Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With String

Blue Diamond Wasabi & Soy Sauce Almonds

Note the big "BOLD" warning on the side of these almonds; it's no joke-- these nuts pack a spicy, delicious punch. Perhaps you love almonds so much you can eat a whole container of them in one sitting. Perhaps you are thinking that such extreme-tasting almonds will prevent those nutty binges. Well, you are wrong. Quite the opposite: they are so damn good you will eat the whole container and then rush back to the grocery store for more. Around $4.99.

Automoblox

A couple of years ago, my son received a set of three Mini-Automoblox for his third birthday. At the time, he was obsessed with cars and trucks (like 80% of boys that age), and the toy immediately became his favorite plaything. No wonder: Each Automoblox can be taken apart and then reassembled in various ways by mixing and matching parts from different vehicles. The combinations are endless, and because the wooden cars are precision engineered, all pieces fit together perfectly and each newly-created vehicle runs smoothly. Automoblox were designed by industrial designer Patrick Calello and took five years to perfect. $30 for a set of three different mini-vehicles.

California Baby Tea Tree & Lavender Shampoo & Bodywash

When my daughter was a baby, she had cradle cap, but unlike most kids, she didn't grow out of it. I tried rubbing baby oil into her scalp then sloughing off the oily, peeling, gross skin (per the suggestion of her pediatrician) but that didn't work, and it took three washings to get out the oiliness. Then there's my son, who has sensitive, pale, Irish skin prone to rashes. So I was definitely in the market for a product that was super-gentle and natural. I found it in California Baby's Tea Tree & Lavender Shampoo & Bodywash, which is tear free, allergy tested, and helps to remove cradle cap and flaky scalp. All ingredients are organic, sustainably grown, vegan, not tested on animals, with no animal ingredients, no irritating sulfates, gluten, soy, oat, dairy, or nuts. $12 for 8.5 oz.