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Princess Diana

Thank You Card Using Photo of Your Child

Princess Diana - November 4, 2014 - Thank You

Do you have a photo of your son or daughter that you know will get people to say, “Awwww… so cute!”?

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Glue a cute photo of your child to the front of a blank note card for a thoughtful thank you card!

That’s exactly what you’ll need for making this thank you card using a photo of your child.

When my son turned two years old, I wrote thank you cards to everyone who gave him a gift. Even though my son isn’t old enough to make or write his own thank you cards, I still wanted his thank you cards to be representative of him and his Oklahoma City Thunder basketball-themed birthday party.

I purchased blank note cards in the Thunder’s team colors, blue and orange, and made multiple 4X4 prints of a close-up photo I took of my son at his birthday party. In the photo, he is wearing his Thunder basketball jersey.

Not only is the photo adorable, but it will remind everyone of his birthday party!

Easy Peasy Oreo Popcorn Recipe | Edible Gift

Princess Diana - October 28, 2014 - $20 or Less, Christmas, Food & Drinks

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I discovered something at the age of 32. No, it wasn’t the secret of life. But close! Oreo popcorn.

I’ve tried many different flavors of popcorn in my life, but never this. My mother-in-law brought some home from a party she attended, and my life has never been the same since!

I obtained the name of the store that sold this tasty treat because I planned on buying some for my son’s birthday party. Then I thought, “Waaaaaaait a minute. They can’t be that hard to make!”

I was right y’all. All it takes to make them are three ingredients. Easy peasy!

Safety LED Lights Keep Children Visible on Halloween Night

Princess Diana - October 21, 2014 - $20 or Less, Kids

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When the sun goes down and sky turns black, the real thrills and chills of Halloween begin. I love a good scare and that’s why I pay people to scare me… at haunted houses.

On the other hand, I hate a bad scare – like a car almost running over your child while trick-or-treating because his dark-colored costume made him hard to see. Halloween is supposed to be scary, but the thought of something like that happening to my child is terrifying and sends chills up my spine!

According to SafeKids.org, children on average are more than twice as likely to be hit by a car and killed on Halloween than on any other day of the year.

Let’s be realistic, kids won’t be the ones to think about their own safety on Halloween night, so it’s up to us adults to make sure they stay visible to cars as they walk up and down the neighborhood streets trick-or-treating.

Parents and family members can make sure this happens with this thoughtful gift idea for Halloween – Safety LED Lights that blink and come in different colors and shapes so kids will think it’s cool and fun to wear.

Decorated Number Birthday Candles

Princess Diana - October 14, 2014 - $20 or Less, Birthday

Sometimes all it takes is some gold paint and rhinestones to take something from childish to stylish!

At the store, all of the birthday candles for sale look childish, especially the number birthday candles. No one over the age of 10 would actually want one on their birthday cake.

Unless… you gave those number birthday candles a make-over like I did!

For Queen Darlene’s 62^nd birthday, I bought number birthday candles in the shape of a 6 and a 2 from the dollar store and blinged them up. Saying that Queen Darlene loves bling would actually be an understatement!

I used two items to transform the number birthday candles:

Gold metallic dimensional fabric paint (Also known as “puff paint” in the 80s.)
Rhinestones

Easy Peasy Birthday Money Box

Princess Diana - October 7, 2014 - Birthday, Graduation, Kids, Money

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I once found out about a family member’s birthday party the day before. I freaked out at first! What should I get a teenage boy on such short notice??

The birthday money box contains a really long strand of cash.

That’s when I thought of the perfect thoughtful gift idea that anyone can create at the last-minute – a birthday money box.

Money is something every teenager wants, and the birthday money box I could easily create with items I already had at home.

The birthday money box is fun to give and receive because when the gift recipient pulls on the card that says “PULL UP,” they will be surprised with a really long strand of cash that continues to come out as they keep pulling and pulling and pulling!

HOW TO CREATE A BIRTHDAY MONEY BOX

Here are the items you will need:

cash
small empty tissue cube box with a cute design
card stock paper
pen or printer
transparent tape

Baby Bump Congratulations Cards for Mothers-to-Be

Princess Diana - September 30, 2014 - $20 or Less, Baby Shower

Do you know someone who is pregnant? I’m sure you told the person, “Congratulations!”

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Baby bump congratulations card by Hallmark

When I was pregnant with my first baby, my co-worker, Jody, congratulated me and gave me this amazing card. At the time, I didn’t even know congratulations cards specifically for pregnant women and mothers-to-be existed!

The card showing a woman with a cute baby bump touched me emotionally. It expressed how happy Jody was for me to experience both the miracle of growing a baby inside me and the many joys of motherhood.

I proudly displayed the card on the shelf behind my desk. It was the only card like it I received during my pregnancy.

Play on Words Add Special Touch to Gifts

Princess Diana - September 25, 2014 - $20 or Less, Anniversary, Birthday, Christmas, Teacher Gifts

For my mother-in-law’s birthday, I bought her a gift card to a local shop that specializes in flavor infused olive oils and balsamic vinegars.

I knew she’d love it because my boss loved her Premium Olive Oil and Vinegar With State-Shaped Cutting Board gift that I gave her for Christmas from the same store.

I gave her a gift card so she could pick out her own flavors of olive oil and balsamic vinegar but a gift card just isn’t much fun to open. So what did I do?

I added a “thoughtful twist” to the gift card by creating a cute card on the easy peasy photo editing website PicMonkey. I combined a photo of my son, a chalkboard overlay, some doodle heart overlays, and text that said:

Oil always love my Mimi! Continue Reading

Forever Stamps for a Forever Love | Wedding Gift

Princess Diana - September 16, 2014 - Wedding

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So what do you get the couple who didn’t create wedding registries because they don’t need anything? It’s a tricky gift giving dilemma for sure.

Here’s the thing though – I knew other people would be giving the couple wedding presents anyway. That meant they would be writing thank you cards to those individuals.

Honoring their wish not to receiving “things,” I decided to give them a gift that wouldn’t take up any space and that they would definitely need in the near future.

Wedding Coffee Table Photo Books

Princess Diana - September 11, 2014 - Anniversary, Birthday, Christmas, Wedding

When I planned my dream wedding, I tried my hardest not to overspend. It’s sooo easy to do. So I found creative ways to cut costs (like doing my own flower arrangements) or just eliminated things (like renting a limo). But one area where I was willing to pay top dollar for top quality was my wedding photography.

I knew that I would have only have my memories and the photographs by which to remember all of the special moments that happened that day.

The moment when he first saw me in my wedding dress.
The moment when we shared our personalized wedding vows.
The moment when my best friend made me cry with her funny and heartwarming toast.
The moment when I “dropped it like it’s hot” on the dance floor – still in my wedding dress – with my champagne glass held high above my head.

Memories fade over time but my wedding photographs never will – thanks to digital copies!

My talented wedding photographer Kristen Edwards did an amazing job capturing all of the details, the people, and the emotions that made up my wedding day. Kristen ended up providing me with a CD filled with nearly 800 beautiful photos – and she was able to make me look damn good in almost every one. God bless her and Photoshop!

Instant Photobooks Delivered Monthly | Groovebook

Princess Diana - September 2, 2014 - $20 or Less, Baby Shower, Birthday, Christmas, Gifts for Me, Mother's Day

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Click. Click. Click. With the camera on our smartphones, we can quickly capture any moment with ease. Many of of us have hundreds of photos stored in our phones.

Besides the ones you’ve shared on social media, most of the photos you’ve taken on your phone have probably never been seen by another human being. That’s too bad!

You also probably don’t get many of them printed either. Heck no! That would be waaaay too expensive!

Or is it?

What if I told you that you could print 100 photos from your phone each month and have it shipped to you in a keepsake photobook for just $2.99? That’s the total price. No tax. No shipping and handling.