When I was first cleared to exercise after Chase was born, I quickly realized a few of my old favorite ways to work out weren’t going to work for a while for me because of the lack of childcare offered at some of my favorite fitness studios.
Not only could I not resume teaching my regular classes at the gym (they do not offer childcare until a child can sit up), but I also had to temporarily forgo Pure Barre workouts as well. I was quite bummed about this, but sometimes when one door closes another one opens. In this case, the door lead me to my local Burn Boot Camp.
(The above banner is hanging on the wall at my local BBC. LOVE it.)
I heard wonderful things about Burn Boot Camp (BBC) from other moms in my area. The workouts sounded seriously challenging but, most importantly for me, the childcare offered at my local boot camp received rave reviews.
I visited BBC two times by myself before I felt comfortable enough to bring Chase along. I wanted to meet the woman who worked there and speak with her about bringing my baby boy there soon. She instantly made me feel at ease and the first time I arrived with Chase, Miss Lindsey held him swaddled in her arms the entire time.
As weeks went by and I fell more and more in love with my BBC workouts, I also fell more in love with Miss Lindsey and her incredible passion for caring for children. Not only does she come up with the cutest craft projects for the children, but she plays with Chase when he’s excitable, snuggles him when he’s sleepy and gives me peace of mind during the 45 minutes of the day when I’m not in full-on mommy mode.
During the holiday season, I knew I wanted to give Lindsey a holiday gift bag to say a big thank you to her for taking such great care of Chase and the other BBC kids. She truly goes above and beyond and the other mothers and I know how lucky we are to have her watching our children during our workouts.
I picked up a bunch of goodies at CVS and tried to stick with a fitness/health/holiday theme!
I filled the gift bag with hair ties, cucumber hand lotion, facial cleansing towelettes (perfect to use to freshen up post-workout!) and nail polish for a little something fun. Side note: I am in love with Essie’s Bahama Mama color. So pretty!
I also had to add some festive holiday items to the gift bag and hoped Lindsey’s adorable daughter might like the fuzzy socks I included.
And because gift bags should always include some kind of delicious treat, I added two of my favorite snacks.
I know Lindsey is fairly health-conscious so I wanted to include snacks that were tasty and a little sweet but still mostly healthy and free from artificial preservatives and flavors. We LOVE the Gold Emblem Abound Berries & Nut Clusters in our house and I think the Fuji Apple & Raspberry Clusters are a perfect healthy option to grab when your sweet tooth hits.
We also included two cards (our family Christmas card from Chase and a thank you card from me) and a VISA gift card in the gift bag. I really hope Lindsey knows just how much she means to our family. A thank you gift bag doesn’t even begin to do her justice, but hopefully it added a little bit of holiday cheer to her day last week!
Gift Card Giveaway
Now it’s giveaway time…
Today’s giveaway is for a $100 CVS gift card!
You may use the gift card toward anything at CVS, though I encourage you to use your gift card to assemble a surprise “thank you” gift basket for someone in your life who means a lot to you.
I highly recommend adding some of CVS’ tasty snacks from their Gold Emblem Abound line in your gift basket, as all of the the ingredients in CVS’ Gold Emblem Abound snacks are totally recognizable (no artificial preservatives and flavors) and they offer both sweet and savory options you can feel good about gifting.
To enter this giveaway, please leave a comment on this blog post telling me about someone in your life who you think deserves a thoughtful thank you basket from you! I’ll randomly select and email a giveaway winner tomorrow so we can get you your gift card ASAP!
Good luck!
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Disclaimer: This blog post is part of my ongoing partnership with CVS. Though this post features some of my favorite CVS snacks, the gift bag idea was mine alone and was assembled and paid for by me as a big thank you to a woman who means a lot to our family.
I’m proud to partner with CVS/pharmacy as one of the “Gold Emblem Abound Trail Makers” this year. I am being sponsored by CVS/pharmacy for my Trail Makers posts and activities, but all opinions expressed are my own, and all product claims or program details shared should be verified at CVS.com or with the appropriate manufacturers. As always, I am so appreciative of your support surrounding sponsored posts. Thank you!
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My Mom! She always does everything for her kids and her grandkids!!
I would put together two snack baskets for my boys for Christmas who are the most special people to me.
I would love to gift my friend Lauren with a little something extra this holiday season. Lauren had a baby at the beginning of 2015 extremely premature and is still out of work. Although money may be a little tight for her this holiday season, she is full of the Christmas spirit!
My sister!
I would love to give this gift to my friend, becca for always being there for me in sickness and health. Even when we grow apart I still feel very much connected to her. I would like to tell her how much she means to me. This would be the perfect way!
My mother deserves a thoughtful thank you basket from me. She is the best.
I would give a thank you basket to my mom. I had a baby girl two months ago and my mom has been great help.
my son’s teacher!
My husband deserves a thoughtful thank you basket more than anyone I know because he is SO adaptive and kind to me in a million ways, large and small. This has been a tough year with lots of medical challenges and losing parts of what we’ve known, yet he’s stayed kind by my side through it all. Lucky and grateful.
I would like to do a gift basket for my mother-in-law. I have a 4 month old daughter and my mother-in-law cares for her while I’m at work. This is such an incredible gift for our family and allowed me to go back to work with peace of mind. A basket would be a great (and small) way to say THANK YOU!
My parents deserve a giant gift basket for all the things they do for me! I would be nowhere without their love and support.
My mother is always thinking of other people and not taking the time to pamper herself. She definitely deserves a nice gift basket 🙂
I would love to give a gift basket to my mom!
I would love to make a basket of treats for my mom! She rarely treats herself and deserves it!!
I would gift a thank you basket to my mom. Moms deserve the world and especially mine since I’ve put her through a great deal during my teenage years.
This might be weird but I would love to give a gift to my doctor. She is such an amazing, passionate, and intelligent woman and has been a huge support to me throughout this past year.
The ever-friendly, smiley woman who works the desk at my physical therapist’s office.
Like the majority of the others commenting, my mom is the one who deserves a gift basket 🙂 It’s amazing how much she has done for me – and how she never tires, never gives up, never gets angry. Mothers are just the best, aren’t they? 😉
My sweet 60 year old neighbor! I moved to the top of a mountain and only have one neighbor! She has been the best neighbor a girl could ask for. She hosts my entire family weekly during the entire Walking Dead season. She lives alone and has taught me how to thrive in a new environment!
I would make a gift basket for my aunt. She has been a great support to me and my husband and I would make a gift basket to show her how much I appreciate her.
The shipping guys at work! They do so much for us!
My mom is such a hardworking and selfless women. She goes over and beyond for others and has always done so much for my siblings and I.
I would love to buy healthy snacks and goodies for our cousins who are hosting my sister and I over New Years in Chicago. I’m so proud of my cousins for taking control of their health and losing weight in a healthy way!
I would give this gift to my mom. Being a college student with a job leaves me with so little to give back to the woman who gives me everything she has everyday. And knowing her she would spread it out and give to others!
My department chair at my school. I am new to the school this year teaching a new subject. She gave me all of her material from teaching last year and answers all my questions when I have them. She gets all the gruff from my coworkers and principal for our department when things don’t go right. She is always staying after to help students and gives all her time and energy. She has been the biggest lifesaver and help to me. I wouldn’t have survived this year without her.
I would give it to my mom. She’s a high school teacher and this time of year is always crazy for her with end of the semester and holiday craziness. She still manages to make her students and family feel special though!
I would totally make a goodie basket for my mom. She is the best!
My mom, she’s helped me so much this past year.
The ladies at my front desk at work, always smiling and helpful!
my friend kat! she’s has been an incredible friend to me throughout this past year.
Hands down, my mom! Such a selfless woman that I can’t thank enough.
My friend and coworker…whenever I need something, she is always there for me!
I would gift a basket of goodies to my mom. She is a life saver! Just today she dropped everything when I called her in tears because I found a louse on my daughter’s head. Forget Christmas prep, she came over and helped me treat my daughters’ heads and checked mine. She is the most selfless person I know. I love her so much and she deserves more than I could ever give her.
My Mom! Too funny, as I was reading what some other people had commented, so many others mentioned their moms! It’s so true though, Moms deserve the best:)
Definitely the daycare our kids go to!
I would give it to my mom to say thanks for watching mmy son while I’m at work!
My grandmother 🙂
What a great idea-I should definitely put a thank you together for my neighbor who has been such a help to me this year, watching my dog when I travel-even with last minute notice!
My Mom, she is ALWAYS there for me and my sister.
We go to CVS all the time, so this would be perfect!
My mom who sits for my twin boys 5 days a week
My dad… He’s been my rock lately!
My husband! He’s the best.
my mom. we just moved closer to her and the help she’s given me with our new baby girl and our almost 3 year old has been amazing. not sure how we would have gotten through these first two months without her. she will also keep baby L when I go back to work and knowing that she is with my mom means i can go back to work with such a peace of mind. now if I could just get this baby girl to take a bottle.
My friend, Elsa. She’s been an amazing person in my life who truly listens to me and provides great advice. It’s hard to find friends who you truly connect with on a deeper level and she is that person for me!
My husband! I appreciate him so much more now that we have a nine month old daughter!
My boyfriend. He seriously does little gift things like this for me and I’d love to return one to him. He won’t be here for Christmas (military) but he will be in January and with all the flying he does, this would be perfect snack stuff for him as well!
My co-worker that is always there for me
I would give a basket to my sweet grandparents!
I would make one for my oldest sister. She is going through some really hard times and can use something to bring a smile to her face ❤️
Happy Holidays Julie ??? LOVE your blog.