Hi ladies. I have a wonderful friend with whom I have been friends for 33 years. She is the kind of friend that every woman should have. Problem?- I am flat out of ideas for a Christmas gift for her. She has family that is able to do for her all year long- trips, spa outings, tack, etc. She is also someone who does for herself- book club, pampering etc. I have cross-stiched, crafted, bought tickets for shows, bought clothing articles, picture frames, some jewelry, lotions, bath items, decor for the home etc. She is an avid horseback rider, a mom of two, a vet tech, and is somewhat invovled with their small community (more on a business level for the family business). She scrapbooks but has a SIL that is in that business and she gets all her supplies from her...
I need to keep it around $40 and no more but it needs to be meaningful and sincere. She is not one who likes nick-nacks or things that would create "clutter". Gift cards are NOT something I will consider. Does anyone have any respectable ideas?
I should have added, this friend just had a b-day and for it I did a combination of hot drinks and a cup as she is often called out in the middle of the night for the vet- they make large animal house calls.
would she like a donation made in her name? there is an awesome horse rescue place in MD that can always use donations. http://www.defhr.org/
She probably already has a horseshoe for luck nailed above a door... smartwool socks are fun colors and practical, but not sentimental... a coffee grinder marked "not for horse meds" she probably always has (I was always breaking the horse meds ones and snagging my indoor grinder and then having to buy a new one)... really great earphones with "call/phone/microphone" may or may not be appropriate (I used to bring my walkman out with me for the 3am "I don't like to walk around in circles" walk around in circles when a horse would get all colicky). If she's in the barn a lot they probably already have walkies so that no one has to shout from the house. Helmet covers and gloves wear out really often. Sat phones for xcountry are too flippin expensive. Crops wear out but are given as gag gifts too often.
How about a "greatest hits" calendar? One of the iPhoto or Flickr ones that has photos of her riding, her horses, her kids, you and her (esp from the glory days of childhood). That way you hit the scrapbooking nerve, and are tying in her greatest loves (family, friends, & horses... not necessarilly in that order). There are some great horse quotes as well that you could title some of the pics with:
There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man. ~Winston Churchill
Riding: The art of keeping a horse between you and the ground. ~Author Unknown
Horses and children, I often think, have a lot of the good sense there is in the world. ~Josephine Demott Robinson
The wind of heaven is that which blows between a horse's ears. ~Arabian Proverb
It's a lot like nuts and bolts - if the rider's nuts, the horse bolts! ~Nicholas Evans
All I pay my psychiatrist is the cost of feed and hay, and he'll listen to me any day. ~Author Unknown
When I bestride him, I soar, I am a hawk: he trots the air; the earth sings when he touches it; the basest horn of his hoof is more musical than the pipe of Hermes. ~William Shakespeare, Henry V
A canter is a cure for every evil. ~Benjamin Disraeli
When you're young and you fall off a horse, you may break something. When you're my age, you splatter. ~Roy Rogers
In riding a horse we borrow freedom. ~Helen Thomson
Four things greater than all things are, -
Women and Horses and Power and War.
~Rudyard Kipling, "The Ballad of the King's Jest"
For want of a Nail the Shoe was lost; for want of a Shoe the Horse was lost; and for want of a Horse the Rider was lost; being overtaken and slain by the Enemy, all for want of Care about a Horse-shoe Nail.
~Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanack, June 1758
A horse which stops dead just before a jump and thus propels its rider into a graceful arc provides a splendid excuse for general merriment. ~Duke of Endinburgh
Small children are convinced that ponies deserve to see the inside of the house. ~Maya Patel
I'd rather have a goddam horse. A horse is at least human, for God's sake. ~J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye
In my opinion, a horse is the animal to have. Eleven-hundred pounds of raw muscle, power, grace, and sweat between your legs - it's something you just can't get from a pet hamster. ~Author Unknown
Horses - if God made anything more beautiful, he kept it for himself. ~Author Unknown
And Allah took a handful of southerly wind, blew His breath over it, and created the horse.... Thou shall fly without wings, and conquer without any sword. Oh, horse. ~Bedouin Legend
The daughter who won't lift a finger in the house is the same child who cycles madly off in the pouring rain to spend all morning mucking out a stable. ~Samantha Armstrong
He flung himself upon his horse and rode madly off in all directions. ~Stephen Leacock
A Horseman should know neither fear, nor anger. ~James Rarey
A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse! ~ William Shakespeare
As a horse runs, think of it as a game of tag with the wind. ~ Tre Tuberville
A horse never runs so fast as when he has other horses to catch up and outpace.
Ovid
How do you catch a loose horse? Make a noise like a carrot.
- British Cavalry joke
I haven't read the other answers so sorry if this is a duplicate suggestion- You could donate money in her name to a charity that she would like. For my uncle this year for Christmas I bought livestock in his name for the gift of Asia. He has "everything" and I know that he likes to help out missionaries and people in poverty so when I saw that I thought that would be perfect- and he absolutely loved it! Since she is an avid horseback rider, maybe you could give money to an equestrian charity or just the human society or something like that- and if you feel she needs something to unwrap- maybe get her a small Christmas ornament representing what you picked out for her. It doesn't have to cost a lot of money either- I was able to buy 4 chickens and 2 rabbits and it was $33.
If you have been friends for so long, think about something sentimental from your past and go that route. Maybe try a "Grab N Go" bag. As an example if she is a horse back rider, fill a small bag (make up bag size) with hand warmers, tissues, chapstick, hand sanitizer or hand lotion, riding gloves, etc. That way it is something helpful and handy that she can keep in her car for when she is riding or perhaps keep in her barn. Take the same idea and apply it to what a mom in the car might need, tissues, hand sanitizer, travel game for the kids, bandaids, spray neosporin, portable trash bag, umbrella, roll of quarters, flash light etc. It may not be fancy, but it is helpful and something she will use.
What about making a list of 20 things that you love about her and/or your friendship? You could print it & frame it -- that'll be special between just the two of you.
If you've known her that long, you've most likely got plenty of pictures, etc that you could use to put together your own "memory album". That could be either an actual book OR CD.
I just had my niece make CDs for our class reunion. I used pics from the yearbooks, my scrapbook, newspaper articles regarding sporting events, etc, pics from other reunions, etc. She downloaded music from 72-75 onto the CD, too
It certainly would be LOTS more personal and let her know how much you treasure the memories you've shared together.
basket of movies, pop corn, soda, movie tickets, and candy.
Does she drink coffee ? Christmas coffee cups, each stuffed with a fun sentimental thing. One with hot coco to keep her warm at night....one with apple cider mix to spice up her life, one full of choc to help feed the soul of stress......... things like that.
What about her favorite perfume? I love to get gifts of things I love already just one less thing to run out of!
Does she have any really nice spas near her? A nice spa day would be wonderful!
With my close girlfriends, I always try to think of the things that I have at home that I LOVE and use all the time. Such as a favorite kitchen knife (a sharp paring knife) or a great cookbook (with your favorite recipes marked to make it more personal). I cook a lot and so do my friends so I naturally think of kitchen things.
I always think a pretty scarf or necklace is fun to get.
A really nice umbrella?
saddle blankets does she need a new bit?? saddlebags but I am not sure how much they cost. what kind of riding does she do. go to a tap and feed store they can give you some ideas. maybe a watch a calander to mark trail rides or rodeos on and kids things.
I'm seconding (thirding) the suggestion for a donation in her name to a charity she would like. Heifer International donates animals to impoverished families to give them a way to climb out of poverty. What about the local soup kitchen or animal shelter? Find her favorite charity and donate away. And it's the gift you can repeat over and over again!
An edible arrangement is so awesome. They have chocolate in them now.
