Gift Suggest

Following are the best gifts I have found this year (2009)

1 - Motorola T505 Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone – I had to start with a gadget since they are so popular, but don’t be alarmed by the confusing name if you are not a tech geek! Basically, this little gadget “streams phone calls and all the music on your cell phone to the audio system in your car or truck, using Bluetooth technology and an FM transmitter”. I got it for my husband, he is in sales and travels in his car a lot. Now he has no excuse not to call me because of any hands free cell phone laws!

2 - A donation in someone’s name to a charity fund – For the person who already has everything!

3- Fruit fruit fruit! – Not your usual idea of a fruit basket. The way it is presented is awesome; they cut the fruit to look like flowers, and can dip the fruit in chocolate! I discovered Edible Arrangement about a year ago when I saw a delivery van in my town. Did some research and found them online (http://www.ediblearrangements.com/). I know there are other places that make them as well but I have the best luck with their customer service and will stick with them. It is my standby for gifts because it seems to work for everyone, from my 17 year old nephew to my 82 year old grandmother!

4- Webkinz – Great for kids….my 6 year old is obsessed! They are the cutest stuffed animals that come with a secret code which lets you into “Webkinz World online”, where you can create a virtual pet of your own.

5- International Star Registry – Another great gift for the person who has it all! Register a star under their name; they get a cool certificate with the coordinates of their star.

6- Apple 16 GB iPod touch – ‘nuff said.

7- Nintento Wii – ditto. I’m old and yet I know how cool these are.

8- Anything from Snapfish – upload photos of the kids and make ties, calendars, coffee mugs and t-shirt for the grandparents. Very different and reasonably priced.

9- Guitar Hero World Tour – 2 Guitar Kit – If you can get your hands on one…My sisters and I chipped in together to get this for my nephews ( a bit out of my price range, $129.99, and I found free shipping). Not only do they play it, but said they have caught their mom and dad using it too!!! Too funny…

10- An Amazon.com gift card – Then they can buy whatever they want!!

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My toughest test came this year, I have two nephews and they turned 17 and 15. It seems like all they wanted were electrical gadgets (iphones, mp3 players, etc) that I couldn’t afford. So I searched high and low to find:

1- A Snowboard bag – I bought this for the 17 year old last Christmas. He loved it! He can keep his snowboard, boots, gloves, goggles and helmet all in one bag for when he hits the slopes. Lots of cool colors and styles to choose from, and I got one for about $30! (They can get pricier if you pick out a fancy one with wheels). I had the best luck searching for them at ebags.com (but ladies, don’t get distracted by all the pretty handbags!)

2- I-tunes gift card – I couldn’t afford the MP3 player, but I could help supply the music!

3- Gift certificates for the movies – Sound lame, but my sister makes them pay for a lot of their own entertainment now that they are getting older, so they really appreciated it!

4- A gas card – Again, I know it is just a gift card, but the 17 year old just bought a car and loved the idea. Most major gas stations have them: Citgo, Mobil, etc.

5- A gift bag full of cool, random stuff – There is a great website called uncommongoods.com and you can search for gifts by teens. For the 15 year old, I put together a bag of funny t-shirts, a wallet made of duct tape, and a really funky CD holder. (they also have neat stuff for teenage girls; neat journals, jewelry boxes, etc).

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I love to work out; running, biking, etc, and have a lot of friends that are uber healthy as well. So I like to buy them gifts that are appropriate for their active lifestyles. That brings us to:

1- Gym memberships - In this economy, money is tight for everyone. My best friend in the world goes to the gym religiously, and was so upset when her membership was about to run out because money was tight. So I extended her membership for her for 3 months! Every gym is different, I spent about $60. But most gyms offer gift certificates now as well.

2- Chocolate dipped fruit – Because even the healthiest people are still suckers for chocolate! I sent an Edible fruit bouquet to my friend at her workplace. She was so excited! I picked out a cool fruit arrangement called the Berry Chocolate Bouquet. It was still healthy, had tons of fruit (strawberries, pineapple, cantaloupe and grapes), but some of the strawberries were dipped in chocolate for a bit of decadence (and it was big enough for her to share with her co-workers, thank goodness!).

3- Jewelry – Sounds funny, but there is a great site, terrybicycles.com, and they have jewelry that I love! My sister just competed in her first triathlon, and I got her the neatest “run-bike-swim” ring. They also have necklaces and bracelets made from bike parts – so cute, but a bit on the pricey side.

4- Gift pack (Sport appropriate) – Last year my friend started training for a marathon, so I put together a gift bag with a heart monitor, runners journal, water bottles and energy bars. I’ve also done them for my friends that bike (spare tubes, camelbacks, etc). Get creative! And if you’re not familiar with their favorite sport, just do some research online. There are tons of great sites that can help.

5- Gift certificates – Again, these are usually my last choice because they don’t seem creative, but lots of people are hard up for cash these days and some sports can get pretty pricey. Ski lift passes, indoor rock climbing passes, and sporting goods stores are all good ideas.

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Speaking of the economy, let’s go for the cheap… I mean economical, gifts!

1- Fruit (but not your typical fruit basket) - I just went to visit my grandma in a nursing home, and it was so hard to think of a little something to bring to her. I finally decided to go with my “go to gift”, an Edible Arrangement. I found one for $35 that was just the right size for her. I picked it up at the store on the way to see her to save the delivery charge. It had a bunch of different kinds of fruit, and she was so excited because she had never seen anything like it (they cut the fruit into flower shapes, all her friends crowded into the room to see it!). She didn’t want to eat it because it was so beautiful, but when she did I couldn’t stop her! I also saw they have boxes of chocolate dipped fruit for about $25, I decided to forgo the chocolate this time, I didn’t know if she was supposed to be eating it.

2- Personalized golf balls – Got them for my husband for $35 for 12 of them! Can’t remember the site, but just do a google search on it.

3- Jewelry – I know, it doesn’t sound cheap. But so many stores are now making beautiful pieces of jewelry for under $50! This is one item I won’t buy online because I want to see the quality of the pieces.

4- Coolest Makeup gift ever – My sister in law is a makeup junky…always trying new stuff. Her bathroom is always overrun by new products. I got his idea while watching Oprah one day: One gift, 159 new additions to the lucky recipient's makeup repertoire. This palette is smaller than most laptops but folds out to reveal 84 eyeshadows, 60 lip glosses, six blushes, seven makeup brushes, an eyeliner, and a lip liner—and it is only $48!!! Got it on Sephora.com.

5- A “Relaxation” pack – Did a gift bag for under $40 – It had some chamomile tea, aromatherapy oils, soothing foot cream, an and a room darkening eye mask. My sister said she takes it with her to hotel rooms when she travels for work!

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we know everyone loves to eat, so:

1- A “insert food here” of the month club! – I’ve done wine, cheese, desserts and chocolates. It can be a bit pricey, but most clubs have a 3 month option.

2- Fruit (with or without chocolate) –So many people are trying to be healthy these days, so I had to switch from cookie bouquets. After finding Edible Arrangements, I use them for so many different occasions. So easy to order with so many options! You can use these fruit baskets for Bosses Day, Nurses Day, holidays; hostess gifts…the possibilities are endless. If you don’t want an arrangement and are just looking for a box of dipped fruit like chocolate dipped strawberries...go to http://www.dippedfruit.com/; their boxes start at just $25!

3- Cookie bouquets – Had to mention them just because I used them for so long! Your choice of cookie put on sticks, and boxed up like roses. I used to use Cookies by Design, before all my friends complained to me that I was making them fat!

4- When visiting someone’s home for a party, I always volunteer to bring the cheese platter. Grab a cool platter from Target, and they also sell the “cheese labels”. They stick in the cheese, and you write what kind of cheese it is. Bring a big variety of different types of cheeses a lot of people may never have tried and some crackers. The hostess gets to keep the platter.

5- Wine – Is that considered a food? I say yes! Such a great last minute gift. Even if you find they don’t drink wine, most everyone keeps some in the house for when unexpected visitors stop by.

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