Posts Tagged: "birthday"

Creative & Inexpensive Homemade Birthday Cards

Princess Diana - May 27, 2015 - $20 or Less, Birthday

I once received the neatest homemade birthday card from my co-worker Bruce. I found it sitting on my desk when I came to work, and it immediately brought a big smile to my face!

A birthday candle and “Happy Birthday” confetti decorated the front of the card. I loved how the candle gave the card a 3-D effect!

I also loved his “thoughtful twist” of propping up the birthday card on my desk for me to find instead of giving it to me in a traditional envelope.

I borrowed Bruce’s idea and made my own homemade birthday card.

HOW TO MAKE A HOMEMADE BIRTHDAY CARD

Manly Memento Box | Birthday Gift for Boy

Queen Darlene - May 21, 2015 - Birthday, Christmas, Gifts for Him, Kids

My nephew is turning 11 years old, and I wanted to give him a memento box to keep his priceless treasures. I know kids really like anything electronic these days, but hear me out on this one.

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Guys have tool boxes, tackle boxes for fishing gear, and even leather boxes for their watches and jewelry. Guys have boxes for their stuff! Women, on the other hand, have purses, jewelry boxes, and hope chests for their stuff.

Never thought about it that way have you?

I started giving “manly” boxes to birthday boys in their preteens for their keepsake items. I tell them it’s a treasure chest to keep their cool stuff inside. Continue Reading

Top 5 Gift Ideas Blowing Up on Pinterest

Princess Diana - May 17, 2015 - Catch All

The Pinterest votes are in! Drum roll please…

We’re so excited to share our Top 5 most repinned thoughtful gift ideas on Pinterest! Any of these popular gifts will make someone in your life feel very special. Happy gifting!

1) Easy Peasy Birthday Money Box

2) 18 Things I Wish I Had Known at 18

3) Lottery Ticket Bouquet

4) Jesus Candy Cane Poem

5) Random Acts of Kindness for Your Own or Someone Else’s Birthday

pay it forward popcorn taped to Redbox machine

Pay It Forward Idea – Tape a package of microwaveable popcorn to a Redbox machine along with a note!

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Queen for the Day | Photo Shoot

Queen Darlene - May 7, 2015 - Birthday, Experiences, Mother's Day

My mother loved taking pictures of her three kids, her family and friends. She also loved being in the pictures too. She would have loved Selfies!

When Mom’s health began to show signs of dementia, I wanted to get her out of the house to do something fun. I decided to make her Queen for the Day!

I brought over one of my sequin gowns, long black gloves, jewelry and a tiara. I explained we were going to make her Queen for the Day and her grandson was going to take pictures – in essence a photo shoot while we visited Bricktown in Downtown Oklahoma City.

Mom loved seeing all of the new changes in Downtown OKC – the canal, the larger than life bronze statues, beautiful waterfalls and botanical gardens. She enjoyed using these as backdrops for her photos. Continue Reading

Rare $2 Dollar Bills | Birthday Gift

Queen Darlene - April 9, 2015 - Anniversary, Birthday, Kids, Money

Want to give an affordable and rare gift at the same time? A $2 Dollar Bill will certainly fit the bill!

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My friend, Karen, was turning 60 on her birthday and really not looking forward to it. I wanted to give her something totally unique and definitely something fun. I decided to give her 30 two-dollar bills to equal her age.

When I gave the gift, I explained the rarity of the $2 dollar bill equals the rarity of her beauty inside and out and her qualities to overcome insurmountable odds, to always be the rock for family and friends, to express incredible kindness and a giving spirit, and to find the good in everything. Continue Reading

Cookie Monster in a Cookie Jar

Queen Darlene - March 19, 2015 - Baby Shower, Birthday, Food & Drinks, Kids

My niece loves stuffed animals that sing, talk or play music and I wanted to give her fancy chocolate chip cookies for her birthday. Hmmm? How to combine the two as a gift?

Who likes chocolate chip cookies more than anyone else? Cookie Monster, of course! “Me want cookie!”, “Me eat cookie!”, and “Om nom nom nom” said the Cookie Monster through a mouth full of cookies.

I found the perfect Cookie Monster stuffed animal singing a song by counting from one to 20 cookies. For a thoughtful twist, I purchased a large cookie jar so he would fit inside. Cookie Monster in a Cookie Jar!

We do not want Cookie Monster eating the fancy cookies so I placed the cookies outside the jar. Cute! Huh?

This was the centerpiece for Whitney’s birthday party. It was a hit and everyone loved choosing their own cookie.

Half-Dollar Coin | Year of Birth

Queen Darlene - February 19, 2015 - Anniversary, Birthday, Gifts for Him, Money

All birthdays are special and when you turn 75 – WOW – the things that have been witnessed, experienced and changed through the years deserves celebration!

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A half-dollar coin from the year of someone’s birth year or wedding year makes a unique and memorable gift.

Dick was born in 1939. That was the year of the largest world fair in New York. The theme was the “World of Tomorrow” where futuristic inventions were on displayed like robots and automatic dishwashers. President Roosevelt spoke on a television welcoming the attendees to the world’s fair.

WWII began in 1939, the average price of a car was $700, classic movies were The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind. A gallon of gas was 10 cents and the average yearly wage was $1,730.00

The 1940s, the Greatest Generation, created things like Duct tape, Jeep, color TV, Penicillin, Silly Putty, Atomic Bomb, Slinky, Tupperware, Microwave, Velcro and Lego. Continue Reading

The Promise of New Experiences

Princess Diana - January 27, 2015 - Anniversary, Birthday, Christmas, Experiences, Valentine's Day

I received a most thoughtful gift from my husband for Christmas, but it’s perfect to use for Valentine’s Day, birthdays and anniversaries. In it, he promised new experiences for us to enjoy together throughout the whole year.

Spend quality time with someone you care about by giving them new experiences you can share together.

The romantic way he promised it brought tears to my eyes. This was no empty promise.

In a letter, my husband wrote to me:

I spent some time thinking about what to buy you, but I couldn’t come up with any ideas for a new gadget or item that would make your life better or increase your happiness. I also thought about our life together, and how much I love you and how much we love sharing in new adventures. I want every year to be our best year together, so here are a few things I’d like to either do or start doing next year for us.

A Letter to Your Child | Christmas Tradition

Princess Diana - December 17, 2014 - Birthday, Christmas

I started a new Christmas tradition in my family by writing a letter to my child.

Life moves at lightning speed, and each year I want to take the time to stop, reflect and remember all of my child’s happy moments full of fun, love and laughter by writing about them in a letter.

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This Christmas gift idea will be cherished far more than any wrapped present under the tree.

I must admit, the whole process intimidated me at first.

How am I supposed to cram a whole year’s worth of stuff into a single letter? I don’t have time to write pages and pages! What should I focus on if I can’t write about everything?

I stopped freaking out when I thought – KISS. Keep It Super Simple.

Focus on the cake and worry about the frosting and sprinkles later. If all I end up with is cake, it will still be awesome and better than nothing. (That just popped into my head. I’ve never thought of comparing a letter to a cake before… It must be because I haven’t eaten dinner yet… even though it’s almost 8:30 p.m.!)

So I came up with the basic ingredients for a letter to a child:

Coach Barry Switzer | A True Story

Queen Darlene - November 12, 2014 - $20 or Less, Birthday, Experiences

My step-father Paul’s birthday falls in November, and he will turn 90 years old. He loved two things his entire life, my mother and University of Oklahoma football.

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Step-father Paul, Coach Switzer & Queen Darlene

Since Mother passed away, there’s just not a lot of moments he gets real excited about except OU touchdowns and a WIN, of course. I wanted to do something really over the top for his birthday and Coach Barry Switzer would fit the bill.

I wrote Barry a letter and here are some excerpts. For a thoughtful twist, I wrote the letter in a thank you card.

I’m thanking you in advance for a favor. Our step-father Paul will be 90 on November 10. He was born in Norman and feels lucky because that is the home of OU. Every positive adjective I could come up with is not enough to describe his love of OU football. He never misses a game on TV. Continue Reading