Cooking – OLD THINGS NEW

Long, long ago, and far, far away, when my mom was still living and we lived in the Pacific Northwest we used to host all of the holiday dinners in our home. It was a chore I gladly took over from my mom when my dad passed, in order to allow my children to experience being in their own home for the holidays, just as I was as a child.

In those days we had a full dining room table with the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins (as many as could make the trip) all coming together to celebrate. Over time the children grew up, family became scattered, and things changed. The gatherings grew smaller and the grandparents older. We sometimes laughed over the amusing antics of “the old folks,” the name fondly given those whose memories were not quite as sharp and bodies not quite as strong as they once were. As the gathering diminished in size we talked, my husband and I, about the time when we would be the “old folks” ourselves. And now we are . . . NOT! As sixty somethings, we are indeed older, but we have not yet declared ourselves OLD.

Mother’s Day falls this Sunday and I no longer have a mom to shop for, nor do I have daughters who are mothers themselves, so I guess Mother’s Day is pretty much all about ME. At least for now. Since I am The Mom, I thought I’d share with you what I’d like to receive as a mom on Mother’s Day. Maybe this will help you out a bit with your own Mom’s Day shopping 😉

TOP TEN Countdown (or countup?) of Things I Want for Mother’s Day:

Note: By clicking on the pictures you will be linked to the products. I do receive a small commission for anything purchased from Amazon, although you don’t pay any more than you normally would by going to Amazon directly yourself.

10.I actually have this in cobalt blue but everyone who cooks needs a good Dutch Oven or two, and this color! This one holds 6-quarts and is perfect for simmering soups on rainy days. It’s not Summer yet!

9.Is this wood-grained essential oil diffuser beautiful or what? It makes me relax just looking at it.

8.Fur throws are hugely popular right now and sheepskin pelts are the most beautiful. They can be thrown at the end of a bed, layered over other rugs, or placed at the foot of your favorite chair. Sigh . . .

7.This is the season when I’m really into gardening, and this soil meter would be amazing for helping me decide what additives my red clay needs. Maybe it would help answer the question of the yellow leaves on my gardenias.

6.I do have one of these lightweight hoses for my deck plants but a second one out front would be nice.

5.A complete new set of garden tools. Mine are looking pretty shabby 🙁

4.White towels are my favorite and big fluffy bamboo towels are the best. They are wonderfully absorbent and this set comes wrapped with a bow for gift giving.

3.Though I use a Keurig for convenience there is nothing quite like the taste of coffee from a French Press, and this beautiful one in copper is the best.

2.We do have this Echo in our den, and a smaller Echo dot in our bedroom. You wouldn’t believe how much I’ve grown to love Alexa. That’s the name of the gal inside the Echo that you tell what you need and she delivers. You can ask her the time, the weather, to wake you with an alarm. I can also listen to my favorite Seattle radio stations or ask her to play selections from any artist I like and she does it. Hubby is looking into purchasing some special lights that we can tell Alexa to dim or change colors for mood. Really, the things this little personal maid can do for you are endless. Well worth the cost and she just so happens to be on sale, as are many of the items I’ve listed above. I like sales.

And now, for the big NUMBER 1!

I DO NOT receive any compensation for this recommendation but that’s okay because I’m pretty excited about Norwex and want to tell you about their products (I want them all). So far I have a window cleaning cloth, and some counter and stove top cloths and they are amazing. No cleaning products are needed with them, only water, and they not only clean to perfection but they also disinfect your surfaces!

Norwex cleaning products are SAFE for your family – no chemicals; they save TIME; they save MONEY – up to 90% of what most spend on cleaning supplies; and they are SAFE for the environment.

I just ordered the Norwex mop system which not only cleans your floors with water alone but also removes bacteria. This is especially important to me with a new puppy in the house.

Below are some Norwex gifts for mom or dad (dad’s day is coming too). If you follow this LINK you’ll be directed to my daughter’s Norwex Facebook party and can order through Mother’s Day under her name – Joy. Again, I don’t receive anything for this referral but my daughter might score some free products if she has enough orders 😉

Finally . . . keep scrolling down . . .

. . . here is a short video showing the science behind Norwex and how, when put to the test, it showed that it really delivers over and above other similar products.