Grenville Station Gift Baskets Blog

Sports Fans

Most Dad’s love to watch sports! With the pastime of watching sports comes the need for munching on snacks. The kind of snacks are not that important as most Dad’s will eat anything that is sweet or salty, as long as there is an abundance of them. What a way to show your Dad how much you appreciate him on Father’s Day than with one of our Armchair Athlete gift baskets.
Along with the snacks, this gift also comes with a Mug, picture frame and keychain. He’ll enjoy the big game that much more, and maybe even invite you to share. You can never go wrong with a sports-themed gift basket for Dad.

May 29th, 2008 | Posted in » Father's Day by James

Will Your Dad be “King of the Grill” This Father’s Day?

Summertime has finally arrived and that can only mean one thing – it’s time to fire up the grill! There will be many afternoon barbecue’s where everything will be perfect, the sun will be shining and you’ll be surrounded by your loved ones… unless you’re a part of my family!

Last Father’s Day we decided to celebrate with a BBQ – our first of the season! We had tons of hamburgers, hot dogs, salad and veggies. We knew it was not only going to be a beautiful afternoon, but also the best Father’s Day we could ask for.

My Mother and I quickly got to work setting the picnic table and my Dad fired up the BBQ. The next thing we know it starts to rain! So we rush to get the food covered and brought into the house. And wouldn’t you know it, as soon as we had everything inside the sun came back out! It was a hassle to have to set the picnic table again, but it was hard to be mad when the sun was shining so warmly.

Once again, everything was set up and there was nothing to do except wait for the rest of our family to arrive. We waited and waited and waited. How dare they be late on what was supposed to be the best Father’s Day ever?

Finally after much snacking by Mom and me, the family showed up. Better late than never, right? My Dad immediately threw the patties on the BBQ – we were all starving! It smelled so wonderful that would could almost taste it, and we certainly couldn’t wait to get the food on our plates.

As soon as my Dad announced the burgers were ready, we handed him a plate and filled it up with thick juicy burgers. It was at that point that my 4 year old nephew decided he was going to help Grandpa carry the food to the table. He looked like such a big boy carrying that plate to the table. I took out my camera just in time snap a wonderful picture of the burgers hitting the ground. Wasn’t that a Kodak moment! The only one who was happy about that was my parent’s dog!

At this point it was rather clear that this was not the kind of day we had in mind. Luckily we had a large supply of hamburger patties and we were able to salvage the rest of the day. We had plenty of laughs and good times once we finally got some food in our bellies. It wasn’t the worst of times, but it wasn’t the perfect BBQ we had planned.

This year we will be taking some extra precautions. We’ll set up the umbrella over the table, keep the food covered until we’re ready to eat it and let my nephew carry something other than the main course! It will be a perfect and we will all be happy… except the dog!

If your Dad needs some tools of the trade, why not send him the King of the Grill gift basket? He’ll be picture perfect sporting the barbeque apron and mitt and he’ll appreciate the extra protection from the grill too! And if your Dad isn’t into grilling a quick visit to our Father’s Day Gift Baskets page will provide you with plenty of other gifts to choose from!

PS: Check out this picture that we received from a King of the Grill basket recipient -

PPS: Got a picture of your Grenville Station gift basket recipient enjoying his or her gift? Send it to us and we’ll make them a GrenvilleStation.com star too!

May 27th, 2008 | Posted in » Father's Day, Observances & Events by Tanya

Catch of the Day for Father’s Day…

G’Day Mate! I have certainly been feeling the East Coast spirit today! I have been creating Father’s Day designs and there was one design in particular that I had a lot of fun with: The Catch of the Day.

The basket is filled with Maritime-themed goodies, such as saltwater taffy, crab dip, clam chowder and a beautiful ceramic chowder bowl. Of course there are classic sweets as well, like caramel corn and fudge. Overall it is quite a festive design full of goodies that Dad will love, regardless of whether or not he has family ties to the East Coast!

Father’s day baskets are definitely one of the more enjoyable categories to design. Believe me, there are a lot of fun and interesting ideas rolling around in my head. You can be certain that there will be many golf gift baskets and barbecue gift baskets that will make your Father feel like he truly is the Best Dad on Earth!

Drop us a line and reel in The Catch of the Day!

May 21st, 2008 | Posted in » Father's Day, Observances & Events by Tanya

Some Baby Quotes I Like…

Here are some baby quotes I found at www.allgreatquotes.com. Some are insightful, others are witty and some are just downright hilarious!!!

“Getting a burp out of your little thing is probably the greatest satisfaction I’ve come across. It’s truly one of life’s most satisfying moments.”
Brad Pitt (On his new child)

“Having a child is surely the most beautifully irrational act that two people in love can commit.”
Bill Cosby

“A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for.”
Author Unknown

“It sometimes happens, even in the best of families, that a baby is born. This is not necessarily cause for alarm. The important thing is to keep your wits about you and borrow some money.”
Elinor Goulding Smith

“People who say they sleep like a baby usually don’t have one.”
Leo J. Burke

“Babies don’t need a vacation but I still see them at the beach. I’ll go over to them and say, “What are you doing here, you’ve never worked a day in your life!”
Stephen Wright

One of our most popular gifts that people send to families that have a new baby is our Baby Cakes Diaper Cake Available in pink, blue or a neutral colour, this gift is full of diapers and other baby items. You can find it in our baby gift baskets page. Although the diapers never last long enough (especially if the family had twins or triplets), they are a welcome gift to any family with a newborn.

May 15th, 2008 | Posted in » Baby Gift Baskets by Rich

Some Babies are Just “Born to…”

When creating new gift basket designs, I sometimes find myself drawing from my own personal experiences and memories for inspiration. Many of those inspired creations can be seen in our baby gift basket category.

During my childhood, my grandparents owned a farm and I spent as much time as possible there. I had a lot of friends who would come over to play, but the most memorable visitors were my “boyfriends.” There was one boy in particular who I have fond memories of. When we were 8 years old, we would climb up into my Grandpa’s John Deere tractor and he would pretend to drive me around the fields. We sure put a lot of “miles” on that tractor!  Those memories were the inspiration for the basket Born to Farm. When he has a child, I think it would be the perfect gift for his Little Farmer!

But that basket design may not be for everybody. Some people may remember “driving” their father’s motorcycle, feeling cool and grown-up as they “hit the open road!” In that case, Born To Ride would more suitable.

What was your baby born to do?  Grenville Station features a wide variety of baby gift basket designs but if you have an idea for a new design inspired by your baby or child drop us a line and let us know.  We’re always on the look out for great ideas and inspiration!

Tanya

May 9th, 2008 | Posted in » Baby Gift Baskets by Tanya

Sympathy - Condolences can be difficult…

Condolences can be difficult!

Before I started working here, I never really knew what to do for someone when they had lost a loved one.  Sure you show up at the funeral home, maybe give a donation, or send flowers, but I never got any response from any of the recipients, so I never knew whether or not it was an appropriate gift for the occasion.  You go to a funeral and there are so many flowers, sometimes they can’t even fit them all.  So just after I started working here, I began sending sympathy gift baskets anytime there was the need for it.  I not only started to get feedback from my recipients, but most, if not all said that it actually brightened their day, if only for a few moments in their time of mourning.  Some even told me that they were so impressed with the gift, they waited a week or two after the funeral, that way they could enjoy it that much more.  Any one of our gourmet gift baskets are suitable to send to someone who has lost someone special in their life, but my favourite to send it the Golden Moments gift basket.  I have received the best feedback from this gift and hopefully have been able to spread a bit of cheer to those I have sent it to.

Rich

May 5th, 2008 | Posted in » Gift Giving by James

National Teacher’s Day - Part 2

Other than close family members, teachers are often the most influential people in a person’s life.  Surely their time, energy and efforts deserve some recognition!  So how will you recognize the teachers who had such an impact on your life or on the life of your child(ren)?  It doesn’t take much time, money or effort to give a “World’s Greatest Teacher” or “Teachers Have Class” coffee mug but unless the teacher is fresh out of college or fairly new to the profession I would suggest that you skip these type of gifts (most teachers have more than they know what to do with) and put a little more thought into how you express your appreciation.

A thoughtful card or handwritten letter would surely bring a warm feeling to a teacher’s heart, as would a small token, but personal, gift.  As a former teacher myself, I can honestly say that a gift need not cost a lot of money to be appreciated.  Most teachers that I know talk a lot and they need to stay hydrated throughout the day!  Skip the mugs mentioned above but consider what the teacher may enjoy drinking instead.  Gourmet coffee or herbal teas make a fine choice, as would reusable water bottles or lidded travel mugs.  Another suggestion would be some fine chocolate, cookies or other sweets for days when their flagging energy could really use a sugar boost! A small gift basket may be ideal.

Non-food items could include a stash of stickers or rubber stamps for primary grade teachers; books for classroom libraries; or gift certificates to local book stores, teaching supply, craft or office supply stores.  You would be surprised how much money an elementary school teacher spends out-of-pocket on motivational and educational items for their classroom to supplement what the school boards provide.  Any gift that enhances what they do in the classroom will be sure to be appreciated! 

If you happen to be lucky enough to know some of the teacher’s personal interests (such as gardening, crafting, involvement in a particular sport) then by all means tailor your gift along those lines!  As long as a gift is well thought out and useful or personal in nature you’re sure to receive an A+ for your efforts!

Laurie

May 2nd, 2008 | Posted in » Gift Giving, Observances & Events by Laurie

National Teacher’s Day - Part 1

“It will be a great day when our schools have all the money they need, and our air force has to have a bake-sale to buy a bomber.” - Robert Fulghum, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

National Teacher’s Day falls on May 6^th this year.  It is celebrated annually on the Tuesday of the first full week of May as part of Teacher Appreciation Week.  I suspect that National Teacher’s Day is another of those observances that the majority of the population may not be familiar with, much like Doctor’s Day, Nurse’s Day, and other similar days devoted to acknowledging/celebrating members of a given profession.  I believe that it is a day worth acknowledging however, as teachers play such a crucial role in our society.

You may question my choice of the term “crucial” but I will explain why I believe this to be true.  With the exception of a very small minority of home schooled children, it is fair to say that a teacher taught most of us how to read.  A teacher taught us how to write, how to communicate, how to add & subtract, how to tell time and many other necessary basic skills.  Had we not learned these skills every day simple chores such as grocery shopping, paying bills, and simply driving or commuting to and from work would be a nightmare. 

Had it been left to my parents to teach me these basic life skills who knows if I would even be sitting at my computer typing this today!  On one side of my family my grandparents were immigrants who were struggling to learn how to speak and read a new language themselves without any formal instruction.  On the other side of my family my grandfather was illiterate and could neither read nor write anything beyond his own name.  Both sets of my grandparents, as well as my parents, were far too busy working (often multiple jobs) just to feed their families.  There was no time for teaching their children how to read or write – just how to survive.  The finer points of education were left up to our teachers and this situation was hardly unique to just my family, I’m sure.

Teachers do so much more than just teach students how to read and write – they also socialize children and help them to become fully functional members of society.  As the author Robert Fulghum so poignantly points out in his best selling 1989 book All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, it is often teachers who teach children to share, to take turns, not to take things that belong to others, to put things back where they found them, and, in his words, “[p]lay fair. Don’t hit people. Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody.”  Teachers reinforce the morals, customs and mores parents teach their children at home and fill in the gaps that parents miss.  They educate, yes, but they also encourage, nurture and support the next generation to reach their full potential as human beings.

May 1st, 2008 | Posted in » Observances & Events by Laurie