All I Want for Christmas: A Holiday Gift Guide for Dads Part I

From
work to more work to working some more, rocking our babes at 2 AM, then bouncing
back up again at 7:15 for Wiggly Waffle and snuggles
on the sofa (before work), to rowdy games of chase, bedtime stories, then sharing
kitchen duty and running through the whole drill all over again, every day, my
husband is the hardworking-est person I know. 

What do I get for this incredible guy who is everything to my two tiny boys
and me?  What Christmas gift is enough to
say all I’d like to about how dear he is, how much he is appreciated?  Well, nothing.  Nothing can possibly say it all, or even come
close.

Curbing
my urge to hover, asking less, understanding more and some sugar would probably
go a long way, but I can’t wrap those up and put them under the tree, so I’ve
attempted to find some cool things to help my dear husband slow down this
frenetic pace our life has set and take some time out for himself.  If I could, I would give him all of this and
more, including a week-long tropical vacation and a new pair of skis, both of which he sorely needs, but a
blog post will have to do. 

A Crazy-Good Massage ($70.00 – $110.00)
Spas
are for boys, too, but you don’t necessarily have to provide the fluffy robe
and slipper frills.  Try a more pared-down
establishment, like Heaven Nail Spa in
Denver.  Your hubby may bristle at being dropped
off at a nail salon (throw in a mani/pedi if he doesn’t, because you know he
needs it), but he will not believe the crazy magic fingers on one Ms. Sogi—she
gave me a shoulder massage that made me feel like warm butter, so ask for her
by name.  If you’r e in NYC and haven’t
checked out Graceful
yet, your priorities are WAY out of whack. 
Even though they squeeze clients into sheet-partitioned cubicles (they’ve
got Manhattan real estate prices as an excuse), we consider planning cross-country
trips to the city just to go get massages here.  

Smartwool Socks ($18.95) & Baselayer
($75.00) 
“Ohh.  Socks. 
Um, thanks. . .”  Not so with
Smartwool.  Dudes dig this stuff like you
love cashmere.  Everything Smartwool has
a utilitarian luxury to it so you really can’t go wrong, but I’ve chosen the Diamond Jim socks
and NTS Microweight Zip T baselayer
to keep my honey warm on his annual ski mancation this coming year.

A Hot Lather Straight Razor Shave & Man
Movie (~$40.00)
If your
man isn’t the mani/pedi sort, an old-fashioned hot lather straight razor shave with
a shoulder massage at Floyd’s Barber
Shop is its equivalent.  Make the
appointment, drop him off, leave the kiddos with a sitter and pick him up for
lunch and a showing of something really man-ish, like Avatar, "the story of an ex-Marine
who finds himself thrust into hostilities on an alien planet. . ." (um, yeah, sounds
good, right?).

Timbuk2 Dolores Chiller ($110.00)
Because it can do double-duty as a dude diaper bag, this Timbuk2 messenger
is a stealth gift for you, but it’ll make your man feel like the coolest dad on
the cul-de-sac.  A longstanding favorite of mine (a small messenger I bought in college still looks virtually new in spite of some very harsh use), Timbuk2
bags always over-deliver, but now they've stepped it up again with the Dolores Chiller, a wine, beer, baby
bottle and snack cooler for jazz in the park and other impromptu outdoor fun.

Boys’ Night Out ($50.00 – $800.00)
Moms
aren’t the only ones whose social lives wane when the kids come along.  Gone are the days of Mad Men dads sitting at bars
to wind down after work until the kids are in bed.  They’re here in the trenches with us chicks (where
they should be) and they need some me-time, too, so treat your beloved to a
boys’ night out.   If your budget is
tight, give him carte blanche at your house for poker night or a big game.  Set up all the food and drinks then take your
leave.  If you’re able, get him two of the
best tickets your family can afford to an awesome game (for Dave that would be
Red Wings, his native team, v Colorado Avalanche).  Check dates and locations somewhere like www.stubhub.com and throw in dinner at a
great steakhouse, like the Denver Chophouse.  Oh, and don’t stop short.  Let him sleep it off the next morning—no
monkeys bouncing on the bed or honey-do’s before noon.  

Happy
holidays to you, hot mamas, and to your honeys and babes, too.
M.