[GIFTED] Parrot Flower Power

A lot of moms are really responsible.  The media refers to them as "Super Moms."  They cook, they clean, they work a full-time job and still manage to be at ever soccer game and ballet recital.  Somehow their kids are well-adjusted, well-educated, polite, and always wearing finely pressed clothes. 

Then, there are the moms that don't quite reach that level of success.  They get behind on the laundry, telling their kids to see what's in the dryer—maybe they could wear that or something.  They have instated "sandwich night" in the dinner rotation.  This type of mom could barely keep the family dog alive, so the potted plants are not a particularly high priority (neither are the pet fish—RIP Nemo).  If she can't keep a lousy houseplant, what does that say about her other skills?  Who cares, when new technology will help her become more attentive to the needs of the living things in the house (your father remains to be on his own). 

The Parrot Flower Power ($TBD, Parrot) hangs out in the soil of mom's potted plants, giving her info on how much sunlight and water the plant is getting.  It's equipped with Bluetooth and comes with an accompanying App that will send her push notifications when the plant needs water.  She'll never kill another plant again.  Hurry, someone invent this for pets BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE. 

[GIFTED] Power Mate Plus Back-Up Battery

Since you’re completely dependent on your smartphone, a panic sets in whenever its battery life dips below 50%. If your phone dies, how will you get in contact with someone? How will you find your way to your next destination? How will you settle an argument about which child actor starred in Corrina, Corrina? You are essentially useless without your phone, and we all know it.

So, how do you ensure that you’ll have enough battery juice for all of these things after a long day at work and an evening of dinner and drinks? The last thing you want to do is spend time camped out next to an outlet, waiting for your phone to charge. Here’s your solution: throw the Power Mate Plus Back-Up Battery ($39.50, J. Crew) into your bag—it’s lightweight, portable, and will charge your phone while you’re on-the-go.

Originally posted on Parade.

[GIFTED] Cord Tacos

Because we are all slowly transitioning into cyborgs, we now have an abundance of wires in our lives. 

We've got wires for our laptops, wires for our iPads, iPods, iPhones, and 17 pairs of headphones because we keep misplacing them and buying new ones because we can't bear to go through a commute without music blasting in our ears.    

Cord Tacos ($25.99 for a set of 5, This Is Ground) help to keep all of these various wires in order—a simple piece of leather with a snap never worked so well. 

[GIFTED] Sierra Redwood iPhone Dock

You may be a slave to your iPhone, but you don't want to admit it.  You fancy yourself as an "outdoorsy" type, so this Sierra Redwood iPhone Dock ($90, Bourbon & Boots) is perfect for your nighttable.  You know, the one you made yourself out of driftwood on the beach.  Right.  

[GIFTED] Mujjo iPad Sleeve

Every single time a new Apple product comes on the market, you've got approximately 7 billion protective cases to choose from.  Rubbery ones in neon colors.  Hard plastic ones that make you look like a Doomsday Prepper.  Cloth ones that make you wonder why you don't just wrap it in an old sweatshirt and call it a day. 

This Mujjo iPad Sleeve ($70, Mujjo) takes all of those cases and morphs them into one smart, sophisticated, utilitarian piece.  The leather and wool combination keep the iPad safe while still looking nice and not making you look like an overprotective psychopath.  The strip of orange says, "I may be on a business meeting, but you better believe I'm gonna get drunk at the hotel bar later."  WIN/WIN.