Confessions of a failed shopper.

Whew.  What a weekend.


A little Christmas party here.  A little Christmas party there.  A little Christmas party everywhere!


And in the midst of all these wonderful celebrations, it's come to my mind that I have, like, totally failed on the shoppin' this year.  You see, when one has conditioned one's self to never buy extras or go to fun stores for shopping extravaganzas, it's very difficult to allow one's self to do it at Christmas time!  Even though, by the grace of God, there is a little extra spending money this month.


I don't know if you caught onto this or not, but the "one" I refer to is me.


The two times I've gone out this season, I'll pick something out and then four minutes later, push my cart back down the same aisle and put the item back thinking, "Well, I suppose I don't really need to get that..."


I'm a horrible shopper.  It's true.


I even gave money to my sister to have her pick up Stuart's present (that I had previously chosen).  Luckily, she was heading to the store anyway...but even still, I am very thankful I didn't have to go back out into that war zone.  It's scary out there. 


*Shutter*


Even though we're not huge gift-buyers anyways, I do like to have a few small treasures to hand out to my loved ones.


All that to say this:  I've made a few little homemade gifts to share with my dearest ones.  And because you still have six days left until Christmas, I thought I'd share them with you! Just in case you, like me, need a little kick in the pants to get things rollin' this year.


Note:  If you are Brynn or Tye, please look away now.  I mean it.  These are for you and you shan't see them before Christmas morn.

Garden Pot & Seeds


Aren't these adorable?  I portioned out seed packets of & herbs that I knew would grow pretty well in the little pots, tied them with some yarn, and decorated a few tags.  So simple and so adorable!  I included chives, cilantro, lettuce, and cucumber seeds.  You could easily include a large pot for other vegetable varieties - totally customizable to suit your loved one's pleasure.  Do they love fresh basil?  Or dill?  Kale?  Swiss chard?  All would work wonderfully in little pots.  

Plus, maybe I'm biased, but I love sending out a gift that I hope will foster the love of gardening and growing in someone else's heart.  


I loved how these turn out and I sure hope my sister love them.  And as always, if they don't, I hope they at least pretend like they do.

Salted Caramels


One of my favorite ways to let people know I love them is to provide them with homemade goodies.  Salted caramels included!  Don't ask me the ingredients, they would make my Nourishing Traditions buddies shutter. But if you're really curious, HERE's the recipe I used!  Wrapped in some parchment paper, tucked away in a plastic container, tied with some pretty yarn and finished off with a tag, these treats are super easy and super delicious.  

Don't ask me how many I ate while making them, I'll take that secret to my grave.

Homemade Chai Tea Concentrate would also make a wonderful little gift.  Just place in a cute bottle, add a tag with the ingredients, and ta-da!  Christmas in a bottle.


Homemade Face Cream also makes a fun treat to gift when placed in a small container (bead containers or baby food jars work great!).  Just add a little homemade label or tag and it's a sweet little moisturizing gift!

And lastly, I'm also making Nut Truffles for a few of my dears, utilizing the same plastic tupperware, yarn, and tags as the salted caramels.


As you can see, I have failed horribly at buying gifts.  Instead, I've decided to utilize my passion of cooking for those that are near and dear to my heart.


If you were here, I'd cook for you.


It's true.


That's how near and dear you are to my heart.


And please forgive me for not posting these little gift ideas prior to today.  I told you, I'm a little behind.  Quit judging!


Phew.  I think that's all for now.  If you'll excuse me, there is Italian meatball soup to be made...sourdough english muffins to bake...and soaked buttermilk biscuits to freeze!  


Calm down, calm down, I'll share all the recipes soon...


Because you're near and dear to my heart, remember?


Happy Monday!