Holiday Gift Ideas: Spotlight on Paper Source

So, I owe the grandparents and great grandparents some photos of the kids in their Halloween costumes, but this is not that post. That post will come later-ish.

Instead, this post is an attempt to start a mini-blogging series on (as the title suggests) "Holiday Gift Ideas." I'm going to do my darnedest to gather the gift ideas I find while trolling the Internet, and share them here on a somewhat regular basis throughout the month of November. I have ulterior motives, of course. The main one being that I can never, EVER remember all of the ideas I think of for the people in my life when it's actually time to shop. I get to the mall, or open up Amazon.com, and draw a complete blank. This way I'll have a reservoir of ideas to draw from, and can skip that panicky blank-drawing feeling. And hopefully, it will help you, too. Now, family/friends, please keep in mind that while you may indeed received a gift that I highlight here, you may also get something entirely different. I reserve the right to either surprise you OR get you something that you see on one of these posts that wins raves from you.

Now, I'm not planning to have any kind of format for these posts. I may focus on a specific age group or familial relationship one day, a gift "category" another day (Scarves! Hostess gifts! White elephant gifts for the office party! Food gifts!), just throw up one idea, give you more links than you'd ever want to click on, etc. At this point, it's a mystery to even me what and when I'm going to post. We'll just have to see how this goes.

For the inaugural post, I'm choosing to focus on a particular store: Paper Source (www.paper-source.com). For no real reason other than I saw a few gift ideas on the 2011 Style Lush Holiday Gift Guide: 100 Gifts for $25 or Less from the store that I thought were adorable. In fact, a couple of the items I'm about to point out are shamelessly lifted from that guide, and you should all go check the Style Lush guide out because it has lots of other great ideas. Also, I feel like I need to state that I was not paid or compensated by Paper Source in any way, shape, or form for this post. I just like the stuff, and wanted to share it.

I browsed through Paper Source's inventory, and can tell you a couple of general things first. There are some store locations scattered throughout the country, but they are not ubiquitous (5 in Massachusetts, 2 in Maryland, etc). Your best bet is probably online shopping. I have no idea what their shipping rates are like, as I have never personally ordered anything from the company.

General pros of the store are: There are lots of creative, humorous, and retro gifts. Think Darth Vader lunch boxes and watches, band-aids that look like bacon, cocktail napkins with witty sayings, lovely stationary and paper, whimsical throw pillows, etc. There is something appropriate for nearly everyone on your list, especially if your list is heavy on females and kids. Also, I ascribe to the point of view that you should give people gifts that they'd never buy for themselves. Don't give them something they're just planning to get already. Make it fun! Make it something they think is great, but would hesitate to spend their own hard-earned money on. Spend your own, instead! This store is great for that kind of gift.

General cons are: There are no product reviews, which can make it hard to judge customer satisfaction (I personally pore over product reviews, though I try to take them all with a grain of salt). The items for kids don't always provide information on the age appropriateness of the toy/game/thing. And, finally, there's not much here for the over 13 male crowd, from what I can tell.

Without further ado, here is a selection of things that caught my eye (with many more that I'm not including - so hard to choose!):

Calendars, for me, fall under the “nice to have, but reluctant to spend $$ on, guess I’ll settle for using the free one from the zoo again this year” category. I prefer the grid type (need those little boxes so I can scribble in birthday and anniversary dates), so the one I chose, the Art Grid Calendar ($24.95), follows that style, but this site has many other types and styles to choose from. Isn't the gnome for December's picture adorable? Reminds me of the huge book about Gnomes I used to have when I was a little girl (click on pictures to enlarge):


I'm kind of patting myself on the back for this next idea - a selection of gift wrap. Give 5-6 patterns of gift wrap (prices range from $3.50 to $7.50 per item, depending on sheet vs. roll) so your gift recipient will always have gift wrap on hand for any occasion AND (bonus) much of it is pretty enough to frame! Here's a few of the many, many that caught my eye:

Birds


Robots


Butterflies


More birds. I have a bird problem.



Alphabet


Cherry Blossoms



OK, though I could go on forever posting links to the wrapping paper, I'll move on. This Mod Multi Shoulder Tote looks like it could hold ANYTHING, and it's cute to boot ($18.95):



How's about some owls? I'm totally ON the owl bandwagon.- I love me some owls!! Here's a little sampling of the cute owl things Paper Source has:

An adorable cloth Owl Rattle ($9.95):



Owl Soap-On-A-Rope, for the soap-on-a-rope enthusiast in your family (there's always at least one, am I right? And for clarification, I don't mean anything dirty by that - some people just really like soap on a rope!) ($16.95):



An Owl Cutting Board. We store our cutting boards propped up on the kitchen counter because a) they're too big/bulky for the cabinets, and b) we use them every day. But they don't exactly add spice to our kitchen. This adorable thing combines decor with function ($24.95):



A Hummingbird Wristlet Wallet, for those days when carrying a big ol' purse/diaper bag isn't going to fly (hello, girls' weekend! Date night!) ($11.95):



Remember that cute gnome from the calendar above? How about a couple of Gnome Mugs? ($6.95 per mug):



I have more glasses than any sane person actually needs, but these Retro Bike Glasses would be fun for both the hipsters and non-hipsters alike in your life ($16.95):



And finally, a few ideas for the kids...

I don't know if this is a universal kid thing or not, but both of my kids are obsessed with chapstick and regularly insist on using and mutilating my tubes. How about their very own tube, from Santa? This Rudolph's Rockin Raspberry Lip Balm would make a great stocking stuffer ($2.50):



Animal Crayons, for the art- and animal-lover child ($8.95):


Finn loves all things airplane - paper airplanes, toy airplanes, spotting every. single. goddamn. airplane that flies over head, etc. According to the description, this Flying Model Airplane kit is great for kids of all ages, so it might be the perfect gift for his stocking ($12.95):


Finn is a perfectionist when it comes to homework and artwork, and he likes to have an eraser nearby for any potential mistakes. He INSISTS on erasing his mistakes, instead of crossing them out, even though his homework is usually done in crayon. These Dessert Erasers (other food types also available) would make his day, I'm sure ($8.95):


Phew! That's it. I'm out of links, for the moment. Feel free to provide suggestions on specific types of gifts you might want me to focus on in the comments. Until next time...

I'm Not Bragging, I'm Seeking An Intervention

M. was gone most of last week, and I was like a Martha-Stewart-in-training while he was gone. I somehow get it into my head, every time he goes away (lately), that I can be this superwoman who does everything I normally do, AND everything he normally does, and then a little bit more. It's a bit of a sickness, really. I try to work out most days, keep the house picked up, do laundry... when really, I should just work on sleeping and keeping everyone on time. Maybe some day I'll actually prioritize those two things (I hope!).

M. left very early Monday morning. I got the kids up, dressed, and delivered to school. I went to work, worked a full day, ran errands in the middle of the day (gas in car, baked goods purchased for office party). Picked up the kids, cooked dinner (fish, pan fried, with vegetables, didn't slack), did all the dishes and set up lunch/coffee maker for next day, gave kids a bath, put them to bed, picked up house for the next day's visit from the cleaning woman (this is no easy feat), and ran on the treadmill. I showered, Facebook'd, and fell into bed.

On Tuesday, I again got the kids (and myself) up, dressed, and delivered to school/work. I worked a full day, went to the gym at lunch time, picked the kids up, stopped at Burger King for a dinner that was consumed in the car (a bit of a cheat, but it was the last week of soccer, so I deemed that occasion treat-worthy), and brought both kids to Finn's soccer class. I cheered Finn on and wrangled Lucy, nearly losing my shit trying to get both kids, two soccer balls, and BK leftovers to the car once it was over, but holding it together (barely). I shuffled the kids into bed (there was yelling, I'm afraid), and ate my dinner while making these delightful ghost meringues for the kids' Halloween party on Friday. Mine didn't come out quite as well as the ones I was trying to emulate, but they're not half bad:





I did a load of laundry, took out the recycling, showered, caught up on the Internet, and collapsed into bed at around 11 pm.

On Wednesday it was more of the same - kids up and out, full day of work, dinner, (I made quesadillas), kitchen-cleaning and next day prep (coffee and lunch), Finn's homework help, bathtime (oops, no, didn't do bathtime, I got too mad at the kids for various infractions and refused to bathe them), bedtime, scooping out the cat's litter box, taking out the trash, and an attempt a treadmill jog. I say attempt because I had to stop twice to comfort a crying Lucy, who was supposed to be sleeping. I finally gave up after only 32 minutes, showered, hung some newly arrived decor on the playroom walls, and headed to bed. But also somehow squeezed in a load of laundry to wash the clothes from Lucy's potty accident (a direct result of me declaring her potty trained, I'm sure). Began long night of several Lucy wake-ups. Turns out she had a double ear infection and would shortly (Thursday morning) also develop pink eye.

That pretty much ends the over-achieving aspect of my time as a single parent.The rest was just survival until M. came home. Thursday morning I already had a doctor's appointment scheduled for Finn (5-year well visit), so we all slept a little late. I called just before heading in, and begged for a sick visit for Lucy, even though she was not (yet) running a fever. About 10 minutes before I made that phone call, I noticed her right eye was pink and crusty. Before that moment, I was going to just bring her with me to Finn's appointment (to get her a flu shot) and, while we were with the doctor, try to swing a quick ear check JUST in case. But my guilt took over once I realized she really, probably, definitely, was sick - I figured we'd need a longer appointment and that we should really pay the sick visit co-pay (don't have one for the well visits). After that visit, my fate for the day was sealed. I would not be going to work, Lucy would not be going to daycare. We dropped Finn off at daycare, picked up Lucy's antibiotics, and headed home for a day of "entertaining the toddler while trying to get some work done." All while fighting the exhaustion from the multiple middle-of-the-night wake-ups the night before. We gave up around 4:45, picked up Finn, cooked dinner (vegetarian BLTs), and welcomed our much-missed M. home. Thank God.

I would like to note that I had not one single glass of wine while M. was gone. Frankly, there just wasn't any time.

I had 3 glasses on Thursday night, though.

In conclusion, I'm probably crazy. I'm definitely exhausted. Also, here are some pictures of what the playroom looks like now that we've kid-ified it even more:

Robot decals on the walls (source)

A place to display the kids' artwork

How it looks together

A little geography fun (U.S map and World map)

New rug, perfect for driving cars (Source)

Declarations, Questions, and Observations

1. We are declaring Lucy to be officially daytime potty trained. Now that I have said that, I'm sure we're in for some kind of regression, but there it is. She is completely out of diapers, even for long outings, and only wears a pull-up at night. We are not totally out of the woods yet, as said pull-up is completely soaked by morning. However, she is doing great otherwise, and can even make it through nap time without any accidents.

2. We went to the zoo yesterday, something that's become a bit of a tradition each time one of the kids has a birthday. The National Zoo is just such a NICE zoo! The exhibits are so well designed and cared for, and we are really lucky to have such a great resource so close to where we live. Yesterday was our best visit yet. The zoo was decked out in all kinds of Halloween decorations, and all the animals we saw were really alert. The young panda was out playing with a toy, the baby gorilla was dragging a white sheet around and gnawing on pumpkin bits like an adorable hungry ghost, the cheetahs were up and stalking around, the emu was trying to chew through the fence, the lions were all playing with/chewing these odd looking blanket/animal skin-type things, Finn and Lucy got face-to-face with an orangutan, and one of the elephants walked right up near us and trumpeted. It was all pretty awesome.

3. Why is it that, while sitting in a booth at a restaurant, kids must either: 1) turn around and hang over the back of the seat, staring at the people eating right behind us; or 2) constantly slide off the booth under the table and pop up on the other side, and expect you to be happy to see them suddenly on the other side of the table. Happy that you can't stay in your seat during dinner and that you smeared shoe dirt and food scraps all over your body? Um, not exactly. I liked sitting in booths until I had kids. I no longer like sitting in booths.

4. What is the general consensus on clothing in the junior section? I must admit that as I pass by the section in various department stores, I do find some of the items cute. Only some, mind you. What is the protocol here? Are women in their mid-30's allowed to buy anything from the junior section, for ourselves? Do we look ridiculous if we bring an armload of juniors' clothes into the dressing room (I'm guessing that answer is yes)? Should I ignore the section completely until 2020, or whatever year I deem Lucy old enough to shop in it, and then only look for HER? Do any of you ever buy anything from the juniors' section? Am I just completely kidding myself?

Note: I have not actually bought anything from the juniors' section. I have, inadvertently, tried a couple of things on, because some of these stores (Target) tend to look a bit like a tornado hit, and it can be tough to tell where one section ends and the other begins. None of the things I tried on actually looked good, which is probably my answer right there. I don't have the body of a 15 year old, why would I buy clothing meant for one?

5. A few weeks ago, I saw a pick up truck that had a spoiler on the back of the bed. It has bothered me ever since. Pretty sure a pick up truck is never, ever going to be aerodynamic.

Last Day

as a 4-year-old, for the record:







Tomorrow it's on to FIVE!