A More Special Bouquet for Mother's Day (Budget Friendly!)

Working from home leaves me with a lot less money for birthday and holiday gifts, which means I've got to get frugally creative when a special day rolls around. So, with Mother's Day less than a week away, I'll be posting a budget-friendly handmade gift idea a day that would be perfect for any special mom in your life. 

Today's gift idea is a twist on the traditional Mother's Day flower bouquet. Instead of popping into a grocery store or onto a retail florist website for a premade bouquet, how about creating something more personalized? 

• Step 1: Stop by your local florist and pick out a couple blooms that you know she prefers and are within your budget. Buy just enough flowers to make a special number, such as the number of grandchildren or number of children (or both) the honored lady has in her life. You can choose to buy all of the same flower, or have different flowers/colors for male and female children, or children and grandchildren.

• Step 2: Place the flowers in a vase or mason jar and create vase filler with any attractive long-stemmed foliage, wild flowers, or sticks from your back yard. If you have the funds, you can also purchase baby's breath or other filling foliage from your florist--or simply let your purchased blooms stand on their own. (You'll obviously need to put water in the vase too!) 

• Step 3: Create a pretty tag using cardboard, construction paper, scrap fabric, or any other suitable material you may have lying about the house. Write on the tag something to the effect of: "Mom's Growing Garden," "Grandma's Special Flowers," or "Thanks for helping us grow!" and list the name each flower represents. For example, our tag would read: "Thanks for helping us grow! We love you, Matt, Lisa, and Andrew." Punch a hole in the tag, pass a ribbon or piece of yarn through it and attach it to the vase.

And that's all you have to do to make a pretty, budget-friendly bouquet for Mother's Day! 

Tulips, daffodil, hyacinth &
wild brocollini flowers from our backyard.

If you live in an area where wild flowers are abundant, you might not even have to visit your local florist at all. I myself will be picking flowers or visiting Stony Point Florist. Stony Point Florist provided gorgeous flowers for my wedding three years back, and they always have created beautiful bouquets for any special occasion that we need flowers for. They are also very friendly and have been a neighborhood fixture for years--and it just feels good to support a local business!

Happy gifting! 

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Happy Birthday to Me! Turquoise Mother Bird Pendant from Lenox

Today I am 29. How did my 20s go by so fast? So many exciting things have happened--I moved into NYC with my best girl friends, met my husband and got married, gave birth to my adorable baby boy, and moved back home to Rockland. So, I'm really not going to complain, then, that 30 is now in sight. Who knows what amazing and wonderful things lay before me? As my best friend Kate once wrote to me in a birthday card, "We should be glad that the birthdays keep on coming. Otherwise, we'd be dead." Good point!

So, what does one buy a newish mom on her birthday? My husband actually gave me the perfect gift--and its something that I've been lusting over for a while now. Behold the Turquoise Mother Bird Pendant from Lenox:

I am so in love with this necklace! It is sterling silver with genuine turquoise beads. AND you can add or subtract egg beads to represent up to 5 children or loved ones. I kept the original two eggs on mine to represent my husband and Andrew. Also, I didn't want to fiddle with the beads and extra provided jewelry wire right at this moment--I wanted to put the necklace right on!

The 1 inch pendant is just so adorable and you can really tell it is well-made. It is solid, but not too heavy, and sits just perfectly on my chest strung on its 18" sterling silver chain (included). As you can see from this next picture, I am one very happy birthday girl.

Lenox's Turquoise Mother Bird Pendant is $119 and you can purchase it from the Lenox catalog or online. Or, you could just drop hints to a special someone in your life and see what happens! 

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Mommy Haiku #2

Butterfly kisses,

upon my cheek are so sweet.

Goodnight, baby boy. 

Andrew just fell asleep, arms around my neck, cheek to cheek. Motherhood is the greatest job in the world.

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Product Review & Giveaway: KIDStrong Hydration Drink

KIDStrong Hydration Beverages were scientifically formulated by Dr. George J. Murphy to meet children's (4 years and up) hydration and energy needs and combat childhood obesity by being a healthy alternative to soft drinks. Each 12 fl oz bottle is chock-full of vitamins, minerals and nutrients, is low in sugar, contains no artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners or preservatives, has an optimal electrolyte profile--and is only 45 calories. That's darn impressive!

The folks behind KIDStrong were nice enough to send me samples of their three flavors--Clearly Fruit Punch, Clearly Orange, and Clearly Grape--to review. In my opinion, all of the drinks taste like melted ice pops in their respective flavors--and I find that strangely yummy. While I wasn't able to give Andrew a sip since the drink is formulated for bigger kids, I bet he would have found the drinks tasty too.

On the flipside... at the time of taste-testing, I didn't have any children over 4 around to give their opinions, but my husband and older brother gave them a try for fun. My husband didn't care for them at all and my brother gave them a "5 out of 10."   But bear in mind that these are grown men who are used to artificial flavors and sweeteners.

Sorry for the mixed bag of a review, but why don't you try KIDStrong for yourself and see if your tastebuds agree with me or my husband and brother? KIDStrong has provided me with a 12-pack case (4 in each flavor) to give away to one of my readers! All you have to do is be a follower of my blog and comment below by Tuesday, May 3rd.

KIDStrong is currently available for around $20 for a 12-pack at the KIDStrong website, Amazon.com, and at various food retailers (check out the KIDStrong site for store availabilities).

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