Charming Cards -

New Phone Cases at Charming Cards

2012-01-22T12:47:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year from Charming Cards! We have been busy adding new products that tend be to popular at the start of a new year including these new personalized phone cases by Boatman Geller that were introduced just a few days ago. We find many customers who received new phones over the holidays have been scouting out the latest and greatest in phone covers. These cases have free shipping through the end of January 2012.

Another popular item each January are decorative file folders to start the year off organized in a fashionable way. Charming Cards has a big selection of designer file folder including 6 new designs just this week.

I am back to blogging this year and will regularly be offering specials to my subscribers like you.

Paradise Lost- Kona Village and Tsunami Damage

2011-03-29T06:34:00.000-07:00

I posted about Kona Village (KVR) back in August of 2008 and referred to it as my “favorite place on earth.” Our family has been going to Kona Village off an on over the years since I was 15. I would love to go every summer if the budget permitted, and the years when we are not there, I dream about it and wonder about when the next time might be that we will visit. It is a Polynesian village on the big island of Hawaii, unlike any of the typical luxury hotels you see on Hawaii. There are no multi story buildings, rather individual hales on or near the ocean. The paths are dirt paths lined with tiki torches and lush landscaping. There are no tvs or phones in the hales and the location is a beautiful combination of lava, beach, ponds, and lush Hawaiian landscaping. It was originally a true Hawaiian village that was transformed into a vacation resort 45 years ago. Like no other vacation, you melt into relaxation and the quiet serenity of the village. There is no hum of air conditioning but a simple ceiling fan , along with the ocean breeze that is perfectly comfortable. There are no locks on the hales, but if you put your coconut on your porch you let others know not to enter. The staff is warm and friendly, many have worked there for numerous years and remember the returning guests. It is hard to describe in words what this place means to me and my family. It might sound rustic, but it is also luxurious at the same time and has people like Steve Jobs and celebrity figures as repeat guests. When we were there once we went on a snorkeling excursion with 2 newscasters from our LA station together. Personally when I imagine big career successes or imaginary lottery winnings, my mind goes straight to Kona Village as the pot at the end of the rainbow.

The day after the recent tsunami that did so much destruction in Japan, I went to the KVR website to see if their webcam was up just to see that all was ok at Kona Village. I had no idea there might be any damage to Hawaii, but since we were awakened here in Newport Beach at 4am by a public service phone call warning us about a tsunami, I had concern about Hawaii and Kona Village. The webcam was not working but I was not overly concerned. I continued to check back and a few days later via the KVR Facebook page it was confirmed that there was significant damage to our beloved village, enough damage that it is now closed indefinitely and their staff of 250 has been laid off. Apparently the village was evacuated on March 10th around 11pm and at 5am the normally quiet bay receded and a wave approximately 8 feet high crashed onto the land and tore some of the hales right off their foundation. Fortunately no one was injured. I have to say in the days following the news of its closure I felt so melancholy and sad. At work I found myself repeatedly checking the Facebook page looking for any news and trying to imagine what this peaceful paradise was like with water rushing into the 2 restaurants, destroying the Shipwreck Bar where we would sit near the pool eating popcorn and the children drank their favorite Hawaiian drinks. When my sister told her children, her 11 year old was distraught and called a friend who also enjoys Kona Village. They rode their bikes to the grocery store and bought the ingredients for the cookie monster drinks to come home and make them. Following are some photos of the village before and after the tsunami (after photos are courtesy of Bill Jasper). It is really hard to imagine this destruction and the uncertainty of the future of Kona Village.

There is a Facebook page Save Kona Village set up to lobby for its rebuilding as the traditional low key paradise that it was, and an update recently looks promising, but it will be a few years away and the “modernization” of the village have some of us old timers concerned it will be converted into something that will take away its charm and originality. Here is a video announcement of the damage before they determined it would close indefinitely http://www.bigislandvideonews.com/2011/03/16/video-tsunami-batters-kona-village-resort-hale-bungalows/

Fun times at the pool

after the tsunami One of our favorite hales after the tsunami our 2 favorite hales off their foundations and pushed together at the beach shack getting ready to scuba dive

a mess afterwards an interesting photo of chairs from land captured in one of the boats

My memory of fun times with my children and all of their cousins- 14 grandkids in all. We anxiously await news of the rebuilding plans.

All New Takeout Menu Organizer

2011-03-12T08:55:00.000-08:00

One of our most popular items has been the clever Takout Menu organizer by Knock Knock. This handy 8 x10 binder has dividers to manage your takeout menus and information on your favorite restaurants. It includes a 40 sheet pad for taking orders, tipping guide, frequently called numbers list, and 5 tabbed dividers with adhesive labels to indicate preferences and facilitate easy organization.

This popular item disappeared for awhile as it was being revamped to make it better than ever. It is a clever gift that sells out often.

New Personalized Valentine Cards by Boatman Geller

2011-01-18T09:56:00.000-08:00

I remember when my children were little I loved helping them get their Valentine cards ready to trade on Valentines Day. I would often have them put a traditional box of candy hearts in an envelope with a card. One of our finest stationery lines, Boatman Geller, now offers personalized Valentine Day cards which are darling. Get a head start this year and take a look at the 10 different designs.

What To Do With Your Holiday Cards

2011-01-15T11:14:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! Here is a re-post of a blog from prior years that is appropriate once more as I am tidying up for the new year...
With the holidays ending, I used to wonder what I should do with all of the holiday cards I received. I hated tossing them, but was anxious to clean up for the new year. I found an appropriately sized container to hold my cards and I keep them set out all year. Guests in my home always enjoy sorting through my cards and admiring the wonderful pictures of family and friends I received. Even in the summer your holiday cards can be a source of conversation. Make a family activity out of it by pulling a card every week and vowing to call, write, or pray for the lucky winner!

12th Daily Deal- Three Desiging Women Stamp Certificates on Sale!

2010-12-12T08:09:00.000-08:00

One of our most popular items year after year are the custom stamps. The order deadline has passed to receive these by Christmas, but stamp certificates are still available and ship quickly. The recipient receives a gift box with a certificate inside to go to the Three Designing Women website and pick out their own design. Today only they are $10 off at only $28.99.

11th Daily Deal - Personalized Notecards 25% Off Today Only!

2010-12-11T08:06:00.000-08:00

Our 11th Daily Deal is a deep discount on Charming Cards personalized notecards. You can get prepared to write thank you notes after the holidays. These ship in just a few days so they are certain to arrive by Christmas. These are already a low price and today only will be 25% off.

10th Daily Deal- Dogeared Jewelry 30% Off Today Only!

2010-12-10T08:57:00.000-08:00

Today only all Dogeared Jewelry is 30% as part of our 12 Daily Deals of Christmas! The Karma necklaces and bracelets are always best sellers.

9th Daily Deal-Free Shipping Today!

2010-12-09T08:11:00.000-08:00

Today's Daily Deal is free shipping on any order. Use the promo code Freeshipdeal and you will not be charged for ground shipping! There is still time for ground shipping on most items to be received by Christmas.

(photo courtesy of Dogeared)

8th Daily Deal- Panda Mugs Half Off!

2010-12-08T06:55:00.000-08:00

These adorable Lilly Pulitzer panda thermal mugs are currently featured on Cosmopolitan.com's holiday gift guide (see gift 21). They were hand picked by Cosmo and are flying off the shelf. For one day only they are half price at $8!

7th Daily Deal- Lap desks on Sale!

2010-12-07T08:58:00.000-08:00

Our 7th Daily Deal is our ever popular lap desks! These are on sale today 40% off! These best sellers are perfect for writing or drawing in the car, on the couch, my daughter in college uses hers to do homework on her bed, you can set your laptop on it so your legs don't get hot. There are many different patters for both boys and girls. The top has a handy cup holder and bottom is filled with soft polystyrene beads for comfort. Limited supply!

6th Daily Deal- Decoupage Designer Clipboards 50% off!

2010-12-06T00:02:00.000-08:00

Today's daily deal are Macbeth decoupage clipboards. These fun clipboards have a decoupage design on the front and back of the clipboard and come in a cello bag with bow. This is a fun unique gift. They come in small and large, 7 different designs, and the prices will never be this low!

5th Daily Deal- Chunky Notepads discounted 40%

2010-12-05T00:01:00.000-08:00

Our chunky notepads are a continual best seller and will be a popular special on our daily deal. 6 different styles to choose from. 40% off for 1 day only- supply is limited!

4th Daily Deal- The Little Black Box of Notecards

2010-12-04T08:33:00.000-08:00

Today's special deal is 40% off our little black box of retro notecards. This popular item contains 32 notecard inside that have a fun retro design on the outside, and blank on the inside. They are perfect to use as an economical gift card. This item is a best seller, but the manufacturer stopped production for awhile and they are recently back in a new acrylic box, but the same cute retro style cards. Their production again is limited so I am not sure how long I will have these.

3rd Daily Deal- All Cell Phone Cases 40% off!

2010-12-03T07:29:00.000-08:00

Our 3rd Daily Deal of Christmas is all cell phone cases 40% discounted today only! We have phones for the iPhone 3G and 4G, and our darling personalized Clairebella phones also fit some Blackberry models and the iPod Touch.

These make great stocking stuffers!

2nd Daily Deal of Christmas!

2010-12-02T06:43:00.000-08:00

Today's daily deal is the Three Designing Women Desk Set- today only save 25%! This set is already a great deal and includes a certificate for the recipient to redeem the custom stamp of their choice, 2 ink cartridges in different colors, plus 20 notecards. The sale price of $37.49 is less than the normal price of the stamp alone. Their are many stamp designs to choose from and this makes a great gift that ships fast.

The stamp above is one of the many to choose from.

Charming Cards- 12 Daily Deals of Christmas- Day 1!

2010-12-01T07:55:00.000-08:00

I can hardly believe it is December 1st and time to start our annual daily deals of Christmas. For these first 12 days of December Charming Cards will have a deal every day of a product that is deeply discounted. While there is still time to order personalized items, I am going to feature today personalized labels from Picture Perfect. They have a wide variety of labels that can be used for return address or to label gifts.

Today only, December 1st, these labels are 40% off! This is all labels by Picture Perfect so it is a perfect opportunity to stock up on any of their labels you can use throughout the year.

Happy Shopping from Charming Cards!!

Cyber Monday Deal- 1 day only!

2010-11-29T08:10:00.001-08:00

To all my blog subscribers- Today only use the promo code CYBERDEAL for 15% off plus free shipping! It's not too late to order your holiday cards!

Black Friday Sale at Charming Cards

2010-11-26T11:35:00.001-08:00

We have a lot of items on sale today like most of our new cell phone cases

New Dogeared Jewelry like this Make A Wish necklace

And many items you can find on sale here - Charming Card Sale!

Plus, for 1 day, use the Promo Code FREESHIP10 to get free shipping on top of it all. Sale items are limited. Happy Thanksgiving!

Order your personalized items while there's time

2010-11-20T16:51:00.000-08:00

We have been adding many new products, but a few of my favorites are these unique personalized items- a custom mouse pad and phone case. Nowadays you can personalize just about anything and a gift like this shows you took some time. These take up to 3 weeks to receive so now is the perfect time to be set for Christmas gifts. This personalized mousepad would make a great teacher gift, or a gift exchange with your girlfriends. One of my friends just got one for her mother-in-law who has everything. There are many different designs to choose from and you can put initials or a full name.

This cool phone case comes in many different patterns and fits the iPhone 3G, iPhone 4, iPod Touch, Blackberry 9700 and Blackberry Curve 8520. If you are giving someone a phone for Christmas, how fun to add this cool personalized case to go with it. What a fun stocking stuffer!

Charming Cards will be doing our annual 12 daily deals of Christmas starting December 1st so stay tuned!

Lilly Pulitzer iPhone Cases on Sale This Weekend Only!

2010-10-08T08:20:00.000-07:00

In July when I received the Lilly Pulitzer catalog with these new iPhone 3G cases, I fell in love instantly. I sent them to my contact at Cosmo.com who was immediately interested in featuring them for their holiday gift guide which was very exciting! They decided not to because they don't fit the new iPhone 4, but for those of you with the 3G, these are the cutest cases I have ever seen! I placed my order, but due to their popularity, Lilly was sold out and I have waited for these for 2 months. Well they finally arrived, and after the long wait, they accidentally shipped my plentiful order twice! So rather than ship them back, I am offering them at a 40% discount for this weekend only to my blogger readers and Facebook fans. At 11.99 they will make a great holiday gift and come in 4 preppy designs. They make me want an iPhone!

Holiday Card Discounts in September

2010-09-12T09:55:00.000-07:00

September is typically a time for Charming Cards to be busily adding all the fun new holiday cards for the season. To encourage shoppers to get their orders in early, many vendors offer discounts for orders placed in September. Boatman Geller has some fun new digital cards this season, some that can be customized with mutiple photos and the background color has many options to make that perfect photo-card combination. At Charming Cards, the first proof is always free and options like colored ink never come with additional charges. Holiday cards are discounted 20% until October 15th, so it is a good time to knock this off your list!

Dorm Wall Sticker Frames As Seen on The Today Show

2010-08-17T00:01:00.000-07:00

I just got home from moving my daughter back to college and helped her unpack these sticker frames by Butch and Harold that are perfect for college housing walls. They went from decorating her dorm room last year to the sorority house this year. They are featured this morning on The Today Show's dorm room segment. They also make a great graduation or college send-off gift. For $20 you get 8 different frames as you see in this photo.

New Personalized Entertaining Gifts by Dabney Lee

2010-07-22T10:09:00.000-07:00

Every time I go to the National Stationery Show I have my eye on these products by Dabney Lee. I finally took the plunge and invested in this line and love them! I purchased this monogramed serving try and ice bucket myself for 2 different wedding gifts- I will add a bottle of their favorite wine to make the gift extra special. Surprise your bride and groom by giving them something fun that is not on their gift registry. All of the Dabney Lee products have many different color swatch patterns and monogram styles to choose from, so the combination of choices is endless!

Graduation Gifts

2010-05-16T12:05:00.001-07:00

My 3 favorite high school graduation gifts are these:

The Naked Roommate - only $12.99. My daughter received this book last year along with cash from family friends. It makes the giving of cash more personal and it is a great witty book to give all by itself.

The Dorm Survival Kit- $24.99. An inexpensive fun gift for the student who will be living in the dorms next year. Any gift that screams "I am going to college!" is sure to be a hit.

The College Survival Kit- $39.99. A more comprehensive kit- only 2 left of these. They sell for $50.00 on other websites.

It is hard to believe this school year is almost over!

This blog has moved

2010-04-27T08:39:00.001-07:00

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Law & Order

2010-03-29T21:08:00.000-07:00

Today had an interesting start. I was driving to work which is a short 2 mile drive and was at a stop sign waiting for someone to cross in the crosswalk. Just as I was about to proceed, another pedestrian had stepped into the crosswalk. I decided to wait for him as he meandered with his coffee cup across the crosswalk, apparently going to the gym across the street. When he got just past the median he noticed I was waiting for him and gave me a big smile and waved me on. I smiled back, nodded and went on to the next intersection which was a light and waited until it turned green. Right as it turned green and I started through it, a police car behind me turned his lights on. As I pulled over I had no idea why I was being pulled over. I thought maybe the registration on my plates had somehow expired without me knowing it. He got out of his car and walked to my car and proceeded to say "Do you realized you did not wait for a pedestrian back at the stop sign?" I told him politely "Officer, I did stop for 2 pedestrians and the 2nd one waved me on." He said "I was monitoring you and did not see him wave you on." I told him nicely that I am an honest person and would not lie to a police officer and that yes indeed this man waved me on. He went on to tell me that even if he had waved me on, it is still the law that I should wait for him. We went back and forth a little bit and then out of the blue, my good looking pedestrian had walked up to this intersection to tell the officer "Officer, I waved her on." How cool is that! This stranger took the time after seeing I had been pulled over to back me up. The officer immediately added a slight friendliness to his tone, told me it is the law that I should not proceed when waved on, but he was not going to write me up. I was so relieved and love stories of good people out there willing to take a stand for even a little injustice like this almost was. Smile at a few strangers tomorrow and see where it takes you!

The Diamond Bathtub

2010-03-14T11:08:00.000-07:00

One of my sisters has always been artistic and very creative. She has an interior design business and has helped me a lot over the years decorating my home and always making improvements with ease. A few years ago she got an idea and has spent the last 3 years worked on making it a reality- The Diamond Bathtub. She has hand applied over 40,000 pink Swarovski crystals to a cast iron claw foot bathtub to create this unique one-of-a-kind bathroom centerpiece. It has been a labor of love that is now showcased in the window of a local store- Fleur de Lys in Costa Mesa. In person this creation is amazingly pretty and someday will be a perfect fit in a unique bathroom. It will be auctioned on E-Bay in the next few weeks.

New! Personalized Clipboards With Your Photo

2010-02-28T18:15:00.000-08:00

As featured on the NBC Today Show, we are excited to offer Whitney English ClipSheets™ with printed photo! A stack of 75 personalized 5 x 7 loose ClipSheets™ come with a clear acetate clipboard that measures just slightly larger. Your picture will be cropped to fit right into the design and printed for you all at once. The set, as shown here, with a grosgrain ribbon, will be placed inside a Whitney English signature box with tissue paper, making gift wrapping for this darling gift a breeze! ClipSheets™ with photo are ideal for your own to-do lists, honey-do and grocery lists, and also make great teacher gifts, stocking stuffers, hostess or bridesmaid gifts! 12 different styles to choose from.

Flameless Candles- New at Charming Cards!

2010-02-24T08:08:00.000-08:00

I had a great time at the New York Gift Show last month and came home with some fun new products. One are these flameless candles which just arrived yesterday- I love them! This unique gift is perfect to put anywhere you would love the ambiance of a candle, but where it might not be allowed like an office, dorm room, or boat. They look like a real candle and with 3 led lights, even flicker and come with a timer function for automatic on and off. They are $19.99 and $22.99 at Charming Cards.

Get Organized In The New Year With Decorative File Folders!

2010-01-12T07:31:00.000-08:00

To compliment our wide variety of designer file folders, we recently added a line of desktop magazine/file folder holders. These sturdy decorative holders are perfect for your home or office desktop that will look great with your pretty file folders sitting in.

We have also added some fresh new designs and have stocked up on of all 42 different styles of file folders we carry from vendors like Whitney English, Galison, Knock Knock, International Arrivals and Blue Ink Designs.

And to help you jump start getting organized, they are on sale 15% until midnight January 13th! only!

Sale on Sweet Pea Stationery- Twice as Nice Sale!

2010-01-09T09:48:00.000-08:00

2 for 1 sale! One of my favorite vendors- Sweet Pea, is having a twice as nice sale on their foldover notecards until January 31st. Order a set of notecards and you will receive double the quantity for free! This is the perfect time to send your holiday thank-yous and stock up on thank you notes for your family. This special section of my website allows you to typeset your notecards so you can see exactly what they will look like and play around with different typestyles before ordering. Offer ends January 31st.

What to do with your holiday cards

2010-01-03T10:17:00.000-08:00

It's A Wrap For The Season

2009-12-28T21:36:00.000-08:00

This is my 10th season selling holiday cards and the week after Christmas is always a time business-wise to sigh and reflect on the season and look at everything that went right and learn from anything that went wrong. I will share 2 of my favorite holiday card orders from this year. Both of these cards use somewhat non-traditional photos of their children that are sure to catch attention and be shared over the holidays. Both of these photographs seem to be candid and are just darling. I loved being involved with both of these for their thinking out of the box approach.

This year I also ended up knowing the 800 number to UPS by heart. I had 2 situations with UPS this season - one that saved the day, the other I was pulling my hair out and my very sweet customer never did receive her darling holiday cards. The first was a situation where holiday cards were delivered a few doors down from my customer -an error by the card manufacturer. I thought this would be simple, just walk on over to the neighbor and get the package. Not so simple as the residents were out of town for an extended period of time and no one on the street seemed to know who was taking care of their mail or where her package might be. After I contacted UPS, the driver not only remembered the delivery, but knew the name of the maid who accepted the package and my customer figured it all out and retrieved her cards. The second situation involved a customer who inadvertently transposed 2 digits of her zip code when placing her order. She had 3 different shipments of things and UPS easily corrected 2 of them. But her holiday cards are still lost in transit after at least 20 different phone calls to UPS over 7 days trying to help them deliver these cards. This was very frustrating and my customer was very patient and is now picking out a New Years card. Orders placed in December for holiday cards leave little time for error and every year I contemplate cutting off my orders at the end of November so there is enough time to deal with problems I cannot anticipate or control.

But overall the season was great with lots of happy customers, some who take the time to email me to tell me how pleased they are with their cards and the service. I love this business and my charming customers who keep me going and striving to give my best.

12th Daily Deal- Table Topics On Sale!

2009-12-12T10:34:00.001-08:00

Table Topics are 40% discounted today only! These conversation starter cards make a great hostess gift, for your neighbors, teachers, girlfriends, gift exchange gift....everyone loves them! 4 Editions available- Original, Family, Teen, and Girls Night Out. Some customers keep a stash in their gift closet for an easy to store gift on hand all year.

This is the final of the December Daily Deals. It has been fun again - thank you and enjoy your holiday season!

11th Daily Deal- Nest Candles on Sale 40%!

2009-12-11T08:50:00.000-08:00

These awesome smelling candles by NEST are on sale 1 day only including the hard to find special holiday candle. Scents are Holiday, Bamboo, Moss & Mint, and Grapefruit. Regularly $30.99, today just $18.50.

10th Daily Deal- Big Ass Book of Crafts- 40% Sale!

2009-12-10T08:22:00.000-08:00

Our 10th Daily Deal is 40% off our Big Ass Book of Crafts, today only! This 384 page book is packed with ideas for sprucing up your living space; concocting fabulous, all-natural body products; designing your own unique stationery; and creating countless other crafts that will convince your friends and loved ones that you're the secret love child of Martha Stewart (only much, much cooler). Regularly $19.95, now just $11.95 for today only!

9th Daily Deal - Toss Bags on Sale 50%

2009-12-09T08:00:00.001-08:00

For 1 day only all Toss bags are 50% off! I get stopped at the airport all the time asking about my bag similar to this rolling duffel bag.

I use this exact bag for my laptop when traveling and love it!

Offer ends midnight PST 12/09/09.

8th Daily Deal- Thanking Out Of The Box Stationery 40% Off!

2009-12-08T08:33:00.001-08:00

For 1 day only our unique ribbon adorned Thanking Out Of The Box thank you cards are 40% off! These cards sell out at boutiques and gift recipients always come back for more. There are 8 unique cards in each box with ribbon and colored envelopes. It also comes with a white pen to address your colored envelopes. Super cute! Supplies are limited and these will go fast!

7th Daily Deal - Designer File Folders 40% Off Today!

2009-12-07T00:01:00.000-08:00

One of my best selling products on my website are designer file folders. For one day only they are discounted 40%! Bring your style into your office, or give a stylish gift. 38 styles to choose from. Offer expires on midnight, 12/07/09.

6th Daily Deal- Great Tweenage Gift for only $7.99

2009-12-06T10:13:00.000-08:00

If you need a gift for girls ages 10-14, this a great gift they can use to bring the fun to a slumber party. Or stock up for presents for their birthday parties coming up. This Slumber Party box of questions and Truth or Dare Game (G-rated) regularly $19.99, but on sale for $7.99 1 day only!

5th Daily Deal- Paper Taffy Chunky Notepads 35% off!

2009-12-05T00:01:00.000-08:00

The 5th daily deal this year are Paper Taffy (formerly Mud Pie Paper) big chunky notepads for 35% off. I spent all day at a boutique today and these were my number 1 best seller and sell consistently all year long. These chunky 7" x 7" pads make a fabulous quick gift! 300 pages make it a substantial chunky pad with cute quality ribbon. These are great gifts in many different designs. Regularly $21.99, just $14.29 today only!
expires midnight PST 12/05/09.

4th Daily Deal- Reusable Shopping Bags 35% Off

2009-12-04T07:33:00.001-08:00

Today's daily deal is our cute and versatile reusable shopping bags at 35% off today only! These are handy for the store, but also cute to carry your items to the gym, kids sleepover party, or anything! 6 different styles to choose from
expires at midnight 12/04/09

Daily Deal #3- MomAgenda and Kitchenfolio- 1/2 Price!

2009-12-03T00:01:00.000-08:00

For 1 Day only you can give the gift of organization for your Mom friends at half price! I love these products-

The MomAgenda - Along with calendar and scheduling features for mom and up to 4 kids, includes the favorite websites section, space for notes on books, movies, fashion, and music, vacation and party planning pages, and more. Runs August 2009- Dec 2010. Comes in pink, brown and lime green.

The Kitchenfolio- this handy binder includes forms for: Important Information, Important Phone Numbers, Home-Related Phone Numbers, Family Medical Information, birthdays/Anniversaries, and Babysitter’s Information. You can also store class lists, school schedules, sports schedules, menus and more in heavy-duty, clear plastic page protectors. With 48 pages and 24 interchangeable tabs, there’s a place for everything! My favorite part about this planner is that I have the pdf files for the standard forms that I email you upon purchase so you can neatly type the information on the form to print out and save for updates later. I wish I had this when my kids were younger. Come in pink and blue.

Supplies are limited on both. Offer ends at midnight December 3rd.

2nd Daily Deal of Christmas - Holiday stickers 30% off!

2009-12-02T07:33:00.000-08:00

Today's daily deal is our holiday stickers 30% off today only. We have hundreds of holiday stickers by Boatman Geller, Noteworthy, and Picture Perfect. These are perfect to use as return address labels, or label your gifts. Offer expires at midnight.

12 Daily Deals of Christmas- Day 1!

2009-12-01T11:01:00.001-08:00

Last year we had a lot of fun and success with our Charming Cards 12 daily deals of Christmas. We have been looking forward to doing this again and it starts today! For the first 12 days of December, we will put an item on special for 1 day and advertise it to my blogger friends. The discounts are big!

Today, our first daily deal is our designer clipboards by Macbeth. These clipboard are 50% off for one day only! There are 12 styles to choose from and come in 2 sizes. The smaller ones are only $10, and the larger ones are $12.50. Quantities are limited- these come wrapped in a cello bow and make a great gift.

Santa Stickers!

2009-11-25T20:09:00.000-08:00

A fun way to label your Santa gifts is to get custom Santa stickers made for our jolly friend! You can save them and use from year to year. When your younger children get old enough, they notice things like Santa's wrapping paper and labels, and they better be different than the family stuff or they get suspicious! There is plenty of time to get these for Christmas. There are tons of other darling stickers by Picture Perfect to label all your gifts.

All Sweet Pea Holiday Cards 20% Off for 1 More Day

2009-11-17T11:32:00.000-08:00

One of the favorite lines that I carry is by Sweet Pea. Their regular prices are already a great deal and they have been very sensitive to the economy this year with little or no price increases and frequent sales. They have a special that is running for one more day offering 20% off all of their regular and digital holiday cards, as well as holiday stickers and tags. After Wednesday, November 18th, they will go back to an already good 15% off until November 22nd.

Thanksgiving is around the corner and you will feel relieved to have purchased your cards by then, plus take advantage of savings. Sweet Peas has a special section of my website you can find here. Sweet Pea.

Whining With The Swine

2009-11-03T19:09:00.000-08:00

It started last Friday with a call from my 16 year old at school. "Mom, can you bring me some advil?" My son starts off most illnesses with a neck ache, and that is how it started and he wanted advil. I told him he needed to just come home, but with a football game that night, he said he would be fine if only he had some advil. I was anxious all day wondering what this meant since this boy complains about nothing. The next morning with a fever and hearing with swine flu you need to get the Tamiflu medicine within 48 hours, I did something I normally do not rush to do and took him to the doctor. With his fever, body aches, sore throat and general discomfort and fatigue, the doctor told us he most likely has the swine flu. He was told to stay home from school ALL WEEK, rest, eat well, and was given Tamiflu. Just so he could hear it from the doctor I had to ask, "does this mean he can't go to football practice all week too?" The next day his little brother posted on his facebook status "does not feel well." I ran upstairs to inquire about his "status" and that is how I found out he too was getting sick. So we have been housebound all week. From what I hear, the kids around here are dropping like flies. From our experience, this virus is not fun, but not the worst flu we have had. Besides one episode, there is not much nausea. Mostly a fever, body aches, a killer sore throat, cough, and chest congestion. The worst part is that it lasts so long. We were told it is contageous 1 day before, and 7 days after the first symptom. Things are looking up today as both boys have taken the first steps towards looking into homework they have missed.

Last night as I was going to bed my 16 year old said "thanks mom." I said, "for what?" He said, "for taking care of us while we've been sick, I love you." I think I slept with a smile plastered on my face.

Nest Candles Have Arrived!

2009-10-29T13:21:00.000-07:00

If only you could receive scents through the internet, then you would be lucky like me right now smelling the wonderful aroma of Nest Candles. This new product is a holiday pick for this season and comes in 4 wonderful scents-

Bamboo-Flowering bamboo is mingled with a variety of white florals, sparkling citrus, and fresh green accords

Moss and Mint-A touch of oak moss and vetiver infuses garden mint, apple blossom, and muguet

Grapefruit-Pink pomelo grapefruit and watery green nuances are blended with Lily of the Valley and Coriander Blossom

Holiday-Mandarin orange, cinnamon, cloves, pine and eucalyptus are combined to produce the perfect ambience for the holidays

The classy packaging and heavenly smells are reasons why these candles have been featured in Oprah, Lucky, Travel and Leisure, Town and Country and InStyle Magazines.

The Big-Ass Book Of Crafts

2009-10-21T19:39:00.000-07:00

Every year I have a contest where my savvy sales associates each select a new product they think will be a best seller during the holiday season. I will be introducing each of them in the next week. The winner gets a little bonus and a coveted trophy. We have a lot of fun with it and it is cut throat competition! The first item is this fun book- The Big Ass Book Of Crafts. This 384 page book is packed with ideas for sprucing up your living space; concocting fabulous, all-natural body products; designing your own unique stationery; and creating countless other crafts that will convince your friends and loved ones that you're the secret love child of Martha Stewart. It is written by Mark Montano of TLC's While You Were Out and would make a great gift under $20.

Please Say A Prayer For Ollie

2009-10-14T12:22:00.000-07:00

My nephew Oliver is going in for heart testing within the hour (Wed around 1pm) that is scary. We think Ollie has Angelman Syndrome which has left him developementally disabled since birth. He has led a relatively healthy life until the last month he has started having episodes which look like seizures. He is being tested for these in the photo below. These tests showed they are not seizures, so they are now focusing on his heart as the culprit for him going through episodes of not getting enough oxygen, turning blue, and have had him in the hospital for over 3 weeks. We hope the test today shows a valve in his heart had not closed properly and then they can immediately fix it. If this is not the case, then they are back to square one. Please say a little prayer for this sweet boy and his family who has been through so much with him. You can read more about Ollie on my sisters new blog Oh What A Life and also my Dad's Eight Summits.

Utensil Pot Clip On Sale Plus Free Gift With Purchase

2009-10-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

As I am adjusting my inventory getting ready for the holiday season, I am deeply discounting a few items I have too many of. One is the Utensil Pot Clip by Trudeau- regularly $8.50 plus shipping, now on sale for $5 plus free shipping! Also, if you place an order during October and mention the pot clip during checkout (look for comment section) I will send you one for free! Holiday cards ordered online are discounted 15% until October 31st, so it is a great time to get a great deal on holiday cards and a free pot clip to boot!

The Inventor of Stupid Clock Turns 16

2009-09-29T08:23:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my second child will be getting his license soon. Josh is turning 16 today and will take his driving test next Tuesday. Josh is the most low key, low maintenance child. He has told me repeatedly that he doesn't want or need anything for his birthday. He is quiet by nature, but we recently had fun remembering how this quiet low key kid knew how to get your attention when he wanted. When he was about 3-4 years old he got really mad at me for something and blurted out what in his mind was the equivalent of a 4 letter word. He called me a "stupid clock." We had no idea where this came from or what exactly he thought it meant, but my reaction was the same as if he said something far worse. Well this reaction unfortunately made that phrase stick with him, and whenever he felt like being particularly naughty, he would call people stupid clocks. Chelsea reminded me that once in the car he repeated it over and over and I sat there ignoring him. She yelled out "why aren't you stopping him!" I told her I was counting and that he was at 100! It is true this child is stubborn, but also a really great kid. Our family laughed for years at stupid clock and once for halloween his older cousin dressed up as a stupid clock. Another thing about Josh is that he has always loved playing with water. He used to pull a chair to the sink and run water through pots and pans endlessly (clothing optional). What started out as cleaning out a bowl this weekend I once again caught him playing in the sink at 16 years old and snapped a photo without him knowing. I loved seeing the little boy in him shining through.

at Benihana's celebrating his birthday

Jury Duty

2009-09-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

This week I was called in for jury duty for the first time in my life. I had a busy week and was dreading this, expecting to get out of it once I showed up. After a long jury selection process, I was selected as a juror for a 3-4 day case involving DUI. After being selected and resigning myself to the fact I had to put my other responsibilities aside, I started enjoying the process and being inside a real courtroom doing something important.

In a nutshell, the case went like this:

A 60 year old business owner and respected community member, not a heavy drinker, spent an evening of fun with friends and family at a hockey game that included social drinking. The problem was he probably literally had 1 too many, and although he thought he felt "fine", he drove home. He was pulled over on the freeway for speeding and was arrested after failing field sobriety tests and registering above the legal limit when given 4 different breath tests, the highest being just above a .10. His defense included a lot of scientific information about how the body handles alcohol and how the levels of it rise and fall in your system as you absorb and eliminate it into and out of your system over time. They contended that since his breath test was given a full 30 minutes after he was actually driving, that at the time he was driving his blood alcohol level was most likely below a .08. This was assuming his levels were rising and not falling, which was disputed by both sides. This was the heart of the defense, but they also tried to discredit the officer who pulled him over, and also blame his field sobriety test failures on fatigue and nerves.

Our jury believed there was enough evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to convict him. Our verdict was guilty. This guy seemed like a nice guy- a grandpa, had a nice family there supporting him, didn't seem to be someone who has a problem in general with alcohol, but he made a serious mistake that night that he will most likely regret for a long time.

After we came to our decision, our jury discussed how the case made us feel personally. We felt that the mistake he made is made by many people, admittedly some even on our panel. A social setting, you think you feel fine and decide you are ok to drive a car, but really, you are not. It made us all wonder how we actually feel at a .08 blood alcohol level and some said they were determined to figure out exactly what their own limits are by purchasing a personal breathalyzer to be sure. It may seem odd, but wouldn't be a bad idea to have this at your home when you entertain or carry in your car if you were meeting friends for an activity that involved alcohol at all. Sitting on a jury watching a seemingly normal guy humiliate himself opened my eyes to this. He was lucky no one was injured or killed so it could have been worse.

The bottom line is what we have heard over and over - Don't drink and drive.

Raccoon Visitors

2009-09-17T23:03:00.000-07:00

About 6 weeks ago my husband and I were awakened by the sound of an animal on our roof. We are used to hearing crows walking around in the morning but this was definitely a larger animal. We wondered what the heck they were doing and making quite a racket. It happened a few other times and my husband went outside to investigate to see a large raccoon on the roof of our 2 story house. It has been quiet ever since and we figured we had nothing more to worry about. Then our next door neighbor who has a window that looks out to our roof contacted us to take a look at their view.

We were shocked! It looked like a little meteor came down and blasted a hole in our roof. Believe it or not, we have 3 of these holes in our roof in different areas! They are not over attic space and we have investigated the attic and roof and it appears the animals are gone. We are curious what inspired this activity and not happy about our first estimate of $850 to fix the 3 holes. We are way overdue for a new roof but for now will patch it up, cut our trees way back so animals do not have access, and hope they don't come back. Not a fun way to spend money.

New Stationery Featuring Your Dog!

2009-09-15T12:09:00.000-07:00

We have just added 43 darling foldover notecards that features your dog on the card! Donovan Designs created these cute cards to offer personalized stationery for dog lovers. Check out all 43 breeds available, and until September 17th we are offering free shipping!

Cooper and Oliver Close Their Doors

2009-09-11T10:01:00.000-07:00

Almost 10 years ago, I went to the National Stationery Show for the first time. This is when I officially fell in love with stationery and the products surrounding owning a stationery and gift business. In May of 2000 I carefully chose the first products I would offer at my brand new business- Charming Cards. Cooper and Oliver holiday photo cards was one of my first picks. It turned out to be a great choice as I sold a ton of them my first holiday season. They offered unique watercolor designs and their book pages were laminated which stood out from the way other books show. I have faithfully sold their holiday cards every year with a few bumps along the way in the early years, but I stuck with them through some of their growing pains and they came back better than ever after one rough season.

Recently it occured to me that I hadn't heard from them about receiving their holiday updates this year and after researching for a few hours on the internet, I found they have closed up shop without a word! (to me at least). Their phone is discontinued, their website is down, no reply to emails, and finally I got confirmation from another retailer who had personally heard they closed their business.

Their designs were so different that I hope they pursued the option of selling the business or licensing the art. I have had several phone calls from shoppers online wondering why they can't buy their cards from my website anymore. I have to say that I hope all is well with them personally and the economy wasn't the main culprit. You get to know your vendors pretty well in this business, especially after a 10 year relationship. They will be missed and I wish them well.

(some Cooper and Oliver favorites)

Missing The Pee-Chee

2009-09-09T17:18:00.001-07:00

School supply shopping just isn't the same. Actually, I don't think when I was younger there was ever a trip to the store that was considered "school supply shopping". I think we used some of my Dad's pencils he brought home from work, threw a few Pee-Chees in the grocery cart, and possibly some paper or a spiral notebook of some kind, but I don't remember making a chore of it. Things have changed! My 7th grader came home rather exasperated from his first day of Jr High. He said after switching classes so many times, getting multiple lists and rules from 6 different teachers, and getting lost, he said that when that final bell rang, "I was as excited as I get on Christmas morning." He likes to be organized so the many supplies each class required seemed overwhelming to keep track of. I made it our mission to complete this task the same day so he could get a mental handle on what he needed and feel organized for day 2. So we headed off to Staples, along with 1/2 the other moms in our neighborhood to knock this off our todo list for the week. I ran into someone I knew in every isle and had to park our cart somewhere as it would not fit down the crowded the rows. It started out kinda fun, but after shuffling papers, crossing our lists off, asking for help many times, it got frustrating and exhausting. Toward the end I started just putting things in my cart I thought we might need that was on the one list we forgot at home, as I did not want to have to go back. Danny told me I was Michael Jackson shopping ("I'll take one of these, and one of those, and 3 of those, ..."). We got it done, came home and spent the next hour organizing and labeling it all.

The task paid off as today he headed off confidently to school and came home with a much better attitude about it all. I miss those Pee-Chee days!

Back to School

2009-09-07T09:07:00.000-07:00

Every year I can't wait for summer vacation to start, and by the end of the summer I can't wait for school to start. This is the first time in 12 years I will not have a child in elementary school which makes me feel kind of sad that chapter is closed forever. Today is the first day of 7th and 10th grade for my boys. We take a photo every year in front of the fireplace on the first day of school.

I have always laughed at this commercial!

30 Years Of Fun At The Beach

2009-09-02T21:41:00.000-07:00

I grew up just a few miles from Newport Beach, California and have really great memories of spending endless summers at the beach with my girlfriends. If you live in or around Newport, it is typical for your "group" to stake their territory at a particular street on the Newport Peninsula. My friends and I claimed 43rd street and spent every summer congregating there together.We have great memories about riding our bikes to 43rd , and then as we got older driving our cars there, every summer between 7th and 12th grades in the 70's and early 80's. These were good times. For my girlfriends 40th birthdays, I had this photo painted of us hanging out on the beach. I take my painting out every summer and have it set on plate stand in my family room signifying the fun of summer days.

For a few summers my family has rented a beach house on the Newport Peninsula which is where we are now. We are with my parents, siblings, and many cousins having fun in the sun the last week before school starts. This summer the beach house we are renting happens to be at the exact spot on 43rd where my friends and I hung out some 30+ years ago. It has brought back so many memories. My long time friend Tricia came down today to spend fun time together. I have known Tricia since the 4th grade when her mom made her invite me, the new girl, to her birthday party after she was impressed with how neat I kept my duffel bag at girl scout camp. (my family will laugh at this)

Here we are with our complete beach setup. In the late 1970's I can tell you 10 things that would be wrong with this photo, not in order of offense, but the major offense is bolded:

1. We are wearing 1 piece bathing suits.

2. We are associated with a pop-up shade device, like an umbrella on steroids.

3. Not only is one of my parents within a 100 yard radius of me, they are sitting under the pop up with me.

4. I am wearing sunscreen.

5. Both of us are wearing a hat of some sort.

6. You can' really see it, but we have used a big quilt to sit on that is quilted in the design of the American Flag. As cool as this is now, this could certainly ostrasize you in high school. (the large cute quilt part)

7. We are under a USC themed item. (my dad went to Stanford and he might have chose to sit 100 yards away from me in the 70's if I sat under this) - although his youngest child ended up being a Trojan so he got over it.

8. My bathing suit was bought along with hamburger meat and laundry detergent at Costco.

9. I am out of contacts so I wore my 12 year old prescription sunglasses that Tricia kindly declined to comment on, but other family members have told me how ugly they are. (I love the honesty of family and don't really care about this stuff anymore- I can see!)
10. We have a cooler on the sand. Depending on what this contained, it could have been accepted.

The great part is that in your 40's you just don't care about this stuff! But sitting today with my good friend it was hard not to think about it all as I looked out at the same ocean I looked at 30+ years ago. The thing that has changed most about this precious spot is me.

Leaving The Nest

2009-08-24T22:15:00.000-07:00

Well, after 18 years of raising a child and that distant talk about "when you go to college", it really happened. She left for college. Last week we packed her things and moved her to CU Boulder. I think the anticipation of moving her away was harder than actually leaving her there, but it was still hard.

Here we are in her dorm room working on getting it in top shape. She is still working on it and had me send more items from home like construction paper, glitter and white twinkle lights. I can't wait to see the finished product. She hit the jackpot with a darling roommate who seems to be a sweatheart.

She received a graduation gift we liked so much that I recently added it to Charming Cards called "The Naked Roommate." It is a great college student handbook very cleverly written with practical advice. I hope she was able to finish it because her leisure reading time is soon to go away!

Time Flies

2009-08-17T08:05:00.000-07:00

Oh the melancholy of the last week. Tomorrow we get on a plane to take our daughter, our first born, to college out of state. It has been a busy time lately making lists and shopping, along with work and the rest of the family. We made a few last minute stops yesterday at our local mall- South Coast Plaza, the mall I have gone to since I was 10. As my daughter and I hit our last few stores for basics like mascara and underwear, I took note of all the moms pushing strollers. It doesn't seem that long ago I was pushing one myself and it hit me how fast these last 18 years have gone by. I told Chelsea I vividly remember the first time I took her to the mall in a stroller facing forward. The stroller seat was positioned so the baby faces you when they are infants so you can keep a constant eye on them. It was a big day when I felt Chelsea was old enough that she could sit up and face forward and see everything coming her way. I told her yesterday that it was a mom's version of Disneyland for me that day. Chelsea loved being pushed around facing forward for the first time, and I loved all the oohs and ahhs I got from strangers at how cute that little girl was. And now, here I am, walking around with my adult child, getting ready to move her out. I know it is a cliche to say- but time flies.

A New Blog And Helping Our Birds Fly

2009-08-05T19:46:00.000-07:00

During the last year I have had so many thoughts about the whole college process- the college tours, applications, decisions, and now moving out of state for my daughter. I searched and found a lack of resources for Moms wanting to share ideas on the process so I started a new blog called And Off They Flew. I came up with the name from a combination of loving the 2 childhood books "The Best Nest" and "Are You My Mother". Both deal with mama birds and baby birds, making nests, leaving home, loving your home and the joy of being a Mother. Rather than inundate my Charming Cards blog readers with posts surrounding these topics, I created this new blog, but will occassionally blog about them here at my Charming Cards "nest". So if you have a child in high school or college, I hope you might find my new blog interesting as I try to share as many ideas as I can about applying to college, picking a college, moving to college, dorms, greek life, anything related to this transition. I am far from being a pro at this topic, but just sharing a Mothers thoughts and ideas as I go through the process myself for the first time. My Charming Cards blog will continue on as usual!

Everyday Promo Codes for Design Her Gals

2009-08-03T10:11:00.000-07:00

I just love the Design Her Gals products. These fun look-alike products are continually popular and they are always coming out with new designs and products. On almost any given day, there is a promo code good for purchases from their website. Once or twice a week they email dealers like me their latest promotion, and here at Charming Cards, we immediately post this promo code on our site. So if you are shopping for a Design Her Gal product- be sure to check first at Charming Cards to get the latest and greatest promo code and enter from our site!

Losing American Airlines Frequent Flier Miles

2009-08-01T09:09:00.000-07:00

Along with my daughter about to fly the coop, apparently my frequent fliers miles are flying away too! The last few weeks along with working, I have been busy helping my daughter get organized for her move in a few weeks to Colorado where she will be a freshman at CU Boulder. We are busy making lists, shopping in stores and online, all the while budgeting and carefully planning how to maximize credit card purchases and try and make the travel part of her college affordable. We have frequent flier accounts on American (2), Frontier and gain Marriott points for credit card purchases. My husband had wracked up many miles while working 27 years at a prior job that we save for bigger family trips and always make travel plans early so we can utilize these miles in lieu of paying for tickets. So in the midst of thinking I am being uber-organized with all of this stuff, my husband goes online to book tickets to his sister's wedding in Florida to find out that 240,000 American miles are poof-gone! Bottom line....if your account sits idle for 18 months, your miles quietly disintegrate. We both spent the better part of yesterday on the phone and online researching our options. If we can submit receipts for a purchase from one of American's partners during this time frame, they will reinstate them. While on our college tours this year, we rented 2 cars....but they were booked through Hotline.com which may negate this. We also signed up for Netflix and made online purchases at Office Depot, but we did not do this via the AA link which is stated in the fine print (and would have automatically given us the miles)...but we found paperwork on all of this and faxed it to American. As a last resort we can take their "challenge" which means getting an Citibank-Advantage credit card, and booking 2 round trip tickets of at least 750 miles and they will give us our miles back. Urghhhh!

So my tip for my readers is this....if you have frequent flier miles find out the rules about expirations and stay within their guidelines. As I said to my sister last night "here I am being all organized making lists, using certain miles, and saving others, all the while I have frequent flier miles dribbling out my ______"

Vacation

2009-07-18T14:19:00.000-07:00

We got home last night from a fabulous week vacation at Bass Lake, CA. What a fun week filled with outdoor activities including wakeboarding, tubing, cards, crafts, yummy food, happy hour, movies at night, a trip to Yosemite, and lots of laughter. This is our 3rd trip to Bass Lake together as a large group where my parents, siblings and most of our families all attend. Looking back at my photos, I am amazed at how my children have grown since our trip to the same cabin 4 years ago.

Bass Lake 2005

Bass Lake 2009

We had one scary night while we were there. At around 10pm we smelled smoke and the guys playing cards on the deck saw a glow on the lake and some commotion. We walked out to shore and over about 8 cabins to find this scene! A brand new cabin on the lake (85% complete) was fully engulfed in flames. Within a very short time it burned completely to the ground. I have never been so close to a fire like this and we were wondering if we would be evacuated since this cabin is nestled in trees and it seemed so easy to spread. But it was contained and no one was hurt. The likely cause is spontaneous combustion caused by painter's rags that were left on the deck.

The fire department came to our cabin the next day to get copies of our photos and video.

Vacations always go too fast, but the rest and fun memories rejuvenate me and carry me through until the next time.

Get organized for school with the momAgenda dayplanner-

2009-07-08T07:53:00.000-07:00

Just in! The 2009-2010 version of the momAgenda dayplanner ! It is geared toward the typical school year and runs from August 2009-December 2010. Along with calendar and scheduling features for mom and up to 4 kids, it includes a favorite websites section, space for notes on books, movies, fashion, and music, vacation and party planning pages. It is sylishly bound and comes in pink, brown, and lime.

Graduation

2009-06-26T06:52:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of end-of-the-school-year festivities including my daughter's high school graduation. It seems like the years from pre-school through high school passed in the blink of an eye. Her impending graduation prompted me to finally take in all of our home movies that were on video camera cassettes and have them put onto DVD's so we can finally view them easily. This has been fun for the whole family and I am so glad we took the time over the years to video tape some special times and even some normal routine days. Watching my children interact as toddlers and hearing their high pitched voices is priceless. When she was 12 we gave her a video camera for her birthday and she has loved looking back at skits she made up with her friends. They are pretty funny.

We leave Sunday for Colorado for a 2 day college orientation and I think it is really going to hit that she will be moving away soon. While this makes me sad, I am so excited for this next chapter for her and the fun she will have as a college student.

first day of preschool

I loved these graduation announcements by Jasmine and Woo. I stamped the envelopes with personalized postage using her senior picture.

I wish everyone an enjoyable summer and some fun family time. Dust off your video cameras and record some fun!

Graduation Gifts on Sale at Charming Cards

2009-06-17T20:42:00.000-07:00

If you are still looking for that perfect graduation gift, we have a few items left that have been popular and make great gifts. Graduation necklaces by Dogeared are sure to be a hit! They come in silver and gold and are currently discounted 30%.

The College Survival Kits are also popular and make a fun gift for a graduating guy or gal. They are also on sale.

I am off tomorrow to watch my 18 year old graduate high school and my 6th grader promote to Junior High. Between these festivities, my daughter turning 18, and my Dad returning from Everest, this month is flying by! I will be back on the blogosphere soon!

A View At The Top

2009-05-28T20:42:00.000-07:00

Today I finally got the visual image of my Dad on the summit of Mt. Everest. I think it is amazing! He talked of the terrible weather he encountered and I thought perhaps the summit photo would be blurred, or snowy. But as you see here it is a great photograph to capture the moment he fulfilled a dream that seamed out of reach. My Dad is a testament to determination and perserverance. We are so proud of him and can't wait until he comes home.

My Mom has been inundated with phone calls from the media and been on the news many times now. This link is the first interview she did, including a small unanticipated part from me.
http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-video-everest-climber,0,1688242.worldnowvideo

Party At The Top Of The World!

2009-05-23T10:23:00.000-07:00

He made it! After the longest day of my life, we found out last night at 11:15 pm that my dad, Bill Burke, became the oldest American to summit Mt Everest! Every minute seemed to take forever to tick by as we waited for any word at all. He is now at camp 4 resting and will proceed down the mountain tomorrow, when we will take a final sigh of relief. You can hear his emotional audio report at his blog. In celebration, I am having a one day sale today offering my readers 35% off anything on my website until midnight tonight!!!! Use the promo code EVEREST.
offer expires midnight 05/23/09

Pins and Needles

2009-05-20T19:30:00.000-07:00

My Dad is possibly just 2 days away from summiting Mt Everest. His family is so excited, yet so nervous. At 67 we think he would be the oldest American to summit and make it down safely. These next two days I have awaited, and also dreaded, since 2 years ago when he came just 100 verticle feet shy of the summit and we knew he would return to Everest until he achieved his goal. Last year was cut short due to illness, but this year so far he is super strong and so positive, which is just so him. His trip reports blog can be followed via http://www.eightsummits.com/pt/blog/. Please keep him in your prayers.

My parents have been married 47 years

Missing New York

2009-05-18T10:15:00.001-07:00

I am feeling like I just want Wednesday to get here so I will not be in the process of missing the National Stationery Show as I am right now. I go to this show every year and absolutely love it. Not only is it a fun trip to New York, but I love meeting with my vendors, finding new products, and gaining inspiration to continue to do my best for Charming Cards. I booked my hotel back in December and was looking forward for May to get here. But in the recent months it became very apparent to me that many of my larger vendors were skipping the show this year in light of the economy and the big expense it takes to participate as a vendor in the show. Even the big ones like Boatman Geller, Noteworthy, and PSA, just to name a few are staying home this year. I felt as much as I want to be there, I need to be financially savvy both for my business and my family and make a smart economic decision. So I am determined to do my own research via the web, local markets, and stores, to find new products and will diligently follow up with my existing vendors to get their latest and greatest. But getting all the "tweets" on twitter about those attending makes me so jealous that I am not there! I am already looking forward to next May...

To stay fresh and current, I have recently been adding many products including graduation announcements and gifts, fun chunky notepads, jewelry, and personalized ribbon stationery.

Kindergarten Anxiety

2009-05-17T05:00:00.000-07:00

Next month we have both a high school senior graduating and a 6th grader finishing elementary school. I am amazed at how fast these years have gone and wish they would slow down a bit. Our 6th grader is so excited to be moving on to Jr High School. Looking back, I can't help but reflect on the stark difference between starting and finishing elementary school for him as Kindergarten had a rough start. He loved pre-school and had no issue with going to school or separating from his parents. We expected an easy transition to Kindergarten like his 2 older siblings. The first day went ok, he wasn't thrilled as you can see in the picture below of us together in the classroom as the parents were about to leave. But the 2nd- 17th day of Kindergarten were TOUGH! He got to school and he started crying and wouldn't let go of me. The teacher had to pry him off me as he went howling into the classroom with all of the parents trying not to look. By the 4th day we decided this was too disruptive to the class and we started taking him to the front office where the office manager or nurse would pry his little fingers off me and let him cool off in the nurses office before he was ready to go to class (1/2 hour to 45 minutes). On more than one occassion I left in tears. We tried having his uncle walk him to school with his cousin, thinking he wouldn't do this in front of them. But as they walked onto the blacktop, my brother in law said he put his arm around Danny's neck and could feel his little heart beating so fast and understood this was true anxiety for Danny. This didn't work either. Finally after over 3 weeks of the nurses office routine, he was able to walk in with the rest of the class.

First grade this went on for just 1 week and was not as intense. When 2nd grade started and he showed the same anxiety, the teacher came up with a great plan to have Danny come to school 20 minutes before everyone else and "help" her with something. So for the first few weeks we went to school early and he helped her hang things on the wall, or staple packets, or whatever she could come up with. This worked great and when he felt confident enough he was able to walk in with the rest of the class. This anxiety shows up from time to time in other small ways, but I will never forget the drama and anxiety (for all of us) that first year of Kindergarten.

This week he had to write a poem for school about a fear he has conquered. This is what he wrote that brought tears to my eyes as I think of how far this little boy has come. Stuff like this makes parenthood so rewarding.

Overcoming School
by Danny

Overcoming my Kindergarten Fear
My kindergarten career
Starting off the new school
I always thought it was so cruel

I will dread that first day
But I must learn the way
I will be doing this for a long time
Completing it will be a big climb

The day finally comes
I wait and feel like crumbs
But I learn I have to do it
Something I’ll never quit

Now I wait for another new school
Now I feel like a fool
I am waiting anxiously for the day
Now a school day I won't want to go away

first day of Kindergarten

a sign of things to come...

Danny now- almost done with 6th grade

Design-Her-Gals Promo Code

2009-05-15T08:17:00.001-07:00

This weekend until May 18th at midnight save big on Design-her-Gals cool products for all of your graduation, fathers day and teacher gifts! This is a great sale!

Dancing With The Stars

2009-05-12T21:17:00.000-07:00

Monday I had a super fun, playing hookie kind of day. A friend of mine got tickets and invited me to the taping of Dancing With The Stars which is a show I enjoy. A group of 4 of us left Newport Beach, CA around noon for Los Angeles where it is taped. We sat in line on the sidewalk outside of CBS Studios for a few hours before we were led into the studio. While waiting in line the American Idol contestants pulled out of the studio lot in a van and waved at us which was kind of fun! Inside, the set is almost as pretty in person as it is on TV. Everyone is dressed up so it made us feel like we were at a special event. The stage seemed smaller than on TV but not by a lot. All of the 500 seats on the floor are VIP seats, so guests like us were seated in the balcony. We were right above the judges. We spent the preshow scanning the room for celebrities. We spotted Jon Cryer Brooke Burke, Dave the creepy neighbor on Desperate Housewives, Steve Wozniak, and Jewel was apparently below us but we couldn't see her. The hosts were classy and elegant, the orchestra was great, and the dancing was spectacular. I also loved the dancer's attire. It was fun to watch the reactions of the families of the dancers, all of which were right across from us. At one time, Melissa came out from backstage right before going on camera to bring her boyfriend a plate of food which was cute. I have been to several TV tapings over the years (including The Price is Right where I was a contestant at age 18)....this was probably the best. While Giles is a hotty, as a Bachelor fan, my vote is for Melissa.

me and some of my tall friends

Lucky Lucy

2009-05-05T20:05:00.000-07:00

We had a scare with our dog last night. We have 2 dogs- Lucy and Paris. My Dad for some reason refuses to call Lucy "Lucy" but instead calls her "Lucky".... he loves her. Lucy is a 13 year old Bichon Frise, and Paris is a 4 year old Yorkie. Lucy is pretty much blind and deaf, but I attribute part of her seemingly happy life to Paris. It has not always been this way. When Paris came along, Lucy was NOT happy. Lucy saw her as an outsider and spent the first few weeks of her sister's existence growling at this intruder. But after Paris pretty much claimed her stake as the princess of the dog world in our house ( as Yorkies do) , Lucy has bowed down to her and completely enjoys and begs for her company. If Lucy is outside without Paris, she whines at the door until we let Paris go out with her so Lucy can sniff and smell every step Paris takes. Well yesterday Lucy had vomited a few times and did not finish her food which is completely out of character for her. I didn't think a whole lot about it because she has had her share of bugs over the years that she quickly gets over. But last night my 15 year old called my attention to her circling and circling after being let in from outside. She couldn't walk a straight line and with her head leaning to the left she acted like she was chasing her tail, but it wasn't funny like that. I saw that her eyes were spastically twitching from side to side and she was out of balance and disoriented. Thanks to the internet, we found her exact symptoms under "Vesitibular Disease/Syndrome". The range of concern varied from a mild (will correct itself in a few weeks) to severe ( cancer, tumor, bad news). We took her this morning to find out that her case is mild compared to others who can't get up on all fours, and her blood work is great. The vet said a neuron in her brain most likely misfired, or missed it's connection (or something like that) and will take some time to recover, but she should be ok. They are keeping her until she can keep food down, but we are hopeful. In the meantime we know that Paris, who misses her sister, is certain (as she saw me throught the window carry her to the car) that she is on all expense paid vacation filled with endless treats, walks, and attention, but is starting to wonder.

New Dogeared Jewelry On Sale!

2009-04-17T08:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we received a big shipment of some great new Dogeared jewelry. For the weekend, I am offering 20% off all jewelry! There are some adorable things for Mothers Day as well as graduation.

Offer expires Midnight, April 19th.

Learning To Drive

2009-04-15T19:40:00.000-07:00

My 15 year old got his driver's training permit last week which is both exciting and scary at the same time. For the next 6 months before he turns 16, he is allowed to practive driving with someone over 25 in the car (us). In the last week as we have driven together, I have been reminded of a big perk that goes along with this that I enjoyed when my daughter was learning to drive- It is great 1 on 1 time with your teenager. I have found a trend during teenage years as far as them wanting to spend time with their parents. The curve is in the shape of a U. As an early teen they still don't mind hanging with you (ages 13, early 14). Ages 15-16 it takes a sharp dive and you are pretty much the rule enforcer and seen as limiting their fun. A few years ago on my daughter's cell phone contact list I saw for me she had listed "The General" (instead of Mom). But at age 17 she is pretty cool to have around and seems to enjoy our company again.... So back to driving-my son is 15 and we are the bottom of the U. Between school, sports, and friends, we get little grunts as far as how his day went and little spurts of communication. But suddenly he wants to be with us because we have THE KEYS! I love this time with him that he actually requests! This 1 on 1 time in the car I find him talkative and outgoing. Of course the downside is HE DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO DRIVE! He is actually pretty good for a beginner, but as an admitted back seat driver, it is a white knuckling experience, but worth it.

An April Fools Story and a Promo Code for You!

2009-04-03T08:25:00.000-07:00

A few days before April 1st I warned my 12 year old that I was going to get him on April Fools day. He has a funny personality and can appreciate a good laugh. He ended up staying home sick from school on April 1st which worked nicely into my impromptu plan to fool him as he probably didn't even realize the date. To preface it- he is very excited about going into Jr High next year and recently turned in a form that indicated his preferences for his elective class next year that he put a lot of time into deciding. I was chatting online with my mom and asked her to call me. Danny was behind me on the couch and my call went like this:

"Hello".....

"This is she"....

"Yes, he is home sick today"....

"He turned in his elective form last week"......

"No, I was not aware there was a meeting today about it, but he chose Spanish or Journalism"....

"How can they be full already?"..........

"So just because we missed the meeting today, he can't get those classes?"........

"He has to be put into WHAT class- I didn't even know YOGA was an option" I then turn to Danny "Danny, did you see Yoga as an option ?" Danny replies "NO, IT WAS NOT ON THE SHEET!" (agitated, big eyes)

"Well, there must be something we can do, can I talk to the principal?".....

"Well is it boys and girls?...hmmm mostly girls"...

"And he has to wear WHAT?...He will not want to wear tights!"....

At this point Danny is yelling at me "HANG UP! HANG UP THE PHONE!" My mom was on the other end laughing hysterically as I hung up, turned to Danny and said " APRIL FOOLS!"

And this is no joke... I am doing another cool promo today- 30% off everything until Midnight tonight 04/04/09.

Use the promo code APRILFOOL

Charming Cards Adds Olivia Mullin Stationery

2009-04-02T21:13:00.000-07:00

I have spent the evening adding some new products by Olivia Mullin that I am really excited about. I carry a variety of stationery, from high end to discount and I find I have many shoppers nowadays looking for deals. Olivia Mullin has some personalized notecards that I think will be a hit for their darling designs and awesome price point. At just 90 cents per card, this set of 20 personalized notecards is sure to be a hit.

As One Countdown Ends, Another Begins

2009-04-01T14:56:00.000-07:00

Well last night was lift off for my Dad's trip to Nepal to start his Mt. Everest Expedition. He has prepared long and hard for this 3rd attempt to summit, now at age 67. It was hard to say good-bye to him, as our family is very close and we will not see him again until early June. Last year's trip was cut short before he reached Base Camp due to a virus he caught (probably on the plane as the seat next to him was blocked off and marked "dirty"), but the year before he made it to just 200 meters shy of the summit before he had to turn around to safely make it down. The days surrounding summit day are nail biting, both exciting and scary. I am dreading the scary part of it but he feels fit physically and mentally for this trip and is confident the third time will be the charm. You can follow his journey via his blog at http://www.eightsummits.com/.

at LAX ready to depart

The Musical Fountain of Youth

2009-03-26T08:07:00.000-07:00

When I was in high school I loved attending concerts with my friends. I had a bulletin board in my room with all of my ticket stubs on it, that I wish so much I hadn't tossed along the way. In the years after college when I was working for a CPA firm, getting married, and having children, I stopped doing this and kind of forgot about how fun it was. Well about 5 years ago I heard Tom Petty and Heartbreakers were touring, and being a big fan in high school, I got tickets and went. I was hooked again! Since then I have seen The Steve Miller Band (several times), Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Elton John, The Rolling Stones (twice), Tom Petty every year, Journey, Bob Dylan with my Dad, Crosby, Stills & Nash (with Young once), Chicago, Jackson Brown, and in my 40's I finally had a coveted back stage pass to see (and meet) The Doobie Brothers. There is something about the music from our youth that can take you back in time. (especially if the band sounds the same). I have found these events to be so much fun. I think everytime I would tell my Mom in the last years I was going to a concert she kind of wondered what I enjoyed about it. If it was part of a mid-life crisis, I really didn't care! Well, she and my Dad went last weekend to see Paul Anka who was a teen heartthrob when she was young. The next day she called to tell me that it was GREAT! My Dad sent an email to the family titled 65 going on 16 that said:

"At the end of a wonderful performance, Paul Anka asked the "all senior" audience to come down to the stage. I looked over and Sharon was gone. I saw her running down the aisle toward the stage, waving for me to follow. So, I did. It was so cute seeing her standing at the stage holding her hand out, trying to touch her teen idol.

The scene reminded me of a photo Sharon showed me after I met her in high school. She was standing with her best friend, Sydney, in front of the Cornell Theatre in Burbank, all of 13-years old. Sharon and Sydney had been waiting in line since 6 am to see Elvis's first movie "Love Me Tender." They were each wearing pants they had made just for the occasion. The pants were black with pink felt lettering running down each leg. The letters on one leg spelled "Elvis," and the letters on the other leg spelled "Presley." I'll never forget that photo.

I will also never forget the image of her at the stage last Saturday night, just being a kid again. I got a bit teary-eyed seeing this, and still do when I think about it. Paul Anka choked up too, and could hardly hold back his tears. These are the childhood memories that we cherish in our gray hairs."

She is in Las Vegas this weekend seeing Donny and Marie with a group of high school friends for her birthday. She gets it!

Blame it on the Cleaning Lady

2009-03-25T08:18:00.000-07:00

If your home is anything like mine now, or even the home I grew up in- the cleaning lady/housekeeper unknowingly is given the blame for lots of things. Growing up we had a weekly housekeeper named Mary that was practically part of the family. My Mom still says she is the best housekeeper she has ever had. But even with the highest of accolades and fond feelings for Mary, if anything was ever misplaced or lost, the first thing any of us would say is "where did Mary put my ______?" Most of the time it wasn't her fault but it is tempting to blame the outsider who has an inside to your stuff. We do the same thing to our current housekeeper -Veronica. She has been with us for 18 years, and has stuck with me during times like now when I have to cut back on her schedule. She is usually the one who can find things for me, but doesn't know that when she is not here and someone can't find something they blame it on her. Last night took the cake. I went to bed laughing at what she was accused of. As I was going to bed with a clean house (oh happy day) my 12 year old yelled from his room... "Mom, my Snuggie has a hole in it...I think it was Veronica." I told him he was crazy and the Snuggie is made cheaply overseas. Then my imagination got the best of me as I giggled to myself thinking of how Veronica could have put a hole in the Snuggie. With the help of my sister, I recreated a few thoughts to share.....

vacuuming?

a little too much elbow grease using it to dust?

using it to efficiently clean large areas of the floor?
(like making a snow angel)

or perhaps while making the bed she was so comfy
in it that she fell asleep (like Goldilocks)

My conclusion is - What was he thinking?!! But we were laughing so hard taking these photos that you may hear more from me in the future about improbable uses for the Snuggie.

Design-Her-Gals Promo Code for 30% Discount

2009-03-24T20:02:00.000-07:00

My customers just love the Design-Her-Gals look alike products that they design themselves so I can't resist sharing some of their awesome promo codes they keep sending out. Until midnight on Monday, March 30th, all Design-Her-Gals products are 30% off! At the Design-Her-Gals website, use the promo code SPRING09 for 30% off everything!

The Fun of Childhood Birthdays

2009-03-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

Observing my son this weekend on his 12th birthday brought back memories of the days when you just LOVED your birthday. From the moment he woke up he had a happy look on his face, almost in disbelief that the day had actually come. While opening his presents he smiled continuously ear to ear. One of the joys of being a parent is seeing your child experience special moments that can be just as enjoyable as when we experienced them ourselves. He opted not to have a party but just his cousins over for cake and ice cream after dinner. One of his favorite gifts was a Snuggie from his cousins! Christmas and birthdays this last year have been smaller and simpler and I am happy to say nothing has been lost.

Charming Card Sale Just for my Blog Readers

2009-03-17T00:02:00.000-07:00

These days with the bad economy I love a good deal anytime I can find one. I decided that today, March 17th I am offering a one day promotion that I am only advertising via my blog to offer my blog readers a great deal. Use the Promo Code Leprechan for 40% off your purchase of ANYTHING today only! Check out my new Toss Bags- you won't find them at a better price today! It's my way of saying thank you!

Told Ya So

2009-03-15T17:24:00.000-07:00

Every year our elementary school puts on a school play in March that is a wonderful opportunity for children to perform in a play, maybe just this one time in their life. It is for 5th and 6th grade only and my older 2 had fun performing in Peter Pan (Wendy) and Grease (Kenickie). My youngest is in 6th grade and did not want to participate because it was "too much work". But I made him audition for "Seussical" last November. He got a medium sized role as a Wikersham Brother which is one of a pack of rowdy monkeys. He complained about the many rehearsals in December and January, but stopped complaining in February. As March drew near and the play was coming together, I could tell he was really getting excited. "Tech Week" is the week of the play and the rehearsal schedule is intense with practices until 9pm. All of the teachers cooperate and thankfully gave no homework last week. Even when Danny's group was allowed to go home during tech week, he opted to stay and watch the other cast. The real show was Friday night and today, and he is still at the theatre now handing out programs and working the lights for the alternate cast. He can't get enough of it. I had to ask him this week in the most non-chalant way I could "aren't you glad I made you try out?" He conceded it has been a blast and even admitted he wished he tried harder in the audition to get a bigger part. Here he is "monkeying around" on stage. (front left)

New Whitney English Designer File Folders

2009-03-04T21:17:00.000-08:00

Hot off the press! One of our best selling items in 2009 has been decorative file folders to help everyone get fashionably organized in the new year. Whitney English has introduced these 4 new designs that I know will be a hit. Check out the many designer file folders currently offered at Charming Cards!

Charming Cards Hosted Academy Awards Party

2009-02-23T07:25:00.000-08:00

Every year I host an Oscar Party to watch the Academy Awards with family and friends. With the luxury of Tivo, we pause often to play Oscar themed games and quizzes and of course award the winners with Charming Cards products. We start with the red carpet of course...

Lots of balloons, candles, oscar trophies and decorations make it festive. Guests are immediately served a glass of champagne when they enter.

Lots of food too... I sometimes try to serve food and drinks themed around a nominated movie.

We have a grand prize winner for the person who correctly guesses the most Academy Award winners, and a booby prize for the least. This year my friend Cathy got 20 winners correct!

A Special Valentine's Day Complete With Pixie Dust

2009-02-16T17:48:00.000-08:00

Our Valentine's Day became extra special when we got a call from my sister-in-law Michele. Michele lives in Florida and has worked for Disney for many years which has been a great career for her. She says she is an employee who still has "pixie dust"- meaning she truly thinks all things Disney are magical. She loves her job. Michele has dated Rick, (who also works for Disney) for 22 years, but they never took the plunge and got married. They have been happy with their life together and enjoy their dogs, spending time at their beach house, and taking some amazing trips together. Rick is a great guy and we have always considered him part of the family. On Valentine's Day he completely surprised Michele, and took her - where else?- to the Magic Kingdom in front of Cinderella's Castle and popped the question. She is beside herself with excitement and we are so excited for them. They had a bystander snap this photo.

Celebrating 19 Years

2009-02-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

Today is my 19th wedding anniversary. That sounds so long. I met Jeff about 22 years ago when he was one of my neighbors in an apartment complex not far from where we live now. He was the guy from Jersey who still uses weird words like "worsh your hands", still calls pizza a "pie", says the word "mozarella" with such a strong roll of the tongue on the L it sounds like he just got off the boat, and for the life of him cannot say the word "Hugh." Danny has a friend named Hugh - but to Jeff he is "You". I like that he still has traces of an accent. Jeff is a great cook , a wonderful Dad, and has been a great husband the last 19 years. I remember 2 pieces of advice that have helped over the years...one from a cousin who told me before we got married - "Don't expect your spouse to change now that you're married. Embrace who you both are." And my sister once reminded me that marriage is made of peaks and valleys..."when you are in a valley remember there is a peak up ahead." I have reflected back at this advice at times over the years. We normally watch our wedding video with our kids on this day and light our anniversary candle, but we no longer have a working VHS player and need to convert it to a DVD before it gets too old to do this. So we will go out for a quiet dinner and hopefully do something extra special next year on the 20th.

Three Designing Women Notecards and Wine Tags on Sale

2009-02-09T08:27:00.000-08:00

January was a month for me to take a breather after the busy holidays, but we are back in action here at Charming Cards getting ready to add new products and get back into the swing of things. There are some good sales going on with some popular products. One of them is the imprintable notecards and wine tags by Three Designing Women. The personalized self inking stamps by Three Designing Women are one of my continual best sellers and the notecards are a great compliment to this product. Some styles are discounted 50%- limited quantities at this price.

Go Buffs!

2009-01-29T09:17:00.000-08:00

We were so excited this weekend to find out our daughter was accepted to CU Boulder! The college application process is daunting and nothing like I remember it. This year is supposed to be the hardest year ever to get into college due to supply and demand. Over 25 years ago I effortlessly was accepted by UCLA and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where I graduated from with a degree in accounting. Now schools that used to be a shoe-in have extremely high gpa requirements because the applicant pool is so thick. This makes the pressure on gpa, essays, recommendations, and test scores all the more crucial. We are now navigating the financial aid process and our daughter is daily applying for scholarships through Fastweb. I already get teary thinking of her moving away in August but we are so proud of her and excited that her hard work has paid off. On most of her applications she had to pick a person who had a signicant influence in her life and she picked my Dad, her Papa. You can see why by visiting his website http://www.eightsummits.com/ and read about his plans for his 3rd attempt to be the oldest American to summit Mt Everest this spring.

Design-Her Gals Promo Code -Inauguration Weekend Special

2009-01-16T19:48:00.000-08:00

After the holidays I get many orders for stationery to use for thank you notes for all of those wonderful holiday gifts. Design-Her Gals has a great weekend promotion on this fun Look-Alike stationery.

Dressing for Formal

2009-01-12T08:35:00.000-08:00

This last weekend my freshman and senior children both went to the high school Winter Formal dance. The differences in dressing a boy and a girl for this type of event is pretty significant in our house. It is a girl ask guy dance and our son was asked in November by darling friend of his. I said to him, "I think you will need to wear a tux to that dance." His reply was, "no Mom, I GET to wear a tux to that dance." And I then remembered the only other time he wore a tux. It was 10 years ago when he was 5 at my sister's wedding. He so enjoyed getting dressed up that this is how we found him in his room the morning after the wedding- he got up and put the tux back on!
So we easily picked a tux at a rental shop and he was good to go for the dance and very happy about his duds.

Our daughter on the other hand has a lot of trouble picking out dresses for formals. (generally buying clothes at all).. We had shopped at many stores the last few weeks until she resigned herself that she could borrow from a friend a used dress that was better than anything we could find. So all week she was deciding between 3 borrowed dresses she had in her closet on loan from a friend. Until Friday night, the night before the dance she said she found a dress at a local boutique she liked the best. So we went down and bought it (on sale but expensive). The next morning she shared with me she was not so sure about the dress and would rather save the money and borrow. So we went back to return the dress only to find out all sale items are final. So she was back to the new dress. Then at 4pm the day of the dance she ran out and came back with yet another borrowed dress and said she would sell the new dress on Ebay and wanted to wear the borrowed dress. I bit my tongue and agreed, and she wore the borrowed dress you see below. .....

(brother and sister before meeting up with their dates)

(back/"other side" of dress)

Then at the pre-party that the parents attend she said "Mom, look".... and she showed me the front of the dress had something bugging her skin on the inside.....it was the tag! After shopping, borrowing, buying, borrowing, she ended up wearing her dress backward to Winter Formal!

Toss Bags Win The Contest!

2009-01-08T09:20:00.000-08:00

Back in October I announced a contest on my blog for readers to select their choice for our most profitable new product. The new products for the contest were either the pot clip, the reusable shopping bags, or the Toss Bags. The Toss bags won hands-down and the winner of the contest (selected randomly from those who guessed correctly) is "Just the Sous Chef" who wrote "All are really great ... for their own purposes. First I said the pot clip but ... I think I have to go with the weekender! The perfect size that is so hard time find in fashionable style!" She will receive $100 certificate to use on anything at Charming Cards. All Toss Bags are currently on sale and new fabulous designs are coming out soon so check back for the latest and greatest in Toss Bags! Our sales associate Mary Ann selected this product and will be recognized at our January luncheon celebrating another successful holiday season.

Bad experiences purchasing the "Snuggie" blanket

2009-01-02T00:30:00.000-08:00

I wrote in a December blog my experience purchasing an item off an infomercial- well I have another related story to warn you to beware! It came up last night at a family gift exchange that my Dad and sister had very bad experiences attempting to purchase the "Snuggie" blanket. The Snuggie is featured in an infomercial as a very funky blanket to keep you cozy and warm with arm holes so your hands are free to move around. The commercial was played over and over in December and is hard to miss. Very strange, but apparently popular. Both my Dad and sister thought this would be a good item for our $25 adult gift (stealing) exchange. After an extremely long phone call earlier in December trying to purchase this item, the transaction seemed to go through, but the total dollar amount is never mentioned during the automated call. They keep you on the phone a long time asking questions about other offers and make it unclear if your order is finished unless you go through and reject all the offers. As it turns out- days later my Dad got an email indicating the Snuggie would be delivered in 6 weeks and the total was $110! This is a $19.95 item, but they offer you another one for "free"... but free is not really free and you are charged a separate handling fee on the "free" one. Then while asking which colors you want, my Dad thinks by selecting a separate color for the 2nd blanket, he was actually deemed as making another order for another set. On top of this he was charged over $30 for shipping (in addition to the $7.95 per item processing fee). He was unsuccessful in reaching a real person when attempting to cancel the order so he sent a letter indicating his cancellation and intention to dispute any charge with his credit card company. My sister is still at the cancellation stage so she is not sure of the depth of her problem yet. I looked this up online and found many people with similar complaints and the company seems to operate completely unethically and unprofessionally with no customer service. My comfy Target blanket will do just fine!

Birthday Blogging

2008-12-30T13:35:00.000-08:00

Today is my birthday and it has been a good one so far. While a birthday so close to Christmas is not ideal, I remember when I was younger I loved having a December birthday that made me somewhat older for my grade. I have a tight group of girlfriends that have been close since elementary school and 3 of us have December birthdays. We were the first ones to become teenagers, get our license, become adults..... but after hitting 21 that glory has sure worn off! Now we are the first ones to hit those big milestone birthdays, or just get a year older faster than everyone else. But I tell myself every birthday that if I am lucky enough to have many years ahead of me, I will one day look back at this age and think of it as young. Old is relative and you are only as old as you feel. Do you ever look in the mirror and think "who are you and what did you do with that teenager?" The years seem to go by faster and faster and I sometimes want time to stand still. I want to revel in this time where I have 3 children living under this roof, and have items in the house like a new bench press, video games, cute shoes that aren't mine, or finding all the product bottles in the shower knocked over because someone was shower-bowling. My husband and sons took me to breakfast this morning (daughter home sick) where we took this photo.
I look forward to dinner tonight with my parents, all 3 siblings and spouses at a local great restaurant that has been a tradition now for over 20 years on my birthday. Happy New Year to everyone!