holiday cards

as we near Thanksgiving I am reminded that time is beginning to tick on getting my Christmas cards ready...
i considered not sending cards this year.  the budget is tight and it seems like an "extra" that could be trimmed.  however, i love getting everyone's cards in the mail and seeing how families change each year.  with many of my friends this is the one time of year that we correspond.  i hate to miss out on that. soooo... i came across an offer from Shutterfly.  the deal is pretty simple:  write a blog post about their holiday cards showing off some of your favorites and then you get some FREE cards! yay!  they have some of the cutest cards:

love the fun look of this one

a great option for me to have individual pics of my girls rather than that illusive perfect family photo ;)

love the pine cone toile on this one

simple and adorable

it's going to be hard to choose! but that is another great thing... i can choose more than one design!   now i just need to start taking some pictures for that "perfect holiday photo shot"  (or just settle for that real-life-less-than-perfect option!)

they have other great stuff too.  some of my faves include:

how fun to drink your coffee from a personalized mug like this!

cutie-patootie birthday cards

hosting a party?  how cool is this invitation?

a great gift for a grandparent and can be personalized with everyone's birthdays and other big days

fun stuff!