The Best Birthday Present EVER!

I turned the big 4-0 last October, and came away feeling... about the same. Still me. The best gift I got-- in fact the best gift I've gotten in years, was from my husband. He gave me a beautiful dark gray floral printed super-soft heated throw blanket. The last few winters, I've taken to putting a heating pad in the bed while I wash my face and brush my teeth, so that I wouldn't have to freeze when I climbed into my cool sheets. Even when we had flannel sheets on the bed, I sometimes did this. 

Mine is actually dark gray with a floral white pattern.

The heated throw is an amazing gift for a few reasons. 

1. It shows he was thinking of me. It isn't a gift that benefits anyone else in the house, except me.
2. I will use it every night in the winter, and likely even more, because our leather sofa is in our family room, which is super cold all winter, too. Leather + cold room in winter = shivery movie nights. 
3. It was something I hadn't asked for. When a man hits #1 and this point, he has hit a home run. Well done, dear. 

I thought I would share a little review of the blanket with you, in case you are thinking of getting one for yourself or a family member.

Let me preface this by saying that I think I plugged the cords in in the wrong order and the blanket did not work at all (well, what I did was test the cord in the wall before plugging the other end into the blanket, and when I did put it all together and plug it in, I was using a power strip. Apparently this product isn't made to work when those things happen). The controller just flashed at me. I tried unplugging it all and then re-doing it in the right order, but it was still faulty. I really don't know if it was my fault or the product was just a lemon. 

I emailed Sunbeam and asked them what to do and they wanted me to ship it to them (on my dime) and they would assess it and then let me know if it would be $50 or more to fix it. I don't think the dang thing cost that much in the first place. So, instead, my hubby took it back to Costco and exchanged it. I was more careful with the cords this time around and haven't had any problems. If you get one, follow the instructions exactly. Also, GO COSTCO!! They have the best customer service around.

This is not me. Nor is it the pattern/color of my blanket. But she sure looks cozy!

Okay now on with the blanket itself:
First impression: WOW this thing is soft. I mean like, bunny rabbit's cottony bottom soft. Like baby-cheeks soft. Incredibly, wonderfully cozy and did I mention soft? Excellent. And the way they do the heating elements is so different than old electric blankets-- it isn't stiff and uncomfortable at all.

Pros- 

• I think I told you it is soft...
• The elements are distributed evenly-- smart design
• Heats up quickly and very thoroughly
• Three heat settings
• Super comfortable and plush-- it is a well-made blanket

Cons-

• It just isn't very long. I put it in my bed to warm up the sheets while I get ready for bed, and it's fine to sit under, but if I lay down, I can't have it covering my feet to my shoulders. And I'm not very tall.
• The cord from the bottom of the blanket to the controller is way too short. It has a clip-type-thing on the back to attach it to the blanket, but it doesn't reach high enough for me to comfortably reach it, even clipped on. It is ridiculously short. Is this so people don't accidentally strangle on it in their sleep? I don't know. I just know it needs another 4-6 inches to be really functional.
• The aforementioned persnickety first-time-plug-in order. Dude, just make a product that works. It's just silly if it doesn't work OUT OF THE BOX.
• The cord length-- because I have to plug it in to the wall instead of to the power strip, I have to navigate over the cord if I get up at night... which is annoying. If it was longer, I wouldn't have this problem, but I don't dare plug it into an extension cord or any such thing, for fear it will stop working...

Overall, I think this is a great product. I couldn't find a photo of my exact pattern online, but I'm posting links here for you to check out the blanket for yourselves.
Here it is on Amazon
And on Costco's website