For St Patrick’s Day – Getting Grateful, Feeling Fortunate, Giving Luck

It’s mid-March and I am finding quotes, cards and info-graphics about luck and good fortune popping up in my newsfeeds and inboxes almost daily. All understandable with St. Patricks Day imminently approaching, but it made me stop and think about the meaning of luck–or rather, it’s meaning to me. Some believe we make our own luck, others believe it’s being at the right place at the right time. The Roman philosopher Seneca said that luck was a combination of preparation and opportunity. I think it’s a bit different–although who am I to argue with a philosopher–I think luck has two primary vectors to those that believe in it:
1. How we view ourselves
2. How we view the world around us

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Gifts To Keep Cozy: Winter Knits

20140101-203207.jpgIn January all I want to do is get in front of a warm fire, cuddle up to my one-and-only, whip out the Smores accoutrements and hibernate. My favorite gift idea to give and get this time of year (aside from Smores) is snuggly knitwear that will keep old-man winter away, even when a fireplace isn’t practical, all while staying chic and stylish.
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We All Need Comfort: Unicorn Gift Ideas

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my delightful and precious unicorn in her sweet pajamas

Growing up is tough business. You couldn’t pay me to go back to my middle or high school years. Navigating the social circles, fighting for my freedom, starting to find my voice, trying to shape who I am and where I fit in the world, meeting and losing friends, experiencing first love…and that’s before I’ve even started to tackle the accelerating homework and school pressure because college is just a few years away. Nope, I’m very happy to have survived that… The only thing that makes it worse is when there are bullies, “mean girls,” and tormentors amplifying the noise that already exists in an adolescents’ head. I had my fair share of experiences as a kid with these types of people–and it was agony–and I know from FB that most people have experienced it too.

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Non-Couple Engagement Gift Ideas (Let Me Explain)

20130421-171206.jpgI’m seeing a friend today, and since we last were face-to-face, she’s become engaged. Now, what you also need to know is that her engagement was no surprise. Every time she’s even spoken of this guy, she simply lights up and the few times I’ve seen them together, impulsively and without warning, the phrase “meant to be” invades my mind space–this coming from a slightly-jaded, often guarded, once divorced (albeit now remarried), New Yorker.

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Updated Easter Hats

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Easter weekend is just days away and as a fashion enthusiast, I tend to benchmark and contrast experiences as they relate to a textile or accessory. So…what goes better with Easter than hats? I also think we’ve come a long way since the white, woven, ribbon-accented bonnet I used to don approximately thirty-five years ago (although I did get a new one every year).

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Holiday Hostess Gifts

Image courtesy of Ron Bird / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Despite my passion for gift-giving and shopping (it’s kind of the whole premise for this blog) when it comes to the holidays, hosting and feeding my family and friends takes the cake–literally and figuatively. I love preparing the menu, decorating our house with my husband and kids–well, he watches and directs while we decorate but it’s still really fun–finding a fun activity for guests to break the ice and then pulling it all together. That said, I also visiting family and friends: our annual tradition of going to my aunt’s for Christmas Day, celebrating New Years Eve with my husband at “our” restaurant where we had our wedding reception, watching all the kids and grown-up men get sweaty and hungry playing soccer (or maybe it’s football) on Thanksgiving at my in-law’s.

Whether it’s an established tradition or a new invitation that finds you celebrating in someone else’s home, it’s customary to bring a token of thanks. I’ve written about hostess gifts before, and my “rules of the road” (a bunch of them will work for the holidays too so feel free to check them out again, particularly this one and this one) but these gift ideas focus on unexpected and holiday specific ideas to warm the hearts and homes of your hosts.

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What I Bought With My Gift Cards & Other Presents

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What’s fabulous about a birthday? Gift cards! This year I got a few and thought it would be fun to summarize what I bought with them. Psst… There’s a money saving offer below too.

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Skull Themed Gifts: Beyond the Rocker-T

I’m mad for skulls. Have been for many, many years as anyone who knows me can attest. I’ve got skulls all over my house, skull jewelry, even a skull tattooed on my body (shhh…don’t tell the neighbors). I’m particularly entranced with anything that visually tells a story so Folk Art and Day of the Dead skulls have always been my favorites. Side note: on a trip to Mexico, a friend had to pull me away from a cleaning out a street vendor who had sensed my voracious appetite and likely bottomless pocketbook (I thanked her later when we sailed through customs).

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