Christmas 2020 was only the second time we missed holiday season in Ohio in 27 years of marriage – the only other time was when I was super pregnant 18 years ago. But life teaches us to embrace change or be steamrolled by it, and after Christmas the six of us took what turned out to be one of the best hikes in our lives in the stunning Marin headlands, ending in this stunning #nofilter Golden Gate Bridge sunset. It took away some of the sting from missing a white Christmas with our Ohio family.
With all the dire reports of supply chain issues this year, I’ve been on the Christmas lookout since October. Fortunately my kids are older now (aged 13-20), and I’m blessedly relieved of the weight of the Santa hat. But I still love a great gift – useful, whimsical and hopefully filling a need the recipient didn’t even know they had.
I’m late getting this post out, but as usual my choices are practical items you won’t find on any lists of hot gift ideas. Only the last one is an Etsy store in Paris that won’t deliver in time for Christmas. But it’s now two years that I missed telling you early enough, so I’m just putting it here to avoid disappointing myself again next year. It’ll be your secret source for birthday/graduation/etc gifts in 2022.
So here are my gift ideas for 2021. I hope they bring a smile to you and the loved ones on your list.
I’m a little obsessed with the practicality, versatility and beachy stripes of these colorful Turkish towels. Unlike heavy terry cloth towels, the flat weave fabric dries quickly and doesn’t hold sand, and you can wrap the soft cotton fabric around you as a cover-up or sarong. The towels are fantastic for travel, doubling as a shawl or lap blanket on the plane and as a quick-dry towel on the beach. On Amazon you can find an organic cotton hammam towel for $17 or a set of 6 hammam towels for $47. …
