Eco-Friendly Holidays

So much of the holidays can be about excess and over-indulgence in things and food.  While thinking about holiday gifts for my friends and family, I came up with gifts that wouldn't end up in landfill and support health.  The holidays are a time to show appreciation for all the people in your life.  Consider how to keep the environment and our bodies healthy while giving.  Here are a few gift ideas in which I hope you can find inspirational.

• Grocery Store Gift Cards -   Help friends and family cover their grocery bills.  Gift cards can be purchased for their usual store or introduce them to a new grocery store.  I would recommend our local co-op grocery store PCC Community Markets.  Their stores support our local organic farmers and other local producers.


• Cooking Classes -  Here's an experience to nourish soul and learn some cooking skills along the way.  Guess what!?  PCC Community Markets has cooking classes too!  Other opportunities may be found at community colleges, and occasionally Bastyr University offers cooking classes to the public.


• Activity Gifts - Get your friends and family moving with gift certificates at health clubs, fitness classes, dance classes or ski passes.


• Foods & Recipes - Put together a package of ingredients and an associated favorite recipe as a homemade gift.  Buy spices in bulk and assemble some favorite spice mixes for seasoning various meals.  Follow this link for some examples Frontier Co-op DIY gifts.  Or offer up your time to cook a meal for your friends and family.


• Meal Kit Delivery - If your person is short on time but interested in cooking and trying new recipes, purchase meal kit delivery services.  All recipe ingredients are pre-measured, prepped, packaged and delivered.  Just follow the instructions for a complete meal.  Most services have customizable plans for various diets and preferences.  A few examples are Hello Fresh, Daily Harvest, Sun Basket and many more.


• Charitable Donations - Find your giftee's favorite charity and make a donation in their name.  Some of my favorites are World Central Kitchen, Center for Science in the Public Interest and our local food banks.


• Restaurant Gift Certificates -  Give someone the night off from cooking to dine-out.  I would suggest supporting our locally owned restaurants, especially those that use locally sourced ingredients.


• Nutrition & Fitness Gift Certificates -   Support your small business.  Contact us if you're interested in giving gifts for our services.

Free introductory 15-minute appointments are also available.