Laughter Keeps Us Together

My Mother's Day card from my Husband

My husband and I will be married for 10 years in September. When I think of 10 years the first thing I think is "good grief where did the time go"! Thankfully its not "its only been that long" LOL. For us the one thing we always do is laugh. It maybe at the expense of one another if appropriate but its all in good fun! Half the time its an inside joke so people aren't sure why we are cracking up but its funny to us. We watch funny movies, stand up comedy, and if he finds a funny picture or video on the net he always shows me waiting to see how much I will laugh. On days I feel overwhelmed he always cheers me up with something that will make me crack up! I know it sounds cheesy but someone who can make you laugh really is the best quality in a spouse.

It was "just us" for over 8 years so we have had plenty of time to hang out and be a couple. Now as parents we still keep each other laughing as a way to keep our sanity. I smiled so big and laughed when I got my Mothers Day card. We love to read our cookie fortunes and compare them when we have Chinese food.When I was pregnant I could not get enough Orange Chicken! I love that he bought me a funny card and not a mushy romantic one. I have kept every card he has given me over the 10 plus years we have know each other. I love to have them and read them every now and then. I always say flowers make me sneeze, candy makes me fat but cards I can keep forever!

It Hailed In California Today!

Today it hailed like crazy for a few minutes and thundered for over an hour. Its mid May so for California here in the valley its not normal! My dog was going crazy in the back yard. I looked out there to see what she was doing then a huge rumble shook everything and it was like someone dumped a bag of ice on the whole neighborhood. Very wild! My son was watching from the doorway through the screen door with big eyes and a shocked look on his face. The dog was trying to catch the hail in her mouth while I tried to snap some pictures. I was going to have a yard sale this weekend but thankfully I waited. My freshly mowed lawn was covered in hail. The wind is still going wild out there and its cold.

Kinda hard to see it but its there!!

Softlips So You Review and Giveaway

 I have been a SoftLips fan for over 15 years now! I have a stock pile of them in my purse and closet and can never be without it. My favorite flavor is Vanilla. I am not a lipstick kinda woman so SoftLips is my go to for anytime I want shine and protection. I just recently started to use the ones with a bit of tint to feel fancied up! Two flavors I had not tried before I now love. The Mint with a hint of Vanilla and the Wildberry are great. My husband thought the Strawberry smelled nice. My son was making me laugh since he thought it was funny to sniff my lips since he seen his Mama smelling the sticks. (That silly boy thinks it hilarious to sniff stuff)

Older packaging the new ones are more sleek!

This classic product now has a new look. They are launching the So You SoftLips campaign and have tons of online activities including giveaways and info on sample events on their facebook page. They redesigned the packaging and have added some new flavors. So if you see them looking different in the stores be assured its the same awesome product it has always been! They have an organic line with great flavors, therapeutic lip conditioners with beeswax, and my favorite to get from Santa the holiday limited edition line. You can purchase multi packs online at the SoftLips website. The website takes Paypal so if you have any survey money or something saved these are great to have! They are in dual packs at stores such as Target, Ulta, Walmart and CVS.


A little bit of info about SoftLips:

"Softlips products combine effective lip protection with SPF 20 and moisturizing emollients with a sheer glossing effect, making them perfect for natural lips or for adding protection/moisturizing over or under lipstick."

GIVEAWAY:

SoftLips has offered one of our readers a set of SoftLips like the ones I reviewed.

Softlips SPF 20 flavors Cherry, Vanilla, Raspberry with green tea extract, Mint with a hint of Vanilla, Wildberry, and Strawberry.

To Enter This Giveaway:

 Tell me what flavor of SoftLips you love or would like to try?

 *Leave a comment answering the question and be sure to leave your email address*

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. 

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-Enter other current giveaways on our blog +1 for each entered

*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 15, 2011 and ends on May 29, 2011 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 for free the packs of SoftLips pictured for this review. The opinions are 100% mine and may vary from others.

I Mow in Mary Janes

My neighbors must think I am a bit weird! Anytime I mow our lawn I wear an old pair of Mary Jane shoes. I wore them for work a few years back and they were so comfy I couldn't toss them out. They are a bit beat up so I just put them to the side knowing I would need them eventually. Well now that I am trying to be more frugal and instead of paying to have the lawn done I just do it myself. I must be quiet the sight out there since I wear black socks with my Mary Janes lol. I don't want to ruin white ones with stains! It took some convincing to tell my husband it was ok to let me mow the lawns. He finally was like ok fine when I pointed out 3 other women in our neighborhood that mow their lawn too!  I oddly find it enjoyable. Its the perfect time to get brainstorming done. I must admit I do need new shoes to do it in though since they are getting pretty beat up.

I thought it was funny today when I did the lawn I made the letter "L" in the yard! Next time I will take a picture to show everyone. I use an electric lawn mower and I have deemed lawn mowing "outdoor vacuuming"!

Who does the yard work in your house? And do you have any tips for me?

Lysol Allergy-Proofing Your Home Review and Giveaway

When Spring starts most people are happy and excited for good weather. For me I dread it! I love the sunshine, the happy attitude people get and the fun to be had outdoors but I hate all the pollen and allergies that attack me! I can not go outside on really bad days but I still get the sneezing, runny nose and itchy eyes in my house. I knew it must be the dust and pollen from outside settling int he house. I tried using a wet paper towel to clean up but that just made the stuff smear onto the surfaces. Lysol has many great tips and advise on how to deal with allergies in your own home on their website for the Allergy-Proofing Your Home series.

I tried using the Lysol Disinfecting Wipes and loved them. They are easy to use, just pull out a ready single towel from the container and your ready to clean. It easily removed pollen particles, pet dander (we have a big black lab who is so furry!) and dust mite debris. I can go on forever how gross dust mites are. I worked at a place that sold vacuums when I was 14. My brother was a sales man and I was a telemarketer! Funny stories from that I will share later. I was just glad to be cleaning away all the junk that makes my allergies flare up. I started with all of our window sills since I love to let fresh air in. I noticed a big difference in the last few days after daily wiping down the windows with the Lysol Wipes. Just 10 minutes a day and its so easy to do.

Wiping down the Pollen and Dander form my windows

The Disinfectant Spray is a staple in our house. I already buy that in bulk from Sam's Club. I use it on the door handles all over the house, the garbage can and the bathroom. I know for me if there is a bit of mildew in the bathroom I get what I have deemed "the itchy stitchies" its when I get red bumps that itch like crazy after I shower. I have been using the Lysol Spray daily after I shower and there has been no mildew build up. Now all I have to do is get my husband to remember to do it too!

The one item I squealed about when I saw the commercial on TV is the Lysol No-Touch Hand Soap System. My husband laughed and said they must have made that just for you! I wash my hands often to not only not spread germs but to cut back on the pollen I get on my hands from being outside. I swear the wind blows and I get hives! This new hand soap dispenser is awesome. It looks great since it is a stainless steel look and its almost magical lol! I know this will be really handy to have for guest and for when my little guy starts to wash his own hands. Plus its a great way to not use to much soap and be wasteful since it dispenses you the perfect amount.

Here is a video from Lysol on Allergy Proofing You Home.

GIVEAWAY:

Lysol has offered one lucky reader the chance to win 3 packs of Wipes, 3 Disinfectant sprays and 1 No-Touch Soap System.

 

To Enter This Giveaway:

Tell me what is your Funniest Allergy Story?

 

Mine was on the night before my wedding! I broke out into hives from pollen and pet dander all over my body! I was crying that I was going to look horrible in the morning. I was scratching all over and my eyes were watery and getting swollen.  I looked like I was a turtle shell. I was trying to be calm and collected and my hubby to be thought I looked funny but assured me I would be ok eventually. Thankfully after a lot of lotion and some medication I was better in the morning. If I would have been using my Lysol for pollen and dander back then I am sure it would have not had that happen. Oh the things we eventually learn about how to keep a house clean!

 *Leave a comment answering the question and be sure to leave your email address*

 

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. 

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-Vote for us for "Were on the Fence" (left hand side of the blog, just click the button) +3

-Enter other current giveaways on our blog +1 for each entered

*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 14, 2011 and ends on May 28, 2011 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 for free the 1 of each of the products pictured for this review. The opinions are 100% mine and may vary from others.

Tresemme Shampoo and Conditioner Review

Since I had my Mommy Makeover I have been trying to find a frugal way to keep it going. The shampoo and conditioner I purchased at the salon I had my hair done at was kinda expensive. Too expensive for me to buy on a regular basis. For me being frugal means still having great stuff but knowing when to look for a less expensive item when you can. Coupons too allow me to be frugal and have nice things. The salon offers sales but not coupons.

I have ran out of my salon shampoo and conditioner and needed to buy something else. I did not find the salon brand to wow me like I thought it would. I was sent some Tresemme to try from Bzz Agent. I was glad to find it worked just as good as the expensive brand I was previously using! It comes in a big bottle, which I love since small bottles means I have to go to the store more which equals gas money! They offer hair care for many types of hair. I tried the color protection since I had my hair colored. Which now needs a touch up!

Plus I often see Tresemme on sale and coupons for it. So with Tresemme I can have my hair feel soft and protect the color in my hair without spending a lot of money. That can be money to save or money I can spend on something else to splurge on like stuff for my son! I feel great when I can save money being frugal on me to have the extra money to get him nice stuff! Its a win win!

What brands of hair care have you found to be a good deal that really work?



*I am a BzzAgent and was provided the products to use for this review for free.
I was not paid or compensated for this post. The opinions in this post are 100% mine and may vary from other opinions.

Finally Spring is showing signs of life

Spring has finally sprung over here in the Northwest!
A view from my front window :)

LOVE IT!!!

10-Day Silk-for-Milk Challenge Review and Giveaway

In our house we are divided on how good milk is. I have always been the milk hound and my husband says milk is for kids. Well I never thought I would say I would use Silk Pure Almond instead of milk for some of my food choices. I was just as shocked I liked it as my husband was. I took the 10 day challenge and I am hooked on the Almond Milk now! The website Switch to Silk is a challenge to everyone to try the Silk products in place of what you would put milk in. They have three varieties to try, Silk Pure Almond, Silk Pure Coconut, and Simply Silk Soy.

For my 10 day Challenge I tried Pure Almond with my breakfast of toast and blueberries, it was great. I tried it in my cereal, kinda a bit too sweet but I am sure the Simply Silk would have been better, I have that one on my to try list! But the BEST was when I added it to a shake. I put bananas, yogurt, blueberries and the Silk Pure Almond and I was in flavor heaven! It was soooo good! I have been telling my husband for over a year now I wanted to try Silk brand products and I am so glad I did. I am hooked now. There is also a chocolate version of the Pure Almond, I had the vanilla, it was all out of stock at our store but I will keep my eye out for it. I really want to try it! You can find what store carries Silk near you at the store locator.

To start off on your own Silk for Milk challenge you can download a Silk Coupon here.

GIVEAWAY:

Silk has offered one of our readers the chance to win a Silk branded Chicobag and a coupon for a Free product coupon so you can try Silk too.

To Enter This Giveaway:

 Tell me what would you try to switch from Milk to Silk in your daily routine?

 *Leave a comment answering the question and be sure to leave your email address*

 

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. 

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-Follow Silk on Twitter +2
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-Vote for us for "Were on the Fence" (left hand side of the blog, just click the button) +3

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*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 13, 2011 and ends on May 28, 2011 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 for free one Silk product coupon for this review. The opinions are 100% mine and may vary from others.

Mickey's Great Outdoors on DVD with Mickey Mote Review and Giveaway

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey's Great Outdoors on will be out on  DVD May 24th from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment.  This movie pack includes a DVD, a Digital Copy and a Mickey Mote ( a cute Mickey remote for kids).

I have been a Mickey fan since I can remember (about 4 years old lol). I was so excited to share Mickey and pals with my son. This DVD is great for the summer time. We are hoping to take our son fishing this summer at the lake. The DVD is full of the fun and action of all Disney movies plus some learning!  I love that the same characters I grew up loving I can now have my little Bubba watch! The animation is colorful and cute. I look forward to watching this one again with my little guy. This would be a great addition to any kids DVD collection. Our favorite story was the Fishy Story.

The Mickey Mote was something new to us. Of course my boy had to have it the minute he laid eyes on it. At first he started to wave his arm all around while he was holding it, he thought it was a new Wii remote lol. He loves pushing buttons on electronics so he had a fun time messing with the Mickey Mote. I am sure once he is a little bigger he will get the hang of it. I was happy to see there are many more Disney Mickey Mouse DVDs that use the Micky Mote. We will be looking for them in the stores.

ABOUT DISNEY’S MICKEY MOTE: 

Disney’s Mickey Mote works with any Disney Preschool DVD that includes the Discovery Mode™ feature – an interactive “Watch and Play” feature on the DVD.  All parents have to do is program the remote control - there’s an easy and quick set-up guide in each DVD - and select the Discovery Mode feature on the menu screen.  Within minutes, kids will be easily able to respond to questions about scenes they just watched by pressing one of four color-coded buttons on the device -- a yellow star, green circle, orange triangle or blue square – to click in their responses.  Discovery Mode features include two levels of play, which provides more challenging questions as the child grows.  To date, there are more than 13 Disney Preschool DVD titles for parents to choose from that can be used with the remote control. 

GIVEAWAY:
You can win your own copy of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey's Great Outdoors with Mickey Mote.

To Enter This Giveaway:

 

Tell me your favorite Disney Cartoon Movie or Character.

 

 *Leave a comment telling me the movie title or name of character and be sure to leave your email address*

 

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. 

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-Vote for us for "Were on the Fence" (left hand side of the blog, just click the button) +3

-Enter other current giveaways on our blog +1 for each entered

*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 13, 2011 and ends on May 27, 2011 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 for free the DVDs mentioned in this post for this review. The opinions are 100% mine and may vary from others.

 

22 Days Nutrition Bars Review

On my mission to get more fit by my 30th birthday I have been trying to find new foods to try to get me inspired to eat better. I found these bars called 22 Days Nutrition Bars. I was boggled by the name until I read about why they selected the name.

The website says:

"It was recently discovered that the human mind takes almost exactly 21 days to adjust to a major life change. We applied this principal to helping people live a healthier, more energetic and productive life. At 22days, we are committed to providing the nutrition and the tools to help make a positive and healthy difference everyday."

I thought this was really great. It makes sense to me. Its like kicking a habit! I had the chance to try all the flavors and definitely had my favorites! I would eat the Daily Mocha Mantra everyday! It has my two favorite things, coffee and chocolate! It was rich in flavor and sooo good!

Cherry Chocolate Bliss was my other favorite. It contains tart cherries that I loved.The other one I was surprised I liked was the Goji Mate Firecracker. It had a bit of kick to it and was flavorful.

The great thing about these bars is that they are either vegetarian or vegan with raw and organic super foods. They also are free from gluten, soy and dairy. I know many people have allergies to those common ingredients so these would be great to try for that reason alone.


You can buy the 22 Days Bars online at their store or in your local Whole Foods. They have a facebook page with an upcoming giveaway and twitter account for you to keep up on new products and other health food info.

*I was not paid or compensated for this post. The opinions in this post are 100% mine and may vary from other opinions. I was provided a sample box of 22 Days Nutrition Bars for my review.

Chiquita Banana and Rio the Movie

Have you seen the movie Rio? We have and we loved it!

Chiquita Banana sponsored a day trip to the movie theater for us to check out this new film. We saw it in 3D and that made the animation even more amazing. The singing was great and the story line was so sweet. I loved that there were a lot of big movie star voices in this film, it is fun to see who's voice we can recognize and how quickly we can recognize them. Each character was funny and had us laughing out loud!

What a great family film. Animation for the kids and humor for the adults, the best of both worlds I think. To celebrate going to the movies and Chiquita Banana sponsoring our event we came home from the movies and made delicious banana splits!! Great way to end a great day!

Chiquita Banana is hosting a sweepstakes Make Your Way to Rio to promote the movie.You can read our post we made last month when the sweepstakes started. Good Luck! Let us know if you win anything.

Ava's Guide To Garage Sale Gold Book Review

Ava Seavey has written a fun and practical guide on the art of having a garage sale. Most of us may think we know how to have a garage sale, but the tips and information in this book can truly maximize your profits. In this tough economy, who couldn't use some extra cash? We all have have stuff in our houses and garages that we don't need or don't want. Why not get rid of it and make some money? For those of us who dread all the work a sale requires, Ms. Seavy encourages us, cheers us on and makes it sound like it might even be fun.

She gives advice on getting organized, pricing your items, and how to advertise so that you can pull in the biggest possible crowd of buyers. There's also an interesting psychological profile on the seven different types of people that most of your customers will fall into. Are they a collector, a bargain hunter (usually annoying and cheap), an entertainment seeker, or even a thief (sad but true)?

I have had many a garage sale myself, the last one was a couple of years ago. The whole family got involved and it turned out to be a lot of fun for everyone. Between the coffee and muffins, buying each others stuff, and laughing ourselves silly, we still managed to make a lot of money. I do regret not buying the beautiful iron bed that my daughter-in-law was selling. I learned a good lesson. When you see something you really want, buy it, because it will be gone.

So maybe spring or summer is the perfect time for you to have your own sale. Read Ava's Guide To Garage Sale Gold, make some money and have some fun!

To connect with Ava you can find her at her facebook page or to purchase her book you can buy it on her website.

Brand Sponsored Facebook Giveaways: I Won One!

I love giveaways, sweepstakes and contests. I have great luck in winning too! I was the kid who would win the cake walk at the fair multiple times and the one who could always win at the claw game that picks up prizes. I even won a contest for the best reading tip and won a Leap Frog reader. I always say you won't win unless you enter.

Recently I won a facebook contest on the Learning Curve Facebook page. I was so excited since they make my favorite brand The First Years. Oddly I did not know much about The First Years brand until I started blogging. I knew of the standard Graco, Fisher Price and Safety 1st but was unaware of the brand. I am beyond happy we found it through blogging. All the stuff we love is made by them. My sons stroller, feeding chair and beyond awesome car seat are all The First Years brand!

I won a gift card from the facebook contest and at first I was going to get a toy or something until I found the cutest Sippy Cups! They are of some of our favorite characters, Toy Story and Winne the Pooh. I also found the coolest one ever. It is a cute little John Deere tractor character with a stay in straw sippy cup. I have my dreams of a farm so I had to buy that one!

I would definitely encourage you to enter facebook fan page contest for the brands you love. You never know when you will win! Plus the Sippy Cups are very reasonably priced and I would have bought them even if I had not won a Learning Curve gift card. You can find the sippys by The First Years on there website.

** I was not paid or compensated for this post. I love sharing when I win something to encourage everyone to keep entering giveaways! I love to enter!

The Talking Shoe

I was putting on my son's shoes the other day and noticed that the top of the shoe was separating from the sole of the shoe. In our family that is what we call a "Talking Shoe", when the separation causes it to flap and it looks like your shoe is talking when you walk! Weird I know...

I told my son that his shoe was broken and he said to me, "It's ok, we are going to let you worry about that Mom." I laughed out loud knowing that he didn't come up with that saying on his own, I had a sneaky suspicion that my husband told him that the day before.

Later I asked my husband about it he just gave me the "What?" look. Husbands gotta love them!

Top 5 Things I Have Learned About Being A Mom From My Mom

My Mom is the BEST MOM EVER! I know of course we must all think that but I really really really do think that about my Mom. She has devoted her life to making us kids happy and even as adults us kids are still her first concern. I always tell myself I want my son to love me as much as each of us kids love my Mom. I have a million awesome stories about my Mom and how she did this or that and how she has saved the day a million times over! I will definitely share them in the future.

I have been trying to make a short list about things I have learned about being a good Mom by how my Mom raised me. It was very hard to make a short list but I managed to think of 5 top things!

1. "Let your Children be Themselves!"
My Mom has 5 children and we are all so very unique in our personalities. For me my mom never told me I had to be something specific or pressured me to be something she wanted for me. She always taught me anything is possible and I can accomplish anything I put my efforts towards. She always supported my likes or hobbies. My obsession with animals started very young. My Mom did not have the time to deal with all the stray creatures I wanted to have but she always managed to get me a dog or a cat. I also collected rocks, shells, stickers and loved to keep stuff for my scrapbooks. She always supported each of us even if it was something she had little interest in. I want to be sure I do that for my little guy. He adores cat, which I am now oddly allergic too and he LOVES music. I do not have a musical bone in my body. From what I have learned from my Mom I will dance and sing with my little guy even if I stink at it and I will get gloves and take allergy medicine so I can pet cats with him!

2. "Be a Stealth Fighter Jet and NOT a Helicopter Mom!"
My Mom never hovered over us or made us feel like we weren't in control of our own little lives. But she watched us without us aware and always knew what we were up to and would swoop in to help. I have found myself hovering over my son making sure the details of things were going just right but I stop myself to make sure I am allowing him to just be. To let him see and learn for himself how to do this or that. Or to stick up for himself and be his own little person.

3. "Imagination is Priceless"
Not matter if we had a bunch of money or were just average my Mom always made she we did creative play. We would have camp outs in the living room with chairs and sheets, make a "bus" with lined up chairs, "hot lava" with books and pillows through the house and always gave us stuff to play house with. My sister and I would make mud pies, make our own perfume with roses from the yard and play store with empty boxes of food from the kitchen. She always wanted us to be creative thinkers. We often went to the library and a few plays. I thank her for teaching me to use my imagination. As a Mom myself now I always try to find ways to play make believe with my son.

4. "BAKE!"
Oh the goodies my Mom would create! I have a million great stories about the treats my Mom would make for us. Not just for us but even our whole class at school. She would stay up all night to make us treats to take to school on special occasions. We would feel so special to see the work and love she put into everything she made. There would be ribbons and trays ready for us in the morning like a treat fairy had left it.
Fudge is my FAVORITE thing my Mom makes! Its just not the holidays if I dont have any to eat! Once she made cookies that were made of cake batter. They were the coolest thing ever and everyone including the teachers at my school were begging for me to give them more. I felt so cool! One time I tried to be a master baker like my Mom and accidentally made a quadruple recipe amount half way though making it and she just chuckled and helped me make a huge batch of cookies. We ate chocolate chip cookies everyday for about a whole month!

5. "Works as a Family Team"
My Mom has never made me feel anything but special. With five kids I am sure it is hard to make them all feel equally loved but she sure did. We were always taught we are a team. Each of us has an important role in making the team function. We never were competitive against one another. I love that she did that for us! Even on the same softball team as kids my sister and I cheered each other on, never thinking one of us was better than the other. As adults we all get along so great. We unconditionally love each other with all our hearts! I remember a time that makes me laugh anytime I tell the story. We just got a new cat and we had a family meeting to decide what would be the cats name. We took a vote by writing down a name we wanted and put it in a box. We pulled out a name and the first name was going to be the one. Well my older brother wrote down "Porkchop" and after we all laughed the cats official name was Porkchop! And thats how things were if they said it and we voted on it that was it. Even if it was silly!

I thank my Mom a million times over for being who she is. She has never made me feel less than super special, loved and adored! She always stayed positive even when it seemed rough and always allowed us kids to just be kids. I want that for my son. I want him to know I love him with all my heart unconditionally and that he will always be a super star in my eyes! If I can be as sweet, as loving and as supportive as her I know my son will adore me forever!

I LOVE YOU MOM!

Happy Mothers Day

The Wild Thornberrys: Season One Review and Giveaway

 

I have always enjoyed watching the Nickelodeon network. They have fun shows for kids and the family. I have great memories as a kid during the summer watching Legends of the Hidden Temple game show with my family. One of the cool shows I remember watching was The Wild Thornberrys. I loved the idea of a family traveling the world in an RV while they shot a nature show. This would be my ideal life! The main star Eliza reminds me of Pippy Longstocking with her freckles and red pigtails. Another movie I am fond of!

I have really enjoyed sharing this cartoon with my son. He sat on my lap and we watched the family go on  their wild adventures. If I could only convince my husband we need to buy an RV, a camera and start our own nature show I would be living the dream! This cartoon is really cute and a fun adventure even if you don't want to live their life. It focuses on working together as a family and animal nature conservancy.

The whole first season is available on DVD on 4 discs on May 15, 2011. You can buy it from the Shout Factory website here.

From Shout Factory/Nickelodeon:

The Wild Thornberrys: Season One, which will arrive in stores on May 17, 2011.  Produced by Klasky-Csupo for Nickelodeon, The Wild Thornberrys premiered in September 1998 and aired until 2004 with reruns airing on Nicktoons and CBS from 2002-2007. The Wild Thornberrys DVD release has long been anticipated by fans but has not been available instores until now.

The hit series follows the Thornberry family as they travel the world in their Communications Vehicle (or CommVee) looking for rare animals to film.After an encounter with an African shaman, their youngest child Eliza was given the power to speak to animals! Every episode in this adventure-packed DVD set follows Eliza as she comes face-to-face with an assortment of animals, continents and danger. Encounter wildlife in all its natural glory and eavesdrop on Eliza’s conversations with silverback gorillas, pythons, crested grebes, tapirs, capybaras, antelopes and opossums while the CommVee travels on!

Vibrant animation, exotic locations, charming storytelling plus an all-star voice cast, including Lacey Chabert (Party Of Five), Tim Curry (The Adventures Of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius) and Flea (The Red Hot Chili Peppers) make season one of The Wild Thornberrys an epic family adventure.  Featuring all 20 action-packed episodes, the collectible 4-DVD box set is priced to own at a suggested retail price of $29.93 and will no doubt attract a new audience of kids as well as young adults who grew up watching the television series.

You can watch a trailer of The Wild Thornberrys cartoon here.

GIVEAWAY:

Shout Factory has generously offered one of our lucky readers the chance to win a DVD of the first season of The Wild Thornberrys.

To Enter This Giveaway:

Visit the Shout Factory website and tell me another DVD for Kids you would like to have.

 

 *Leave a comment telling me the movie title and be sure to leave your email address*

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.

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*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 9, 2011 and ends on May 19, 2011 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 for free the DVDs mentioned in this post for this review. The opinions are 100% mine and may vary from others.

What? You havent taught him to talk yet!?!?!

The other day my husband and I were asked why we had not taught our son to talk yet. I thought it was odd he is only 17 months old! And he does talk, a bit, Mama knows what he means! We are the type of parents who are not rushing our son to do anything before he is ready. He learn to crawl on his own. Enough tummy time he figured it out when he was ready. Walking we never did the stand him up and make him practice walk. He mastered standing up on his own by pulling up on the edges of the couch. When he was ready to try taking steps he did it on his own. He now runs with a fierceness anytime he does something! I figured its best to let him go at his own pace.

Of course he says Mama, Dada, Juice, Kitty Cat, Dog and sometimes can say Bird or Horse if hes in the mood. But I have never sat him down and did the flash cards or forced learning. I read to him everyday and he points at the words and pictures and does his what I call "Bubba Talk". Hes not saying words but he is babbling tons of stuff. The "teach you baby to read" programs drive me nuts! I think kids are being pushed to grow up way to fast these days. There is so much time in life to talk, read, and all the things in life that are apart of growing up but for me I plan on letting him develop as he wants when he wants.

Whats your opinion on this topic?

Mars Needs Moms Mothers Day Coupon Book

Mars Needs Moms Mothers Day Coupon Book

Coupons are a cute thing for kids to make to give to their Mom for special tasks. These ones from the Disney Movie Mars Needs Moms are really cute. You can print them for your little ones. The movie looks so cute and I look forward to the DVD release so we can watch it! I am sure it will be funny and that we will all appreciate what moms do after seeing a little boy travel to Mars to save his Mom.

Barbies vs Action Figures

Being the Mother of 2 boys is sometimes a challenge when it comes to playing "guys" or action figures. I have brothers, but I also have sisters and we grew up playing barbies and dolls and house and anything else that was super girlie. Don't get me wrong we could hang with the boys, but we really loved our barbies. We played night and day and had hundreds of story lines. That was then and this in now. Now I have sons and no daughters, I am not complaining, I am just saying. :) I find it hard to relate to the way boys play with their action figures. There is no dialog (not anything we ever heard our barbies say) and all the action figures do is fight. I find myself playing with JJ and asking him if he wants to go the store or the park or dinner or something to get a story going. I look over at my husband as if to ask him if I am playing right, looking for some sort of reassurance. Most of the time I get a lowering of the head and a head nod of no try again. Darn it! In case I think my husband might be wrong, JJ lets me know that they don't want to do any of that, they just want to FIGHT.
Oh dear, I should have paid more attention to my brothers playing style and studied it hard when we were kids. It would really help with the current male to female ratio around our house.

Sports Fan Care Package by Gourmet Gift Baskets Review and Giveaway

When the Sports Fan package arrived at our house there were a few wows and yummy being shouted as we went through the box. I divided up the goodies between a pile of "thats mine" and anyone can have it. Well my pile was huge lol.

Some of my favorite treats were in the box including Sour Patch Kids, Skittles, David Sunflower Seeds, and TGIF Potato Skins. My little guy had some of the Rice Crispy Treat, Welch's Fruit Snacks and Famous Amos Cookies (dont worry not all in one day and in very tiny pieces!)  My husband loves nuts and pretzels so those were his.

We had some of our snacks while we watched Golf a the last 2 weekends. My son claps when the gallery does and that makes me laugh so much! Nothing like a nice day hanging out with my two favorite boys, watching my favorite sport and enjoying my favorite snacks!

I loved the idea of a "Care Package" type of gift. Some people want the goodies and say forget the basket lol, such as my husband and probably most men! Gourmet Gift Baskets has many awesome Care Packages. There are ones for kids that have games, arts and crafts, and summer camp. What kid would not be the cool kid and feel so special to get a box of treats at camp! The Exam Cram would be great for college students, even if your kid lives at home with you. Order it then let them know they have mail. They will adore you and have the snacks it takes to charge up for a study session. Of course there are healthier Care Packs too! Overall I think this is a really great idea to send goodies and fun stuff to someone you care about!

I might be a big kid but I still get excited to see the prize in Cracker Jack boxes!

I thought it would be a great idea to send a care pack to a family or friends house if you plan on going on a vacation or stay with them. They will get some goodies to share with everyone just as you arrive! Or if it is allowed for the place you are going to vacation at like a hotel mail a pack to yourself and your family can pack more essentials in your suitcases. No more paying for snacks and toys to be in your luggage with all those bag fees! Plus snacks at a vending machines or hotel lobby store can be expensive!

I would to have any of the gift baskets at Gourmet Gift Baskets as a gift.

The Handi-Snack Pack made me smile, I loved those as a kid!

GIVEAWAY:

Gourmet Gift Baskets has generously offered one of our lucky readers the chance to win a Sports Fan Care Package.

To Enter This Giveaway:

Mandatory entry is to Like Gourmet Gift Baskets on Facebook.

 *Leave a comment telling me your a facebook fan and be sure to leave your email address*

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.

-Follow Frugal Family Tree on GFC (top right hand corner) +2

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-Follow Gourmet Gift Baskets on Twitter +2
-Visit Gourmet Gift Baskets website and post on their facebook wall your favorite basket +3

-Add our button to your blog and leave a link of where it is located +5 (top left hand side) 

-Vote for us for "Were on the Fence" (left hand side of the blog, just click the button) +3

-Enter other current giveaways on our blog +1 for each entered

*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 5, 2011 and ends on May 15, 2011 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 for free the car package mentioned in this post for this review. The opinions are 100% mine and may vary from others.