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Whether you are looking for a traditional, or unique, trendy Christmas tree this year, you should be well informed as to your options.� Do you want to go to a tree farm and cut down your own tree, or go to a tree lot and choose from the pre cut trees and wreaths there?� Do you want to invest in an artificial tree and then enjoy it for years to come?� Whether you adorn your tree with ribbons and lights and hundreds of beautiful ornaments, or you prefer to let the tree itself be the in the spotlight with only a few well placed ornaments, the perfect xmas tree for you is out there somewhere, you just need to decide which one it will be.�

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If an artificial tree is what you decide on, your choices are as numerous as in choosing a live tree.� Artificial trees have come a long ways in their beauty, size, perfection and realistic looks.� You can find an artificial tree in any size that you need for you home, from a small table topper that is only a foot or so high, to a 14 foot pre lit beauty.� You can choose from realistic Christmas trees that will cost anywhere from $20 to over $3000 depending on it’s height, fullness, and lighting.� The realistic Christmas trees are usually constructed out of polyethylene branches, which are made in a mold, and PVC branches on the interior of the tree to help create a very realistic fullness to the tree.� You will spend more for this type of tree than any other, but you can use this tree year after year.

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Other types of artificial trees include stay lit Christmas trees, LED trees, multi color trees, slim, white, flocked, colorful, indoor and outdoor Christmas trees, and unique Christmas trees.� Unique Christmas trees are usually not sold in retail stores, and are usually more expensive than traditional green variety trees.� These trees are usually either black, red, or white trees, and can be bought pre lit, or with no lights at all, with or without shimmery branches, and in a variety of different shapes and sizes.� One truly unique tree is called the Bubble Christmas Tree.� It has pre lit spiral foliage, and the center trunk is made up of swirling bubbles and dancing lights.� A truly unique Christmas tree, for around three hundred dollars.�

�

Live Christmas trees are still the more popular trees for the holidays.� Their imperfections are what make them truly unique.� Each variety of tree offers its own unique characteristics.� You just need to decide what type of look you are wanting from your tree.� A Blue Spruce will offer you a powdery blue/green look to it’s needles, it is very symmetrical in shape, and it is a great tree if you have many heavy decorations to put on it.� A Noble Fir gives you long one inch green needles with a slight silvery shimmer to them.� The branches are short, and it can also support heavier ornaments.� This is also one of the more popular trees that are used to create wreaths, garlands, and door swags.� There are so many different types of real trees that are available at a tree farm for you to cut down yourself, or a Christmas trees lot for you to haul away.� Your specific geographic location will dictate what real trees are available for you to take to your home.�

Baby showers are surprise parties thrown by friends or colleagues to honor a couple that is joyously expecting a child. The purpose of the shower is to bestow gifts upon the parents-to-be so that are generally items that are necessary for babies. Baby showers are a perfect reason for friends and family to come together and meet the parents-to-be and the baby (if it is already born). It is a time for well wishing and celebration.

Gifts for baby showers can range from simple baby items like a crib or baby clothes to special gifts like a portable monitor, baby sheets, sling/front carrier, bouncers, specially designed toys, bath kits, activity toys like a baby gym, baby bags, and children’s books. There are many products in the market that are great as baby shower gifts. There are also websites which offer exclusive information about baby shower gifts.

Personalized gifts are also a wonderful way to show affection. Babies can be really demanding and would take a lot of adjusting too as soon as they are born. Friends can even plan to gift a few dinners to the couple who just had and baby and who are too tired or too busy to cook by themselves. Even the offer of a few days of baby sitting is a wonderful gift. If the baby shower has a theme, it is a great idea to give gifts that are based on that theme. These gifts can be used to decorate the baby’s room on the same theme. Sometimes, the gifts can be second-hand or used items, which are too expensive when brought new.

It is a good idea to enquire with the mom-to-be if she wants anything special since she may already have a few things belonging to her previous baby. This would help to avoid duplication. There are many gifts on the market exclusively for baby showers. These can even be ordered online and can be delivered to the parents-to-be if the guest cannot make it to the party.

Here are some ways to dress up the “traditional” favorites at your Christmas dinner.

1. Make your usual pie crust, 2-crust version. Line the pie tin, put in the filling, and now it’s time to play. Roll out the second crust and start cutting shapes – using cooky cutters or free form with a knife. At Thanksgiving, for instance, up at my son’s house I was stuck without the “necessary’ equipment so I improvised, just carving out a leaf using one nearby as a model. First one doesn’t work? Pie dough is very forgiving. Roll it up and start again. Your “second chances” are infinite. You could also use something from a child’s coloring book for a pattern.

One idea – cut out 3 rounds for holly berries (use bottle cap or such if you don’t have small round cutter). Then use knife to cut out spiky holly leaves. Or use a Santa Claus cooky cutter. Place these on top of the pie filling and bake away.

2. If you have the time and inclination, when the pie is baked and cooled, then use frosting to decorate your crust decoration. To save time, use those little tubes from the grocery; no one cares how it tastes. The gels are neat.

3. Or decorate with white frosting and candy — licorice for Santa’s belt, gum drops for eyes, various colored sprinkles, cut up tiny marshmallows, candied fruit, non-pareils, cinnamon drops, etc.

4. Using whatever you have for the top crust – shapes, lattice or solid – apply egg yolk and then sprinkle w/ red or green colored sugar.

5. Do the usual only very different, i.e., make a pumpkin chiffon pie. At serving time, crumble candy canes and sprinkle on top.

6. Add a layer of marzipan or almond paste to the pie. Roll it out into a circle, place it on top of the bottom crust, then add filling. Good with mince meat, apple, pumpkin, etc.

7. For Beef Wellington, encase it in pie dough, then cut out shapes and apply them on top.

8. Make an apple pie or something compatible with cheese and then cut out stars from cheese and apply on top. Sprinkle a few cinnamon drops around.

9. Make a meringue topping (would work for most pies) and then when it’s baked and cooled, sprinkle the top with large white fluffy sugar flakes, like snow. Or colored sprinkles.

10. Sprinkle crushed candy cane chips on top of the pie after it’s baked.

11. After it’s baked and cooled, stick miniature candy canes around the rim.

12. Most fruit pies are compatible with cranberries. Dip cranberries in egg white and then coat with sugar and place on top; they look frosted. You can also use candied fruit – put green citron around red candied cherries like holly berries.

13. Sprinkle top with powdered sugar, like snow.

There are lots of ways to dress-up the traditional favorites, and this should give you a good start!

Lists of baby names are always fun to look at, whether you’re seeking a name for your soon-to-be-born baby boy or baby girl, wondering about the popularity of your own first name, or just curious about what baby names are currently hot.

What I find particularly interesting is tracking the popularity of baby names over the decades. In looking through U.S. government baby name lists from 1880 to the present, some amusing patterns emerge, particularly in regards to baby names for girls.

For example, in Victorian times Biblical names, such as Mary, Sarah and Ruth were very popular for baby girls. There were also many baby names that sounded very old-fashioned to me, as a kid growing up in the 1960s, including names like Martha, Alice, Bertha and Minnie.

From the 1920s to the 1950s certain baby names rose in popularity. For example, I went to school with many Susans, Debbies, Patricias, and Lindas. All of these baby names have since waned, to be replaced, by the 1980s, with fancier names such as Jennifer, Jessica and Nicole. When I was a children’s librarian in the 1980s my preschool storyhours were populated with little girls named Lauren and Jenny, and little boys named Alex and Matthew.

More recently there’s been a lot of renewed interest in more “old-fashioned” baby names like Hannah, Abigail and Ethan, plus many Biblical names such as Sarah, Rachel, Joshua, Jacob, and Samuel. There’s also been a surge in nontraditional baby names including Madison, Ashley and Brianna for baby girls, and Brandon and Logan for baby boys.

It’s interesting to consider the whys and wherefores of such developments. Sometimes, I suspect, the popularity of a specific actor or fictional character might result in many babies with a particular name. For example, were some of the Lauras born in the 1970s and 1980s given a name suggested by older brothers and sisters who were growing up watching “Little House on the Prairie ?” Were some attributable to the super popular Laura of “General Hospital” fame ?

Today Madison is a very highly ranked baby name for girls (ranking number 3 in 2003) but, when the film “Splash” came out in 1984, Tom Hanks’ character told Daryl Hannah’s character that Madison was not a bona fide first name.

While baby girls’ names seem quite subject to the whims of fashion and the top ten lists can change radically over time, I’ve noticed that, in general, the top baby names for boys remain far more stable. Names like John, William and James are perennials, perhaps because baby boys are often named for their fathers, perpetuating the popularity of certain baby names from generation to generation. The “Junior” factor aside, baby boys are also less apt to be given fanciful names.

A comparison of the changing fortunes of my own first name, Barbara, with those of my husband’s name, Robert, gives a good illustration of the difference in stability between baby girl names and baby boy names over time.

My name grew in popularity in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s, peaking at the number 2 position in baby name popularity, which it tenaciously held from 1937 to 1944. When I attended grad school, of a class of approximately forty students, there were no less than three baby boomers named Barbara. Should I thank the actress Barbara Stanwyck for this ? Alas, my first name later suffered a slow, steady decline and placed at a pitiful number 628 position on the baby names popularity list for the U.S. in 2003.

Robert, on the other hand, has survived the vicissitudes of baby name popularity. It held a coveted spot on the top ten most popular baby names list every year from 1896 to the late 1980s, often peaking at number 1 between the 1920s and the 1950s. It has gradually slipped since the 1990s, but still managed to hold the respectable slot of number 35 in 2003.

When naming a baby there are, of course, many other points to consider besides how popular or unique a name is. Here are some helpful tips that you can use with your other children to get them involved in choosing a name for the new baby and to make the process fun:

1. Baby names need to go nicely with the sound of your last name. Also, pick a first name and a middle name that go together well. (So maybe not something like Erasmus Beelzebub Smith !)

2. When your family finds a name you all like, look at the initials to be sure that you don’t give the new baby a name with initials that will make people laugh. (So maybe not Pamela Iris Green, which equals P.I.G. !)

3. You might not want a baby name that is so unusual that the other kids will make fun of your little brother or sister as he or she grows up. (So maybe not Rosebud or Molasses !)

4. You also might not want a baby name that is so trendy that it will sound funny by the time the baby is ten years old. (So maybe not Sunshine !)

5. You probably shouldn’t pick a name that’s really cute for an adorable little baby but will sound silly when the baby grows up. (So maybe not Dimples !)

6. Avoid baby names that might produce insulting nicknames when people shorten them. (So maybe not Smellonius, or Smelly for short !)

7. You and your family might not want a name that is so hard to spell or to pronounce that people will always get it wrong and your poor little brother or sister will have to go through life correcting people. (So maybe not something like Incandescence, or is it Incandessints ? )

8. You and your family might want to pick baby names in honor of favorite relatives or ancestors, or special names that show your family’s ethnic roots. You might even find a special name from a book or movie that you love. (Like Harry ?)

9. You might want to look through books of baby names and pick one that has a special meaning that you like – maybe something that means “sweet” or “kind” or “brave.” (So maybe not wimp !)

10. You might want to think about names that will go nicely with your name and your other brothers’ and sisters’ names, so that if mom or dad are calling you all for dinner or signing a birthday card to grandma it won’t sound too crazy.
(So maybe not “Happy Birthday, Grandma ! Love, Joey, Cindy and Dweevo !”)

There are hundreds of names waiting for you out there. Visit Popular Baby Names Across Space and Time for lists of many of them. Good luck on your search for the perfect name !

Digital photography promises much. Store your photographs on your computer, print them when you want, email them to friends and family – share them to your heart’s content. Couldn’t be easier, could it? So how come that for most of us storing and sharing our photographs is a bit of a nightmare?
The ease of using a digital camera is its very undoing. It’s easy to take some shots and then ‘work on them later’. The trouble is that ‘later’ doesn’t happen often enough and we build up a huge backlog of images that we have to sort and process. That’s where things start to get untidy. Very soon you won’t know what you’ve printed or you won’t be able to find the original file of that cute shot that your wife wants a copy of.
So what’s the answer? As the Greek philosopher Hesiod put it nearly 3,000 years ago, “It is best to do things systematically and disorder is our worst enemy.” You need to plan a system for processing your photographs and be systematic in everything you do
You probably remember that after the thrill of your first digital camera, you began to realize some of its limitations. Without a computer or other digital device, it’s hard to share them with granny or the cousins back home. You realize that you have to have traditional prints to pass around and share.
So the planning system you adopt must cater for both digital and physical prints – you need a single system that organizes both and ensures your precious memories are stored forever.
Here’s a six point plan to establishing your own system.
1. Decide how you want to organise your photographs
Without a system, you’ll just get a list of meaningless file names. The longer this goes on, the harder it will be for you to find the photos that you want.
You’ve got to have a system – a way of organising – one that suits you. I choose to organise my photos by event – but you could do it by date, by family member or by whatever is meaningful to you.
Under ‘My Pictures’ on my hard drive, I have four sub-folders – Family, Business, Holidays and ‘The Best’. The first three are self-explanatory; ‘The Best’ is where I keep images of which I’m particularly proud.
2. Create mirror images on both your computer and photo album
People love traditional prints so no matter how proud you may be of your computer skills, to really share your photos with friends and family, you’ll need physical prints to pass around. And to get the most from your memories you should have a single system that runs across both.
Once you’ve decided on your system – use the same categories on both your computer and your physical photo album.
3. Taking your photos
Snap away happily but don’t carry around useless photographs on your camera or waste your time downloading them before deciding to bin them. As soon as you’ve taken photographs have a quick look at them and dump the ones that don’t look special. Be ruthless and immediate.
4. Downloading back home
The temptation is to rush and get the exciting photos on the machine. This is where discipline is needed. You need to have an uninterrupted session. If you can arrange that easily fine. If you can’t you should set aside a regular time once a week to do all your photographic work.
There are four tasks:
•Download your photographs onto your hard disk
•Edit them, e.g. get rid of red eye
•Give each file a meaningful name with a date – so instead of ‘P1010012’ use ‘Sarah on the beach 07/03’
•Save them in the appropriate folder.
Now make a back up copy. This is essential – you don’t want to risk losing your images. I use a ZIP drive for back-up.
5. Print your photographs
Plan what prints you want, print them and put them into your album immediately. Update your album index as you do so.
6. Store them and show them (but don’t ever give them away)
Never give your album photographs away. If someone wants a copy, resist the temptation to hand them your album copy. Instead, print them a new one or email them a digital version.

What Science Reveals

The amygdala is an almondshaped cluster of nerve fibers which is located at the base of the brain. According to New York University neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux, author of The Emotional Brain and Synaptic Self, it is the fear receptor of the brain. It is primarily responsible for sensing threats in the environment. As such, the amygdala is not a part of the higher evolved thinking brain, but rather controls the emotional hemisphere of an individual. This area of the brain is directly linked to the first place stress hormones released from within the neural system, scientifically known as corticotrophin releasing factor. Parenting techniques which are threatening, fear-based, lacking in empathy or parental compassion can cause the amygdala to release large amounts of stress hormones into the brain and body system. In many instances, this release, if occurring routinely, without sufficient interruption, can create the experience of trauma.

Trauma

Trauma is defined as any stressful event which is prolonged, overwhelming, or unpredictable. Traumatic levels of stress hormones distributed via the amygdala have the potential to create neuronal damage to another area of the brain responsible for clear thinking and short-term memory. In fact, research points out that during times of high stress, thinking processes become confused and distorted, and the short-term memory is suppressed. Findings from the field of neuroscience indicate that during critical times of development, the use of such punitive techniques for behavior control may initiate the early framework for difficulty interacting in important social arenas such as in school and with peers. These social struggles are most often noted by behavior described as hyperactive, depressed, or aggressive.

These behaviors then become the basis for medication being prescribed to children. In this instance, not only may the medication being prescribed mask a deeper challenge for the child, but it may possibly be being administered for all of the wrong reasons.

Information regarding the connection between punitive behavior management, stress, increasingly disruptive behavior and the routine prescription of medication to children for the purpose of promoting behavior that the adult world can more readily tolerate is not often discussed within parenting and educational forums. The field of neuroscience has been less successful in sharing their message than pharmaceutical companies. Therefore, parents are being encouraged to educate themselves both about the use of traditional parenting techniques and the use of psychiatric medication in children. Copyrightฉ 2006 Dr. Bryan Post. All rights reserved.

Here are some ways to dress up the “traditional” favorites at your Christmas dinner.

PIE CRUST

1. Make your usual pie crust, 2-crust version. Line the pie tin, put in the filling, and now it’s time to play. Roll out the second crust and start cutting shapes – using cooky cutters or free form with a knife. At Thanksgiving, for instance, up at my son’s house I was stuck without the
“necessary’ equipment so I improvised, just carving out a leaf using one nearby as a model. First one doesn’t work? Pie dough is very forgiving. Roll it up and start again. Your “second chances” are infinite. You could also use something from a child’s coloring book for a pattern.

One idea – cut out 3 rounds for holly berries (use bottle cap or such if you don’t have small round cutter). Then use knife to cut out spiky holly leaves. Or use a Santa Claus cooky cutter. Place these on top of the pie filling and bake away.

If you have the time and the inclination, when the pie is baked and cooled, then use frosting to decorate your crust decoration. To save time, use those little tubes from the grocery; no one cares how it tastes. Licorice for Santa’s belt, etc.

2. Using whatever you have for the top crust – shapes, lattice or solid, apply egg yolk and then sprinkle w/ colored sugar.

3. Do the usual only very different, i.e., make a pumpkin chiffon pie. At serving time, crumble candy canes and
sprinkle on top.

CANDY CANES

Candy canes go so well with chocolate. You can make a chocolate dessert, like that instant pudding concoction, and
then sprinkle crushed candy canes atop.

SWEET POTATOES

Make your usual sweet potato recipe and put it in the Pyrexฎ. Then whip up meringue nice and stiff, with lots of
sugar. Circle the bowl with the meringue, and then make dollops on top with peaks. Then you can (1) sprinkle it with colored sprinkles, or (2) in the center put 3 maraschino cherries and some pineapple leaves, like holly.
Or put marshmallows around the rim and decoration in the middle. You can shape the pineapple leaves with scissors.

BOULE DE NIEGE

Very simple, cheap, elegant looking. Buy ice cream – for Christmas it could be peppermint, coconut or pistachio. Let the ice cream soften just enough to work with, and then scoop it into a round Pyrexฎ that you’ve greased lightly
with Pamฎ. Put it in the freezer until well frozen again. Then take it out, soak the dish briefly in larger bowl of
warm water til you see the ice cream melting on the edges, turn it over on a pretty serving platter, and out it comes
in a dome. Tear strips of waxed paper and place them all around the plate, under the ice cream. Now whip cream til
stiff, put in pastry bag, use a tip such as Wilton 2D and pipe, pipe, pipe, little shaped blobs, each one next to the other till the mound is completely covered. Gently remove the waxed paper, wipe the serving platter with a wet rag, and place the ball back in the freezer till frozen. Once it’s frozen, cover it – I put a stainless steel bowl over it – and let it stay there til ready to serve.

At serving time you can add some decorations piping colored whipped cream, or using cherries and leaves again, but my favorite is to leave it elegantly white. “Boule de niege” is
French for snowball!

BEEF WELLINGTON

Make a mixture of Dijon mustard and those colored peppercorns that are red, green and white – a “four-color m้lange” is available here:
http://www.happycookers.com/wc.dll/products/divulge/3-1918.html . Coat the beef with this before you encrust it. You can also use this on turkey, Prime Rib, or Crown Roast. For a photo, go here: http://www.zinos.com/cool/zinos/author_area/preview_article?;AR008410 .

P.S. Be sure and put dough cut outs atop the Beef Wellington, too!

INDIVIDUAL TRIFLES

Here are some really cute star-shaped Christmas bowls
( http://www.happycookers.com/wc.dll/products/divulge/1-21856.html ). Make trifle and put them in these dishes. Then smooth over the top with whipped cream.

MASHED POTATOES

Mash them and put them in a serving bowl. Then sprinkle just enough cayenne and parsley flakes for color.

PARFAITS

Here’s a super easy, cheap, and very eye-appealing dessert.

Version 1: Fill fluted glasses with vanilla ice cream, or peppermint. Drizzle green cr่me de menthe and chocolate over it. Add maraschino cherry – red or green. If you use red cherry, add green mint leaf.

Version 2: Use vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce, and sprinkle crumbled candy cane over it.

TRIFLE

Trifle is, as I’m sure you know, a cold dessert made with liqueur-soaked sponge cake, layers of fruit, jelly, custard
and whipped cream. It makes a great Christmas dessert because it can be made well ahead of time, it’s got cheap
ingredients, it’s not familiar to a lot of people and they think it looks intricate to make, and … the presentation!

For instance since the ingredients are so cheap, why not buy the Spode Christmas tree soup tureen – “just” $348.95 (instead of $535.00) at amazon.com kitchenware. j.k.

However, put the trifle in a tureen and then put a layer of whipped cream on the top smoothing it completely (use a warm wet flat spatula). What makes it special is people will keep trying to “pick up the lid” which is the whipped cream, and there are fingerprints all over it and lots of laughs and “oohs” and “aahs.”

VEGIES

Put chopped red peppers in among the peas, Brussels sprouts or broccoli; chopped green pepper in with the tomatoes. Cut stars out of cheese and place atop casserole.

Don’t do all of these things; that’s too much. Choose one or two.

AND DON’T FORGET TO DRESS THE HOSTESS

A Christmas apron is always fun. Here’s a Santa one with matching hat: http://avalonusa.com/christmas/aprons.htm , a sexy Santa girl apron ( http://www.incrediblegifts.com/sagichap
.html ), and my personal favorites – affordable white cotton with ruffles, Christmas tree, gingerbread men, spoon and candy cane ( http://www.asianhomeandcrafts.org/apronbib.html ). For more sources, go here:
http:/ opten.org/public/BI/BI324.html .

With so many different toys on the market it is not surprising that choosing a toy for a baby, toddler or child can become unnecessarily confusing.� It seems that unless a toy can buzz, flash, beep and grab your attention in some kind of weird and wonderful way then it is in danger of no longer deserving its shelf space.� So where does this leave the traditional toys of yesteryear?� Have things moved on so far that they no longer have any educational value?� Have they finally past their sell by date?

To answer this question it is important to understand the basics of newborn, toddler and child development.�

Cognitive development

Cognitive development focuses on how children learn and process information.� The development of the mind involves language, mental imagery, thinking, reasoning, problem solving, and memory development. All of these are skills which need to be learned by the child as cognitive development is not an automatic process.� Colour and shape sorters, stackers and puzzles are ideal tools to help develop cognitive skills from an early age as well as eye-hand coordination.� Whilst there are many fine examples of modern, battery operated toys suited to developing these skills you can’t beat the simple traditional educational wooden toys that have been around for years.

Fine Motor skills

Fine Motor skills can be defined as small muscle movements: those that occur in detailed hand to eye coordination such as picking a small object up from the floor. Teaching fine motor skills requires patience and understanding. �They also take time and practice to acquire and are built upon four key skills: Grasping/holding objects, reaching out to objects, releasing objects deliberately, and rotating the wrist in different directions. �Excellent traditional wooden toys to develop fine motor skills include shape sorters, playing with wooden puppets or dolls, and wooden puzzles.

Gross Motor skills

Gross Motor skills involve the larger muscles in the arms, legs and body, for example to walk, run, throw, lift and kick. These skills also relate to body awareness, reaction, speed, balance and strength. �Traditional toys which help stimulate gross motor development include toys with hammers such as ball pounders or diy sets, skipping ropes and ride on toys.

Social skills

As a child develops from being a baby through its toddler years it is important that it acquires good social skills and what better way to learn these than through imaginative role play both independently and with other children.� Ideal toys to encourage this important aspect of development include child friendly equivalents of all kinds of domestic tools that mum, dad and other carers use around the house, or elsewhere, such as wooden kitchen equipment,� tool boxes,� musical instruments, phones, tills etc.

In conclusion a good toy will stimulate the sense of sight, sound, and touch and help cultivate motor, social, and cognitive skills as well as eye-hand coordination.� And, the old favourite traditional wooden toys can stand proudly next to their modern counterparts in helping with baby, toddler and child development.� And, what is more, they won’t cost a fortune in batteries to maintain!

Author

Karen Singleton

Strawberry Children’s Toys

The traditional gift for the first anniversary is paper. An addition of the newspaper from the year you were married, an old edition of a classic book like “Gone with the Wind”, a postcard that’s of a place meaningful to both of you, board games, plane tickets, football or baseball tickets, photo album filled with memories, write a love letter, drawing or pictures for your cabin, home or office or a gift voucher are all great ideas.

The second anniversary’s traditional gift is cotton. New bed linen, attractive underwear or lingerie, cotton towels, a hammock, personalized T-shirt, cotton clothing or a cotton canvas shopping bag with your photo on the front.

Leather is the traditional gift for the third anniversary. Leather, boots, shoes, vest, skirt, pants, wallet, gloves, purse, belt, luggage or briefcase will do nicely. But how about something a bit more updated like leather cell phone case, leather framed photo or leather throw pillows?

Traditional gifts for the fourth anniversary are fruit or flowers. Of course having a fruit basket or flowers delivered to the home or office is appropriate. However, sharing a fresh fruit cocktail, floral bubble bath with floral scented candles set about and rose petals scattered across the bed sounds a lot more fun, exciting and romantic!

The traditional gift for the fifth anniversary is wood. This is a very good year for practical gifts like wooden deck furniture, frames or wooden utensils for the kitchen and new wood fencing. The romantic side of wood could include a weekend in a log cabin, camping in the woods, a walk in the woods, wooden plaques or signs engraved with words of love or an artistic wooden sculpture.

Iron is the traditional gift for the sixth anniversary. Golf clubs, iron sculptures, wrought iron furniture, iron skillets, a new iron or an Ironwood tree are good ideas. Don’t forget the possibility of tools, hardware, a wrought iron bed or a set of weights.

Traditionally, wool or copper are gifts for the seventh anniversary. Gifts of woolen socks, scarves, blankets, hats, coats and copper kettles make very nice presents. A new wool suit, copper sculpture or copper fireside accessories are a bit more upscale.

The eighth anniversary’s traditional gift is bronze. This is the year to make an impression with a bronze sculpture, antique bronze bell or a trip to a tropical beach with a bronzing lotion for the two of you.

Pottery is the traditional gift for the ninth anniversary. Planters, vases, bowls and coffee mugs fall into this group, so does joining a pottery class together!

Traditional gifts for the tenth anniversary are of tin or aluminum. Personalized license plate, tin of caviar, tin toy car, tin signs or plaques and vintage aluminum serving pieces are fun ideas.

The eleventh anniversary traditional gift is steel. Stainless steel cookware, watches and steel engraved key chains are great but a Calypso steel drum, steel ice bucket and cocktail shaker or modern steel sculpture are unique gift ideas.

Silk and linen are the proper traditional gifts for the twelfth anniversary. Silk lingerie, bed linens, linen table clothes, napkins, handkerchiefs and silk or linen clothing will surely be appreciated.

The thirteenth anniversary traditional gift is lace. Women buy that slinky, lacey lingerie for the men to enjoy! Okay, lace doilies, tablecloths and lacey curtains work too but they aren’t near as much fun.

The fourteenth anniversary calls for the traditional gift of ivory. If you have the big bucks this year splurge on a piano or a trip to the Ivory Coast of Africa. The rest of us can enjoy ivory colored bed linen, scrimshawed ivory desk sets or key chains, ivory colored clothing or personalized ivory colored stationary.

Crystal is the gift for the fifteenth through the nineteenth anniversaries. Crystal vases, decanters, candlesticks and crystal faced watches are very traditional. Crystal chandelier earrings or a crystal chess set are more up to date. Billy Crystal movies are fun.

Twentieth through the twenty-fourth anniversaries traditional gift is china. Vintage china tea cups, bone china ornaments or a replacement piece for your own china are presents to consider along with a table for two at a Chinese restaurant or a trip to China.

Traditionally speaking, silver is the gift for the twenty-fifth through the twenty-ninth anniversaries. Silver dated ornament, a silver frame, a watch, silver cufflinks, silver pen and jewelry are appropriate gifts. Anything from Tiffany’s silver collection or an anniversary wedding band would be grand.

The thirtieth through the thirty-fourth anniversaries traditional gift is pearls. Mother-of-pearl cufflinks, tie tack, frame and jewelry are wonderful gift ideas. Throw in an oyster dinner and you have an anniversary to remember.

Think tropical for the thirty-fifth through thirty-ninth anniversaries gift of corral. Snorkeling, scuba lessons, a trip to the Coral Reef or coral colored ties, cufflinks or clothing with a tropical flair.

Rubies are traditional gifts for the fortieth through forty-fourth anniversaries. A dozen ruby-red roses, ruby jewelry (maybe add a ruby into your wedding bands), ruby red clothing or lingerie and a bottle of vintage wine are lovely gift ideas.

Forty-fifth through forty-ninth anniversaries traditional gift is sapphire. Sapphire tie clip, cuff links, jewelry, sapphire-colored apparel and Bombay Sapphire gin could be considered.

Gold is for the fiftieth through fifty-fourth wedding anniversaries traditional gift. Without doubt gold jewelry or new wedding bands are in order. A gold themed party, golden oldie CD collection, gold watch, gold colored frames with a photo of the couple, gold clock or gold fabric accent pieces for their bedroom are good choices.

A fifty-fifth through fifty-ninth anniversaries traditional gift is emerald. A few ideas could include a trip to the Emerald Coast, emerald jewelry or cuff links and emerald colored night clothes.

The traditional gift for sixtieth through one hundredth wedding anniversaries are diamonds! For the inspirational couple making it through life together they certainly deserve all the diamonds they receive! To vary from year to year adding the stone from the couples’ favorite year of marriage would be lovely such as diamond and ruby earrings. Bring on the diamond jewelry.

Tradition is wonderful and I hope this list helps in your anniversary gift choices. Many times these anniversary gifts end up as our family heirlooms of tomorrow.

Plesase keep the bio intact with this article.

Year: 1st
Traditional Gift(s): Paper
Modern Gift(s): Clocks

Year: 2nd
Traditional Gift(s): Cotton
Modern Gift(s): China

Year: 3rd
Traditional Gift(s): Leather
Modern Gift(s): Crystal, Glass

Year: 4th
Traditional Gift(s): Fruit, Flowers
Modern Gift(s): Appliances

Year: 5th
Traditional Gift(s): Wood
Modern Gift(s): Silverware

Year: 6th
Traditional Gift(s): Candy, Iron
Modern Gift(s): Candy, Iron

Year: 7th
Traditional Gift(s): Wool, Copper
Modern Gift(s): Desk Sets

Year: 8th
Traditional Gift(s): Bronze, Pottery
Modern Gift(s): Modern Gift(s): Bronze, Pottery

Year: 9th
Traditional Gift(s): Pottery, Willow
Modern Gift(s): Linen, Lace

Year: 10th
Traditional Gift(s): Tin, Aluminum
Modern Gift(s): Leather

Year: 11th
Traditional Gift(s): Steel
Modern Gift(s): Jewelry

Year: 12th
Traditional Gift(s): Silk, Linen
Modern Gift(s): Pearls

Year: 13th
Traditional Gift(s): Lace
Modern Gift(s): Textiles, Furs

Year: 14th
Traditional Gift(s): Ivory
Modern Gift(s): Gold Jewelry

Year: 15th
Traditional Gift(s): Crystal
Modern Gift(s): Watches

Year: 20th
Traditional Gift(s): China
Modern Gift(s): Platinum

Year: 25th
Traditional Gift(s): Silver
Modern Gift(s): Silver

Year: 30th
Traditional Gift(s): Pearl
Modern Gift(s): Diamond

Year: 35th
Traditional Gift(s): Coral
Modern Gift(s): Jade

Year: 40th
Traditional Gift(s): Ruby
Modern Gift(s): Ruby

Year: 45th
Traditional Gift(s): Sapphire
Modern Gift(s): Traditional Gift(s): Sapphire

Year: 50th
Traditional Gift(s): Gold
Modern Gift(s): Gold

Year: 55th
Traditional Gift(s): Emerald
Modern Gift(s): Emerald

Year: 60th
Traditional Gift(s): Diamond
Modern Gift(s): Diamond

Hope you found this helpful!