I Need A Birthday Present, Stat!

It seems like someone's always having a birthday or a baby. That presents two challenges: coming up with a present and wrapping it.

At the beginning of the year I like to stash some presents away in my cupboard so we're ready to party at a moment's notice. This year our picks are:
The Guinness Book of World Records for Jack's buddies

Recharging Stations for Andie's friends

Puffy Tea Sets for Katie's friends

And my favorite old standby for new moms, "Working Moms Rock" TShirts from honestbaby.com

Once my cupboard is re-stocked with presents, I stock up my arsenal of wrapping supplies. Nothing is worse than having a present with nothing to wrap it in. To keep it simple, I usually use newspaper, pages from magazines, brown kraft paper or tissue paper as the base. If I'm feeling fancy, I'll use a Williams-Sonoma floursack towel.

To spruce up my recycled base, I have a stash of pretty ribbons that I buy at my local craft store

And a few boxes of these pretty labels from Chronicle Publishing

Et, Voila.

From the moment Andie says "Oh, I forgot. Bridget's having her birthday party today" to wrapped present ready to go: about ten minutes.
I have to admit, though, that there are still some last minute requests that throw me. Like "Oh, I forgot. I need a pair of black movement pants (whatever those are) for this afternoon's theatre practice."

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