2017 Gift Guide for Her
Christmas is about twelve days away! Are you ready? If you answered no, then you’re in the same boat I am! Don’t fret. There’s always Amazon. My husband and I have a slight obsession with Amazon, to the point where we have a Prime Amazon credit card because you get 5% back on Amazon purchases. Yeah. It’s probably an unhealthy habit. But luckily for you, I’ve scoured Amazon to find you 12 gifts for those ladies in your life. And in true Amazon enthusiast fashion, most of them, if not all… are Prime. Boo-ya!
one | two | three | four | five
six | seven | eight | nine | ten | eleven | twelve
You have your standards: nail polish, the perfect red lipstick, a snazzy 2018 planner, the ultimate face mask…but then you switch it up with a delicate white and gold wireless computer mouse (because no woman likes seeing those gawd awful computer cords), Turkish hand towels and some remote-control candles. Just don’t let the toddler eat said candles because apparently they smell so good that they’ll just want to try them. Speaking from experience here. Not one of my candles were tasted, but two. Just to be really sure they weren’t for eating. Moscow mule mugs, pretty glass lotion pumps because us women always want to put things into different, prettier containers (again, speaking from experience), a leather tassel just for funsies, and a whipped cream dispenser.
Now, if you’re wondering why the hell I put a whipped cream dispenser on there, it’s really for the coffee lovers in your life. A friend recently introduced me to homemade NITRO COLD BREW. Shit was da bomb-diggity. You use a whipped cream dispenser (like above) to create the silkiest, sweetest, smoothest cold brew of your life. Is your mind blown? Yeah. Mine was too. Your welcome and happy gifting.
PS: I am an Amazon affiliate so those links are amazon links.
Holiday Gift Guide for Toddlers & Infants
With the holiday season just around the corner I’ve created a couple of gift guides to hopefully ease the question of, “What should I get for…”
For Emmie’s Christmas wish list, and for toddlers aged 2-5, I think having a Christmas list or holiday gift guide with several different categories helps make the overall “haul,” if you will, well rounded. For the 3 year old girl I made sure to have art supplies for creating things, dress up to encourage imaginative play, and a scissor cutting book for fine motor skills practice. There’s also play money with a calculator-register to encourage math & financial learning, some pretty fun animal hair clips to wear and a real cooking set for kids to help in the kitchen with meal prep. Lastly, to round out the categories is a book to read. I chose Rosie Revere Engineer because we picked up this doll from Target…which leads to the last category of play with the doll armoire. This guide can also be easily adjusted for boys too!
markers || Melissa & Doug coloring pack || doll armoire || Anna dress || Rapunzel dress
kids cooking set || play money || scissor skills book
hair clips || Rose Revere Book
The one year old infant has a very similar styled gift guide also broken up into categories. We have musical instruments to encourage sound exploration, headbands & soft jammies to wear, bath color drops for sensory play and a rain cloud bath toy for cause and effect exploration. A teether toy covers the incessant need for gnawing & chewing and a nice interactive book to read rounds out the selection.
musical instruments || mushroom teether || bath color drops || rain cloud bath toy
headbands || purple stripe jammies || Melissa & Doug soft book
The Ultimate Board Game Gift Guide
When we moved to Baltimore we didn’t know a single person there. It took a few months but we slowly befriended a couple, Kris and Taren, at the dog park. We would chat weekly at our weekend dog park outings and discovered we had quite a bit in common. Eventually we exchanged numbers and agreed to get together outside of the park.
It was around that time I had also started up an adult gymnastics class where I met a couple of girls I wanted to befriend. We eventually started going out for drinks after class and lo and behold also had quite a bit in common. It was one particular night where I took a chance and decided to tell my new friend Lauren about a nerdy computer game she might like. Turns out she already played it! I decided that not only should we be great friends, but I also decided Lauren and her husband would get along with our dog park friends too.
One fateful night I invited both couples over for sangria & beer, a fire, and a rousing round of Cards Against Humanity. It was that night where we were all a little drunk, laughing hysterically at the dining room table where Game Night was born. From that point on, we met every Friday at 6pm. We took turns supplying dinner & drinks for everyone and we played countless games. Luckily, Lauren’s husband John was a gaming pro and they had a plethora of board games just waiting to be played.
This tradition lasted a little over 3 years before Lauren and John moved, and then we moved. We’re having a Game Night reunion this December and in honor of our game night shenanigans I’ve put together the ultimate board game gift guide. If you’re unsure of what to get your friends, or even your husband/wife then look no further, I’ve got the answer. I’ve broken my guide into two categories: Board Games and Card Games.
The card games I chose are great for beginners. They are generally straight-forward to learn but still a challenge, perfect for both gaming amateurs and pros alike. These are fantastic party games and most of them can be played with lots of players. They’re usually small, so storing them won’t take up a whole dedicated cabinet…although, if you have a gaming cabinet, we should be friends.
In contrast, I picked board games that go into a bit more depth. They usually take longer to learn and overall game time is longer. These are the games that can be played over and over without losing their excitement. These games are perfect for your nerdy friend, your gaming friend, or your friend who likes a good challenge.
one || two || three || four || five || six || seven || eight
Out of these card games, again such a tough choice, my favorites would be Joking hazards, Bears vs Babies, and Munchkin. Fair warning, Munchkin can take a long time and you may or may not pee your pants laughing when playing Joking Hazard.
one || two || three || four || five || six || seven || eight
Out of these amazing games I would say my top favorites (which is so hard to choose just two, since all of these are awesome) would have to be Libertalia and 7 Wonders. Every time we play these games I just can’t stop gushing about how much fun they are. They’re always my top choice for playing.
one || two || three || four || five || six || seven || eight
Out of these card games, again such a tough choice, my favorites would be Joking hazards, Bears vs Babies, and Munchkin. Fair warning, Munchkin can take a long time and you may or may not pee your pants laughing when playing Joking Hazard.