Super Bowl Sunday

My friend Julie just blogged about how important a witty title is to attract the interest of potential readers.  Clearly, this week I am not trying to attract anyone new.  I’m either writing for current followers or for those who just love the painfully obvious, what with clever titles like ‘Handy Manny Cake’ or ‘Lilly’s First Haircut’ floating about.  Pardon my Super Bowl Sunday thing.  Duh. 

A side effect of NaBloPoMo is that my titles suffer.

So aside from the obvious, we’re not doing much.  I’m making some yummy snacks and using the prize pack I won from my friend Mary and Old El Paso.  I’m a big football fan so this Tackle The Taste package is right up my alley, and green chilies – yum. 

And the big game, of course.  I’ll be watching here:

No, that’s not a movie theater, or a high school gymnasium.  It’s actually our family room, and my husband’s new, embarrassingly large television.  It’s like 400 inches wide or something, just so that no one has any doubts about who the smart one is in this house.  Me with the books, him with the barcalounger and remote.

You decide.

He ordered the projector from China – bought it on ebay.  It’s apparently 1/20th of the price that way.  I’m a firm believer that you get what you pay for, but him notsomuch.  This contraption arrived Friday evening, and he spent the entire weekend re-arranging, building, re-wiring, mounting, and hanging it all up, just to be ready for game day.

Too bad we don’t care about either team.

But hey, at least I’ll have a comfy spot to eat my chips and guac, right?  And it’s almost as great as being in Miami, since the players will appear pretty much life-sized in front of us.

Not that I’m bitter about the whole big dumb stupid ridiculous absurd tv thing.  Not at all.

Happy game day!

Fa-la-la-la free

I am going to tell you something that will make you pea-green with envy.

I have my Christmas cards done already.

Completely.  Photo taken, design chosen, cards ordered, envelopes stamped – totally ready.  And if you have a calendar handy you might notice that Thanksgiving is still a week away.

Impressive, right?

At least something about me should be super-organized.  Back in my pre-kids days I was always this prompt, but now it’s nothing short of a miracle.

I’m not just bragging though – I’m here to help.

Wanna know the secret for my motivation?

Free. Stuff.

Sucks me in every time.

I got our Christmas cards totally free this year.  And they aren’t chinsy, paper-thin, paint-by-numbers done by a handless artist with their feet, either (anyone else remember those cards?)

These are the real deal, 5×7 glossy photo cards, designed completely by yours truly.  The kind I paid over a hundred dollars for last year.  (I can say this here because my husband doesn’t read my blog.  If he knew how much Christmas cards cost, you’d all be getting an email greeting from us.  He doesn’t love you like I do, friends.)

Wanna hear the best part?  You can get yours free too.

Check this out:

Use the site to order 50 cards of your choice, 4×8 OR 5×7, and enter promo code ‘newbaby’ at checkout. Voila!  Free cards, AND free shipping.  And they’re fast, too.  I placed my order at 2 am, received shipping notice at 9 am, and the cards arrived via FedEx the next day.  What more could you ask for?

More cards you say?  Ok, I can do that.  You can also use promo code ‘freebies4mom-1109′ for 50 free 4×8 cards. 

Want even more?  (Greedy!)

Ok, how about 100 free prints?  If this is your first time using the new Fuji site, you will get a code good for 100 free prints when you place your first order.  And yes, the free cards count as that order!  You’ll have to pony up a couple of bucks for shipping on these, but they’re still a great deal.

Ok, ok – one more thing.  Right after free stuff comes my love of a great sale. Like this one:

But pay attention, because that awesome 50% off sale is only good for 2 days, this coming Sunday and Monday.

Now how’s that for an early Christmas present?

You’re welcome.

Oh, and I’d love to share our Christmas card here, but since most of you are probably already on my mailing list, I hate to ruin the surprise.  (Since I know you’re sitting there in suspense, wondering what our Christmas card will be this year.)

*And now the annoying blurb, to keep from going to FCC prison.  Fuji did not ask me to write this, or bribe me, or threaten me with bodily harm.  They did give me free photos, just like they will do for you.  They don’t know I am writing this.  I wrote it just ’cause I’m cool like that, and I like to share a good bargain.  And if you click this link from my site, I will get a huge fat paycheck from Fuji, which will allow my family to take that lavish transatlantic cruise we’ve always dreamed about.  Oh wait, that’s not true.  But I might get a dollar. Which is also cool.

-Some of you are reporting that you’re not receiving free shipping.  I’m really sorry – I don’t know why that would be!  I used code ‘newbaby’ and was not charged a penny.  If the promo has changed I do apologize, but it seems to still be working on my end.  Even if you have to pay shipping, I still think this is a good deal.

Second, note that the free cards promo ends on 11/30, so order soon!

And lastly, Monday 11/23 is your last chance to order photo gifts for 50% off.  Happy shopping!

Old Navy giveaway!

Hey y’all, check this out:

From Dates to Diapers is giving away NINE $65 off a $100 purchase coupons to Old Navy!  Get the scoop here: http://tinyurl.com/nhmjja.

Also be sure to check out www.OldNavyWeekly.com for more chances to win coupons.  Some are huge, like $75 off a $100 purchase, and others are smaller, like 15% off your entire purchase.  But in my book, any savings is good!

Enjoy, and good luck with your entries!

And the winners are…

Jo, Michelle, and Tracy.  Congratulations ladies!  I will email you shortly with the scoop on how to get your cards.  Thank you everyone for entering!

Frugality via credit card? yup.

First off, thanks so much to Darcie at Such the Spot for referring me to this great promo!

I am a Discover Card holder.  In fact, Discover was the first credit card I ever had.  Got it shortly after getting my own apartment in college, and I had a whopping $500 credit limit.  That was back when $500 seemed like a lot of money.  Now I long for the days of only being indebted for $500…but I digress.

So anyway, Discover Card.  They’ve been great over the years for a lot of reasons.  1 – They were the only credit card accepted at Sam’s Club, which was great for big purchases.  2 – They have great customer service, and have never hiked my interest rate or done anything remotely shady.  I have zero complaints, and I think that’s pretty rare for a credit card company these days.  and 3 – the ShopDiscover program.  This is so. cool.

I was leery at first, because I got a phone call about it, and my natural instinct is to reject and quickly hang up on all calls of that nature. But this actually does save money, and I love me a good bargain. You log into Discover and then click through to a participating retailer, and you get 5-20% cash back.  Two of my faves? Hotwire.com, my absolute favorite place to get rental car deals for Disney, is now participating! And ProFlowers.com is a participating retailer as well, offering 20% back!  They have seriously low flower prices, so low that even a cheapie like me will order from them just for fun, and now I can get 20% back when I do it.  Woot!

If you don’t already have a Discover card, check them out.  I couldn’t be happier with mine!

This is my entry into the ShopDiscover gift card giveaway promo. Yes, I am trying to win something. No, I didn’t make anything up in order to do it. Promise.

Custom Card Giveaway!

I can hardly believe it, but next week my little Catiebug will be 4.  It’s strange because in some ways she seems older – she’s got such a big personality, it seems like she’s been here a lot longer.  But it also seems like it was just yesterday she was snuggled up in her baby blanket, laying beside me and – oh wait.  That was yesterday.  But you get the point.

Anyway, it’s been such a busy time here lately I really hadn’t thought much about her party yet.  But then I got a reminder email from my favorite invitation spot, which I was so excited about!  (Yes, little things like that really do make my day.  I’m a simple girl.)  How easy, yet how genius is it to send out a reminder like that?  Perfect timing too of course, since they know when I ordered last year.

There are hundreds of card designs to choose from, so we looked through all of the girly birthday ones.  The search was over when we found this little beauty though – how perfect for my little bug!

The personalization is awesome too – I did these myself in a matter of minutes!  You have two options for getting the actual cards.  You can purchase a jpeg download and print them out yourself, or you can order them directly from the company.  What’s awesome about the direct order is that you don’t have to wait for the cards to arrive in the mail.  They are sent to the closest photo shop in your zip code!  (From my house that could be Walgreens or Wal-Mart.)  So even when you order them printed, you can have them very quickly.  A last-minute mom like me loves that!

I discovered these great cards last year, also for Catie’s birthday, when I was searching for Strawberry Shortcake themed invites.  Check these out:

And if you love matchy-matchy like I do, you will love that every card on their site has a matching thank-you!

Even cooler, you can get a ton of matching party favors like play-doh wrappers, crayon or bubble wrappers, treat bags, coloring books, edible images for cakes, & much more!

I know I sound like an advertisement, and I suppose that I am, but I am not being paid or receiving anything for free to write this!  I purchased our invitations out of my own pocket, happily.  I am writing this because I use the company, I love them, recommend them, and believe in giving good service its due reward.  Beyond that, though, I knew you would love these too, and I wanted to share the wealth.  I wrote and and asked if they would be willing to donate a design for a giveaway, and lucky you, dear readers, they said yes!  And yes in a big way too, because they are donating not one but three invitations!  So 3 lucky readers will win their choice of design! Woo-hoo!  Cool product and they are generous.  Smart marketing to know the power of a happy mom blogger!

Now you may have noticed I’ve been holding out on the big reveal.  Didn’t want to lose you too soon, because I knew when you saw this awesome website you’d be gone for hours checking out all of the designs.

So now that you have the scoop, go to uPRINT Invitations, pick a favorite, and return to tell me which design tickles your fancy.  If you really want to win, I’ll even give you an extra entry for posting about this giveaway on Twitter, Facebook, or your own blog (and let me know what you did).  Tweet @hopelessnflawed.  Contest will end at midnight EST on Sunday June 14.  Catie will choose the winner by random (ok, by random.org – but I’ll let her do the typing) on Monday morning – her birthday.

Good luck!

And the winners are…

Cindy & Soliloquy!  Congratulations ladies!  I will be in touch soon with information about how to download the ebook!

You Can Make This Giveaway

So here it is, the crafty giveaway I promised you.  I know I was supposed to deliver this yesterday, but when I posted I forgot that it was a holiday weekend.  Please pardon my tardiness.  I think the cool factor is worth the wait!

So last year I found a new project that I love to make.  I made these name pillows for my neice:

my nephews:

and all three of my daughters:

for Christmas.  I even made one for the Angel Tree child we shopped for:

I have since sold these in local boutiques, given them as gifts, and made them for friends. 

They are always a huge hit!  They are especially unique because they can be personalized to match the child’s room (as I did for my girls):

You can also use their favorite character, sports team, etc.  And they are the ultimate present for a child whose name isn’t common.  (Don’t we all remember looking through those plastic bike license plates?)

Even better than that, they are honest-to-goodness easy to make.  I promise!  You do not have to have any special equipment or sewing knowledge to make this pillow.  The instructions are easy to read, very clear, and detailed enough that you will not feel lost.

The cost of the project will vary depending on the finishes you choose, but I know you can do these for under $10 per pillow if you buy inexpensive fabric.  An easy and economical project! 

In the interest of honesty, I have to tell you that I was asked to review this item for a giveaway.  However, you should also know that when asked I was able to tell them that I did not need their free instructions to try the pattern out, because I had already bought it!  So I can whole-heartedly tell you that this is a good, high quality product that is worth every penny.

I know some of you are probably thinking that you couldn’t do this.  You are wrong.  You Can Make This is the name of the website, and it ain’t called that for nothin’.  I promise you can do this.  You’ll need your sewing machine, scissors, fabric, thread, wonder-under, pillow stuffing, and a spare hour or two.  The more you make, the faster you will get.  And did I mention that they’re fun?

Now for the goods.  YouCanMakeThis.com is offering two lucky readers a FREE copy of the Pesonalized Name Pillow e-book!  How awesome is that? 

All you have to do is leave me a comment here telling me who you would make a pillow for, and you’re in!  If you really really want to win, you can receive an extra entry each for blogging, tweeting, or linking to this post.  (If you tweet, send it @hopelessnflawed so I can find you!)  All entries must be received by midnight EST next Tuesday, June 2.  The winner will be chosen by random drawing and will be announced on Wednesday, June 3.

Good luck, and happy sewing!

Calling all crafters (or wanna-be’s)

I’m not sure how many of you know this, but I am a moderator for a great forum called Here Comes The Stork, a resource for online sellers.  The owner, Kendra, started out selling children’s clothing on Ebay (hence the baby name), but her business has grown tremendously and HCTS is now dedicated to helping sellers improve sales on Ebay, Amazon, Etsy, Bonzazzle, BuyItSellIt, independent websites, and any other online venue you can think of.  I’ve been a mod there for years and a member for even longer than that. 

One section of the forums is devoted to designers and crafters, which is where I found my niche.  I’ve been sewing all my life, but never tried selling online until HCTS and the Stork Studio Custom Design group (SSCD on ebay) gave me the confidence to go for it.

One of those encouraging members was Kim, or Kimberbell as she is known in the design world.  Kim is seriously one of the sweetest, kindest people you could ever [virtually] meet.  She always has a kind word for everyone, encouraging and supporting new designers and freely sharing her expertise.

Now I knew Kim while she was on her way to the top, and while I’m sure she hasn’t yet reached the highest height that she will acheive, she is definitely on a mountain.  Unfortunately Kim is no longer an active part of our website…because she is too busy running her own!

Several years ago Kim got the genius idea to turn helping people find their creative abilities into a booming business, and boom it has. YouCanMakeThis.com was named one of the top Mom-Owned business by Startup Nation, and the site has been featured in many print publications and on television appearances.

So why am I telling you all of this?  Well, first and foremost because I love the site, and I really believe in the concept and the products available.  YCMT has inspired thousands of people to take the plunge into crafting, be it sewing, cake decorating, decoupage, beading, and so much more.  There are fun projects for kids, too!  Want to learn how to knit?  Paint?  Improve your photography skills?  It’s all there, and a lot more.

But the second reason I’m telling you this is because I have an awesome giveaway to be announced on Monday!  The folks at YouCanMakeThis.com have made a generous offer that I am all too happy to accept, and I can’t wait to share it with you!  So yes, this is just a little teaser to whet your appetite.  Now pop over to the YouCanMakeThis site and find yourself a project to keep you occupied this weekend, and I will give you the full scoop on Monday.  Whoops! Sorry – NEXT Monday.  I am taking the coming week off.

*Weekend project not required for contest entry, but recommended to make you a better person.

BlogHer, anyone?

I want to go - do you?  Check out the link to the right (in my sidebar) and enter for your chance to win a trip!