Looking for stocking stuffers or last minute gifts for the holidays? From the practical to the spicy, here are some of my favorites in 2025 from North Carolina and beyond.
1. A fun way to prompt conversation about the politics of 2025
Things were spicy this year for those on the left and right at the federal (see these 217 executive orders) and state level (here Speaker of the House Destin Hall breaks down the situation on our state budget).
This company makes “snacks with attitude.” These Carolina Reaper cheese puffs capture the Scoville level of things this year, but this set will be a fun way for your family to have some dialogue about just how spicy you all think things are and will be moving forward.
2. Making your day to day life a little bit easier in these spicy times
This can opener recommended by Wirecutter will take away your kitchen headaches as you pack school lunches for little ones or prepare your favorites for loved ones.
3. Bringing more light into your world
Because the news day and our travels start when it is still dark in the morning, we believe in sun lamps — especially in the winter — and provide them to our team as part of our commitment to wellness. I swear by this one, but there are many cheaper options.
Consider one for yourself or your loved ones to help keep your spirits up.
4. A reminder your leadership brings light into our world
At Ky’s Kandles at North Hills in Raleigh, you can make your own candles. From picking the container to the scent, you can design it to reflect your hopes and dreams for 2026.
We took our whole team for our holiday retreat. You can support this local business owned by a woman, remind yourself of the importance of your leadership, and walk away with a beautiful stocking stuffer for yourself or someone you love.
5. Powering our lives and our journalism in crisis
The N.C. Press Association honored EdNC this year for our public service after Hurricane Helene. The storm forced us as a team and as an organization to figure out the logistics of portable power supply during crisis.
I used the Goal Zero Yeti 1000X Portable Power Station + Boulder 200 Briefcase Portable Solar Panel to report from western North Carolina. EdNC now has similar backup systems in place for our operations and also reporting in eastern North Carolina. Jackery is another brand for portable power supply that some of our reporters prefer. We connect to the internet using mini-Starlinks — on sale currently for $229 — which can be put on backup mode to reduce monthly costs.
As our weather patterns intensify across North Carolina, these systems are great investments for home use too.
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6. On listening and hearing each other
The new Apple AirPods are my favorite advancement from AI so far. In addition to better and better noise cancellation, they now test hearing, work as a hearing aid, and provide “robust translation technology.”
Last year, I bought these for all the seniors in my life as a cost-efficient back up for their hearing aids. You don’t have to buy the newest version to access the translation capacity. A software update provides that feature back to the AirPods Pro 2, which you can get for about $215.
7. ‘Live in color’
Work sent me to Japan in March and June, and it’s a country where the cherry blossoms and the Torii gates — which mark the transition from the real world to the sacred — will remind you of just how wonderful and colorful life is. These Japanese crayons found in elementary schools across the country are a great gift for the young and old. I loved seeing that they made it onto the New York Times list this year.
8. ‘The rise of the Japanese toilet’
The toilets in Japan are incredible. We had to teach our students — and adults — how to use them. I am still unclear on why toilets in America have not evolved even in fancy hotels, but a New York Times article earlier this year notes, “Having conquered its home market, the Japanese toilet-maker Toto is selling more bidets in the United States. Toto’s president says not even tariffs will halt its advance.”
You can install this one yourself — it even has a heated seat — without the help of a plumber.
9. The author of the ‘feel-good novel of the year’ lives in North Carolina — and other books that influenced our work
My favorite novel of the year just happens to be written by Virginia Evans, who calls Winston-Salem home. The Washington Post calls her first book the “feel-good novel of the year,” and it is that and so much more.
The Correspondent is about how an aging lawyer uses the writing of letters to make meaning of the world, much like journalists. “I wish I could say after all this time,” she writes, “it’s easier, but it’s not any easier.”
In an interview with the Post, Evans says the book reflects that her “experience of living is holding joy and sorrow at the same time.” Brava, Virginia!
Looking for books on education this holiday season? I recommend Education Pluralism and Democracy, More Essential Than Ever: Community College Pathways to Educational and Career Success, and The Resilient Rural Leader: Rising to the Challenges of Rural Leadership.
Two books were central to our work in western North Carolina: Us, which is a guide to understanding the natural cycles of harmony, disharmony, and repair in relationships, families, and communities; and The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes — and Why.
10. What the kids are gifting each other
Down booties are all the rage this year.
Check out our holiday gift list from 2024 to see more of our favorites.
Support EdNC, our students, and our state
Thank you for supporting our work. We hope you will buy and share our book with your loved ones over the holidays: North Carolina’s Choice: Why Our Public Schools Matter.
Happy holidays from all of us at EdNC.
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