Giveaway: Hallmark Greeting Cards

I wrote extensively about my time at Blissdom. There were great sessions on photography and writing and staying legal and more. The conference is able to be as spectacular as it is partly because of the sponsors who underwrite a large portion of the conference cost. As at many conferences I have attended, Hallmark had a suite where attendees were able to choose a card to send to a friend or loved one.

I love that Hallmark offers a card for just about any occasion from a pick me up to funny or sentimental thank yous to sympathy to simple hellos and more. Trust me, it wasn't hard for me to find cards to send. I had two friends at home who I wanted to send cards to. One friend was really helping by stepping up with carpooling the wee ones and taking care of them a bit when my parents and husband weren't available. She definitely needed an extra thank you - a note to let her know that I appreciate all she does for me and that I'm thinking of her even when I'm off having fun and she's ... not. Another friend just needed a little pick me up after having had a bad week the week before. And yes, Hallmark delivered.

When I arrived home, I happened to be on the phone with one friend when she retrieved her mail that included the card I had sent her. She was surprised to see mail from me to begin with, but when she opened the card and read what I had sent her, I'm pretty sure she had tears in her eyes. I also got a call from my other friend thanking me for the card and again expressing surprise that she'd received something but also just ... joy that someone had thought of her.

It isn't often anymore that we receive mail that isn't a bill or junk mail. People just don't send each other cards anymore, but it's such a great way to connect. I'm always amazed by how such a small gesture can really make someone's day. A friend of mine now sends two greeting cards to friends each week, just to make them smile. I love that idea. Although I'm not quite there yet, I'm certainly focused on sending out cards to people more often because I like being that person who brings a smile to someone else's face.

You can bring a smile, too. I have a greeting card pack to give away so you can Tell Them something special courtesy of Hallmark. So what do you have to do to win? First of all, let me stress that you must follow all the rules. If you do not follow the rules, your entry will not count! That means that please please please leave your contact information. If I cannot get ahold of you, you cannot win!

This giveaway is open until Tuesday April 24 at 7pm CST. I must have a valid way to reach you, so leave me your email address in your comment or be sure your profile has your email address visible. No duplicate comments will count. This giveaway is open to US residents age 18 and older. Winners will be selected via random.org and must respond within 24 hours of being notified by me or I will select a new winner.

Mandatory Entry: Tell me: Who would you send your cards to?

Bonus Entries (leave a comment for each entry - if you put it all in one comment, I'll count it as one entry):

1) Earn one additional entry for following me on Twitter, then tweeting this contest with the following tweet: "Brighten a friend's day. Enter the #giveaway for @HallmarkPR cards from @honestandtruly http://bit.ly/HthusW" (leave a link to your tweet as your comment and make sure you do all the steps!)
2) Earn one additional entry by following this review blog publicly via Google Friend Connect.
3) Earn one additional entry by following my “regular” blog Honest & Truly! publicly via Google Friend Connect.
4) Earn one additional entry by liking Honest & Truly! on Facebook. (Yay, it's legal again, so long as you know you have to leave a comment here to enter and that simply liking me isn't the entry, along with acknowledging the fact that Facebook has nothing to do with this giveaway whatsoever.
5) Earn an additional entry by putting me in your Google Plus circle. Am I already in your G+ circle? No problem - just leave a comment letting me know that you've added me or already have me there.

Good luck!

In the interest of full disclosure, I visited the Hallmark suite at Blissdom and sent two cards to friends as described above. I was not compensated for this post. As always, all opinions remain my own.

Review: Hershey's Bunny Trail

When at Blissdom this year Hershey's was a sponsor. A very generous sponsor. While I didn't get a chance to make the s'mores with several of my buds that I had planned (we brought the Hershey's chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows ourselves but I forgot the fuel for my mini blow torch), Hershey's did offer bloggers the chance to make their own Easter baskets.

Mine recently arrived, and I think Mister Man is going to be happy come Sunday. I know my husband was when I showed him that I chose mini Cadbury eggs just for him. There were so many options to put into the basket, and I loved that there were Hershey's options sans HFCS that I can give to Mister Man, something I greatly appreciate.

Every year, I create Easter baskets for the wee ones. The baskets are never the same, but they're always filled with something slightly edible (it's Easter!), but something that still fits within our general nutrition guidelines, as well as toys or activities we can do together. Because Easter is another of the family holidays, it's important to me that the wee ones know it's about doing things together, so we emphasize that with our baskets.

So far, the wee ones still believe in the Easter Bunny, but I have a feeling this may be the last year. Do third graders still believe? When they saw the Easter Bunny at an event recently, they immediately found and noticed the zipper on the hood and the blonde hair sticking out the back, but they decided it was just a "helper" because the Easter Bunny must be so busy. I can only hope to keep this tradition alive for just a little longer - without lying to them, which I refuse to do.

One thing we've never done but always intend to do is to dye Easter Eggs. It was one of my favorite things to do growing up, but this will be the ninth year I've let it get away from me. Part of it is that I am the only person in the house who likes hard boiled eggs, so what do we do with them after they've been dyed, but really we just get too busy and forget. I have three egg dying kits in my Easter bin in the basement because I have good intentions.

I'm a little sad that we've never done it. And we won't do it this year, as tomorrow is taken up by heading to the Ronald McDonald House to cook for the families staying there before making dessert for Easter, and Easter itself is full of church and an Easter Egg hunt at my parents' house and a ginormous ham dinner.

And somehow... that's enough tradition for us right now. Maybe someday when the wee ones aren't so wee (at what age do they need a new moniker?), maybe that's when we'll find the time to dye eggs, another tradition we can create as a way to cement the bonds of our family on yet another holiday.

Hershey's asked that we share our Easter traditions with our readers as part of the Hershey's Bunny Trail where there are recipes, memories, and plenty more to help all of us get ready for Easter.


In the interest of full disclosure, I received a Hershey's Easter basket. I was not compensated for this post. As always, all opinions are my own.