Hey folks, I hope you had a great Memorial Day weekend!

I had a blast -- went out to a picnic in the park. Graduation Season is upon us and we're probably scrambling to buy gifts for our friends and family that are graduating. Do you like that Mickey Doc figurine? It's from Graduating Party Gifts. What I love about that site is that they have specialized graduation gifts for doctors, nurses, paramedics, realtors, lawyers and so on.

Gifts.com has a great collection graduation gifts. Their collection range from College Survival Kits to high tech gifts like emergency cell phone chargers. And of course don't forget alarm clocks!

FindGift.com also has a great collection of graduation gifts That you can personalize according to the graduate that you are giving.

And talk about personalization! Check out Personalization Mall's graduation gifts section -- remember when you're thinking of getting graduation gifts, think about the graduate, think about the memories that can be cherished thought out the next phrase of their lives, and think about the functionality -- will it be useful to them?

	Way To Go ! A cute ecard to tell a new grad how proud you are of him/ her. [ Flash ]		You Made Me Proud ! Send this funny ecard to make your bro/ sis/ friend/ loved one who has graduated roar with laughter. [ Flash ]
	I'm Proud Of You ! Express how proud you are of your son/ daughter for graduating with this cute ecard. [ Flash ]		It's A Proud Moment ! Congratulate and encourage your son/ daughter/ student/ dear one who has graduated to achieve greater heights. [ Flash ]

Labels: graduation gifts

After graduation, be it from high school or college, you begin the next journey in your life. For some, this journey may be a continuation of school; for others, it may mean diving into the workforce, etc. Wherever your journey takes you after graduation, it is very likely that you will lose touch with many of the friends you have made along the way. If you want to keep in touch with those friends, keep the following in mind.

Send e-mails. This is the easiest way to stay in touch, especially if you live far away from your old friends. Try to e-mail your friends at least once a month to let them know what has been going on in your life. If you have a group of friends, you can send an e-mail to all of them at once, but it's probably better for the friendship if you personalize an e-mail for each friend (you are more likely to get a response if the e-mail is personalized). Attach pictures to give your friends a visual of important events in your life.

Pick up the phone. Your friends are only a phone call away. If you see something that reminds you of a certain friend, if you have big news that you want to share, or if you're just thinking about one of your friends, pick up the phone and call him. It's always nice to hear the voice of a friend on the other end of the line.

Read more about it at eCampus.

	Wanna Celebrate With You ! Invite your dear ones to the Graduation party of your son/ daughter/ dear one with this elegant ecard. [ Interactive ]		Congratulations On Graduating ! Congratulate and wish a dear one who has graduated a bright future ahead with this beautiful ecard. [ Flash ]
	Scribe Happiness And Success ! A warm and inspiring wish for your son/ daughter/ student/ dear one who has graduated. [ Flash ]		College Memories ! Pull a prank on your friends/ fellow grads with this fun-to-the-max ecard. [ Interactive ]

Labels: keeping in touch with friends, life after graduation

Graduation 2007

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All Other Inquiries: Hallmark Customer Service

Cover: Wisdom, Success, Pride. Inside: Congratulations and Best Wishes On Your Graduation.

Related Links: • Thank-You Notes • Marking Milestones Is an American Family Tradition

Cover: For A Special High School Graduate... Our hopes grow stronger... our reach ever higher... seeking the endless possibilities of tomorrow. Inside: There's so much POTENTIAL and PROMISE in who you are. And you have so many people who care about you and will do whatever they can to help you along the way. You really can ACCOMPLISH anything... Just DREAM up the life you want and go after it. Congratulations.

Cover: Congratulations On Your Master's Degree. Inside: All your hard work and dedication have paid off. You should feel great about your achievement. Congratulations on your success and best wishes for the future.

Cover: Know what comes after Preschool? Inside: Lots of Great Big Hugs! Way to Go, Preschool Graduate!

Cover: Success is achieved through vision, inspiration, and resilient determination. And when success comes to one of us, it comes to all of us. Inside: By your success, you raise our spirits. With your determination, you carry our dreams. In pleasure and pride, we lift you up today. Congratulations.

Graduation 2007 Tassel-Keeper Frame

Assorted Graduation 2007 Gift Bags

Cover: I know we're graduating, but can we have homework? Inside: Congratulations on not having to deal with that girl any more.

Graduation 2007 Partyware

Cover: Fun, Memories, Dreams, Wisdom, Hope, Inspiration, Graduate. Inside: May your GRADUATION be just the beginning of a FUTURE filled with achievement and happiness.

TRENDS
• Money is the most popular graduation gift, and money-holder cards are top sellers for Hallmark. The card serves as a keepsake long after the money has been spent. Money and gift card presenters also are available in the gift wrap line, including a musical option. Plush money presenters also are popular.

• Some graduation party guests find it difficult to shop for graduates because they often don’t know the graduate well. Whether starting life as an adult or heading off for college, they know graduates can use money and gift cards. Hallmark offers more than 60 money-holder graduation cards in 2007, the majority are designed to also be used as gift-card holders.

• Graduation is accepted as an important milestone in social and personal development. Today’s graduation celebrations include open houses, graduation parties and school sponsored after-ceremony receptions and parties.

• Graduation gifts often are themed and tend to be thought of as keepsakes. Friends give graduation cards and gifts to each other to say “good bye” or as mementos of times shared in school.

• Increasingly, graduates give thank-you cards and gifts to parents and teachers to express appreciation for guidance and support during their years of education.

WHEN
Most graduations occur in May and June, but some are as early as mid-April or as late as the first week in July. Mid-year college commencement ceremonies typically are in December.

HALLMARK RESEARCH
Industry-wide, nearly 77 million graduation cards will be given annually.

High school graduation is the No. 1 reason for purchasing graduation cards, and the average graduate receives 17.5 graduation cards. Sixty percent of all graduation cards are purchased for high-school graduates. College graduation is the No. 2 reason for buying graduation cards, and the average college graduate receives 7.5 cards.

The Class of 2007 includes more than 3.3 million high school graduates, about 1.5 million college undergraduate degrees, approximately 603,000 Master’s degrees, and more than 50,000 doctorates. (Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics)

HALLMARK PRODUCT NEWS
Hallmark offers more than 450 graduation cards, including specific cards for professions (nurse, law, medical doctor, pharmacist, veterinarian, dentist), cards for service (police academy, firefighter, EMT certification), and post-graduate degrees (doctorate, master’s and MBA). Cards for pre-school, grade school, middle school and junior high also are available as well as cards for teachers, coaches, bus drivers and grad-to-grad. The cards range from serious, success-oriented and inspirational to humorous. High school and college cards tend to focus on accomplishments and good wishes for the future.

A collection of nine graduation sound cards help the graduate celebrate. The cards feature traditional music such as “Pomp and Circumstance,” which resonates with consumers of all ages, and current music such as “Photograph” by Nickelback, a popular rock band. The cards also offer sound clips from college movie classics such as “Animal House” with John Belushi.

In addition, graduation is the first season in which Hallmark is introducing six sound card money holders that use the CD-quality sound chip technology. The sound card money holders also are designed to present gift cards. There are six designs in the Hallmark Gold Crown® channel. Songs include “We’re in the Money” and “I Just Want to Celebrate.”

Mahogany offers 29 cards for African-American graduates, including money/gift-card holders, and one card for graduates of historically black colleges and universities.

Sinceramente Hallmark offers 40 graduation cards with a mix of Spanish-language and bilingual cards especially for Latino consumers. The line includes money-holder cards, which also are compatible with gift cards.

A collection of Hallmark graduation gifts and mementos is suitable for all ages. Plush animals with mortarboards are perfect keepsakes for presenting monetary gifts or gift cards. The Hats Off Snoopy, available at a special promotional price, provides a place to slide the money or gift card. When you press his tummy, the hat pops up. Tassel keepers, commemorative photo frames and Instant Scrapbooks are useful and lasting gifts for high-school and college graduations.

Gift Books from Hallmark make perfect gifts for the graduate or for a special teacher who made a difference. Titles include School’s Out, Life’s On and The Road Ahead: A Faith-Based Guide for Today’s Teens.

Hallmark offers invitations, graduation gift wrap and gift bags, as well as graduation partyware, balloons and accessories. The gift wrap collection includes unique ways to wrap up gifts of money or gift cards including a mortarboard-shaped box that plays “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang when you lift the lid. Gift bags and wrap feature trendy designs using popular school colors and showcase the “Class of 2007.” Designs are appropriate for high-school and college graduations.

HISTORY
Today’s graduation ceremony is the modern equivalent of the ancient rite of passage from youth into adulthood celebrated in many tribes and clans. Commencement is the contemporary way to acknowledge that an important milestone has been passed.

Early degree ceremonies took place in the mid-12th century at the University of Bologna, and soon after, at Paris, Oxford and Cambridge. Harvard was the first American college to hold a commencement ceremony in 1642.

Graduation gowns reflect the general manner of dress in the late Middle Ages and Renaissance period. Many are black, although the gowns used in many high school ceremonies reflect school colors. The sleeves of a collegiate graduation gown indicate the level of a graduate’s degree.

The four-sided graduation cap first appeared in the 16th century in Scotland. It originally was known as a “trencher” cap because it looked like an inverted serving board – a trencher – with a bowl on it. The term “mortarboard” developed in the 19th century.

High-school graduates in the United States began wearing the now traditional commencement cap and gown in 1908.

Hallmark has been producing graduation cards since the 1920s.

PRODUCT LOCATIONS
Any store carrying the Hallmark brand offers a selection of cards and other products to celebrate graduation. To find the nearest Hallmark Gold Crown® store, use the store locator on Hallmark.com.

Cover: Life Lesson No. 15... Inside: Do what you love... It's what the world needs from you... it's what you were meant to do. Happy Graduation.

Labels: facts on graduation, graduation Trends 2007

Nearly 5.3 million people will graduate from high school or college in the United States this year, and that adds up to a lot of celebrating. With graduation party supplies, thank you notes, decorations, a variety of graduation cards, money and gift card holders, wrapping paper and gift bags, American Greetings can supply graduates and their families with almost everything they need for the big day, except the diploma, of course!

How will people say "congratulations?"

Americans will purchase a total of 68 million graduation cards this year. Here's how that total will break down, according to American Greetings business trend experts:

• High School is #1: High school graduates, an estimated 2.9 million in 2005, receive the biggest share of all graduation cards.
• College grads a close second: College graduates come in second in number of cards received. This year, more than 2.3 million students will receive associate's, or bachelor's degrees, as well as Master's, Doctoral and other post-graduate degrees.
• Specialty cards: Families celebrate more milestones than the traditional high school and college graduation these days. American Greetings offers cards for almost every academic achievement, for graduates from preschool through medical and law school.
• Money and gift card holders "rule": Money is the most popular graduation gift of all, so it comes as little surprise that money holder cards comprise nearly 25 percent of graduation card sales. Gift card holders also are growing in popularity, mainly because they allow graduates to personally select the gifts that are most meaningful to them. For 2005, many American Greetings gift card holders incorporate the graduation year within the design, making them lasting mementos of the occasion.
• A diverse range of styles for every personality: Card styles range from cute to funny to formal. A special selection of keepsake cards from American Greetings features detachable mortarboard and '05 charms to commemorate the graduate's special day.
• Visual novelties: Holographic cards from American Greetings offer messages that change when the card is tilted. For example, one card simply says, "Graduation" on the front, but when the card is held at a slight angle, the word changes to read, "Celebrate!"
• Graduation thank you cards: Thank you cards will be some of the season's biggest sellers, American Greetings trend experts report. An example: "Thank you, Professor. I'll always remember how your guidance made the way easier, how your enthusiasm made the work more interesting, and, most of all, how your encouragement challenged me to do my best."

Party Time

The graduation party is a long-standing tradition. Today, graduates from kindergarten to graduate school take time to celebrate their achievements with family and friends.

• An extended season: "Graduation season," is no longer limited to June. With many schools now scheduling later graduation ceremonies and graduates wanting to attend multiple parties, graduation parties are now held from May through late August.
• Party central: American Greetings offers everything to make a graduation party special, including invitations, plates, napkins and dinnerware in school colors or in a special "2005" graduation theme.

Historical Graduation Trivia

The reward for every graduate's hard work and effort is the official graduation ceremony to honor his or her achievement. It's an occasion steeped in ceremonies and traditions, many with historical connections:

• An ancient rite: Graduation ceremonies are an outgrowth of an ancient celebration of the movement from youth into adulthood.
• The first ceremony: Harvard University held the first graduation ceremony in America in 1642.
• Graduation "fashion" - Gowns reflect traditional clothing of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. At the college level and beyond, each level of academic achievement is reflected in variations on the basic robe:
• Bachelor's degree: These gowns have pointed sleeves with no hood and are the most recognized gown and the style most often associated with graduation ceremonies.
• Master's degree: Gowns for these graduates have long closed sleeves with slits for the arms and a narrow hood.
• Doctorate degree: Bell-shaped sleeves and draped, wide hoods distinguish these gowns. Mortarboards: The wearing of a four-sided graduation cap or mortarboard is something most graduates have in common. This traditional graduation accessory originated in 16th century Scotland. High school graduates first wore the mortarboard and gown in 1908. Mortarboards were originally known as "trencher" caps because of the similarity they had to wooden table platters, or trenchers.

Labels: congrats grads, graduation fact sheet, graduation wishes

Graduation Trivia

Labels: congrats grads, grads, graduation trivia

Graduation is such an important step in a young person's life. Here are 10 graduation gifts that graduates will truly appreciate.

1) Money!!!
Of course, the top gift that all graduates love is money. As long as you don't care how it gets spent, this is an excellent choice as an all around graduation gift.

2) Oh the Places You'll Go
Help your graduate "soar to high heights" with the always relevant rhymes of Dr. Seuss. This book, while written for children, is relevant for adults too.

3) iPod
The iPod is the ultimate graduation gift. It is so convenient and provides hours and hours of entertainment.

	Soar High Graduate Send this graduation ecard to congratulate your son/ daughter/ student who has graduated and to inspire him/ her to move on. [ Flash ]		Scribe Success And Happiness ! Reach out to all the new grads you know with this warm and inspiring congrats graduate ecard. [ Flash ]

4) Handheld Device / PDA
A moderately priced PDA can do it all for the new graduate. A great way for to store images, movies, music, and data for the student going off to college. The Palm Zire has all of these features and more.

5) Laptop Computer
If you are willing to spend a lot on the graduate, a laptop computer is an excellent choice. The Dell Inspiron 700M Notebook only ways a little more than 4 pounds, has a 12.1" screen, 512 MB of RAM, and 40 GB of memory. A graduate would truly appreciate this as a graduation gift.

6) Graduation Commemorative Coins
Commemorative coins including proof sets from the graduation year and Silver Eagles are good choices for students. They can always remember the year they graduated with an item that could appreciate in value.

7) Hope Chest
Okay - so it's only for girls. However, even though it's somewhat old fashioned, girls still enjoy getting hope chests. What better time to give them one than as a graduation gift? This choice is a beautiful cherry/cedar choice.

	Congrats To You ! Say congratulations to all the proud grads you know with this cool and cute ecard. [ Flash ]		May Your Dreams Come True ! Congratulate and encourage all your dear ones who have graduated with this beautiful ecard. [ Flash ]

8) Digital Camera
A gift that many graduates would love would be the digital camera. Give it to them before the big day, and they will have something to not only show off but also capture the moment. The Canon PowerShot is an excellent and luckily relatively inexpensive digital camera.

9) College Spirit Gift
If your student is going to go off to college, they will definitely enjoy a 'college spirit' graduation gift related to their college of choice. Here are some wall clocks for many different colleges across the nation.

10) High Quality Ink Pen
A traditional gift to set the tone for the future graduate. There is something about writing that evokes the image of success.

	Wow ! You Did It ! An elegant ecard to congratulate a dear one on his/ her Convocation. [ Postcard ]		Way To Go Grad ! Make all the new grads you know feel proud with this cool and cute ecard. [ Flash ]

http://712educators.about.com/od/speeches/tp/gradgifts.htm

Labels: graduation gifts, top grad gift certificates

Most high schools and colleges limit the number of visitors a student may invite to commencement because of space. It is important to send announcements to close family and friends who would otherwise be invited to the ceremony. Include these individuals at other festivities that take place such as parties, luncheons, etc. It is also important to send to friends and family who are too far away to join in the fun, to share the good news of your accomplishment.

How to Address the Envelopes

The outer envelope, with the gummed flap, is the mailing envelope. It should be hand-addressed using black or blue ink. It should be formal. Do not use abbreviations, except in the title. Example:

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Jones
1554 South Wallace Street
Deer Park, Pennsylvania 12345

The inner envelope, without the gummed flap, holds the announcement, graduation picture, etc.

It should be addressed informally. Examples:

Labels: graduation announcements, graduation invitations