Good morning!
Since the holidays are rapidly approaching and you guys are probably scrambling to pick up gifts for loved ones, I thought I would share some of my favorite things in the form of a gift guide! I’ve been checking out all sorts of websites lately debating gift options, and I’ve also been looking around on CSN Stores because I’ll be partnering with them to review one of their products soon. They have so much stuff it’s hard to decide what to review — Bar stools? Kitchen items? Hmmmm.
Anyway — here are some of my favorite things. I hope they give you some good gift ideas 🙂
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Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Runners:
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Foam rollers are a life saver for runners — especially when training for a big race. I used this one daily when I was training for my half marathon, and it made a huge difference in recovery time! Use it after a run, no matter how short or long, to stretch out and massage sore muscles. Hurts so good!
Current price on Amazon: $18.77
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Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Watch with Heart Rate Monitor:
I never leave for a run without this! I’ve had mine for 4 years and it’s been wonderful for training. You can use it to track your pace, distance, total time, calories, heart rate, and more. It will even beep every mile so you can see your mile splits! Plus — it comes with a computer program that allows you to create graphs of your running data and see how you are improving, visually! Cool.
Current price on Amazon: $128.90
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I never leave for a run, hike, or bike ride without my Road ID. Last year, I got tired of my mom saying “bring your ID!!” every time I went for a run — so I purchased one of these instead and put her contact info on it. Here’s hoping I never need it!
Prices start at $19.99 — get 10% off using Coupon Code: pcSAVE10. Valid through 12/7/10.
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A must have for any runner. So superior to my previous icing method of choice, frozen peas! I love that they are cuffs so you can ice your whole knee/ankle/shin/whatever at once.
(You can see my full review of the ice packs in this post!)
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A fANNEtastic t-shirt! (shameless plug):
Super soft and super cute! You can change the colors of the shirts and some are available in men’s, too. If you see something you want made into a men’s version and it’s not already, just ask — I can make it for you 🙂
Also — order a size up if you want the shirt to be loose, order your regular size if you want fitted.
Click here to visit my shop — shirts start at $17.90.
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Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Foodies:
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I LOVE this garlic press. It used to drive me crazy to chop garlic on my normal cutting board and then have it smell like garlic for weeks. Enter the garlic press — problem solved! Super easy to use, you just peel the garlic, stick it in, and squish! Perfectly chopped garlic comes out the other end 🙂
Current price on Amazon: $17.99
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A Combination Wine Pourer and Stopper:
Super handy to keep wine fresh AND to look fancy when pouring it, too 🙂
Current price on Amazon: $6.35
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I actually don’t own one of these, but I really want one! They are amazing because you don’t have to wait for hot liquids to cool and then transfer them (messily) to a blender to puree them. It would be particularly handy when making my Curried Carrot Soup!
Current price on Amazon: $28.95
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Food processors are SO useful and really easy to use — make your own hummus, dips, sauces, and more, or simply chop veggies and garlic in a flash. You need a food processor to make my awesome 3-ingredient Cinnamon Raisin Almond Balls, too! 🙂
Current price on Amazon: $47.85
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Perfect for finally trying those foreign recipes that require gram measurements instead of cups!
Current price on Amazon: $25.00
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Cookbooks:
I have a few favorites:
LOVE this cookbook. Easy, healthy, and delicious recipes, all using whole, unprocessed foods and with a focus on seasonality — right up my alley!
Current price on Amazon: $16.50
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Amazing and creative recipes you’ll love even if you aren’t vegan! Whenever I’m in a meal rut, this is where I start.
Current price on Amazon: $16.47
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Essentially the vegan bible — again, awesome even if you aren’t vegan (which I’m clearly not!).
Current price on Amazon: $18.15
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Lots more fun shirts are available — check out my t-shirt shop to see!
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As for my own list, I’ve asked for two new lenses for my camera! I have the Canon Rebel XTI camera body, and I asked for these guys:
On the left:
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A 50 mm f/1.4 lens for walking around, indoor photography, portraits, etc.
On the right:
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A 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens for food photography! Macro lenses allow you to get SUPER close up very sharp shots — perfect for food 🙂
I also asked for a pretty wooden cutting board that would look nice in photos 🙂 I just have ghetto white plastic ones right now!
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Happy shopping! What’s on your Christmas list? Any great runner/foodie/etc. gift ideas to add to my list?
