Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Easter Basket Ideas for Babies & Toddlers
Easter is coming upon us much faster than I expected. I am in full whirlwind trying to get my new site ready for you that I have completely dropped the ball on decorations, Easter goodies and anything related to Easter. At least I have some good content for next year??
I was going to split these Easter basket ideas into two categories, but I am finding that most of what the Easter Bunny gave my daughter last year, "she" will be repeating for her this year, just older :)
I was going to split these Easter basket ideas into two categories, but I am finding that most of what the Easter Bunny gave my daughter last year, "she" will be repeating for her this year, just older :)
The Perfect Pairing for Little Girls - Tutu & Fairy Wand Giveaway
When I found out {by accident} that I was having a little girl, all of my dreams of playing dress up, doing hair, getting cute bows and shoes were all I could think of for weeks. I couldn't wait to meet my little girl.
For her birthday, I wanted to see if she would wear a tutu. The only problem was that I didn't have time to make one. Just one week before my daughter's birthday, my friend Victoria started her company Pixie Tales Creations. She has made several tutu's for her daughter and she loved doing it so much, she wanted to make tutus for everyone! I was over the moon when she told me we could have one completed and shipped in less than a week!
My daughter LOVED the tutu! It was the only girly thing so far that she can't get enough of.
My daughter LOVED the tutu! It was the only girly thing so far that she can't get enough of.
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Now it's your turn!
We are teaming up with the Blogging Mamas Network, Lindsey Blogs and Viva Veltoro for the 3rd annual Handmade from the Heart Giveaway Hop. This Hop has been such a success in the past that they brought it back for round 3 because it seems everyone loves beautiful handmade items!
Pixie Tales Creations is giving away a handmade tutu and fairy wand to your little girl!
If you purchase a tutu and/or fairy wand from Pixie Tales Creations {enter that option below} and if you win, you will have the option of getting another tutu and fairy wand or be refunded for your purchase.
Each blogger in this Event has a handmade giveaway worth at least $25, so be sure to hop around and celebrate Handmade from the Heart! And you definitely do not want to miss the fantastic handmade goodness of the Grand Prize… a $200 Etsy Gift Card!
Disclosure: I have received this tutu & fairy wand at no charge. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion. Giveaways are supplied by Pixie Tales Creations. See full disclosure statement here.
Valentine's Card - From our 1 Year Old to Daddy
I am sharing the Valentine's Card that I made with my daughter for her daddy. It didn't turn out exactly how I imagined, not like the Tissue Paper Heart, but it turned out the way she wanted it done, none the less.
My original vision for this card was placing the heart stickers on the front, drawing in strings and saying "I love you like I love balloons." {She loves balloons with an extreme passion btw.} However, she decided to stick most of them on herself, and place the others randomly on the page before she asked for Mickey. Sigh...daddy will still love it!
In the beginning of the day, I got out the red, washable paint and I tried to get her handprints. Well, this was the first time she touched paint, and she loved it! She wanted to smear it all over! So this was actually take two {I always have backup pieces of paper} and it was the best I could get.
#Tip - Do this in the morning. It will give the paper time to dry so that it was nice and neatly folded for when we placed the stickers on the top.
This was so easy to do and I know her daddy will love the effort put in by
Suggestions for modification:
Infants - Skip the stickers and use edible paint to just paint the whole card. You can place a contact paper heart on the front and after the child uses the paints, remove the heart. You will have a paint silhouette.
Toddlers - See above. If your child will listen to instruction, maybe they will place them where you want them! Also, my suggestion is play with paint before you try to get a handprint.
Preschool -
- Have them try to stick the stickers so that the point is down so you can draw lines to make it a balloon.
- Encourage them to practice writing their name on the inside with crayons or a chunky pencil.
- Have them try fold the paper to practice with fine motor skills.
School Age -
- Have them arrange stickers in the shape of a heart. Or allow them to chose the design, but still using stickers - this encourages fine motor skills.
- Encourage them to practice writing by writing the whole card out.
14 Healthy Days of Valentines
Let me start off by saying..
If you are my husband, do not read this post! You will ruin your surprises!
Ok, now that that's out of the way, let's get on with this post!
We are trying to be a bit healthier in our household, so when Valentine's Day comes around, we try to avoid the overpriced and often buttery restaurant meals and sugary chocolates and sweets by not celebrating the holiday. Well, now that we have a daughter, we need to start showing some love to the holiday. {pun intended}
I saw some crazy cute printables for significant others on Pinterest and on linky parties, but most of them included ideas for sugary and processed items that we are trying to avoid. So the search continued.
Then, I found these bad boys. They are super cute and offer healthy alternatives for daily gifts.
I went to the original site and only one of these were available to be clicked on and printed, so I decided to make them printable for you. Just click on the images above {each image has it's own link} to download and print for yourself.
I know, I know..there are only 12. For the other two days I plan on using these ideas:
I love this option with some much needed lip balm attached. We love Burt's Bees Lip Balm in our house. Head over to Five Little Chefs and print your own.
And for the final day/night February 14, I am going with this one found at Lou Lou Girls. {But instead of soda, I will get a mix and match 6 pack of beer for him}. I realize this isn't the "healthiest" option, but it's better than chocolate!
The Lou Lou Girls also have a toothbrush option in this post, which I thought about because my hubby wants a toothbrush at work. I was torn between that and the lip balm above. But chapstick won out.
There are so many other non-candy, non-sweet options. This will also help us all keep any weight loss New Year's Resolutions.
For more Valentine's Day inspiration, follow my Valentine's Day Pinterest board.
I know, I know..there are only 12. For the other two days I plan on using these ideas:
I love this option with some much needed lip balm attached. We love Burt's Bees Lip Balm in our house. Head over to Five Little Chefs and print your own.
And for the final day/night February 14, I am going with this one found at Lou Lou Girls. {But instead of soda, I will get a mix and match 6 pack of beer for him}. I realize this isn't the "healthiest" option, but it's better than chocolate!
The Lou Lou Girls also have a toothbrush option in this post, which I thought about because my hubby wants a toothbrush at work. I was torn between that and the lip balm above. But chapstick won out.
For more Valentine's Day inspiration, follow my Valentine's Day Pinterest board.
Have a healthy Valentine's Day!
Tissue Paper Valentine Heart
I love this age with my daughter. She is really starting to understand me and the world around her. I love playing with her and talking to her. One thing I am struggling with is finding ways to help her learn and grow - aside from just everyday activities and classes.
Having a teaching background, I feel like I want to be teaching her. But when I taught, I was used to Kindergarten and up. Even when I taught first grade, I felt like I was still lost as to what the students were capable of.
So I decided with my fresh start, I don't care what I think she is capable of. I am going to do tons of activities with her - no matter what I think she can do. I am going to push her limits and start doing more activities with her. {You benefit - think of all of the awesome posts!}
One thing I know she LOVES to do is tear apart tissue and tissue paper. So I found a way to let her go to town.
Materials Needed:
- Tissue Paper - I used leftover red and white from Christmas, then found some pink and purple when I cleaned my craft closet.
- Card stock - any color you would like
- Glue Stick
- Scissors
First I gave her strips of the tissue paper to tear up. She loved this. She was all over tearing the paper to shreds. {I was following behind cleaning up the paper to use} She saw me putting the pieces into the container, and she started to help - she really does love to clean {I often wonder who's child she is..}. I had to tear some of the tissue paper into smaller shreds but most of them I left alone.
{No pictures - her arms were moving too fast for my camera!! But you could see her little fingers working hard.}
Then, I put the card stock on the table and we {her hand first, mine on top} spread the glue all over the middle of the paper. I told her to take the paper out and put it here. She did! In handfuls!
Then she tried to put it back in but I showed her that most of them were stuck. We pressed down on the tissue paper and then shook off the pieces that didn't stick.
I then cut out a heart from the middle of the page. She wanted to do more so we ended up doing three {that is all the paper I had out} and then she was off to play with her Little People.
Suggestions for modification:
- Use contact paper for the tissue and cut the heart. Hang in the window for a sun catcher.
- Glue onto a card for a special Valentine
- Attach string and hang from the ceiling or make a mobile with multiple.
Infants - Make it the sun catcher or a mobile yourself and let them observe. The colors will help stimulate their little brains. Older infants could drop pieces of tissue paper onto the glue.
Toddlers - See above. Make sure that you are naming the colors to reinforce them. We will also use them daily to reinforce color names {at least of pink, purple, red and white}
Preschool - Have them still do the tissue paper tear and glue. Then draw a line for the heart and allow them to try and cut along the line using safety scissors.
School Age -
- Allow them independence to choose colors, glue and cut on their own.
- Have them cut squares of the tissue paper and encourage them to make a pattern on the paper.
For more Valentine fun, follow my Valentine's Day board on Pinterest.
Managing the Stress from Christmas
This year, Christmas caught me completely off guard. I was completely unprepared for what Christmas would bring: from the decorations to the presents, it was all stressful.
My daughter's birthday is December 12 and we spent the last several months preparing for her BIG 1st birthday party. After that, I didn't even get a day to relax before I was making a Christmas Present list and ordering our gifts on Amazon {thank you for free 2 day shipping with Prime!!}. As our gifts started rolling in, the idea was to wrap them as they came in..didn't happen.
I was out on the 23rd shopping for last minute stocking stuffers, my husband was out on the 22nd getting our presents and I was up until 3 am on the 23rd wrapping presents so I wouldn't have to do it Christmas Eve. So we {my husband & I} decided that we need to make a plan for next year so that this is not us again.
So I am putting my plan here in blogland for 2 reasons:
1. Accountability - I give you permission to yell at me if I don't uphold my plan.
2. Reminder - I can come back to this next year and make sure that I have a plan to follow.
The Plan:
Shop through the year/Start early: For my husband, mom, dad and brother - no one gives me a list of what they want. So, it is up to me to be creative. For my daughter, I can always pick up stocking stuffers. Throughout the year as I am shopping, I am going to be picking up things as I find them. I will put them in our Christmas Eve box {if they fit} or in our "other holiday" box in our storage area. I have created an Excel Spreadsheet that I can update throughout the year, and created a shortcut on my desktop, if it's not easy to get to, I won't keep up with it.
Create a Decorating Plan: Pinterest is great. It gives you so many awesome ideas for decorating for the holidays, wrapping presents, Christmas card inspiration and food ideas. It is also overwhelming. I have put on my Google Calendar November 1st to start coming up with a decorating plan, for each room. I end up having decorations up until February and put away somewhere else because I don't know what I have or it goes up so late I hate to take it down so soon.
Put Everything on the Calendar: There are some things I can add to my calendar to do. For example: Christmas cards. I have put on my calendar a date to think of what picture I would like to include, when to get the picture done by, when to order cards and now when to have them all sent out by. {Confession, I just sent out my last Christmas cards today}
Start wrapping December 1st: I love wrapping presents. I actually would love to be one of the wrappers at the mall. I just love wrapping presents. However, this year, my present wrapping was the worst it ever was. I was rushed and it felt more like a job I had to do than something fun I enjoyed. It completely diminished my Christmas Spirit.
Create a way to remember the real reason for Christmas: With all of the worldly stresses from this year, it wasn't until Christmas morning, reading from Luke that I took a moment to reflect on why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. It's not for the gifts or the wrapping or the cookies {even though they are good} it is to celebrate the birth of Christ. I will come up with an idea for this and share it here when I have it :)
Thank you for taking the time to read this and help me to be accountable. What are some ways you help to alleviate the stress from the holidays? Please I need the tips!!!
I was out on the 23rd shopping for last minute stocking stuffers, my husband was out on the 22nd getting our presents and I was up until 3 am on the 23rd wrapping presents so I wouldn't have to do it Christmas Eve. So we {my husband & I} decided that we need to make a plan for next year so that this is not us again.
So I am putting my plan here in blogland for 2 reasons:
1. Accountability - I give you permission to yell at me if I don't uphold my plan.
2. Reminder - I can come back to this next year and make sure that I have a plan to follow.
The Plan:
Shop through the year/Start early: For my husband, mom, dad and brother - no one gives me a list of what they want. So, it is up to me to be creative. For my daughter, I can always pick up stocking stuffers. Throughout the year as I am shopping, I am going to be picking up things as I find them. I will put them in our Christmas Eve box {if they fit} or in our "other holiday" box in our storage area. I have created an Excel Spreadsheet that I can update throughout the year, and created a shortcut on my desktop, if it's not easy to get to, I won't keep up with it.
Create a Decorating Plan: Pinterest is great. It gives you so many awesome ideas for decorating for the holidays, wrapping presents, Christmas card inspiration and food ideas. It is also overwhelming. I have put on my Google Calendar November 1st to start coming up with a decorating plan, for each room. I end up having decorations up until February and put away somewhere else because I don't know what I have or it goes up so late I hate to take it down so soon.
Put Everything on the Calendar: There are some things I can add to my calendar to do. For example: Christmas cards. I have put on my calendar a date to think of what picture I would like to include, when to get the picture done by, when to order cards and now when to have them all sent out by. {Confession, I just sent out my last Christmas cards today}
Start wrapping December 1st: I love wrapping presents. I actually would love to be one of the wrappers at the mall. I just love wrapping presents. However, this year, my present wrapping was the worst it ever was. I was rushed and it felt more like a job I had to do than something fun I enjoyed. It completely diminished my Christmas Spirit.
Create a way to remember the real reason for Christmas: With all of the worldly stresses from this year, it wasn't until Christmas morning, reading from Luke that I took a moment to reflect on why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. It's not for the gifts or the wrapping or the cookies {even though they are good} it is to celebrate the birth of Christ. I will come up with an idea for this and share it here when I have it :)
The Feast of the Seven Fishes - Christmas Tradition
Today I am sharing over at Today is the Best Day my Christmas Traditions. Growing up, my family always celebrated the Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve. We still continue the tradition on the first weekend of December with my cousins and their families.
Go take a look at how we celebrate the Feast and what I bring to the party: my "Almost" Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Get the recipe here.
What are some of your Christmas Traditions?
Go take a look at how we celebrate the Feast and what I bring to the party: my "Almost" Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Get the recipe here.
What are some of your Christmas Traditions?
How we paid $0 for our Family's Christmas Presents
For years now my husband and I have been finding interesting ways to pay for Christmas Presents. Usually, it results in using overtime money he brought in, saving for Christmas instead of saving in our normal savings accounts, and inevitably the "third paycheck". You know, every month you get 2 checks but because you are paid bi-weekly two months a year you get 3 checks. We have always just made it work.
This year I had a brilliant idea. I found a way that we were able to pay for ALL of our family's presents without paying a dollar.
We used credit card points. We use our Citi Forward Card for everything. We accumulate so many points but we can only get so many gift cards to use for ourselves. So Amazon recently teamed with Citicards and offers the opportunity to use your points to pay for your order.
My daughter's birthday was a week ago, so I didn't even start thinking about Christmas until Monday. That's right..no need to adjust your screen..Monday. Amazon Prime makes it super easy with two-day shipping to get all of my last minute gifts and now to use my Citicard points! This is my kind of Christmas.
The only gifts we said we were paying for are the gifts for our daughter and our gifts for each other. We have budgeted for our daughter's gifts and our presents for each other will be paid for out of our own savings accounts, but will for sure go on our credit card for points. My husband already knows he is getting his Year of Dates from me.
In the new year I will be going into more detail on how we budget and use our credit card for everything. In the meantime, how do you budget or pay for your Christmas?
**This post contains Amazon affliate links. If you sign up for the free trial of Amazon Prime and/or join, you will help to keep this blog running at no additional charge to you. Thank you for clinking! Visit my full disclosure here.**
**This post contains Amazon affliate links. If you sign up for the free trial of Amazon Prime and/or join, you will help to keep this blog running at no additional charge to you. Thank you for clinking! Visit my full disclosure here.**
Mini Ornament Garland
Just stopping in to let you know I am guest posting today at Confessions of the Perfect Mom. Go over and check out my super simple, super affordable mini-ornament garland!
Hope you are having a great Thursday!
Hope you are having a great Thursday!
The Top 10 Best Christmas Songs - 2014 Edition
I love Christmas music. I could listen to Christmas music every day all year long {thank you Pandora}. So I think that makes me a self-proclaimed expert on the subject.
Every year my favorites change somewhat. There are always classics but new ones always creep in. For example: 2002 - N'Sync would be almost all 10.
Here are my favorites for the 2014 Christmas season.
#10 - Baby It's Cold Outside - Idina Menzel & Michael Buble. This song was never really on my top 10 list. I did like the version from Elf, but this song was always kinda creepy to me. I think this version is super cute. And I love the use of kids in this video :)
#9 - Joy to the World - Mariah Carey. I know when you think Mariah Carey Christmas you think "All I Want for Christmas is You" but her voice is so powerful in the songs on this album that it makes that song almost fall to the wayside. This year I am choosing "Joy to the World" because it is just a fun song to sing and dance to. {I couldn't find a good version for YouTube - this was the best I could do}
#8 - Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer - Elmo & Patsy. This song is just so fun. How could this not be on a Top 10.
#7 - While You Were Sleeping - Casting Crowns. What a non-traditional song. And a great reminder to what Christmas is really about. Do you have room for the king?
#6 - Mary, Did You Know - Pentatonix. I love this song done by almost anyone I heard it from. This song would have been in the Top 10 anyway, but this rendition by the acapella group Pentatonix is amazing. {FYI - never knew they were as famous as they were but have seen them on Sesame Street a couple times so I knew they were something :)}
#5 - Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer - Jack Johnson. Again, this song would not really be in my Top 10 but I love this version by Jack Johnson. This is how I really imagined Rudolph reacted to the other reindeer.
#4 - The Night Before Christmas - Brandon Heath. Another non-traditional song reminding us about Christ's birth and why we celebrate Christmas.
#3 - Christmas Song - Dave Matthews Band. When I first heard this song, I heard Dave Matthews voice but had to check to make sure it was him. This song is so unexpected from Dave Matthews but a really great song talking about Christ. I really debated on if this was #3 or not.
#2 - Little Drummer Boy - Jars of Clay. This is my favorite version of this song. I heard it in 2000 and it has to this day been one of my favorite songs.
#1 - Dominick the Italian Christmas Donkey - Ok I may get some slack for this being number 1. But let me explain. This song is not only fun and upbeat, but it reminds me of my crazy, wonderful Italian family. I also had a great uncle {the great uncle who always hosted our crazy Italian family for the Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve} who always called me Josephine, for some reason, and when I hear the name in this song it just fills me with joy.
I hope this list has added a bit of unexpected happiness to your Christmas Spirit.
Every year my favorites change somewhat. There are always classics but new ones always creep in. For example: 2002 - N'Sync would be almost all 10.
Here are my favorites for the 2014 Christmas season.
#10 - Baby It's Cold Outside - Idina Menzel & Michael Buble. This song was never really on my top 10 list. I did like the version from Elf, but this song was always kinda creepy to me. I think this version is super cute. And I love the use of kids in this video :)
#3 - Christmas Song - Dave Matthews Band. When I first heard this song, I heard Dave Matthews voice but had to check to make sure it was him. This song is so unexpected from Dave Matthews but a really great song talking about Christ. I really debated on if this was #3 or not.
#2 - Little Drummer Boy - Jars of Clay. This is my favorite version of this song. I heard it in 2000 and it has to this day been one of my favorite songs.
I hope this list has added a bit of unexpected happiness to your Christmas Spirit.
What is your favorite Christmas song for me to consider for next year?
Holiday Hostess Gift Ideas & a Giveaway
Now it is after Thanksgiving and I know you all have started to receive your holiday party invites. Most of us gift a bottle of wine to our hostess when we attend a party. This week I am partnering with EVCreations to bring you a super simple way to jazz up that bottle of wine for your hosts.
Holiday wine labels make it easy to gift wine to hosts for the holidays. Not only are these labels easy to attach and witty, they are personalized with our family's names. No need to even gift the wine with anything! And the best part is that the host knows who the wine came from.
But just in case you are like me and want to make your wine a little more like a gift {it is the holidays after all}, here are some simple ideas to dress up your wine.
You can simply add an ornament for a festive look.
Want to give the hostess a little more than just wine? Pair it with a great candle and a box of chocolates. My personal favorite combination: DaVinci Chianti, Sea Salted Caramel Chocolates and Twisted Peppermint Candle.
There are so many options to dress up your personalized wine for your holiday parties this year. Here is your chance to win your very own set of personalized holiday wine labels. Good luck!
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a Rafflecopter giveaway
I found these great bags at Dollar Tree this season. What a better "outfit" for a bottle of wine than a Santa suit, elf costume, or just a little Santa hat?
a Rafflecopter giveaway
How to Plan your Year of Dates Present
This year, my husband asked me to gift him A Year of Dates again. If you missed last year's present, read it here.
I am cheating a little this year and reusing one that was extremely popular and re-gifting dates we didn't get to do, so I feel confident I can share them with you.
I am sharing with you how I am planning my gift to him this year. I obviously cannot share specifics since he does read my blog. I will be posting throughout the next year about what dates we are doing so you can use them for your gift next year!
*some links used are affiliate links*
Matching Months to Dates
Pretty obvious, but it is harder than you think! I used my Date Ideas Board on Pinterest to provide some inspiration.
I have a handy, dandy printable that I used to help me plan. It has a column for the month, the date that I chose {use pencil - lots of erasing and moving around}, as well as cost for the entire date and what I am willing to contribute. I am always sure to include a BIG date in there. Big date = most expensive. I always pay the full amount for that one, because some months, I opted to not pay for the entire date and that month we just budgeted in some of the money needed. For the rest of the dates, I mixed in some cheap and free dates as well.
I also have added columns so that you can note what gift item you will include {gift card, voucher, cash, etc} and a column to help you remember if it is completed or not.
I also have added columns so that you can note what gift item you will include {gift card, voucher, cash, etc} and a column to help you remember if it is completed or not.
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| Click here to download planning page |
Spa Date - I opened up the Schramm Spa for one night only. I gave him a choice of 6 options, he got to choose 2. {can't have it all} I found recipes online for facials, foot scrubs, bath salts, massage oil and a lavender face mask. When he made his choice about what we would like and made his 'appointment', I gathered my materials and made what I needed to make. I was rather inexpensive because it is done at home and all of my treatments were made at home as well. This was by far his favorite date.
Hiking Bushkill Falls - we didn't get to do this date because of the timing. The height of the season this year fell later and it just didn't land on a weekend we could get up there. Going for a walk or hike is a perfect date. You get exercise, beautiful views and best part for us is we could take our baby girl along. You can find hiking trails near you and pack a picnic to take along.
Drive-in Movie - We still have a couple if drive in movie theaters near us. It seems like such a great experience. You can see if there is one near you. If not, many movie theaters are starting to convert to full service theaters. This would be a great "dinner & a movie" all at once.
For ideas, you can follow my Date Ideas Board on Pinterest, check out Groupon or Living Social {just be aware of the expiration dates} and be sure to think about some things you did when you first started dating and throw those in there too. These traditional things took up most of my dates for our first year.
Writing out your dates or Printing them out
I have to admit, this was my most difficult task. I wanted to say something meaningful but everything came out not-so-cute quirky or it didn't make sense. Since I hand-wrote each month's date so I went through a lot of paper. Surprisingly, this is the one thing I got the most comments on from my last post - how handwriting the notes really adds something special to the gift. I have always believed in handwriting notes when it is especially sentimental or meaningful.
This year I started to type out each date idea. This way I can have my wording available and then hand write on the pages I chose to use.
Some tips to help you:
Title page: Explain why you are gifting this to him. In our case, my husband's love language is time spent together so this is my expression of love. Here is a glimpse of last year's.
Month descriptions: Give brief instructions on how it is to work. This is also where you can make it sweet or add any cryptic messages you may want to add {wink,wink}.
Assembling it all together
Month descriptions: Give brief instructions on how it is to work. This is also where you can make it sweet or add any cryptic messages you may want to add {wink,wink}.
Use any envelope you would like. I used these larger ones because I had some gifts that wouldn't fit in a small envelope. This year, I may use the small envelope - haven't decided.
Here are the labels that I used for the large envelopes. I have included ones for smaller envelopes. Print, cut and paste onto the envelope.
Put in a box and you are ready! Happy Holidays!
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| Click to download the large labels or small labels |
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Our Year of Dates Christmas Present 2013
Christmastime always seems to be my favorite time. I love the lights, the tree trimming, the Christmas carols {even in October}, but my favorite part is choosing the BEST gift for everyone on my list. I start making my list and checking it twice in September.
So I'm starting Christmas on my blog now!
So, I started scheming and planning in July. I had come up with all of my dates and pre-paid for some of them.
Here are our dates for the year:
So I'm starting Christmas on my blog now!
Last year, my husband and I were having a baby. Her due date was December 16. Knowing she was due so close to Christmas, I was making sure that I had ALL of my presents purchased, wrapped and under the trimmed tree by Thanksgiving. Yes that's right - Thanksgiving. I started thinking about what I could possibly give to my husband {besides a baby} that he would love and would hopefully bring us closer together {again, besides a baby}.
I saw this on pinterest and it gave me a great idea. A year of dates!
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If I give him a year of dates, we will be forced to spend time together after the baby is born.
January - Philadelphia Home Show {tradition} and money for cookies at Reading Terminal {tradition}
February - Schramm Spa Date {his ABSOLUTE favorite}
March - Beer Tasting at a Brewery
April - Movie on me
May - Spring morning walk and money for breakfast
June - Drive in Movie Theater {yes we have some near us :)}
July - Couples Massage {most pricey and reminder of our honeymoon}
August - Wii Game Night
September - Bushkill Falls Hiking {tradition}
October - Apple picking, hot apple cider and apple cider doughnuts {tradition - first date}
November - Dave & Busters fun date
December - TBA {he reads this blog}
So my grand idea is amazing! Execution - not so much. Out of these 11 dates, as of today we have done 7. For some reason, I thought it would be easier than it is to a) leave a baby, b) find a babysitter, c) have a free weekend and d) did I mention leave the baby?
So, as per his request, I am putting together another year of dates for him next year! I told him I am reusing ones we haven't done yet - makes it easier on me :)
Since he does read my blog, I did have to keep it all under wraps but you can check it out here.
I also have created a Year of Dates for Kids!
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