The 10 Best Gifts for Your Bestie (and You)

Littlest Pet Shop Playset

Turns out the Littlest Pet Shop is still a total must-have! This playset comes with two adorable pets and over 20 accessories that your kiddo can move around to customize their own little world.

Target Toy Checklane

This interactive Target checkout counter will be very familiar to your little one if they're part of a Target family! It has options to browse store shelves, ring up play items, and pay with pretend money for the whole experience.

Wild Republic Amazon Exclusive 2024 Holiday Bear

How cute is this sweater-bearing bear? We honestly want one for ourselves. This darling plushie makes the perfect bedtime snuggle buddy for the holiday season!

Syncfun Play Kitchen Toys

If the kid you're shopping for isn't quite ready to cook and bake, they'll certainly learn the ways of the kitchen with this playset. It includes a coffee maker, toaster, and a blender, along with 2 knives, 2 spoons, 2 forks, 4 foods, 2 cups, 2 teacups, 2 plates, 2 saucers, and 2 "toasts" so their imagination can run wild.

Ninja Blast Brain & Memory Game Cube

For kiddos in the 6 to 12 year-old range, this light-up, noise-making game cube comes equipped with tons of one- and two-player games to keep them occupied, sans TV or phone screen.

Harper The Pig Weighted Comfort Plush

This cuddly stuffed animal helps "lower stress and boost calm" with a weight of 4.5 pounds to help anyone feel grounded and relaxed, even adults! Its soft fabric and cute, welcoming face will certainly satisfy any anxiousness. You can choose from Harper The Pig, Frankie The Cat, Charlie The Puppy, and more characters!

Lego Despicable Me 4 Minions & Gru's Family Mansion

The Despicable Me franchise has a hold on us all, and for the kiddos who can't get enough of The Minions or Legos, this build-it-yourself building block set will definitely have them excited and enriched with the challenge of constructing Gru's famous mansion.

Bestamtoy 36-Piece Wooden Sorting Stacking Rocks & Stones

Building blocks have come a long way from the basic triangular prisms and rectangles of our youth. This creative set emulates rocks and stones for a unique play experience since your kiddo can stack 'em in endless ways!

Fisher-Price Learn & Serve Coffee Cafe Playset

If you know the kid you're shopping for watches mom and dad prep their coffee every morning, let them in on the fun (non-caffeinated, of course) with this play-espresso machine! They'll be whipping up their very own lattes and cappuccinos in no time, and the 'rents will undoubtedly have a great time watching them get to 'work'.

Mon Ami Christmas Joyful Tree Kids Plush Toy

This cheerful tree plush rings in the Christmas season in the most adorable way possible. It's "soft, snuggly, and full of personality" to become your little pal's perfect companion!

Syncfun Marble Run Set

With a whopping 196 pieces to play with and customize, this set is full of surprises and endless ways to race marbles. It's the gift that keeps on giving, since your kiddo can change the track day after day.

Tonies Peppa Pig Toniebox Starter Set

This squishable speaker pairs up with Peppa Pig to play 9 different audible stories, songs, and more interactive sounds for your little one to listen to. It offers a great, screen-free way to keep them enriched and entertained throughout the day!

Mon Ami Monsieur Croissant

This adorable animated croissant plush will inspire joy (and comfort) for any kiddo.

Bombas Toddler Minions Gripper Calf Sock 4-Pack Gift Box

If they're totally crazy for the Minions franchise, they can now rock their favorite characters every single day. This sock gift box includes four different playful designs, plus you could even snag them in adult sizes to match!

Areaware Cubebot

This puzzle-y friend can contort into dozens of different poses for your little one to play around with. If they're not too big on the puzzle part, this colorful guy still makes a pretty epic action figure!

Lisa Says Gah! Holiday Nail Art Stickers

Winter nails will never be the same after they get a tasty treatment from these food-themed nail stickers. We're obsessing over the martini glasses!

More Is More: Get Loose in the Kitchen: A Cookbook by Molly Baz

This bold book by cool cookin' girl, Molly Baz, encourages risk-taking in the kitchen and a pure "cooking for fun" mentality, which we could all use a heaping serving of, no?

The Pasta Tarot: A 78-Card Deck for Delicious Divination

Your local astrology-loving foodie will instantly want to noodle with this super fun deck. The cards' themes are rooted in the authors' queer Italian American identities, offering an insightful and unique take on tarot.

Marianna Fierro Olives Print

For the big brine fan, behold this bold olive art print. Bonus points for gifting this pick with a frame for them to hang in the kitchen!

Little Puzzle Thing Rainbow Jelly Puzzle

Though you could snag this 12x12-inch puzzle in French fry form, we just can't get enough of this vintage-esque rainbow jelly!

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking by Samin Nosrat

Salt, fat, acid, and heat are the four main building blocks of creating an excellent dish. If your foodie friend is seeking more guidance, Samin Nosrat lays out the process simply and deliciously.

Dusen Dusen Oven Mitt

Bet they've never had a standout oven mitt like this one! It's 100% cotton and 100% eye-catching. When kitchen gear gifts can double as decor like this, you've nailed gift-giving.

Boy Smells Banana Pudding Candle

This dessert-inspired home scent is so good, you may just wanna eat it. Seriously – it smells like something's baking, even though all you did was strike a match.

Jellycat Amuseable Happy Boiled Egg

We owe a lot to eggs – omelets, deviled eggs, cakes, cookies – the list goes on and on. This soft, palm-sized plush is an adorable tribute to the great egg!

Brainstream Al Dente Singing Floating Pasta Timer

This pasta timer (AKA Mr. Al Dente) sings whenever your pot of pasta's done cooking. It may be a more gimmicky foodie gift, but it can really spare you from throwing noodles at the wall.

Anastasia Inciardi Prints Sticker Sheet

These snacky stickers are the ultimate water bottle or laptop decoration for the famed foodie in your life.

Maldon Sea Salt Flakes

Maldon salt has unknowingly become the top salt choice for the Cool Kids™️ in the kitchen. The chunky flakes are perfectly balanced in flavor. Sprinkle some on a batch of chocolate chip cookies, and you'll never go back. ​

What's for Dessert: Simple Recipes for Dessert People: A Baking Book by Claire Saffitz

Take it from baking queen Claire Saffitz for tips on creating a sweet little treat.

Hedley & Bennett Smock

If they practically live in the kitchen, an apron or smock is a must for eliminating stains and messes. This one comes in a ton of different colors to suit any chef in your life!

Pon the Store Cocktail Napkins

For the foodie who can't resist a good cocktail, these printed napkins make for the perfect complement to a drink – plus, they set the tone for a night full of sippin'.

Material Kitchen The Salt Sphere

This super sleek sphere serves to store salt and other essential seasonings.

Staub Ceramic Stoneware Petite Tomato Cocotte

Tomato confit will get even tastier once it's made inside this tomato-y piece of cookware.

Match South Waffle House Candle

This double-wicked candle emits the smells of warm spices and syrup, eliciting nothing other than the sweet nostalgia of going to Waffle House. Burns well with freshly-cooked waffles, of course!

Taiyaki Maker

With this iron mold, they can bring the iconic Japanese street food, taiyaki, to brunches and breakfasts.

​In which episode does JJ die?

JJ dies at the end of Outer Banks season 4 episode 10, "The Blue Crown" after rescuing Kiara from his father Chandler Groff. "I feel mad, betrayed, disappointed and heartbroken to say the least," Bruder adds. "JJ went through a lot of crap through the show and he was the one character who deserved his happy ending the most. When the series first came out, people fell in love with JJ and [Kiara]."

While the cast obviously found out about the ending while filming, fans are frustrated with how they chose to promote the show. "Obviously the cast can’t spoil a character death, but to blatantly lie and mislead fans by saying that Jiara was 'evergrowing' and fans would be happy with how the season plays out?" Bruder says. "Jiara fans deserved so much better than what we got, ESPECIALLY when they knew they were killing JJ off."

Why are Outer Banks fans so upset?

The show is the kind of phenomenon that made instant stars out of its cast, but it also made waves because of how the first season portrayed issues like classism, substance abuse, and domestic abuse. "As someone who has been around domestic abuse, I think the handling of the character JJ was detrimental culturally," another fan (who would like to remain anonymous) says. "The character suffered abuse at the hands of a man who was not even his biological father, and the writers almost framed it as if that was okay because in the beginning, his father loved him. Instead of telling a story to victims of abuse about hope and making it through trials, the writers went the opposite way. I also find it interesting that they stated this was a planned death. I think writing a character who is suffering from anxiety and clear mental health issues as well as abuse who is very young like JJ only to let him fall in love and kill him right when he starts to feel happiness doesn’t necessarily make a lot of sense narratively."

Another viewer adds that ending JJ's story that way felt "disrespectful...especially when in an interview following the episode, one of the creators literally referred to his death as pointless." She even says "it feels almost like the show died along with him."

Actress Madelyn Cline (Sarah Cameron) called JJ the "heart of Outer Banks"and for a lot of fans, JJ also became a beacon of hope, a reminder that you can endure, persevere, and come out stronger on the other side. Since the first season of the show dropped during April 2020, it's been one consistent, fun thing for TV fans since the COVID-19 pandemic began, which makes the loss feel even greater.

"Seeing him die at the hands of another abusive father was honestly kind of sickening," the viewer adds. "It’s also unfortunate that his death didn’t seem to mean anything. A character death like this would be one thing if it meant something. If he had died protecting his friends or actively protecting Kiara, rather than having already saved her and then getting killed afterward, it might’ve be easier to get past."

"It’s like a connection to something good and steady was just broken," X user @onlykiep4l says. "Killing a character that has literally gone trough so much trauma and was finally happy just doesn’t make sense. It’s not just the character that’s gone — it feels like a part of the show has ended too."

Why does JJ get killed off?

Rumors have been circulating for years about behind-the-scenes drama between actors Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey, which has fans believing Rudy asked to be written off the show(for the record, Outer Banks creators Josh & Jonas Pate and Shannon Burke have said it was the plan from the beginning). With Rudy's exit, the writers had a difficult choice in front of them. JJ isn't the kind of guy to abandon his friends, meaning the writers obviously felt like killing him was the only option. But according to an additional viewer, "Outer Banks hasn't been that type of show."

"To attempt to turn this fun, summer, boat show into some dark, depressing story where the heart of the show is gone destroys everything that the show started out as," she says.

Another anonymous fan calls the choice "a character assassination," adding other moments from the season that feel like a different character than the one fans have come to love: barely reacting to John B. and Sarah's pregnancy announcement, or to the fact Rafe had come to talk to Kiara — especially after his reaction to Rafe catcalling Kie in the first season is a moment that led fans to ship them in the first place.

The fan continues by calling JJ's treatment a "lack of respect" toward the character. "The fact that the writers tried to make us dislike him, to soften the blow of him dying. It didn’t work. It has everyone distraught because many people’s favorite character ended up dying after 'finding happiness' for about 10 minutes in Episode 10."

​Does Sarah get pregnant in Outer Banks season 4?

But JJ's death isn't the only moment that has fans reeling. In addition to the fact viewers are saying the Pogues barely reacted to the death of their lifelong best friend, Pope is now a murderer and Kiara makes an absolutely chilling vow to get revenge on Groff — a far cry from the characters we fell in love with in season 1.

"Outside of the JJ of it all, a lot of plot lines/dynamics in part 2 felt off," one of our anonymous fans continues. "Sarah’s pregnancy plot line, especially when coupled with the quote from a creator about ‘giving her a baby specifically because she wasn’t ready’ feels incredibly tone deaf given the current state of things here in the US. The fact that there wasn’t even a conversation of if she wanted to continue with the pregnancy felt very icky. Overall, episodes 1-4 of this season did feel like Outer Banks, but everything after that felt like it was from an entirely different piece of media."

However, some fans are excited to see where the show goes from here. "JJ was such a strong character and his presence will obviously be missed, [but] I am excited to see how the Pogues react and what they do to get revenge on Groff," Virginia McGrew says in an email. "I also think that the scene of JJ dying with Kiara was extremely well done and emotional, making his passing even sadder. I ultimately believe that JJ’s passing serves as a reminder of the themes the show."

"JJ made the group even more aware of friendship, the importance of chosen family, and loyalty, which was seen throughout the season and especially in the finale," she continues. "Now that he is gone, the other Pogues will have to step up even more, creating a shift in their dynamic. While many believe that Outer Banks might not be worth watching after this finale, I truly think that it is only going to get even deeper and more interesting."