Making It Special

Today is October first.  That means Christmas is less than three months away.  It also means that three months from today we will welcome in 2012. Where has this year gone? For me, personally, 2011 has been a year of many firsts.  I don't want to get into all of that again, but my loyal readers know all about it.  I am looking forward to what 2012 will bring.  My 40th birthday and my divorce.  What an awesome present to give to myself, right?

But first, I must find a way to get through Christmas.  Other than an xbox, the kids really haven't asked for anything specific.  They are too old for toys, though I'm pretty sure Santa will bring the game Sorry.  We used to have it, and it was my favorite game to play with Brandi.  But, during the move, the cards that went with it were lost, and there was really no way to play without them, so we threw the game away. 

I am thinking about getting both of my girls some personalized stationery.  I know most of you are thinking that with facebook and email, who even writes letters anymore.  I think that hand written letters of thanks and even just little notes to let someone know you are thinking about them are awesome, and I want to teach my girls that.  Growing up, I used to have several pen pals.  I remember going with my grandparents to Christian retreat and making some wonderful friends.  I kept in touch with several of them for years simply by writing letters back and forth with them. 

I am open to any other ideas for unique gifts, so if you have any, please share.  I want to make this first Christmas of it being just the four of us at home a special one, with special gifts.

Thinking Of Christmas

 Every year around this time start thinking seriously about what to get family members for Christmas. I mean, there is less than four months left before the big day.  My kids are easy, because they supply lists of exactly what they expect (or hope to see) under the tree from Santa.  The adults in my life are a little harder to buy for, because at this point, they have everything they need, and most of the things they want.  I always have the hardest time figuring out what to get my dad.  I mean, the guy can only get shirts from me for so many years.

I saw these Gift Hampers online, and thought they would make the perfect gifts for all the "hard to buy for" people on my list.  A lot of the hampers have meat and fish in them, but as I was looking through the Christmas Hampers I found one full of cake.  Yes, they have the most delicious looking petit fours.  Don't they look yummy?

When we had cable, I used to watch a lot of food network, and a lot of the chefs would make these tiny little cakes.  I have always wanted to try them, and I figure if I give these as a gift, the recipient would have to share.  Right?

The website actually had a nice selection of Christmas Food Hampers.  There was one that had a whole little pig in it, and I thought about getting it for my mom, just to see her expression when she opened the box and a dead pig was looking up at her.  I mean, how would you react if you opened a Christmas gift and saw this looking up at you?

I  bet you could thing of a few people who would find that funny.  I know I would. My mom may not find it funny, but I am sure those of us watching her open it would die laughing.

What Do I Want For Christmas?

That's the question Junior asked me tonight.  I told him I hadn't really thought about it, and he suggested that I think about it tonight and let him know tomorrow.  If you read the post below this one, you know that a new camera would be my ultimate wish, but I know we don't have the money for that right now.  So, I started thinking back though the year, and tried to remember all the little things I had wished I had at one time or another.

The first thing that came to mind is cooking utensils.  I am sure you all remember how much time we spent at mom's in the pool, and how we were always grilling out.  All summer, every time I fired up the grill, I wished I had proper BBQ tools.  You know, a set of long tongs and basting brushes.  One of my favorite things to grill is BBQ chicken, and basting with my little brush always got my hands a little toasty.  I started looking for BBQ sets, and I found this one:

Isn't it awesome?  It has a nice long handled basting brush, and a bunch of other cool tools.  I never let Junior cook anyway, but with this set, he'll never have access to the grill.  Unless it needs to be cleaned.  That's his one and only job.

I was also thinking it would be cool to have a picnic basket to bring to mom's with all of my prepared food in it.  Last summer, I carried a small cooler, but I think this is a whole lot cuter:

I found it searching for insulated picnic baskets.  I need it to be insulated, because I always brought the meat and veggies we grilled, and mom didn't always have room in her fridge.  Being able to leave them in something where they would stay cool was important.

So, I am going to suggest these two things to Junior in the morning.   The kids can help him decide which one would make the better gift.  Honestly, I would love either one.

I guess I need to ask him what he wants for Christmas now.  It's only fair, right?

Coffee Makes A Great Gift

Coffee.  Some people can not live without it, but thankfully, I am not one of them.  In fact, I do not drink it at all.  My mom and sisters all drink it, and I believe my husband would, too, if I ever made any. I don't own a coffee maker, though, and the last time I tried to make coffee at my mom's house, I was told by several of the people subjected to drinking it never to make it again. So I haven't.

I have found, though, that coffee makes a wonderful gift.  Especially if it is a special, gourmet coffee. The problem with this is that special, gourmet coffee can be expensive, and you all now how thrifty I can be.  (that's the nice way of saying I'm cheap)  I will look up Gevalia coupon codes before buying it, and make sure that I find a good deal. There are so many different gift option on the Gevalia website, and using coupon codes for 10 or 20% off, or free shipping, can save you even more money.  I know it is only June, almost July, but I have been thinking about Christmas a lot lately.  Last year, I wasn't able to buy for everyone I wanted to because of financial reasons.  I figure if I start shopping now, I might have something for everyone this year.  Using coupons is a great way to make the money I have go even further. 

And I know that my mom would love getting coffee for Christmas.

My New Flower

Junior's ex-father-in-law gave me this beautiful purple flower for Mother's Day. (one of these days I'll do a post about my relationship with them) Isn't it beautiful?!?  He was selling all kinds of flowers at his produce stand, and he said I could pick whichever I wanted, and of course I fell in love with his purple one.  I am so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life who made me feel special this Mother's Day.  

Give the Gift Of Choice

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of FriendGiftr. All opinions are 100% mine.
I always have the hardest time when it comes to picking out gifts for people.  I know what I like, but I always second guess myself when it comes to buying something for someone else.  This is especially true for the men in my life.  I live with my husband, but it so hard to go into a store and pick out a gift that I know he would love.  Most of the time he ends up picking out his own gift.

I was really excited when I heard about FriendGiftr.  This is a really cool website where you can but gift cards for all the people in your life who are hard to buy for.   The best part is that you don't have to stress out trying to find the right gift card, because if the person you give it to would rather have a gift card to another store, they can exchange it, free of charge.  They can even split the amount up onto to several different cards.

There are so many different gift cards to choose from, too.  I would choose the Barnes & Noble gift cards, and I know for a fact that Junior would pick the Bass Pro Shops card.  This works out well, though.  We can sit on the shore, and while he fishes, I can read.

It is easy to buy the cards, too.  You can use their website, you can find them on Facebook, or you can use your iPhone, BlackBerry, or Android to place an order.  Remember them the next time you need to get a gift for the person who already has it all.

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Bliss Living. All opinions are 100% mine.

I love being a mom. Growing up, when someone asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always answered "a mom". I know they meant careers, but I have never been a career kind of girls. I always just wanted to be a mom. I guess you could say I am living my dream.

Mother's Day is coming up soon, and I have been thinking a lot lately about what I would like for my kids to get for me. As much as I love and cherish the home made things I get every year, I think this year I want something I can wear. Maybe some jewelry.

I was looking at Bliss Living Jewelry online, and I found the most beautiful necklaces. The problem is I can not decide which one I like best. The first one I found is this Mom's Name Charm Necklace. These little circle pendants have your child's name on one side, and birth date on the other. They also have a little bead representing their birthstone. I adore this.

The other one I was looking at was this Open Heart Pendant Necklace with Birthstones, and although it doesn't have the kids names and birth dates on it, it is still beautiful. I was thinking this would be a nice gift for my mom, with all of her grand children's birthstones on it. Then I got to thinking; she has fifteen grandchildren. I would have to get two separate hearts to hold them all! I guess I could put the boys on one and the girls on the other. I am glad I still have a few weeks to decide.

I should probably mention that if you spend over $99, you get free shipping. That won't be hard to do, either, because there are so many wonderful necklaces and rings and other things to choose from. I am sure you will be able to find the perfect gift for the special mom in your life.

Gifts

Check out the gifts under my tree right now:

The girls asked for wrapping paper this morning, and an hour later I had all these gifts under my tree. I have no idea what they are, but they are labeled for each other. Brandi has a habit of wrapping things she owns that she knows the other kids like. I am looking forward to seeing what she is giving everyone.

Custom Sodas

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Jones Soda. All opinions are 100% mine.

Remember the post I did around Thanksgiving about the turkey and gravy flavored soda? As you know, we did not care for that flavor, but I am really excited to try one of their other flavors. I was browsing their website, and discovered that they have several different flavors, as well as the option of making your own custom label.

I made a label with a picture of my family. I figured since I didn't send out Christmas cards this year I could give everyone a myJones custom soda instead. It was really simple to do. All I did was upload the picture I wanted to use, and they format it to fit the label. You also get to pick the flavor soda you want, and I chose grape. If I was thinking, I would have picked one of their holiday flavors, like Holiday Cheer or Snowdrift Soda. Then again, who knows what those would taste like, so maybe it's best to stick to a flavor I know is good.

These sodas would also make the perfect gift for those "hard to buy for" people. I never know what to get my nephews for Christmas, and I think they would get a kick out of seeing their own faces on the front of their favorite flavored soda. Heck, my kids would love it too.

I want to know if you make your own soda. You can do your own post with a shot of your custom label. I am interested to see the pictures and flavors you choose.

10 More Days

Did you know Christmas is 10 days away?

TEN DAYS!!!

I can't believe it. For the most part, I am done shopping for the kids. I still have a few little things I want to get, but even if I don't get them, the kids will still have a great Christmas.

Wanna know why?

They're getting a wii!!!!!!

That means in February, I can get the wii fit!

When Junior got paid last week, we were going to spend about $50 per kid out of his check. I remembered hearing that Walmart was giving away $50 gift cards with the purchase of a wii, for only $199. SO I really only paid $149 for it. Not bad. So now the kids get a joint gift, but i am sure they are going to LOVE it!

A Watch For Junior

There are only twenty three days until Christmas. That means there are only twenty two days left to shop. If you are like me this year, you are way behind in getting that shopping done. I blame it on the lack of money we have this year. It would be nice if I could just buy what I want for everyone, and not have to worry about the amount of money involved. But, since that is not the case, I have to stick to my budget, and buy accordingly.

I saw this movado series 800 watch and immediately thought of my husband, and how this would be the perfect gift for him. When he started his new position at work, he gave up carrying around a walkie talkie. It used to be that his boss would let him know over those when it was break time. Now that he doesn't carry one, he has to keep up with his breaks on his own, and he says it is difficult to do that when you don't have a watch.

This watch I picked out is perfect. Like me, Junior is not one to wear anything flashy, and this watch is about as basic as you can get. I can get second day shipping when I buy it, so even if I wait until the very last minute, I will still have a gift for him on Christmas.

The only thing holding me back is the price. While I can get it for over $600 off the retail price, it is still pretty expensive. I might have to wait until tax time to surprise him with this. Maybe I'll get it for his birthday in March...

What Do I Want For Christmas?

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Yamaha. All opinions are 100% mine.

Everyone keeps asking me what I want for Christmas. This is such a hard question for me to answer, because most of the things I want are not material things. I want continued health and happiness for my family, and I want to move. Those are the big things. The not so big thing is the new Dean Koontz book, Breathless. My dream gift would be a new mp3 player that can hold a bajillion songs.

Okay, maybe not a bajillion, but the one I have now doesn't hold many. I think it maxes out at less then 300 songs. I am thinking that maybe one of those new iPhones, or even an iPod would do the trick. I used to have an aversion to itunes, because it took up so much space on my computer, but I have been told that I can download songs onto the iPod and then take the songs off my computer. To charge my iPod and/or iPhone, all I need is the Yamaha PDX-60. This thing is pretty cool because not only will it charge my "toys", it can do both of them at the same time by putting one in the speaker dock, and one in the cradle.

That is pretty awesome. It also comes with a remote control, so I can change songs, volume, and everything else from across the room. That means I can sit here at my computer, and effortlessly play the music I love. It even comes in four different colors. I, personally, love the hot pink one, even though it doesn't match a thing in my house.

I know that I will not get these fun little gadgets for Christmas, because Junior and I will be spending every penny on the kids. We usually buy our gifts at tax time when we get our refund check. I have learned to be patient.

Besides, Christmas is all about the kids, and making sure they get everything they want is what is important. At least that's what is important to me.

Baby Shower Gift

My sister in New York is having her baby shower in a couple of weeks. Last I heard, there were going to be a couple of hundred people. She's having a pool party, and invited women, men, and children. I wish I could be there, but it's just not possible right now.

I do need to send a gift, though, and had planned on making her a name sign. For those who have never seen my name signs, they are made of wood, and I use a router to carve the name in the wood. Then I paint them up all pretty, and give them away as gifts. Her three boys already have signs I made, so she asked me last night to make one for Jake, the new baby. I told her I had already planned to, so now I want to get her something that she is not expecting. I wish I had the money to pay for her to store the baby's cord blood. Cryo-Cell is having a special right now where you can save $725 on their U-Cord service by using the code HOT. These cells, in the future, can save the life of the child they are collected from. There is also a 1 in 4 chance that one of her other boys could benefit from them. These cells are being used to treat over 75 diseases, and hopefully in the future, they will treat even more.

I guess she'll have to settle for a crocheted blanket. I know she'll love it. I made one for her six year old son, but I didn't know how to crochet when her other two were born. I need to get started, though, if I want it to be finished in two weeks. I'm quick, but maybe not that quick.

Mother's Day Gift Certificate

I won a $50 gift card to Photofiddlecom last December from a fellow blogger. I took a picture of my kids, played around with it on there site, and then had copies delivered to my house, which I then framed and gave out as Christmas gifts. The site was easy to use, and the pictures came out beautiful. My point is to think of them for mothers day gifts. Right now, you can email mom@photofiddle.com before May 4th to get a $10 gift certificate. That's right, a free $10 gift certificate. You can also follow them on twitter (http://twitter.com/photofiddle) to find out about other awesome deals.

What are you waiting for? Go. Get your gift certificate.

Gift For Grandmothers

My Grandmother just had a birthday on Monday. She is now 82 years old. I live in South Carolina, and she lives in Florida, so she doesn't get to see my kids often. She loves when I send her pictures, but it is not often that I have some printed out. It would be so much easier if I could get her a Ceiva digital photo frame. These frames are great because they do not require being hooked up to a computer. And lets face it, my 82 year old Grandmother does not own a computer. All you have to do is connect it to an existing phone line, and friends and family can send pictures to it from all over the world. Right now, when you buy a one year picture plan for only $100, you can buy an HD, eight inch frame for only $29. They are also offering free ground shipping from now until 2pm on February 13. That's perfect timing for Valentine's Day. I was wanting one of these for Christmas, but Santa didn't leave me one. My birthday is coming up before Valentine's Day, so maybe I might get lucky and Junior will read this and take a hint.

The Perfect Gift

Are you looking for a one of a kind gift for someone special? Why not give them a personalized poem? For $15, you can have a poem written about your name, or your mom, or Valentine's Day. Shipping is free in the US, unless you want it framed, then it's a little more.

I checked out the site, and the poetry is beautiful. I love the "couples" poem I read. The writer takes detailed personal information, and writes a one of a kind poem. Poems will be sent out in about a week, with general occasion poems sooner. Paypal and credit cards are accepted.

Blood Banking

It is Christmas Eve. The season of giving is upon us. If you know a woman who is expecting a baby, you may want to look into giving her an investment in her child's future. Sure, you could give money to invest for college use someday, or you could buy her clothes for the baby. While these gifts are wonderful, they can not help protect the child from future illnesses it may face. The stem cells in cord blood can potentially treat over seventy diseases. Cryo-Cell is the industry's leading cord blood bank. It is not too late to give this gift for Christmas. If you enroll online before midnight tonight, and use the promotional code D995, you will save $725. This means you will pay only $995, which covers processing, testing and first year of storage. If you take advantage of this amazing offer, they will even waive the cancellation fee.

Cryo-Cell blood banking is not something you should consider lightly. You should look into your family history, and the family history of your spouse. If there is a great likelihood that you will be facing certain illnesses in your life, it is highly possible your child will face those same things. Why not give him or her the best gift you can right now, which is the chance for recovery later?

Saving Cord Blood

I am the mother of three children. When I was pregnant with my first child, my son, I remember getting so many gifts. My baby shower was filled with diaper bags, little outfits, and so many blankets. While I appreciated every single gift, I never used half of them. By the time I had my third child, I was so over prepared. I had so many bottles and binkies and blankets and burp cloths. If you have children you know exactly what I mean. I now make it a point to try and give baby gifts that are practical, but not common. Sure, I still start crocheting the second I hear there is a new baby on the way, but mostly that is because I want to give something that I hope will be saved for that child to pass on to their child someday. I loved that my mom saved my baby blankets, and I got to use them for my daughters.

It is all the rage these days for celebrities and regular people alike to save their babies cord blood. Cryo-Cell's U-Cord stem cell cord blood preservation is a gift to give like no other. Cord blood can be used to treat over seventy different diseases. It is an investment in the future, where there are so many uncertainties. Who knows what the future holds for your child, but you can rest a little easier knowing that if they need it someday, their cord blood is waiting for them. They offer gift certificates, so giving this amazing gift has never been easier.

Watch For Ryan

I am still struggling to even out the gifts for the kids. Ryan is still behind, yet I keep buying things for the girls. I love all the makeup kits and perfume and fun stuff for my daughters, and I find the boy stuff boring. I know, I'm pathetic. There are a few things my husband really wants to get him, like BB gun, that I haven't decided on yet. I know he is 13, and he would never be allowed to touch it without my husband present, but it still makes me nervous. I long for the days of play dough and tinker toys.

He does need a new watch, and he has asked for a new orange one. I found one, years ago, that was Tony Stewart, his favorite race car driver. It was black and orange, and he wore it every day. Eventually, it broke, and he has been wanting a new one ever since. But, it is very hard to find a black and orange watch.

I was browsing the internet, and found some Stylish Watches. Imagine my surprise when I noticed this black and orange one. It is perfect for him! It is even solar powered, so I wouldn't have to worry about batteries.

These TOCS watches have been the talk of the town lately, with People Magazine calling it a "Sporty and cheeky weekend watch. Water-resistant watch with silicone rubber band and acrylic case" in their Guilt-Free Shopping, October 2008 edition.

I wonder if I order it toady if it would be here by Christmas?

Greatest Achievement Medal

I have found the perfect gift for parents. At first I thought it would be a great mom gift, but then decided that dad's might love it just as much.

It's the Greatest Achievement Medal.
This key chain is only $29.95, and it recognizes a person for becoming a parent, which is most definitely the world's greatest achievement. It is a 24kt gold plated 1 1/2 inch medal, with room on the back to display the statistics of the child. You can put the name, birth date, time of birth, and the weight of the child.

Two of my sister's became mom's in the past couple of years, and my sister-in-law just had a baby three months ago. I think they would each love to have one of these.


If you are a work at home mom, or want to become one, you should check out the website. Even if you are just looking to make a little extra spending money, this could be the opportunity for you. They are looking for distributors to sell these amazing medals. I think they would be the perfect gift for new mothers who have just had their first child. I wish I had something like this that commemorated the births of my children. It could be something that you one day pass down to them someday. A wonderful keepsake for generations to come.