Christina Dobi

What actually goes in a stocking once they are past the baby stage. Cozy socks, a card game, fidgets, Christmas candy, nail polish, and one bigger thing so it feels like a present. Mostly under twenty dollars.

I am the audience for this one. These are the things a mom would pick for herself if she were not buying for everyone else first, from the twenty dollar add on up to the one real splurge. Nothing on here is a bath set and nothing has the word mom printed on it.

What to get a teacher when you have had it with mugs. Mostly the thing they actually ask for, a gift card and somewhere nice to put it, plus hand cream, a good pen and a candle with no apple on it anywhere.

Birthday party presents and Christmas list regulars for 9 and 10 year old girls. Slippers, slime, a lava lamp, a water bottle that survives the bus, the Baby-Sitters Club box set, and a few bigger things. Some links here earn me a commission.

Beauty for you, toys for them, and the LEGO that sells out first. Order early, these go fast - it's never too early to start buying for Christmas!

A desk that looks good and still works. Mostly Sugar Paper for the paper things, plus the pieces that keep the mess contained. I love my neutrals while I work, less distractions.

Mother and daughter, coordinated without matching. Corduroy runs through most of it, in different shapes for her and for me.

Everything I haul to the field on a Saturday morning. Chairs, blankets, and the things that make two hours on the sideline a lot better. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Boo your neighbors without it looking thrown together. Baskets, bags, filler, and things to put in that are not all candy. Mostly Target, mostly three to five dollars. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Lit ghosts, real terracotta pumpkins, a live bat wreath. The kind of Halloween decor you keep in a box and put out every single year.As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

My kids are 8 and 10, which is a hard age to shop for. Past the toy aisle but still very much kids. A few different price points here, so there is something whether you are the parent or the aunt.As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

If you have a long torso you know the problem. The straps dig in, the suit rides up, and you spend the day tugging it down. These are cut with extra length through the torso, not just sized up. Some links here earn me a commission.

Barn wedding dress codes are real and nobody explains them. Shoes that will not sink in the grass, and a layer for when the sun drops. I can't get enough of ASTR, they make the prettiest dresses. Some links here earn me a commission.

The stuff I actually reach for on a normal day. Concealer, clay palettes that work on a tired face, two mascaras that do different jobs, and what keeps my hair looking done when it is not.As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.