Ideal gift giving for this year Holiday gift

The older simpler days of giving a scarf or mittens or a sled are over. Everyone wants technology gadgets. You can't give household things because people already have them or they are more choosy about kitchen, household, and personal items that they want specifically. The problem is that now with internet and huge stores and even much larger selections of products, we each can choose from a countless and lot of possibilities for each item. Plus most people go out and buy those items themselves. I am in a real dilemma of what to get people this year. Let me give you some cases. My mom wants a special set of serving dishes and she already purchased it yesterday in an early Black Friday special. My nephews presently have more electronic games than they can even play and my brother buys them the newest one immediately when it comes out. My sister wanted first-class luggage and told me yesterday at Thanksgiving dinner that she found one online and has already purchased it for herself. My dad was up early this morning to buy new power tools for us for Christmas and I just know that he bought himself one of each too. The last few years I asked my family at Thanksgiving for lists and that truly helped me. Yesterday at Thanksgiving dinner no one was able to come up with a list of stuff. This has been a increasing issue over the years. I don't have as much time to shop and I detest to fight the crowds. My wife and I decided to go to a theme holidays and buy everybody something by the theme of the year. One year while at a nearby book shop we started buying books and then went to a giant box book store to pick up not only books but calendars and games and they even wrapped a lot of them for us. It turned out to be quite expensive but it did work. The next year we had been so busy that we just went to the food market and bought gift cards for everyone. That was totally easy but it was pretty detached and we didn't have time or want to take the effort to wrap them, so we ended up feeling cheap when we handed people just an envelope. Plus it wasn't cheap in the long term and the thank you letters proved that people got our gift cards and amounts mixed up with other people's gifts. They liked them and could use them but we noticed that we forgot to use our gift cards or lost them which was a total waste of money. In fact it was published that stores really like gift cards because so many people never use them or find them beyond the expiration date or lose them. The next year we individualized it a bit more and purchased food and restaurant coupons we thought each person would love. It was fine. Yesterday my wife and I were complaining about the fact that gift giving has merely become a gift card exchange and lost its whole luster and objective. We lost for the past days of taking time to shake and open packages or people excited about something they have been wanting realized in a gift. Those days are no longer . People go online and just buy what they really want. A lot of her family members are restructuring and do not need more things. When they need or want something they go buy exactly what they want and our gifts are either regifted or go to Salvation Army. This year we want to make an impression. Quite honestly we are usually doing our shopping at the last minute. We went online last night and decided we are going to either order or go out and fight the crowds today and do our shopping. This year we want our gift to be the very first one people get. So for the friends and colleagues and extended family we won't see, we found a website and local company right here in Denver called Baskets by Rita. There are all kinds of holiday baskets to send. We ordered online those baskets to be sent as soon as they can. Will they ever be pleasantly surprised. Not only will ours be the first one there, but the packaged baskets are wrapped so nicely with holiday ribbons that will probably be put on exhibit in their house as a decoration. It was so easy. We are done and don't have to agonize about those gifts. Then we talked about going to our relatives houses for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and we want to take the gifts ourselves so we didn't order baskets to be sent to their houses. Then we had a great idea. Why not order those gift baskets and have them delivered to our house and then we will have them to take. We are excited because we can walk in with a gift that is WOW and that is not the common mail order basket from the big companies. The baskets we are ordering today for loved ones are filled with gourmet food items and that is just fine. Plus we decided that is one of the only things people don't buy for themselves. My mom just goes out and buys fresh flowers when she wants them. But none of us order a gift basket for ourselves. Perfect. We are placing the order today and guess what? We can now rest. We will have sent and gotten the gift baskets even before December l. That buys us not only gifts but the whole freedom of not scrambling. The gift baskets to take Dec. 24 and Dec. 25 will be on display on the shelves in my home office ready to go. This year we will go to holiday parties and watch other people worry while we are eating out, going to movies, holiday parties and relaxing. Not only is Baskets by Rita doing all the work of buying, wrapping, and sending the gifts, but it turned out to be less expensive than what we usually spend because we already paid for shipping, wrapping and bows and all the extra costs that go up each year. Ideal. We are placing the order today and guess what? We can now rest. We will have sent and gotten the gift baskets even before December l. That buys us not only gifts but the total freedom of not scrambling. The gift baskets to take Dec. 24 and Dec. 25 will be sitting on the shelves in my home office ready to go. This year we will go to holiday parties and watch other people stress out while we are eating out, going to movies, holiday parties and relaxing. Not only is Baskets by Rita doing all the work of buying, wrapping, and sending the gifts, but it turned out to be less expensive than what we usually spend because we already paid for shipping, wrapping and bows and all the extra costs that go up each year.

Plan Early and Beat the Holiday Rush!

This season I will plan to ship corporate holiday gifts early. Horror story. Last season I thought there was no hurry and that I would get true deals by waiting until mid December to order gifts for my clients. Client gifts of gratitude for their business is extremely important and if you fail to send a holiday gift you have botched the regular gift that has come to be expected yearly. Don't forget how important and necessary these gratitude tokens are. Three years ago I decided to forego the gifts because of a budget crunch. Thinking it made very little or no difference I felt quite dapper about the amount of money and time and trouble I would save for this extra meaningless expenditure. Was I ever incorrect. In fact many of us were wrong. The other company people I meet with weekly all talked it over and were in agreement that one year couldn't make that much difference and we were quite smug about our money saving tactics. In my business my major competitor is someone who has tried to get my clients but I've always won their allegiance. Unfortunately for me he made a decision to take the risk and send out gifts early. The next year I found I was losing some of my clients because they had decided to take a look at other organizations that could deliver the same or same service. As we called on new clients many of them had already signed up with the major competitor and my laid back and secure style that I would easily keep clients was slipping away. I had to work really hard to keep the clients I had and put in a lot of time and effort for the next few years to get some of my original companies loyalties back. Maybe it wasn't just the holiday present, but the next year I took note. Listening and asking questions of close friends and relatives about what made them devoted and things that made a difference I noted that follow up letters of thanks,phone calls, and gifts aren't just tokens they are are reminders and stamps of confidence for the clients. So two years ago I made sure I had money for gifts at holiday time budgeted. I started looking for gift ideas and sent them out the first of December. What I observed was that I immediately got cards and calls from clients. They loved them plus mine were the first gifts to arrive at their business office. My secretary and I were talking and she pointed out the gift we got at Thanksgiving one year with the note that here's your first holiday gift to enjoy. Since it was the first and only gift at that time it did make a difference. Most gifts of food, gifts baskets, and cards come that last week before December 25 and although we appreciate them they sometimes get tossed in and mixed up and we can't remember exactly who gave what. Besides employees are bringing in treats and food for each other all week. So my secretary and I started talking and analyzing that the first gifts that come in are the most noted and appreciated and you normally remember them. That brings me to our approach for this year. We have already contacted a basket business to send out holiday gift baskets to be delivered no later than December l. Why? Because last year we thought we'd order them later and they were sold out of the one we really wanted. Since we have clients in 10 states we had failed to note that many would not arrive on time because of shipping days needed. We gave up after checking about sending flower arrangements or poinsettias which seemed useless for a few days in the office. As a last resort we scrambled to get gift cards for local restaurants or bakeries near each client. It took way too much time. We were able to find some gift cards in grocery store, but they were not the right denomination. We also felt uneasy that the exact amount we were spending was evident, putting a dollar value on the client. But we got the cards sent out. It was fine and at least we sent a gift. However one of the more vocal and boldly honest secretaries called to thank us and did say she preferred the gift baskets because she was the one who had to order and go to the bistro to bring back what was ordered with the gift card. She also made it clear that to feed everyone they had to add more money. Yikes, not a good plan. This year I called Baskets by Rita the first of October and placed my order for gourmet gift baskets and Colorado gift baskets to be sent out just before Thanksgiving so they will arrive that first week of December. They explained to me that they have to order all holiday products in August and September to have enough stock to not run out additionally suppliers run out early. We're feeling really smug. Our clients will know these are gifts of appreciation, there are food items to be shared by all, they come packaged amazingly giving that WOW factor and our card and gift will be the first one they get and will be hanging around the break room all holiday season. It won't get lost with all the other gifts. Since there is not a dollar amount attached you are not blatantly telling them what money amount they are worth. Plus my secretary is so happy because this is a slower time for us and she was able to make all plans in a more relaxed way. We came across another money-saving hint for giving holiday gifts. We will have Gourment Choice Gift Baskets shipped to 9 other states, but the majority are in the Denver area. My secretary has arranged to save some of the shipping and delivery costs by going to pick up most of the baskets and deliver many herself. We've added a wine and cheese FAC the first Saturday in December in our office for clients and we'll give most of them out then. If not, it would be good for me to take them and give them myself and make the personal call. The moral of the story is do not underestimate the power of the holiday appreciation gift and order early.

Need an idea of what to give for a holiday gift?

With rivals for your business, it has grown to be absolutely crucial to give a thank you and appreciation gift item at holiday time. Like it or not the mindset of saving money worked for only a couple of those daunting economic years. The accepted trend was prudence and we all believed and secretly hoped it might become tendency and a way of life. Most of us cut back on everything. We cut down the additional items like travel and vacations, Starbucks, newest fashion pieces, new cars, and entertainment. We also monitored our pennies as we were mindful of multi-tasking errands to cut gas costs, attentive to food charges and shopping the special offers, turning off lights and turning down heat, making gifts or regifting. It was interesting and some parts of it made us recognize we do waste. However, we also realize how much we like using our time and money on things we take pleasure in. Take Jason from Denver, for instance. He missed not skiing, not going to Avalanche or Nuggets or Broncos games, not eating out and enjoying a movie. He jumped into the economic recession with vigor and mentally told himself he could cut personal and business expenses and that would be the best way for him to handle both operations. He didn't like it but he was amazed at how much money he could save. He watched games on television. He shopped at the food market instead of take-out food. He discontinue his gym membership and used the exercise equipment in his place. At first it was a novel experience and definitely eye-opening. In business he cut one of his workers and spent more time doing the work himself. He cut the usual treat Friday by not bringing in breakfast and his employees understood when he told them times were tough and to keep jobs it was unfortunate but there would be no Christmas party or holiday gifts or the traditional birthday gift. It absolutely saved money. There were three major issues. One was that cutting the extras in his personal life touched Jason's mental and emotional health. He found himself missing something and becoming more grouchy. Second was that cutting business extra perks greatly touched the morale and spirit in his business for the employees and for Jason himself. Before long efficiency went down and the setting of a positive place to work took a turn for the worst. The cooperative teamwork turned to competitive existence as employees wondered who would be cut next and missed those small birthday and holiday perks. Jason himself found that he missed the positive vibes he got at work which were now replaced with uncomfortable silences. The third major problem was that his main competitor had taken the entire opposite approach and as he and others cut costs and services the competitor decided to maintain and even raise the bar. That Denver based company hired a few additional workers and took a forceful approach to steal customers away from the competitors who were cutting everything. It even hired away one of Jason's strongest employees. It chose to take a gamble and go into debt to keep workers and keep giving gifts for birthdays and Christmas. Take the holiday gifts for example. The Denver company ordered their regular thank you and appreciation holiday baskets from Baskets By Rita and maintained their regular customers. Why? Because the customers had few other gifts, so when the holiday gift basket arrived it endured alone. The customers responded with calls of gratitude and acceptance of using that company for the next year, since they seemed to be the strong one that would be there for them. The Denver company even put out more by ordering the Grand Gourmet basket to send to their competitors' strongest clients. For Jason it was a disaster because he lost two of his strongest. When he contacted them they said they were wondering if he still was in business and they knew the competitor seemed to be doing well. Jason decided it would be cheap to make phone calls to his clients to keep contact. That worked for some, but he had lost some clients who would didn't come back. The next year he called Baskets by Rita in November to set up an order for baskets. He ordered a less expensive basket but had them sent in mid-December. It did serve. He also ordered a huge basket filled with candy bars and individual treats for the staff workroom. It arrived on the scene with a big bow and he was astonished at the results of his $200 expenditure on morale. The next year he did the same thing but also called Baskets by Rita and ordered small baskets to give his employees at their annual pot-luck lunch before the holidays. They were delighted and he felt he got so much more appreciation than just giving them cash or a gift card. It was a observable Wow and a festive gift instead of a card. Also they didn't know how much he had spent where they used to know their value by the value of the gift card. This year Jason called Baskets by Rita the first of November and mentioned he needed a few grand baskets and gourmet baskets sent to competitors' clients. Jason jumped at the next option they gave. They suggested he send them out to be delivered right after Thanksgiving. Their motto is to be the first holiday gift received. The first gift creates more bang for the buck because they take time to read the card and it's around for a while. Some even hang the cards and the top one is yours for folks to read over and over again. Jason did remember there were clients before who had seemed to forget which company sent which gift because they all arrived at once. Baskets by Rita said to let yours be the first and rock star gift for a lasting impression. Jason is thrilled because his Colorado Christmas Gift Baskets will arrive early not a few days before December 25.

A Great Investment!

A supervisor of a company in the Colorado area granted an interview to a friend's son, a graduate business student, making ready his thesis statement. The young man asked questions about marketing, budgeting, and the most beneficial market procedures. The conversation and questions also including corporate and business risks and challenges, protecting assets and the problems and practices in increasing sales. The CEO admitted that managing a firm's long-term reserves had always been at the heart of his energy and determining stakeholders was important. Weighing choices in every aspect was his response to the question about best decision-making practice. The 60 minute interview was almost over when the graduate asked his last question about what was the biggest liability and what was the biggest asset in the company. After blundering through a list of financial jargon, the CEO stopped unexpectedly and thought carefully before saying that all of that was secondary because the employees could be the greatest asset or they could be the greatest liability. The folks working for you can make or break the company. Simple as that. The CEO then took our friend's son out to lunch and they continued to discussion. The conversation included examples from the CEO's working experience when he worked at a restaurant through college and when he managed various establishments. He had many examples of how good workers actually made the company money and the managers and owners did not always know it or recognize it. At the same moment, a rude or incompetent or an employee with a bad attitude could ruin not only the sale at the time, but later. They discussed about the television show Undercover Bosses where CEOs make as if to be new employees on the ground level for a week to actually get some in field experience and insight. The CEO confessed that he had thought of doing that. The two of them throughout lunch talked about different episodes and came to the conclusion that employees do make or break a company. And usually what they want most even more than money or raises is to be treated respectfully and to have their efforts acknowledged. They want a thank you of some kind whether it be just a sincere thanks, a gift card, money, a promotion of a gift. The graduate shared that his mom who had been an administrative assistant had just quit her job the week before saying she had just had enough. Her boss not only did not see what she had done but did not seem to care about rewarding anyone. When she suggested he give gift cards he said that was fine but she would have to give them and write the note and he put her on a small budget. After a year she suggested they give time off to employees but he refused saying. She observed morale was extremely low and he did agree and she was to come up with something. She told him to come into the next morning meeting, which employees hated, with food. He told her to get some cheap donuts from the supermarket. She started just standing up to him and said no, he needed to spend some bucks and get quality pastries or food and quality coffee boxes from the Panera Bread down the street. He appointed her to do it and to be sure it was there on time. It worked and employees liked it. She needed a totally different idea for the mid afternoon meetings. So when she saw the huge basket delivered next door with all kinds of treats for employees she was impressed and contacted the basket company, Baskets by Rita. For the same money they put together a large basket with goodies to put in the break room for everyone to enjoy. It was big and they delivered it to her that day. The boss walked in with the Thanks A Million Gift Basket and there were cheers from the once tired employees. The student made an appointment the next day with his adviser to change his thesis topic to center on the importance of appreciation and acknowledgment for employees contending that they are the most valuable long term investment.

Medical School Exams Stress Relievers

Persons who already know students who are either applying to medical school or preparing to take medical licensing exams already know of how stressful they are. Just because everyone is cheering on a student does not take off the intense pressure they feel. Whether it is the medical students entrance exam or one of licensing exams they have a lot at stake and feel their whole future is resting on that specific test. Financially each test not passed brings on more financial issues to them and they probably have already accumulated high loans. So whether a person is taking the MCAT the Medical College Admission Test as a med school entrance exam or the the USMLE the United States Medical Licensing Exam or FSMB Federation of State Medical Boards they all mean huge stress. No one can take the exam or go through it for them so all others can do is support them to continue the degree programs, whether it be for a Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine or Doctor of Podiatric Medicine or even a masters of physician assistant program. Since so much is riding on the licensing in getting the medical degree phone calls of encouragement are helpful but phone texts are even better since they can read them at their convenience. A med students schedule is heavy and free time and relaxation are limited. It is always good to let them know you are thinking of them and you know how difficult these times are and that they have your support. You can send a card. You can order a pressure relief gift to be delivered to help them through those long study hours. University of Colorado med students have enjoyed the Med Student Care Package and Board Exam Gift from Baskets by Rita of Aurora. Located just down the street Baskets by Rita does ship across the United States so care packages are not limited to the Denver area or just Colorado. They are pretty cute and come in a doctor RX box. They have also been used for doctors to send to special patients or students they have mentored or as a thank you from a med student to thank a professor/doctor. Set up as the med student care package and board exam gift for support might have been the intent but they will customize it for a patient to send to thank a doctor or even for someone to send as a get well gift with a card saying just what the doctor ordered for you to get well. Minimizing pressure and showing emotional support are a definite positive impact on good mental health. Treats and good wishes are always welcome and relieve stress and show thanks, concern, care, best wishes.

First Impression is very Important!

Making a awesome first impression is at the heart of management and job skill musts. Whether you are applying for employment or managing a assignment it is a strategy tool that ranks among the most valuable. You want to get off to a great start. One article contends that within 3 seconds someone appraises you by your appearance, your body language, you mannerisms, and the way you present yourself. We make impressions by our decisions, what we say and by what others say about us. To make a good impression you must know what was said about you or how you are perceived. If it is favorable you come with a good track record. If it was not you have a opportunity to change that impression. How you present yourself IS the impression. That first impression must be solid enough to show confidence to establish trust. However over-confidence can destroy trust. It is a fine line. Courteous, attentive, on-time, positive, appropriateness and sincerity go a long ways. Fortunately you do not have to sign up for a workshop or school, but simply google making a excellent impression to find numerous sites with free and useful information. The difficulty lies in finding out what others have said about you and what information they already know. That means researching. So that takes care of the first impression. The key is keeping a great impression. Once that you have landed that deal or sold that house or secured that client your impression skills are not locked in. You must expand that impression that they made the appropriate choice and that you truly value them. You do that in your words and phrases with a letter or note or a phone call. You do it in your actions with making face to face timely visits when possible. And you are sure to spend a few bucks to maintain that impression. It might be with food or gifts, and not just holiday expected gifts. When you first land the sale follow up with something. My neighbor is a real estate agent and used to send a restaurant gift card to her clients after the closing. He now walks into the closing with an impressive and festive gift basket from Baskets by Rita. He already knows the client, so whether it's a beer tub, wine gift basket, gourmet gift basket he pays the money for it to be a wow factor and make the tremendous impression as he walks through the door. He said the day he came into the room with a baby gift basket for the couple about to become parents they were so excited. Lasting impressions have benefits and he says that the wow factor and the oohs and aahhhs he gets from them carry through. As they thank him as they are leaving, he mentions he would appreciate any referrals they would send his way. When they refer, he has another gift basket sent to their house. He claims this impression has definitely increased his client list. So good impressions are beneficial.

A cool birthday ideas

  All my family know that they will get either beer, a bottle of wine or flowers I found on the way to see them. It was successful for a while, but now it seems to be just too expected. Looking for a unique birthday gifts can take a lot of time. Today I went looking for my best friend which should be easy. I know exactly what he will like so it should have been very easy. I ended up just heading to a big box store and buying a gift card. They used to have small cool wooden crate type things to put the gift card in but not anymore. So that was Okay but really mundane. Last Saturday my spouse was out of town and asked me to go out and get items to put in a basket for her cousin who was bringing her daughter to Colorado to start college. My wife emailed me a list of all the items to buy for the basket so I went to find it. She puts in mostly Colorado products like sweets, potato chips, salsa, tortilla chips, peanuts, Colorado water, tea, coffee, beef jerky, cheeses, crackers, and honey sticks. First I could not find a basket in the supermarket and only a few of the merchandise. I finally threw in the towel because it was taking forever to look and be sure I had Colorado made foods. My neighbor was also shopping and I shared my irritation when she suggested just going to our business district and going into the big home specialty shop and having them help me. I did that and it was helpful but I was shocked at how much it price, including the basket. They offered to help me put it all together in the basket and put on a nice big bow. It looked great and my wife was not shocked at the cost of buying the items there. She goes to 7 or 8 different places to buy all the goods and saves about twenty dollars. Now that is just too much effort. An less difficult way is just to go online and find a gift basket shop that will do it and deliver it. My wife and I argued over the expense, so to prove my point I found a number of baskets at Baskets by Rita which is a Colorado based company. They have a Colorado wooden crate that is cooler than typical baskets. Even after the delivery cost, it turned out it was less expensive than us doing it ourselves. So getting back to the birthday gift idea I saw the crate and decided to order one and have it delivered to my house so I could see how it looked. It came and was excellent. My wife and I agreed that they do a much more professional job of putting it together and it looks amazing. Plus it turned out to be more affordable than doing it ourselves. They have a great selection so that is my plan from now on when buying Birthday Beer Gift Basket. http://www.basketsbyrita.com

Ideas that could improve employees' attitudes!

Today's blog post features recommendations garnered from various firms about how to increase morale and not destroy great employees. Striving to keep the place of work positive should be of major concern to CEOs and bosses. Losing money and time is a great concern. If workers are happy and like to come to work production grows. If they feel that they are part of the team and that they are valued they become engaged to the company. Factory made thank yous and expected pats on the back even heightens and the common bonuses or gifts or treats lose their impact after awhile. In fact employees begin to bank on probable gratitudes and gifts and treats. If you get donuts every Friday it becomes the standard and just a common part of the work schedule. If you give a gift card for every 10 sales it becomes anticipated and if you miss one you will get anger instead of thanks for the gift cards you gave. Remember the movie with Chevy Chase in the Christmas movie where he banks on the yearly bonus from work and when it is not given one year the boss becomes the bad guy in everyone's eyes. In the movie and in real life people just assume the bonus, money gift, turkey, whatever is the norm every year. Often they order merchandise or spend the money before it even comes in. For that reason companies need to be very careful not to do the same thing week after week or month after month or year after year. Food treats should not be the same because they become anticipated and actually become rather boring. Some would say that money is always the best way to go because everyone can spend it however they want. True, but it also can get old. If you toss out a dollar at the weekly meeting one week for something, the next week you bring in a gourmet coffee cart. If you give a grocery card for Christmas one year you need to deliver a gourmet gift basket the next year. If you provide lunch a day one month you need to do something different the next month. Most executives feel that this type of creativity is not a part of their positions and it is not crucial. Morale boosters are very critical. business appreciation are the most effective way to say thanks for a task well done and to encourage hard work in the future. Most of the time organizations use secretaries to find ideas and put together the thank you. For women bouquets and spa packages and gift cards work. For men beer tubs, hardware/home improvement gift cards are great. Restaurant gift certificates are good too. You just have to get innovative. Corporate Gifts or Company gifts can be frustrating when you are including a lot of people in one office--it could be a gesture of empathy or a thank you gift to a whole office or company. You either have food delivered or if you are worried about food spoilage send a gigantic corporate gift basket with various items. My company has put the burden on me, the administrative assistant, to come up with two new options each month to spend only $300 on the 20 employees. They said I need to find gifts of tokens to include everyone. I am looking for new ideas for next month but this month we have seen a huge difference in favorable attitude around the office after my two appreciation gifts were done. The first was for each employee to find one dollar bills in various places during a week. This last week to thank them for their efforts, we had an Ultimate Choice Gourmet Gift Basket arrive to overpower the snack table. After hearing workers talking about the Aurora movie theatre shooting victims, we chose an Aurora gift basket company, Baskets by Rita and we were not disappointed. So remember to thank your employees and show gratitute for a job well done and to encourage really hard work.

Football Beer Gift for my wife!

So how is your favorite team doing this season? It is football time again and for those of us who enjoy football we live for this time of year. Not only is it beautiful weather to go to games but we begrudge the fact it has been a lengthy dry season in the sporting world since Superbowl time last year. Hopefully each of us is looking at the teams, playing fantasy football and making predictions. For guys it provides a piece of debate for any place we find ourselves. There is also the unfamiliar and best hopes for our popular football team to do well this season. Everybody seems to be talking about the replacement refs and how soon will normal football refs be back on the fields. It is way too convenient to get so upset about it that you find yourself ranting and raving. That is what has been happening at my house. I whine and moan and groan and am quick tempered with my wife and she does not warrant that. She is such a smart football wife that to get upset is not the manner she handles things. She amazingly uses good will and sense of humor. I am so blessed. After this weekend and my horrible mood I did not deserve to get anything for my birthday yesterday. I was in Denver and she had a beer tub gift from Baskets by Rita delivered to my hotel. Since one of my favorite teams was the Denver Broncos the tub she ordered was a Bronco one and she wrote a terrific message using her awesome humor to help get me grounded. It was great. I called her and made the decision to have flowers sent the next day. I normally do that. So since I'm gone for a week, I called the lady at baskets by Rita and she's sending a gourmet wine basket to my wife. Good move on my part because my wife will not expect it. We guys are not very creative or good about gifts but I am really darn happy and pleased with myself. My father is a diehard Green Bay Packers fan so I sent him a sympathy basket. He will appreciate it and really get a kick out of it. My mother was raised and is loyal to the Giants, have been raised in NYC, so I'm having a Congratulations basket sent to her arriving the same day. Can hardly wait to speak to my parents. They are always coming up with gifts and ways to help my wife and me so this would be excellent. This ref strike has certainly got everyone talking. The good news is that it gives people something else to talk about besides politics. Our secretary really gets on all of us though and she says we should be feeling sorry for those poor replacement refs. Without them we couldn't watch any football at all. I guess that is true cuz

Great baby gift

Excellent tip for mailing a unique, cute, adorable and unusual baby gift is to order a baby girl or baby boy welcome wagon. The cute small red wagons hold lots of baby gift stuff that are useful for newborns. Knowing that it is always pleasure to send something unique for the new baby is a challenge. Usually people call the medical center gift shop for the same, boring gifts they have. They have the usual blue and pink flower arrangements which are nice but do not last and are difficult to bring home. That type of baby gift is soon forgotten. They also have baby gift baskets but you may find that the parents have already received at least one or more from the hospital gift shop. Asking the gift shop worker does not assure you that visitors have popped into the gift shop and purchased the same gift. I was embarrassed to stop in and buy a cute basket and went up to her room to see two similar baskets from other people. That meant I had to go back down and exchange it for something really common in the gift shop. The most awful part was that it definitely took the pleasure of my gift giving away. They were apologetic as was I apologetic and embarrassed. When the the gift shop clerk just rolled her eyes about wanting to exchange it, I had just had it and instructed her I wanted a refund. In the parking lot of the Denver hospital I met a guy and girl carrying in these adorable pink baby girl and blue baby boy gift red wagons. That is exactly what I had wanted to walk in with something that caused the couple to ooh and aah about. I just flat out stopped them and asked where they got them. They had ordered them from a basket store near the Denver hospital called Baskets by Rita. Cut little Welcome Baby Wagon that were the great birth gift. They were definitely one of a kind baby gifts and pragmatic and fun. They told me Baskets by Rita also has a big brother/sister line of baskets that they gave one time. I got on my iphone and instantly called Baskets by Rita and ordered one of the little red wagon as a baby welcome gift for the newly born. It was easy to arrange to have it delivered to their house when they got home from the hospital. When they got home with the new baby and got the baby welcome wagon, they immediately called me and said I just had to come over to see the new baby and the adorable wagon. So from now on the hospital gift shop will not be my first selection for sending gifts or flowers.

Care Package

 Impossible to imagine that school is almost starting since August has already came. Summer goes quick. Kids are back in college and for me it is hardest to say goodbye to the young adults who are my neighbors who are going back to college. It was so enjoyable to see them all summer and now some are packing up getting ready to go to school. Most of the kids I know go to Colorado State University in Fort Collins or Colorado University in Boulder. Two are going to Colorado College in Colorado Springs. Actually there are two of my cousins kids who are coming to schools in Colorado. My neighbor is making up little gift bags for each kid with cookies and goodies from the supermarket to assist get them stocked up for dorm life. She has bought chips, dip, candy, nuts, and snacks and put them into a bucket. They turned out pretty cute. When I asked her how much it cost she said she had no idea. I had a tough time finding a bucket and filling it with stuff to look good. It just did not appear to be enough. Then I started adding up the cost because I knew I needed to go buy more stuff to make it look good. I just that wow factor for college students when they get to school. I know they may be a bit homesick and this is the nicest thing I can do for them and probably more for their parents. Shoving the things in the bucket is alright and it gets the job done. After making two of the buckets best friend suggested I look at Snack Attack Gift Basket. She shared with me this after she was surprised at how much I had spent on each gift. Her corporation uses Baskets by Rita for all the gift baskets they send to visiting clients. There are trendy wooden crates with mountains and the word Colorado on them stuffed with products from Colorado. After checking out the website of Baskets by Rita I do not dare tell my spouse that I actually might have sent a Colorado crate for the same price or even less expensive than I spent on my own. http://www.basketsbyrita.com

Beer Birthday Baskets

  Guys are SO tough to buy gift items for. Last year I totally felt like a ditz and was fearful when I went into a hardware store. It seemed like a terrific birthday gift idea for him, but I ended up spending lots more than I'd planned. Most of the stuff is on the garage worktable unopened. Don't know why I didn't think of a beer basket sooner--it will be used, that's for sure. Plus having it delivered to his office will let everybody know it's his birthday. When I found this website that had Hats Off Appreciation Gift Basket Our unique appreciation gift has a black top hat filled with an assortment of sweet and savory goodies. This thank you gift is a perfect way to tell staff, customers and friends how much you appreciate them. The black, white and gold theme gives this gift a very classy look. Perfect for Congratulations, Thank you, Graduation, or a celebration gift. it had a great assortment of gifts that really targeted my guy. Solved all my problems--why didn't I think of this before? http://www.basketsbyrita.com

A great way to Tell Your Staff Thank You

It appears as though the art of giving thanks has been lost over the years. Posting a hand written thank you note used to be conventional for both professional and personal occasions, but now the majority of people believe it's enough to quickly type up an email with a short "thanks" before getting back to their busy day to day lives. Now don't take this the wrong way. I understand that the world is quite a bit faster paced than it used to be and many people barely have a second to sit and catch a break, but if you think about it, that merely gives you all the more reason to send a sincere thank you. Given that we've become less accustomed to getting a suitable thank you, it makes a much greater impact when we do receive one. It genuinely is a lovely surprise to see that someone went out of their way to say "thanks." I haven't even mentioned the influence it can leave on your business. By simply taking a moment to write a personalized thank you, you are able to express to your customer how valuable their business is to you. By developing personal friendships with your customers, you are ensuring their confidence and giving them a reason to do business with you as opposed to your competition. If I still haven't convinced you that delivering a thank you gift or note is worth the effort, why don't you consider sending something that takes virtually no time at all? Sending flowers or a gift basket from an online store takes about as long as sending an email, but sends a much more significant message. Gift like Godiva Treats Basket Do you want to say thank you? This mini purse thank you gift comes in assorted colors and is wrapped in cello then tied with a bow and topped with a small metallic thank you balloon. A perfect way to say thank you to all the woman in your life. Great for Administrative Professional's Day and Mother's day! Filled with both a milk and dark Godiva chocolate bar, honey cinnamon almonds, Jelly Belly candy, Cookies, a box of Boulder berry tea, caramel corn, pecan chocolate turtles, pretzels and two chocolate truffles. Forget all objections and practice some good old fashioned courtesy the next time you have the opportunity to say thank you. Baskets By Rita is one internet site that offers a good array of gift baskets for any occasion. (Insert database). Thanks for listening! To give someone the hint or pass on this excellent advice, repost this blog on Facebook or Twitter!

Baskets By Rita, a Colorado Gift Basket Company, Celebrates its 20th Anniversary

Ten years after being laid off from Agilent Technologies, Marge Van Woerkom and her business, Baskets By Rita, are still going strong. As a previous Reporter Herald article outlined, Van Woerkom was one of many Loveland residents who found themselves unemployed in 2002 when HP and Agilent downsized. After 19 years of working for HP and Agilent, Van Woerkom refused to be a victim of her situation. She pulled herself together after the lay off and bought an existing business in Aurora, Colorado. She chose not to change the company's existing name, Baskets By Rita, which already had a strong reputation in the Denver metro area and this choice has served her well. "We've built our business on the philosophy that the customer come first" says Van Woerkom.

Since Van Woerkom took ownership of the company, she has managed to grow sales despite the economic recession of the past few years. In addition, she has grown the company's clientele and web presence year over year with the help of her staff and dedicated members of her family. As a sign of its ongoing growth, Baskets By Rita began plans several months ago to create a sister company, Gift Agent. Gift Agent will offer customers a slightly more specialized product line packaged in specialty boxes which will allow the company to be more eco-friendly and create more of a recognized brand identity. The hope is that receiving a gift from Gift Agent will be comparable in recipients' minds to receiving a box of Godiva chocolates. While Gift Agent gives cause for much excitement at Baskets By Rita, that is not the only exciting news for the company.

This year, Baskets By Rita is celebrating it's 20th year of business. While many other gift basket companies have gone out of business, Van Woerkom and her staff have managed to maintain steady growth despite the public's growing need to economize. To show their gratitude for the continued support of their customers and celebrate their 20 years of success, Baskets By Rita has planned a series of sales promotions for each month of the year. These promotions include deals such as 15% off when you spend $50 or more and a gift of a free basket for the winner of a video commercial contest. For every dollar saved by their customers through these ongoing promotions, Baskets By Rita will donate a dollar to a local charity. Each month, the company will choose two local charities to support and they will match the savings of their customers to determine the donation amount. The best part of this campaign is that customers are encouraged to vote for their favorite charities so that everyone can be involved. As a local business, Baskets By Rita does its best to support local programs and Van Woerkom is excited to have an excuse to give back even more than her usual holiday charitable donations. Like us on Facebook and vote for your local charity. When doing so we will send you a coupon code for 20% off your next purchase.

Great Ways To Say Thanks To Mom

Mother's Day as we know it is a more or less recent holiday, though it is not really a Hallmark holiday designed to sell more cards. There are a number of Mothering day or Mother-focused holidays in history which includes Mothering Day in the UK, Cybele in ancient Greece, or Mothering Sunday in much of Europe. Mother's Day was invented by Anna Jarvis in 1912. Mother's day was especially chosen to be a singular possessive meaning it was intended for each family to remember their mother, not plural possessive that would be used to honor all the mothers of the world. Following congressional passage, It was officially identified on May 9, 1914 when president Woodrow Wilson made the official report proclaiming Mother's day as a national holiday to be celebrated on the 2nd Sunday of May. Mother's Day has eventually celebrated in many other countries and cultures. In many cases, the date was changed to fit existing celebrations or to assort with with a significant date in which the majority are based on religion. Consequently, Mothers Day is celebrated in February in Norway and on December 22nd in Indonesia, with other dates in between celebrated by other countries and cultures. One of the traditions of Mother's Day is to give your mom a gift along with good wishes as a way to honor her. If you live close by (and are seeing your mom regularly!) you no doubt have a fine idea what to get her. On the flip side, those of us that don't live close by can be at a complete loss. Consider the interests Mom enjoys a perhaps send her a gift with that theme. Gift baskets are outstanding when it comes to gifts with a theme. If your mom plays golf there are golf themed gift baskets. Perhaps she is into tea and relaxation then look for a nice tea baskets or a relaxing spa basket. Maybe she likes fine wine and you know she favors red wine or white wine or even champagne. There are lots of great wine gift baskets to select from that feature wine so that would make a appropriate Mother's day basket. The possibilities are many and what a gift baskets does, is give you a nice variety of goodies that she will delight in with the theme she will appreciate. Rather than sending kitchen gadgets yet again this year, you could consider a The Thank-Full Gift Basket. 1 We feel a gift basket should be a masterpiece for the art of appreciation. You'll give a fun message of gratitude in every delectable way imaginable with:Starbucks house blend ground coffee, Starbucks bottled cappuccino, roasted salted nuts, natural hickory smoked beef summer sausage, Shortbread thank you cookies, caramel popcorn, wine flavored cheddar cheese, crackers, chocolate bar, gourmet snack mix and candies. Another thing to think about here is the useful factor. What I mean by this is lots of of the gifts that you give your mom are either unessential or something she will never us. So, consider something green, useful and best of all reusable. The green and reusable is the container which could be a reusable basket or perhaps a 100% recycled reusable shopping bag. The useful is the great gourmet foods or the high quality lotions and soaps in the basket. Why not send her something unique and amazing this Mother's day! Even if you live far away or right down the street these gifts can be delivered. Happy Mother's Day! If you like what you have read here please follow us on Facebook and Twitter. http://www.basketsbyrita.com http://www.basketsbyrita.com/The-Thank-Full-Gift-Basket_p_23.html

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EASTER BASKETS FOR BOYS

EASTER BASKETS FOR BOYS

Fruit and Cheese Gift For Easter

Bunny Tales Have you ever wondered where the story of the Easter Bunny comes from? I mean really, do the Easter Bunny and eggs really say anything about Jesus's resurrection? The answer is no. The history of the Easter Bunny started in the 13th century and originates from pre-Christian Germany. The pagan people of the time period worshipped numerous gods and goddesses. The goddess of spring and fertility was named Eostra, which is where the name Easter comes from. As most people know, spring is the season of new birth. Because of this, Eostra's representation was the rabbit. The rabbit indicated fertility due to the fact that rabbits are well renowned for their large rate of breeding. In time, this image of Eostra brought about other myths and in the 1500s, the first tale of the Easter Bunny was published. Now since you know where the Easter Bunny originates from you are almost certainly thinking about the origin of the eggs. Eggs have been a sign of fertility for hundreds of years and were likely included in early pagan festivals of spring. As Christianity became more widespread in Europe and in Germany, ancient pagan ceremonies began to mesh with new Christian holidays. Currently, we say that Easter eggs represent Jesus's resurrection. Over time the Easter Bunny myth developed yet further and grew to become what we know it as today. Comparable to the fable of Santa Clause, German families would convince their children that if they were well behaved the Easter Bunny would come and lay eggs that that could be traded for sweets and other treats. People began the tradition of creating nests for the eggs and these nests gradually transformed into the bright colored Easter baskets which we have these days. The legend of the Easter Bunny first reached the USA in the 1700s when German immigrants settled in Pennsylvania. Nowadays, this Easter custom is a significant piece of our traditions along with plenty of other traditions which come from the countries of origin of our immigrant forefathers. If you'd like to take the role of the Bunny this year, purchase a gift such as our Monet's Fruit and Cheese Basket for people you love. Baskets By Rita has numerous Easter baskets to choose between and is providing 10% off all Easter gift baskets for the month of March. Imagine sunshine bathing a meadow near a seaside town in the old country…a beautiful bounty — available this time of year — and any time of year… This fruit and cheese basket has pleased palettes since the days of early impressionist painting. Our split willow and rope weave basket is a treasure trove of fruit, cheeses, crackers, and world-class chocolates and nuts. Picked at the peak of perfection, our fruits are the very best of the season with hand-picked and delectable cheeses selected from dedicated cheese makers— a perfect symphony of the healthiest foods that celebrate life, friendship, wellness, and express the timeless desire to share the best life has to offer. http://www.basketsbyrita.com