You probably won’t find a playground anywhere in Washington as cool and colorful as Clemyjontri Park (6317 Georgetown Pike, McLean; 703-388-2807). Kids’ eyes light up when you pull into the lot. The playground has jungle gyms, slides, and rocker-rides shaped like cars and animals. Kids can scramble up a rock wall, pretend to drive a school bus or fire truck, climb the rainbow arches, or make their way through a maze. Carousel rides are $1.75.

The handicapped-accessible playground gets its name from donor Adele Lebowitz’s four children— Carolyn (Cl), Emily (Emy), John (Jon), and Petrina (Tri). Lebowitz, whose husband started the local Morton’s department stores in 1935, donated the 18-acre property to the Fairfax County Park Authority and said she wanted it designed for children with disabilities: There’s a drag-racing strip and a swing for wheelchairs; other swings have high backs for extra support; monkey bars are lowered for easier access. The ground is well cushioned, so Clemyjontri is a good spot for toddlers.

If you haven’t visited yet, we encourage you to do so soon! For more information, please visit www.friendsofclemy.com 

To order this arrangement, please visit www.karinsflorist.com

To be considered for the Karin’s Gives Back program for your charity, please request an application by emailing flowers@karinsflorist.com.

We challenged all customers to write their best memories about Karin’s Florist and what we have meant to them and the community.  We were overwhelmed by the response we got.  From Mothers-of-the-Bride to former Karin’s employees, we got a wide variety of stories that made us laugh and cry.  All of them moved us.

We decided some of the stories were just too good not to share, so we are excited to announce that we will be publishing our favorites right here on our blog in the upcoming weeks.  Our winner, Susan M., already knows she won.  Her prize?  A unique floral arrangement delivered every month for a year.  As it’s traditional in this type of contest to “save the best for last,” we are doing just that.  Wait until you read her entry and what she asked us to do with her winnings. 

Thank you to all who participated and shared your memories with us.  We are so proud to call you our family.  We hope these entries inspire you and you continue to share your stories with us!

Enjoy!

From Ruth B.:

Many years ago—about ten, I think—I had two male friends who were dating the same woman.  One of them was just a friend of hers, but the other one was crazy about her.  The one who was crazy about her was lamenting to me how he was trying to get her interested, and asking what he could do.  Well, I knew she was getting ready to move into a new house, so I told him to show up on moving day with a well stocked picnic basket and flowers.  I told him to go to a good restaurant and pickup the food, and to order flowers from Karin’s.  I told him to get only the best—he could certainly afford it—and not to skimp on anything, especially the flowers.  I told him that it might be OK to bring grocery store flowers home on a Tuesday night after you have been married for a while, but not when you’re trying to impress—women can spot grocery store flowers in a second!  My friend did not listen to me and, picked up the food and the flowers at the grocery store.  This was the last time he saw her.  A year later I was a guest at the wedding—she is still happily  married to the other guy.

Valentine’s Day may be over but we are reinvigorated and excited to turn our energies back towards our charitable work, especially our partnership with the Wish You Well Foundation.

The Wish You Well Foundation is the brain child of former lawyer and Bestselling Author, David Baldacci, and his wife Michelle.  Aimed at tackling family illiteracy since 2002, the Foundation has donated over $500,000 to projects including the DC-based Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and Big Creek People in Action in McDowell County, West Virginia.  The Baldaccis stand by the fact that virtually none of the major issues we face as a nation today can be successfully overcome until we eradicate illiteracy.  A staggering 100 million Americans–nearly half of the population–live their everyday lives unable to read, or reading at a below-average level.

Because of these numbers, our designers here at Karin’s have created the beautiful and unique “Benefit Literacy Bouquet” to aid The Wish You Well Foundation.  We have also committed to donating 10% of the product proceeds to this wonderful organization through the end of February.

While we know February 14th stands out as a big “flower sending” day, there are always reasons to send flowers the rest of the month.  In the next couple of weeks, if you need flowers for a birthday, anniversary, get well, bereavement or just because, we encourage you to check out the “Benefit Literacy Bouquet” and send it to a loved one.  Help The Wish You Well Foundation and Karin’s Florist tackle illiteracy in the United States. Not only will you surprise a loved one with a specially designed arrangement, you’re also making a difference in the life of someone who needs it!

To learn more about The Wish You Well Foundation and get involved, check out their website here: http://www.wishyouwellfoundation.org/index.htm

Check out David Baldacci’s website here: http://davidbaldacci.com/

Every February we celebrate Valentine’s Day by giving flowers, candy and cards to those we love.  Contrary to what some people may believe, Valentine’s Day wasn’t created by greeting card companies to sell candies and cards.  It’s actually a church sanctioned holiday as Pope Gelasius deemed February 14 St. Valentine’s Day near 498 A.D.  However, there are several different stories and origins of how Valentine’s Day came about.  This is our favorite story here at Karin’s:

Legend has it that Valentine was a priest who served during third century Rome. There was an Emperor at that time by the name of Claudius II. Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those that were married. With this thought in mind he outlawed marriage for young men in hopes of building a stronger military base. Supposedly, Valentine, decided this decree just wasn’t fair and chose to marry young couples secretly. When Emperor Claudius II found out about Valentine’s actions he had him put to death.

While he was in jail, Valentine fell in love with a young girl, rumored to be the daughter of his jailor, who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. 

Valentine’s Day by the Numbers:

62% of adults say they celebrate the holiday

189 million stems of roses are sold in the U.S. on Valentine’s Day

440 million- dollars spent on candies the week before Valentine’s Day

36 million- heart shaped chocolate boxes sold during the holiday

Men typically spend an average of $150 for Valentine’s Day, while women spend $74.

150 million- Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged annually

4 million- number of American’s who expect to propose or be proposed to on Valentine’s Day

Hello Karin’s Customers,

Welcome to our new and improved website and blog!  We are very excited about the changes we made and hope you will be as well.  As you peruse the website, please contact us with any issues you may have.  And remember, while we love online, we still love hearing from you on the phone and seeing you in the store!   Please call us at: 703.592.0952, or stop by: 527 Maple Ave East, Vienna, VA 22180.

With the start of 2012, we have several resolutions to you, our faithful customers: 

1) Continue to provide you with excellent customer service.  We love our customers and want to ensure you are 100% satisfied with your experience with Karin’s. 

2) Keep up with the latest design trends.

2) Increase our online presence.  Please check out our Facebook and Twitter accounts, and come back here for our blog!  In the upcoming months we will be posting about upcoming floral trends, the “Meet Our Designers” series, DIY tips and tricks, wedding design, and much, much more!

Please let us know what other topics that you are interested in!  We look forward to hearing from you.