Christmas gift ideas for small kids.

Some would say that it is easy to impress little kids with just about any gift, a toy, a fairytale book or even cookies. True, but the more time we spend on selecting or making a gift for them , the more they are drawn towards us. They even learn to appreciate the love and effort that goes in making or buying a gift, thus inculcating the desire to do the same for others. I remember when I was 5, my mom gave me a small teddy bear on Christmas which her mother had sewn for her. With soft and tiny fingers I held that priceless gift. It made me feel really special and from then on I have tried to bring a smile on the face of my near ad dear ones by remembering to gift them a token of my love and adoration every Christmas.
Here are some of the unique and innovative gift ideas for little children you can choose from:



A Beloved Voice
Record your voice reading a book, making jokes, recalling memories, or singing. Include a photo of the person who made the recording. If a new story is being read, wrap up the book with the recording for a special book-tape gift combo.

A special something like a scarf, a necklace, a tie
Children often love to sniff around closets searching for the sweet smell of their dear ones. They even fancy certain jewelery or clothes owned by their parents. If gifted with these cherished items, they are sure to be elated.

An indoor sandbox - the scoop, shovel, and pour kit
Fill a large plastic storage box with birdseed, sand, rice, packing peanuts, or dried beans. Add colorful ladles, scoops, cups, funnels, spoons, shovels, pails, pitchers, plastic measuring cups, measuring spoons, pots and pans, pie tins, animals, cars, or anything with which to scoop, shovel, pour, and play, in the "sandbox."

An explorer kit
Buy a colorful plastic bucket and fill it with tools like magnifying glass, tweezers, specimen jars, bags, a hat etc. for exploring outdoors. Add some rubber boots for moving about in the rain and mud too. Add a small diary where they could paste the leaves or things they gather and narrate their adventuresome experience.

Spin painting
Buy an inexpensive salad spinner or find a used one. Add some paper plates and a few bottles of tempera paint. After your child opens the gift, show him or her how to make a spin painting by putting a paper plate on the bottom of the spinner, adding a few tablespoons of different colors of paint, and giving it all a good spin.

Treasure hunts!
Set this up to lead to a holiday gift, then use it over and over again throughout the year. On index cards, draw freehand, glue pictures from a magazine, or print computer-generated pictures of things in your home. Make about half a dozen for youngest players and a dozen for kids aged five or older. Draw on a directional arrow on each clue to indicate on top of, under, beside, etc. Wrap up the first card and give it to your child as the first clue. Hide the second clue near the item pictured on the first card. Hide the third clue near the item pictured on the second card, and so on, until all the clues are hidden. Make sure to hide a treasure (a gift, a coin, small toy, food treat, etc.) near the final item. Send your child on the hunt with the first clue!

Mr. Potato Head
Mr. Potato Head is here again. His popularity soared with roles in the much loved Toy Story movies. Who doesn't love to see all the different possibilities that Mr. Potato Head has to offer? With a plastic potato and many removable parts (eyes, ears, arms, glasses, etc.) the combinations are endless.

Family chocolate or cookie baking
Unusual isnt it? But messing up their hands, clothes and face as well will really make the tiny tots happy specially when after hours of hard work, a yummy gooey feast awaits the little midgets.

Play-Doh Fun Bucket
The bucket includes more than 20 different accessories and five colors that will surely inspire hours of modeling fun. The Play-Doh does not stain hands or work surfaces and the whole kit can be stored in the bucket for ease of clean-up and storage.

Own a Share In Disney
Buy your child a Disney Share Gift Pack and make him/her an owner of a real share in this entertainment company!

Check out these for more:
http://familyfun.go.com/parenting/learn/activities/feature/simplegifts1102/simplegifts11022.html

http://www.dltk-holidays.com/Xmas/gifts.htm

http://www.gifts.com/ideas/children


Drop in and feel free to share your own ideas.

Christmas Table Decoration

The Christmas party is just 24 hours away and the dinner table still needs to be decorated, your mom's old silver crockery to be brought out and loads of other stuff left to be dealt with. Has this ever happened at your place? To avoid the same happening at mine, I am all geared up to start thinking and shopping for anything and everything that will make my Christmas table look glam.






Santa in Chimney Salt and Pepper Shaker ($11.95)- Santa's about to disappear down the chimney, so grab this cute salt and pepper shaker before he even finds time to escape.

Blown Glass Goblets ($69.95) - Rich ruby colored beautiful goblets that will make people grab them as soon as you serve wine or cocktails in them.

Santa cups and saucers($21.50)- You can either serve your special guests ( kids) in these or stack them with cookies and milk for hungry and tired Santa on Christmas eve.

Candle and Incense Holders ($28.95)- Will light up the evening and create an aura of oneness on this holy day.

Poinsettia Plant ($13.95)- A perfect centrepiece, this charming symbol of the season will add warmth to the celebration taking people's breath away.

Hurricane lamps with flower petals sprinkled around them or filled with Christmas balls are equally attractive.

Pretty baskets of Easter Eggs dyed with Christmas colors make an unusual centrepiece.

Gold or Copper Metallic Charger plates ($5.25)- You can place these glossy plates under the dinner plates making a fashion statement this year.

Snowflake Design Bottle stopper ($2.50)- Sleek chrome stoppers that will attract people's gaze and admiration. Will make excellent gift items as well.

Christmas tree card holder($27.95)- A beautiful wire sculpture in the shape of a Christmas tree designed just to hold all your Christmas cards.

Napkin and Placemat set ($30)- Available in iridescent shades of silver, gold, red or burgundy, these polysilk napkins are pretty to hold and behold.

Santa cookie plates ($10.25)- Delightful!

The list can go on. Check out these websites for more ideas:

http://www.onlinediscountmart.com/christmas-table-decorations.html

http://www.christmascarnivals.com/christmas-centerpiece/

http://www.orenoque.com/christmas-decorations/

Christmas Cartoon Contest

Matt Glover over at Chewing Pencils had a Christmas Cartoon Contest going on. The first picture is the Contest Winner by Ming of Artmaker.

Chris de Burgh buys rare Christmas WWI letter (1914)

A rare letter by an unnamed British soldier describing the Christmas Day truce with German forces in 1914 sold on Tuesday for around 40 times its estimate, and was bought by Irish singer Chris de Burgh. He contacted the press office at Bonhams auctioneers after paying 14,400 pounds for the manuscript against a presale estimate of between 300 and 400 pounds, explaining why he was so passionate about the subject.“He found the content extremely moving as it documented a very personal account of World War I and he believes it to be a great historical manuscript, charting the surreal events of December 25, 1914,” Bonhams said after the sale.
The pop star's great uncle Thomas de Burgh, was an officer killed in the Great War and his grandfather General Sir Eric de Burgh served in the trenches.
The five pencilled pages of an army-issue notebook addressed to “My dear Mater” and signed “Boy” is an uncensored account of life in the trenches.Felix Pryor, a manuscript expert who acted as consultant on the sale, said,“Letters aren’t rare in themselves. But I’ve been doing this since 1975 and I’ve never come across a letter like that describing the Christmas truce,” he told Reuters.
The author describes a poignant moment in his account of how German forces placed lights along their trenches before approaching the British lines to wish them Happy Christmas.
“This will be the most memorable Christmas I’ve ever spent or likely to spend: since about tea time yesterday I don’t think there’s been a shot fired on either side up to now,” he wrote in the letter dated December 25, 1914. “Some of our chaps went over to their lines. I think they’ve all come back bar one from ‘E’ Co. They no doubt kept him as a souvenir.”
During breaks, the soldiers on either side helped each other bury the dead, played football, enjoyed a traditional Christmas meal, chatted and smoked together.
“We can hardly believe that we’ve been firing at them for the last week or two - it all seems so strange,” the letter read.
The fate of the unnamed author is unknown but his letter reflects the dichotomy of being a soldier bound by certain values and an individual whose plain simplicity and desire to be himself sporadically finds expression in the battlefield.

Ten Hot Gift items for Christmas

Do you know whats hot this Holiday season? Well, here is your chance to find out.

• TMX Elmo ( Fisher Price: $39.99) – A technologically improved version of the 1996 sensation. Laughing harder and beating the floor in hysterics, this Elmo goes a step further than its predecessor.

• Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses (Mattel, $24.99)- Barbie as princess Genevieve in the animated film version was a hit among children. Naturally, this group of dolls is on every child's wish list this Christmas.

• Sony Playstation 3 ($499 for core model, various retailers)- Making its debut on November 17, it will have 20 game titles, most of which are available at $60 or even less. A free online service has also been started for the same.

• Wolford Velvete de Luxe Legging ($38 at Neiman Marcus and other upscale stores and boutiques)-Available in Black only, this latest craze about town is an improved and graduated version of stretch pants.

• Gap Skinny Fit Black Jeans ($58) – A hip item among teenage girls, these jeans are truly an exciting purchase.

• Cole Haan Village Weave Small Totes and Leather Handbags ($425 at Saks and others)

• Victoria Secret Flannel Pajama Gift Set ($49.50) – This pajama gift set includes a tank top as well. Available in a large variety of colors within $60 makes this a wonderful and easily affordable gift item.

• Digital Lifestyle Outfitters Black Action Jacket for iPod ($29.99 at Circuit City)- Having an iPod is akin to making a fashion statement and accessories enhance the look creating a sensation.

• HP Photosmart R967 ($349.99 from Hewlett-Packard; before rebate)- This coveted camera offers a wonderful slimming feature which will save you from looking 10 pounds heavier.

• Gift Cards and Ecards
  

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