Baby its cold outside!

It is freezing here...makes me think of warm sunny beaches and the pool. As you know my daughter is part fish and easily gets cabin fever so earlier in the month we took her to our favorite vacation spot Castaway Bay!
You may remember the adorable photos I tweeted of her with Snoopy and making her own towel:

We had an absolute blast! There are so many choices for everyone....my husband can go down the scary enclosed slides and my daughter can play in the toddler area. This year we even went into the "dolphin" pool that had a ton of fun floating animals that you could climb on or just float around and relax. My ultimate favorite is the warm pool-its not as hot as a hot tub so my daughter was able to go in with us which was so relaxing. Her favorite part was going through the "jelly fish tentacles" to the snow. On the other side of the curtain was a nice warm pool where we stayed toasty while the snow fell all around us-talk about magical! Here are all of the amazing pools available:

After the swimming fun was over we went to the game room and to hear Snoopy tell a bedtime story. My little eager beaver wanted to sit on his lap for the story....luckily Castaway Bay has fantastic staff and was able to talk her into sitting on the big girl pillows with all the big girls....major tantrum averted! Castaway Bay has something for everyone whether you are looking for a warm getaway from the snow or a romantic weekend. I think next year I am going to take some "mommy time" and head for the spa while my water slide loving family hit the pools. Want to go now? Use the rafflecopter form below to win a four pack of tickets!

Healthy Looking Skin by Spring

Another big change for me this year is taking better care of me....that's right I said it-me, me, me! Ok so as most of us know once we have a family our personal health and appearance take a toll. The first time my new baby spit up on an overpriced sweater I was like ok I need to wear clothes I don't care about that can get dirty. Fast forward almost four years and I am still that yoga pant, ponytail, makeup free mom. Now this is not a bad thing but the other day when I put on a pair of "real pants" and a cardigan my husband told me how nice I looked-yikes! Time for a change....I started at the top and worked my way down....when did I get all those mouth lines and wrinkles! My skin was so dry and blotchy not to mention the whole flock of crows living near my eyes. So I began my hunt online of  course and found Yves Rocher's Anti-Age Global Collection. 

I began to use the cream as soon as it arrived and waited for the results. I myself was pleasantly surprised by the appearance of my skin after a week. My skin seemed to glow and the wrinkles and lines faded...my skin was firmer and not blotchy! Now what about the crows feet and bags? The Complete Anti-Aging Eye Care is my new must have! The bags under my eyes and crows feet are virtually gone. I now actually look like I am my age and not so tired. So what is the secret that makes Yves Rocher's products so much better than others on the market? I think it is the plant source cells that constantly renew. The company has two patents pending on their research innovation and contains 90% natural ingredients with no Paraben or mineral oil. You can order your Yves Rocher's Anti-Age Global Collection here.

Stay tuned-we will be giving Yves Rocher products away in May for Mother's Day!

See 'n Store Saves the day again!

Do you remember before Thanksgiving how I gushed about the See 'n Store well it has saved my day once again! My daughter is no longer a fan of just enjoying the sights on our walks which means I do not get to go as often....imagine how slow she can walk and how long a mile can take! So then I thought of how the See 'n Store made our holiday shopping a breeze and decided she can get her 30 minutes tv time in while I work out. It really is a win, win-she gets to watch My Little Pony and I have to complete the walk in 30 minutes or less.

I also love how I can have my water right at my level and do not have to take a bag on our walks. It really is a great stroller organizer that allows you to have everything right at hand and not have to bend over every 10 seconds for a snack, tissue, toy, etc. Just look at all the pockets-even a safe area for your phone! 

I know I personally will leave home without it on the stroller. Even when little miss does not need the tablet we can easily have everything in reach and my husband does not have to carry the pink floral diaper bag (his favorite part is that it is black, ha). If you have any plans to travel this summer or have a squirmer this is a great product to keep everyone sane. You can buy the See 'n Store here and find many more fantastic products. Even if you child does not get a ton of screen time (we do 30 minutes a day) this is a perfect organizational tool for any new mom or mom to be! 

Crafty Me Monday: Entryway Boot tray!

So it is winter-this means socks full of water when I walk into my snow covered mud room. I had one of those plastic trays but all it did was keep the shoes wet and create a pool for my daughter's dolls...so not only did I have to drain the tray I had to clean mud soaked figurines.

Here is the project:

Supplies:

Boot tray-target $4
Rocks-$1 each at dollar tree

1. First I thought I would glue the rocks down so I started to use the glue gun...

2. decided this was a nightmare and would not work a "pintrosity" if you will so I just dumped the rock in

3. love that I did not glue them down because I can now easily wash in the sink when they get muddy. I just use an old strainer and rinse the rock off.


Another semi success!

Another big change-Introducing Crafty Me Monday

So I have thought about this long and hard and really want to get back to the roots of my blog. So from now on each Monday I will feature a Crafty Me Monday post....I will post step by step projects as I work to design our forever home and manage the clutter. Sometime it may be great other times it may be a disaster but I want to share my ideas at least one a week.

So without delay here is project #1-The Art Display!

My daughter brings home so much artwork from school I am running out of places to hang it and some gets destroyed on the fridge from falling on the floor or being smashed in the door. So here is my solution:

Now on to how we created this "masterpiece"

Materials Needed:

Wooden letter or decals- I used the painted baltic birch wood letters in zennor LET font from Craft Cuts
Curtain Rod-I bought mine at target for $6
Curtain Rod clips-I bought mine at target for $3

1. I choose to hang the curtain rod first so I knew my letters would be in the right place-it easily screwed into the wall

2. I then attached the clips and the art work so I could get a feel for how low the bar was on the wall in case I wanted to move higher

3. I hot glue gunned the letters directly to the wall-I have done this in the past with toy room letters and they have been up for 3 plus years.

* I may add another rod underneath for a completed look but for now I can easily rotate out the artwork, hang it to dry, and change the scenery quickly*

Handbag Heaven Sweepstakes

Besides diamonds, what is every girls' best friend? Handbags of course?! Makobi Scribe is hosting a Handbag Heaven Event so you can have a ton of chances to win great bags! Zuuzs.com has many deals on items like handbags. You can search their site to find great prices and earn cash back when you shop. They are sponsoring a grand prize for this event of $200 Amazon gift card to put into your awesome handbag or to purchase another one! You can enter the grand prize giveaway here!

 Use rafflecopter below to enter to win the amazing Savvycents Wallet! It is the only think you will need to take to the grocery-no longer carry a seperate coupon binder or forget them at home!

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now hop around to the other blogs to see what you can win from them!

From Our Hearts to Yours Hop

Welcome to the 2nd annual From Our Hearts to Yours Valentine’s Day Giveaway Hop hosted by Life With Two Boys and With Our Best. Each blog participating has a prize of at least $25 worth of Valentine-related items so after you have entered my giveaway, I encourage you to hop along and see what the other bloggers are giving away too!

Use rafflecopter below to win the following prize pack from foufou dog-Don't forget your furry love this Valentine's Day!

Pawstick:

Petwipes:

 a Rafflecopter giveaway


 Disclaimer: Please note that the From Our Hearts to Yours Giveaway Hop hosts and participating bloggers are not responsible for sponsors that do not fulfill their prize. We have represented each sponsor with the expectation that they will fulfill their prize in a timely manner. While we are not responsible, we will make every effort to assist the winner in obtaining their prize.

Otterbox-best phone cover ever!

So the post you have all been waiting for....my follow up on the Otterbox! So I heard about this great phone cover that was amazing for the iphone but had no idea how much it would change my life. I actually saw a video online of someone dropping their phone from the top of their car as they drove off and the screen did not shatter! So what happen when my Otterbox arrived? I was beyond thrilled-no longer did I have to delicately place my phone in a separate pouch so my keys did not scratch the glass. I also had a ton of choices to pick from...I ended up getting a very cute cover with branches on the back.

 It really fits my personality perfectly and feels very grown up unlike many of those kiddish covers I see in the store. So what about the quality? The case seems very sturdy and likely to hold up in my world. So far my preschooler has dropped the phone twice from her seat and three or four times on the carpet. I love being able to hand my phone over for her to play games without having to worry about it being dropped and broken. I also love the ease of the using the case-it does not change the amount of pressure I need to use the buttons which is perfect for my arthritic hands. We loved our Otterbox so much we have decided to purchase one for my husbands phone and to get one for my sister in law for her birthday. Otterbox even offers cases for the kindle, nokia phones, blackberry, and more!

 Be sure to check their facebook and twitter for updates!

New Year-New Me Part Two: My Health part 1 of 4

As I have touched on over the years I suffer from severe arthritis and fibromyalgia. This is the year I begin to take better care of myself. I am going to start with taking my medication and vitamins. I have so many random things that I do on a day to day basis that I always seem to forget to take care of myself. After the rush of the morning routine I get home and often cannot remember if I took my medicine or not...to be safe I usually skip it instead of taking a double dose. This usually led to me not taking my medication and having to muddle through the day deciding if I should take the risk and possibly double dose. I knew there had to be something out there to get my health in order so I began to search....pretty much most of my efforts turned up those day pill containers but I have tried that with no luck. I am the person that forgets to refill the days or takes the wrong day at the wrong time which through the whole schedule off (much like I thought today was Thursday all day-thank goodness my three year old knows better!). So finally I stumbled upon the RX Timer Cap-as their slogan says "It's simple. It's smart. It's about time!" So what does the cap do? It has a digital timer on the top that tells how long it has been since your last pill. I know its simple but it is a life savor!

Each morning now when I get home from running like a mad lady I can look at the tops of the vitamins and pills and see who actually got their medicine for the day and how much time has passed since they last took their pill. We especially found this useful for my daughters antibiotics. She had to take them three times a day and it was hard to remember if we have her the medicine with her meals and I never knew if my husband had given it while I was at work. This is a must have for any household and would be a great investment as flu season gets in full swing! Want to buy the RX Timer Caps? They are available online here and at select retail locations including Tops in New York/Pennsylvania and Bartell Drugs in Washington.

Want to win your own RX Timer Caps-use the rafflecopter form below!

New Year-New Me Part One: Style

So I want to take this next week and focus on how I am planning to change things this year-my blog, our lifestyle, my style...there are many changes on the way!

The first thing I really want to focus on is my style/lack of wearing normal clothes. I have gotten into this horrible rut of throwing on comfy clothes and staying in them all day....I read that if you look good you feel good and I am ready to change things up!
Off to the store I went and really was not happy as I shopped...everything is made for a certain body type and I am not ready to give up on looking my age just so my clothes cover my body. So what do I do when I cannot find what I want...you guessed it-online shopping! Of course most of the online stuff was more cookie cutter clothes and I really want something different-something that really brings about my personality. So in my search I found Holy Clothing-at first glance I fell in love with many of the dresses. There were so many different cuts and lengths to choose from-not just super long or super
short. This is one of my favorites the Daisy Crochet Lace Peasant Boho Cotton Tiered Maxi Sun Dress 

I really love the color and the length of the dress. I have a hard time finding grown up maxi dresses that do not cost a fortune and have a look that will stand the test of time. Shipping was very fast and the detail on the dress was amazing. It is 100% cotton so it was really soft and even after washing several times felt like it did when it first arrived. I absolutely love that I can throw the dress in the wash and hang to dry-so easy and really makes a difference from dry clean only clothes. Holy Clothing has so many options including tops, pants, cloaks, and dresses. I even say a photo of a wedding party in their dresses since they are so affordable and sure to last.
Holy Clothing is a family-owned business that really strives to meet customer satisfaction and has a quick and easy ordering process.
I am very excited for summer to order more pieces for my summer wardrobe-with all the great colors and options I will finally have a grown up comfortable wardrobe minus all the hoodies and yoga pants!
Be sure to visit Holy Clothing on facebook to keep up with the new style and deals!

Mama's Got A New Look Hop

We just rang in 2013 a few days ago and with a New Year comes the chance to develop a new YOU!  Welcome to the Mama's Got a New Look Giveaway Hop Event.  The Blogging Mamas Network, along with over 30 other fabulous bloggers, want to give the special, deserving Mamas a chance at getting a New Look for the New Year!

This Event will run from January 3-17 and each blogger in the hop has a great prize, worth at least $25, to help you achieve that new look!  While you're hopping be sure to check out the TWO Grand Prizes for this Event - the Active New Look and the Fashionista New Look for Mamas!  Enter the Grand Prize HERE.

Enter Using the rafflecopter form below to win 1 of 2 great prize packs!

1. Family Stickers $30 giftcard

2. Craftcuts $30 giftcard

Disclosure :According to Jenny, So Easy Being Green, and the Mama’s Got a New Look participating bloggers are not responsible for sponsors who do not fulfill prize obligations.

Here comes the flower girl-vote for your flower girl baskets!

So the holidays are over and now it is time to start focusing back on the blog and our newest adventure-my best friends wedding! I am so excited this time around....it is so much more than simply showing up in a hideous dress and playing bridesmaid-plus little miss is going to be the flower girl! Just look at the adorable dress that is in the running:

Of course I am off to try to make the perfect matching hairband and find the perfect flowers and flower girl baskets. The wedding will be dinosaur theme in a classy history museum setting so I have to find the perfect basket. What do you think about the unique basket available at Weddingstar? 

I really want to incorporate the them of the basket and love all of the great designs they have to offer-anything that can be ordered online and custom made is a plus! I really love this one for a beach wedding...who knows maybe my parents renew their vows I can talk them into a beach theme?

The flower girl is such an important part of the wedding-ours was only two and a complete nightmare but everyone remembers her petal filled dress and matching flower girl baskets. It really is not about being flashy and complicated and I really love all the simplistic styles at Weddingstar (not to mention the great price after the cost of the dress!). I really do want to be budget conscious this year and put on a fabulous wedding for my best friend-bring on the ribbon, lace, bows, and small details that make it all work. For now I will focus on finding the perfect flower girl basket for little miss...how about this one for a dinosaur theme-white which the main dress color?

Quick Giveaway-Foster Farm Corn Dog & Nintendo Scribblenauts giveaway!

Are you ready for a great holiday giveaway? Right now you have a great chance to win delicious foster farms corn dogs (one of our personal quick family favorites) and Nintendo Scribblenauts game!

About Foster Farms

Family-owned and operated, Foster Farms continues its legacy of excellence and commitment to quality
established by its founders, Max and Verda Foster. Foster Farms Corn Dogs can be found in the following varieties: Honey Crunchy Corn Dogs, Mini Honey Crunchy Corn Dogs, Jumbo Honey Crunchy Corn Dogs, Chili Cheese Corn Dogs and Family Fun Pack. Foster Farms also produces a new Lower-Sodium, 100% Whole Grain Chicken Corn Dog for foodservice that was awarded the Parent Tested Parent Approved (PTPA) Winner’s Seal of Approval in 2012. Foster Farms offers delicious fresh, pre-marinated, ready-to-cook and fully cooked poultry products that meet the quality and convenience needs of today's home cooks, retailers, warehouse clubs and
foodservice customers. Visit www.fosterfarms.com to learn more.



Another great rebate offer-anyone who purchases specially marked boxes of Foster Farms Corn Dogs and the new Scribblenauts Unlimited game are eligible for a $5 cash rebate.

Hoppin' For the Holidays Giveaway Event

Welcome to the Hoppin’ For The Holidays Giveaway Hop hosted by MamaNYC! Christmas is fast approaching and we’re all starting to think about holiday gifts, decorating, and snuggling up under the mistletoe. We’ve all gathered together to bring our readers some amazing prizes that would surely make fantastic holiday gifts this year, so start hopping down the linky below!  This event will run from December 13-29th, which means you will have plenty of time to enter all of our giveaways. Good Luck & Happy Holidays!

Enter to win 1 of 6 amazing prize packs using the rafflecopter form below! 

1. $25 Giftcard to FunSlurp

2. Small Monkeez Character of Choice

3. Speckled Frogs on Log 

4.  Wits Party Game

5.20x30 print from collagedotcom

Will you be traveling this holidy season?

While I love going away with my family I find traveling to be a bit stressful. Here is when I began to dread hotels....my daughter was 10 months old and just starting to crawl. We went to Connecticut and quickly set up the pack and play and began to get ready for our trip to the zoo. Somehow the person cleaning the room missed this weird metal cap or coin thing in the corner and little miss crawled right over and in her mouth it went. After that I began obsessing-what about the cords, light sockets, door knobs? At home we had baby proofing things our but here we were not prepared for our crawling little angel. Well years have gone by and I still stress every time we travel-that is until we met the Travel Tot company in Louisville. So what is Travel Tot? It is a childproofing kit that quickly travels with you wherever you go. We actually keep ours in our diaper bag so it is with us at all times....after all you never know when you need a bandage!

Travel Tot has been featured on the Today Show and I am excited about more exposure for the company. Think of all the times you may have had a close call while traveling-how nice would it of been to quickly pull out a small kit and have piece of mind. I think this is a must have for anyone traveling this holiday season and would be a great baby gift!
You can purchase your Travel Tot kit online here-happy and safe travels this holiday season!