the personal touch

I LOVE all things personalized. I am a complete and total sucker for anything with a name (preferably mine or someone in the household) on it.

Luckily, I was born in the 80s and given a name every 5th girl had. The other 4 were normally Jennifer, Sarah, Jessica and then some girl whose parents thought outside the box. To keep this completely factual, I just googled. Apparently, Stephanie was the 6th most popular girl name in the 80s. Sorry I forgot about you, Ashleys.

While it drove me crazy to be Stephanie H for the majority of my first 18 years, I loved being able to get those cute little pencils and cups with my name.

The Bear and Baby both have names that aren't on the top 10 list. They're the old fashioned sit on the porch type (I totally stole that description from another blog but I can't remember who). While I love them, it makes those personalized pencils harder to find.

I was recently introduced to VistaPrint.com which lets me make all sorts of fun things with the boys names on it. And, it's insanely cheap. Most of the things have free offers where you just pay shipping. Depending on what it is and where you live, shipping can kill the free deal.

I just got my "mommy cards" in the mail. They have my contact information and "Mommy of The Bear and Baby" on them. 250 cards I got to design for $5.67 works for me. I doubt I will ever need 250 cards, but I'm one of those dorky moms.

I ordered return address labels (the kind with our names and little caricatures). I've ordered a pen twice (you only get one free one at a time). I also have sticky notes, notebooks and a t-shirt coming. It's all cost less than $15 total. Some of the things are gifts (what grandma wouldn't love a "Nanny of The Bear and Baby" shirt?) and some are just for me.

Just wanted to pass along the site. I might be addicted. I was limiting myself to the "free product" area until I discovered almost all the tabs have something to offer free. Not as fancy schmancy as etsy, but way cheaper. Happy shopping :-)