By Ivan Kelly Looking for the best Christmas gifts for 2008 is a common experience as the year advances and we start to approach the holiday season. There are some easy buys that readily spring to mind, such as Christmas decorations, gift baskets, and Christmas cards. However, to really stir your imagination, here is a list of best selling gifts that has been researched with some of the largest retail stores. 1. Bakugan Battle PackA strategic game that is based on the TV series "Bakugan Battle Brawlers". For kids 4 and above, they pit a variety of warriors against each other and score points. The plastic spheres used burst open to disclose warrior apparatus that is truly fearsome. 2. Fisher-Price Elmo LiveA cuddly version of the Sesame Street character, Elmo. He's been designed to entertain kiddies from the age of 18 mths with his antics. These include singing, talking, telling jokes, moving his mouth as he talks, sitting, and more. Easy to activate, such as squeezing a toe or tickling his tummy. The little ones love it! 3. Wild Planet HyperdashCombines simple maths with physical exercise and uses a race-course game that moves along quickly. It's an exciting and fun way of helping kids to improve their listening and math skills, as well as their coordination. It's easy to set up and suits children aged six and above. 4. Lego City Advent CalendarThere are 196 pieces, including accessories and figures (such as a fireman), for building fun as your child creatively develops structures. See how the fire fighter manages to rescue the cat from a tree! For ages five upwards. 5. Vtech - Kidizoom Digital CameraDesigned for children 3 years old or more, this camera takes real pictures and is easy for little hands to use. There is also child level software included for simple photo-editing. It is rugged, has special grips and allows two-eye viewing. Encourages creative play. 6. Blokus ClassicAlthough designed for kids aged five or more, this strategy board game (using special tiles) will also appeal to older children and adults as it calls upon spatial thinking and invites you to block your opponent's moves. On the other hand, the bright colors and simple rules will easily attract the little ones. 7. Melissa and Doug Deluxe Standing EaselEncourages the Picasso within and offers freedom of expression with a large chalkboard, a paper roller that is easy to load, and a dry-erase board. Invites endless hours of doodling, sketching, and drawing as well as painting. has an adjustable height and suits ages 4-10 years. 8. Bakugan Battle ArenaThis is an accessory for the strategic game listed above that is based on the "Bakugan Battle Brawlers" TV series. Children aged four and above earn points in a black "Battle Arena" as they roll their plastic Bakugan onto magnetic cards. This addition helps to make the game feel more "professional" and offers extra fun to those who love to play this game. 9. Leapfrog LeapsterA hand held gaming system that uses a video game format as a teaching tool. There are different game templates which are not only entertaining - they also have a learning component. The toy offers recognizable movie and TV characters who engage users in a game as they learn language skills as well as math and reading. 10. Playskool TonkaThis is both an r/c vehicle and a racing car which is "driven" by youngsters handling a wireless controller. The vehicle goes over obstacles, flips, and rushes forwards and backwards. With a soft body and over-sized tires, floors, walls and feet are safe! The remote control is friendly to toddlers (up to the size of dads!). This list is based on actual sales and demonstrated demand for products in stock during the period leading up to Christmas. Children are probably the driving force behind the demand for much of the shopping which is done at Christmas. Our desire to please, entertain and educate the young is a key reason we empty our wallets and purses so readily at this time. The list above of possibly the 10 best Christmas gifts for 2008 will help considerably to make your shopping expedition less of a task and more joyful.
By Terry Stanfield It's just around Christmas and you're considering a number of options for Christmas gifts for mom. Out of the many gifts you are considering, make sure that your gifts are something that your mom can use. There is really no point to getting her something that she doesn't like or want to use. This article will provide you with great ideas for six unique Christmas gifts for your mom. These gifts will be something that your mom will cherish forever. Not only will these ideas please your mom, they will also make the busy Christmas shopping season a bit easier for you to manage. Gift no.1: Get your mother a cameos, a cameos is something that nobody would probably even think of getting your mother. And the great thing about a cameo is the fact that it can be personalized for the specific occasion. Gift no.2: If you are looking to get a special gift for mom, then it would be a good idea to get her birthstone jewelry. Birthstone jewelry is something she will wear and remember for ever.
Gift no.3: Getting mother's jewelry for Christmas is a good idea as jewelry is something moms always tend to wear, especially jewelry that has specially been made from them.
Gift no.4: When buying jewelry as Christmas gifts for mom, she will love it if you bought her mother's earrings. Earrings such as the "ethereal bond post earrings" make for excellent Christmas gifts for moms. Gift no.5: Get your mom a mother's locket. A mother's locket is an excellent Christmas present for moms. These lockets are available in various colors, and makes, which would make your mom very happy. These lockets have been specially designed with moms in mind, so there is no risk really as you know your mom would love them. Gift no.6: Get your mom a bead and block birth stone bracelet for Christmas. These are excellent Christmas gifts, with a personal touch. It is guaranteed to make your mom feel special, and wanted. It does a good job of warming hearts up during Christmas. As you can see there are many unique Christmas gifts for mom. There are unique presents as nobody would really think of giving your mom these gifts. These gifts, along with a warm hug, are enough to say "I love you" and "Merry Christmas"to your mom. The next time you go shopping be sure to take this list along with you.
By Jeffrey Meier What does love mom the most? Her children, you may answer. What does she love to get from her children? She loves getting homemade gifts, even homemade Christmas gifts. You may think just because you are an adult you can't or shouldn't make her Christmas gifts? Why in the world would you ever think that? Don't you realize that mom loves everything homemade? Mom also loves everything and anything her children make. Don't worry about not having any creativity skills. There are plenty of homemade gift ideas that take little to no creativity skills to make, besides once you get started you may be surprised to find out just how much talent you actually have. Here are a few suggestions to get you started on making mom a homemade gift or two: Write mom a poem. You could write a fun poem, a sentimental poem or even a poem about winter and past Christmas seasons. Then place the poem in a nice photo frame or make a greeting type card from it using your computer and printer. Make mom a special beaded ornament: You will need some pipe cleaners and beads in Christmas colors Bend the pipe cleaner to form a shape such as a star, run the pip cleaner through each bead one at a time, twist together at the end. You can even add bells or holly berries to the ornament. Does your mom have style, especially holiday style? In you answered yes, you may want to make her some festive napkins. You will need: Pieces of felt Scissors Glue Fabric Plain napkins (hopefully in Christmas colors such as red or green) Mini pom poms Cut out decorative shapes such as a Christmas tree or wreath out of the felt. Glue a shape onto the corner of a napkin. You can use the pom poms to make the napkin a bit more festive and the fabric to help decorate it some. If those ideas aren't your style here are a few more suggestions: Christmas cookies or cakes A Christmas meal A gift basket containing some of her favorite things A photo album Using your computer you could take special old photographs, copy them and even edit them some Like taking old family pictures and putting them together in a collage Starting with Grandma and working your way down to the youngest. What would mom love more than Homemade Christmas Gifts? Can you really think of anything? Jeffrey Meier at Jam727 Enterprises at http://www.thearticlehome.com blog offers even more detailed information on a wide variety of topics.
By Peter Crump I write all about mens gifts, and one of the most common questions I get asked through my website is "what gift do I buy for my man. He has plenty of money and buys what he wants, so he already has everything he wants". This is of course pretty common. Lots of men just get out there and buy something if they want it, they don't drop hints near birthday time hoping that the hint will be picked up and acted on. Almost by definition, if he wants it he's already got it. Not always of course, often it's a question of cost. There are men with a list of wants that they would like to fill, but just can't afford them. If your man is like that, and you can afford those gifts, then ask him and see what he'll say, he'll probably jump at the chance to tell you about those things he'd love the most but can't buy for himself. But lets assume for a moment that your man can afford what he wants, and so you're a little stuck for ideas for unique and unusual birthday gifts or Christmas gifts that are going to get his juices going. Here's 7 ideas for gifts for him. He may love all of them, he may love none of them, but I doubt it. There'll be at least one gift for him there that he'll love. Some are extremely expensive and some aren't. 1. Lingerie. Now it isn't entirely a unique gift idea but it's one that is almost guaranteed to work. Men love lingerie. Worn by their women of course. I have seen lots of lists of favorite gifts for men and there is one common gift theme. Lingerie is always up there. No matter how many pieces of beautiful lingerie a woman has, if she selects well and chooses the right piece I can just about guarantee her man will love it, provided of course she wears it for him. It's almost a can't fail gift. And there is wonderful lingerie available for women of any size, so girls it's no excuse to say that you're a little large. If your man loves you large he'll love you large and looking great in some sexy lingerie. 2. Adventure gifts. Most men love adventure and adrenalin. Not all, but most. And many women aren't aware that there are some excellent companies around that cater to this extremely well. It's possible to find all sorts of adventure gifts for men and women that you would never have thought existed. And for all sorts of tastes. Would he love to do his first parachute jump? Try white water rafting? Drive a tank or a supercar? Go zero-g just like the astranauts do in training? You can give him a gift of any of these things and thousands more, from the extreme adrenalin gift to the gentle and invigorating and pampering gift. The adventure gift companies cater for all tastes in outdoors and adventure and adrenalin, even to beautiful and luxurious days like wine tastings and spa days. There's something for everyone. 3. An eco holiday. There is a growing worldwide movement to charity and volunteer and ecological work and travel. Rather than just buy him a holiday in Europe, which is a little ho hum, why not buy him some volunteer travel with a difference. There are lots of companies which offer adventure travel with a twist, volunteer work that helps out those less fortunate than ourselves, both people and animals and the environment. He may end up on a research vessel in the waters off Mexico counting turtles or in the wilds of Africa measuring the distribution of African animals. The destinations are almost always exotic. There is work to be done but it is so interesting and adventuruous and invigorating that he probably won't even see it as work. It's fun, it's exciting, it's adventurous and it gives back to the environment and to many less fortunate than ourselves helping committed scientists with their research. It costs, it's not free, but it's an extremely unique and fabulous holiday that he's unlikely to better. 4 Chinese art. This is a favorite of mine because I lived in China for a while and just love Chinese art. We have so many pieces that we don't have enough space to hang them all. From beatiful Chinese wall hangings to the absolutely fabuluous and quite unique teapots of Yixing, there are so many Chinese artworks that would go so well in so many of our Western homes. And it's so cheap. For the man who loves his art, Chinese art is a gift of art with a difference. 5. Mens jewelry. Now this is a gift for a man who likes to wear jewelry obviously, and you need to establish this first. However for a man who does like his jewelry there are some extremely modern and stunning jewelry pieces available on the net now at very competitive prices. And they are made exclusively for men using some of the finest and most masculine of jewelry metals. Like Titanium. If you haven't checked out Titanium jewelry for men on the net lately and your man likes jewelry you should do so. It makes for a wonderful and sometimes extremely romantic gift for the right man. 6. An elephant painting. Another one for the man who likes his art. Painted by a real Asian elephant on paper which is made from elephant dung. Now before you wonder if I've gone mad check it out. The elephants really do the painting, I have a video of it on my website. And believe it or not they paint recognisable objects. The paintings look great, are extremely inexpensive, and would make a great artwork to hang near the table to stimulate some evening conversation with his friends. And in Thailand, where a lot of the elephant paintings are done, they also make the most stunning paper from elephant dung. And yes, again I've got links on my website to sites where you can actually see how it's done, it's not a fraud. It's beautiful paper, and you can get his elephant painting done on elephant dung paper. 7. And for the man who has absolutely everything and who won't like anything at all from number 1 to 6, then buy him a whale. It is perfectly possible to do. He doesn't actually get a whale wrapped in paper to unwrap on his birthday. However there are organisations like the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin trust that track and identify individual whales and dolphins, and allow you to name his own whale or dolphin. There is a real whale or dolphin out there that is named for him. The money helps in the protection of our whales and gives him a unique and memorable gift. So there you have it, 7 suggestions for great gifts for the man who has everything. Ranging in price from $50 or so, to seriously expensive. Now you don't have any excuses to say "I have no idea what to buy him for his birthday" any more.
By Janice Wee What do you get for your neighbors for christmas?How about your coworkers?Your neighbors and colleagues are people you would see everyday. At home, your neighbors are closest to you. In case of an emergency in your home, your family and friends who live far away may not reach you in time. Your neighbors may well be the ones you have to count on to save your life, or the lives of your loved ones. If you work, chances are you would spend most of your waking hours in the office with your coworkers. A poor working relationship with your colleagues can make life plain miserable. Being great friends with your colleagues whom you see everyday can make a major difference to the quality to life in the office. It is wise to build a good relationship with your neighbors and colleagues. Exchanging gifts is a great way to help build rapport. Or at least a cordial relationship. As is helping one another, forgiving the careless words that might hurt and basically building an easy-going, give and take relationship with the people you see everyday. Back to the topic of Christmas gifts. What do you get for your colleagues and neighbors? If you know them well enough, you might pick a gift that is in line with their hobbies. A new set of golf clubs for an avid golfer if you budget permits it. Eye cream for a neighbor or colleague who keeps complaining about her dark rings under the eyes or crows feet. For the office gift exchange or for coworkers or neighbors you might not know very well, but would like to impress, christmas gift wine might be more appropriate, unless they are teetolers, that is. I know, the temptation to recycle unwanted christmas gifts from last year is strong and youo know what? You might be able to get away with it. Two rules to remember. 1. Don't give the gift back to the one who gave it to you. 2. Match the gift to the recipient. One man's junk is another's treasure, so give these presents to people who would actually use them. Christmas food gifts are very versatile and more affordable. These are wonderful for neighbors and colleagues especially if you are afraid something too personal might cause misunderstanding. Everyone must eat, so good food would be appreciated by both sexes and by the young and old alike. In fact, food gifts are your best bet. Cookies make great christmas gifts. If you have the time, you can bake your own. If not, you can always buy delicious cookies beautifully packaged as christmas gifts for anyone who is not on a diet. Check out these christmas cookie recipes They make cheap christmas gifts that would be well received. For a family with women or teenage girls, or even one with guys who are well groomed, a fragrance coffret or a christmas gift set with fragrances would be perfect.
By Ukren Marshal
Christmas Gifts For Her - Unique Christmas Gifts to Win a Lady's HeartLooking for a unique and fashionable Christmas gift for your beloved? With the coming of Christmas festival the gift shops and stores are flooded with imaginative gift ideas. An exquisite and stylish gift always excites a lady. So, to find such splendid gifts for a lady consider the Christmas gifts for her. Christmas gifts for her are a collection of magnificent and novelty gift idea. The gifts are splendid and carry features that exceptional and instantly fascinate the mind. With the gifts you can make the recipient feel special on this festival season. Gifts are fabulous and can capture the happy moments eternally. You can also find gifts that are in vogue and are hot sellers. For example: Name A Star Gift Box, Name A Star (A4 Framed), Name A Box Of Chocolates, Newspaper From The Date Of Birth, Become A Lord Lady Scottish Land, Laird Or Lady Gift Box, Magazine Subscription Gift Box For Her, Fragrance For Her, Name A Rose Gift Box, Replica Gold Disc are to be cited a few. On this merry making season, you can easily find Christmas gifts for her that are inspirational and adventurous. A wide range of gift experiences are exhibited for women. Floating experience, London helicopter sightseeing tour, mini mayhem, 6 hour recording studio experience etc are few gifts that will make the recipient feel admirable. Floating experience is a great way to treat women. This experience relaxes the body and mind in warm water. This experience revitalizes the body and benefits the participant to heal the chronic pain, worries and enlighten the spirit. The Christmas gifts for her are also rich with personalized gifts. You can dedicate a gift on the recipients name and make her feel admirable. One such an example is- magazine subscription gift box for her. This mini gift box contains magazine of different issues such as- Marie Claire, In Style, Essentials, Ideal Home, Women and Home, Homes and Garden. Such Christmas gifts for her is sure to leave an everlasting impression and make the festival season enduring.
By CD Mohatta Christmas time is fun time for Children. Children are always very excited about arrival of Christmas because they get lots of gifts. Every child has their own dream about the kind of gift they want during Christmas. So if you are thinking of buying gift for Children you should spend little more time and attention to get the best gift for Children during Christmas. Let us find out what can be done. Children get many toys at Christmas. Why not buy children something different such as a day at a theme park? The range of gifts now available for children is very large. You get- Bicycles, Musical instruments Board games, Model cars and trains Karaoke Computer games, And many such gifts. Before you buy a child a gift think about what their hobbies are. Talk to the child and the parents for sometime. Go to the child's room. Look at what they have there. Avoid giving them the same thing. Ask them about what they would like. Best is to give them a catalog and ask them to mark their choice in priority. Then choose what suits your budget. Early Shopping- Start your Christmas shopping early. If you leave your shopping to the last minute you will buy any gift rather than your chosen one. By shopping early you will have the pick of the Christmas range. Shopping early gives you enough time to select suitable gifts for the children. All of us have our own budget and cannot exceed that. It is our effort to make every Dollar go a long way. We can buy anything online or search properly. a friend of mine has been buying all his gifts on eBay. He starts this three months before Christmas and by the time of arrival of Christmas, he has collected best gifts for everyone.
By CD Mohatta With a little imagination you can give a gift that will be remembered fondly, and it can be as much fun for you as for them. When I was a little girl I woke up Christmas morning to the largest package I'd ever seen! Usually I would save the best package for last, but my parents told me I had to open it first. I opened it and my grown up brother popped out, home for a visit! He was not expected this year, so it was a special treat. One year I gave a hand made certificate to my in-laws for breakfast in bed. Of all the material gifts they received, some very expensive, this was the one that gave them excitement! The day after Christmas at the appointed time, I made a lovely breakfast and put it on a tray with good china, linen napkins, a fresh newspaper, and flowers, and knocked on their bedroom door. One of the best gifts I've ever received was for my tuition to be paid to take a workshop with my friend. She signed us up to learn Reiki, which is a skill I value having today, and I have the lovely memory of our taking a workshop together. You can do something very fun or romantic if there has been fresh snow. Find a nice area of unmarked snow, and stomp a message in it and then take your spouse or friend for a walk to it. If you make the message personal, they will be very surprised to see it is for them. Another wonderful gift to give is simply to take care of a problem a friend or family member has been having. This is a particularly nice gift to give to the elderly. You can repair a dishwashing machine, do yard clean-up, or offer your services for a couple hours each weekend for a month. If you know the person well, it can be fun to arrange for an experience they, or both of you, have never had. This could include white water river rafting, sailing in a balloon, race car driving, a wine tour, a day at a spa, or local tours.
By CD Mohatta With Christmas just around the corner, many people are talking about what kinds of gifts to get for men. A lot of people have various ideas on what to get the men in their lives. Whether it is a gift for a husband, a father or other family or friend, there are many types of gifts that are available. One man that I know says that shopping for a man depends on his tastes and his likes and dislikes. So, as we prepare for Thanksgiving, it would be a good idea to start paying close attention to the men around us and make mental notes about the things they like. Getting ideas ahead of time about the things they use and talk about should give people a lot of ideas for gifts. For instance, if the man loves the outdoors, then take notice of what they like to do outside. Or if the man is a professional businessman, then see what kinds of things he has and might need. If the man likes to watch television or play video games, then you know which direction to head. Once you have watched the men in your life and made some observations about important interests and things in their lives, then you can begin to creatively think of ideas for each. The benefit of starting your observations before Thanksgiving is so you can start finding great gifts on sale that might be perfect for the men in your life. If you find that one of your men likes to watch television and movies, then you start to watch for sales on videos and things that would be beneficial to someone who likes watching movies. It is a good idea to try to find out what kinds shows they like to watch, like old movies, television series, comedies, romance, action or dramas. It is beneficial to have a month to watch for sales on videos or DVDs so you can get more for your money so you can get old television show DVDs, like All in the Family, Bonanza, M*A*S*H, Forest Grump, Liar, Liar, Contact, Air Force One, or even Gunsmoke or Star Trek. If you discover that one of the men in your life loves the outdoors, then it can be fun to see what kinds of things they already own and use. Is it a sporting interest, a camping interest, or hunting or fishing interest? There is a very large sporting goods store, called Bass Pro Shops that has anything that you could imagine to give to the man who loves the outdoors. If you are not sure what to give, then a gift card is always appreciated by a sportsman. For those who are professional businessmen, there are some great personalized items that are sure to be big hits. Things Remembered is a good store for business equipment, as well as Office Depot and eve Wal-Mart. Some of the things that are sure to be appreciated are the man's name engraved on a fine pen, a card holder, a portfolio, a desk set, clock or mug and warmer. Something personal and thoughtful is always appreciated by someone who is proud of what they do. A great gift for gamers is a gift card to a local game store. That allows the man to buy a video game that they want or some kind of video accessories. Gift cards are a great idea for almost any man although there are some who think they are not very personal. I know that we enjoy getting gift cards for entertainment because we would not normally go to various places unless we had a gift card. For young men, clothing gift cards are a good idea as young people have a different taste in clothes and styles. Shopping for a man depends on his tastes as I said, but if you can not determine what their interests or taste is and have no idea and can not get any ideas from looking around them, then you can always go the traditional route of Christmas presents. Some men will like monogrammed hankies, electric razors, or tools. Of course there is always the gift card for movies or restaurants that allows the man to use his gift to enjoy a night out with his wife or girlfriend. That is one way to give two gifts at once, and is sure to be appreciated and enjoyed.
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