Why give the same standard cashmere blanket at your next baby shower when the people at Shokay offer something much more special? The company crafts their throws, booties and stuffed animals from luxuriously soft yak down sourced directly from Tibetan herders, helping them to earn a living. We especially love this Tenzing Norgay baby blanket, with it's quirky pattern and cozy feel, named for a Tibetan explorer. Maybe your tot will be inspired by the courage of its namesake.

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With the recent barrage of French indie flicks like Je T'aime Paris and Two Days in Paris, it's high time for a family-friendly tale set in the city of lights. Enter the 1957 Academy Award-winning classic (and one of our editors' long-time favorites), The Red Balloon. The beautiful, silent film has been newly restored, and is available today on DVD for the first time ever. It's sure to inspire travel fantasies in Francophiles tall and small. Tres magnifique!

As summer nears, it is time to seek out a great hostess gift for that ever-accommodating friend who welcomes you and your brood for barbecues.This double-walled carafe by Romain Gauthrot is so sleek it gets the Museum of Modern Art seal of approval, and the clever design insulates the inner chamber so that hot or cool liquids maintain their temperature. We look forward to using ours for sipping iced tea or sangria poolside.

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True, a tray of fluffy cupcakes will excite any child (and many adults, for that matter), but the creators of Hello, Cupcake! know how to take that excitement to the next level.  The cookbook is full of truly step-by-step instructions that even a baking novice can easily follow. Decorate your cakes like sunflowers for a garden party, ears of corn for a summer barbecue, puppies for an animal lover's birthday, or even spaghetti and meatballs for April Fools Day. Your kids will be more than eager to lend a hand in the kitchen.

From the beginning, the clever folks at Method have sought to make cleaning products--from dish soap to wood cleaners to washcloths-- affordable, all-natural, and attractive. Lucky for us, they're now dabbling in baby care. Their new baby line boasts diaper cream, body wash, and lotion that is gentle and totally eco-friendly...not to mention so stylishly packaged there will be no need to hide them under the sink.

We all know that a little aromatherapy does a body good. Paddywax has taken it to the next level by making sure that its candles also promote
environmental health. Their Eco Collection line is made of hemp twine, soy wax, and natural fragrance oils, and come in dreamy scents like coriander and star anise. Plus, the box that its in can be reused as a planter in the garden. What better way to honor Earth Day than to snatch up a couple of these?

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For those of you raising future astronauts, Smart Lab has come up with toy that lets you explore the wonders of a shuttle launch without making a family trip to Cape Canaveral. This remote control rocket is fueled by the age-old science fair combo of baking soda and vinegar and, with the press of a button, it heads straight for the sky. Next stop: space camp.

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If you think an Ipod is the be-all end-all of mp3 players, prepare to be proven wrong. With the Sansa Fuze, you can store up to 2,000 songs, listen to preset FM radio stations, play videos or peruse photos on the color screen, or lay down your own tunes with a built in voice recorder. Best of all, when the little gadget is full, you can purchase a tiny memory card to double the capacity. The Fuze comes in five colors, with an impressive 24 hours of battery life so you can rock out all day long.

As any chef will tell you, the best way to rid kids of picky-eater-syndrome is to let them help out in the kitchen, where they can watch everything come together. Getting little ones to patiently measure and stir while you whip up a coq a vin is a tall order, but these extra-cute Beansoup aprons are sure to get them amped about dinner duty--and about expanding that finicky palette.

Those yellow number-twos work just fine for scribbling a mundane post-it,
but larger writing endeavors deserve an implement with a little more spunk.These monogrammed pencils from Superdeluxe come packed in a matching linen-bound box, and are available in six gorgeous shades. Use one when penning a lunchbox note or journal entry, and let their whimsy inspire you.