Every year I treat myself to at least 1 or 2 new CDs of Christmas music, since that’s pretty much what I listen to from Thanksgiving to New Years Day.  This is the gift of music that will seriously last for years and that is likely to please everyone’s tastes from Grandma to the tweens.  Speaking of tweens, Justin Beiber’s Christmas Cd “Under The Mistletoe” would be a big hit for their list but I would be willing to bet that you might be a little late to that party. A giant hit this year was Michael Buble’s Christmas; I have it and love the laid back, rat-pack, timeless classy vibe. But my favorites this year are actually two that I downloaded from Amazon (also available on itunes) – The Sing Off Harmonies for the Holidays and Sing Off Songs for the Season (from 2010 and 2011). I loved watching the Sing Off, and the featured groups perform  a capella Christmas music with amazing vocal effects on these CDs.  Last year I bought the Christmas cd from Straight No Chaser, another all-male a capella group that is so fun to listen to. So much to choose from! Have fun sharing your favorites – a perfect gift for all!

Wendell August Forge has crafted two unique ornaments from pieces of the roof at the old Civic Arena – with all proceeds benefiting Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation youth charities.

Each ornament is available for $29 plus shipping & handling. One features an image of the Civic Arena and the Pittsburgh skyline; the second features an image of the Civic Arena and the logo of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who were the building’s anchor tenant from 1967-2010. They are going FAST – only taking orders until Dec 14.  It’s too late to get them in time for Christmas, but better late than never.

Together, the ornaments enable fans to honor 50 years of Pittsburgh memories while supporting the Penguins Foundation’s charitable efforts, which focus on the region’s youth. Order here

This is the kind of session that makes my heart sing! I photographed this precious girl with her family 4 years ago, when she was four years old and missing a front tooth and they were among my favorite images ever. We just did another session in November. Bella is now eight and so. grown. up! What an incredible difference – she’s gotten so much taller, and she is so funny and personable and HAPPY that I could just smother her with hugs. Here’s her session from 2007 in case you want to see for yourself just exactly WHY you should photograph your children as often as you can; the changes happen right under your nose and you don’t want to miss a minute of your little blessings!

Here’s one of my favorites from 2007:

And here she is now – so beautiful!

(Anderson SC children’s photographer, fun and creative photography in SC, Washington PA children’s photography)

Saw these at a toy store in Greenville, and was intrigued enough to check out the website – and now I’m pretty sure that in keeping with our reputation as the grandparents who have the coolest stuff ever, we may soon purchase one of these to ride on the trail right in front of our house. They range in price from $189 for a small child’s model up to $399 for the heavy duty (ie, we adults could ride it too!) version. Any bit of exercise helps, right? Website is here, and here is a video of kids riding it – flat $50 shipping gets it to you in time for Christmas!

Perfect stocking stuffers for the men in your life – bacon flavored treats! Bacon salt, bacon popcorn, bacon mayonnaise, bacon croutons, bacon rub, even bacon-flavored envelopes:

Can be found at Walmart, Publix, Food Lion, Kroger, Food City,and online at Amazon or J&Ds.

I love British humor, and I really love Stephen Fry as Jeeves the butler. This alarm clock reproduces the subtle wit employed by P. G. Wodehouse’s most famous character–the valet Reginald Jeeves politely affirms the beginning of the day. 126 different wake-up messages in the reserved voice of Stephen Fry. When the alarm sounds, Jeeves speaks softly as he assuages your displeasure that the morning has indeed come: “Excuse me sir, I’m so sorry to disturb you, but it appears to be morning… Very inconvenient, I agree… I believe it is the rotation of the Earth that is to blame” or greets you with “Good morning, sir… I feel sure you have slept soundly, feel thoroughly refreshed, and await the day with the anticipation of an energetic gazelle.” You can get a “Madam” version as well.  Now I will admit that this probably isn’t the best solution for couples who need to get up at different times because it is not as sophisticated as other modern alarms, but the fun factor of this is off the scale. Definitely on my list for one of my guest rooms! Find it on Amazon

My friend Deb actually alerted me to this next gift suggestion. She was raving about a shop  that specialized in flavored oils and balsamic vinegars, letting you taste test them right in the shop! Turns out that these shops are franchised and I found one right here in Greenville, SC;  they have a lot in Pennsylvania, too – West Chester, Doylestown, Bethlehem, and at the Pittsburgh Public Market.  These shops give you recipes and ideas for using these oils in new ways – like, cinnamon-pear balsamic over ice cream, or walnut oil mixed with black cherry vinegar for a salad dressing. Even if you can’t find one of these particular specialty shoppes, a lot of upscale markets have these types of gourmet oils and vinegars. This is exactly the kind of thing that great cooks LOVE, and it’s a perfect hostess gift. I’m not even gonna tell you how much I spent in Palmetto Olive Oil Co. but I am set for last minute gifts for quite a while!

Seriously, I did not know these existed until about 4 years ago. Works like a charm and at only about $7 from a kitchen goods store, it’s a great stocking stuffer or grab bag gift. Pick one up for your mom because,  like me, I bet she didn’t know about these  either!

There have been several people that I’ve known that have had fires in their homes, and some have been neighbors of friends, but in every single case there was one common factor – burning candles.  I have always burned candles, most of them in jars, but I learned that even those can break and aren’t 100% foolproof. I saw these battery operated candles in a gift shop and they completely changed my mind about “fake” candles because they look so real. They flicker, and some are even scented. This is the kind of thing that makes a perfect gift for grandmothers, moms with small kids, and hostesses. This set sells for $26 on Amazon, but I have seen them at Kohls and other department stores and gift shops (if you can buy local, even better!).

Stacey found this on Pinterest and made it for an appetizer for Thanksgiving, and let’s just say that we (ok, mostly me) DECIMATED this in minutes. It was absolutely fantastic – really different and so, so tasty. One caveat – you need to like cilantro, because this recipe is MADE by the cilantro in it. You can make it without the layer of cream cheese (and I probably will in the summer) but Jim almost cried when I considered that this week, so I left it as is. You do need to make this at least 4 hours ahead of time for sure, or the cranberries will be too sour. This is just that perfect holiday treat that we all look for to take to a cocktail party; easy, pretty, and delicious (and maybe you will be the first to make it!)

CRANBERRY SALSA

12 oz pkg cranberries

1/4c chopped green onion

1/4 c chopped cilantro

1 1/4 c. sugar

1 small jalapeno, chopped fine

1/4 tsp cumin

2 T. lemon juice

dash salt

1-2 blocks of cream cheese, softened

Put cranberries in food processor and chop fine. Place in bowl, add the rest of the ingredients except cream cheese and stir well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours, stirring occasionally. Spread cream cheese in bottom of pie plate (I used only one, Stacey used two) and pour cranberry salsa over. Serve with tortilla chips (my preference) or crackers. Thank me here under “comments” for sharing this with you instead of keeping it to myself