FavoriteThings A Birthday Present

I have always loved birthdays. We have a large family so there is always someone's birthday to celebrate. As a mother of five children, I loved giving the birthday parties and buying the presents for their special day.

But like many women, when it comes to my own birthday I shy away from wanting a big fuss. As mothers we always seem to put everyone else first.

So a few years ago when my lovely and talented friend Cathy gave me a painting she had made for me, I was very touched. I loved that she had thought of me, had spent the time painting something that she thought I would like.This painting never fails to cheer me up. It's vibrant, yet calming, and I will always have it hanging on my wall, wherever that wall may be.

To me, a painting is such a special gift because it is a piece of the artist herself that she has put into the work. So thank you again, my friend. It really is one of my favorite things.

Hershey's Easter Chocolate Candy Review and Giveaway

When The Easter Bunny fills all those millions of baskets for children, it's a good bet that there will be a lot of Hershey's candy in them. Who doesn't love Hershey's candy? I know I do!

The familiar brown wrapper on a chocolate bar, the famous Hershey's Kisses, and that yummy syrup that made my milk taste so good are all happy memories of childhood for me. For generations of children, Hershey's Chocolate was a part of everyday life.

The company was started back in 1900 by Milton Hershey, in a rural town in Pennsylvania. Today the Hershey Corporation has sales in excess of $4 Billion. America's most popular candy company has certainly come a long way from Mr. Hershey's vision and it's humble beginnings.

One of my favorite Hershey's Easter candies as well as other family members is the Cadbury Creme Egg. Its something we all look forward to during the Easter season. Robin Eggs are one of my daughter's favorites. When Sam and Laura were little they would lick the Robin Egg and use it on their lips like lipstick to have Easter colored lips. I enjoy that now as a Grandmother I get to make Easter baskets for my grandkids and see which Hershey's candies they will love.

To celebrate the Easter Season, we are hosting a giveaway of Hershey's Easter candy products.

GIVEAWAY

Win a Hershey's Easter Candy Prize Pack 

 

To Enter This Giveaway: (mandatory entry before extra entries)

What is your favorite Hershey's Easter Candy?

*Leave a comment answering the question and be sure to leave your email address if its not public in your Google account*

Extra Entries: Can be done after leaving a comment for mandatory entry. If the extra entry says 1 extra entry leave 1 comment and 2 extra entries leave me 2 comments and so on.

-Like Hershey's on Facebook +1

-Sign up for the Hershey's Newsletter +1


-Follow/Add to your circle  Frugal Family Tree on Google+ ( right hand side) +1
-Like our new fan page on Facebook Frugal Family Tree +1
-Follow FrugalFamTree on Twitter +1

-Share this giveaway on Facebook ONLY, using the Share Button at the bottom on this post. +1 for each share you do. (can be done once a day)

-Copy and Paste This Tweet on Twitter and leave me the link (to find the link click on the time stamp under your tweet. Can be done once a day for the duration of the giveaway)

#Win Hershey's Easter Candy Prize Pack at @FrugalFamTree #Giveaway ends 4/2 http://www.frugalfamilytree.com/2012/03/hersheys-easter-chocolate-candy-review.html

 *Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts March 23, 2012 and ends on April 2nd, 2012 at midnight PST. Winner will be emailed and has 48 hours to respond before another winner is selected. I was not paid for this giveaway or post. The opinions on this item are 100% mine and may vary from others. The sponsor is responsible for providing the prize.

Keeping My Family Close with Daily Rituals and Tropicana Orange Juice

Even though there is only 3 people in my immediate family we still do need to take the time to connect each day. My son is a rambunctious boy who is always busy doing something, my husband is the opposite he is quiet and more to himself, then there is me. I am super talkative and always busy in the middle of 10 different things. We are all under the same roof but often living in different worlds. To make sure we stay connected we have our daily rituals and also weekend rituals to make sure we have family time together.

We all have our morning coffee together in the living room. By all of us I mean my son too, just not coffee. He is very much our little parrot and did not want to be left out in the mornings when we sat down to have coffee. We got him his own coffee cup and put his "coffee" in it. His coffee is Orange Juice. He sips it says "Ahhhh" and smiles as he sits with us. He will grow up thinking OJ is coffee but he will know we all drink it together.

We have our evening ritual of eating dinner together. This one might not always happen but for the most part we do our best. We sit at the table in the kitchen and we eat dinner as a family. Most of the time we might not be eating the same things but we are doing it together.

We have weekly rituals too. We have family movie night snuggled up on the couch eating snacks is a great way to spend a Friday or Saturday night. Sunday is the day we have family breakfast. My husband is not much of a breakfast eater but he is a great cook. My son and I sit at the table reading books or magazines while we watch my husband cook us breakfast. We have the standard breakfast items like eggs, bacon, pancakes and orange juice or "coffee" lol. I really enjoy drinking Tropicana Pure Premium 100% Pure Florida Orange Juice with Sunday breakfast. Its the tart you want in an oj with the sweetness that makes it wonderful.  

The soil and the variety is what gives Tropicana its flavor. The different microclimates and soil types mean that fruit reaches peak maturity at different times, allowing Tropicana to harvest ripe fruit throughout the entire growing season. The two major orange types in Tropicana Pure Premium are Valencia and Hamlin. Valencias typically have more intense color and flavor, while Hamlins can be sweeter. They each add unique characteristics to the TPP blend.

To celebrate the love of Orange Juice and Florida Tropicana is hosting a sweepstakes.

Enter the Tropicana sweepstakes for a chance to win 100 Florida prizes, including one-year-supplies of Tropicana (in the form of twelve 59 oz Tropicana Pure Premium containers) and a trip to Florida to visit an orange grove. Share the news about the sweepstakes with your readers! Ninety-nine winners will get a one-year supply of orange juice in the form of twelve coupons for (12) 59 oz Tropicana Pure Premium® containers. One winner will get a trip to a Florida orange grove and invite three (3) guests for:  Round-trip airfare for four (4) to Florida, three (3) night stay at a Florida hotel.The winner will have an exclusive experience at experience at a Florida orange grove.

For official rules and regulations, visit the “sweeps” tab on Tropicana’s Facebook page and be sure to Like them on Facebook to be able to enter.

** I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Tropicana blogging program, to earn My SocialMoms Rewards Points. The opinions and ideas expressed here are my own. To read more posts on this topic, click here.

ThinkBaby Review and Giveaway

As we introduce bottles to baby Ashley, so that the rest of the family can help with feedings, it is important to find the right one. I know with my boys when it was time to supplement with a bottle once in a while it was a tough job, especially with my 2nd child. He just simply did not want the bottle, he wanted to breastfeed. We tried many different brands of bottles. This time around for Miss Ashley we tried the thinkbaby bottles. Now mind you she is a much easier baby than Liam was, so I figured the hunt would not be too hard.

Thinkbaby products are Free of BPA, phthalates, PVC, Lead, nitrosamines, melamine, PET, and biologically harmful chemicals. They have a simple system to determine the best product for your child by age. They have great products to choose from for all of your feeding needs.

We reviewed the thinkbaby Twin Pack 9oz - Polypropylene (PP) with Stage A nipples for 0-6 months. Ashley did really well. She played with the nipple for a while, sucked a bit, wiggled around and eventually drank her bottle. I knew she was a good girl and would do great! I also like how "green" this product is, they are made from recycled materials.






I was also sent the thinkbaby SPF 30+ Sunscreen. The weather here in Washington has not been nice enough for us to need sunscreen but as the sun emerges I know we will be using this product. It is water resistant and free of biologically harmful chemicals.









Think thinkbaby is just for babies and kids? It's not, they also have a thinksport line, safe products for athletes. Check them out.

GIVEAWAY

Win Baby Bottles from ThinkBaby

 

To Enter This Giveaway: (mandatory entry before extra entries)

What product would you like to have from ThinkBaby?

*Leave a comment answering the question and be sure to leave your email address if its not public in your Google account*

Extra Entries: Can be done after leaving a comment for mandatory entry. If the extra entry says 1 extra entry leave 1 comment and 2 extra entries leave me 2 comments and so on.

-Like on ThinkBaby Facebook +1

-Follow ThinkBaby on Twitter +1


-Follow/Add to your circle  Frugal Family Tree on Google+ ( right hand side) +1
-Like our new fan page on Facebook Frugal Family Tree +1
-Follow FrugalFamTree on Twitter +1

-Share this giveaway on Facebook ONLY, using the Share Button at the bottom on this post. +1 for each share you do. (can be done once a day)

-Copy and Paste This Tweet on Twitter and leave me the link (to find the link click on the time stamp under your tweet. Can be done once a day for the duration of the giveaway)

#Win ThinkBaby Bottles from @thinkbaby_sport at @FrugalFamTree #Giveaway ends 04/25 http://www.frugalfamilytree.com/2012/03/thinkbaby-review-and-giveaway.html

 *Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts March 22, 2012 and ends on April 25th, 2012 at midnight PST. Winner will be emailed and has 48 hours to respond before another winner is selected. I was not paid for this giveaway or post. I was provided the item reviewed in this post for free by the company or PR company that represents them. The opinions on this item are 100% mine and may vary from others. The sponsor is responsible for providing the prize.

Another First for us - T-Ball!

JJ is the oldest of all the grandchildren in our family. He is my first born, the first for everything, including T-Ball. Baseball is a big deal in our family, we have all played on a team at one time or another. There is something so wonderful about the little ones out there trying to figure out this sport we all love. Yesterday was our first practice on our first T-Ball team. The weather held out and the kids had a blast. JJ had a huge smile on his face the entire time. It makes me so happy to see him learning and enjoying the sport my husband and I grew up playing. Here's to a great year!