Gold Medal Gift Baskets by Shirley Raye Redmond

The Olympics are over, but you can still win a gold medal in gift giving. It’s not too early to be thinking about putting together holiday gift baskets or remembering a special person with a happy birthday basket. The following are a few innovative ideas for those special people on your gift list.

• The Diehard Chocoholic: a colorful mug with packets of gourmet hot cocoa, a box of chocolate truffles, hot fudge in a jar, a chocolate-lover’s cookbook, and a chocolate-scented candle.


• The Coffee Connoisseur: an assortment of freshly ground coffees, chocolate-covered coffee beans, flavored spoons or coffee stirrers, a handsome mug or two and a homemade coffee cake.


• The Hopeless Romantic: sweet-smelling soap or fragrant bubble bath, a single red rose, attractive candle holders with tapered candles, a classic romance novel such as Wuthering Heights and a CD with romantic music.


• The Avid Letter-Writer: a box of stationery, personalized address labels, a book of postage stamps, colorful postcards, a special pen and a desk calendar.


• The Exercise Enthusiast: a sweatband, athletic socks, fanciful shoelaces, a water bottle and a new exercise video.


• The Hostess with the Mostest: party essentials such as pretty cocktail napkins, decorative toothpicks, party nuts, fancy after-dinner mints and a spice mix for hot mulled cider.


• The Tea Drinker: a perky tea pot, a tin of tea biscuits, marmalade, paper an assortment of teas, scone mix and a jar of lemon curd.


• The Master Gardener: work gloves, the latest almanac, a pretty watering can, a box of bulbs, and several packets of unusual seeds, such as dwarf sunflowers or white pumpkins.


• The Bird Watcher: a birder's journal, suet cakes, hummingbird feeder, and a paint-it-yourself birdhouse kit.


• The Cheese Lover: a beribboned kitchen grater with a chunk of fresh Parmesan, a small wheel of cheddar and a slice of Brie or fontina, a cheese slicer, packet of crackers and a cluster of fresh grapes.


• The Pepper Aficionado: an assortment of hot stuff like jalapenos, a bottle of Cajun sauce or spicy salsa, canned green chiles, a Texas chili seasoning mix and some red-hot peanut roasted with hot peppers.


• The Barbecue Maestro: an apron and matching hot mitt, shish kebob baskets, cherry or mesquite wood chips, and a bottle of homemade barbecue sauce.


• The New Parents: a package of bibs, disposable diapers and a disposable camera, a whimsical picture frame for a favorite photo, a box or two of cereal for baby and a bottle of champagne for Mommy and Daddy.


• The Busy Baker: bags of chopped pecans and walnuts, an assortment of flours, yeast, a bottle of real vanilla, a frilly apron and sugared violets.


• The Pet Fancier: a box of frosted animal crackers for the owner and a toy packages of appropriate food and treats for their favorite critter.


• The Avid Golfer: a box of monogrammed golf balls, a package of colorful tees, a golfing towel, a sun visor and small, individually wrapped snacks that will fit easily in a golf bag.


• The Dedicated Dieter: cans of water-packed salmon, sugar-free candies and gourmet soda, sodium free soup, a low-fat cookbook and a tape measure.


• The Tireless Skier: high-energy snack packets with candy, dried fruits and nuts, spiced tea mix, foil-wrapped cheeses, wheat crackers and a bottle of wine, lip balm and a pair of boot laces.


• The Far East Fan: chopsticks, cans of bean sprouts and water chestnuts, bottles of soy sauce and plum sauce, hot mustard, flavored rice and an illustrated sushi cookbook.

An award-winning writer and frequent conference speaker,Shirley Raye Redmond is the author of two inspirational historical novels, PRUDENCE PURSUED and AMANDA’S BEAU, as well as two dozen children’s books. Shirley Raye holds an M.A. in literature. She has been married to her husband Bill for forty years. They live in New Mexico and are blessed with two grown children, two adorable grandsons, and one spunky Scottish terrier. Touch bases at shirleyrayeredmond.com or Facebook and http://www.writechildrensbook.com/blog