fizzies.  I bought two of the mini kits for my niece this Christmas (soaps and mini lip gloss) and I know she's going to love it!!

Christmas is coming....My favourite gifts to give....

Toys are so much fun!  But some are noisy and other just pointless....here's a great game for little ones - they can get silly with it or use it as a learning tool.  Double duty!

'Who Knows Whose Nose' is a game for children ages 2 and up, it is a fun matching game with a series of cards with animal faces, just pull the plastic nose from the cloth bag and make a silly animal or match!







Affordable and lot of fun for less than $25.

Plus as a parent, I love that it is fun and educational but it is also easy to put away - everything just fits in the cloth bag that comes with it!

Christmas is coming....My favourite gifts to give.....

Do you have someone on your list this year that has everything ?  And you have NO IDEA what to get them?  Why not a charitable gift this year?  If you know their preferred charities a donation in their name is a generous and kind idea OR what about Plan Canada's Gifts of Hope

A little amount can go a long way....

Sheep $50  - a sheep will provide a family with milk, cheese and wool - all of which also brings an income to pay for things such as health care and education

Bednets $10 - Malaria kills a child every 60 seconds in Africa.  Mosquito nets are treated with insecticide and last up to 3 years.  this is a gift that will save lives!

Quinoa $35 - A superfood and a super gift for almost 6,000 families in developing nations.  This gift of a family garden includes everything necessary for growing that garden: quinoa seeds and other grains; training for growing and harvesting crops; and the knowledge to turn those crops into nutritious meals with classes and recipes.

There are many other affordable gifts that would do so much good for some many people around the world.

Christmas is coming....My favourite gifts to give.....

If you have a child or two on your list, why not give the gift of reading!  With so many technology and electronic toys and gadgets, life gets busy and it's time to disconnect a bit and escape with a book.  It's a great bedtime ritual for kids and parents, too. There are so many choices so how do you choose?  I love the 'shop by age' category for Chapters and other retailers.

 


But you can also share some Christmas classics or some of your childhood favourites, too!  My kids' love a lot of my old books and they love the classic Dr. Seuss books.and if you have a tween or teen on your list, there are tons of great options out there too!

Christmas is coming....my favourite gifts to give....

It's now December, it's hard to believe but Christmas is only 25 days away!  Have you started your shopping?  I'm going to share my favourite gifts to give this holidays season

Have a wine lover on your list?  try the Corkcicle!  I've purchased this for a number of people on my list including my son;s teachers.  It's easy to use and gets good reviews and is something that most people don't have yet.  It replaces the bulky ice bucket to keep your wine perfectly chilled.  and for the beer lover, try the Chillsner



 Ingeniously simple and conveniently portable, Corkcicle keeps whites and rosés perfectly chilled and bring reds to the optimal drinking temp, without over-cooling or diluting the wine.

Details:

• Made from natural cork and BPA-free plastic, filled with non-toxic freeze gel
• Easy to use: just freeze the Corkcicle and pop it into any uncorked wine bottle
• Slide it part of the way out to pour your wine; when the bottle's empty, rinse the Corkcicle and store it in the freezer until next time
• Keeps chilled wines at the perfect temperature, without the dripping and sloshing of an ice bucket (or the worry of over-chilling)
• Gently cools room-temperature red wines to bring out the subtleties of flavor and bouquet

 One important tip, pour one glass of wine first before inserting the corkcicle, otherwise the wine will spill over

Easy gift wrapping ideas

Although wrapping gifts seems very time consuming and pointless - it can be beautiful, and it really shows the receipiant how much you care.  It is so special to see anyone put time and effort into creating something beautiful.

It doesn't have to be complicated, just adding some simple touches can take your wrapping to a whole new level.

1 - Add a beautiful ornament instead of a bow.  The ornament can be used year after year, too.  If this is somehitng you plan on doing for multiple people try buying a box or multi-pack of ornaments. 

2.  Add a beautiful tag - like peace and love tags from Etsy

3.  Add something edible like a small gift bag of mixed nuts, a chocolate Santa or a gingerbread cookie.

4.  Get creative with your colour choice for wrapping. Or get some metalic paper - very bright and bold

5.  Get the kids involved use stamps or let them paint a Christmas theme newsprint and use it as wrapping paper.

6.  Add an ornament that your child made, it adds a personal touch

Great Gift Giving

So the holidays are upon us - it's already December and time is ticking away!  I've got a great start on my gift buying - how about you?  Buying gifts can be very time consuming, expensive and for some stressful.  In order to make the experience as stress-free as possible I follow a few tips of my own.

1.  Plan ahead - before going to the mall or looking online - I plan roughly how much to spend on each person.  You can also plan ahead by asking around (friends, family etc...) for some ideas such as what they need, what they like, what stores they like, what are their hobbies etc...This will save you some time and keep you on (or as close to budget as possible) .  studies show by wandering without direction when shopping for gifts people tend to over spend.

2.  Try to get some gifts early (I know too late now but maybe next year).  Again, this helps with budgeting and you can sometimes find something really special for someone and so what if it's August - hang on to it until December rolls around!  A few years ago, I was at a silent auction and there was a beautiful Delft Cheese platter with a wood cutting board and a knife.  It was lovely and perfect for my in-laws.  My husband thought I was crazy to buy them a Christmas gift in September but they loved it!

3.  Is you family getting bigger and bigger? As people get engaged, married and start having children and then more children your shopping list can get exponentially bigger in no time at all.  Keep everyone's costs down by doing a gift exchange and draw names or keep a monetary limit on gifts. Or try a new tradition - before my sister-in-law and her family were transferred to Calgary, we used to go out on a double date (with our husbands) for a nice dinner and split the check instead of buying gifts.  We always had a great time and it's always great to spend time with loved ones. 

4.  Ask how you can help - this is great for parents with really young children (infants). Buying diapers, wipes, formula etc...is so helpful and really helps the parents out.  At the infant stage, they won't remember getting toys or new clothes but the parents will really appreciate the supplies and believe me, they will be used!  other great ideas for new parents, trying making them a meal they could easily heat up at home, or bake them some cookies (I doubt they will have time for holiday baking) or offer them a night of babysitting so they can go out on a date - that's an awesome gift for parents!

5.  Keep it light and fun!  Do a secret gift exchange withe a dollar limit and some kind of restrictions for example a maximum of $20 and it has to start with the letter'B'.  That way, it's about creativity, fun and less about money and stuff.  You share some laughs with friends.

6. Need to buy for kids and you don't have any? Ask around the office or sales people.  A lot of online stores have recommendations for age groups and genders. I love Chapters online - they have a tab labeled 'Birthdays' but you look there and they have it broken down in age categories and have the hottest toys and books for the age groups - so easy!

Some of my favourite gifts to give:
- wine journal and wood serving platter  perfect for foodies and people who love to entertain at home

- personalized storybooks perfect for children of any age, they love to see themselves in the book and it's a wonderful keepsake

- crafts or anything hands-on and creative - there are so many different options for boys and girls, it's nice to give kids something other than video games or electronic stuff.  It's so healthy and fun to use or brains too

- items for the home I find so many people want to get new items for the home but they never do, so it's always a great gift especially for someone who has just purchased a new home or under gone a renovation.

- dinner out  is such a treat and a great gift for parents who need a break

- board games again better bonding than DVDs and video games. this is a great gift for couples and families, throw in a few snacks and you've got hours of fun!

And if cash is tight, try offering your talents like babysitting, housecleaning (again, awesome for new parents or an elderly family member), baking or cooking a meal, sewing, knitting, make some ornaments for the tree, dog walking, or just spend quality time together.  Christmas isn't about giving each other stuff - it's about love, peace and friends and family.