MERRY CHRISTMAS

NAUGHTY OR NICE? FREE 8X10 PRINT DOWNLOAD!

Have you been good this year? Let Santa know with this fun holiday print. If not, he'll at least want to know that you tried, right? These prints look so adorable hung by the tree, on the fireplace mantel or framed and left by the cookies and milk. And as my gift to you, they are here for free download!


Simply click on the image of the print you wish to download, drag to your desktop and print on 8 1/2 X 11 cardstock (these look really nice if the stock has some texture to it). Then trim to 8 X 10 and frame or mount on some matboard.



You can also reduce the size when printing to make really cute notecards - couple the notecards with a print, package up in cellophane envelopes and you have yourself a sweet little hostess gift.

Enjoy!

GIRLS CAN SAVE THE WORLD

They're back!! My most favorite shirt from last year has made an appearance at Old Navy once again. And like last year, I was tempted to buy one for every girl on the planet (including me!). I settled for just the girls in my little family, but the sentiment in this shirt is huge. And I LOVE it.

Taking the world saving to heart, Petunia has once again set out to help by spreading the American Girl doll love - (go ahead, insert eye roll; it's OK). She's nine, so in her eyes there's no better way, right? Having raised money to donate American Girl dolls to The Home for Little Wanderers and Birthday Wishes for a couple of years now, this year Petunia had to get creative with her fundraising efforts. And she did!



Petunia has an "in" with Stella & Dot and decided to sell their new friendship bracelets to help with her fundraising this year. And you know what? She's a smart little cookie, that Petunia! These bracelets match the spirit of her efforts so beautifully that she could not have thought of a better idea! The friendship bracelets are available in four colors, each representing the best traits of a true friend - smart, fun, true and kind. Qualities that every girl needs if she's going to save the world! So for every friendship bracelet sold through this link, 100% of the proceeds will go to the Home for Little Wanderers to fulfill wishes for children who may otherwise receive nothing at all this Christmas.


Since you may not need a friendship bracelet (why? I don't know - they're super cute!). But you may not, so I will extend this effort and donate 100% of the proceeds of any purchase made through this link to The Home for Little Wanderers. Be sure to enter Jo-Ann Coe as hostess to receive the reduced trunk show shipping rate. Stella & Dot ships so quickly (and beautifully packaged), that there is still plenty of time for holiday shopping! So you can cross some gifts off your holiday list (let's face it, you're running out of time!) or even glam yourself up for all of those holiday festivities! Orders are shipped directly to you and received in 3-4 business days!


Have you set out to save the world? Tell me how - I'd love to hear!!

HOLIDAY GIFTING: FREE PRINTABLE NOTECARDS

I love having giveaways. Love it! The thrill of pulling a person's name and making their day is a total rush. But then, like any rush, there's the let down. In giveaways, the let down is that once you choose the winner, you've just made everyone else who entered a loser. Well, not a loser, but you know what I mean. So in the spirit of holiday gift giving, today, everyone's a winner here at Pumpkin Petunia! And the best part about this gift is that you can regift it! That's right, go ahead and give it away, I won't mind. Honest.

My gift to all of you is a free download of these beautiful Floral Cheers Notecards! Simply click on the image above then right-click or drag to desktop to download and print on letter sized cardstock. Cut on the solid line, fold on the dotted line (use a bone folder for best results) and you're done! Package a set of these up with A2 sized envelopes and a pretty pen and you have yourself a lovely little gift!

But before you get started, I have to give props to the source for the amazing floral pattern used in this design. Thanks so much to the Inspired Bride for sharing this lovely pattern. Please remember that the notecards (and the design elements at Inspired Bride) are for personal use only. You are free to print as many notecards as you like; use them and give them away to your heart's content, but please do not sell or represent these designs as your own.

BLACK FRIDAY SPECIAL: 25% OFF STELLA & DOT STYLE!

Hope you all had a wonderful day with family and friends. If you're like me (and just about everyone I know!) you have now turned your attention from eating to shopping. And we all know that not just any shopping will do - it has to be bargain shopping! So in that spirit, I would like to pass on to you a Friends & Family discount with Stella & Dot. This discount code is not advertised on their website and is only being distributed directly to customers, so I thought it was absolutely worth sharing.

Use code USFAM10 to receive 25% off your highest priced item. With tons of beautiful styles perfect for all of those holiday parties (like the gorgeous Claire and Chloe necklaces), amazing finds for under $50 and lots of great gift ideas you'll definitely fall in love with the fabulous Stella & Dot style that has been featured in InStyle, Lucky, Cosmo, and more! The best part? Everything arrives beautifully packaged and ready for giving in just 3-4 business days!!

Offer valid November 25th and 26th. Happy Shopping!!

THANKSGIVING TRADITIONS: THANKFUL BOARD

Originally posted November 2008

{Thankful board circa 2004}

We have a chalkboard in our kitchen that is quite literally the center of our universe. Anything important, and even a bunch of trivialities, make their way to "the chalkboard." (I use quotations here because that's how we refer to it, as if it's the only chalkboard on the planet.) So as Thanksgiving approached several years ago when Pumpkin and Petunia were still toddlers (preschool and pre-preschool, respectively), I thought it would be cute to record what each child was thankful for and the chalkboard was the natural place for such a list. As a family, we gathered around the chalkboard and I asked each child what they were thankful for. Pumpkin, being the oldest took the lead and dictated his list as I recorded it verbatim. Petunia followed and the list was ceremoniously placed back on the wall in the kitchen.

When family and friends arrived for Thanksgiving, the list was the centerpiece of the discussion and we all had fun seeing thanks through the eyes of toddlers. When it came time to decorate for Christmas, I cringed at the thought of erasing the chalkboard. The list was made on a whim and I hadn't really thought it through. How could I erase something that came straight from my children's hearts? What kind of monster was I?! Then I realized (duh!) that I could take a picture. So I got out the camera, took a shot or two of the list and had the photo developed (yes, it was that long ago). Only then when I had the photo of the list in hand, did I erase it from the board.

Since then, every year the children make their thankful lists on the chalkboard. They are old enough now to write it themselves and we have added a third list these past couple of years for Peanut. This is the first year that she will understand well enough to dictate her thankfuls herself and we're really looking forward to hear what she has to say. My husband and I do write our own lists, but we hang them separately so as to not take up space on the chalkboard that the kids would like to fill.

What I didn't realize that first year as I took a picture of the chalkboard before erasing the list was that these photos, now taken every year on the day we begin preparing the house for Christmas, would become one of the most meaningful records that our family keeps. Marking moments in time, seeing the constants on the list each year: grandparents, cousins, the beach. And the things that change as each child grows and matures: Rescue Heroes lose their spot to baseball; the Wiggles lose their spot to High School Musical. I cannot wait to see what the list holds this year; there are always some suprises. Personally, I am always thankful for children who value the people in their lives enough to always put them at the top of their lists.

Remember to link to or write about your family's traditions in the comments. I would love to hear all about the things that make this holiday special for you!

THE WE ARE NOT MARTHA GIRLS AND A GIVEAWAY!

I recently had the pleasure of meeting the adorable We are not Martha girls. The lovely Chelsee and Susie hosted a Stella & Dot trunk show this past weekend and let me tell you, these girls have got everything going for them! First off, they are absolutely adorable (as you can see!), they write a great blog featuring some amazing recipes (you MUST check it out) and they are such a joy to work with: organized, friendly and the best part - it's super simple to get in touch with them because they are always together!

So head on over to the We are not Martha blog to hear all about our fun day.

And be sure to check out their great giveaway of the Petra Bracelet (pictured above) just in time for the holidays!