Want to send an off-beat Christmas or Chanukah card this holiday season? What about an off-color birthday or anniversary card? Sure, you could go driving to the mall and spend hours browsing the cards at your local Spencer’s or Hallmark store, but why put all the strain on your car (and your wallet) and your feet when you can shop for humorous, risqué, off-color animated cards from the comfort of your computer chair?

eGreetings has a wonderful selection of humorous ecards for every occasion:

• birthdays
• holidays
• anniversaries
• new baby
• mushy love stuff
• …and more!

Keep in mind that these cards may not be suitable for children or adults with a refined sense of taste. But for those who embrace their inner (or outer) naughty side, these cards are just the thing to send your greeting.

Popular Christmas eCards include:

• 
  A Visit from Bad Santa
• 
  Snakes on a Sleigh
• 
  Have a Hap-pee Holiday
• “Rising Moon”
• “Fleas Navidad”
• “A Christmas Pick-Me-Up”
  Featuring the Top 5 Elf Pickup Lines!

How much do I have to fork out for these eCard funnies? Nothing! When you sign up for eGreetings, you receive a free 30-day trial with access to eCards in every category. If you choose to sign up for a free trial membership, you will be asked to provide personal information including your name, mailing address, email address and credit card number. Your personal information will not be distributed to other parties and you can opt-out of receiving any newsletters from eGreetings during this sign up process.

If you decide to stay with eGreetings after the free trial period, a yearly subscription to the card service is only $13.99. Yes, a yearly subscription! With the paid membership, users can choose to have their eCard delivered on a specific date so the card is received on the recipient’s birthday or on the date of a certain holiday, even if you personalize the eCard today!

So, go visit ecards today and give their free 30-day trial a test run! You won’t be disappointed!

Reposting last week’s TT.

In honor of my daughter turning 2 this past Tuesday, November 21, I present a photo Thursday Thirteen.

1. 
   Our first picture of Sami: 22 wks gestation
2. 
   2 Days Old: in an outfit I crocheted for her
3. 
   4 Days Old: Sami’s birth announcement photo
4. 
   5 Weeks Old: Sami’s baptism; I crocheted her gown and bonnet
5. 
   4 Months Old: playing on Mommy’s lap
6. 
   8 Months Old: climbing on Daddy
7. 
   1 Year Old: stepping out as a new walker
8. 
   16 Months Old: at her aunt’s wedding rehearsal
9. 
   17 Months Old: playing peek-a-boo in the computer box
10. 
    19 Months Old: posing to show her shrug
11. 
    21 Months Old: wearing her crocheted cashmere blend scarf
12. 
    22 Months Old: trick-or-treating as Elmo
13. 
    2 Years Old! Happy birthday sweetheart!

Once upon a time, there were holidays where family traveled to visit with other family members. Some even tagged along for the ride if they didn’t have a family to go home to. Others offered their homes to total strangers so they wouldn’t be alone for the holidays. After designating seating arrangements–with teens still at the “kiddie” table–and stuffing themselves with all sorts of good food that seemingly is cooked only around the fall and winter holidays, the guys tended to gather around the TV for football while the ladies gathered around the table and sinks tidying up after the meal. The kids were usually sent outside for an impromptu game of football or whatever else they found to entertain themselves. Once everyone left for their respective homes, the leftovers from the day’s meal served as meals for the next few days. Turkey or ham sandwiches, stuffing with gravy, cranberry sauce (oops…that’s one’s gone), mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese. The refrigerator was stuffed as full as the family members!

What happened to those days?? I sorely miss the days when fall and winter holidays meant gathering for food and football with family. Now, it seems everyone rushes through the meal so they can get to bed early. Why? Because heaven forbid they don’t make the cut-off for Best Buy’s Black Friday coupons. They have to be there–in line–by 2:00 am to make sure they receive a purchase ticket for their desired product(s). I don’t understand the madness or the commercialization. I’d rather be sleeping at 2:00 am than standing in line 3 hours before the store even opens!

I’m sick of seeing Christmas decorations on sale earlier and earlier each year. I think the stores began stocking them around July. How crazy is that? I remember when the Friday after Thanksgiving meant dragging the Christmas tree and ornaments down from the attic and the stores were just starting to display Christmas items. Now, you’re lucky to have elbow room if you go to your favorite store–or even Wal-Mart–on Black Friday. Why can’t we go back to the way things were?

Christmas songs have been playing on the radio stations since November 1. Again, this started the day after Thanksgiving when I was growing up. I have to listen to my CDs (or the kids’ CDs) while in the car to avoid the onslaught of Jingle Bells in 100 different styles and Gene Autrey serenading me with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. True, Jeff Foxworthy is welcome any time of year, but keep the other “classic” Christmas tunes off the air until after the first turkey has been slaughtered! If I want to listen to Christmas songs year-round, I’ll pop in one of my many Christmas CDs I have around the house. And play the songs I want to hear.

We’d spend all day at my grandmother’s house with my mom’s family, then go to dinner with my dad’s family at my other grandmother’s house later that evening. We were so stuffed we couldn’t move! This year, I found myself being whisked away to a computer lab in hopes of ordering an X-Box 360 for $100. Insane, I tell you! I want to do my Christmas shopping in a non-violent atmosphere without dragging four screaming kids through the stores, thank you very much. Forget getting up before the sun and standing out in the cold hoping to get into the store before hundreds of others lining up with me. Oh, and if you get there at 3:30, you can just kiss your chances of even receiving a ticket good-bye. You ain’t getting one if you can’t see the store front from your spot in line. Just go home and go back to bed. It’s not worth the insanity and the lack of sleep.

You may have noticed a new link on my sidebar labeled “Disclosure Policy.” If you click that link, you will be taken to the disclosure policy for my blog. Once there, you will have the opportunity to read and find out more about Cat’s Cradle Creations.

Why use a disclosure policy? For ultimate transparency. This is especially important for blogs and sites that receive compensation for writings. I have recently posted my disclosure policy due to signing with PayPerPost.

How easy is it? Very. You simply visit Disclosure Policy and answer a few questions about your blog or website. They use your answers and create a disclosure policy for you. Then, you simply copy and paste the code they give you into a new page and you have a disclosure policy written for your blog or website. Couldn’t be easier!

Also, if you’re creating a disclosure policy for your blog, most blogging services link automatically to a new page created within the blog. That makes the process that much easier, as you don’t have to add a new link to your policy.

So, if you want to be transparent and let your readers know exactly what your blog or site is about and how it works, be sure to visit Disclosure Policy and create your own policy today!

1. Rhyme :: and Reason
2. Substantial :: Hefty
3. Instant :: Gratification
4. Greed :: Wants too Much
5. Brad :: Embellishment
6. Season :: Summer
7. Accomplished :: Did Something
8. Invite :: Ask Over
9. Sparkle :: Glitter
10. Rainbow :: Connection

I subscribe to ArcaMax Jokes and this little gem was delivered today. Kinda scary to think about some of these!

The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn’t just how you like it, think about how things used to be. Here are some facts about the 1500s:

Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May and still smelled pretty good by the next month. Even so, they were starting to stink, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the children – last of all the babies. By then the water was so dirty someone could actually get lost in it! Hence the saying, “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.”

Houses had thatched roofs – thick straw piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the dogs, cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying “It’s raining cats and dogs.”

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house in those days. This posed a real problem in the bedroom, where bugs and other droppings could really mess up a nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That’s how canopy beds came into existence.

The floors were dirt, and only the wealthy had something other than dirt, from which came the saying “dirt poor.” The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on the floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they kept adding more thresh until when the door was opened it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway to prevent this, hence the saying a “thresh hold.”