Ice Cream!

And I can scratch off another item on my 30 before 30 list (thanks again to my sister). She got me an Ice Cream Maker to help with #30 Make Homemade Ice Cream.

So the day after Christmas I made two flavors. Lavender and Peppermint. Both were yummy. Next time I'm going to adjust the lavender one for a bit more flavor.

So now I am taking flavor suggestions. The first two I tried were easy - since all I did was take the basic recipe and switch out the vanilla for some sort of liquid flavor (lavender simple syrup pictured above or peppermint extract.)

I'm going to try a Chocolate Chipotle for sure. Any other creative ideas?

And here to the right is my sister enjoying her very own bowl of Ellen's Homemade Ice Cream. (Thanks again!)

30 before 30 Current Project: Start an Herb Garden

One of my 30x30 list items was start an herb garden (#27) and I found just the thing to inspire me.

The Italian Herb Garden Markers available at the Etsy store Mon Petit Chou Boutique would be perfect for my starter herb garden. These are all herbs I commonly use in cooking so we'll see how easy they are to grow. I might get some interesting variations though.

Here's some I'm considering:

Sacred Green Basil
Greek Oregano
Sage
English Thyme
Green River Parsley

UPDATE: So I started this post pre-christmas and one of my most loyal blog readers (my sister) got me a few things to help out with my 30x30 list. One of them being this awesome calendar with herb seeds attached in the appropriate planting month. So she gave me a push in the right direction. Now I'll just buy these spoons and get started!

Holiday Freebie!

If you read this blog with any regularity - you have heard me mention Orange You Lucky! before.

Now on this great little blog - you can get some free printable holiday gift tags! I love the nesting doll one the best. So go check it out. And download. And print. Super easy!

Still Need Gifts?

If you are still in need of some gifts - maybe Free Shipping Day would be a good thing for you to know about. On Friday, December 17, over 1,500 online retailers are participating in "Free Shipping Day" where you can get free shipping on your orders with delivery by Christmas!

These stores include Neiman Marcus, Toys R Us, Kate Spade, L.L. Bean... and the list goes on. Search for your favorite store - or just browse some of the mentioned stores and see if you can find something to fill your gift gaps!

(Note: Some of these may not be free shipping on all orders - but according to the Web site - over 60% of the retailers are offering free shipping on all orders.)

2010 Gift Giving Guide: Gifts that Give Back

DailyCandy featured 22 Gifts that Give Back -that I thought I would share and expand on. Two that they featured that grabbed my attention were the 826 stores and Altruette.

826 National is a family of eight nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping students, ages 6-18, with expository and creative writing. They have different themed stores that sell a variety of unusual and creative items.

At the 826 National Store they have books of letters written by kids to the President and First Lady and this adorable "Future Author" shirt for kids (Don't you just love this kid's expression?)

They have a pirate store as well (826 Valencia) that sells a variety of items including the "Cannons don't sink ships, Pirates with cannons sink ships" t-shirt.

But really all the stores are worth checking out.

Altruette has some great charms that all go to different charities. The cupcake charm goes to CancerCare for Kids and the cute Honeybee (my favorite) goes to the Honey Bee Research Fund. So go browse through the three pages of charity charms. You might find one that is perfect for someone - or you might find a cause that you really would like to help out.

Your gift to someone can help keep the Ford's Theatre going strong by buying a personalized brick for the sidewalk in front of the theatre. Good for any history / Ab Lincoln buffs.

And here is one of my favorites. For anyone with a new little one - this Little Squirt Babysuit and Hat from Uncommon Goods would make a great gift. The little whale tale on the butt is just precious! It's on sale right now - and some of the proceeds go towards the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation.

So enjoy your Christmas shopping - hope you find a gift that gives back!