ArchivesCategory: Gifts & Flowers

I sometimes wonder if this holiday wasn't made up by a bunch of kids with too much time on their hands.  Speaking of which, my kids have been plotting their April-Foolishness for days now.  I'm beginning to think that my husband purposely scheduled that out-of-town trip this week so he wouldn't be home to play Continue Reading

It's the beginning of a new month and a whole new installment of Weird Holiday Monday.  If you're a new visitor, this is our day to list a few of the lesser-known celebrations and commemorations that take place during a particular day, week or month.  We're not going to talk about St. Patrick's Day or Continue Reading

Once again it’s time for Weird Holiday Monday.  Monday doesn't have to be a bad day.  Here at Ultimate Coupons we devote every Monday to bringing you some of the best of the holidays for the coming days, week, or month.  This list isn’t going to include famous holidays like Presidents’ Day or Groundhog Day.  Continue Reading

There used to be a little card and gift shop around the corner from my home.  A friend of mine worked there on weekends.  She loved to tell stories about working on the day before, or the day of, a holiday like Valentine's Day. The store would be packed with people--and ninety-nine percent of them Continue Reading

Earlier this month, my husband and I celebrated our eighteenth wedding anniversary. We marked the occasion, as we always do, by sending a bouquet of flowers to someone very special--the woman who introduced us.  We know that if it were not for her influence, we'd never have met. Mrs. J. had known my father since Continue Reading

If your house is anything like mine, by this hour the children under the age of ten have woken up the adults and informed them that, indeed, Santa has come and everyone had better see what's under that Christmas tree right now.   The empty cookie plate and pile of gifts are evidence that the Continue Reading

This is the point in December when I start to break out in hives if I'm not 90% done with my shopping yet.   I start compulsively checking the tracking numbers for the items I've purchased online, watching them inch ever closer to my corner of the world, and wishing I'd sprung for the gift-wrap Continue Reading

If you've spent any time in the past few days watching the news or reading newspapers, you've been reminded that this is the official start of the holiday gift-buying season.  You've seen the interviews with 8-months-pregnant women who are planning to sleep in tents in front of big-box stores (in subfreezing weather) so they can Continue Reading

A long time ago I read a few books by the "Sidetracked Home Executives." One of their suggestions, in making a weekly routine for homemaking, was to designate an Errand Day. That never worked for me when any of the kids were small (which means, continuously for the past 16 years). The kids couldn't handle Continue Reading

I may be odd, but I actually prefer salty to sweet. Given a choice between a bag of chips (or cheese doodles... mmmmmmmmmmm....) and a plate of cookies, I'd grab the chips in a heartbeat. That's not to say I don't enjoy sweets, I just prefer snacks. When it comes to cake though, nothing beats Continue Reading