Archive for January, 2009

Find Out About Purchasing Baby Gifts UK

Sunday, January 25th, 2009

My sister’s baby is now 10 months old and I can honestly say he owns twice as many clothes as I do! For most people, buying gifts for babies is not a duty or a chore, it is a compulsion. Every time my wife and I walk past a shop window and see something cute that we think my nephew would like, we have to buy it!

Having said that, there have been times in the past when I have had great trouble purchasing presents for a baby . Trying to find a Christening gift for a friend’s baby was one difficult occasion that springs to mind and another was trying to find a suitable gift for a newborn baby belonging to a relative that I hadn’t seen in years. The problem was that at the time of gifting I wasn’t close enough with the parents to know what was a suitable purchase and what was not. For example, I see my sister every week and so I know the decor of the nursery and therefore I know which products would fit in with this theme and which would clash. Similarly, I know which toys my nephew already owns and the colours and materials of the products that my sister likes him to have. He is also fairly big for his age and so my sister likes his clothes to be the next size up so they last as long as possible

My point is that unless you know those little family details, buying suitable clothes is extremely difficult to get right. Toys, games and books are easier to get right but a lot of people choose this option and so you could easily buy the same thing as someone else without realising it. Furthermore, in my opinion, there is a difference between presents and gifts- a red and yellow plastic race car that plays music and flashes lights as it’s pushed would be great for Christmas but I certainly wouldn’t think it was appropriate for a Christening. In the gift market, especially for Christenings, there is a staggering array of keepsake gifts that are occasion-specific: A silver photo frame with a Christening message engraved on the base for example, or a crystal figurine of a teddy bear. These types of gifts are fine but the good-quality ones do tend to be over-priced. Also, they have been around for so many years that they are synonymous with the gifting occasions and are therefore not very unique. The images displayed on websites of such products can also be misleading and when the gift arrives, more often than not, you discover that the quality is not as good as it looked on screen. Because many of us shop for these occasions at the last minute, by the time they have arrived it is often too late to get a replacement.

I’m sure you have all bought something in the past that the gift-recipient smiled at and thanked you for, but that you knew deep down wasn’t quite right. It’s a horrible feeling and after a few unsuccessful gifting experiences of my own, I began to dread the whole thing. I decided there must be a better way and this eventually lead me to leave my well-paid career in the music business to develop my own product line and to open my own store. Unlike other retailers that offer gifts for babies, I do not diversify. I have a small, very carefully-selected product range that I selected to solve the problems listed above. My flag-ship product is the key to the business brand and is what I am most proud of. Due to the fact that we are a new business, our products are relatively unknown. Therefore, if you have stumbled across this article, you may just find the little gem that you are looking for. Recently, we have been featured in the Daily Mail, The Daily Telegraph and BBC radio so 2009 may be the year we establish ourselves as a house-hold name. Until then, many of our customers like to think of us as the best kept secret in this niche. Our customers have kept coming back time after time and have nearly all taken the time to send extremely warm letters of gratitude to convey how well the products were received. I find this so rewarding because even when I have been very happy with personal purchases in the past, I have never felt compelled to write a letter of gratitude to the manufacturer!

So what are these unique products?

As a professional musician, singer and award-winning songwriter, I had to cover many miles in the car travelling to different venues. I first came up with the concept for the products when I was driving home from a concert one evening. I was trying to decide what to buy for a friend’s baby when I thought of the perfect product. After trawling the internet for it I discovered that nobody was manufacturing the product of high-enough quality for this demanding market segment- so, I decided I would! The product-development took over a year but in essence, what I decided to do was to write a selection of original Lullabies for Babies with carefully tailored lyrics for each baby-gifting occasion. So for example, the Welcome to the World lullaby that was designed for commemorating the birth of a newborn baby, featured a lyrical sentiment of welcoming a new life into the world. I carefully designed the chorus of each song so that it could be personalised with any baby’s first name. The idea being, if the newborn baby was called Chloe then in the chorus the vocalist would sing, “Sleep little Chloe, may all your dreams come true. Sleep little Chloe, know that we’re always here for you.”

Once I had written the songs, I located the best design agency I could find and together we produced the perfect packaging concept to compliment the gifts and allow them to be treasured for all the years to come as unique and precious keepsakes.

I am delighted when I hear stories of how well the gifts have been received. Stories such as parents who have played their baby’s personalised lullaby at a Christening ceremony and reduced every guest to tears! Or a new mother that has written in to share how she adores rocking her baby to sleep with her own song playing in the background.

If you would like to find out more about these Baby Gifts UK please visit us at www.lullaby-babies.co.uk

Get crucial ideas in the topic of how to be a good parent – welcome to your own tips store.

Posted in Webkinz Charms | No Comments »

Saving Money At Lunch Time

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

Every parent wants to send their child off school with a good, healthy lunch. Mine did. However, many parents mistake a good lunch as one filled with attractively-packaged, sugary, expensive items. This should not be the case. Packing a brown bag lunch will be less expensive than having your child buy lunch. Also, on top of keeping money by making lunches this article explains, through personal experience, how to save even more money by watching what you put into those lunches.

My typical lunch growing up was a PB&J sandwich, a bag of chips, some variation of fruit (applesauce, fresh fruit, or yogurt), and two cookies. I had this lunch, with a few changes once in a while, every day at school… for twelve years. It’s not a huge lunch but I survived, my parents saved money, and you and your kids can too.

So, you’re probably asking, “Well then, what should I put into my child’s lunch?” The answer begins at the grocery store. Divide the lunch into four categories- a main item (sandwich or leftover pizza), a side (chips, crackers), a fruit/veggie or variation (apple, banana, applesauce), and a small dessert (cookies). This will ensure that the lunch has enough to fill its owner and give him or her the necessary nutrients to succeed in school. To start saving money you need to follow these easy steps:

1. Avoid expensive, unnecessary items (i.e. juice boxes, soda, fruit roll-ups, and other sugary packaged foods)

1. Drinks. Kids do not need juice boxes or sodas in their lunch. Every school and business place has some sort of a drinking fountain or water dispenser. Water is the best drink for you and best of all, it’s free! I never had in 12 years of school any kind of drink in my lunch. It saved my parents tons of money and forced me to be healthier.

2. Treats. Avoid those unnecessary treats like fruit roll-ups or ding dongs. These items are full of sugar, are not filling, can cause obesity, and are very expensive. Eliminate these from your shopping list. I still believe something sweet is a good way to end a meal so instead replace the expensive items with cheap store brand cookies. They come in large packs, are cheap, and taste very close to the brand name. This way, you can stick two little cookies in a baggie and still have a treat in your lunch (except this way it will be a lot cheaper). By the way, if you are worried about the store brand thing, it’s a cookie! It can’t taste that much worse than a brand name cookie.

2. Buy your items in bulk

1. Sandwiches. If you’re going to be buying sandwich items such as peanut butter or lunch meat, buy the biggest package possible for the best price. You’re going to be using it every day and that means it probably will not be going to waste. Buying a small jar of peanut butter every week or two will end up costing a whole lot more over the course of a year than if you bought a big jar that lasted a month or two.

2. Side Items. Buy the big boxes of chips or Costco-sized packages of individual applesauce. Smaller packages are going to cost much more than buying the big box or bag. It might cost a little more up front but will save lots of money in the end.

3. Be Smart.

1. Buy the cheapest bread. Your kids will not know a difference.

2. Shop Around. Invest some time viewing the ads that come in your local newspaper before going to the grocery store. Clip some coupons and be sure you are buying at the cheapest price. A box of chips might be on sale for three bucks at one store and regularly-priced at five at another. It might take a little more time but you’ll know it is worth it when you start to see the money you save.

3. Store brands. Stick to the store brands (unless it is in fact horrible, but in most cases, they won’t be).

4. Lay down the law. If your kids are with you in the store, tell them that if they ask for it, they won’t get it.

Once you have your groceries, it is time to pack the lunch.

1. Have the kids make their own lunch. They will appreciate the lunch much more once lunchtime rolls around. It will give them a sense of accomplishment and force them not to take you for granted. I’ve made my own lunch since the second grade so do not think your child can not.

2. Set limits. Set a limit for what each person can bring each day. If you decide to buy cookies, make sure to let everyone know that two is the maximum per day, etc.

Note: If your children are used to much bigger lunches full of sugary treats, they might be upset at first. Do not give in. Remember, you are saving money and helping to ensure your child does not become obese.

Follow the steps mentioned above and I guarantee you will save plenty of money. For more ways to beat the economy visit BeatTheEconomy2009.com

Read valuable suggestions in the topic of auto loan calculator – welcome to your individual tips store.

Posted in Webkinz | No Comments »