shabby apple winner!

Congratulations and Happy Shopping to Katie King! She's the lucky winner of a $50 gift card to shop  Shabby Apple.  Thanks so much to the fun team at Shabby Apple for offering up this summer treat! 

pack your summer travel bags - a shabby apple give-away

For years, my best friend Cassie and I have called packing for a vacation Paper Dolling (that's what I named my fashion board on Pinterest, too!). Half the fun of anticipating a trip for me is deciding who I want to be when I'm escaping my reality of daily commutes, deadlines, and what's-for-dinnering. Clothes can set the tone for a glamorous getaway. 

Just in time for summer travel,  Shabby Apple is offering one I Do Declare reader a $50 gift card to shop its online vintage boutique. Let's get to packing....

A Long Weekend with Girlfriends:
Right now, I'm on a long weekend with a mix of friends from high school, college, and D.C.  We'll be seeing a concert, touring a winery, relaxing at a day spa, and dining at our resort. I will regret not putting this Lemon Drop skirt in my suitcase. With flats by day, it's perfect for shopping or lunch. At night, it's easily glammed up with jewelry, heels, and a clutch.

Fourth of July at the Beach:
I spend most Independence Days in Virginia Beach. No matter where you are on the 4th of July, you'll be the star in this striped Catalina one-piece.  It's made in the U.S.A, so Lee Greenwood approves!

Destination Wedding:
How nice of you to plan your vacation around your friend's special day. The fact that cake comes with sand and sun can hardly be beat! One of my all-time favorite destination weddings was to Maine to see our friends Megan + Eric say I Do. In this pretty Tie the Knot frock you'll stop just short of upstaging the bride. 

You can buy one of these dresses, the swimsuit, or choose from so many more styles (Shabby Apple offers maternity and children's clothing, too) with the $50 gift card you can win by: 

1. Giving Shabby Apple a thumbs-up on Facebook if you don't already "Like" them
2. Leaving a comment below telling me what Shabby Apple dress is your favorite

I will name a winner on Friday, June 7. Good luck!

jenni for the {royal} win

If you've been reading I Do Declare for a while you may recall I had a little royal wager with my friend Jenni on when Kate + William might become Mom + Dad. I was sure it would be within a year of their royal nupts. Jenni knew better; she said later rather than sooner. On the line with this bet was a pricey bottle of bubbly. I paid up back in the summer.

We should have saved the Veuve for yesterday's  big announcement.  Instead, in the spirit of Catherine's pending reign into the mommyhood, I'll announce the winner of my Secrets of The Mommyhood give-away. It's Jessica Mesnick, whose fave TV mom is....Miranda from Sex and the City. Yay!

a free treat!

The Christmas card I sent out last year was a little cheeky, and I was worried that certain people (think Grandma) on my list wouldn't quite understand it. If only I'd known then about Treat, Shutterfly's new custom greeting card site, I could have whipped up something personal and special. 

Treat is perfect this Christmas if you don't have the budget to bulk order a ton of photo cards, but still want to send your nearest and dearest a greeting. Or, if you want be sensitive to certain friends on your card list, a Treat card would be special alternative. Maybe your friend who is in the middle of a divorce shouldn't get your card with your wedding photo displayed. Instead, create something personal and festive just for her. 

Not just for holidays, Treat will come in especially handy when you're searching for a birthday card or a  note of congratulations for friends and family that require a little something more than a grocery store greeting card. As a super card nerd, I'm pretty excited about this new site where you can make and send one-a-kind cards without even having to lick a stamp!

To celebrate the launch of Treat, I Do Declare readers will receive a FREE card today (11.19) and tomorrow (11.20). Create and send a greeting to someone you're thankful for this week...just because you can. (enter the code TREATBLOGR at checkout)

Who will get the Treat card you make today? 

the mommyhood - book review + giveaway!

When entertaining the idea of children, especially in one's mid-30s, I think it's wise to hear from mothers who are experienced not just with diapers and burp clothes but also with the balancing of a busy, full life with and (gasp!!!) away from their children. 

Heather Alexander, who you may know from The Mommyhoood blog, recently wrote a book called The Secrets of the Mommyhood. 

Heather's views on parenting have been tested from many angles, making her my kind of mom! She's had a really big career which she balanced, at its peak, with two young children. She's also been a stay-at-home mom. These days, when she's not busy being an author, along with tending to her daughter, son and husband, Heather writes a column for the Knoxville News Sentinel. 

With action points that direct expecting moms on  how best to pack for the hospital and a very candid list of pros and cons for anyone undecided on returning to work after baby, Secrets is a very user-friendly guide that picks up where more clinical books on pregnancy and childbirth end. Heather shares her classified mommycode in a casual and comical voice. This book is a quick read, and by its end you'll feel like Heather is one of your girlfriends, especially when she gives readers the perfect comeback for those competitive, know-it-all veterans who might make a new mom feel a little inferior. 

In the spirit of full disclosure it should be noted that Heather is one of my friends.  Remember this cute correspondence?     Heather's daugther. When one pals around with important authors there are often free books, so I get the pleasure of giving away a copy of Secrets of the Mommyhood to one lucky reader. This book would make a great happy to send to a friend who recently announced she's expecting, and it's also a perfect shower gift. 

To enter: leave a comment telling me you're all-time favorite TV mom.  I'll name a winner on November 26th! 

tiny prints winner!

The winner of the $50 Tiny Prints gift card is......

KathleenJ!

 

She may not be on LiLo's card list, but I bet she'll be on mine!

I have another fun giveaway coming up this week that will be perfect for first-time moms!

a blue Christmas card + a $50 tiny prints give-away

I don't send out a Christmas newletter, but if I did this year's would be short and sweet:  2012 Sucked. 

I do, however,  send out Christmas Cards Christmas cards

.   In fact, I am kind of a super nerd about creating my own greeting.  With December looming in on what's been kind of a crap 2012, I'm already thinking What kind of card will I send THIS year?  That's why (yes - in mid-October) I've been clicking through cards at Tiny Prints to see if I can make some of the very cute, clever design options work in my favor. Greeting card writers may not pen a message that says, Let's call this year a wash and start fresh in 2013...but thanks to the ability to customize at Tiny Prints, I can.....

If you're feeling a little blue during the holidays, I think it's fine if your card reflects that.  Not every year brings memories you want to commemorate with an ornament, and that's fine. That's just life.

Years ago, I was talking to my minister because I was just sad. I couldn't explain why I felt so down and generally lonely because, aside from the mysterious gloom I was hosting, my life was good.  I couldn't  pinpoint what was even causing this heavy cloud over my seemingly happy world, and being able to recognize my good fortune only created guilt.  The guilt for feeling bad made me feel even worse. In short, I was depressed PLUS depressed about being depressed.

     "What's the worst kind of pain?" my minister asked me.

Without really thinking, I answered with a question.  

      

     "Losing a child?"

    "You're wrong," she told me, "the worst kind of pain is your own."

While I know fate has been even more unkind to others this year, it's been our crummy year, our pain. And...it's our Christmas card, so I am giving myself permission to take on a bahhumbug theme if come December I still feel this way.

I do have some good news, though....and it does make me very jolly.

TINY PRINTS IS GIVING AWAY $50 TO ONE I DO DECLARE READER!

Here's how can you win:  Fill in the blank of this sentence in the comment section below...

 I would be most excited to receive a holiday card from ___________. 

I'll tell you, for me, it's probably the Witherspoon-Toths. I'm curious about a lot of things. Like, is that baby really going to be called Tennessee; do Ava + Deacon get to dress hipster even in the Christmas card; are Reese + Jim in it, or just the children; formal photo or candid; auto sig or personalized in red ink? I feel like the card would reveal SO much.  

I'll name a winner on October 29th - good luck! Oh, and if you don't win, you can still take advantage of some great Tiny Prints discounts and promotions - click here! 

Tiny Prints sponsored this post and promotion. 

Shabby Apple Winner!

 How 'bout them apples......hee! 

The winner (chosen randomly - picture proof!) of the $50 Shabby Apple gift card is Katie from Team Skelley Blog.  Katie,  you'll be hearing directly from Shabby Apple soon!


Thanks to everyone who entered, and thanks to Shabby Apple! I loved hosting this giveaway because I think the clothes at Shabby Apple are SO cute - and when I see Shabby Apple give-aways around the blogland, I ALWAYS enter. Now if I could just win won myself....


 Also, don't forget, you can still get a 10-percent discount from Shabby Apple for the next month with the code: idodeclare10off

Paperless Post Winner!

It looks like Ashton will have some snazzy invites for her graduation party!  She is the winner of the Paperless Post give-away! That's one guest list on which I'd like to land...I've read her blog enough to know she always has a good time! Enjoy, Ashton! I will email you all the information you need!

Mapping Out Plans for a Perfect Party

Today is Columbus Day, and because I love America so much that I'm actually at my government job on a federal holiday, we're going to pay homage to the man who discovered our great land....and I am going to give you a gift.

Keep reading - I promise it's worth your while....

I like to think that I have a lot in common with Mr. C.

• He had blonde hair

• I have blonde hair

• His surname was Columbus

• I live and work in towns named Columbia

• He was a great navigator of the wide, mysterious world

• I am a great navagator of the mysterious world wide web

Upon my interweb voyages, I often discover the cutest ideas from the most clever party planners, and most recently I pointed my ship mouse toward a new party planning website called Punchbowl. 

First, let me raise my flag and declare that Punchbowl is about the cutest name ever for any party-related business.

Second, let me tell you that because Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas in 1492, and because you discovered this blog today that...

YOU GET A 25-PERCENT DISCOUNT TO JOIN Punchbowl!

Let's do it one time like Oprah...

You get a discount! YOU get a discount! YOU GET A DISCOUNT!

That was fun.

With Punchbowl, you won't have to search the world over (ala Columbus) for all the things you need to host a perfect party.

Punchbowl provides free {and adorable!} on-line party invites, and will link you to vendors in your town that can help with any and all of your planning needs.

While Punchbowl is a free website for your start to finish event planning, exclusive memberships are available for the super, savy, not-to-be-outdown-by-anyone, Martha-wannabe hostess.

Membership to spike the Punchbowl gives you access to special features and some fancy-pants online invites with more bells + whistles to really bait your guests into RSVPing yes.

Punchbowl is helping (ala Columbus) I Do Declare readers map out every detail for parties big and small by offering you a 25-percent discount towards your Punchball membership between now and October 25! At checkout, just enter the promotion code IDODECLARE25.

Before you know it, there will be a national holiday named in YOUR honor because you throw the best parties.

Happy Columbus Day....and Happy Party Planning!

It's Give-away Season in Blogland!

May must be give-away season on the interwebs, because so many blogs are showcasing the most fantastical prizes!!! I just love all these generous ladies for dangling the hopes of such fun happys in front of our computer screens day after day. Here are some of the prizes I have my fingers crossed to call my own:

Adorkable Annie  (who is this fresh, cute, dog-loving lady) is giving away these Anthropologie mugs! I have a friend with a more-than-slight Anthro obsession and if I win, I'd likely give these to her...

One lucky reader of Kitchen Bellicous (pick me, pick me!) will win some of these very chic papers from Cid Pear! Actually, every one who reads KB is a winner because her recipes are AMAZING, and she - like the desserts she cooks - is just the sweetest!

I'm also in it to win it when it comes to a very generous {$75} giftcard for the TOTALLY whimsical designers EMERSONMADE.  Short Southern Momma is giving away this treat to mark her first full year of blogging!

Although I adore EMERSONMADE's The Big Poppy (the mega-bloom pinned on this stylish shopper)....

photo credit: EMERSONMADE

I would probs have a better chance of pulling off one of these very flirty clutches...

photo credit: EMERSONMADE

And finally...You and Me Plus Three is celebrating her birthday and wedding anniversary by sending a lucky reader on a shopping spree, giving away a $60 gift card to use at any CSN store.

Start entering, friends! And if you win anything as a result of my sharing these leads, do feel free to share....Good luck!

Moved to Tears {A Giveaway}

Your eyes just might get misty when you find out what Laura at Cowboy Boots is giving away....

photo credit: http://www.rsvp-intl.com/

Those aren't Ray Bans, Friends....those are Onion Goggles!  Never again will you leave the kitchen with smeared mascara after chopping up a Vidalia. These glasses will protect your baby blues (or browns, or greens...) from the burn of all hateful onions.

I chop through at least two onions a week, so I need these specs more than the average girl. But, since all's fair in love and blogging....you should enter to win a pair yourself.

Win or lose - there will be tears.

Lucky Number 7 {The Winner}

Just in time for Valentine's Day, Jocelyn can write sweet nothings on her new stationery from The Stationery Studio! Random.org picked "7" as the winning number...and the seventh entry is to whom the $30 gift certifcate shall go!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered! And, in case you wondered...I'm an embossed, monogrammed girl myself!

Buying Friends {My First Stationery Give-Away!}

Because I know this blog is red by tens of ....well, TENS of readers, I've been slow to host a give-away of my own. What if no one enters???

I adore blog give-aways!  I've claimed a $25 Amazon card from Southern Accent, and a wonderful, custom Laura Hooper Calligraphy map from Southern Weddings Magazine that I used for my wedding website, along with ten matching totes that I filled with gifts for my bridesmaids...

...all just by leaving a comment here or there on the sites of generous bloggers. Despite NOT winning the chance to spend a weekend making sushi at The Pioneer Woman's Lodge (how could Charlie do that to Chloe???) I do feel motivated to pay it forward.

That's why I'm hosting a Stationery Studio Give-Away!!!!

You've heard my raves about The Stationery Studio -  the reasonable prices, the super quick turn-around, the oversized cardstock... the buy one get one free sale that lasts until Feb. 14!  Here is what $30 can buy there....

SO I'M GIVING AWAY A $30 GIFT CERTIFICATE!

Here's what you have to do to win:

1. If you aren't already, become a follower of  I Do Declare

and

2. Leave a comment telling me what kind of personalized papers are your favorite - monogrammed, embossed, engraved, first name, full name?

The contest ends Tuesday, February 9 at 10pm. I'll name a winner next Wednesday!

It's A Sign {A Contest}

The Nesting Place, a very sassy design blog, is hosting a contest. I love blog contests!!! Most bloggers just challenge readers to leave a comment in an effort to capture a fun give-away. Some even let a random generator choose the winner. The Nester makes her flock earn the prize. I respect that.

The challenge: post about these cutesy signs from Danielson Designs Studio.

For several years now, I've been an antiquer. One of the things I especially love to discover is an old, clever sign. 

I always look for something that showcases a name, word, place or phrase symbolic to my life or family.  I think abstract is always best, for example, a weathered, beat up grocery store sign from a store named Mr. Dubs' Grocery. Why, I'd buy that in an instant!

I love old signs.

Or, signs that just look old....

Replace "Santa Catalina Island" with the name of your beach town!

You can search the world over and never find a sign that speaks to you. The good news is, thanks to Danielson Designs - by way of The Nesting Place - you can create your very own!

While there are tons of whimsical, spiritual signs from which to choose....

it is especially fun to create a sign that is custom to your life and home. You can do it (as I have done to nearly all the signs shown here) on the company's website and see exactly what it will like before you committ to buy.

In the dream I dream where The Nester chooses me as the winner, I pick a very rustic looking sign, and have the phrase "Real Sweet Life"  printed on it (it's something Mr. W and I say alot when A/we're relaxed and grateful....usually propped up on a beach somewhere or B/we're watching Chloe roll around the floor demanding a belly rub...as in, She lives a real sweet life).

So, pick me, Nester!

Pick me!

Thank you, thank you!

It pays to read blogs, People. Maybe not mine (yet!) but others'...

I'm the lucky winner of a $25 Amazon Giftcard give-away from the Everyone Needs a Southern Accent blog! Lucky me! Lovely her! As if reading her sassy blog isn't enough...now she gives me happies!  Thank you!