Holiday Gift Guide: Spreading Christmas Cheer

Families come in all shapes and sizes and presents should be the same.  Check out my Holiday Gift Guide for 2016.  I love spreading cheer and joy and Christmas is the perfect time to show others how much you love and care for them.  Check out my gift ideas for ideas for everyone in your family.  These are ‘must have’ ‘top quality’ ‘new on the market’ ‘wanted list’ and just totally awesome gifts!

You can also check out my Gift Ideas For Stocking Stuffer post for small gift ideas to put in everyone’s stockings and my 12 Gift Ideas For Dads.

In The Kitchen:

EZ Tofu Press.  This is awesome for any time you are making tofu in meals.  The EZ Tofu Press removes the excess water from tofu without having to stack books on top or worry about it breaking by squeezing it out.  I love that it stores easily and is a cinch to wash.

Ozeri has all sorts of kitchen products.  Food scales, pans, drinking cups and more.  But something I just discovered they have is sets of knives.  My kitchen knives were old and dull.  Ozeri has two sets that will knock your socks off.  They are super sharp and can be resharpened.  The first set is Elite Chef Black Ceramic 3-piece set. They have a good balance of weight and a nice grip on the handle.  The second set is a 5-piece Stainless Steel Set including a 8″ chef knife, 8″ slicing knife, 7″ santoku knife and a 3.5″ utility knife.  The set comes with a wooden knife case with a built-in knife sharpener.  The set is handcrafted and made with ultra-durable stainless steel from Japan.  They will not rust, stain or tarnish.   With both of these sets cooking is a whole lot easier.

The Mighty Mug– Can knock them down or accidentally spill them.  Great for the desk or in the car.  I love that they come in different sizes and colors too.

Discover a whole new way of cooking with the Fagor Induction Pro.  This is a portable induction cooktop.   You’ll learn a whole new way of cooking, like a mix of having a hot plate, stir fry, slow cooker and more, all on the countertop and it is portable.  You can simmer, boil, brown, sear, saute and more.  I got mine in Dessert Sand color.  There is four color choices and the plate cooks at 1800 watts.  It is 50% faster than other surfaces so it saves time and money.

Children: Especially Teens & Tweens

Coloring is something for all ages.  From crayons and coloring books to adult coloring books and everything in between.  Pirasta has huge coloring posters that are places around the world!  Learn new places on the map while you color.  Pirasta has all sorts of poster to choose from.  The one I chose is a world map that is 63″ x 36″.  Great for coloring at the kitchen table and hanging it on a wall when it is completed.  The map is made in the US and printed with vegetable ink on recycled content paper.  Check out their other posters too!  Alphabet Cities, Food Fight, Funny Farm, Spaced Out, Let’s Color America and more.

Get Kids into the kitchen with Rookie Chef.  With real, high quality cooking and baking products, made a little smaller for kids’ hands, they are perfect for a practical gift that kids can use to help make meals,  bake Christmas cookies and more.    I received an apron, the Handy-Slicer (apple slicer, mango slicer and french fry slicers), The Mixer-Upper (manual hand mixer) and the Slicer-Dicer (Chopper/Grater/Slicer with multiple attachments.  It can slice or grade cheese, chop vegetables and more.  It even comes with kids’ gloves to protect fingers from the sharp blade.  These products are nice enough that you might want two sets.  Once you open them you won’t want to give them away as a gift.

This beanie is cool for all ages but I know teens will especially love it.  Connect to your cell via BlueTooth and listen too all your favorite music and podcasts while keeping your head warm.  Plus beanies are in style to wear as a fashion accessory.  This Tenergy Bluetooth Beanie is available on Amazon in blue, black, pink and gray.

Wonder Forge Games has some fun games for older kids.  I love games that teens can get into or that the whole family can play together. Here are the ones I picked out to review:
StickStack.  A game of tilting tactics.  This game just looked fun.  No dice, no counting, no score keeping.  Everyone can chat while playing.  Game says 2 or more players but there is no limit.  Everyone can play together.

Really Bad Art. A game of lofty ideas and horrible craftsmanship.  This game has my son’s name all over it!  He isn’t good at drawing and so this is perfect for him.  It can be 3-6 players and when it is your turn you have 6 seconds to draw. LOL!  Not much time to create a scribble. Game is ages 12+.

Suspicion. A game of secret identity and deduction.  Modern game of ‘who dun it’ and it might be you!  Thieves are everywhere at the masquerade ball and you need to find out who they are.  2-6 player game ages 10+.

Harry Potter Fans must check out this Magical Gift Set from Candlewick Press.  This set includes:  A Wizarding World Movie Magic book, Newt Scamander movie scrapbook (Fantastic Beasts and where to find them), Winter at Hogworts coloring set with a 3D Firebolt broom, and a Pop-Up Gallery of Curio Sities.  Continue enjoying the Wizarding World with these sets based on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowlings.

Teach kids about gardening with this awesome Garden-In-A-Can set.  Grow indoors as a starter for the winter or keep indoors for those in apartments or no yards.  I love how easy these are too.  Simply open the can, water and place in a sunny window.  The bottom of the can has a sponge so that the plants don’t get too soggy.  You can harvest from the can too to have continual growing plants.  The plants are organic and come from Oakland, California.  I received: Cilantro, Basil, Dill and Sage.

I also received a Mushrooms In A Box set.  I’ve been growing mine for 4 days now.  Can’t wait to see some of the oyster mushrooms growing out of the front of the box.  They are great for stir fry and the box even has a second harvest.

Star Wars Death Star Light Up Deco Light!  Not sure who will like this more! Me or my son.  My whole family loves Star Wars and this is so awesome!  It is a rounded light that looks like it exploded out of the wall.  Looks cool on or off and is cordless!  the sticker around it is included too.  There are more to choose from too!  R2-D2, a Stormtrooper, Dark Vader, Yoda, etc.  You can even get Olaf, Cars, butterflies and more.  All are 3D lights with stickers to make it look like the are popping out of the wall.

3D Pen! The 3Doodler Create is the world’s first 3D printing pen.  Made by Hammacher Schlemmer and an amazing gift for teens and adults.  Create 3D masterpieces in over 65 colors.  Inspiration can be found online.  Additional strands are available for purchase too. I can’t wait to see what my son creates with this!

Younger Kids: Infant to Elementary School

I love finding gifts that are needed, practical and super cool too.  These Stompeez! slippers fit all three.  They are warm and comfortable slippers, great for cold floors in the winter. They also move while walking.  The Dory (from Finding Nemo) ones flap her fins. The Alligator ones chomp open and shut.  There are a dozen other characters to choose from as well.  Unfortunately they don’t make them in adult sizes.  If they did, I’d own a pair too!

Board games!  Great for family fun night or spending winter weekends indoors.  I love Blue Orange Games.  They have new toys, classics and everything inbetween.  Definitely a hit for all ages with their selection.  For Christmas I got these from them:

Kaboom is a great game for kids that can’t sit still.  Construct towers, quickly, your opponents will try to crash them down with catapults! Don’t worry, you get your turn too. Game is 2-5 players and ages 6+.

Brix is a game I’ve never heard of but it looks like an elaborate version of tic-tac-toe.  Games pieces are X’s and O’s and they have to be stacked to get four in a row before the other player. 2 player game, ages 7+ but I think a younger kid can play with help.

I love card games that can fit in the car. They are great for restaurants, hotel stays while visiting family or long car trips if the kids bring lap boards.  The game Pin Point! is about finding one unique character on a game piece that has four other similar pictures.   It is easy to play 1-6 players and you can keep score or just play for fun.

 Magic Box!  I love monthly subscription boxes and the one from AKM MagicBox is great for all ages.  Each box comes with unique magic tricks to wow your friends and family.  Most boxes seem for later elementary school and up.  Adults can have fun with them too.  My box came with a cup and ball trick, a card trick and a wallet trick.

 If you are out shopping and happen to stop by Kohl’s (sign up for their coupons via email before you go) check out their books and stuffed animals at the entrance.  All of the Kohl’s Cares Collection are $8 or less and the proceeds are donated to charity!  Right now they have Paddington book and toy, Curious George book and toy, Corduroy book and toy, Madeline book and toy, The Big Book of Bedtime Stories book, ‘Tis the Season cookbook and a holiday CD.  They also have a few new things to their collection, including a 3-pack travel edition of adult coloring books, a no-sew fleece throw ($12), Craola Winter Adventure Creativity Kit and more. Visit Kohl’s Cares to learn more.

These boots by Sporto are super stylish and totally practical!  Great in the rain and mud.  Love that they are waterproof and have a good grip on the bottom.  They are meant to keep feet warm and dry all day long and the wine color is great with any outfit!

Check out the RetroViewer 3D!  This is perfect for family that lives far away.  I created one of my family and sent it to my 3-yr-old niece so she can have fun and play with it and see our pictures (some with her and her mom in it) so that she won’t forget us as much since we won’t see her until next year.  You can upload any photo, do multiple reels, choose the color of the view finder and even choose from a few things to put on it.  I chose Merry Christmas.  I can’t wait to see the look on her face when she looks into it and sees all of these personal photos.

K’Nex Mighty Makers.  These are women with awesome job skills showing woman can do anything.  Check out Hailey the astronomer, Jess the mathematician and Marissa the tour leader.  These sets are 46-56 pieces and are great for showing kids the importance of not having gender roles in the jobs in our society.  The sets run about $7-10 on Amazon and are great gift ideas.

The Polar Express Painting Kit.  This is a real wood kit of a train engine, a caboose and three carts. Comes with 5 paints, 3 brushes and you can download an app to let you plan the project. Great fun for rainy days and you can even put it with your Christmas decorations to get down and set out each year.

Women:

I  loving having a new pair of sunglasses.  No scratches on them.  Easy to see out.  In California most of us wear sunglasses year-round since we don’t get much rain.  I was able to get three pairs, in different styles from Sunglasses Warehouse.  They have a huge selection for men and women in all shapes and colors.

Three I chose:

• Diesel in brown tortoise with brown lenses.
• Ravine with the red tortoise frame.
• Stokes with the black and purple frame.

Get customized shoes with your own photos by Soulkix!  I ordered these with two different sunset photos I took.  But the photos can also be family, pets, artwork, etc.  The possibilities are endless!  Choose from a few different shoe styles.  Pick a size. Upload the photos and order.  It is that easy. Get your favorite sports team, your favorite flower, etc on your shoes.  You can even position and line up the photo to fit it how you want.

Men:  

I am always on the lookout for products to review for my dad and for my kids to give as gifts to their dad.  Finding things that are actually useful and not something that will get lost in a corner in the garage or in the back of the closet.  I try to find practical gifts for them.  My dad is a very outdoorsy person that is often camping, running, hiking or playing pickleball.  My kids’ dad is into fitness but also showers often and is ostentatious and is much into her personal appearance.  So with both of those in mind here are some ideas for men.

Facial and shaving products by Cremo.  These will look great in a gift basket with some red tissue paper under them.  In this kit is:

• Cooling Shave Cream.
• Coconut Mango Shave Cream.
• Unscented Face Lotion (great for sensitive skin).
• Beard & Scruff Softener.
• Face wash (soap free deep cleaning formula).

TrackR is a great way to find things you easily misplace.  Keys, cell phone, wallet, even pets!  Not that you misplace your pets but they can easily wander off.  TrackR is the world’s thinnest device for managing belongings and is sold worldwide.  It works with your cell phone to track your lost item via GPS.  It is easy to set up and attach and even comes in a few colors. My dad has one for his cell phone, keys and wallet and loves it.  He can even find his phone if it is on silent.

KinderPerfect: A Timeout For Parents.  This game is for men and women, but definitely an adult game.  Geared for ages 17+ each game is approximately 30 minutes and is 4+ players. Great for when you have company over or a small party.  The game takes simple parenting and turns it into an excuse for ‘mommy juice.’  Cards like, “Please don’t put _____ in your mouth.” and ‘Why is Mommy Mad?”  Enjoy this hilarity and a little adult-time.  Mix with Cards Against Humanity for extra fun.

Pets:

This is my first time hearing about this but now that I own one I’ll change the way I own candles in my house!  One Fur All candles are great for pet-loving households!  They are 100% soy wax candles designed to neutralize pet orders.  They even have holiday scents like gingerbread cookies and Holidays Fur All. I want to try the Fresh Citrus next.  They have lots of scents plus if you buy right now you can get a free mini candle.

For The Whole Family:

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