Effigy helped the Kiwanis by participating in their Cinderella project this morning.  Effigy Salon helped 12 girls with their up do's and hair styles for their big night. 

It may seem like a small thing, but purse hooks are a huge customer service win.  Poor Phils just installed purse hooks making it that much easier to hang out at the bar.

We celebrate all mom's do with our annual Mother's Day Gift Guide. We've collected some of the best gift and gift ideas from the area. Don't forget to tell your mom you love her on May 14.

This year Shopping Blogger Sarah Corbin plans to introduce her whole family to comic books.  And she's thinking they will get there early to be sure they don't miss the FREE comics.  And they'll probably buy a Spiderman book or two also.

OakPark.com visited the Oak Park & River Forest Day Nursery on Friday April 27th for their musical parade celebrating the Week of the Young Child. The pre-schoolers paraded around the block to close out their week long celebration. The Day Nursery has served families of all income levels, races, religions, ethnicities, and educational backgrounds from Oak Park and surrounding communities for 100 years.

Community Bank's Teach Children to Save Day 2012 was a hit with Sarah Corbin's second grade daughter.  We'll be sure to have you mark your calendars for next year. 

Careful Peach carries this wonderful inspried tableware by a company called Juliska (that's a hard "J").  And for the next couple of weeks Careful Peach is having this fantastic "completion" sale where you can finish off your 5 piece 7 sets with the free 8th set courtesy of the Peach. 

We've been very busy here at the Journal offices getting ready for a special Mother's Day tribute to our local businesses and families. I have been extremely lucky to find that local retailers were happy to help out and outfit some folks. It's been a good opportunity for me to meet some business owners I would not have normally had the chance to. And I have had the chance to work with a couple of great moms and some pretty super kids. 

April Fools Day can be a complete giggle filled day with just the right accessories from our local fun and funky shops.

If you are searching for a little luck, use some real shamrocks to decorate your house for St. Patrick's Day festivities.