The months from October to January are packed with big holidays, events planning, social gatherings and gift giving.  Entertaining a house full of guests for Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s Eve can be stressful.  Between the guest list, the food menu, and shopping, usually the last thing anyone thinks about is what they will use to set the table.   Most people don’t stress over what utensils will be used, or which plates, etc.  However, creating a unique theme at your next social gathering will make your guests think that you went the extra mile to make the night special for everyone.  They will shower you with appreciation and compliments for the hard work you put in and the great time you showed them simply because you put a face on this year’s traditional (otherwise ordinary) holiday gathering.  The good news is that creating a theme and spicing things up a bit doesn’t have to be hard or time consuming.

Autobahn license plate frame
$14.99 at
Cafepress.com

For the German Car lover or any other German driver in the US ( I have to confess we recently bought a Toyota, but I swear the next one is gonna be a German ) - express your love for the Autobahn by putting this cool license plate frame on your ride. Whether it's a Porsche or one of those sweet VW Golf convertibles, "I'd rather drive on the Autobahn" should always be your motto. 

Jan and Peter are two best friends who try to change the world by screwing with the minds of the wealthy. When the rich go on vacation, these two boys break into their homes and move stuff around. However, when Peter's girlfriend gets into the act for revenge, everythings goes horribly wrong and friendships begin to crack. Even though there is obviously some deeper meaning to this film, it is still interesting enough to keep viewers engaged. The acting is excellent, especially with Daniel Bruehl from 'Good-bye, Lenin!' as Jan. A must-see for everyone, whether you speak German or not.

This is the German-Cookbook I have been looking for - for Years. I was raised close to the Black forest and it has all the recipes my mother and grandmother used to cook. The only (great) difference: It is more "modern", with all the spices you can buy today. In the Fifties and Sixties my mother had only pepper, salt, bayleaves and maggi in her kitchen. Never heard of garlic, basil, rosmaryn etc. . Believe me, you will cook ALL the recipes in this book. The desserts and cakes are wonderful, too. The recipes are easy to follow and the photos are gorgeous. Because I lived only 50 miles away from the Black Forest, the book is double special. I only wished THIS book came out earlier!

Mulled wine, or Gluehwein is the perfect gift to bring to a party during the winter. You can either prepare your own or buy a bottled one. But hey, preparing it yourself is part of the fun, right?

Betthupferl Bib
$8.99 at
SpreadGermanisms.com

Eeewww Baby, Baby!!! This cute German Bib features one of my favorite German words - Betthupferl. It provides great upper body coverage to protect baby's clothes. The sturdy closure makes this one-size bib fit newborns to 36 months.

My absolute favorite kid detective stories as a kid was The Three Investigators, or Die Drei Fragezeichen. The Three Investigators, as the card says, were Jupiter Jones, Peter Crenshaw, and Bob Andrews (Justus Jonas, Peter Shaw und Bob Andrews).  I think there was something about these seemingly normal boys and their adventures solving mysteries and crime that totally captivated me.  They were stationed out of Jupiter’s aunt and uncle’s junk yard, where they had built a secret headquarters out of an RV left in the yard.  Jupiter  invented lots of little devices with the junk in the yard, like communicator devices, etc. And they were sponsored, so to speak, by Alfred Hitchcock (though it took me years to catch on to who he was).

Run Lola Run is the type of frenzied arthouse picture that just doesn't get made here in North America - that's why it's a great gift to give to your movie-loving friends. Run Lola Run is definitley one of the best movies of the year. From a cinematic point of view "Lola" is one of the most creative and energetic films that I have ever seen.

The plot revolves around Lola, a woman who has twenty minutes to save her boyfriend's life from German gangsters. To do this she must miraculously acquire 100,000 Marks.

The film is appropriately titled as Lola really does run for practically the entire film. When she does not succeed in saving her boyfriend the movie cuts back to the opening sequence and the film plays out yet again in an entirely different fashion. The central idea is that small variations in behaviour can change the entire outcome of a situation. This idea was also explored in "Sliding Doors", unfortunately, with far more mixed results.

"The Lives of Others" is one of the most interesting movies about communism that I have seen in a while; it shows, as few others have, how communism suffocates human imagination.not just stifles political dissent.

A spy - Captain Wiesler - is given the task of eavesdropping on a well known playwrighter, not for political reasons, but because a communist boss is jealous of the man and wants his girlfriend for himself. As the spy begins listening in, he begins to question the values of his society and the integrity of the orders he receives. Up to that point, Wiesler dutifully obeyed without question. But as the spy continues to experience the world of the playwright, he starts to live the subject's life vicariously... so the enemy ironically becomes the friend. The experience helps Captain Wiesler grow in humanity so he ultimately makes the decision to run interference to save the playwright's life.

This book is a great present for learners and natives alike and to be kept at hand for a lifetime. Coming in a hardcover set, it will easily go through years of passionate reading. The story is halfway between dream and reality, providing readers with a child-like vision of life. For once it seems that adults might learn from children.... May Der kleine Prinz (The Little Prince) also help you to see today's world from another dimension. With each new reading session you will discover a new angle, corresponding to your actual situation.