You don’t have to be a crafter to send a spectacular greeting card.

Hallmark provided product as a giveaway, but no money changed hands in exchange for this post. Nichole just really likes the cards and thought you would, too.

Once upon a time, I was surrounded by people who made beautifully decorated cakes, elegantly lettered scrapbooks and intricately designed greeting cards. And I wanted to be one of them. I aspired to be a Crafter. So I bought a lot of stuff and took a few classes and did a lot of cutting and pasting.

But none of it was ever what I’d envisioned when I started. My fondant flowers were askew. My handwriting was amateurish. My cards were clunky. I went back to being content that my baked goods were delicious, using my computer’s vast array of fonts for my scrapbooking needs and buying my greeting cards from the store.

All of which was well and good. I bake a fine birthday cake. My scrapbooks — not that I’ve actually made one in awhile — looked much better when I made them on the computer. And of course the store-bought sentiments were fine. But compared with those embellished, felted beauties my friends were making? They were a little … flat.

Enter Hallmark and their Signature Collection. Hallmark was at the Type-A Conference this year, and I got a sneak peek at their holiday card offerings. And what I saw was No Ordinary Card. The greetings they’re making now are embellished with all the bells and whistles, and I mean that literally. About the bells, anyway. I didn’t notice any whistles, but I would not be surprised at all if they’re on a card somewhere.

Some of the cards are sweet, some are shiny, some are silly and some even double as an ornament for your Christmas tree. And all of the cards in the Hallmark Signature Holiday Collection are just a little something special.

I think you’re pretty special, too, so I’m hoping you’ll win the trio of cards Hallmark sent me. Enter below!

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

Soup seems like a good plan for post-holiday dining

We had a really lovely and surprisingly productive Thanksgiving break. Poppy and I went to the movies twice (to see “Hidden Figures” and “Moana,” both of which we loved), Rockford and his team of junior Griswolds put up all of our Christmas decorations, we finally installed threshold pieces in the house where we’d taken up the old carpet, and we replaced a light fixture that broke an embarassingly long time ago.

Today we’re back to our regular schedule and our regular meal-planning. By which I mean, we’ll be eating tacos this week.

Monday: Chicken pot sticker soup
Our first stop at Trader Joe’s is always the sample kiosk, and that’s where we tried this soup. It’s just their miso-ginger broth with chicken and veggie pot stickers. We’ll also be having spring rolls. It’ll be a simple, light meal after our weekend of indulgence.

Tuesday: Festival of sides
Pete was pretty sad when the sweet potato casserole went home with its maker on Thanksgiving, so Rockford decided he’d make a whole new one for him. We’ll also have green bean casserole and rolls.

Wednesday: Grilled ham & cheese
Poppy talked a lot on Thanksgiving about how much she loves a “holiday ham,” but she won’t even try deli ham. It’s a mystery.

Thursday:Tacos
I asked the kids what they wanted for dinner this Thursday, and they agreed on tacos. Tacos are clearly a miracle meal.

Friday: Pizza
We’re supposed to get a good bit of rain this week, so it’s possible that the burn ban we’ve been under will be lifted and I’ll feel free to use the grill again. But I may order pizza rather than make it anyway. We’ll see how the week goes.

soup

Hungry for more? Check out the Menu Plan Monday linkup at OrgJunkie.

Thanksgiving week in photos

Monday

Poppy and her soccer team finished their season a few weeks ago, but they decided they still wanted to get together to play. They spent about an hour playing before we had to go. I spent most of the time in the car, because it was super cold.

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Tuesday

Poppy and I got to see an advance screening of “Hidden Figures,” and I took this not-so-great selfie.

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Wednesday

I made so much macaroni and cheese.

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Thursday

It’s nice having a big field nearby for those days when we try to pack 19 people into our smallish ’50s house.

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Friday

The day after Thanksgiving is traditionally the day we put up our Christmas decorations. It’s also the day I put a Santa hat on Marsha T. Cat. She’s a very good sport.

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And apparently I didn’t take any pictures over the weekend.