Holiday Comforts~ This post is sponsored by Tempur-Pedic, the brand millions of owners trust to deliver their best night’s sleep every night. Enjoy our Buy 2, get 1 free pillow offer now and give the gift of custom comfort to someone you love.
Holiday Comforts Come from the Little things
It’s that time of year again, the time when the temperature cools down, the chaos level gets cranked up a notch and families come together. I have lots of holiday comforts that I look forward to every single year like cuddling up by the fire with my Big Guy, hot chocolate with my girls after a long, hard day of snow angels and snowman building and snuggling up in the family bed with our little girls drifting to sleep between us as we watch Christmas vacation for the 100th time that year. Thanksgiving was yesterday and we all enjoyed starting off our holiday season with a home cooked meal of comfort food, shared with family and followed up by driving around town with the girls looking at all the Christmas decorations downtown. All of my holiday comforts revolve around family. Sure, it’s great to get a nice gift but all that I really need in life is free; holiday comforts in smiles, giggles and snuggles. Those holiday comforts are priceless. My list of holiday comforts is simple but it is more than ample.
Holiday Comforts in the little things
The sparkle in my daughters’ eyes when I tell them that I love them.
The smiles on my daughters’ faces when they are happy.
The laughter that fills our house as our girls do one silly thing after another.
The Big Guy’s hearty, robust laugh when he finds one of our daughters asleep in a closet or wearing their underwear on their head.
My heart swoons sharing the Nutcracker with my girls and now, watching my little girl on stage performing in the Nutcracker.
Seeing my sweet nieces and nephews on a regular basis.
Hugs and Kisses, lots and lots of hugs and kisses.
Snow days spent watching black and white Christmas movies with our girls cuddled under a fuzzy blanket.
Making the first batch of snow cream.
Going to my parents house and having Christmas with my sisters.
Decorating the tree and house for Christmas.
Christmas Mass and the smell of the incense that fill the church as the choir sings; this gives me peace.
Thanksgiving smells filling the house as our entire family talks and catches up.
Watching my children play with my brothers and sisters kids.
Long talks after dinner with my sisters.
New babies, expected babies.
Barton’s Pizza, loud Christmas music and midnight mass remind of my childhood Christmas eves.
Seeing my daughters’ faces the first time they notice that their elves have arrived from the North Pole each year.
The palpable excitement the girls exude on Christmas eve when putting out reindeer food with Daddy and cookies for Santa.
New years eve with our girls, sipping sparkling cider and celebrating the New Year at 8 pm ( after turning the clocks to midnight) so the girls can ring in the New Year with us.
Midnight New Year’s eve kiss with the Big Guy, at home, together for the last 15 years…and for the rest of our lives.
Calling all of my family at midnight to wish them a happy New Year and let them know how much I love them.
Holiday Comforts come from the privilege of loving
Comfort is the perfect gift for everyone on your holiday gift list, so be sure to take advantage of Tempur-Pedic’s Buy 2, get 1 free pillow offer! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. What are your holiday comforts?
The First Moments are the Messiest~ As a parent, there are many, many messy moments in life. Diaper blow outs in the middle of the night, food that never quite seems to make it into a toddler mouth, lost scavenger hunts for Cheerios and Goldfish, mud pies at preschool, wayward finger paint and watercolor mishaps, vomit, spit up, and every body fluid imaginable will end up on a parent’s person at one time or another, spilled milk, smashed birthday cake,grass stains from first soccer games, dance make-up wiped on tiny leotards, blood from skinned knees and tear stains from broken hearts; these are the messy moments in life. But the messiest moment in life is the most profound; the collective moments in life where a woman becomes a mother, a man becomes a father and a dream becomes a reality…the moment of life… the moment that a baby is born.
The Messiest Moments are where the Memories are Made
The Moments that you Will Never Forget
The Messy Moments are where Life Happens
The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new. ~Rajneesh
No matter what mess my house may be in, no matter how many crushed crackers, smushed gummy bears, random overturned sippy cups filled with spoiled organic milk, surprise soaked night time diapers I may find under the bed or behind a dresser, I never mind the mess because out of all these chaotically messy moments comes the loving and the living. Spilled grape juice on creme colored carpets, crayons on walls, marker mustaches on little girls are all fondly remembered in my heart as benchmark milestones of motherhood. Those most present moments, those quiet and surreal moments right before I met my daughters are the messiest and most profound of my life. What was your messiest moment in parenthood?
I received information about Clorox’s Bleach It Away campaign and am sharing my messy moment for the chance to win prizes from The SITS Girls. To learn more about the messy moments program, check out www.BleachItAway.com. Sharing your story on the Clorox fan page gets you entered for the chance to win $25,000 and daily prizes, and you can grab a coupon for Clorox® Regular Bleach. Share your messiest moments.
Beauty~ Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit https://moms.dailybuzz.com/channel/style.
Today, I am going to share some of my beauty secrets. Now, I don’t share these with just anybody so you should feel pretty special. But seriously, who doesn’t want to live in a world full of beautiful truthful mommies running around all over the place? I know I would love it. You are all gorgeous on the inside, I know this for a fact from all the lovely comments you leave, and I am sure that he outside matches the inside so let’s help keep it that way.
Here are my fall beauty tips for keeping your outside beauty in sync with your inside beauty.
Start the day with a hot bath and an invigorating, exfoliating body wash. I promise it wakes up your senses and get’s you going on those cold, dark mornings of late fall. And if you rinse off in cool water, it helps close up all those pores and hair follicles. BONUS!
The exfoliating wash will help get rid of some of that dry skin and eliminate some of that awful itching that comes to us in the fall and winter months. If you really want to revitalize the way you look, you can actually opt for cosmetic treatments such as juvederm.
Moisturize*Moisturize*Moisturize* I can not stress this enough. Honestly, you should be moisturizing every single day of the year , every season, from the age of puberty on but you most definitely need to moisturize during the colder, drier months. Moisturize your face at night with a night time wrinkle reducer, in the morning use a tinted moisturizer with some SPF protection. It will keep your skin hydrated and not pasty, plus help hold off crows feet. (*Also, wear your sunglasses year round.) When you get out of the shower, moisturize immediately. Lock in the moisture. And for those crazy dry feet,(* Shhhh, top secret beauty secret) slather those suckers in Vaseline ( I like the coco butter scented one) and put on some cozy socks to let them marinate for a bit. I swear it works.
Shave your legs and paint your toenails! I know you think no one will see your legs or toes until spring but just remember this…if you feel pretty , you will look pretty. I always feel prettier when I’m presentable, besides I’ve seen a lot of wool shorts for this fall!
Beauty, you are worth it!
Drink your water!I mean it , drink 64 ounces of water a day. It makes you look good. Your skin will glow. Your skin will be hydrated and not itch.It also helps flush your body of all that water weight we ladies tend to collect around shark week. Eat better. You need to get all of your daily recommended amount of vitamins,so eating fresh food and taking an actual vitamin can help replenish some of those nutrients that you will be lacking by being shut indoors and hibernating over the colder months. Bonus: Vitamins make your hair, nails and skin look better and grow. Hello, what’s sexier than a woman with long flowing hair, glowing, blemish free skin and nails that can beckon you to come hither?
Whiten your teeth. I love the professional crest white strips professional effects. This best invisalign dentist nyc told me that they work as good as anything he would do in his office with the exception of the Zoom treatments, especially if your teeth are not that discolored. You know your skin will be paler so whitening will help your teeth look whiter versus the yellow tinged color they can look against pale skin after a autumn filled with hot coco, hot coffee, hot tea, hot toddies, Diet Coke and red wine! A girls gotta warm up.
Wash your hair less. I know it sounds gross but again, the world is a drier place in the fall. In the summer, we are running all over town sweating glistening and our hair is full of oils and sunshine.In fall, our hair starts to dry out like the leaves on the trees. My suggestion, wash your hair every other day. I know it may sound disgusting to some of you but , in the long run, it will be better for you. OK, if you just can’t do it, wash every other day and on off days use a dry Shampoo. Also, hot oil treatments are your friend. Just pretend you are at a spa and spoil yourself. Or if you want to go the crunchy route, I hear mayonnaise brings out a wicked shine to your hair.
Last, but certainly not least, I change my make up to all of my warm fall colors. No, your bright pink grapefruit kiss does not look good on your pasty skin in November. Think the colors of the fall foliage; warm colors. And don’t put away that bronzer, you still need some color. It’ll give you a little kiss of summer, smack dab in the middle of fall. You will glow.
These are my tips for looking like a hot Mommy in the fall. A few changes to accommodate for the weather and a few minutes of “me” time is all it takes. I promise you can sneak it in. They say beauty is pain, but really with these simple tips beauty is no pain at all! What are some of your go to fall beauty tips and tricks?
Thank you to Walgreens for sponsoring this blog post. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions and beauty tricks are my own.
Weight loss~ As I told many of you about a month ago, I have started training with a personal trainer because I want to finally take weight loss to the next level. I want to feel comfortable in my own skin. I’ve wanted to beat this weight loss demon into submission for a long time and I’ve tried just about everything under the sun to lose the weight. Sure things worked, but weight loss is not a destination, it’s a journey. Weight loss is the longest and hardest journey that you will probably ever endure in your lifetime. I know it is mine but finding comfort in my own skin will be absolutely worth it.
I have been working out with my personal trainer/little brother Jose for 4 weeks now. We work out 3 days a week for about 2 hours. I do an hour on the recumbent bike ( burning a whopping 400-500 calories….can you say awesome!) and then he works me out for an additional hour with a mix of cardio, strength training and the weight machine. It is exhausting but I want that weight loss and the comfort it will bring in my own skin. Let’s be honest here, I was NOT in the best shape. I have barely worked out all summer. This little plan of his kicks my ass, no joke. But these are my options, stay overweight, unhappy and unhealthy or work my tail off (literally) for this weight loss. Yes, on my last physical I found out that my blood pressure was slightly elevated and cholesterol and sugar were both elevated. This is my body on little to no exercise and crappy food options. I made wrong food choices and got very lazy. That is it. I did this to myself. No one force fed me pizza and french fries. Nobody made me hit the drive-thru at Dairy Queen. I did it all and , now, I must work harder than I’ve ever worked in my entire life to get back into shape. I can tell you, it is much easier putting weight on than taking it off. I’ve also discovered this thing called a Bosu ball.I had never heard of it before but my brother swears by it and I know it surely kicks my ass. It’s basically one of those exercise balls cut in half and put on a stand, whatever it is..it works your abs in a ridiculous way. You will be sore but you will lose inches.
No more waiting on weight loss
Speaking of inches, ahem, I have lost 7 inches on my body. Of course, I have been building muscle so some spots have actually gained an inch ( I’m talking to you juicy bootie) but I did ask my trainer to focus on getting me a derriere, so I blame myself. I can feel my core is much stronger and I have more energy. I don’t feel as slovenly as I had been feeling and I can feel everything tightening up. I actually did jumping jacks the other day. JUMPING.JACKS!! I know, they sound harmless but let me tell you I haven’t done jumping jacks in YEARS! Have you? Who does that anymore? They are so 1977! When he told me to do them, I really wanted to sucker punch him…in the face. I immediately had a vision of a hidden camera and me doing jumping jacks on YOUTUBE.The humiliation. I mean I’m no Scarlett Johansson. I thought of all the different body parts that would be going in different directions in slow motion ( because everything humiliating happens in slow Mo, right?) But, I asked for this and I’ve committed myself to losing this weight like I’ve committed myself to my marriage. I am ALL in. So, you know what I did? I jumped and I jacked and I didn’t get a black eye and my loose stomach didn’t have to be lassoed in, even my bat wing arms stayed relatively in control. It felt good to do it. And when I was done,my little brother told me how awesome of a job I did and how proud he is of me. I bet Bob and Jillian don’t give hugs to their sweaty messes after a particularly brutal workout.
This week, I added to it the power of Weight Watchers. I’ve done Weight Watchers before and it seems to work really well for me. I think it’s the blend of being able to eat the foods I want, in moderation and within points, tracking every single bite, taste and sip that enters my pie-hole and the accountability. I’m not doing meetings this time because I am accountable to my trainer , my scale and you guys. But the online tools seem to be really keeping me on track with my food. This morning I stepped slowly onto my awesome new Eat Smart GoFit scale,which I will post about so you can all see for yourself how truly amazing this thing is, and there was a loss. After five days on the WW points system, I have lost…3.8 pounds. I’m thinking I should have started the points system from the start but I really needed to get in a routine with the working out. That is usually where my hiccup lies. I am pretty happy with these results. I am kicking weight loss ass, slowly…but surely. Here’s my 4 weeks of personal training photo.
[/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]Week 4; This picture looks bigger because I am closer to the camera but what can I say..my photographer is 4! I work with what I got:)
I realize that it doesn’t look drastically different BUT I also realize that change takes time. I didn’t gain a shit ton of weight in a day and I won’t lose it in a day. The difference this time, from all the other times, I know that eventually I will feel comfortable in my own skin. If I continue putting in the effort at the gym, paying attention to what I put in my mouth, portion sizes and only eating when I am hungry and not when I am bored, nervous, stressed, angry or sad; the weight has to come off. It has to because if it doesn’t come off with Weight Watchers and kick ass personal training sessions, then there is something very wrong with my metabolism and I will be forced to trade it in for one that works. I was asked by a couple readers to keep you all posted so I will try to do an update post once a month with a photo. Maybe if I ever have the good sense to put my make up on before the photo is taken, I can remove that lovely big pink “KaPow” sign off of my face. Have any of you ever undertaken a weight loss journey? What did you do it? How did it work out? What keeps you motivated to get healthy? What is your favorite weight loss tool? Share your weight loss stories, we can be each others weight loss cheerleaders.
What is it? Eat Smart ~Precision GoFit Body Fat Bathroom Scale The Eat Smart Precision GoFit Digital Body Fat Bathroom Scale is not your ordinary bathroom scale, as it can quickly and easily measure weight, body fat, body water, body muscle and bone mass using new ITO BIA (Bio-Electrical Impedance Analysis) technology. BIA sends a safe, low-level electrical current through the body (you hardly feel it…J/k you don’t feel it at all), which allows the Precision GoFit to analyze the body in real time all in one step. ONE STEP! There’s no need for weighing and measuring separate times. I love it because as a very busy mom, like most of you, I don’t have a lot of time to focus on me and this incorporates everything I need to do to keep my weight on track into one step, allowing me to spend time on me without feeling like I’m taking away valuable time somewhere else. The sleek design, touch screen interface and automatic person identifier (stores personal data for up to 8 users) make the Eat Smart Precision GoFit Digital body fat bathroom scale one of the most user friendly bathroom scales I’ve ever had the pleasure of owning and it actually looks good in my bathroom. Bonus!
What does it say it will do?
Eat Smart Precision GoFit scale product Features
Measuring Functions: % Body Fat, % Total Body Water, % Muscle Mass and Bone Mass
400 pound capacity
Proprietary Automatic User Identification Technology; Stores personal data for up to 8 users
Eat Smart “Step-On” Technology – Get instant readings with no tapping to turn on!
Large 3.5″ Blue LCD displays with white backlight – Easy to read.
Auto Calibrated; Auto Power-Off; Runs on 4 AAA batteries (included); 100% Eat Smart Satisfaction Guarantee
Does it do what it says it will do? The Eat Smart Precision GoFit Digital Body Fat Bathroom scale does everything it promises and I love it. I love it because I have started a new journey and this scale is playing a big part in helping me to reach my destination. I have been spending a lot of time working out and logging food, counting points and making wise choices. It’s nice to have this tool that is so user friendly and when it lights up, it’s little blue light is affirmation that what I am doing is working. In fact, this morning when I weighed in for the week, I was pleasantly surprised to know that my Total body water (TBW), Body Fat, Muscle mass and Bone mass are in within normal ranges now. This was not the case a month ago. I know that my hard work and discipline is what is prompting the change in my body and my health; there is no magic pill. But the Eat Smart precision GoFit body fat Bathroom scale is my accountability. I need the accountability, as much as I need the portion control, workouts and healthy food choices. It all works in unison to reach my weight loss destination. The Eat Smart Precision GoFit Body Fat Bathroom Scale is the perfect weight loss tool for the busy mom on the go.
*Disclaimer: I was provided with an Eat Smart Precision GoFit Digital Body Fat Bathroom Scale for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. Eat Smart.
What is it? Eat Smart ~Precision GoFit Body Fat Bathroom Scale The EatSmart Precision GoFit Digital Body Fat Bathroom Scale is not your ordinary bathroom scale, as it can quickly and easily measure weight, body fat, body water, body muscle and bone mass using new ITO BIA (Bio-Electrical Impedance Analysis) technology. BIA sends a safe, low-level electrical current through the body (you hardly feel it…J/k you don’t feel it at all), which allows the Precision GoFit to analyze the body in real time all in one step. ONE STEP! There’s no need for weighing and measuring separate times. I love it because as a very busy mom, like most of you, I don’t have a lot of time to focus on me and this incorporates everything I need to do to keep my weight on track into one step, allowing me to spend time on me without feeling like I’m taking away valuable time somewhere else. The sleek design, touch screen interface and automatic person identifier (stores personal data for up to 8 users) make the EatSmart Precision GoFit Digital body fat bathroom scale one of the most user friendly bathroom scales I’ve ever had the pleasure of owning and it actually looks good in my bathroom. Bonus!
What does it say it will do?
EatSmart Precision GoFit scale product Features
Measuring Functions: % Body Fat, % Total Body Water, % Muscle Mass and Bone Mass
400 pound capacity
Proprietary Automatic User Identification Technology; Stores personal data for up to 8 users
EatSmart “Step-On” Technology – Get instant readings with no tapping to turn on!
Large 3.5″ Blue LCD displays with white backlight – Easy to read.
Auto Calibrated; Auto Power-Off; Runs on 4 AAA batteries (included); 100% Eat Smart Satisfaction Guarantee
Does it do what it says it will do? The EatSmart Precision GoFit Digital Body Fat Bathroom scale does everything it promises and I love it. I love it because I have started a new journey and this scale is playing a big part in helping me to reach my destination. I have been spending a lot of time working out and logging food, counting points and making wise choices. It’s nice to have this tool that is so user friendly and when it lights up, it’s little blue light is affirmation that what I am doing is working. In fact, this morning when I weighed in for the week, I was pleasantly surprised to know that my Total body water (TBW), Body Fat, Muscle mass and Bone mass are in within normal ranges now. This was not the case a month ago. I know that my hard work and discipline is what is prompting the change in my body and my health; there is no magic pill. But the Eat Smart precision GoFit body fat Bathroom scale is my accountability. I need the accountability, as much as I need the portion control, workouts and healthy food choices. It all works in unison to reach my weight loss destination. The Eat Smart Precision GoFit Body Fat Bathroom Scale is the perfect weight loss tool for the busy mom on the go.
Do you need to consult a manual or is it “User Friendly”? The Eat Smart Precision GOFit Body Fat Bathroom Scale is so easy to use. Pop the batteries in (which are provided) flip it over, step on it once to calibrate, step off and then step back on. Voila. You are done Instantly, you will have your weight, body fat, body water, body muscle and bone mass! EatSmart is the future of scales and the future is now. EatSmart!
I have partnered with ThisLife to share with you some of the most magical moments in my life. ThisLife is a photo and video solution for people whose Moments (photos, videos, and other memories such as text notes and scanned images) are scattered across their phones, desktops, photo websites, and social services. ThisLife is the Magic Box that gathers, improves and organizes your photos/videos for you in a chronological timeline while keeping them all safely stored in the cloud.
My most magical moments in this life have all been captured through the lens of a camera. First Steps.First dates.Prom.Graduation.First Job. Old friends. New friends. Family.Good times. Bad times.
My Wedding. The moment when my world became tied to his. The moment my soul found it’s other half. The moment that I knew unconditional love did not mean weakness but strength in the trusting and having someone to shoulder half of my load. It was the moment that I let myself free to be who I was to become and threw off the shackles of who I was expected to be. Becoming part of a double helped me to feel more secure in who I was because no matter what I did, he would be there to love me.
ThisLife the Magic Moments
The birth of my daughters. The day that I became a Mother. The single most magical and life altering moment that I have ever or probably ever will experience. It was the moment that I became a selfless adult. It was the moment that shook my world to it’s very core and gave me new eyes to see the world. I was blessed with new perspective and an open heart.
My daughters growing together. Spending time getting to know one another, as well as they know themselves. Forging a friendship and sisterhood that will shape the women they become in the world. Learning to love one another as completely and selflessly as we love them. When I see them together, I know that my place in this world is vast and imprinting. I have made a difference in the world by bringing these two beauties into it. I am a Mommy and everything I do has a ripple effect onto the lives of my girls. That is huge.
In a Moment thislife changes
Photos are my way of chronicling my history. Every photo captures a moment that has fled. I can never have that moment back but the photo serves a the closest thing to tangible to those amazing moments. Photos keep us close to those who we love. Those who are gone. Those who are on the way. Those we have forgotten and those who never will be. This life is too short to forget the magic moments.
* Disclosure:ThisLife sponsored my story today. I received compensation and a free trial service in exchange for telling my story. ThisLife is offering my readers a 6-month trial of their Adventure Box package, which will house and organize up to 20,000 photos. Go check out theThisLife free trial today.
Happy Chaos ~ Isn’t that the exact spot where most mothers reside? I do and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Recently, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting (via Skype) the star of one my favorite childhood TV shows,(no, not Ricky Schroeder though that would certainly be nice too:) Soleil Moon Frye…PUNKY BREWSTER!Is it wrong that I was so geeked to speak with her? If it is, I don’t want to be right!
In a way, Soleil Moon Frye never stopped being Punky, the fun- loving star of the 1980s hit television show Punky Brewster. In the real world, she’s the mom with the inside-out shirt and bits of playdough in her hair, who can’t remember where she parked the car. She balances being a mom with a hundred other tasks associated with running her eco-friendly clothing store The Little Seed, hosting her web series on HerSay.com, advocating for causes close to her heart, and being Target’s Mommy Ambassador, to name a few. As Twitter and Facebook communities can attest, Soleil’s life is messy and chaotic, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. Her book, HAPPY CHAOS: From Punky to Parenting and My Perfectly Imperfect Adventures in Between (on sale August 23,2011) is a refreshing take on modern parenting that encourages moms to be themselves and to embrace the inevitable madness of raising kids and living a full life.
I met Soleil while being a Hot Topic guest on HerSay. She is as sweet and spunky as you could have imagined. She is very down to earth and talking to her felt like talking to one of the mom’s you might meet at the park or in one of your child’s Kindermusik classes. I was very excited when I found out that she was writing a book Happy ChaosFrom Punky to Parenting and My Perfectly Imperfect Adventures In Between ( in stores TOMORROW August 23,2011). The book is a refreshing take on modern parenting that encourages moms to be themselves and to embrace the inevitable madness of raising kids and living a full life. I’ll take one please.
Happy Chaos is the place between perfection and destruction where bliss exists
Soleil believes that “happy chaos” is a sign of a family operating at its best—when parents accept that they’ll make mistakes, there will be messes, tears and skinned knees. Her over 1.4 million Twitter followers know just how much Soleil lives this philosophy as she often shares with her real and virtual friends and family how she navigates the various obstacles of parenthood.
I had the opportunity to interview Soleil about her parenting style and am sharing them here with you. Hope you enjoy getting to know Soleil on a more personal level as much as I did.
What is the most profound way in which having your children has changed your life?
I learn more and more each day from my children and I never imagined they would be life’s greatest teachers. Amen sister!
If you were only allowed to leave your girls with three life lessons, what would they be?Why?
The lessons would be
1) to stay strong and always self-confident
2) to be kind to others and the world around them.
3) to love completely and not be afraid or fearful of what’s to come. To embrace every moment and lose themselves in the dash in between. These three lessons are amazing and I think every mother can relate. I know I certainly do.
How has your perspective on parenting and the world changed from before you had your girls? What do you do or not do that you never thought you would before giving birth?
Before kids, I thought I was going to be the total hippie laid back parent. I guess I am a bit more protective than I ever thought I would be. Aren’t we all? Who knew having our hearts walking around outside our bodies would be so monumental.
Happy Chaos is where true happiness lives
Happy Chaos comes out tomorrow ( August 23,2011). I am giving away one signed copy to a lucky follower of The TRUTH about Motherhood. All you need to do is GFC follow The TRUTH about Motherhood or email susbscribe and leave me a comment about your own Happy Chaos (please include your email address). A winner will be chosen on Friday August 22, 2011.Or you can click Here to be one of the first moms on the block to own a copy of
Thank you to Crocs for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Crocs’ new Back to School line. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions expressed here are my own.
It seems the least wonderful time of year is upon us, once more. You know the time I mean, back to school. It’s that magical time when the weather is still beautiful, the kids are just getting used to sleeping in and it is all abruptly interrupted so that we can run around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to find all of the items on the first of the year school supply scavenger hunt list. Next, we get to drag children, who would rather be anywhere else but where we are taking them ( preferably a beach somewhere), school shopping.
I have little girls and they typically love to shop. Though since starting down the path of uniform city, it is not as much fun as it once was for them. But fear not, what we lack in clothing diversification we make up for in adorableness; headbands, barrettes, ostentatious flowers, sassy socks and the most extensive elementary school shoe collection that I’ve ever seen. We love our shoes( like mother like daughters)!
We’ve successfully found the cutest uniform clothing we could find. We’ve completed the school supply scavenger hunt with the exception of the illusive art smock.We’ve bought bought our brand spanking new gym shoes. Next on the list, some funky Mary Janes,the coveted pair of cozy top-siders and ballerina flats. I’m sure we will be getting a pair (or two) of those (perfectly coordinated with our school’s uniforms)
My girls look forward to shopping for accessories and shoes the most because this is where they can show their personality.I let them go as big and bold as they want to. What is your child’s favorite part of school shopping, aside from spending the day with their Mom? Do they like to buy the funkiest or fanciest? Do they dress preppy or sporty? Or are they part of the uniform kids who have to get inventive and show their personalities through their accessories and shoes? What’s your favorite part of back-to-school shopping? If you are like me, it’s the spending the day with my 2 favorite girls one last time before they head back to school. I linger a little longer than necessary at every stop because I know these moments are not limitless, even if it is a pain in the rump wrestling other mother’s for 20 cent crayons. The smiles of pure joy at a perfect pair of shoes, or the smile I am met with when telling them how pretty a certain uniform top looks on them, or the “Thank’s Mommy” I get from buying them lunch at their favorite place in the mall; all these little things give back-to-school shopping a special place in my heart.
To celebrate summer fun, Redbox is asking moms, “What’s your family’s go-to movie night snack?” Plus, they are rewarding 2 lucky people with a chance to win $10,000 as part of the Redbox Summer of Fun & Games Sweepstakes.
My family’s favorite go-to movie night snack has to be popcorn. I’m sure this is typical in most households but for this Chicago girl, nothing goes better with a great movie than Garrett’s Chicago Mix popcorn.
When the weather’s rainy and cold, there’s nothing quite like cuddling up under some blankets close to those you love the most, watching a great family movie and munching on popcorn.
If the weather is miserably hot outside, at my house we call that a lounge day. We pick a movie the whole family will enjoy like Beverly Hills Chihuahua II or Grease and we have good time laughing together and munching on a fabulous mix of cheese and carmel corn ( Chicago Style).
I may not live in the Chicagoland area these days but believe me when I tell you that my girls KNOW if there’s a great movie on the screen, Chicago mix popcorn should be on the table. We’ve even learned to improvise and make our own mix. I love sharing this special treat and my love of a good movie with my girls.
I hope someday my girls will be watching a great movie, cuddled up with their little ones, eating some Chicago Mix Popcorn and think of special moments spent with their father and myself. I hope they get the same warm fuzzy feeling that I get sharing these extraordinary ordinary moments with them now.
Redbox is celebrating summer family time with a great line up of family-friendly titles, awesome savings and two chances to win $10,000 as part of the Redbox Summer of Fun & Games Sweepstakes.*
4 Easy Ways to Enter:
1. Enter your email address at www.redbox.com/summer
2. Rent a movie or game at a redbox kiosk (and provide a valid email address at checkout)
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Redbox. The opinions and text are all mine.
*Each item rented earns one entry, regardless of how long it is rented, up to three entries per day. Limit 3 entries per day, regardless of entry method. The sweepstakes begins May 27, 2011 at 12:00 a.m. CT and ends on August 1, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. CT. No purchase necessary. See official rules at www.redbox.com/summer.
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