Bluenose Mommy

Some years have been easier than others when coming up with gift ideas for my parents and in laws. I don’t want to buy them a bunch of useless stuff that will just add clutter to their homes. I don’t want to always buy them clothing items either. So I try my best to think outside the box when it comes to their gifts, and as you probably know by now, I certainly favour consumable or experience gifts. Photo Calendar: Every month they get a new picture to look at of their darling grandchildren (Both human and fur!) I’ve used multiple online options, but prefer Vista print the best. Photo Book: You could make them a photo book of their grandkids, or grab the pictures of them on their latest trip, or pictures from the past that they just never got around to doing anything with and make one for them. Did you have a big family gathering the past year, (wedding, reunion etc.) document and gift them that in a photo book. Personalized Mugs: My parents have uncommon grandparent names, mak

Full Disclosure here for a minute. Since having kids, my spouse and I rarely buy each other Christmas gifts. We just felt that our christmas budget was better spent focused on them as opposed to us. My joy certainly comes from giving and watching my kids experience the magic of the season. However, we have sometimes broken our rule of no gift giving, and prior to kids we did purchase for one another. This year, we feel we are in a better situation to add a little bit to our budget and allow for small gifts for one another. So without further ado, here are my favourite spouse gifts. Date Calendar: Buy or make a calendar. For each month of the calendar, choose a day to have a date with your spouse. Either purchase the gift card for that date prior to giving the gift, or just write the date in knowing it’s preplanned for that day. 12 days of Christmas: Starting on December 12th you can hide or place a gift under the tree for him to open that day. These gifts could be really small,

Sometimes I am in awe of the amazing women that surround me in my life. I don’t have to look far to find someone who is an expert in whatever I am looking to do or a willing participant in all my obnoxious ideas. But there are 5 tribes of ladies that I rely on and am so incredibly grateful to have them in my life. My Aunt Tribe. They know the uniqueness of my family, they watched me grow up, and they aren’t scared to share their opinion. They never seem to be bothered by my sometime incessant pestering and always do what they can to help. I have always loved my aunts growing up, but it wasn’t until I became a mom that I really recognized how lucky and fortunate I am to have the aunt tribe that I do. It was as if when I became a mom, my aunts became big sisters. Big sisters whose closets I have been known to borrow from, who I’ve travelled to and with, who I happen to live next to, and whose honesty and support through motherhood blow me away constantly. They really portray the t