Shutterfly Before Time Flies...

My love affair with Shutterfly began soon after Caitlin was born. There was a $20 voucher in the bag we got from the hospital. I had a precious new baby and a camera full of pictures. It was a match made in heaven! We made a few gifts for our parents and then discovered the cards. We take our cards seriously around here.

This year we sent St. Patrick's Day Cards....

(Click for more Shutterfly St. Patrick's Day Cards)

and Belated Thank You Cards...

(Click for more Shutterfly Thank You Cards)

I am slightly embarrassed to admit that the pile of belated thank you cards is still sitting here waiting to be mailed. I guess that sort-of defeats the purpose.

It is also the reason that I LOVE the fact that you can make cards on Shutterfly and have them mailed directly to the person you are sending them to. It is as if they were thinking of people like me when they added that feature....it is the only way my birthday cards get there on time!

As you might imagine, the Christmas card is THE card of the year. The Irishman spent hours googling ideas for the perfect Christmas card photo. I'm fairly certain the new camera was purchased with the Christmas card in mind.

We have the photos ready and now we have started the hunt for just the Christmas photo card.

The Irishman requires a card that includes the words, "Merry Christmas" so we have to sift through the lovely "Seasons Greetings" and "Happy Holidays" for something that shouts Christmas cheer. Thankfully you can narrow down your criteria when searching the Holiday photo cards.

Even cards that say, "Merry Christmas" can be vetoed for colors that are not festive enough.

Too brown....

Too pink...

Doesn't say "Christmas"...

 I give the Irishman a hard time, but I have a thing against photo cards that look like they are missing "Insert Photo Here" in the middle. Holiday photo cards have come such a long way. I want something that looks like a work of art...not a cheap looking standard card with a box in the middle for your picture.

We started looking in early November. We just finally narrowed down our top two. Being as so many members of our family (on both sides of the pond) get my blog posts e-mailed to the directly, I'm not going to show my final card just yet. We have a hard time with surprises around here...I have to keep SOMETHING to myself!

Here were some of our favorites that didn't make the cut:

 

We have several projects saved and keep going back to our favorites. If we don't make up our minds soon we will be sending belated Christmas cards! Some things never change...

Disclosure: While I LOVE Shutterfly and probably would have ordered from them anyway, they sweetened the deal with the current offer for bloggers. Thanks to this post I am getting 50 free cards. For more information, see the offer here. Just my honest opinion here, folks!

Sand-ta Claus

After taking an impromptu dip in the ocean wearing her Christmas dress, we decided to change Caitlin into her new swimsuit so she could splash around before nap time.

Instead she discovered the bag of props we hadn't gotten to yet.

Notice she seems rather dry...

and covered in sand.

She loves her SAND-ta Claus!

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Hosted by Cecily and Lolli



Such a Doll

Caitlin is such a doll she decided to try the stroller Nana bought her for her dollies.



Her doll, Jingle, and Elmo each got to take a turn riding along on her lap.



Of course so did the empty snack bowl. This is her "thinking" face.



It is also her "I need more cheese crackers" face. We see this one a lot!



Such a silly girl!

Ice, Ice, Baby!

Caitlin LOVES ice cubes. She has been known to dive into my glass of water to retrieve the ice cubes if I am not quick enough to catch her first. Once we got the Sand and Water Table up and running we decided to let her have her fun.



I think it gives new meaning to 'ice fishing'!



Yummy ice!



I'm not sure she even noticed that there was sand to play with...

We'll be doing this again soon, I'm sure!

Caitlin, Jingle, and Grandma

Caitlin was given a copy of Jingle All the Way for her birthday. She typically only reads board books, so I wasn't so sure how this was going to work. My fears were unfounded. The Irishman and I have loved reading out the key phrases and seeing how Jingle answers. (And yes, Jingle can understand an Irish brogue!) Caitlin carries him around all over the house.



We stopped at Hallmark on Friday and I saw a sign advertising a free iPhone/iPad app to match the book.

I added it to my classroom iPad and let Caitlin and Grandma try it out.

It was a hit. That is one content little girl!



No this is not a sponsored post...I just felt the need to explain the photos. I do however think this is the best free app I've tried in a long time! I even went out and bought a "Jingle" for my classroom. Today during reading groups my kids get to record the story on the iPad to work on their fluency. They can't wait to try it!

An Ocean of Thankfulness

We ourselves feel that

what we are doing

is just a drop in the ocean.

But the ocean would be less

because of that missing drop.

-Mother Teresa

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Hosted by Krystyn at Really, Are You Serious?

Ready For My Close Up

Christmas Cards are Coming

Christmas cards are coming,



Caitlin's Grandma is in town,

so we're off to the beach



to track the perfect picture down!



My favorite after-Thanksgiving purchase was my long-awaited birthday camera. I still haven't figured out any most of the features, but we tested it out at the beach today in our first attempt to take the perfect Christmas card photo. So far the only final product is a new blog header, but we have some ideas for the cards in the works. Until then we are making the most of my mom's visit and wishing the Thanksgiving break could last longer!