Thursday's Ten: the last moment gift edition

i thought we'd do holidays for the month of december...so i'm going to go ahead and tell you the next 2 weeks' topics.

next thursday: your favorite (family or personal) traditions for the holidays

the following: funny christmas -- in photos, stories, etc. i love the meaning of this season, but sometimes it is lovely to just enjoy the humor that can ensue when you get family together, etc.

but today...

today we'll do gift ideas

here are the ten things i thought of while sitting on my couch today ;)  i'm sure there are better ideas out there, and i'm hoping YOU have them!  so play along, please?

1. gift cards with purpose. starbucks has the red program for example.  if you're getting someone (or me!) a gift card from starbucks, could you make it a red card?  it won't cost you or the user anything extra, but it will ensure donations are made to help out with AIDS treatment in africa.  bonus?  those cards are reloadable.  you bettter believe i'll be reloading the free one i got when i took advantage of the buy a pound of coffee get a $5 gift card deal...

2.  from the heart ideas.  yeah, you could be branded as "cheap".  but do you really care?  i make jewelry for some, and for most everyone on my list this year i'll be including some of my peppermint bark.  hey look -- you can too because i've given you the recipe :)

3.  date nights.  do you have a couple friend that you hang out with?  give them a gift that the 4 of you enjoy and can do together.  or if they have kids, give THEM a date night.  offer free babysitting and give a gift card to the movies, or to their favorite restaurant.

4.  hobby baskets:  have a book lover?  put together a "comfy reading basket" complete with a bookmark, nice mug and yummy tea, fuzzy slippers or socks, and possibly a copy of that new book they've been wanting, or just a gift card to a local bookstore. 

if you have a crafter on your list, besides the obvious gift card to hobby lobby or michaels you can do something similar -- compiling some 'staple' items for their crafts.  ribbons for gift wrappers, findings for jewelry makers, tapes and stickers for scrapbookers.

5.  pampering kits for new (or not-so-new) moms are always good.  what female among us doesn't enjoy a nice bubble bath with a candle, some pedicure stuff and nail polish?  actually, scratch the moms part out and just give to any female.  add some good chocolates for good measure.

6.  for the kiddos: i love to give books, and will until they're old enough to ask for something else!  and then i pretty much stick to their lists.  however, stationary stuff for little girls is always a hit...and i haven't yet met a male child who didn't love to build with legos or lincoln logs.  but when in doubt -- double check with the parents!

7.  games for family members or close friends.  it's really nice to be able to sit around the table and giggle over apples to apples...or even just gather around the tv for a rousing night of rock band.  the bonus is that it's really a gift of time...because it'll bring you all around the table (or couch) together and will start conversations that normally wouldn't have happened.

8.  don't forget the furry friends.  emi usually gets a new toy or something for her Christmas gift :)  i'll never forget that my dad always gave my family's cat a bit of turkey on thanksgiving day...and said "it's thanksgiving for her too".  it was kind of out of character for him to spoil her in any way...and it's kind of inspired me to give a little something extra to my pets at Christmas too :)

9.  memories.  photo calendars, a mini scrapbook (or photo album if you're not creative that way), framed photos, etc

10.  gadget helpers, offbeat fun things.  for example, i really need these iphone gloves, and could someone please make me a sun jar?  or there's always the funny tshirt companies like threadless or busted tees.

mmmkay, did that help?  hopefully you have ALL your shopping done, but just in case...