Happy SBT Kids

It seems this whole contest thing is catching on, and I love it. This month's winner is Andrew (LOVE the name). He's sporting the My Pop's for Barack shirt (top, right of middle). So Andrew's mom, please email the shirt you'd like as your prize, and I will get it shipped to you.

Also, we have a new way for you to submit your photos. For all of our new fans on Facebook, you can add "fan photos" directly to the page, and these photos will also be entered to win our monthly giveaway.

You can also enter to win the old way, email (since when is email, the "old way?").

Cyber Monday Sale on Sunday

Become a fan of Sandbox Threads on Facebook, and you can enjoy our Cyber Monday sale today. Once you are a fan, just browse through the photos and you'll find an image with our sale details.

Plus, to add a little fancentive, we will randomly pick one of our fans, and that fan will receive $50 in free Sandbox Threads gear. Become a fan before Dec. 15 to be entered to win.

Click Here to be our Fan.

Holiday Savings BEGIN!!!

I have to admit that I didn't like putting up the holiday decorations at Sandbox Threads before Thanksgiving. I really like our holiday logo, but I believe we should get through one holiday before we move on to the next. Tomorrow, though, I'm in charge of smoking two turkeys and a ham, plus there are several basketball and football games I want to watch, so I bit the bullet and decorated early.

As an extra bonus, our Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales has already begun with free shipping on all orders, but free shipping is only the beginning. Next week we are having a Cyber-Week sale with a different offer every day. Our Cyber-Week sale is only offered to those folks signed up to receive our newsletter, so if you don't already get it, be sure to sign up. You can do so from any page on Sandbox Threads including this one.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Become a FAN of Sandbox Threads

Last night I created a Fan Page for Sandbox Threads on Facebook. It's still a work in progress, but I'd like to invite you to become a fan of Sandbox Threads. Follow this link or click on the above picture.

We'll be offering special discounts to all of our fans.

Our Newest Famous Face

Apparently Dylan, the name, is very popular right now, and parents with boys (and girls) named Dylan are wanting Dylan, the one pictured above, on onesies and shirts. At Sandbox Threads, we're happy to oblige. We hope you like it.

"Change Has Come to America"

After months of turning the Sandbox Threads' blog into my own little political forum, this will be my last political post (at least for some time). We'll get back to featuring new designs, funny stories, and pictures of kids sporting our gear.

Thank you for letting me indulge in some political punditry, but it's now time to go back to simply being the Dad of Sandbox Threads.

By the way, we're really HAPPY today!

YES WE CAN (If you VOTE)!

If you do not receive our monthly newsletter, be sure to sign up. Each month we will send you updates and sale information. Yesterday, I sent a slightly different sort of newsletter, and below I have copied the text. Please take a few minutes to read it, and if you haven't already, then go and vote.


This newsletter will be a little different than most. A more traditional newsletter will arrive later this month with photos of the cute kids, some new designs, and the BIGGEST SALE we’ve ever offered at Sandbox Threads, but this email is a simple public service announcement. Think of it as an after school special on civics. I hope you take the time to read it, and we’ll talk to you later this month (oh yeah, a pretty good sale is happening right now, but you have to read the message below to find out details).

I beg you, please go VOTE! My hope is that each and every one of you will make your voice heard on Tuesday.

The Sandbox Threads family obviously has a guy we like, and we have already voted for him, but BOTH of these men deserve you taking a few minutes (and possibly hours) out of your day to take part in the election process.

Really, think about it. Twenty-three months ago, these guys started running for President. Since then, both of them have had their every word, movement, and action taped, replayed, and critiqued by countless pundits and Joes. These guys can’t go to the store to buy milk or shaving cream without having a camera crew tag along.

I watch cable news while making the shirts that you guys order (thank you again), and I’m tired of just listening to the same stump speech from these guys. Can you imagine having to give the same speech over and over and over again? And pretending to be excited about giving the same talk over and over and over again?

Can you imagine working 15+ hours every day for the better part of two years? Spending most nights in a new hotel? Packing and unpacking every day? Shaking hands, holding babies, taping interviews, and listening to the many good intentioned, but often crazy folks who they meet each day? To me, what these guys have willingly put themselves through is a nightmare, but they have been called to serve this great country. And the least that I can do is take the time to thank them by casting a ballot. I hope you will decide to do the same.

Once you received that cool “I Voted” sticker, you can go shopping at Sandbox Threads and receive 15% off by using the coupon code IVOTED.

PRETTY PLEASE—GO VOTE!

One More Day...

...until we CHANGE the world!

My Mama VOTED for Obama

With early voting going strong around the country, Sandbox Threads is happy to introduce a NEW My Mama's for (VOTED) Obama design. The above design will arrive later this week. And while we're sad to see our original My Mama's for Obama design retired, we're happy that the election is finally here, and we're happy that SO many of you still want Obama themed onesies and shirts.

If you can, GO VOTE NOW. Both this pop and mama have already voted. I bet you can guess who we voted for, but I'm not telling you. Happy Monday!

McCain v. Obama--DANCE-OFF

This really is the BEST head to head match-up of the two candidates thus far. I'm still laughing.

Will Ferrell as W....

Opie Meet Richie Meet Ron

Funny stuff. Enjoy!

$150,000 vs. $30

When I heard the news of Gov. Palin (or the campaign or the RNC) spending $150,000 on her wardrobe in the last month, I had to read the story twice to make sure I got the number correct. $150,000--or roughly 8333 shirts from Sandbox Threads, or to paraphrase the article, what the average American household spends on clothes in 80 years, Palin received in one month.

The story also triggered a memory of watching the above interview earlier this summer, and after a bit of searching, I found it on YouTube--you really can find any clip from any time on YouTube.

And if you're curious, Obama's suits cost about $1500 per suit (expensive yes, but I'd be willing to bet he doesn't have 100 suits). Also, here's a picture of the shoes...



and the $34 dress



Although, this scarf seems to be money well spent--Vote Democratic Donkey? Conspiracy Theorists enjoy!

Steal Back Your Vote

Steal Back Your Vote! from Greg Palast on Vimeo.

Regardless of whom you plan to vote for (this Pop's for Barack), I want to make sure you CAN vote. Take a few minutes to watch this video and also visit Steal Back Your Vote. The site has some tips to ensure YOUR VOTE is counted.

If Colin Powell were running....

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard the phrase, "if Colin Powell were running, I'd vote for him." Well, he may not be running, but he makes the most well articulated case why he's supporting Obama that I've heard. And why, he's not supporting McCain. You may have seen soundbites of this clip, but I highly recommend watching the whole thing.

And remember, it's not to late to register to vote, to buy a My Mama's for Obama shirt from Sandbox Threads and receive it in time for the election, or to change you mind about whom you plan to vote.

Happy Monday!

The Joe's Have It

No one except possibly Joe Six Pack could have seen this coming--Joe, The Plumber turns debate bingo on it's head. My friends, no need to sigh or roll your eyes in disgust, Joe won last night's debate and ran away with debate bingo.

A Message from Ralph Stanley

I went to college in southwest Virginia (Emory & Henry College to be exact--great place, take a look. E&H is ranked in the top 100 universities in the country by Forbes Magazine).

Anyway, SW Virginia is also home to the Carter family (including June Carter Cash, Johnny's wife. You know, Johnny Cash) and the Carter Family Fold still host bluegrass shows each weekend. So when I heard the above radio ad from Ralph Stanley endorsing Barack Obama, it made me smile.

It may not seem like that big a deal to the rest of the country, but this ad from a southerner speaking directly to other southerners gets closer to the core of MOST southerners than anything I have heard from either campaign. Most rural southerners are not the hate filled racist as they are often portrayed. Most are good, kind folks and a simple ad like this, I believe, from one of their own may really help change some minds.

Anyway, we're taking a week off to visit family, so we'll talk to you again next week.

My Friends...

...if you happened to play debate bingo last night, and you took "my friends" you came out the big winner. So, "my friends" have a good day and it's not too late to get your little one an election year shirt from Sandbox Threads.

Favorite Video EVER!!!!!

Are there better songs? Yes.
Are there better videos? Yes.
Do I like any better than this one? No.
Ah-Freaking-Ha!

I Love the 80s

You can't get a shirt featuring these guys at Sandbox Threads, but we do have Lloyd Dobler and Molly Ringwald along with other 80s flashbacks.

5 Friends

WARNING--This might cause you to do something, like registering to vote and sending this on to 5 or more friends.

I Actually Remember Seeing This...

...when I was a kid. I think it was on a public access cable or a video I watched during youth group. It's a very catchy tune, and you will be singing this song the rest of the day. Trust me, you will. I can't stop myself.

"It's Beginning To Smell"

I think Dave sums it up pretty well.

The Dude Abides

One of my favorite movies is The Big Lebowski, but if Fox News has it's way, a new dude abides. It appears Todd was over the whole line of questioning after the first 20 references, but Greta just would not let it go.

Also, does this remind any of you of high school? Nerdy girl finally gets her chance to talk to the high school stud, and just falls all over herself in the process. And the stud is polite because he wants something (the answers to the test or the Vice-Presidency), but you can tell he'd rather be hanging out with his dudes. Awkward.

Is It Just Me...

...or does this kid scare the crap out of you? He's talented for certain, but I would not be able to sleep at night knowing my crazily intense son is sleeping down the hall with martial arts equipment that could rip me in half. Can anyone say teenage angst?

No Smoking on the Rocketship while you Love Your Mother

As promised, three new designs from Sandbox Threads. I did it, no politics in a blog posting. Go me! It was tough not to mention anything about politics with all the lies flying around. But I promised, and I will not bring up flip-flopping on the bridge to nowhere or not really selling the plane on ebay. Nope, I'm not going to mention any of those lies. I'm just going to stick with talking about our three new designs.

Triumph @ RNC

I promise that this is my last political post for a few days. Sandbox Threads has several new designs we are rolling out, and we'll feature those this week. No politics, promise!

Yet ANOTHER Reason Why I Love Jon Stewart

THANK YOU Jon! You're the man. Thanks for cutting through all the bull and double talk upon double talk, and telling it straight. If you love him too, you can always get a Sandbox Threads' onesie or tee for your little one featuring none other than--Jon Stewart.

Barack's Speech--The American Promise

For those of you who are new to Sandbox Threads, we're a small business based in North Carolina, and while I now live in NC, I am still a Tennessee boy, born and bread. Being a southern boy, I was raised and continue to live in a "red state," but I'm a true, blue Democrat. Many of my friends are Republicans. We disagree. We argue. And in election years, we try to avoid politics all together. But my Republican friends are good people. They love America as much as I love this country. And at the end of the day, we still love and care for one another.

So for those folks who happen to stumble upon Sandbox Threads and see our many left leaning designs, and our unapologetic support for Barack Obama, you may not like all of our designs. You may not agree with our backing of Barack Obama. You may not agree with political baby shirts in general. But we still know, you're good people, and I bet if you take the time to look around, you'll find a design or two that you like.

Also, I want to elect Obama, and I'm going to, in my little way, try to help spread his message. I drank the kool aid and the kool aid was good. Watch if you like or go on shopping if you've already seen the speech, but liberal, conservative, Democrat or Republican, we're just a small American business living the American dream.

If you missed it, here's Michelle Obama

My dad owned a small business for over 30 years, and he told me that I should refrain from talking politics or religion with customers. Normally, I would agree with him, but with all the misinformation that continues to float around the internet about Barack and Michelle Obama, I cannot just sit by without trying to stop the spread of rumor and innuendo, and replace the distorted (highly edited) clips with unedited clips. How better to get to know someone than to actually listen to that person's story first hand rather than through someone else's eyes?

The "right" has done a good job of painting the Obama's as un-American. I believe that if you take the time to actually get to know these guys, and listen to what they have to say, then you will see that they have a lot more in common with you than you may currently recognize. The Obama's aren't nearly as "scary" as you might think. I know how worried I was driving our son and daughter home from the hospital (see Michelle's remark near the end of the speech). Can't you relate? And checkout the smile on Barack's face and pride in his eyes when he sees his girls, you can't fake that smile? That's a father's smile at his kids. Now, I know for sure, that you can relate.

And if after you watch, you decide that you're now a Mama for Obama or a Pop for Barack, then Sandbox Threads has the shirt for you (well, a shirt for your little Obama supporter that is). And if you still support the other guy, we do have a Republican Elephant design that you might like, but watch again just to make sure.

I Am Not a Scrapbooker...

...but I do like the "scrapbook" look for websites including Sandbox Threads. What I mean by "scrapbook" look is the vintage/retro layers on top of layers with handwritten notes, doodles, pictures, tape, photo tabs, etc. And while in not way does our sites look nearly as good as the constantly changing Free People, we're also not a multimillion dollar business with full-time web designers. It's just me, the Dad of Sandbox Threads balancing the many hats of SBT and being a stay/work at home dad. I think overall, our site looks pretty darn good for someone with zero web design experience prior to opening SBT.

I did find a really cool site today that does the hard scrapbooking work for you though. It's call Scrapblog, and the above picture of Maya (isn't she a cutie?) was done from a template on the site. I just added the picture and changed the text. It's really very easy and they have tons of templates to choose from. Thought you guys might like the site. Enjoy!

New Colors for Fall

With the temperature outside in the 90s, it makes me hot just thinking about long-sleeve shirts, but that's what I'm here tell you about.

Sandbox Threads has just introduced two new color choices for fall. In the above picture, Johnny Cash in printed our new "rust" colored t-shirt, and the "yet to be introduce" owl design is printed on our "lavender" onesie. Not pictured are our rust onesies and lavender/purple baseball style raglan shirts.



We hope you like the new colors, and check back soon for new designs to go along with these new color choices. Have a great weekend!

Funky Finds Likes Us Too.

Apparently, it's a big review day for Sandbox Threads. Funky Finds has also featured Sandbox Threads in a nice write-up. It's funny, but we can go months without anyone writing about us and then over the course of a few days, we have several sites posting all at the same time.

Regardless, we thank the good folks at Funky Finds.

Mamanista's Follow-up Review

One of the many cool things about running Sandbox Threads is forming "cyber-relationships," and although my wife and I actually did meet through Yahoo! Personals, that's not what I mean by "cyber-relationships.

I've met a whole bunch of people (a few thousand) since Sandbox Threads opened, but I've only met (in person) a handful. The folks that I've met have watched as Sandbox Threads and our family has grown. And I have watched as their kids have gone from wearing a 3-6 month onesie to a 2T shirt. These relationships are my favorite part of running SBT.
One of the folks that I've met along the way is Candace over at Mamanista, whose family is also about to expand, and whose daughter Lilah has grown-up very fast. You can see Lilah on one our slideshows sporting our Milk & Cookie, BFF shirt. And you can see her today, as Mamanista does a follow-up of Sandbox Threads, wearing Janis Joplin on our baby rib dress.
Thanks Candace and Mamanista for helping us build more "cyber-relationships"! And be sure to check out the review, you might just receive a discount on your order.

The Responsibility Project

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the We Can Solve It initiative, and as part of that post, I mentioned the Liberty Mutual Commercials where one person helps out a stranger who in turn helps the next and so on.

After that post, something pretty cool happened. I received an email from Liberty Mutual thanking me for my post, and pointing me to their new project, The Responsibility Project. How they found out that the Dad of Sandbox Threads blogged about their commercial is beyond me, but they did. The project is a pretty neat idea, and I think you might enjoy taking a look.

After you're done over there, be sure to come back and take a look around Sandbox Threads too. We have some pretty neat stuff too.

Twin Shirt Powers Activate

If you've taken any time at all to look around Sandbox Threads, then you know that we're not your typical baby clothes store. Our cool baby clothes offer a different take on dressing your little one. We enjoy taking ideas and making them into designs you would not typically see on baby apparel.

Our latest take is on the twins gift set. I started thinking about Sandbox Threads' brand, spanking new Frick and Frack twin set last night, and realized that the set could just as easily be a sibling gift set. I can just see big brother being Frick and little sister being Frack. And the good news, the Frick and Frack gift set is available in each and every size, color and style. You can customize this set to fit your needs. We hope you enjoy putting together the perfect gift set for yourself.

And don't forget that our monthly newsletter offering coupons and updates will be going out later this week, so be sure to sign-up now to receive your copy. Until then, ciao!

Hands Down Better Browser

I have long been a Firefox user, and I loved the Firefox browser even before I started designing Sandbox Threads. Little did I know that because Sandbox Threads looks and works great in Firefox does it mean that it looks and works great in Internet Explorer.

Updating the website and adding new features is pretty painless. That is until I go take a look at the site in Internet Explorer, and more times than not, the update does not work properly. It's hard for me to imagine how Microsoft can dominate the computer world, yet continue to offer sub-par, under-performing products (see, IE, Vista). Last week I spent countless hours figuring out why our slideshow would disappear in IE after playing one time. The problem was IE, not my coding (and it's now working properly).

Anyway, you probably don't care, and I wouldn't either if I were you, BUT if you want a better experience surfing the web, I recommend downloading and using the new Firefox 3. Plus, if I can get everyone who visits Sandbox Threads to use Firefox, I can stop wasting time correcting problems caused by IE.

For the Equipment Crazy Kids

I'm not sure how this happened (I believe it's just part of being a little boy), but our son is equipment crazy. We didn't push him toward the big machines. He gravitated there all by himself, and now any car ride involves him loudly pointing out ever digger, bulldozer, tractor, and duck bill (his odd take on dump truck).

So when Sandbox Threads received our new equipment designs, Ben nearly pitched a fit because he wanted to play with, inspect, and keep all of them for himself.
We were able to pry them away, and now if you have an equipment crazy kid, we just might be able to help.

We Can Solve It

Maybe I am naive, but I believe that I can personally make a difference and change to world. Not the whole world all at once, but if you've ever seen the Liberty Mutual commercials where one person helps the other who in turn goes on the help the next person, and that person helps the next and so on. I absolutely believe that sort of change is indeed possible. (If interested, you can watch the commercial HERE).

So while I'm still skeptical that We Can Solve It, the climate change initiative led by Al Gore, can accomplish "producing 100 percent of our electricity from renewable energy and other clean sources within 10 years," I do believe major steps toward this country becoming energy independent within ten years is absolutely possible.

I invite you to watch the video, and if so moved, join the challenge.

Construction Time

 

 

 

 

 

 

We've been busy the last few days with tasks absolutely unrelated to Sandbox Threads. For a while now, we have had two large boxes sitting beside of our garage waiting to be emptied and assembled. Well, that assembly has now taken place. While building this beast of a swing set, I realized a couple of things, I thought I'd share:

1. The lengths to which we will go to make our children happy may very well be limitless. This is coming from me, a dad, and also from my dad who helped me build he swing. I think he was helping me, his son, as much as he was trying to make his grandson happy.

2. The shear genius behind the packaging, design, and assembly instructions just amazed me. There was no a wasted space in the packaged boxes, very few extra parts (this may be our fault that there was any leftover pieces), and while confusing at times, the building of the set was pretty straight forward if you "follow the directions."

I'm pretty proud of this beast o'swing, and my son nearly pees his pants every time he goes outside and see that the swingset is still there.

One Day and Four New Designs

Sandbox Threads has had these designs awaiting a launch for some time, but we just haven't gotten around to adding them to the site until now. We were going to add them one at a time, but I decided that if I waited it might be months before I get them added.

We hope you like them, and look for our own take on "twin shirts" in the weeks to come.

Dress Orders Are Rolling In

To be honest, I wasn't sure about adding the dresses. Having never worn a dress (well, maybe I have a time or two, but I'm sure there was a good reason for my cross-dressing like some high school homecoming competition or to make myself feel pretty), anyway, I just wasn't sold that they would work with our designs.

Well, I was wrong. The more dresses I make the more I'm glad we added them to the offerings at Sandbox Threads.

We were also worried that "chubby" kids wouldn't be able to pull off the dress. Well, over the weekend, Ben's grandmother and aunt decided to test the dress on our chubby boy. While no pictures were taken of Ben in a Sandbox Threads dress, trust us, a chunky monkey can definitely pull off this look.

Dresses at Sandbox Threads

Now that the Sandbox Threads' family has added a little girl, we realize that our selection for girls on Sandbox Threads is quite limited. Actually, we've known this for some time, but we're just now getting around to doing something about it.

So, starting July 1, we'll be offering dresses. The dress (pictured above) will be available in fuchsia (the top picture) in size 2T & 4T. The dress is 100% ribbed cotton with a "racer" back. Since the dress is ribbed cotton, we will not be able to offer every design on the dresses, but most designs will be available.

Depending on the response, we may add more sizes and colors in the months to come. Please let us know what you think.

Is It Just Me?

Or does our Groovy Girl design on a grass onesie just scream--SUMMERTIME! I'm not sure why, but this combo just makes me happy.

Have a great weekend, and Sandbox Threads will be having a sale all next week. To find out the sale details, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter (you can do so right down there on the left).

The Best Office in the WORLD!

Sure, we're a little cramped now that we've lost the dedicated office space for Sandbox Threads (at least for the short term), but I cannot imagine any better office than the one pictured.

The commute is easy, the office "chair" (bed) is comfy. And I have some wonderful coworkers. It may not be the fanciest "corporate headquarters," but I think it's the best--hands down.

A New Addition to the Sandbox Threads' Family

The Sandbox Threads family is thrilled to announce the arrival of our newest member..Maya Kristina. Maya arrived on June 20th at 9:46pm. She weighs in at a whooping 6lbs 5oz. Both the mom and new baby of Sandbox Threads are doing well.

We're taking a few days off, but Sandbox Threads will be back to full speed starting June 25th.

The Long-Ago Promised ORGANIC Shirts & Onesies

For months now, we have continued to say, "coming soon, 100% Organic Cotton Onesies & Shirts." And for months, we were told by our distributor, they will be arriving "next week." Well, next week is finally now, and as long as SBT Baby Two does not decide to arrive within the next few hours, then you will be able to purchase 100% organic shirts and onesies at Sandbox Threads.

And the best part, you won't pay a penny more for the organic cotton. Initially, we'll being offering only the short-sleeve organic onesies and shirts in white and natural. Once we get a little closer to fall, we plan to add the long-sleeve shirts as well.

Thanks for your patience, and more than likely our next post on our little blog will be introducing the newest addition to the Sandbox Threads' family. We're very excited and, I believe, finally ready for our newest addition. Check back soon.

We've Got Ants on our Shirts....

...which is an infinitely better option that ants in our pants. The newest addition to Sandbox Threads' Cool Baby Clothes line is Ant (Or as our son likes to say, "Antn', Antn'").

We could think of no better design to add to our collection during these hot summer days than Ant. We hope you agree.

Name Troubles for Baby Two

As many of you know, the Sandbox Threads family will be adding a new member in the next few weeks (and maybe days). We're having a little girl to go along with our son. The problem is that we still do not have a name for her. We have a few names, but we're not 100% sold on the names we do have.

Naming our son, on the other hand, was not an issue whatsoever (why is "whatsoever" one word? Anyone?). Anyway, at our wedding reception, Elizabeth and I danced to Ben Harper's "By My Side." You can see Ben perform the song in the video below, and please note, the organ solo, while wonderfully groovy, is REALLY long when everyone is staring at you and waiting to eat and get the real party started.



While on our honeymoon, we made friends with a couple of guys who were attending the Ben Harper show in DC and they invited us to join them. We changed our plane tickets and joined them. This short clip is actually from the show we attended.



So when it came time to name our son, we didn't have to think too long about his name, Ben.

We've had no such inspiration with our little girl to be. Although, I bet once we meet her, we'll be plenty inspired.

New Slide Show

We think our new slide show at Sandbox Threads is great, BUT we need more pictures. So please keep sending us pictures of your lil guys and gals, and we'll keep adding them to our show. Enjoy!

I'd Rather Be Lucky Than Skilled.

For the past couple of days, I have been trying to teach myself how to create Scanner Darkly effects (for those of you not familiar with the movie, you've probably seen the Charles Schwab commercials with the painted/cartoon effect over real people). I found a few tutorials, but was having little success creating the effect on my own.

Then with the help of Stumble Upon and a little luck I found Be Funky (www.befunky.com), and realized the hours I spent were wasted because within a few short minutes I can achieve the effect with little to no effort on my part, and besides Sandbox Threads, befunky.com is my new favorite website. Just check it out. How very cool? Have fun playing with this program. Goodness knows, I'm having fun.