Do you send Holiday Cards? It's a Shutterfly Giveaway!

I know some people who take the holiday family photos regligiously every year, color-coordinated, ordered, signed, stamped and addressed right after Thanksgiving...

And others who send online cards.  Or no cards at all. 

There's a lot of in between.

I love sending Christmas cards...but as I mentioned in the Do's & Don'ts of Holiday Cards, I haven't been able to afford them the last couple of years.  But, when I have, I've always used Shutterfly.  And Shutterfly has an amazing variety of cards.


If you're more of a Feliz Navidad:






Or a Happy Hanukkah:







Or a traditional Merry Christmas:







Or a more generic Happy Holidays:






Or a Happy New Year:






Do you send cards?  Do you want to?
I'm giving away a promo code for 25 free cards...to three different readers!

Leave me a comment below for your first entry, and let me know which card is your favorite from Shutterfly's Christmas Cards or other Holiday Cards.
For an extra entry you can tweet or mention this on Facebook.

I'll choose three winners by next Friday, November 4th!!


Are you a blogger? Want a chance at 25 free cards this holiday season? Register here: http://goo.gl/DDw7Q

The Do's & Don't of Christmas Cards

I love sending and receiving Christmas cards.

Here's one of our old cards:



Holiday cards are an excellent opportunity to see old friends and how their families have grown, to see the new babies and growing kids. It gives me a warm feeling to hear from family and friends...and to send them some love in return. However, there are some definitely Do's & Don'ts when preparing your holiday cards.

• Do display modesty.  Don't boast that your toddler has created an algorithm to rival Google's.
• Do include highlights of your year.  Family update letters are usually a blast to read and catch up on everyone's antics.  Don't share major news that might be depressing.
• Don't use the cards as a chance to push your political or relgious agenda on others. But it is OK to send a religious card.
• Do send out cards early or late, it doesn't matter the timing...as long as it's not BEFORE Thanksgiving. 
• Do use the opportunity to be creative! Include photos.  Don't spend a fortune on your cards...it's tacky and offensive during these economic times.

And in my opinion, you can't go wrong using Shutterfly for your holiday photos.  I've been using them every single year to make mine, and I haven't been disappointed once. I've also made photo calendars each year of my children to send to grandparents, had photos put on coffee mugs for special gifts and even had photos put on special boxes and made into canvass paintings.  If I had my way, I'd make every gift a Shutterfly gift, because I love turning photo memories into gifts.

Here's another one of our old Christmas cards made from Shutterfly:





They have so many adorable and inspiring designs...and you can add one photo or multiple photos and add your own message. And, I've always received them timely and in excellent condition.


Sadly, since separating from my husband and being a full-time working mom, I haven't been able to afford Christmas cards the last two years.  But, this year, I'm so excited because Shutterfly has offered me a chance to make free cards AND offer 3 of my readers an opportunity to win 25 free cards from Shutterfly!


I can't wait to get started on this year's cards!  My first step will be dragging the boys and the dog outdoors and giving my mom the camera to take our photo. It might be easy and quick...it might be long and torturous. but no matter what, I'm making memories and traditions with my children for years to come. 

Are you a blogger? Want a chance at 25 free cards this holiday season? Register here: http://goo.gl/DDw7Q”



Have you received some bad Christmas Cards?
Are photo cards your favorite?

Eights

Today's theme is 8's.

First I saw a news story about a Hexapus. I like to root for the underdog, the odd man out, the weird gene mutation, the octopus named Henry with six legs instead of eight. I'm kind of surprised we haven't run into more of these. I have to admit, I'm not sure I'd stop to count if I did run into Henry...I'm kind of wimpy about scary looking sea creatures.

Secondly, I was reading a hilarious blog where a woman was chronicling everything in her pantry, and I ran across something I had never heard of before. She had an Octodog Frankfurter Converter. Oh my gosh. I was falling off my chair laughing at this thing. Such a simple little contraption, hilarious, not sure I'd ever use it, but I find myself wanting one. Not sure if the kids would love it or run screaming.

Thirdly, I'm going to share eight of my favorite websites today. Drumroll please...I know you're waiting with baited breath...

Amazon is my best friend. Everyone knows about Amazon (unless they've been living under a rock or in a cave for the past ten years but even then, if these people have access to Internet, then there's no excuse for you). If I'm not buying books online, then I'm spending time researching subjects, finding authors and titles for me and the kids to check them out at our local library. I have that nifty Amazon Prime service where everything I order shows up on my doorstep within two days (and since I do most my Christmas shopping on Amazon, it pays for itself!). Gotta love it. I also put up wishlists for the whole family for Christmas and birthdays, so relatives can find a variety of gift ideas.

WebMD is another old friend of mine. I go there regularly to research exotic diseases I'm convinced I have and to discover all the bizarre side effects I'm sure I have from the meds I might be taking. WebMD is the paranoid girl's best friend!

Sometimes a girl needs to just veg a little, and People is a good website for that. If you need to catch up on the celebrity gossip or see all those beautiful Oscar gowns you might buy one day. US Magazine is fun also, albeit a little more smutty. But, smutty is fun.

In case you're counting, those are four of my favorite websites. Here come four more:

I have hundreds (or maybe thousands) of photos stored on Shutterfly. I have tried other photo-sharing websites and most of them are fine, but Shutterfly is my favorite. I share photos, upload from my camera, and am constantly making photo books and photo gifts for people. I could spends lots of money there if I had it!! Photography is a big passion of mine.

I love the mother's bracelet I bought from Sterling Sisters. I don't visit this site much, but I've had my bracelet (and made other bracelets as gifts) for years, and they're beautiful!

Another great website for making photo gifts for women is Contessa Bags. They're awesome! I had pictures of the boys made into make-up bags for my mom and mother-in-law a while back, and I've made photos into pillows and purses. Great gift ideas.

Finally, each year I faithfully order my new Mom Agenda. I couldn't make it through the year without it and it's my lifeline!

This is just a small snipit from my massive favorites file.