Friday Top Ten - Secret Santa Spectacular

I'm going to my first holiday themed moms' get together this afternoon. Of course, there will be the obligatory Secret Santa gift exchange. I always agonize about what to get, worrying that whatever it is, they will hate it/already have it/get the same thing. Plus, it's so hard to find things that fall under the price limit. For this event, we put a limit of $10. I decided that the $10 limit didn't include tax, so I went just a skosh over, but I won't tell if you don't. It got me to thinking about what are good gifts for women for this sort of thing and I came up with the following list.

1. Candles - They're an oldie, but a goodie. I don't know a single woman that doesn't enjoy candles. I have so many that my husband threatened legal action if I went to one more PartyLite party. You can do the always popular Yankee Candle or something a little more festive.

2. Lotion - I confess to having a lotion fetish. A bottle can be found in pretty much every room of the house. Probably because I have crazy dry skin. A great option is a collection of travel sizes. They're perfect to toss in your purse and use on the go.

3. Tea - I fall on the side of confirmed tea fanatic, but even if you don't love it, it's one of those things that is nice to have in the house.

4. Eye mask - I never thought I would use these, but lately I find a mask is really helpful for those midday naps that new moms HAVE to take.

5. Mixing cups/bowls - Most women, even those that don't really enjoy cooking, like neat kitchen toys. And what's neater than a collapsable mixing bowl? It's super functional and saves space.

6. Picture Frame - What woman doesn't love putting up pictures of her loved ones? Not any that I know.

7. Kitchen Utensils - Super functional stuff is a can't miss. So many of us will be cooking turkeys over the holidays and who couldn't use a basting set?

8. Cocoa Mix - It is so lovely to sip a warm glass of cocoa on a cool day. It warms you from the inside out. There are so many varieties, but you can never go wrong with Godiva!

9. Socks - What's better on a cold winter's night than a pair of fuzzy, super-soft socks?

10. Calendar/Planner - I know so many people have Blackberries and Palm Pilots and so on but there's just something about the old fashioned paper planner. It will never run out of power at just the wrong moment. You can update it with the swish of a pen. And you don't need a degree in Information Technology to figure out how to program the reminders.

Happy holidays!