We have been contacted by a few fun companies for reviews and giveaways so I am hoping that we will have a few starting next week :)
I am also hoping to get a few bigger giveaways and have been working on these the last few weeks. I can't wait to let everyone know about these great companies!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
Website sale :)
25% off all orders of $50 or more! Tons of great lines that are ONLY found on my wesbite so make sure check them out.
Sibling sets, vacation sets, spring, and summer as well as holiday!!
Sunday, January 09, 2011
When your a MOM even neck & back pain can't get you down!
4 days ago..YES you read that right...4 DAYS ago, my neck started hurting a bit, quickly the pain went into my shoulder and by the afternoon I was in so much pain I couldn't move my head or neck unless I turned at the waist.
I don't know about you but death bed wouldn't be a good excuse for me as a mom and wife to be resting. Someone ALWAYS needs something they can't get on their own, help doing something, or FOOD!
"Mommy, isn't feeling good, I am REALLY hurting, "
"WELL MOM, do you remember when I HURT my knee and the next day it was even worst? Well, I think you should just get everything done today cause' you know that it will be worst tomorrow."
SURE ENOUGH "TOMORROW" mama couldn't pick her head up to get out of bed, BUT
The dog needed to be walked, boys needed breakfast, and laundry was piling up!
A tube of icyhot
later and I was STILL in so much pain that when hubby got home, I WENT TO BED...yeah 5:30 and this MAMA was OUT LIKE A LIGHT! I NEVER go to bed before 11...NEVER. not only did I GO to bed, I SLEPT ALL NIGHT LONG!!
icehot just wasn't cutting it any longer. heat packs, moist heat, ice, Motrin...still in tons of pain~
so tonight this mama went to the store and got TIGERBALM
and a bottle of wine...
CAN I TELL YOU THIS STUFF IS AWESOME!!!! relief!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now the pain isn't GONE, but i can deal with it!! and it only took the TINIEST little amount to make me feel SO much better!
After my glass of wine...MAMA is going to bed!
I don't know about you but death bed wouldn't be a good excuse for me as a mom and wife to be resting. Someone ALWAYS needs something they can't get on their own, help doing something, or FOOD!
"Mommy, isn't feeling good, I am REALLY hurting, "
"WELL MOM, do you remember when I HURT my knee and the next day it was even worst? Well, I think you should just get everything done today cause' you know that it will be worst tomorrow."
SURE ENOUGH "TOMORROW" mama couldn't pick her head up to get out of bed, BUT
The dog needed to be walked, boys needed breakfast, and laundry was piling up!
A tube of icyhot
later and I was STILL in so much pain that when hubby got home, I WENT TO BED...yeah 5:30 and this MAMA was OUT LIKE A LIGHT! I NEVER go to bed before 11...NEVER. not only did I GO to bed, I SLEPT ALL NIGHT LONG!!icehot just wasn't cutting it any longer. heat packs, moist heat, ice, Motrin...still in tons of pain~
so tonight this mama went to the store and got TIGERBALM
and a bottle of wine...CAN I TELL YOU THIS STUFF IS AWESOME!!!! relief!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now the pain isn't GONE, but i can deal with it!! and it only took the TINIEST little amount to make me feel SO much better!
After my glass of wine...MAMA is going to bed!
Saturday, January 08, 2011
Wedding ties ..these are NOT your traditional tie!!
6 WEDDING Neckties
Sometimes making colors for a wedding fit together can be a BIT tricky, and these ties are the answer to that problem!Bride may choose up to 3 fabrics for these ties. I will work with you to create the look you want and need.
Ties are made with cotton fabrics, and can be made in any color combo or print!!!
Please contact me for larger parties, or smaller. I Love working with brides and i feel so honored as a designer when a bride has me create her ties...weddings are so special and to be included is such a fun thing!
Friday, January 07, 2011
WE WON!!! ELMERS CanYouTopThis challenge....
I LOVE crafts, art, anything to do with a project, so when I found out about the Elmers Can you top this Challenge..I KNEW I had to enter...
If you didn't see what we made, make sure you check it out and the background story on it as well!
Elmer's #canyoutopthis challenge...& it was a TON OF FUN!!
After we were done, I told my sister and a few other people about the project. My sister entered the contest...
#CanYouTopThis Tri-fold Kitchen Set
SHE ROCKED that kitchen set!!
We have been BOTH waiting to hear if we won one of the $100 Wal-mart gift cards for our entries....this morning we both got emails from Mommy 2 K that we had WON!!
5 blogs hosted this contest and my sister & I BOTH won on the same blog! I thought that was one of the coolest parts about it! that and that we are getting a $100 Gift card in the mail!
Living so far away from each other we don't get to see each other a bunch, but it was fun to be excited about the same thing TOGETHER. Something that fueled BOTH our love for the arts!
Congrats little sister ;) Glad we both won, because if you had won and I didn't I would have been so mad at you I might not have talked to you for a week ;) LMBO!!
Thursday, January 06, 2011
It has been one of those days...a PJ Day.
NO COFFEE...I think that explains it ALL!
This morning I got up threw on a sweat shirt and my fleece Christmas frog PJ pants, and headed out the door to take the boys to school...the looks said it all but my reply was "NO COFFEE in the house" to the two teachers, and both laughed and said the UNDERSTOOD.
I came home sat in the chair and watched tv, untill it was then time to go get the boys.......
I DID get my coffee but it wasn't until I went to get the boys from school, and at that point I think I needed a POT because the cup wasn't any help.
The boys did homework, and we left to on our walk. it was a LONG walk today but a nice one.
Dinner and then the boys were off to bed....
it was just BLAGHHHHHHHH all day....
I never really did get out of my Pj's........
Note to self...GO GET COFFEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This morning I got up threw on a sweat shirt and my fleece Christmas frog PJ pants, and headed out the door to take the boys to school...the looks said it all but my reply was "NO COFFEE in the house" to the two teachers, and both laughed and said the UNDERSTOOD.
I came home sat in the chair and watched tv, untill it was then time to go get the boys.......
I DID get my coffee but it wasn't until I went to get the boys from school, and at that point I think I needed a POT because the cup wasn't any help.
The boys did homework, and we left to on our walk. it was a LONG walk today but a nice one.
Dinner and then the boys were off to bed....
it was just BLAGHHHHHHHH all day....
I never really did get out of my Pj's........
Note to self...GO GET COFFEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
a NOTE worthy giveaway!!
Ends soon but this one is a MUST ENTER! OR you could just pretend so i ahve less people to compete with ;)
About: Ming Wang is inspired by the basic principle that women want to feel comfortable and look stylish in great fitting clothes. The collection has been designed to meet the needs of today’s on-the-go woman with a demanding and active lifestyle. Each silhouette has been cut to fit and flatter, no matter the woman’s body type, shape or size. Ming Wang is the must have staple for every woman’s closet!
Ming Wang’s mission and passion is creating garments that cater to the active woman who is dedicated to style, yet seeks the perfect blend of elegance and practicality.
Giveaway – Ming Wang $336 Little Black Dress – 2 Winners – Ends 1/6/11
Sweeps4Bloggers
Ming Wang makes some of the most practical, comfy clothing for the the mom on the go that I have ever seen! I SO hope I win one of these dresses, but whomever does will be a HAPPY mama!!
Ming WangAbout: Ming Wang is inspired by the basic principle that women want to feel comfortable and look stylish in great fitting clothes. The collection has been designed to meet the needs of today’s on-the-go woman with a demanding and active lifestyle. Each silhouette has been cut to fit and flatter, no matter the woman’s body type, shape or size. Ming Wang is the must have staple for every woman’s closet!
Ming Wang’s mission and passion is creating garments that cater to the active woman who is dedicated to style, yet seeks the perfect blend of elegance and practicality.
From now on ...YOUR DOING IT ALONE!!
When I was a kid there was no structure when it came to homework. no one to help if you had a question, and so most of the time I was trying to get Vocab done at lunch before running into the class. if I got part of it done I was happy. I didn't care about grades, because I honestly didn't know to care about them. NO ONE in my family ever graduated form high-school, much less went off to college..it was the norm. Do just enough to pass and after a few years your done.
THIS IS NOT the approach I take with my kids. I see how much that HURT me and I want the best for them so home-work and school are a HUGE thing to me because of this.
Each day the boys get home we sit at the table go through folders, talk about school, eat a snack, then start homework.
We recently moved from CT to Arizona...meaning GREAT AWESOME SCHOOLS to...well not so great :(
My third grader is VERY advanced, (this goes back to the above part)...he is working on 5th grade math and reading on a fifth grade level. We brought testing scores with us when we moved to have him placed in the advance program but were told it didn't start until 4th grade...the poor child was BORED TO TEARS in school. When I approached the teacher about it after two weeks at the school her words to me were...."Alex needs to take a chill pill, he is working WAY above the other kids and I don't have time to give him anything more to work on. I have 28 other children in the class, so if you could talk to him and let him know that he is going to have to learn to have FUN here and not work so hard that would be great"
WHAT!!!!!!!!!!! REALLY!!!?!?!?!??!
and so the following day we started looking for a NEW school for our boys!
We are now at an AWESOME charter school in the area, and the boys are LOVING it. They work at a MUCH faster pace, and are a grade level ahead of task...PERFECT for us!!
Benjamin is 6 and in Kindergarten. Yeah we kept BOTH our boys back that extra year because first THEY ARE BOYS, and second they have really late birthdays so to us it was worth it!
Yesterday Benjamin had 2 math work sheets, a book to read and he had to write each of his 12 spelling words once each. This is a lot for him since he got chucked into the school mid year and has had honestly a 2 month vacation from school when you think about it....The move, the school he was doing Nothing in here, then Christmas break. So I sat with him and kept repeating ...up to the ceiling DOWN to the basement as he wrote the letters. With each letter that he didn't make correctly we would erase and try agian...
This was followed with ....TEARS, GROANING, and I Cant's...
Three words in, I honestly had lost every ounce of patience I could muster and so I told him I was going to go finish the laundry and would check on him in a few minutes....
I started folding and putting away, and about 2 minutes latter I was greated with a BUBBLY BOUNCING BOY and a paper.......
THAT WAS ALL FINISHED and the letters looked great.....
Today when the boys get home, we will sit down, eat our snack, talk about out day, look at folders, and then.....
MAMA IS LEAVING THE TABLE...............YOUR DOING IT ALONE!!!
THIS IS NOT the approach I take with my kids. I see how much that HURT me and I want the best for them so home-work and school are a HUGE thing to me because of this.
Each day the boys get home we sit at the table go through folders, talk about school, eat a snack, then start homework.
We recently moved from CT to Arizona...meaning GREAT AWESOME SCHOOLS to...well not so great :(
My third grader is VERY advanced, (this goes back to the above part)...he is working on 5th grade math and reading on a fifth grade level. We brought testing scores with us when we moved to have him placed in the advance program but were told it didn't start until 4th grade...the poor child was BORED TO TEARS in school. When I approached the teacher about it after two weeks at the school her words to me were...."Alex needs to take a chill pill, he is working WAY above the other kids and I don't have time to give him anything more to work on. I have 28 other children in the class, so if you could talk to him and let him know that he is going to have to learn to have FUN here and not work so hard that would be great"
WHAT!!!!!!!!!!! REALLY!!!?!?!?!??!
and so the following day we started looking for a NEW school for our boys!
We are now at an AWESOME charter school in the area, and the boys are LOVING it. They work at a MUCH faster pace, and are a grade level ahead of task...PERFECT for us!!
Benjamin is 6 and in Kindergarten. Yeah we kept BOTH our boys back that extra year because first THEY ARE BOYS, and second they have really late birthdays so to us it was worth it!
Yesterday Benjamin had 2 math work sheets, a book to read and he had to write each of his 12 spelling words once each. This is a lot for him since he got chucked into the school mid year and has had honestly a 2 month vacation from school when you think about it....The move, the school he was doing Nothing in here, then Christmas break. So I sat with him and kept repeating ...up to the ceiling DOWN to the basement as he wrote the letters. With each letter that he didn't make correctly we would erase and try agian...
This was followed with ....TEARS, GROANING, and I Cant's...
Three words in, I honestly had lost every ounce of patience I could muster and so I told him I was going to go finish the laundry and would check on him in a few minutes....
I started folding and putting away, and about 2 minutes latter I was greated with a BUBBLY BOUNCING BOY and a paper.......
THAT WAS ALL FINISHED and the letters looked great.....
Today when the boys get home, we will sit down, eat our snack, talk about out day, look at folders, and then.....
MAMA IS LEAVING THE TABLE...............YOUR DOING IT ALONE!!!
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
This week I say .......YES!!
I was inspired by another blogger for this post, and I hope it will inspire others as well!!
Thank you The B.M.C. Report, I loved your blog post so here is mine.....
I say YES to a chocolate bar...I deserve one!
I say yes to remaining calm at homework time.
I say yes to 5 more minutes of snuggling before sending them off to bed.
I say yes to making sure that my I tell my boys "I LOVE YOU" each day
I say yes to making sure my boys know that GOD loves them too!
I say yes to stopping to smell the fresh cut grass even if only for a second.
I say yes to marveling at the beautiful sun God made for us.
I say yes to getting ALL the laundry done.
I say yes to a fun walk with the family each afternoon.
I say yes to inspiring others
I say yes to find a positive in every situation
I say yes to giggling
I say yes to learning something NEW
I say yes to making sure I blog each day with SOMETHING even if it isn't a huge post.
What do YOU say yes to?
Thank you The B.M.C. Report, I loved your blog post so here is mine.....
I say YES to a chocolate bar...I deserve one!
I say yes to remaining calm at homework time.
I say yes to 5 more minutes of snuggling before sending them off to bed.
I say yes to making sure that my I tell my boys "I LOVE YOU" each day
I say yes to making sure my boys know that GOD loves them too!
I say yes to stopping to smell the fresh cut grass even if only for a second.
I say yes to marveling at the beautiful sun God made for us.
I say yes to getting ALL the laundry done.
I say yes to a fun walk with the family each afternoon.
I say yes to inspiring others
I say yes to find a positive in every situation
I say yes to giggling
I say yes to learning something NEW
I say yes to making sure I blog each day with SOMETHING even if it isn't a huge post.
What do YOU say yes to?
Monday, January 03, 2011
"MOM, where do PUPPIES Come from?"......THINK FAST MOM, THINK FAST!!
Meet Bailey the Christmas puppy...(that is a WHOLE other story for another day)
She is the BEST puppy ever, and the love of our two little boys lives! She is a Mama's girl, she wears bows in her hair when we go out. We have had her since December 23rd & she is SPOILED ROTTEN! (just like our other kids.
So my little guy was playing with Bailey while I was making dinner....
"MAMA, where do Puppies come from?"
(he is 6)
THINK FAST MAMA , THINK FAST!!!
Me........"Well There is a MAMA & a DADA dog. They make a puppy and it grows inside the Ma Ma's tummy like a baby does"
Little guy...."I KNOW THAT, BUT HOW DOES IT GET THERE!"
UMMMMMMMM..... I am NOT doing a good job at thinking fast LOL
me...."Well, God puts it there"
little guy...."BUT HOW"
me...."GOD IS MAGIC"
little guy............"OH, that's cool!"
MAYBE I AM good at thinking fast!!
Dear HUBBY....
I am writing you a 2011 GOALS list, because I KNOW you won't write one for yourself!
1) I will start dropping my dirty clothing IN the basket not BY the basket. I know my wife would LOVE me forever and it would save her a LOT of time each day.
2) I will remember to put the seat down so that when my wife goes to the bathroom at 4:00Am after walking the dog, and is nice enough NOT to turn on the lights to wake me up, she doesn't fall in!
3) I will stop emptying my electric razor in the sink and all over the cabinet without cleaning it up..I bet that would save teh wife a lot of time too!
4) I will take my drink glass into the kitchen at night so that the puppy doesn't spill it on the floor in the morning.
HONESTY I would be SOOO beyond thrilled if you could stick with the plan! it would mean the world to me...
WILL YOU PLEASE BRING HOME SOME WD-40 so that the fridge and the bedroom door Stop MAKING THAT HORRIBLE NOISE when I open and close them....I really can't take it anymore. You are in fact a manager at Home-Depot and I KNOW they sell it there!
Love your Devoted wife,
ME
1) I will start dropping my dirty clothing IN the basket not BY the basket. I know my wife would LOVE me forever and it would save her a LOT of time each day.
2) I will remember to put the seat down so that when my wife goes to the bathroom at 4:00Am after walking the dog, and is nice enough NOT to turn on the lights to wake me up, she doesn't fall in!
3) I will stop emptying my electric razor in the sink and all over the cabinet without cleaning it up..I bet that would save teh wife a lot of time too!
4) I will take my drink glass into the kitchen at night so that the puppy doesn't spill it on the floor in the morning.
HONESTY I would be SOOO beyond thrilled if you could stick with the plan! it would mean the world to me...
OH and while you're at it ...
WILL YOU PLEASE BRING HOME SOME WD-40 so that the fridge and the bedroom door Stop MAKING THAT HORRIBLE NOISE when I open and close them....I really can't take it anymore. You are in fact a manager at Home-Depot and I KNOW they sell it there!
Love your Devoted wife,
ME
Sunday, January 02, 2011
Stylish Blogger AWARD!
I will start off by saying....
WOW .THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
I was so excited to see that I had been given a blog award by
this SO made my night!
Knowing that SOMEONE took the time to even add your name to a list; a list that took THEIR time, makes you feel so SPECIAL! SO MUCH in fact that I didn't want to wait until morning to make my own list. I hope that I can add a smile to another bloggers day, the way one was added to mine! Over the last few days I have found MANY great blogs. Below are a few that I found great information on and some that just put a smile on my face.
How It Works:
1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you this award.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers.
4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award.
7 things about ME
My favorite color is BLUE
I DO NOT like spiders, no matter how small they freek me out!
I am a night owl
I Design childrens clothing
When I start a book I can't put it down until I finish it
I can't fall asleep while watching a movie NO MATTER how tired I am I HAVE to see the end
I don't like driving
My nominations are:
Three 1/2 out of four "aint" bad.....is it?
So my four GOALS for myself this year
1) Get to the gym at least three times a week (or exercise)
I took the boys and little bailey pup-pup on a HUGE walk this afternoon and we were all tired when we got in. LOTS of nice fresh air, and it was good for all 4 of us. Both the boys got a Razor scooter
for Christmas and they are AWESOME for taking walks around the apartment complex! THANK YOU SANTA!!
EXERCISE DONE...CHECK
2) CHORE CHARTS...OH yeah BABY! and the boys were REALLY excited about them too! Who knew
I found a great website with FREE printable charts that you can make custom. Each of the boys picked their theme and we added 5 chores for each boy. If you are looking for an EASY chore chart with cute themes check out this site.
CHORE CHARTS DONE.....CHECK
3) BLOG a little as much as I can. honestly I have been Loving putting my thoughts down the last few days, it has been very therapeutic! Even if NO ONE reads what I am putting down it has been a little piece of sanity in the sea of motherhood and craziness! I know I have a few comments so SOMEONE read at least a few of my posts, and that made my day even more!
BLOGGING DONE.......CHECK
4) Make the boys clean up after themselves...Yeah it didn't happen with everything but I did make them take their PSP & DSI to their rooms.....BUT chore charts start tomorrow so I am cutting myself slack on this for tonight ;) honestly I THOUGHT they had cleaned up their dirty clothes and put them in the basket, but NOPE they are on the floor BY the basket. I really think that is a GUY thing because hubby does the same thing!
Boys are in BED....Bailey PUP-PUP is napping on the kitchen floor (not sure WHY I spent 3 hours MAKING her a princess dog bed), hubby went to see a movie & i am going to curl up with my blanket that is almost done drying in the dryer and watch a movie...
ALL is well at the Battaglia house
1) Get to the gym at least three times a week (or exercise)
I took the boys and little bailey pup-pup on a HUGE walk this afternoon and we were all tired when we got in. LOTS of nice fresh air, and it was good for all 4 of us. Both the boys got a Razor scooter
for Christmas and they are AWESOME for taking walks around the apartment complex! THANK YOU SANTA!!EXERCISE DONE...CHECK
2) CHORE CHARTS...OH yeah BABY! and the boys were REALLY excited about them too! Who knew
I found a great website with FREE printable charts that you can make custom. Each of the boys picked their theme and we added 5 chores for each boy. If you are looking for an EASY chore chart with cute themes check out this site.
CHORE CHARTS DONE.....CHECK
3) BLOG a little as much as I can. honestly I have been Loving putting my thoughts down the last few days, it has been very therapeutic! Even if NO ONE reads what I am putting down it has been a little piece of sanity in the sea of motherhood and craziness! I know I have a few comments so SOMEONE read at least a few of my posts, and that made my day even more!
BLOGGING DONE.......CHECK
4) Make the boys clean up after themselves...Yeah it didn't happen with everything but I did make them take their PSP & DSI to their rooms.....BUT chore charts start tomorrow so I am cutting myself slack on this for tonight ;) honestly I THOUGHT they had cleaned up their dirty clothes and put them in the basket, but NOPE they are on the floor BY the basket. I really think that is a GUY thing because hubby does the same thing!
Boys are in BED....Bailey PUP-PUP is napping on the kitchen floor (not sure WHY I spent 3 hours MAKING her a princess dog bed), hubby went to see a movie & i am going to curl up with my blanket that is almost done drying in the dryer and watch a movie...
ALL is well at the Battaglia house
Amazon Giftcard Giveaway
In September a friend of mine told me about a website she thought I should check out. I love blog giveaways, and I am a coupon queen, but I am NOT a fan of point system websites that require you to do things to win prizes. many are just scams, and you do so many "levels" and never end up getting enough points to get anything. Never the less I looked into the site and joined it to check it out for myself.
I joined on September the 1st, and by the first week in December I had $225 in Amazon gift cards! There are SOOO many other things you can "purchase" with your points, but the amazon cards were my FAVORITE!
The program is set up to help members actually win MANY points. Even if you are just searching a few times a day with their search bar you should be able to make enough points to win at LEAST one $5 amazon card a month! If you start NOW by next Christmas you should have a nice "bank" put together for Christmas shopping.
Members download a tool bar and use it to do their searching online. You are rewarded at random for searching and your points go into your account. You can also win points for codes that are posted somewhere on the site each day, for doing surveys, and for doing tasks. Get your friends to join and you win gain points even faster because you will win the points your friends win up to the first 1000 points!
The program is FREE to join, and will cost you NOTHING to use...just be prepared that you will be spending more time on the computer ;)
To get you started I am giving away a $5 Amazon Gift code. It will not expire so you can add it to your Amazon account and keep adding until Christmas 2011!!
Mandatory
Check out Swag bucks
if you are not a member then SIGN UP, if you are a member then just tell me what you like to "purchase" with your points.
EXTRA WAYS TO WIN: leave a separate entry for each item you do.
Follow me on twitter
Follow me on Facebook
& leave me a comment letting me know you joined on the page
I joined on September the 1st, and by the first week in December I had $225 in Amazon gift cards! There are SOOO many other things you can "purchase" with your points, but the amazon cards were my FAVORITE!
The program is set up to help members actually win MANY points. Even if you are just searching a few times a day with their search bar you should be able to make enough points to win at LEAST one $5 amazon card a month! If you start NOW by next Christmas you should have a nice "bank" put together for Christmas shopping.
Members download a tool bar and use it to do their searching online. You are rewarded at random for searching and your points go into your account. You can also win points for codes that are posted somewhere on the site each day, for doing surveys, and for doing tasks. Get your friends to join and you win gain points even faster because you will win the points your friends win up to the first 1000 points!
The program is FREE to join, and will cost you NOTHING to use...just be prepared that you will be spending more time on the computer ;)
To get you started I am giving away a $5 Amazon Gift code. It will not expire so you can add it to your Amazon account and keep adding until Christmas 2011!!
Mandatory
Check out Swag bucks
if you are not a member then SIGN UP, if you are a member then just tell me what you like to "purchase" with your points.
EXTRA WAYS TO WIN: leave a separate entry for each item you do.
Follow me on twitter
Follow me on Facebook
& leave me a comment letting me know you joined on the page
Follow me on Google Friends link is on the Right hand side
Tweet about this giveaway (once per day)
Share this giveaway on face book (once per day)
Blog about this giveaway (2 entries)
Join my newsletter (link on right)
10 ways PLUS to win!!
Code will be sent through email to the winner. Entries must be in by January 14th.
I have not been compensated for this review in any way. Price is one that I have won from swag bucks on my own, it was not donated in any way for this review. This Review is not sponsored by the program in any way!
MONDAY.....I NEED YOU!!!!
I LOVE my boys...
I repeat ...I LOVE MY BOYS!!
Christmas break has been dragging on for what seems like MONTHS! The boys are tired of playing with each other...and all the toys that Santa brought. They have resorted to Forts, pillow fights, webkin football, and torturing their new puppy they got for Christmas (THEY WILL NOT let her nap, they must touch her at ALL times)
Mommy needs a "Christmas" break now and it is why we are COUNTING DOWN the hours until bed time knowing that when we wake, it's OFF to school with them both!
I think I am going to go buy myself one of those $5 cranberry scones and a coffee once they are gone, and just SIT and watch movies!
Or at least do something for me.
I plan to spend at least 30 minutes in the gym since I will be able to actully work out without the boys rolling Bakugan up the treadmill, and shooting them under the weight machine.
MAMA IS THRILLED at the thought of it all.....it actually just gave me goose bumps.
I repeat ...I LOVE MY BOYS!!
Christmas break has been dragging on for what seems like MONTHS! The boys are tired of playing with each other...and all the toys that Santa brought. They have resorted to Forts, pillow fights, webkin football, and torturing their new puppy they got for Christmas (THEY WILL NOT let her nap, they must touch her at ALL times)
Mommy needs a "Christmas" break now and it is why we are COUNTING DOWN the hours until bed time knowing that when we wake, it's OFF to school with them both!
I think I am going to go buy myself one of those $5 cranberry scones and a coffee once they are gone, and just SIT and watch movies!
Or at least do something for me.
I plan to spend at least 30 minutes in the gym since I will be able to actully work out without the boys rolling Bakugan up the treadmill, and shooting them under the weight machine.
MAMA IS THRILLED at the thought of it all.....it actually just gave me goose bumps.
Saturday, January 01, 2011
YOU HAVE GOT to be kidding me...they are SO getting chore charts!
The boys have been playing in the middle of the living room all day long. PILLOWS
, blankets, FORTS
they are all over the floor. SOOO once they went to bed I tried to clean it all up so that we could start new on MORE forts in the morning. I know I need to work with them on cleaning up after they play, but as most moms know...95% of the time cleaning up after they are in bed takes a fraction of the time that sitting on top of them asking them to pick up each things would take.
GOAL ONE: Tomorrow we are working on CHORE CHARTS
!
GOAL TWO: make them at least help clean up some of the mess they make...I would save MYSELF hours of time a week if I...
a) do goal ONE
b) make them clean up at least PART of their mess.
The problem is I ORGANIZE it all and it drives me NUTSO when I take hours to make sure all the Legos
are in one bucket, the Playmobil
in another, the bakugan
in bins under the bed.....etc
So tonight I am cleaning up the mess, the boys are running back and forth .......
"IF ANYONE ELSE GETS OUT OF THE BED THEY ARE TAKING THEIR PILLOW AND FORT OUT ON THE PATIO TO SLEEP" ;) yeah it was so one of those nights....
So while cleaning up I realize that my 9 year old had taking the laptop into the fort, and so I try to untangle the power cord from around the pillows, blankets, and chair. As I do...
THE LAMP falls of the table ...ONTO the laptop and ...yeap.....SHATTERED the screen..
I quit!!!!
TOMORROW my kids are getting chore charts!!!!
, blankets, FORTS they are all over the floor. SOOO once they went to bed I tried to clean it all up so that we could start new on MORE forts in the morning. I know I need to work with them on cleaning up after they play, but as most moms know...95% of the time cleaning up after they are in bed takes a fraction of the time that sitting on top of them asking them to pick up each things would take.
GOAL ONE: Tomorrow we are working on CHORE CHARTS
!GOAL TWO: make them at least help clean up some of the mess they make...I would save MYSELF hours of time a week if I...
a) do goal ONE
b) make them clean up at least PART of their mess.
The problem is I ORGANIZE it all and it drives me NUTSO when I take hours to make sure all the Legos
are in one bucket, the Playmobil in another, the bakugan in bins under the bed.....etcSo tonight I am cleaning up the mess, the boys are running back and forth .......
"I NEED WATER"
"My covers are WRECKED"
"Bubby said I was stupid"
"My nose hurts"
"IF ANYONE ELSE GETS OUT OF THE BED THEY ARE TAKING THEIR PILLOW AND FORT OUT ON THE PATIO TO SLEEP" ;) yeah it was so one of those nights....
So while cleaning up I realize that my 9 year old had taking the laptop into the fort, and so I try to untangle the power cord from around the pillows, blankets, and chair. As I do...
THE LAMP falls of the table ...ONTO the laptop and ...yeap.....SHATTERED the screen..
I quit!!!!
TOMORROW my kids are getting chore charts!!!!
A few MUST join websites for the new year!
It's a new year, and so many of us have made goals we hope to keep. One of my goals is to make sure that I go the gym at least 3 times a week and since it is about 40 feet from my door there is NO excuse for me to not be able to do this...
THE OTHER is to SAVE our family money AS MUCH as possible!!
There are so many great websites out there that can help do this, and a few that I LOVE that I want to share with you!
After our move I tried to find ways to get more BANG for our BUCK since Christmas was right around the corner and I wanted to make sure we had money to spend but that we weren't wasting it in the process.
I told you about SwagBucks one of my FAVORITE sites...From September to December I was able to make over $200 in Amazon cards and this was a BULK of the boys Christmas this year!! I have a $5 amazon giveaway going on that has only 2 ENTRIES right now so make sure you check it out for a chance to win!
The second site i fell in LOVE with over the Christmas holiday was LilLuxe. Each day new deals are posted and the savings are OUT OF THIS WORLD!! We bought quite a few things on this site for the boys and other kiddo we needed to shop for. They have deals on some of the BEST brands ever. So worth signing up just to get the newsletter even if you only purchase once or twice a year!
Site number three and this one is a GREAT one for MOMS & DADS!! EVERSAVE So many great deals on this site. Another great one to sign up for to see the deals in YOUR area!!
From time to time as I find other sites that I think are a MUST to help others save, I will post them. make sure you check these sites out..I am almost POSITIVE you will be glad you did!
THE OTHER is to SAVE our family money AS MUCH as possible!!
SUPERMOM
There are so many great websites out there that can help do this, and a few that I LOVE that I want to share with you!
After our move I tried to find ways to get more BANG for our BUCK since Christmas was right around the corner and I wanted to make sure we had money to spend but that we weren't wasting it in the process.
I told you about SwagBucks one of my FAVORITE sites...From September to December I was able to make over $200 in Amazon cards and this was a BULK of the boys Christmas this year!! I have a $5 amazon giveaway going on that has only 2 ENTRIES right now so make sure you check it out for a chance to win!
The second site i fell in LOVE with over the Christmas holiday was LilLuxe. Each day new deals are posted and the savings are OUT OF THIS WORLD!! We bought quite a few things on this site for the boys and other kiddo we needed to shop for. They have deals on some of the BEST brands ever. So worth signing up just to get the newsletter even if you only purchase once or twice a year!
Site number three and this one is a GREAT one for MOMS & DADS!! EVERSAVE So many great deals on this site. Another great one to sign up for to see the deals in YOUR area!!
From time to time as I find other sites that I think are a MUST to help others save, I will post them. make sure you check these sites out..I am almost POSITIVE you will be glad you did!
Friday, December 31, 2010
Who said FROGS are for boys only??
It's a FUN dress for little girls and is practical as well. Easy wash dry 100% cotton. This style can be found on my website http://www.frogsandflowersboutique.com/ in a few fabrics but can be made with ANY fabric!
More of these to come!!
Retail $45
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Elmer's #canyoutopthis challenge...& it was a TON OF FUN!!
While scrolling through a list of Blog giveaways a few days ago I found a giveaway/challenge that I thought would be TONS of fun. The goal was to make ANYTHING using an Elmer's tri-fold display board .........OH THE POSSIBILITIES! While sitting trying to figure out WHAT I wanted to make, my 9 year old asked what I was doing, so I told him all about the giveaway. After hearing the post he said, 'MOM, I have an idea, what about a new years eve ball we can drop, YOU KNOW like the one in NY city?" IF he hadn't been so excited with the thought of it, I think I would have laughed, but I could tell he was EXCITED about the thought of dropping a ball on new years. You see we just moved from the NY/CT area to Arizona and I think he sees the ball dropping in time square as a little piece of "home."
Anyone who knows me knows I am CRAFTY person. I design childrens clothing, and accessories. I LOVE to work on projects, I do NOT like help, and when the boys are doing art projects I HAVE to line things up and add to them. (I know it's bad) I need things to be symmetrical, I NEED a plan, I need organization...and a BALL DROP just didn't fit into this picture!!!
If you know anything else about me you ALSO KNOWS there isn't anything I wouldn't do for my boys, and so today after going to Wal-mart we made a dropping ball, and the CUTEST new YEARS banner EVER MADE ;)! I can't even begin to explain to you how much fun we had making it. 6 hours later we are READY for the new year and my 9 & 6 year old AGAIN thinks I am THE COOLEST MOM IN THE WORLD...(I think they are right ;)
Elmer's tri-fold board...CHECK
Elmer's Glue
Elmer's Construction paper
a shoe box
markers
a ruler if you can't eyeball like a pro ;) (we didn't have one but like I said above I am crafty...I used a CD)
tape
scissors
ribbon
silver tinsel
inside tube from wrapping paper
glitter glue
hot glue gun
To start it off, we NEEDED a plan! The banner came first so that while I was trying to figure out HOW to make a BALL from construction paper & a tri-fold board, THE BOYS had something to do!
We cut out 16 triangles (this is where the CD came in handy for drawing the lines. I made a template from the construction paper and then drew the triangle one right side up one upside down. We needed all the board for what we were making and being a fabric cutter I wanted to make sure I was cutting less and that I was not going to loose material we needed.
after all the triangles were cut out I wrote one letter on each triangle and then handed them over to the boys.....
While they were working on the letters...I started working on the BALL that had to DROP! I cut a stripe from the board top to bottom cut off about 4 inches and rolled the pieces around to make a circle. The ends were taped together, and this formed the body of the "ball". for each end I made another circle like this but small. REMEMBER the ball has to DROP so this is where the LITTLE circles came into play, and the wrapping paper tube!!
NOW to put the "ball" together.... I cut out 4 3 inch wide and about 12 inch long strips. i cut the ends of each into points. The center of each was taped to the large wring and the ends each to one of the small pictures...see picture for example. This isn't an easy thing to explain but the picture shows it well i think.
I ROCK!!!!!!! Sorry I had to say that, because at this point I was THRILLED WITH MYSELF!
I cut 8 pieces of construction paper out the SAME way I did the cardboard piece. We folded the paper in half longways and then cut them with a bubble center and narrow tips. 4 pieces were glued with a hot glue gun on top of the cardboard pieces. The other four pieces i cut slits at the center on either side so that they would form and ark when the paper overlapped. I used a small piece of tape to tape each side...
once all the paper was on the ball we lined it with silver tinsel, the NYC ball is after all silver and we needed it to be SHINY!
I wrapped the shoebox and the cardboard tube with blue construction paper (it's the boys FAVORITE color). Cut a hole in the top of the box and Glued the tube to the inside of the box so it wouldn't go anywhere. Now HOW to make the ball DROP... we decided to let it drop about 2 inches every minute starting at 11:55 so we tied white grosgrain ribbon the post each having a time on them so the boys would know when to untie the bow.
The ball sits at the top resting on the first ribbon, and once the ribbon is taken off, the ball drops about 2 inches and rests on the next ribbon.....
We added a sign to the top that has each persons name on it and the boys decorated it with glitter glue, and pictures.
At this point the triangle letters were dry so we strung them up on white grosgrain ribbon and tacked them up on the wall........
This would also be a great banner for happy birthday and it's easy for kids to make!!
The boys had SOOOOO much fun making these items, and the dinning room is all ready for a little family Party. We can't wait to "RING IN THE NEW YEAR" with out very own ball drop, and my 9 year old is delighted that his idea came to life.
We are entering our creations in the Elmer's CAN YOU TOP THIS giveaway for a chance to win $100 Wal-mart gift card. We hope to be a lucky winner!
Thank you to ourcrazyboys blog for hosting such a FUN giveaway, and for inspiring a family art project that everyone could be a part of...
OH did I mention that hubby helped hang the banner! (HAHAHAH)
HAPPY NEW YEAR to all our friends and Family
Anyone who knows me knows I am CRAFTY person. I design childrens clothing, and accessories. I LOVE to work on projects, I do NOT like help, and when the boys are doing art projects I HAVE to line things up and add to them. (I know it's bad) I need things to be symmetrical, I NEED a plan, I need organization...and a BALL DROP just didn't fit into this picture!!!
If you know anything else about me you ALSO KNOWS there isn't anything I wouldn't do for my boys, and so today after going to Wal-mart we made a dropping ball, and the CUTEST new YEARS banner EVER MADE ;)! I can't even begin to explain to you how much fun we had making it. 6 hours later we are READY for the new year and my 9 & 6 year old AGAIN thinks I am THE COOLEST MOM IN THE WORLD...(I think they are right ;)
Elmer's Glue
Elmer's Construction paper
a shoe box
markers
a ruler if you can't eyeball like a pro ;) (we didn't have one but like I said above I am crafty...I used a CD)
tape
scissors
ribbon
silver tinsel
inside tube from wrapping paper
glitter glue
hot glue gun
To start it off, we NEEDED a plan! The banner came first so that while I was trying to figure out HOW to make a BALL from construction paper & a tri-fold board, THE BOYS had something to do!
We cut out 16 triangles (this is where the CD came in handy for drawing the lines. I made a template from the construction paper and then drew the triangle one right side up one upside down. We needed all the board for what we were making and being a fabric cutter I wanted to make sure I was cutting less and that I was not going to loose material we needed.
after all the triangles were cut out I wrote one letter on each triangle and then handed them over to the boys.....
NOW to put the "ball" together.... I cut out 4 3 inch wide and about 12 inch long strips. i cut the ends of each into points. The center of each was taped to the large wring and the ends each to one of the small pictures...see picture for example. This isn't an easy thing to explain but the picture shows it well i think.
I cut 8 pieces of construction paper out the SAME way I did the cardboard piece. We folded the paper in half longways and then cut them with a bubble center and narrow tips. 4 pieces were glued with a hot glue gun on top of the cardboard pieces. The other four pieces i cut slits at the center on either side so that they would form and ark when the paper overlapped. I used a small piece of tape to tape each side...
once all the paper was on the ball we lined it with silver tinsel, the NYC ball is after all silver and we needed it to be SHINY!
The boys finished the letters and I cut out 3 inch rectangles from the construction paper to add to the top so we could string the letters for the banner. We used Elmer's Glue to glue the front and back the the tri-fold board triangles, and set them all to the side to dry...
At this point the triangle letters were dry so we strung them up on white grosgrain ribbon and tacked them up on the wall........
The boys had SOOOOO much fun making these items, and the dinning room is all ready for a little family Party. We can't wait to "RING IN THE NEW YEAR" with out very own ball drop, and my 9 year old is delighted that his idea came to life.
We are entering our creations in the Elmer's CAN YOU TOP THIS giveaway for a chance to win $100 Wal-mart gift card. We hope to be a lucky winner!
Thank you to ourcrazyboys blog for hosting such a FUN giveaway, and for inspiring a family art project that everyone could be a part of...
OH did I mention that hubby helped hang the banner! (HAHAHAH)
HAPPY NEW YEAR to all our friends and Family
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
SWAGG & info on a giveaway
You have to Check out this new app!
You can grab it for the iPhone and DROID it allows you to give gift cards on the go as well as organize your rewards and gift cards called SWAGG (very convenient)! When you hit the stores you just hold your iPhone out for the cashier to scan. I just downloaded this app tonight after finding a giveaway on GO Graham GO
Make sure you check it out for a chance to win!
Support Cancer Research
The best part about the FREE SWAGG download is that from now until December 31st SWAGG will donate $1 to Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C) for every app download. SU2C is a non-profit that launched in 2008 to fund cancer research. Their goal is to reach 125K downloads by the 31st.
The Ultimate SWAGG Getaway Sweepstakes
You also have a chance to win a fun trip! Clever Girls Collective and SWAGG are sending a lucky pair of movie fans to the Sundance Film Festival! The prize includes:
* 2 night/3 day stay at Yarrow Hotel in Park City Utah (Jan 21 - Jan 23, 2011)
* Ground transportation to and from hotel to airport in Park City, Utah
* Dinner for two at Tao Lounge, including 2 nightclub passes
* All access to The House of SWAGG Gifting Suite
* 2 tickets to a movie premiere on Saturday, January 22nd -- movie tbd
* $4,000 value
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