One of my favorite things about visiting Tennessee is the amazing mountain views that dominate the landscape. I decided for this Wordless Wednesday I’d share some of my favorite photos from our recent vacation to Gatlinburg! Happy Wordless Wednesday!
The snow capped mountains were absolutely breathtaking!
So I completely flaked on getting this giveaway ended and the winner drawn before we went on vacation…I apologize for not having done this sooner.
Anywho the winner of the Mirra giveaway is….drum roll please!
That makes our lucky winner…
tweet
http://twitter.com/MeandBells/status/10226963139
Cograts Courtney! You have 48 hours to claim your prize!
It feels like forever since I’ve posted…I know I’m such a bad blogger…but I’ve had good reasons and I can’t wait to tell you all about our vacation and of course getting married! I know I have a giveaway winner to post and so much more, but for now you’ll have to settle for a picture…lame I know, but I have a sick baby and an algebra test tonight so it’s better than nothing at all.
This photo was taken by my sister and it’s my first kiss with my new husband (I love saying that)…I am truly happy for the first time in a long time and even though our relationship is far from perfect I know that he’s the one I was meant to spend my life with! I love you babe!
I know you remember me telling you all about Yo Gabba Gabba Live coming to Cincinnati…well on Saturday we got to attend the show and I thought I’d share some of our experience with all of you!
First let me say that if YGG Live comes to your town GO to the show it’s an awesome time that you and your kids will not forget! This post I thought I’d share some pictures with you of the meet and greet and the next post I’ll post pictures and maybe some video of the actual show! I also want to take this opportunity to thank Michelle Sisco for this amazing opportunity!
(Please pay no attention to the dates on the pictures my camera has been acting possessed lately)
Little Man waiting in the Green Room to meet the YGG characters.
Little Mama saying CHEESE
Plex, Daddy, and Little Mama
This is about as close as Little Man got to the characters…he was pretty shy!
Mommy, both babies, and Muno…they were not feeling this. And this may quiet possibly be the WORST picture ever taken of me, but I had to add it anyway.
The babies were much more comfortable with the characters on the other side of the room.
Last but not least all of us with DJ Lance Rock…by far my favorite photo that was taken that day.
I have to say that DJ Lance was just as awesome in person as you would expect him to be from watching him on the show. He took the time out to talk with each group of people, sign a couple of autographs, and take lots of pictures. He absolutely made my sons whole week when he stopped by and talked to him, called him by name, let my son ramble on (thanks for that DJ Lance), gave him a High Five and talked with him about rocking out on the guitar. Little Man has not stopped talking about his experience and his new best bud DJ Lance!
I cannot wait to share the rest of our experience with y’all so stay tuned for part 2!
If you’re the parent of a school-aged child, chances are pretty good that you or someone you know has had to deal with the hassles of head lice. With two daughters in school, I’ve personally had to deal with head lice drama a few times and it is not something I care to ever repeat.
Now I will be the first to admit that I’m pretty tough when it comes to most mom tasks; changing dirty diapers, cleaning up cuts, fishing things out of the toilet—all easy peasy…cleaning head lice from my child's head—not so much. And don’t even get me started on the chemicals used in most head lice treatments,the price of head lice treatments and their high failure rate. I’ve personally spent a small fortune on every shampoo, comb, and spray to prevent head lice that I’ve come across and given the fact that I’ve had to deal with lice more than once I’m pretty sure that those “preventative tools” have not always done their jobs as well as I feel they should have. So when I was asked by MomSelect to participate in a review for a line of children’s hair care products to prevent head lice, I was very excited about it.
Zippity Doo’s is a line of hair care products for children designed to prevent head lice. Zippity Doo’s products are paraban free and contain natural ingredients that make using the products every day effective in preventing head lice and good for the health or your child’s hair and scalp. Zippity Doo’s line of products include shampoo, conditioner, leave-in detangler spray, styling gel, and shield spray. All of the products in the Zippity Doo’s line leave your child's hair and scalp clean, healthy, and shiny, protects against infestation, and contain no chemicals or harsh odors. I don’t know about you, but knowing that there are preventative products out there that don’t contain harsh chemicals gives me great peace of mind. 
My girls have been using the Zippity Doo’s products for a couple of weeks now and we love the products. Their hair looks healthier than it has in months and knowing that my girl’s have added protection again head lice is a great feeling. Our favorite products in the line are without a doubt the Leave-In Detangler; it works wonders on both of my daughter’s hair and the shield spray; you can spray it on just about anything…from hair to backpacks and pillows. Zippity Doo’s products are available at CVS.com, EZMedShop.com, Akins Natural Foods Market, and Value Drugs.
Of course you don’t have to wait to buy it in the store because one Misadventures in Baby Raising reader is going to win the entire line of Zippity Doo’s products!
Win it! To be entered into this giveaway please leave a comment on this post telling me why you want to try these products. This is mandatory and must be completed before any extra entries are counted!
Extra Entries! Please leave separate comments for each extra entry. All extra entries are worth 1 unless otherwise stated!
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This giveaway ends on Monday April 5, 2010 at 11:59 pm EDT. One winner will be chosen via Random.org and announced on this post. Winner will have 48 hours to contact me and claim their prize, failure to do so will result in winner forfeiting their prize and me choosing another winner.
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Good Luck
In a little more than 2 weeks my baby girl Savanna is turning 8…wow time flies. While trying to decide on a plan for her birthday party I thought it would be fun to do an interview of sorts with Savanna to help me get a better idea of the kind of party she would like. Enjoy…oh and wish me luck on the 2 story cake she says she wants lol.
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say NO!
Now I don’t know about your men, but my man never listens to me. I suppose it’s a “guy thing” because my two year old seems to make it his sole mission in life to ignore me as well these days. Getting back to my original point; my fiancé just does not listen to a word I say…case in point our conversation last night…the conversation went something like this:
Me: (doing the dishes, helping with homework, and instructing one child on the correct tooth brushing technique--simultaneously) Hey babe…can you change Kinley’s diaper…I think she may have a dirty one.
Jamie: (playing PS3, not looking up from the game to acknowledge I’ve even spoken to him, and ignoring me--simultaneously) Grumbles something I can’t quiet make out but sounds kinda like “In a minute”.
Me: (5 minutes later—still helping with homework, doing laundry, and contemplating the quickest way to give all of the kids a bath before I need to start my homework) Babe, Kin’s diaper…did you change it.
Jamie: (still ignoring me and playing PS3) Hmmm Imagetitinaminute. (Translation: I’ll get around to it eventually, probably after you’ve already changed the diaper yourself.)
Me: Never mind, I’ll do it myself.
Jamie: (Finally looking up) Thanks babe…you weren’t busy were you?
Oh not too much, maybe I imagined doing all of those things that you just SAW me do, maybe it was just my mind playing tricks on me. Hmmm nope my hands are all pruny from dish water, one daughter now knows the correct technique for brushing her teeth, the washer and dryer are running full steam ahead (full of your dirty clothes no less), one daughter now knows what orbit, axis, and tilt mean, and your son is in the bathtub…I am pretty flippin sure I was actually doing something…and maybe, just maybe if you had actually LISTENED to me you would have known that.
Everyone wants clear, beautiful skin; whether you’re a teenager who is just starting to experience problems with acne or an adult who has suffered with acne for years, wanting beautiful skin is something we all have in common. While my skin is not awful, it’s not without problems. As a teenager I had the occasional pimple, but for the most part my skin was clear, as an adult though I’ve had issues with my skin for some time.
Several months ago I did a review for Proactiv, and while I really liked to products I felt that the formula was a bit too strong for my skin. I’m sure some of you have seen the commercials with Katy Perry talking about the new and improved Proactiv, well about a month ago I asked to review the new Proactiv and I would like to share my my thoughts on the products with all of you.
First thing’s first, I want to tell you a little more about the new Proactiv. Proactiv’s new and improved line of products features the same effective formula as before, only now the formula is enhanced with micro-crystal benzoyl peroxide acne medicine that is designed to get acne medication into your pores faster than before, penetrating even clogged pores quickly. That means that not only is the new Proactiv the same effective formula we all know and trust, it’s also better and gentler than before.
As I said before I've used Proactiv in the past and really only had good things to say about it. My experience with Proactiv in the past was that it works, plain and simple. I was very excited to try the new gentler Proactiv so as soon as I received my review items I went straight to work trying them out. The first few days all went well and I was very happy with the product, while my skin didn’t miraculously look fabulous overnight I could definitely tell a difference in the appearance and feel of my skin. As I continued to use the products I noticed that my skin was becoming very sensitive especially in places where I used the refining mask. Then my skin became overly dry to the point where big patches of dry, red skin would appear randomly over my face. I chalked this up to my skin being too sensitive to use the products as directed so I went from using the skin care system twice a day to using the products once a day at night. While cutting back on the amount of product I was using did help with the dryness the redness and sensitivity did not subside. My face looked wind burnt and was super sensitive so after 2 weeks of using the products I stopped using them. I do have to say that while my face didn’t look or feel great, it was clear. The Proactiv products did most definitely do the job of getting and keeping my skin clear, the formula was just too strong for my skin.
I do still use the Proactiv products as they are quite effective at clearing up acne, I just use the products sporadically so that I do not experience the same results as I did before with redness and sensitivity.
One thing that I always try to encourage my children to do is help others. Whether it’s as simple as helping a classmate who is struggling with a subject that my children excel in or something more complex like joining summer volunteer programs; I feel that my kids should make it a habit early on to volunteer.
There are several teen volunteer programs out there for young adults who are interested in lending a hand. Visions Service Adventures is one such program. VISIONS community service programs for teens and middle school students offer kids a chance to volunteer, experience cultural immersion, and enjoy a sense of adventure. VISIONS also has several teen summer program locations to choose from.
As my children get older I hope that they will have the desire to help others. I think there are many ways that children can participate and do their part to volunteer, it’s our job as parents to help them understand the importance of it and encourage them.
Sponsored Post—You can read my full disclosure here.
My baby girl is getting so big. Every single day she does something that makes me crack the biggest smile and want to cry all at the same time, because it means that she’s growing up so fast. Kinley has a very big personality and she's just a ball of energy who keeps me on my toes all day every day. It's never boring around here between Kin Kin and Little Man.
Yesterday she made a video with mommy that you have to see…she’s the cutest thing ever with one of the biggest attitudes ever as you’re about to see!
As I’ve mentioned before I’m kind of a Twilight addict, I know it’s probably not healthy, but whatever. Anyway the official trailer for Eclipse is finally out and I wanted to share it with those of you who haven’t seen it! Enjoy!
Alright y’all I need your help! I’m getting married in 2 weeks and as of right now I have no idea where we’re getting married…I mean obviously it will be in Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge, but that’s about all I know. So I need your help finding a fun, unique, cheap place to get hitched…so if you know of an awesome place that fits the criteria then please leave me a comment and let me know.
I decided to switch Wordless Wednesday up a bit this week. Since I’m getting married in a little over 2 weeks I decided that I needed a laugh…and these images did the trick! Enjoy!
Read his shoes! 
Happy Wordless Wednesday y’all!
When it comes to beauty products (hair care, skin care, and make-up) I am very faithful. What I mean is that when I find a brand that I like I stick with it. It’s not often that I take a chance on a new beauty product, but every once in a while I do and I am pleasantly surprised.
When I think about what I look for in beauty products a few things instantly come to mind; quality, consistency, and fragrance. Of course, it never hurts for the products to be made of natural ingredients and boast the latest in proven scientific technologies. A few weeks ago I received some new products from mirra to review. Mirra is a full line of beauty and skin care products that listens to and delivers what women want. Mirra products are also made with natural ingredients including olive oil, aloe leaf juice, cranberry, bamboo, honey, and chicory root extract. Mirra also uses some of the latest technologies when manufacturing their products as well, the revolutionary oleosome emulsion technology is used in skin care products to deliver long lasting moisture that keeps protecting and nourishing skin long after application.
I received several products from mirra for my review including; volumizing shampoo and conditioner, sculpting gel, exfoliating and detoxifying cleanser, protective body wash, and night time eye cream. The first thing I noticed about the products was the packaging, which for me was very visually appealing. The next thing I noticed was the fragrance of the products, I am a self-proclaimed scent snob so I am super picky about the fragrances I use, but the mirra products had a very clean, fresh fragrance that I was very pleasantly surprised by. The real test though came in using the products. I’ve been using the mirra volumizing shampoo and conditioner daily for almost two weeks now along with the protective body wash. I have very straight, flat hair that has no body whatsoever and using the mirra shampoo and conditioner seemed to really give my hair extra body and fullness which I love. I also really liked the mirra exfoliating and detoxifying cleanser, I can tell a huge difference in how my skin looks and feels after using this product.
Buy it! The full line of mirra products can be found in the beauty care aisles exclusively at all stores that are part of the Kroger Co. family. For a limited time, mirra is offering $5 off when you purchase any two mirra products. To download the coupon visit http://www.kroger.com/in_store/corporate_brands/Pages/mirra.aspx.
Now on to the very cool part…one MIBR reader is going to win an assortment of mirra products like the ones I received to review!
Win it! To be entered into this giveaway please visit the Kroger website and have a look at all of the available mirra products, come back and leave a comment on this post telling me why you want to try mirra. This is mandatory and must be completed before any additional entries are counted.
Extra Entries! Please leave separate comments for each extra entry!
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Tweet about this giveaway using the Retween button at the end of the post (no more than twice a day please)…each tweet = 1 extra entry
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US Entries only please!
This giveaway ends on Tuesday March 23, 2010 at 11:59 PM EST. One winner will be chosen via Random.org and announced on this post! Winner will have 48 hours to contact me and claim his prize, failure to do so will result in winner forfeiting his prize and me choosing a new winner.
I received the above mentioned products courtesy of The
Kroger Company for review and giveaway as a part of the Global Influence Network.
A couple of weeks ago I took some time out to blog hop (something I wish I had more time to do) and came across a blog post over at Crazy Adventures in Parenting. Lisa had made some of the cutest crayons ever so I decided I had to try it…they came out so cute!
Kid-Friendly Crayons
What you need
How To Make Them
Pre-heat oven to 250. Carefully cut the paper wrappers on the crayons with a razor blade or knife. Break crayons into small pieces and sort by like colors (or you get even more creative and mix the colors up). Place a fair amount of the broken crayon pieces into each of the muffin cups. Place in the oven until crayons are completely melted. Remove muffin tin from the oven and allow to cool. Remove crayons from the muffin tin.
Little Man and Ki Ki loved these crayons, they could finally color without the crayons breaking. This is a super easy craft and a great use for all of the broken crayons around the house!
This really was a fun, fast, and super easy craft project that made for hours of fun for the babies! Try it!
It’s not always easy to gauge when your children are ready to actively learn math, with each of my children the timing and approaches have been different while still remaining similar.
My oldest daughter learned counting and simple math fairly early, we incorporated music into our teaching approach and she picked up the concept quite easily. My middle daughter however, needed more time and a different approach in order to become interested in learning, but when she did finally become interested she was a math wiz in no time (and still enjoys math more at 7 than any other subject). My two year old son is very smart (yes I know, all mothers think that their children are smart, the difference is that mine IS smart) and very eager to learn. From watching children’s television shows aimed at learning to watching and trying to participate with his older siblings when they are learning he at two is just more eager to learn than any child I’ve seen. When I decided to start teaching my son math he was already so eager and knew so much that it made my job even easier and the fact that I utilized some great LeapFrog products to help me didn’t hurt either.
Recently I was given the opportunity to review some great learning tools from LeapFrog, given the fact that I was beginning to teach my son math it was a perfect fit. Leapfrog is a brand I’ve known and trusted for years, when it comes to educational toys Leapfrog gets it! We had the opportunity to review a few items from LeapFrog; Math Adventure to the Moon DVD, Learn and Groove Counting Maracas, and the Chat and Count Cell Phone.
We own several LeapFrog DVDs and I have to say that I am more than pleased at the approach they take to teaching and making learning fun. Not only did my son and one year old daughter have a blast watching the DVD, they bot
h were quickly counting along with the familiar characters.
My favorite item of the three is definitely the Learn and Groove Maracas; my one year old daughter loves that they make music and I love that they are teaching her to count with each playful shake. I especially appreciate that when in counting g mode your child is encouraged to count to 10 not only in English, but in Spanish as well. While learning is different for every child I’ve found that mine respond better to learning when music is involved and in my opinion the Learn and Groove Maracas are an excellent learning tool!
My kids’ favorite product from the trio is undoubtedly the Chat and Count Cell Phone, there was really never any doubt as they both love everything that resembles a phone. My son loves “chatting” with Scout and in no time was singing along and counting with the smart phone. I think incorporating math skills into a playful,, fun cell phone is a great idea and one that both of my younger children responded very positively to.
To learn more about these products you can visit the LeapFrog website.
I was sent the above mentioned products by LeapFrog to review. The opinions expressed are my own and were in no way influenced by the company.
All four of my children are big cereal eaters, I could make them a gourmet breakfast and 9 times out of 10 they would still choose cereal for breakfast. While I don’t mind letting them eat cereal, the cereal choices they sometimes make are not as healthy as I would like.
When I was given the opportunity to participate in a campaign for General Mills from My Blog Spark I was stoked, I given the fact that my kids are hardcore fans of the crunchy stuff this was right up my alley. When I found out that General Mills had made a commitment to further reduce sugar in cereals advertised to children 12 and under I was impressed to say the least! As a mother knowing that companies are not only listening to what we have to say, but also actively striving to improve their products make me very happy. In the process of doing this review I’ve learned quite a few things about cereal and cereal eaters that I wasn’t aware of prior to my review so I thought I’d share some of them with you.
I’m not sure about you but knowing some of those facts makes it a little easier for me to be alright with my kiddos making cereal as their breakfast of choice!
Of course this wouldn’t be a very good review if I didn’t tell you my thoughts on the cereal, right? Needless to say my children loved all of the cereals we tried; Kix, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Lucky Charms are all favorites at our house and knowing that each of the cereals are fortified with vitamins and minerals and boast less sugar is a very comforting feeling! For more information about the benefits of cereal you can visit the General Mills website.
Information in this post as well as the free cereal coupons I received were provided by General Mills through My Blog Spark.
My baby girl had her first hair cut last week. She was such a big girl and sat in the chair all by herself. Of course, Mommy cried her eyes out!
Not sure what’s up with the date on my camera
Such a big girl!
Remember I told you that I was chosen as one of the General Hospital Brand Ambassadors? And remember how I told you that I would be posting lots more GH goodies and even some behind the scenes stuff? Well I have lots of great info. for all of you GH fans today!
This week on General Hospital a cop is determined to put his mobster dad behind bars and may have to depend on his brother’s help to make it happen. Also happening in Port Charles this week—Dante questions his own brother! And I want to know what you think—will Michael confess or will Dante realize that it was Michael who killed Claudia and not Sonny?
And since I promised you some behind the scenes action—how about an exclusive never-before-seen interview with GH hottie Brandon Barash, the actor who plays Johnny Zaccahara.
Q: What would you do if you could turn back time?
A: I would meet Benjamin Franklin.
Q: What do you do in your down time?
A: I like playing music, standing on my head, walking around in nature -- and if I’m really feeling ambitious, I’ll do all three at the same time.
Q: What is the best way to prepare for a love scene?
A: The best way to prepare for a love scene is by spending lots of hours at the gym.
Q: What is your favorite sport?
A: Basketball – college or NBA.
Q: What would you be doing if you weren’t an actor?
A: If I could not act I would NOT be one of those people who give you tickets for expired parking meter. I would be a surgeon or a police office in Alaska. Only in Alaska.
Q: Describe your perfect date.
A: My perfect date is being with a girl I can talk to.
Q: What is one of your favorite things to do?
A: When it is just me and my dad my favorite thing is to sit outside, drink a scotch and talk about nothing.
Q: What do you do for Thanksgiving?
A: I spend Thanksgiving with both sides of my large extended family.
Q: describe your most memorable moment on GH.
A: When Jonny was shot 5 times and survived it, recovered and went to a wedding the next day.
Q: What was the most memorable moment of pop culture in 2009?
A: Clearly it was when we lost the late and great MJ.
Very interesting no?
When I was little my two biggest passions were writing (big surprise huh) and singing; I used to dream of being on Broadway almost as often as I dreamed of becoming an author. Through the years I realized that paralyzing stage fright would never allow me to realize my dreams of singing on Broadway—so I just watched (and dreamed) from afar.
For years now I have schemed and hinted for my fiancé to take me to New York City and surprise me with Broadway tickets, but to my utter disappointment Broadway theatre tickets have not come and do not seem to be in my near future. Oh not that I don’t still dream of the day I’ll be able to attend a Broadway show, I know that day will come when I can sit in the audience and dream!
Wicked tickets NYC would be an absolute dream come true, I mean I’ve only been dying to see it since it’s debut. One day…one day I’ll make it to Broadway, even if it’s only as a spectator! Make sure to check out Applause Tickets for your chance to win tickets to a Broadway show!
Sponsored post. You can read my full disclosure here.
Some of my favorite memories from when I was younger are the times I spent with my sister! It was just the two of us and though we fought and argued regularly we also had some great adventures and some of the best times of my life together! Though I probably never admitted it at the time I always loved to sit and watch cartoons with my sister and one of our favorites was Rainbow Brite! 
Though I was a Rainbow Brite fan my sister was an super fan; she had all of the movies and dolls and was just obsessed with everything Rainbow Brite. I remember the first time my oldest girls glimpsed Aunt Bree’s Rainbow Brite dolls for the first time (yes she still has the original dolls) and the sparkle in their eyes as they played (carefully) with the dolls. From that day on my girls were very interested in Rainbow Brite and through Aunt Bree’s old dolls and YouTube videos they relived some of the magic we lived as kids, which I have to admit was very cool to see.
Rainbow Brite has blasted back onto the doll scene with a vibrant makeover, continuing to delight children with her empowering and imaginative adventures as she spreads her positive messages of courage, kindness, and hope. Thanks to MomSelect my girls had a chance to experience Rainbow Brite all over again! We were sent some Rainbow Brite activity CD’s which include games, puzzles, and so much more for them enjoy and they loved it!
And for those of you who loved Rainbow Brite as a child and would love to be able to introduce your daughter's to the magic of Rainbow Brite and her friends I’ve got exciting news…starting last month (February 2010) Target stores nationwide introduced the new Rainbow Brite fashion doll collection in their stores. You can also check out the Rainbow Brite website which includes games, videos, and lots more for your daughter’s to enjoy!
I received the Rainbow Brite activity cd from MomSelect for participation in this campaign.
Since I never heard back from my second chance winner in the Yo Gabba Gabba Live show giveaway I guess it’s time to choose another one!
So without further ado the new winning number in the Yo Gabba Gabba Live show second chance giveaway (winner will receive 1 Yo Gabba Gabba! Music is Awesome CD and 1 of the brand new Yo Gabba Gabba! “Birthday” DVDs) is:
That makes our lucky winner:
Facebook fan
Congrats! You have 48 hours to contact me and claim your prize!
