Remember Birthdays with a DIY Birthday Calendar and Hallmark #ValueCards

Last Updated on February 5, 2018 by Diane Hoffmaster

This post about how to remember birthdays  and the Hallmark Value Cards has been sponsored. I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser.

Many years ago I had only a few key birthdays I needed to remember.  My parents, my sister, my grandmother....all were fairly well ingrained in my head and people got cards and gifts for each special occasion.  As the years have gone by (and I got married) I have acquired an assortment of inlaws, nieces, nephews and step family members and now nobody seems to get a card on time any more.  I am THAT PERSON who's card always ends up at your house a week after your special event and that annoys me to no end.  I decided I needed to come up with a way to remember birthdays so that I could stop buying those 'belated birthday' cards and actually get things to people on time.  I started searching for birthday calendars online and came across a number of crafty, painted, decorative ideas but I am not all that handy when it comes to tools and paint.  While I was stocking up on Hallmark Value Cards at Walmart I came up with the perfect solution!  A Birthday Calendar in a binder would help me remember birthdays while also giving me someplace to actually store the cards and supplies I would need to send!

Hallmark Value Cards at Walmart

The $0.47 and $0.97 Hallmark Value Birthday Cards at Walmart make stocking up for the entire year incredibly affordable.  They have birthday cards that are humorous and some that are sentimental.  I found cards that were appropriate for my college aged niece but also some that were perfect for my 8 year old nephew. They also have things like Valentine's Day cards, sympathy cards, and cards just to say hello for other occasions during the year.  You can earn rewards for the Hallmark cards you buy at Walmart.  For every 5 cards you buy, you’ll earn a reward.

It is easy to earn rewards through the Hallmark Rewards Program.  You can buy your cards in a Hallmark store and scan your rewards card but you can also earn points at almost 40,000 other locations too!  You can use the free Hallmark Card Rewards app to scan or type the UPC/product identifier on the back of the card. Or, if you aren't excited about apps, just log into your Hallmark.com account and report your purchases online. Every Hallmark purchase earns you points that are redeemable for dollars off merchandise, dining or an assortment of other perks.  If you would like to learn more, just head over and sign up for the Hallmark Card Rewards Program.  Once you have stocked up on your Hallmark Value Cards just follow the directions below for a very simple DIY Birthday Calendar to help you remember all of your family and friend's birthdays this year!

Remember Birthdays with a DIY Birthday Calendar

I found a small, 1 inch decorative binder at Walmart.  You could use plain white if you want or get crafty with scrapbook paper and assorted craft supplies. Buy a few protective plastic sheets that will fit in your 3 ring binder.  These will hold your calendar and cards. I chose to print out Happy Birthday in a decorative script using PowerPoint.  You can use stencils or just write it by hand, depending on your personal preferences. Cut out the image and use spray adhesive to attach it to the front of your binder. Use your favorite calendar program to print out a month by month calendar, making sure that each month is on a separate page.  I used Microsoft Outlook but you could use Google or whatever else you normally use.

Now comes the fun part...in order to remember birthdays you need to actually know when they are.  I tend to remember things like 'Will was born around Thanksgiving' or 'Ava was born in the summer'.  Spend time emailing friends and relatives and get actual exact birth dates to put in your birthday calendar.  When you are shopping for Hallmark Value Cards, choose a wide assortment of cards.  Your goal is to have one for everybody on your list but also to have a few extra for people you may have forgotten!

Once your birthday calendar is filled out with all the dates you  need, put the calendars and appropriate Hallmark cards into the plastic sheet protector and insert them into the binder.  Use a plastic sheet at the back of the book to put extra cards, stamps, return address labels, and maybe even a few gift cards that would make a good last minute gift.

Now, all you need to do is remember to look at your binder occasionally to see who's birthday is coming up.  You can set reminders on your  phone or in Google to let you know when there is an important date coming and now that you have stocked up on Hallmark Value Cards for the entire year there is no last minute running around to get a card to them on time! This birthday calendar is a great way to help you remember birthdays but unfortunately it will NOT help people remember YOURS!  You may have to set a Google reminder if your significant other is as scatter brained as I am some days!