The Art of Stuffing a Stocking

Years ago, my husband and I decided to only exchange stocking stuffers at Christmas. I really enjoy this because it requires a little extra thought and creativity. Not only does the gift need to be sentimental and/or useful, but it must be small too...a little extra challenge!

Here are some of my favorite stocking stuffers...

For the baby in your life, the Doidy Cup is an amazing product that eases the transition from bottle to cup without major spills!

For the organizer in your life, Magnutz are super small magnets with UNBELIEVABLE strength.

For the love of your life, the "I'm nuts about you!" key ring says it all. The packaging is simply adorable, and the key ring itself is the perfect size-small enough to be unobtrusive, but big enough to remind your honey how lucky he or she is!

For the cook in your life, a silicon basting brush is a MUST-have!

For the men in your life, try these easy to match dress socks. Once he tries them, he will never go back to traditional gold-toes. Not only are they thin and soft, but they make matching socks fun and SIMPLE!

For the child in your life, include these adorable mini lunch notes.  Nothing is better than finding a fun-loving note in your lunch from someone you love...a guaranteed smile every day of the week!

Please share some of your favorites too! With a little help from each other, we can all have ROCKIN' full stockings this year.

Happy Thanksgiving!

{via Family Fun}

 

 

 

My daughter and I have been preparing for Thanksgiving all week.  One of my favorite parts of the week was when we made the napkin holders for our Thanksgiving table with my sister and her son. We made a simplified version of the napkin holders pictured above and they turned out GREAT!  We just cut small pieces of felt, made 3 to 4 slits in the felt, weaved a ribbon through the holes, and then glued a variety of buttons over the slits/ribbon.  The kids LOVED picking out the buttons and gluing them down on the felt, and they look wonderful on the table too.  Check them out below; they would make an adorable hostess gift from a child!  

Brrrr! It's cold out there...

{via Restoration Hardware}

I don't know about you, but all I want to do on these brisk November days is curl up on the couch with a cozy blanket and a cup of tea. This blanket from Restoration Hardware is one of my absolute favorites. It is ridiculously soft and snuggly, and surprisingly reasonable in price. It makes the perfect winter birthday, Christmas, or housewarming gift. The best part is that you can personalize the blanket with all sorts of complementary gifts depending on the recipient.

For the tea lover, spice it up with specialty teas like those by Tea Forte.

For the bookworm, inscribe a special book to go with the blanket.

For the chocolate lover, include a bunch of Trader Joe specialty chocolate candies.

For the child-at-heart, wrap up one of the plush teddy bears from RH Baby & Child.

Happy Snuggling!!!

Give the Gift of Togetherness

{via Pottery Barn Kids}

Last year, my husband's aunt gave us the most wonderful housewarming gift...an advent calendar! But it wasn't just any old advent calendar, it is in the shape of a home, made out of wood, and has a little drawer for each day of advent. It came with a bunch of trinkets and candies to put in each drawer, BUT his aunt asked that I throw those away and to do as her family does, which is to fill each drawer with a little piece of paper that encourages the family to do something together. I was so honored that his aunt decided to share this family tradition with us and look forward to taking our advent calendar out this year and starting the tradition in our home. I know my daughter is going to LOVE it!

I am in the midst of putting together all the family activities for our calendar now. Please share any that you might think of. Here's what I've got so far...

• Pull out the Christmas cds and sing some Christmas songs together
  
• Bake Christmas cookies
  
• Set up our nativity
  
• Read a Christmas story together
  
• Watch Frosty the Snowman together
  
• Cut down a tree
  
• Decorate the tree
  
• Make a special ornament for our tree
• Cut paper snowflakes to hang on the windows
• Go ice-skating or sledding together
  

Any more suggestions???

Cookies & Milk?...Yes, Please!

{via Love & Lavender}

I absolutely LOVE cookies and milk. In fact, my husband refers to me as "his cookie monster," so when I saw this idea for a Cookies & Milk wedding shower on Kara's Party Ideas, I immediately started brainstorming complementary gift ideas. Here's what I came up with so far...

Pink silicon baking sheet from Target+


Love Dish Towel from Spoon Sisters+

Sugar Cookies Book from Amazon+



Wrapped together in clear cello and LOTS and LOTS of ribbon with these
heart-shaped measuring spoons from Spoon Sisters hanging down from the ribbons!

And if you are looking for a less traditional gift, then you might consider surprising this lovely couple with a plate of freshly baked cookies and fresh milk one night on their honeymoon. Who doesn't like a little midnight snack???