Here are some gift ideas for the ladies and the men – in my opinion, the more difficult family members to shop for.  Hope the things we like help you with your shopping!

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Gift ideas for the lovely ladies
Gift ideas for the guys

GIFT IDEAS FOR THE LADIES

Ever since I made his acquaintance at Kidzapalooza this past summer, I have been a fan of Romero Britto’s pop art style and have very much been looking forward to including his work in my 2010 gift idea guide.  Here are a few of my favorites:

(Left) Romero Britto Cream and Sugar Set – $32
(Middle) Romero Britto Apple Tea Bag Holder – $8
(Right) Romero Britto Mug – $20

If you’re geeky and you know it, clap your hands (hear me clapping?)  These items will keep you charged, covered and ready to view at any given time:

(Left) iGo Charge Anywhere – $40
(Middle) Cassette Tape iPhone Cozy – $23
(Right) Epson PictureMate Show All-in-one Printer and Digital Frame – $200 (approx.)

Keep the lady comfy with this fabulous travel pillow and sleep mask and feeling special with this jewelry for mom and baby:

(Left) Little Honey Travel Pillow – $15
(Middle) Little Honey Sleep Mask – $12
(Right) Bebe AuLait Family Ties Star Bracelet Set – $75

If there is a “fancy” lady in your life, you might want to consider one or more of these fabulous items:

(Left) Ruffle-front cardigan (Peoria Emporium)- $79
(Middle) Satin-like boa with fringe (an Oprah “best pick”) (Peoria Emporium) – $39
(Right) Purple Cracked Agate & Yellow Opal Necklace – $27

Finally, for the hip, on-the-go lady.  Beautiful leather gloves, motherboard business card holders and a fish net wine bottle carrier.  Nice.

(Left) Lots of Luxe Gloves – $65
(Middle) Motherboard Business Card Case – $29
(Right) Fishnet Wine Tote by Built – $15

GIFT IDEAS FOR THE GUYS

Now, I got a man who is way into whiskey and anything hip pertaining to hosting with alcoholic beverages, so you will see that reflected in my gift ideas for guys.  Here goes:

(Left) Stranahans Colorado Whiskey – $60
(Middle) On the Rocks Set – $30
(Right) Leatherman New Wave Multi-tool – $60 +

I love my Built Laptop Sleeve, so it’s easy to recommend this messenger bag.  If your guy is kind of outdoorsy, techie-geeky, he might totally love these upcycled wool arm warmers and the Gorillamobile for the iPhone4:

(Left) Built Neoprene Soho Laptop Messenger Bag – $80
(Middle) Upcycled Wool Arm Warmers – $32
(Right) Joby Gorillamobile for iPhone 4 – $37

Is your man a little “green”? Then, check these out:

(Left) Belkin Conserve Valet (charging station) – $40
(Middle) The Bamboo Original (water bottle) – $25
(Right) Koostik – $85 +

Time-teller/music-listener?  Burger flipper?  Beer drinker?  Well then, here ya go:

(Left) HEX Watch Band for iPod Nano Gen 6 – $30
(Middle) Adjustable Burger Press from Williams-Sonoma – $36
(Right) Beer Savers – $7

(Left) Areaware Wooden Bottle Opener – $20
(Middle) Beer: A Genuine Collection of Cans – $14
(Right) Recycled Bike Tube Belltown Card Case – $25

For me, November is officially the one month where I look forward to a huge, guilt-free feast.  This year, we traveled 590 + miles to spend Thanksgiving with my family.  If I had to choose one meal out of the year to enjoy with family, this would be it.  No offense to my in-laws but, my mom’s Thanksgiving dinner menu will always be my favorite.  Childhood memories of Thanksgiving past came flooding back as the scent of pumpkin pies and turkey in the oven wafted through the air.  Heading to the Alleghenies last week to visit my family was such a treat.

As the meal preparations were being made, we introduced the little ones to our tradition of watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.  They were ecstatic when Sponge Bob and Hello Kitty appeared and went floating through the streets of New York City.  Our 16 month old even danced to the beat of the marching bands as they played classic holiday tunes.  Their eyes grew pretty wide when Santa Claus rode by, waving at everyone from his sleigh.

My mom has a knack for putting together a great, home-cooked meal and this year’s meal was no exception.  We don’t get to spend every Thanksgiving with my side of the family, so I very much cherish the ones when we do make it out east.  I have many reasons why.

I don’t have any “special” recipes to share, well, because the food my mom prepares on Thanksgiving isn’t really any concoction of her own.  Most of the dishes are straight out of the Betty Crocker cookbook.  That doesn’t matter to me, though.  It’s the tradition that matters most to me.  We have turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, gravy, warm dinner rolls and…PIE.  This year, my little family of four spent the day with four out of my seven brothers and their families.  It was a full house and never a dull moment.  I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

This isn’t a tradition (yet) but here is a snazzy roast turkey and brine recipe.  We experimented with it one Thanksgiving and it was delish.  We got it from one of our favorite celebrity chefs, Alton Brown.  You can get the details from this post: Can You Eat the Turkey from the Southside?  I highly recommend giving it a whirl sometime this fall/winter season.

Now that we’re safely back at home after being away for a week, I’m setting my sights on the upcoming winter festivities.  I have so much planned for this month by way of crafty stuff and baking!  How did you spend your Thanksgiving holiday?  Did you try any new recipes or make any new friends?

There has been much talk in my house lately about eating better and living a healthier lifestyle.  I have never been one to spend too much time focusing on my eating and exercise habits (or lack-thereof) and in the past few years, my figure has spilled the beans on that big secret.  I’ve always been a fair weather fan of exercising and still sneak the occasional pack of peanut butter M&M’s.  It’s not that I make completely bad choices in the food that I eat, but I really don’t have a set regimen.  However, it’s becoming more apparent that since there are now children involved, I possibly need one.  Read on.

I was going to ask Eric to write a post here about healthy eating and exercising but that’s silly because, he’s got an entire blog about it.  My husband is determined and very passionate about eating healthy and exercising.  The proof is in his rapid weight loss over the past 6 months.  It’s also obvious how badly he wants me and the kids to join him on his journey of eating and living primal/paleo.  But you wouldn’t know it when he brings home a tub of cookie dough for us. (Enabler!)  However, he redeemed himself this summer with his deck container-garden.  I was able to make plenty of my favorite Caprese salads with garden fresh basil and tomatoes.

I don’t disagree that his idea of healthy eating and weight loss isn’t a good one (because it’s obviously working for him), but I’m just not one of those people who can follow a specific plan or go on a “diet”.  In fact, I kind of hate that word and the idea behind it, so I try not to use it.  I am more of a go with the flow, take it as it comes kind of person and believe that we can make conscious decisions about the food we eat without too many crazy restrictions.  Thinking about following a specific plan just gets me all sorts of out of whack.  Also, I love ice cream.

At the same time, I realize that I cannot just think of my own health anymore.  I have a family and it’s up to me to make sure my kids are learning about being healthy and that we act on what we know and preach to them.  Admittedly, I struggle with feeding my kids super healthy food on a daily basis.  I could give you a slew of excuses for why that is.  I’m a big fan of quick and easy (no, not fast food all of the time, rarely ever actually).  So, I go with what we have in our house on any given day.  Luckily, my kids like fruit and “some” vegetables.  It’s tough with the soon-t0-be five year old, because she’s picky, like her mother.  However, she will sit and munch on red peppers and carrots as a snack.  We can give the toddler anything and she’ll eat it.  That can be good and bad at times.  My goal with the “second child” was to only feed her very healthy foods right from the start, so we don’t have the pickiness problem later on.  (It’s going to work, right?  RIGHT?)

My main problem is that I’m not overly creative in the kitchen.  Not that I don’t want to be, but I don’t have time each day, so if I don’t plan meals ahead, say on a Sunday, we fly by the seat of our pants on the weekdays.  My kids eat a lot of chicken and fish (of the frozen variety).  My toddler is obsessed with apples (there is a debate on whether or not that was her first word).  We don’t stay completely away from “junk” food but we’re careful not to get super junky food.  Like, snacks are mainly graham crackers and baked goldfish snacks.  We totally nosh on trail mix (yes, the kind with M&M’s, sue me) and yogurt with granola sprinkled on top.  Want to know what my father-in-law ate for a snack when he was a kid?  LARD.  That’s right.  So, I don’t think we’re doing all that terribly here.

Most importantly, we are conscious of our eating habits.  We don’t eat bad all of the time but we leave room for improvement.  In my opinion, this is something that will come with time.  Our kids are watching us and it’s important that we at least talk about it and teach them what healthy eating habits are.  It’s a learning experience for us all.

Don’t stop reading here.  Please take a look at what my Yahoo! Mother Board sisters have to say about healthy eating.

Jamba All Natural Smoothies

Add 8 0z. of apple juice and blend away.  Each pack contains enough fruit for 2 – 8 oz. smoothies.

No artificial flavors, no artificial colors and no preservatives.  Just a full serving of fruit, non-fat yogurt and Jamba’s antioxidant boost.

I love ‘em.  The kids love ‘em.  You can get them at these places.

By the way, have you heard about the new cheeseburger chill smoothie at Jamba Juice?  Mmm. Mmm. Mmm!

With Thanksgiving less than two weeks away it is about time to determine just how you are gonna cook that tasty bird.  I’ve had deep-fried turkey (good), smoked turkey (even better), but my favorite way to cook a turkey for Thanksgiving (or even Christmas) is brined and roasted. Yes, I’ll admit that I borrowed the original recipe from the amazing Alton Brown a few years ago, but I’ve made some minor (and delicious) changes, oh yes.

Start with a 14 to 16 pound turkey.  You can use a smaller bird or a turkey breast, but be sure to reduce the other ingredients proportionally.  You’ll also need a 5 gallon bucket.

Brine stuff:
1 cup of salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock
1 tbsp whole black peppercorns
1/2 tbsp allspice berries
1/2 tablespoon candied ginger
1/2 cup cognac
1 gallon iced H20

Aromatics:
1 red apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 sage leaves
canola oil

So what you want to do is combine all the brine stuff (except the iced water) in a pot and bring it to a boil.  Stir until the solids are dissolved, then remove from heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate until chilled. It is generally best to do this the night before. Save a little bit of the cognac for yourself and have a drink while you’re at it.

Early on the day of cooking, combine the brine (what you made above) and ice water in the clean 5 gallon bucket.  Mix it up and place the thawed turkey breast side down in the bucket, cover, and refrigerate or set it in a cool place for 6 hours. It is generally pretty chilly here around Thanksgiving so on the back porch works for me.

Just before you are ready to roast, heat your oven to 500 degrees.  Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and cup of water and microwave on high for about 5 minutes.  Once you get the aromatics in the microwave, remove the bird from the brine and rinse inside and out with cold water.  Discard the brine.

Place your turkey on a roasting rack inside a wide, low pan and pat dry with paper towels.  Add the aromatics you just microwaved to the cavity of the bird along with the rosemary and sage. Tuck back the wings and coat the bird liberally with canola oil.

Roast your bird on the lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F. for 30 minutes.  Remove the turkey from the oven and cover breast with a double layer of aluminum foil and return it to the oven, reducing temperature to 350 degrees F.  A 14 to 16 pound turkey should require 2 to 2-1/2 hours of roasting.  Use a probe thermometer if you’ve got one and set it for 161 degrees.  Let your bird rest, loosely covered for 15 minutes before carving.

I spent my evening on the southside last night, maybe that’s why the Cubs got crushed.  But I digress.  I spent my evening with a group of women and we ate breakfast…for dinner.  And that’s alright with me!

MDA (Midwest Dairy Association) and Edelman brought 3 local Chicago bloggers together; Erin of the state that i am in (I think I’m in love…with baby Rufus! ), Caroline of Whipped (she had me at Bougatsa ) and yours truly of, you know, here, there and everywhere.  We gathered with our friends together at Chicago’s Washburne Culinary Institute (yes, WCI is where Season 4 of Top Chef was filmed! – yay Ted Allen!)

The three of us introduced ourselves and talked a little about our blogging addictions habits and what fascinates us about dairy products.  We went around the room and everyone in attendance shared their favorite breakfast.  I was inspired by…..

some of the breakfasts that were mentioned.  Some like cereal, some like omelettes, bagels and…donuts!  Yum!  Of course, I shared that I’m a freak about Special K’s Yogurt and Berries – can’t live with it (because I’m always eating it all), can’t live without it.

We sampled dairy products and a variety of Cabot cheese – my favorite: the Chili-Lime Hand Rubbed Cheddar, LE YUM!  Then, we all joined registered dietitian and National Dairy Council’s spokesperson, Melissa Dobbins in the kitchen for a recipe demo of Cheddar and Red Pepper Breakfast squares.  Melissa answered some dairy questions for us while cooking up this delish dish.

After the presentation, we went back out to the dining area to enjoy a fully catered breakfast for dinner!  The spread was fantastic.

Of course, none of us left empty-handed.  We were all given a 3-A-Day of Dairy cooler bag full of great products!

The contents included: A Tastebook and 5 Tastebook coupons, 3-A-Day of Dairy measuring cups, apron, cereal to-go container, handouts, and a ridiculous amount of coupons for free and discounted products!

The special giveaways weren’t too shabby either.  I would have loved to have won the gift basket, which included a Crate and Barrel cheese board and tools, a cheese making kit, a Williams and Sonoma Pizza Stone and a Williams and Sonoma Cow Creamer.  Other giveaways were copies of Lisa Drayer’s new book, “The Beauty Diet” and a Mukka Express Machine.

I have to say, it was a very “good morning” kind of evening.  Thanks MDA and Edelman for putting this lovely event together!  You can view more of my pictures from the Chicago 3-A-Day meet-up HERE.

Who else is talking about 3-A-Day?

Popular bloggers like, CityMama over at BlogHer, The Pioneer Woman and Gather among others.

Now, being so dairy-inspired, I’m going to post a few of my favorite recipes over the next couple of weeks.  Stay tuned!

*To my guests: Joanne and Sarah, thank you for coming!  I am grateful that you were able to attend! :)

Sometimes dads (and moms) just need to unwind a little after the kids have gone to sleep. I speak from experience and know that one solution would be a gimlet, martini, or some other cocktail made with Reyka Vodka from Iceland. Reyka is made from glacial water and is so smooth that you can sip it without a mixer plus the distillery is “green” and powered by geothermal heat so you can feel good about feeling good.