Gift Ideas for Cockeysville Moms

I’m turning into a cliché: I have become the mom who is hard to buy for.

I don’t know exactly when it happened. I have been noticing it slowly creeping up on me since my daughter Lucy was born almost four years ago, but it has become acute this Christmas season. Maybe it’s because both my kids are in hyper drive this year – at this time last year, my son Isaac was just seven months old, whereas now he’s everywhere all at once and is bursting with big personality, just like his sister.

I have spent plenty of time crafting holiday gift lists for both of them, and consequently I have spent very little time thinking about what I might want. I tend to treat myself to the things I want here and there throughout the year. I don’t really need anything; I don’t feel like I’m really lacking anything. But this kind of attitude just makes it harder on the people who will buy you gifts, no matter what, like my husband.

So I finally gave it some serious consideration – for his sake, mind you – and came up with a few ideas that might just be universal gift ideas for any Cockeysville husbands out there, wondering what to buy their wives. And for all of these suggestions, you don’t even have to leave our fair zip code.

• “Starfish Pants” from Lands’ End, $49.50. The store’s cute name is fine, but I call these my “I’ve Given Up Pants.” At one point in my footloose and foolish youth, I boldly proclaimed that I would never leave the house in pants that didn’t have a defined waistband and zipper, like you get with a pair of jeans. Well folks, two kids and many pounds later, that vow has been long forgotten. These are the pants I put on first thing when I get home from work and they are my go-to pants on the weekend. They are comfortable and make me look polished, or so I hope, rather than shlubby. I’ve even been told they are slimming, so slap a big old sold sign on these pants. I bought mine at LandsEnd.com, but Sears in the Hunt Valley Towne Centre has a Lands’ End store inside.

• A spa day for Fido at , approximately $35; price varies by animal. Remember when the dog was your wife’s baby? Remember when he was walked twice a day and your wife had free time to play with him whenever she wanted to and she gave him baths with baby shampoo in the hallway bathroom that has now been taken over by the kids? Make your wife’s first baby clean and fluffy and sweet smelling again by taking him to Sandy’s for a bath, haircut and nail trimming. It probably sounds silly, but when my dog Emmet returns home from Sandy’s, it just makes my week. And my husband is usually the one to drop him off and pick him up, so he’s my hero. Sandy’s is located at 17 Cranbrook Road in Cockeysville. Call for an appointment at 410-666-1735.

• Make a donation in her name to a local charity. Really, we have everything we need and this is the kind of thing I’m always adding to my to-do list and embarrassingly never get to. There are plenty of great places to give to in our neighborhood. For instance, I keep meaning to make a donation to the Cockeysville Volunteer Fire Company, which I drive by every day during the daycare run. And don’t forget this holiday season that the fire company is a drop-off location for Toys for Tots and the Maryland Food Bank.

• Dinner and a movie. Date nights take some planning. Why not show your good intentions to make 2012 the Year of the Date Night by buying her a gift card to Regal Hunt Valley Theater along with a gift certificate to her favorite local restaurant? Personally, I think Serpico Pizza & Pasta on York Road in Sparks has the best pizza in town. And hey, it’s a chain, but you can’t go wrong with Chipotle. Both restaurants are pretty close to the theater, too.

• Gift certificate to Simply Yoga MD. Life – work, the holiday season, events with the kids, you name it - has been getting in my way when it comes to taking better care of myself and getting in shape. I need to get back in gear and get back on the yoga mat to de-stress and find the peace of mind that classes at Simply Yoga can provide. I’m betting I’m not the only one who needs a gentle nudge toward a healthier lifestyle, so consider this gift of good health for the one you love. Simply Yoga is located in the Cometa Wellness Center in the Crestridge Corporate Center, 10151 York Road in Cockeysville.

Those are just a handful of ideas that might appeal to the mom in your life. If all else fails, may I suggest one more idea, the ultimate fail-safe, no-cost yet priceless gift? Get up with the kids when they wake up at the crack of dawn on Saturday and let your wife sleep in. There’s just no way you can go wrong with that one.