Gift Guide 112312

10 Friday, November 23, 2012CITIZEN’S NEWS

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Some people are a cinch to shop for come the holiday season, while others can be more of an enigma. When it comes to the latter, shoppers should determine what tickles their mysterious friend or family member’s fancy, such as a favorite hobby or even something to do with his or her profession.

Food is a passion for many people and provides holiday shoppers with a great opportunity to make a loved one’s holidayseason even more special. Perhaps thanks to the increase in cable networks focusing on food, foodies, those people with an appreciation and passion for cuisine, havegrown in number in recent years, and holiday shoppers with foodies on their lists have a host of potential gift options at their disposal.• Cooking class: Many foodies don’t just like eating food but cooking their favorite cuisine as well. For those who like to get their hands dirty before filling their bellies, consider paying for a cooking class.Many communities have cooking classics for various types of cuisine, so consult your friend or family member, asking them which cuisine they’d like to learn and when they’re available. Or let them find their own class and then pay for the class. This can be a great way for foodies to learn something new and meet fellow food afficionados along the way.• Specialty spices: Spices can makethe difference between an ordinary meal that’s void of flavor and a meal that’s so flavorful it won’t soon be forgotten. When spicing things up for a foodie this holidayseason, don’t just buy regular spices at the grocery store. For example, instead of standard cinnamon, buy a specialty spice like Mexican or Vietnamese cinnamon.Such specialty spices can add extra flavor to a meal while becoming the go-to spice

Gift ideas for thefood fanatic on your list

for the home chef among your friends and family members.• Pressure cooker: Many foodies are fawning over pressure cooking, which can cut down on cooking times without sacrificing nutrition. Some recipes may take half the time to prepare with a pressure cooker as they might with a more traditional cooking method, an important time saving element that’s attractive to foodies who want to enjoy their favorite foods but feel pressed for time on weeknights. And while pressure cookers employ steam to cook foods quickly, that steam also traps flavor, whereas boiling can wash flavor out.

Many foodies also laud pressure cookers for their nutritional benefits.Steaming certain foods can intensify their flavor, which allows cooks to rely less on potentially unhealthy additions like salt or butter to ensure a meal is flavorful.• Serving dishes: Of course, manyfoodies want to share the fruits of their labors with friends and family. For the person who loves throwing dinner parties,consider some serving dishes this holidayseason. Serving dishes can range from casual (for the foodie who can’t wait to fire up the grill) to formal (for the gourmet foodie), so get a feel of your friend or family member’s preferences before purchasing a set of serving dishes. • Cookbook: The ideal fallback item for holiday shoppers who can’t seem to find anything for their favorite foodies,cookbooks filled with recipes for dishes from their favorite type of cuisine (i.e.,Italian, Thai, Cajun, etc.) are sure to please.When gifting with a cookbook, peruse a few of its recipes to determine if there are any special ingredients that appear throughout. If there are, purchase these ingredients and gift them as well.

CITIZEN’S NEWSFriday, November 23, 2012 11

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Few things make holiday shoppers

happier than giving a gift that instantly

lights up a loved one’s eyes. All the work

that goes into finding and securing the

perfect gift becomes worth it and then

some when the recipient’s smile stretches

from ear to ear.

A great holiday gift often involves

someone’s favorite hobby. When gifting

the family sports fan, the options are end -

less. Sports fans tend to wear their hearts

on their sleeves, and they’re liable to be

just as vocal with appreciation if any of

these gifts are waiting under the tree for

them this holiday season.

• Magazine subscription: Many sports

fans feel they can never get enough infor -

mation on their favorite teams and sports.

A magazine subscription to Sports

Illustrated or another periodical focusing

on a particular sport can provide insider

access for a year or longer. Magazine sub -

scriptions are typically inexpensive, but

they provide lots of bang for your gifting

buck, especially weekly publications. In

addition, many magazines now give print

subscribers access to exclusive content

online, playing to your favorite sports fan’s

ever-growing desire for more knowledge.

• Sports apparel: According to

IBISWorld, a California-based market

research firm, online sporting apparel

sales were expected to approach $5 billion

Gifts no sports fan should go without

in 2012. Driving those

sales are sports fans who

can’t wait to don the gear

of their favorite teams.

Apparel makes a great

holiday gift, whether it’s

an authentic player jer -

sey, a team logo hoodie

or a personalized T-shirt

that directly connects

fans to their teams.

• Memorabilia:

Sports memorabilia can

be costly, but shoppers

can still find great deals

on everything from auto -

graphed items to relics of

a franchise’s fledgling

days. When shopping for

memorabilia, be wary of

auctions, where “shill

bidding” can drive up

the price of coveted

items. Shill bidding

occurs when owners bid

on their own items at auction in an

attempt to drive up the sale price. And

authentication can be an issue with regard

to sports memorabilia. The Federal Bureau

of Investigation has been cracking down

on fraudulent memorabilia. Shoppers

without knowledge of the memorabilia

industry might want to focus on less

expensive items that will be a hit under

the tree but won’t be a hit to their bank

accounts.

• Video games: Many sports fans

indulge in their love of a favorite sport by

playing video games. Like most technol -

ogy, video games are consistently rein -

vented, so last year’s game might already

be outdated, making video games an ideal

holiday gift. Those who want to go the

extra mile can include a new gaming con -

sole along with the latest video game.

• Tickets: Of course, sports fans might

like nothing more than tickets to see their

favorite teams play. Buying directly from a

sports team is a safe bet, but it can also be

expensive. Savvy shoppers can explore the

legal secondary market, which includes

online retailers like StubHub.com or even

league-affiliated programs like NFLTicket

Exchange, where they might find more

affordable tickets. When gifting tickets, do

so far enough in advance of the game so

fans have time to plan their trip and, if

need be, take a day off from work.

Holiday givingfor special needs

children

Everyone wants to get the perfect

gifts for people on their holiday shop -

ping lists. Shopping for a child with spe -

cial needs can make gift-giving a bit

more difficult. After all, buyers want to

ensure the gift is practical as well as

thoughtful. However, there are many

great gift ideas for special needs chil -

dren.

Buying gifts for kids with a disabil -

ity or other special needs make take a

little more time, but shoppers who con -

sider a child’s developmental readiness

as well as personal interests can still

find the perfect gift.

• Consult with parents and caregiv - ers. Parents often know best when it

comes to their own children and will

make the most reliable source as to

which gifts to buy for special needs chil -

dren. Parents may have a list of items a

therapist or teacher has suggested, and

these learning tools could make good

gifts, particularly if parents’ own budg -

ets are stretched. If you’d like to make

the gift a surprise for everyone involved,

go directly to a therapist or teacher and

ask for suggestions. There may be class -

room aides that can be bought to con -

tinue the learning experience at home.

• Assess developmental level.When it comes to special needs chil -

dren, age does not always dictate the

proper developmental level. A pre-teen

with special needs may not be on the

same level academically and socially as

his or her peers, while some special

needs children may be more developed

in a particular area than other special

needs kids their age. Assess a child’s

developmental level to help you select

toys that he or she can play with. For

example, a nonverbal child with autism

who likes marine life may benefit from a

colorful picture book where he or she

can point to the animals.

• Think about interests. Most chil -

dren gravitate to certain types of toys

and have specific interests when it

comes to play. A music lover may enjoy

a learner’s guitar or keyboard. Those

who like to build would probably like a

Lego (R) or Mega Bloks (R) set that can be

transformed into cars, trucks or even

space stations. Most children benefit

from art sets where they can explore

their creativity and also master greater

dexterity and imaginative thinking.

• Consider making a financial donation. Some children with special

needs require the use of specialized

equipment, such as braces or wheel -

chairs. Such equipment can be expen -

sive, and the child’s family might benefit

from a financial gift. A monetary gift to

be put toward medical supplies, travel,

gear, or even a charitable donation to an

association would make fine gifts.

Special needs children are just like

others in that they look forward to the

bounty of holiday gifts. Choosing pre -

sents that pertain to their interests,

needs and developmental readiness can

ensure that this holiday season is a

happy one.

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12 Friday, November 23, 2012CITIZEN’S NEWS