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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This would have to go to my precious Nana, she puts everyone before herself.
Wow! What a thoughtful gift!
Our UPS man really deserves a gift because I don’t think I’ve bought a single Christmas present in a store this year 🙂 🙂 but I would use the money to create a gift bag like this for my sister-in-law!
I would love to put together a little something for my classmates! We’ve got one semester left of grad school and it would be nice to do something for them!
Our regular babysitter who came over when I went into labor to watch our older child!
Definitely my boss. She’s always running around doing a million things, and she deserves it!
My mom is AMAZING and totally deserves to be spoiled! I love her so, so much and ‘thank you’ for her love and support never seems like enough.
One of my co-workers who always has my back and appreciates all the hard work that I do is definitely deserving of a thank you bag! Great giveaway 🙂
I would definitely create a good gift basket for a very deserving person! I have a few in mind, so maybe a few baskets!
My 3 year olds dance teacher. She doesn’t have children herself and treats her students like they are her own. I can’t imagine teaching a group of three year olds to dance and she is so kind and patient. It makes my heart so happy to see my child love going to dance class so much and it’s thanks to Miss Dawn.
That’s such a sweet gesture! I’m sure it will be much appreciated. I’d give a thank you to my mom for always going above and beyond to make our holidays memorable with good food, beautiful decorations, and lots of family time.
I love the basket you’ve put together! I would be thrilled to be able to put together a basket for the family of the kid I run 4 through the IRun4 organization. They have been so gracious about my running for their son. They have truly gone “the extra mile” and I would LOVE to thank them!
Such a nice gift! I would definitely gift it to my mother in law. She is always there for me and so generous.
I would love to give one to my sweet childcare provider. She has made me feel so at east with having to go back to work after 9 weeks with my sweet guy. He loves her so much and I would love to make her holiday with a little something extra. Thanks for hosting such a great giveaway!
I would split it up between my 3 roommates! They’re so sweet and love CVS almost as much as I do, haha. #onestopshopping
I would love to give a gift bag to the nurses who look after my Grandma in her nursing home! They are the best.
My sweet grandma! She is without a doubt the most generous person I have ever met. Last year I was let go without warning from my first job out of college after only a few months there, and she wrote me a check to help me get by until I found a new job. She’s the best!
Definitely my mom… she is the best!
I have been traveling a lot and my mother and mother in law have been watching my dog. Knowing she is in good hands while I’m away eases my mind. They deserve a thanks!
I would love to assemble a basket for my mom. She drives two hours each way EVERY week to watch my 7-month-old daughter while I’m at work. Her volunteering to do this has allowed me to go part-time and I am BEYOND grateful. This would be a nice little surprise to show our gratitude beyond the Christmas gift she is expecting.
My boyfriend deeply deserves a thank you basket from me! I just moved across the country to a new city on my own for nursing school, and he has been incredibly supportive!
My boss- she is so great and has been such an awesome mentor to me over these last few years!
I would love to give a couple of these bags to 2 of my coworkers who took care of everything while I was out on maternity leave!
My mom for sure! She deserves endless thank yous haha!
Probably the office assistant at the Catholic Center on my college campus! She works so hard behind the scenes!
My fiancé!! He is always such a major supporter in my life
My parents deserve a gift basket from me. I would like to thank them for all the help they have given me over the years. Thank you!
I would love to give this to Miss Joanne, the woman that watches my baby twins, she is a SAINT!!!!
I’d create a thank you gift for the receptionist at work. Her job can often be thankless, but it is very important!
My pet sitters! My fur babies can be a handful and it’s nice to know that they are well taken care of when we travel.
I gave our daycare teachers a little bag of treats to make some delicious hot chocolate! A CVS gift card would be amazing so I can fill the 8 stockings we have hanging over our fireplace!
Aw, love this idea. I would have to give it to my husband! We got married in August, then I went out west to complete my last clinical rotation for grad school, and I worked all fall on my thesis. I couldn’t have done it without his continual support and love for putting up with all of my challenges!
I immediately thought of my mom. She’s always deserving. And I happen to be home for winter break. She just made me a scrambled egg. I’d like to care for her like she always cares for me.
My husband has been very helpful lately with our little boy, so I’d love to give him a fun gift basket!
My co-workers who have been so great in helping me not only transition into the new position, but adjust to living back on the east coast after a cross country move. We’re a small team and they already feel like family!
I would send one to my mom. We lost my dad almost 2 years ago and she has been heartbroken since, so I would love to send her one.
I would fill a basket of goodies for the fitness instructors at my work fitness center :). They do a great job of hosting various challenges, teaching a variety of classes, offering encouragement, and just being really great!
I would give this to my best friend of 26 years. She continues to be the one constant source of support in my life. Anytime something happens in my life, I know I can turn to her. This year it was the passing of my dad. She was my shoulder to cry on and my ear for listening. Not to mention the BEST work out buddy and marathon shopper of all times! Love her to pieces!!
I would give my sister-in-law a gift basket for always being there for me.
I would make a gift bag for some of the ladies in my office who are very sweet.
My dad’s home care attendant is truly an angel on this Earth. She’s the most amazing person.
My daughter, she is the kindest daughter, sister, granddaughter, friend ever.
Would love to make up a basket for a good friend who’s 2 year old son passed away last Saturday unexpectantly.
We are so heart broken for her. ?
I would love to give a gift basket to my twin sister. I’ve been going through a really rough time emotionally right now and if it wasn’t for her, I don’t know what I would do. She is there to laugh with me, cry with me, and just be there to listen and give me a hug when I need it. She’s the best sister in the world!!!
What a sweet gift basket! I would love to put one together for my in-laws. We usually do one every year for them, but I couldn’t fit it in the budget this Christmas. I’m making a small bag of homemade treats instead!
My best friend who is applying for medical residencies deserves a gift basket! Hardest working person I know 🙂
I would definitely share the gift card with my mother ….by putting together a gift basket for her of stuff she could pamper herself with. She never does anything for herself, so this would be a way of saying “yes, you have to do it!” Thanks for the great giveaway!
My mom! I’m visiting home for the week and she’s gone above and beyond!
I am a first time mom. My son was born 1.24.15 with a genetic metabolic disorder that we found out about at 72 hours old. We received the call at 2:50am & were told to go to our pediatrician at 7am. As first time parents we hadn’t met all the staff at the Pediatricians office. 4 days post c-section and scared to death about my newborn the nurse whom I had never met embraced me the minute we walked in the door with one of the best hugs I have ever received. She is very maternal and that is exactly what I needed at that moment. Over the last year she has checked in with us many times just to see how things are going. She has been amazing with my son and my husband and I as first time parents to a baby with a medical condition. She is one of the most sincere & compassionate people, and I would love to assemble a gift bag for nurse Allison. We are so thankful for her and the care she has given us.
I would like to assemble a gift basket for my mother as she is always putting others before herself and am constantly looking for small ways to say thank you 🙂