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This giveaway is part of our Three Gs For The Holidays event. Visit the announcement post to get involved in other fun giveaways, get shopping ideas from our Gift Guide, and learn how you can help children in need this holiday season!

This is the last giveaway for Three Gs For The Holidays, and we thought there would be no better way to end them off than by celebrating the company that has made this all possible: HP! We have been HP fans for years simply because they make quality products. Of all the desktop computers, laptops, and printers we’ve owned or used, HP has been the one brand that never craps out on us. In fact, we own a total of five HP products, and use most of them on a daily basis. This includes a 3 1/2 year old laptop, nicknamed “Old Yeller”, that still works like the day it was born (and I think it’ll be a long time before we have to put this old fella down!); and the latest addition to our HP arsenal, a Pavilion A6460T nicknamed “The Gorilla”, that HP sent us simply because they are freakin’ awesome! Every picture and video uploaded, every blog post published, every single memory we share with you guys on this blog is done on our HP computers. Mommy Daddy Blog is powered by HP!

So when we were able to get our hands on the HP Photosmart A826 Photo Printer, we already knew it would meet our expectations. Since Sheena already wrote an extensive review on the A826 (and writing another one would just be repetitive), we’ve decided to create a video this time around to show this baby in action! In the video, we mention a really easy way for you to earn TEN extra entries into this giveaway, giving you a better chance at winning!

How To Enter

There are a total of 5 6 ways you can enter this giveaway, and everyone is eligible! You can enter using as many methods listed below as you’d like. Each method of entry is worth 1 entry. Here is how you can enter:

1. BONUS: To learn how you can earn TEN easy entries into this giveaway, watch the video above!

2. Take a look around HP.com and leave a comment below with the names of some of the items you would love to add to your home office!

3. Write a post on your blog about this giveaway. You can write whatever you’d like or you can copy and paste the text provided by us below. Be sure to let us know in the comments that you’ve done this by leaving a direct link to your post.

4. Put our Three Gs For The Holidays button in your blog’s sidebar. Be sure to let us know in the comments that you’ve done this.

<a href="http://mommydaddyblog.com/2008/11/18/three-gs-for-the-holidays" title="Three Gs For The Holidays At Mommy Daddy Blog!" target="_blank"><img src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y125/sheeniebabie/mdbholidaygiftguidebutton.gif" border="0" alt="Three Gs For The Holidays At Mommy Daddy Blog!" title="Win An HP Photosmart A826 Photo Printer! *OVER* mommydaddyblog.com" /></a>

5. Tweet about this giveaway on Twitter. You can write whatever you’d like or you can copy and paste the text provided by us below. Be sure to let us know in the comments that you’ve done this by including a direct link to your tweet (how to link directly to a tweet).

6. Subscribe to receive e-mail updates so we can keep you updated on future happenings here at Mommy Daddy Blog. All you have to do is enter your e-mail address below and click Subscribe. Be sure to let us know that you’ve done this (or if you are already subscribed to receive e-mail updates from us) in the comments using the same e-mail address you subscribed with.

This giveaway, along with all other Three Gs For The Holidays giveaways, will end on December 14th!

We’d like to help out those who are less fortunate this holiday season, so we’ll be donating some toys to Toys For Tots! But, since there’s only so much we can do, we encourage you to make a donation also. You can donate toys or cash to Toys For Tots, at your nearest Toys For Tots drop-off location. You can also donate a cash gift, online via credit/debit card by visiting the Toys For Tots Online Donation page, or by texting “TOY” to 90999 using your cell phone. With your help, there’s no limit to the amount of smiles we can put on childrens’ faces this year!

Let me tell you guys about the HP Photosmart A826 Home Photo Center. This beauty has been a hit in our household. This thing is amazing. First off, the printer plays music when you turn it on. How many printers do that? It’s definitely a pick me up. It has a 7 inch touch screen which you can navigate using the stylus pen or your finger. With a few taps of the touch screen you can make photos scrapbook ready without even touching a computer or leaving your house!

Packed with over 200 borders, graphics, frames, and effects, the HP Photosmart A826 allows for endless photo editing. You can crop, adjust color settings, and remove small imperfections such as red-eye. There’s no need for constantly loading the paper tray or worrying about dust particles building up on your photos. The built-in paper tray stores and protects 100 4×6 or 5×7 sheets of photo paper. Any plans to throw a party? You and guests can connect to the HP Photosmart A826 and immediately hand out photos without worrying about smudging or smearing.

There are many ways to connect to the HP Photosmart A826. Connect directly from USB flash drives, your camera’s USB cord, and the following memory cards: Secure Digital/MultiMediaCard, CompactFlash, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Duo, xD-Picture Card. You can even print from your PC or Mac. A USB-to-computer cable must be purchased separate for this. The HP Photosmart A826 even supports wireless printing through Bluetooth technology!

What about paper and ink? HP’s “My Print Rewards” program offers exclusive discounts on HP ink, toner, and paper with free next-day shipping. To optimize your ink cartridge, I recommend adjusting the brightness of each photo to the second to the last setting, otherwise photos may come out darker than usual, plus it takes more ink to print a darker photo. The cheapest I’ve found the ink cartridge sold for are $15.49 at ANT Online, $16.88 at Sam’s Club, and $17.99 at Amazon. Photo paper price comparisons can be found on Froogle. Oh while I’m talking about deals, there are some HP Photosmart A826’s going for below retail on Ebay.

I designed Jayden’s photo birth announcements in Photoshop to match our Baby Shower set and then printed them out using the HP Photosmart A826. Family and friends loved them! The HP Photosmart A826 is a gadget that is definitely cherished in our home. I can’t wait until the Holidays roll around!

HP teamed up with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) and Parent Teacher Association (PTA) to launch a first-of-its-kind national digital video service program that allows families to access and purchase age-appropriate digital content in a safe and secure online environment. The digital video service program also supports PTA’s mission, which is to help children reach their full potential by providing tools for parents to get involved and manage their children’s health, education and safety. A wide array of kid-friendly DVD and TV titles, such as Alvin & The Chipmunks, Bee Movie, Enchanted, Nancy Drew and National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets are available at ptavideostore.com and bgcavideostore.com. The PTA and Boys & Girls Clubs of America worked hard to make both sites a great venue for busy moms to conveniently and securely buy entertainment without having to worry whether it will be safe for their kids to watch.

How would you like to win a $25 gift card redeemable at ptavideostore.com and bgcavideostore.com? Visit either store and come back here to post a comment letting me know how you’d spend your gift card! You may do either or all of the following for 1 extra entry each: blog about this giveaway, place our button on your sidebar, or subscribe to our feed (to be notified of future giveaways). Let me know what you’ve done in the comments. This giveaway will end August 17th 20th at 7PM CST! This giveaway is open to U.S residents only!

I received some Mother’s Day gift ideas from HP. With Mother’s Day being right around the corner, I thought I’d share!

HP Photosmart A826 Home Photo Center: One of the many responsibilities that fall on Mom is making sure that all of her family’s memories are captured and preserved year-round. This Mother’s Day, why not help her out by giving her the HP Photosmart A826 Home Photo Center. This break-through printer will create keepsakes on the spot with a huge 7.0-inch color touchscreen and 100-sheet internal paper tray that makes it easy to create personalized greeting cards and custom photos by the batch all without a PC (just insert your camera’s memory card). In addition to the added convenience of printing at home, you can add personalized text, frames and clipart to photos, album pages, and personalized greeting cards – even write and draw directly on photos using the included stylus. With more than 200 frames, clipart and graphics you can personalize your Mother’s Day memories and all the family’s treasured experiences right in the printer and print them out for everyone to enjoy all throughout the year.

HP Activity Center: Breakfast in bed for Mom usually consists of toast, juice and a flower in a vase but this year let the HP Activity Center help you put a new twists on this and other traditional Mother’s Day routines. This year, why not transform Mom’s bedroom into a French countryside suite with customizable menus, a decorative place mat, table cards, and more! It’s easy with the HP Activity Center’s free downloadable and printable templates. With easy to follow instructions you can beautify any ordinary juice glass with a personalized wrap or present the morning’s feast in style with a customized French country themed menu with your own items and descriptions.

With the HP Activity Center, you can make Mother’s Day truly special with 20 easy-to-make projects including themed photo cards, year-at-a-glace photo calendars, Mother’s Day photo frames and even beautiful paper flowers. With simple instructions on how to download and customize the templates as well as information on all the HP supplies you’ll need to create your project, the HP Activity Center offers free and creative gifts all with the click of a mouse.

Sterling Silver Jewelry: Put a smile on Mom’s face by combining two of her favorite things–family photos and jewelry! Snapfish offers customizable sterling silver jewelry which is perfect for making Mom feel appreciated on her special day. Snapfish users can easily and affordably turn family photos into wearable art by personalizing a sterling silver bracelet or necklace with photos that will warm her heart for less than $40 (a great project dad and child can do together). Additionally, the custom jewelry comes beautifully packaged in a presentation gift box.

Photo Books: What better way to make Mom feel special than to create a photo book full of favorite snapshots capturing your family’s memorable moments? Snapfish offers a full line of photo books in a range of sizes, covers and designs to celebrate Mom. Photo book prices range from $4.99 to $49.99. These professionally-bound books let you tell your stories by using your personal photos to illustrate all the special memories made with Mom. Snapfish’s latest additions to its line of photo books include Signature Photo Books – 12 x 12-inches starting at $49.99, and Storybooks with personalized dust jackets – 8 x 8-inches starting at $24.99.

For more information about other great HP products and supplies for this Mother’s Day, visit the HP Home & Home Office Store at www.hpshopping.com.