Since we know you’re always ready to appreciate the new and unusual, we’re sure you will – or your teens will – enjoy this new sound of Christmas! Brought to you by Japanese beatboxer maestro, Hikakin.
Merry Christmas!

 
Last but most certainly not least is our final Gift Guide for the season: The Stocking Stuffer Gift Guide. For many, stockings are the best part of Christmas. Don’t you love finding those little gems for each member of your family, especially those that do not cost a fortune?
Here are some great finds to fill everyone’s stockings:

 
FOR HER

 
Hopscotch Necklace – Do not let the price fool you. This chunky geometric wooden bead necklace would be a stylish complement to a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Buy from Fleet Collection. $16.00

 
Password Book – If she is anything like me, I [...]

By Amie Valpone, Culinary Marketing Consultant & CEO of the gluten-free blog, The Healthy Apple.

When it comes to making healthy holiday choices, things can get complicated. Restaurants and food stores are stocked with processed foods and the items on sale are often the worst for us. This time of year, our schedules can get a bit hectic and crazy; we’re running around wrapping gifts, shopping for last minute presents, traveling and baking hundreds of Christmas cookies. If your head’s not spinning already it surely will be in a few weeks. It’s important to sit back, take a deep breath and [...]

If you have any plans of shopping online, make them for tomorrow, December 16, 2011 which is – more or less officially – Free Shipping Day around the country.  It’s the fourth annual of such events which, this year, will feature over 2200 merchants (that’s double that of last year) who will offer free shipping for a delivery by Christmas eve. It’s a “universal” one day agreement by some of the top (and some serious favorite) online merchants. This year Free Shipping Day is happening tomorrow, Friday, December 16.
See the whole list of participating merchants here.
The merchants include the classic [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
Every year at this time, we scour the internet looking for websites that bring out the child in all of us and help us (and our kids) get into the spirit of Christmas. Last year we found several Ho Ho Holiday sites and the year before, some Creative Christmas Magic Sites.
This year, we found another free site, PortableNorthPoleTV which creates a personalized video from Santa. What makes this one different? It’s not just for kids, but also works well for non-believers, aka teens and adults. Santa will tell them if they are on the naughty [...]

 
This is the time of year when celebrations should all be about family. Getting together and enjoying each others company.
In searching out the best gift picks to give to a family as a whole, we were looking for ideas that would celebrate the family unit, its values or that would encourage family members to come together to have fun…together.
Here then are some of our favorite gift ideas for the entire family. Enjoy!

iPad Game Changer – This is a game board for an iPad, that brings interactive animation and sound to a traditional board game making it fun for the entire [...]

Every day, our kids are bombarded with commercials for toys they must have! Most of these toys will probably hold their attention for about five minutes and end up at the back of their closet. I try to never fall prey to these crazes (well, I did with the zu zu pets but only because I thought it would be a substitute for the real thing which the girls desperately wanted) and always try to come up with gift ideas that are far more 1. meaningful 2. high quality with lasting play power and 3. interesting which will guarantee lots [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
Is someone on your gift list a serious dog lover?  If so, you will love, love, love the work of artist Amelia Santiago. Amelia has successfully combined her love for animals and being an accomplished artist into a career that she is very passionate about. She creates exact replicas of the family pet into fine art needle felted animals.
All sculptures are made with 100% wool. Amelia examines as many photos as she can to “get to know” each pet. She studies them closely to really capture their personalities when creating their needle-felted likeness. On average, [...]

Sure, tradition is nice. But to us, tradition is kept interesting when amplified by new ideas and a fresh (and always respectful) twist on old rituals. See some of the ideas we found here:

 
Snowfall Lights – I remember being mesmerized by these lights when I saw them on the streets of downtown L.A. a couple years ago. Now theses lights are available to the public for home use. The set features 6 inch light tubes that give the effect of falling snow. Gorgeous. Here’s a video that demonstrates the live effect of the snowfall lights. Available on Amazon.

 
Inflatable Wreath – [...]

It is that time of year when we bring you our annual Holiday Gift Guide Series to help you uncover unique, meaningful and simply succulent finds for your gift recipients. Predictably, we will commence with the Gift Guide For Her (one of our favorites) and continue with nine more specialty gift guides this season.
Our theme for this Gift Guide covers both sides of the coin: the party side and the downtime side. Clearly this girl wants to have fun! This has been a tumultuous year filled economic stress, insecurities and the constant calling of all the everyday responsibilities that she [...]