What are you making for dinner? Reservations.

This is such a fun and useful gift without being "useful" like socks...you know what I mean? It would be a great gift for Christmas OR a great baby shower gift...seriously. Sometimes it is just so much easier to order out or pick something up. Having a drawer full of menus is messy and confusing - but this takeout menu organizer is both lovely and good report...I seek after these things...

Final countdown...

Oh my - it's almost here - the fifth Harry Potter DVD!! Yee-Haw! I just cannot wait!

For any office...

Goodness, it is cold outside today! But here are some items that could make any desk cooler...

I had a professor who used these super cool paperclips - and she handed them out freely!! I thought she was classy/crazy for just giving them away...but I wouldn't say no to a tin of my own.

And it's always nice to increase the honesty in the office - so why not use these great (and honest) file folders? Anne Black LOVES!

Would you rather...?

One of my most favorite things in the whole wide world is a good meal with great conversation. Often, starting a worthwhile conversation is difficult and can often be one sided if there is just one person asking all the questions. But sometimes thinking of good questions is very difficult. Plus - how many times can you be asked about your favorite canned good? (Italian Stewed Tomatoes, fyi).

The best tool for starting conversations with anyone (family, new friends, old friends, strangers) is the great Table Topics. The questions come in a cube, so they take up very little space on the table. While you enjoy dinner, you can easily find out more about your dining companions and yourself! I'm not sure what flavor I would want, because they all seem great!

My wireless mouse broke...and I'm thinking that I need to get a replacement...or maybe I'm just dreamin'.

How about a practical gift?

Practical gifts are sometimes pretty great - and when the practicality can be matched with creativity - that's just a great day. Many moons ago there was a store at the mall here called Liquid Sunshine - selling only specialty umbrellas. Seriously, it was years ago - and it has long since left the mall to go and live on a farm with other stores...

They carried this umbrella, designed by Tibor Kalmar which is still sold at the Museum of Modern Art. I have thought about this umbrella since I first saw it forever ago - and that it would be the ideal umbrella. At least that's what I think.

...but I'm willing to learn!

This year I would also like a pair of these. And while, no, I don't actually tap dance yet - how can you learn if you don't have the right shoes? It's just like trying to learn how to sew before you have a sewing machine! Impossible! And if you're going to get me some shoes - you could get me some lessons from this studio. I'm just sayin'...never give a gift with an errand.

The topper gift...

Sometimes it's hard to know what the ultimate gift to give would be...other than a kidney. For me, the ultimate gift would be two weeks in Seychelles.Just book me a villa at the Lemuria resort...

And then let me enjoy these gorgeous beaches and water...

And I can soak up the ambiance and world famous cuisine!

Baby, it's COLD outside...

Fall has come and dropped the temperature outside lower than my comfort zone. But that also means that it's time for a new look for the cold weather! Here's what I'm thinking...

A snazzy new pea coat - in RED!
A scarf to keep the neck warm...no fringe. Fringe is so out!

And these for my hands! Cashmere loveliness for me!!

I've come full circle...

Of course, like many families, we all get new pajamas each Christmas. We also get a new set of towels. I don't think I get much say in what kind of towels I want - but I do think I can express my feelings about jammies. I no longer want a shirt and jammie pants. I want this super cute nightgown from L.L. Bean. I love the neck and and pleated front. It's the grown up version of smocking, which I also love. So let it be written, so let it be done.

Time to get started...

I'm sure you've all visited the 2007 Neiman-Marcus Christmas Book - and perhaps like me, you were a little disappointed. It was all either so over the top that you don't even dare dream that big - or so BLAH that no one would lower their "Wish List" bar that low.

So - now I begin my own wish list collection. Some things will be the way over the top and some will be legit wishes - but I promise you this: I would love any of the items I feature here...I'm just sayin'...none will be unwelcome.

My first wish is for this:

Let's be honest here: I really do need a new MacBook - but how better to go than to go gold?