Hello LIttle One is proud to offer our new 2010 line of personalized Valentine's Day Cards. One of the busiest greeting card days of the year, Valentine's Day presents the perfect opportunity to share the love with family and friends! We offer a wide range of design styles: classic, contemporary, vintage, and portrait. You can choose from family photo greeting cards, photo couple cards, and an array of fun and adorable children's Valentine's Day cards.

If an upcoming family trip has you feeling anxious about traveling with a toddler and worried about how you can keep him or her occupied, relax and read the following tips. Anticipating any toddler's needs and being prepared for the unexpected will make the journey so much more enjoyable.

Explain your trip: Know that traveling with young children does disrupt their daily routine and they may need some reassurance that this new undertaking is safe and fun. Talk to them about the airport, the plane, the flight and other things they will see and hear.

Luggage: Have your toddler pull his own carry-on luggage. He will love to be like mom and dad and you can use his carry on to pack the very things he will need on the ride or flight.

A Bag of Fun: Things to pack include: new books, new small toys, finger puppets, crayons, coloring books and paper. I have found that new things will surprise, intrigue and capture their interest. If your toddler has a favorite toy they love, definitely bring it along!

Snacks:  Healthy snacks in small individual packages work very well. Pack more than you think in case of unexpected delays. Granola bars, crackers, yogurt, dried fruit, fresh fruit & vegetables (if traveling within U.S. borders) are good choices. Veer away from candy and sugar. You don't want a hyper child in a confined area!  

Extra Wipes: Besides their obvious use, wipes are convenient for cleaning dirty faces, hands, toys that have fallen, and armrests.

Extra Clothes: Toddlers have a knack for spilling everything and anything. Also, make sure you dress your toddler in layers as the weather inside a plane is very unpredictable. An extra change of clothes for Mom and Dad is also a good idea for longer trips, in case any kiddie spills make it to your lap.

Clear Plastic Bags:  Use see thru, zip lock plastic bags for all snacks, toys, etc.  It is easier to see what you are looking for and makes it easier for security check points, too

Comfort Items:  Bring along your child's favorite cuddle toy and a soft blanket. No doubt, he will get tired and falling asleep in the airplane seat will be trial enough. However, his favorite sleeping companion will definitely provide some comfort.

Electronic Items/Entertainment:  If you can, bring along a portable DVD player and some movies. This can be a real life saver! Instant entertainment! 

FAA Rules:  If you are flying, check your airline guidelines for toddler seating. They usually require a safety seat/restraint for every toddler. If you don't need to bring a car seat, you still must have an FAA-approved aviation restraint. The CARES Safety Restraint by Kids Fly Safe is the only one currently on the market. This safety harness comes in it own 6 inch sack and weighs about a pound.  It allows your child to seat in his/her own plane seat, safely and comfortably. Please note, it is only for children who can face forward while riding in a car and weigh over 22 pounds. It's a relatively new traveling companion and some flight attendants may not be familiar with it, so you may want to take along the included written documentation verifying it's FAA approved. It is available at amazon.com.

Happy traveling!
 

One of my favorite presents to give new parents is a book. I worked in the education field for 23 years and firmly believe, the key to a good education and a promising future is the ability to read and reading comprehension. So naturally, giving books feels so right to me. I know that others may do the same, as giving books to newborns is something that has always been done. However, I do try to make it a little more meaningful. Before purchasing the book, I find out the name of the baby and buy a book with the baby's name in the title. Here are a few examples of baby's names and books available:

Desmond - "Desmond and the Naughty Bugs"
Vincent - "Vincent's Colors" (a beautiful book introducing colors through Vincent Van Gogh's paintings)
Lily - "Miss Lily's Fabulous Pink Feather Boa"
David - "Oh, David!"
Tyler - "Tyler & His Solve-a-Matic Machine"
Abigail - "A is for Abigail"
and for my grandson Leonardo,  "Leonardo, Beautiful Dreamer" (the story of Leonardo DaVinci)

These make wonderful gifts and create special memories. This gift idea also works so well for birthdays and other important events in a child's life. I have found the easiest way to find these special books is through amazon.com. Type in the child's name and search under "children's books". Give the gift of reading!

One of my fellow designers at Hello Little One's partner site (tiny*prints) has started a cool business designing custom wall art for hip, modern families. Stacy Amoo-Mensah has taken her bold and colorful artwork from her stationery designs and applied them to canvases and art inserts. What I love about Stacy's work is that it's fresh and chic, yet sweet and approachable. All the designs are personalizable with your child's or family name. Check out some of the artwork below and be sure to visit www.nameyourdesign.com for the full collection.

A lot of people have heard of Etsy, but have you ever been to 1000markets.com? I love this site: easy to navigate, unique products and great service. One of the things they do best is feature design studios that sell their prints and posters. The price is usally right, and with a frame and mat bought at your local crafts or home store, voila! You have original and inexpensive art that you'll love. One such shop is Hero Design Studio. Check out some of their prints... $4 - $25! You can't beat it.

I'm a big Amazon fan (I did most of my holiday shopping there this year!) and what's so cool is that they let you create your own "store" so to speak. So I've gathered my favorite books in various categories as well as Leo's favorite toys for you to view. I'll be updating every few weeks or so... happy shopping!

I hope everyone had a safe and joyous holiday. We're still getting over our sweets hangovers and having fun going through all the presents under the tree (which I don't want to take down!) Here's to a peaceful and prosperous 2010. Happy New Year!

Need a creative, unique, and friendly-priced gift for a baby or child in your life? My very artistic friend Amy is the talent behind meenooma, a mama-owned business that specializes in hand-appliquéd monogram onesies and shirts for babies, toddlers and kids. Custom-made to your specifications, meenooma shirts display the child's initial or age in the color, size and style shirt of your choice. All of the shirts are 100% cotton, including the appliqué-which is chosen from her extensive collection of fabrics. She can surprise you or you can specify your style and fabric preferences (modern, retro, yellow background, animals, etc.). She can even do coordinating or matching tops for twins or siblings. I just ordered a bunch: one for a newborn, and a few for Christmas gifts for my nieces and nephews. Shop at www.meenooma.com or to contact Amy directly, email sales@meenooma.com or call 617.646.9399.

A new line of holiday activity cards here at Hello Little One, created especially for young children this season, provides a great inspiration to involve the children in the holiday tradition of sending cards. They are perfect for sending holiday greetings to their friends, school and daycare classmates, teachers and young relatives. These unique personalized cards are really quite charming and provide enjoyable activities for the recipient: coloring, follow the dots, anagrams and mazes, all with a holiday theme. Kids will love sending them and the recipient will love the creative fun they provide.

Thanksgiving is for giving thanks and the day when most of us would like to spend time with family and friends. Dinner is the one of the focal points of the day and why not send a special invitation to those you wish to invite. Hello LIttle One has an invitation to suit your style: traditional, classic with a twist and even some modern humor!

For those who cannot visit with family and friends on Thanksgiving due to distant miles, a great way to keep in touch and say thanks is to send a card. Photo cards provide a special way to say hello, share memories and say "Happy Thanksgiving". Hello Little One offers some great photo cards created just for Thanksgiving. Personalized and picture perfect, these are some of our favorites.