Pick a Pack of Pixie Paper

I know that we live in a world of technical gadgets and most things are done electronically. We don't buy "real" books anymore. We send out electronic invitations. We rarely even make a phone call these days. Everything is done by text or email. But, for me, there is at least one thing that absolutely must be done the old fashioned way....writing Thank You notes. A quick "TY" is not going to cut it. The best way to tell a person you appreciate a gesture is to get out a pen and put your thoughts on a note card. If it's time to replenish your stock of thank you cards,  Pixie Chicago is a great place to do that.   Pixie Chicago is now on my list of all-time favorite stationary shops. Cassandra Rippberger, the owner and designer, at Pixie Chicago, is an amazing talent. She manages to create announcements, stationary, and more, that are both cute and sophisticated at the same time.

I am in love with the "Blocks" design. It's perfect for a shower invite or a thank you note sent by a new mother. A set would make a wonderful shower gift. You can pair it with matching, lined envelopes, that are even more beautiful in person. Speaking of envelopes, the colors from Pixie Chicago are how I like them, not too bright, but not pastel either. Strawberry is my favorite envelope color.

What to buy for adults? I love the Judy design, flat note card. It comes in a variety of colors and who wouldn't love to receive a gift of personalized note cards? A personalized gift is always popular because it shows that you took the time to think about it, rather than buying something on the way to the party!

The list of beautiful things from Pixie Chicago goes on and on. I recommend spending sometime on their site and finding something that fits your personality. Whatever you choose, I know you will be pleased.

So, put down that cell phone and pick up a pen. Show your friends and family how much you appreciate them!

Pixie Chicago is offering the readers of My Brand Name Kid a 20% discount. Please use the code FRIENDS20 to receive the discount. Thank you Pixie Chicago!


Disclaimer:   This review is my opinion alone. I was sent stationary samples for review. I was not paid for this post.

Hip Hip Poohray!

I took my almost 5 year old daughter to see Winnie the Pooh on Saturday, and I have to admit, I had my reservations. My daughter is a big fan of the recent show, My Friends Tigger and Pooh, with Darby being her favorite character. I wasn't sure how she would feel about the reserved, Christopher Robin, replacing the charismatic, Darby. But, on the way to the movie, she mentioned that she would love Christopher Robin, because I love him. I asked her what made her think I love him, and she reminded that I listen to a song about him a lot. She's right...I am that old...I love House at Pooh Corner by Loggins and Messina. It takes me back to Summer Camp and a cute counselor with a guitar...but I digress. What were we talking about? That's right...Winnie the Pooh....

I highly recommend this movie. The creators did a great job of keeping the old fashioned feel of the original movie and book, but with modern color and sound quality to appeal to the current generation. There is nothing splashy about this movie. It's just a pleasant retelling of a classic story. Pleasant might sound boring, but I think with all the loud, action-packed, kids' movies out today, it's nice to just chill out and enjoy a quiet movie in a movie theater. The adults in the audience seemed to enjoy it as much as the children. There are some moments that will make you chuckle in remembrance of a simpler time. It's not necessarily better than My Friends Tigger and Pooh. I mean, who doesn't love Darby? But, it's worth watching. And, while kids of all ages will enjoy this movie, it's a perfect fit for a first time movie goer of age 2 or 3 because the run time is only an hour.

I don't have a rating system for movies, but if I did, this one would max out the stars.

It's Tiggerific! (Sorry I had to do it.)

Slow Down, Girl!

Not only is it time for me to get back to blogging, it's time for me to accept the fact that My Brand Name Baby is no longer a baby. In fact, 5 weeks from tomorrow, she will be in Kindergarten! The first step in working towards acceptance is a name change for my blog. My Brand Name Kid will still feature great items for babies, but I will also focus on the best products for children and teens. In addition, you will find some tips for feeding your kids healthy meals, fun craft projects, and more children's book reviews. I will miss the old blog, and more importantly, the old tagline (I maxed out my creativity with that one), but I look forward to what the future brings.

My Brand Name Kid should be fully functional by the end of the month. I hope you will stop by from time to time.

Buy Immediately

I previously blogged about The Mini Social and my love for Plan Toys has been well documented. Well, for someone like myself, today is a very good day. The Mini Social has a selection of Plan Toys on sale at unbelievably low prices. The sale only lasts until Saturday at 12:00am or while supplies last (and some items have already sold out). This is a great time to buy some fun, non toxic holiday gifts for your favorite little ones. I am partial to the Contemporary Dollhouse which is on sale for $60 (half off the retail price). Check out The Mini Social's sale on Plan Toys today.

By the way, if you wish to use my email address as your referral (and you are absolutely not obligated to do so), it's teri at mybrandnamebaby dot com. Have fun shopping!

Loving Lunch

As a child, I was fortunate (whether I realized it or not) to have a Mom that sent me to school each day with a well-balanced, healthy, packed lunch. She sent carrots instead of potato chips and apple sauce instead of Oreos. In addition to filling my stomach with foods that provided physical energy, she would often write a lovely note on my napkin. She would take a minute to tell me that she was proud of me, that she loved me, or that she wished me luck on a test. It never failed to put a smile on my face. While window shopping at etsy recently, I came across the Small Lunch Box Notes by Life Events Handmade Designs. The shop sent me a sample set to take a look at it and I love the creativity. The set includes everthing from notes that can be sent any time like "Have a great day!" to notes for specific times like "Have a BOO-tiful day!" (halloween). My favorite is "Happy 100th day of school!". I think it would be fun to surprise your child with the note on a day that otherwise would have seemed like any other. The notes have fun illustrations on each of them and the backside of each note is blank so you can include all the important "love yous", "proud of yous", etc. Plus, unlike the napkins, that I always used and never kept (suddenly very bummed about that), these notes can be brought home and put in a scrapbook. I think this would be a fun set for any child, and at just $6.50 a set, you can pick up one for each of your children. Life Events Handmade Designs also carries Lunch Box notes, that are larger and folded, for those days you have a little more to say. You can find some great invitations and other cards in the shop as well and when purchasing from Life Events Handmade Designs, you are supporting a stay at home mom/small business owner.

Life Events Handmade Designs is offering the readers of My Brand Name Baby, FREE SHIPPING, on all Lunch Box notes through the end of September 2009. Send them a message before ordering,and mention My Brand Name Baby, to request free shipping. Take a look today. There is something at Life Events Handmade Designs for everyone!

Bring Back the Giveaways

My Brand Name Baby is back in the business of hosting giveaways of some of our favorite products. We are going to kick things off (and remind ourselves how it's done) by giving away a $25 Gift Card from Amazon. It's easy to participate and who doesn't need a gift card from Amazon?

This giveaway is now CLOSED. Thank you to everyone that entered. Winner to be notified and announced soon.

To enter this giveaway, you simply have to leave a comment and tell us something you might buy if you win. Be sure to include an email address if you don't sign in with a blogger account.

Here are a number of ways to get additional entries. Be sure to leave an additional comment for each thing you do to gain an extra entry.

1. Get 1 entry by becoming a Google Follower of My Brand Name Baby (left sidebar).
2. Get 2 entries by subscribing to My Brand Name Baby's posts via Feedburner(right sidebar). Be sure and confirm your subscription to qualify.
3. Get 1 entry by following me on twitter. @teriblogs
4. Get 1 entry for tweeting about this giveaway and including @teriblogs in your tweet. You may do that up to two times daily. Please leave a new comment each time.
5. Get 5 entries by adding the My Brand Name Baby button to the front page of your blog.
6. Get 1 entry for reading any other post on My Brand Name Baby, following the links to the featured shop, and leaving a comment on this post telling me something you liked in that shop.

This giveaway is open to everyone. The winner will receive gift card via email (e-card). The deadline for this giveaway is October 1, 2009 at midnight PST. All comments will be checked for accuracy, and once any disqualified comments are removed, a winner will be drawn using Randomizer. Good luck!

Stick Around!

I have a policy at My Brand Name Baby of never featuring items that I don't like or wouldn't want for my own daughter or wouldn't give as a gift to a good friend. With that said, some reviews are harder to write than others, for various reasons. Today's is not one of those reviews. I am raving and will continue to rave for years to come, about the wall decals from Cutey Baby! They are bold, beautiful and fun! Cutey Baby sent me a set of the Soft Fairy Girls - Illustrated Wall Decals to try in my daughter's room (pictured). They are the perfect complement to the Pottery Barn Kids Fairy bedding that is on her toddler bed. The colors are not an exact match, but I love that the decals brighten up the pastel bedding. When my daughter first walked into her room, she asked if I had drawn the fairies on the wall. I was tempted to take credit (Who doesn't want to seem like Supermom?), but I gave credit where credit was due. Ada Vaughn (with the help of some wonderful artists) is the talent behind Cutey Baby's wall decals and she has put together an outstanding collection that includes something for everyone. I am currently comtemplating which set to order, as a starting point, to makeover my daughter's bathroom. I am leaning towards the Jingle Jangle Jungle set since we have a house full of animal lovers.

I loved being able to put these decals above my daughter's bed. I am one of those moms that is always cautious and I have never hung anything about the crib or toddler bed, for fear something heavy would fall down. I don't have to worry about the decals from Cutey Baby as they stick well and are very light. They also move and reposition well which I confirmed while hanging them and changing my mind several times about what should go where. The decals were shipped to me in a heavy duty tube on a long sheet (4 feet) and I'm keeping it so I can stick them back on the sheet when we move and use them again. Cutey Baby is one of my all-time favorite reviews because it's a product that I will use for a long time and I will recommend it to all my friends. (I know. I'm gushing. What can I say? It's a great product!)
So, now that you are sold on Cutey Baby wall decals, I have an amazing offer to share with you. Cutey Baby is offering $25 off a full size sheet of wall decals ($49 retail) to the first 100 readers of My Brand Name Baby that place an order. To receive the discount, use the code teriblog at checkout to receive $25 off your minimum order of $49. That's an unbelievable offer, so order right away to guarantee you are one of the first 100 customers. The offer expires on September 23, 2009 at midnight CST. Thank you Cutey Baby!

Remember

Today, at My Brand Name Baby, we are taking the time to honor the victims of 9/11 and specifically, Debra "Debbie" Marie Paris. Debbie was a victim of terrorism and died on September 11, 2001 in New York City at the age of 48.

While I never met Debbie, I have been researching her life and legacy, and I cannot help thinking that I would have liked to meet this hardworking, spunky gal from New York.

In a memorial post by Sandra Pascale she wrote of meeting Debbie through work and of the many laughs they shared together. She is quoted as saying "The depth of my sorrow cannot be measured. Her laughter still echoes in my heart. I will never forget her."

Debbie was an executive assistant at Sandler O'Neill, in the World Trade Center. Colleagues described her as being one of a kind. She was the type of employee, and type of person, that could be trusted to get the job done well. Her work ethic and determination also showed in her work as her husband, Jimmy's, music manager. He has been quoted as saying "She was like my wife, my child, my mother, my best friend, and I was a husband and father and child and brother to her." He also complimented her by saying "she looked 15 years younger than she was".

Debbie was considered full of fun, laughter, and energy by many that knew her. Her beauty, inside and out, is missed by her family and friends.

Debbie Paris had her life cut short on that terrible day eight years ago, but I have no doubt that her legacy of joy lives on in the hearts and minds of many.

While I'm certain my words don't do her justice, I hope that this post will encourage you to think a good thought or say a prayer for Debbie and her loved ones today.

Today, and always, we remember the 2996 people that died on September 11, 2001 and the more than 5000 US Military members that have died in the years since, fighting the wars on terror. Your families are always in our thoughts and in our prayers.

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The main source used for this article was the site 123people.com.

This post was made possible thanks to the effforts of Dale Challener Roe and Project 2996. Please visit the Project 2996 website to read stories of other 9/11 victims and their families.