Holiday Gift Ideas

It’s that time of year again when we’re all scratching our heads on what to get our family and friends or what to put on our wish list. Here are some of my favorite ideas for the ‘crunchy’ person in your life, or even the not so crunchy.

Superfood gift basket. Make a trip to you local Whole Foods, or your favorite health food store, pick up a pretty basket and fill it with superfood goodies. Some staples everyone should have are: coconut oil of course, raw local honey, cacao nibs, goji berries (or chocolate covered goji berries), chia seeds (or chocolate covered chia seeds). If you’re buying for someone who may not be familiar with all these amazing products take some time to write some fun ways to use each product so it doesn’t just sit on their shelf until 2015.

Essential Oil Starter Kit. Everyone should have some basic essential oils in their home. Some good ones to start with are tea tree oil, peppermint, lavender and eucalyptus. A jar of coconut oil comes in handy with this gift since it is a fantastic carrier oil. Mountain Rose Herbs has some great starter kits.

Herb Handbook for home remedies.  Gentle Healing for Baby and Child by Andrea Candee is a must have for every mother. Andrea Candee is a Master Herbalist and her book has some great solutions to cure almost anything from fevers, to lice to splinters.

An Awesome Traditional Foods Cookbook. The Nourishing Traditions Cookbook is phenomenal for anyone truly interested in their health. It’s writen by Sally Fallon, the President of the Weston A. Price foundation and is has not only great information but great recipes for real, nourishing, traditional foods such as bone broth. There is also the Nourishing Traditions book of Baby and Child Care which is a must have for anyone trying to conceive, pregnant or new mothers.

The gift of healthy, local food. A membership for a season of a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) some even include an egg share so they can enjoy fresh, pastured eggs and depending on where you are you may even be able to get raw milk. Local Harvest is a great resource for finding a CSA near you.

The gift of gardening. Even those of us that dont have a green thumb can grow a few things, at home plant kits are great for beginning gardeners or people that don’t have space for a big outdoor garden. Aero Garden has some pretty cool things and if you search for indoor gardens you can find some really nice ones, even some vertical herb gardens.

Some rest and relaxation. A massage is always a winner, I’m a fan of the Thai massage- especially for people that don’t really like to be touched since the Thai massage really consists of being stretched by someone. It’s fabulous. Any sort of spa day is always great.

The un-paper towel. This is a great gift for those who are into saving the environment and want to reduce their waste. They are made of microfiber so they’re nontoxic, reusable and oh so cute. I found this one on Etsy, I’m sure there are plenty more on Etsy.

Gorgeous, hand made yoga bags for the yogi in your life. Yoga Hand Made has beautiful, hand crafted choices.

Herbal Salves by Mountain Rose Herbs can be made into a cute little gift basket, or tucked into a cute little purse. They’ve got salves for everything from cuts and scrapes to improving sleep (which would go nicely with some organic bubble bath, body lotion  and aromatherapy eye covers.

Fashion, fashion, fashion. Ntrendsic is a very cool boutique for the fashionista in your life. If you can’t choose just one of the great items everyone loves gift cards!

The Gift of Fitness. The Perfect Couplet is a husband and wife team that do nutrition and write training programs to meet your health goals. They’ve been writing my programming since July and I’m hooked. This is great for anyone who loves to lift heavy things (think CrossFit meets Olympic Lifting). Who wouldn’t want a year of personalized programming to help them meet their new years resolutions (because we all want to be healthier right?)

For Bilingual Kiddos the most adorable clothes and accessories honoring Hispanic roots and traditions by Bebe Lanugo. While your browsing their page make sure to check out the music – a personalized CD of songs with your childs name, because kids love feeling like the world revolves around them, as it should =)

A week (or two) of meals cooked by someone else. There are many places that have pre-made dinners that can be put in the freezer for the odd night a mom doesn’t feel like cooking but doesn’t want to go out either. This is especially wonderful for new mothers or expecting mothers, but really all us moms would appreciate a few nights off dinner duty without succumbing to quick restaurant junk in a pinch.

Experience gifts for mothers  are a nice change from the ordinary. What exactly do I mean? Many mothers will spend money on everyone in the family but themselves and maybe not do things they really would like to do. Here are some ideas:

• – a day at the spa while someone else cleans the house
• classes around hobbies: cooking, painting, sewing, canning, or even a conference you’ve been hearing someone talk about
• a day to sit at home alone (preferably after you’ve had someone else clean the house)
• book a sitter for a day and do something out of the ordinary: ice skating, shopping, massages, a carriage ride a date to the planetarium, a show, or take some sort of class together, maybe a cooking class, get creative.

What special things do you have on your wish list this year?