Our Formal Dresses from Adorable Baby Clothing

Cynthia at www.adorablebabyclothing.com came through again!  I choose my girl's formal dresses there due to the amazing choices and the ease of finding two various sizes with no effort.  You can click on my PR link to see this past year's Christmas dresses or perform a search for adorable baby clothing to see all my posts.

The lilac dresses have beautiful sash bows in the back and on the side.  There embroidery is so beautiful and some are raised making the quality stand out even more.  The area underneath offers a tulle type petticoat to provide fullness.  They are absolutely gorgeous and are made of such high quality, it's worth the money.  I have all my dresses to date for the girls and plan on handing them down to them for when they have children one day.

I also use Adorable Baby Clothing because the person behind the store is a very wonderful and caring person.  I prefer a company that has a person behind the name.  Cynthia provides expert, caring customer support and if you purchase something from her store, you will see it!

I wasn't aware until just recently, she sells a host of many others items like baby shower favors, gifts, toys and every type of clothing imaginable.

Mamavation Monday

This week was another hard week with Easter and Easter dinner but I found a new love and that is salsa and chips.  I'm not sure how healthy it is but it's a viable snack that allowed me to lose another pound.  My husband is getting closer to deploying to Kuwait which is making it harder for me to stay committed to exercising.  He leaves on Thursday for a week to visit other family so I'm hoping to take full advantage of the time apart to kick it in to gear.

I'm also having some distractions involving work and hopefully that will pass.

I bought the kids some outdoor toys to encourage myself to go out and avoid the kitchen hoping the extra physical activity will also help to encourage everyone gets healthier!  Showing the kids how physical activity can be fun is very important to me since I am their ultimate role model and teacher.

My struggles this week were not eating the Easter candy!  I had three robin eggs, one big robin egg and one cadbury egg.  I did resist the cute little cupcakes and had one piece of apple pie.  So I did slip but I kept it somewhat contained.

This week's goal is to use my EA Active More Workouts MORE and drink more water, eat more veggies and fruits and get the girls involved in making some healthy dinners.

Next week, I hope to drop two pounds at least!

Thanks to all the Mamavation moms for their encouragement and if you haven't voted, don't forget to vote for my former weight loss online buddy Colleen!

Dog Birthday Party Ideas

This year, my daughter was  wanting the the dog theme for her birthday party so I stared this post but since then, she changed to a Snoopy theme so that will be my next post.  I love planning parties and although I won the time of a party planner from another blogger, it didn't pan out as the party planner took down my information and never got back with me.  So, I'm planning the party on my own but that's okay because I love doing it!

When I plan my kid's parties I use many sources for kids' birthday party supplies  but my all time favorite is Birthday Express.  They have such a huge selection of Party Themes, Favor Boxes , Kids Costumes  and now they have HUGE Wall Decals that are adorable!

My theme for decorations are all set and now I just need the menu and games.

Activities:


As the guests are coming in, you can have them make doggie collar name tags.  Use a large ribbon and attach a piece of cardboard to the ribbon.  You can punch a hole through it and place the ribbon through it.  Have the kids decorate them with drawings or with doggie stickers you can easily purchase at Walmart or Target.  These can be tied gently to their wrists.

Another idea is to buy inexpensive headbands at your local dollar store, some felt, glue and glitter (optional) and the kids can make puppy ear headbands.

If you are a creative painter, purchase face paint and paint black noses, whiskers and other little playful doggie features to the kid's faces.  You can also paint little doggies on their cheek if they prefer.

Games:

Draw and cut out a picture of a dog and dog tails and play pin the tail on the doggie.

Bone treasure chest - if you have a large sandbox you can hide toys in various areas and have the kids try to find them.  Another choice is if you purchase a bag of sand, set up small piles in various areas of your yard and hide toys in some of the spots while the kids try to find them.

Hot bone - use a doggie play bone and instead of a potato, play hot bone.

One of the things if you are an animal lover, you can also take the opportunity to requests guests bring one item to donate to your local shelter so you are teaching your kids at the same time as having fun.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Graduation Gift Idea & Review

Spring is coming and with that comes summer and GRADUATIONS!  Graduations are so exciting as it marks the new journey into a new chapter of life.  Whether it's graduating from kindergarten, fifth grade, high school or college, it's a unique memorable moment that should be treasured and embraced.  As someone who loves to give gifts, I always hunt for the perfect gift and if I can personalize, even better!

My niece is graduating this year so when I was asked to review a graduation Build-A-Bear bear, I jumped as who wouldn't love to review a Build-A-Bear animal?  I cannot tell you how many we have and I love the holidays as it gives me a reason to "have" to buy more!

If you are unfamiliar with Build-A-Bear's graduation line, they have many options to choose from.  They just might have your mascot and if not, you can choose the ever so faithful, cute and cuddly Lil' Chocolate Cub or Curly Teddy.   The choices are plenty as you can choose the Gator, Owl, Tiger or Longhorn if you prefer.

If you noticed in the picture above, my niece received a personalize gown that had her full name, the name of her high school and 2010.  Embroidery personaliztion only costs $8 more and adds such a wonderful touch for a memorable keepsake.

Other options available include adding sound.  For example to show just some available:

• Roar sound
• Giggle sound
• I love you sound
• Monkey sound
• Meow sound
• Pomp & Circumstance sound
• Brittaney & the Chipettes' Single Lady sound
• Leave it All to Me iCarly sound

You can purchase these all online or go to the store.  If you purchase online, there is an option to hear each sound before you decide.

Each Build-A-Bear Workshop Graduation animal comes complete with gown, pants, shirt, dress loafers, hat with tassel and diploma.

The Review:
I wasn't able to give the adorable bear to my niece yet as it's not time!  As is always the case with Build-A-Bear, it's cute, plush and made of high quality material.  The little gown is authentic and looks just like the real thing.  I think the embroidery is such a great choice to add that special touch in terms of finding the perfect gift that shows you put in extra effort in recognizing their special day.  The black loafers are adorable with real laces and little Built-A-Bear labels sticking out the back.  The tassels provided were of multiple colors to allow the gift giver or receiver to choose their own color.

As a frequent buyer of Build-A-Bear, this bear stood up to what I expect from them.  High quality, adorable and different in terms of giving a gift for graduation.  I loved the idea of choosing among the different graduation animals or the ability to purchase your own choice and suit it with the cap and gown.  It's very versatile and a great gift idea.

The receipt of the Graduation Bear was done online and it turned out even better than I expected.  To me, this shows that although it's fun to create the bears in the store for the little one's, you can still count on the same quality and committment online.

I would recommend the graduation line at Build-A-Bear Workshop for any of your graduates.

* Disclosure:  this bear was provided to me at no charge by Build-A-Bear Workshop.  The opinions expressed in this review are of my own and no financial compensation was received.

Two Words: Beautifully Innocent

I took this picture yesterday in hopes of getting some nice daughter and dad pictures to send to my husband once he deploys to Kuwait on April 29th.  She of course didn't understand the concept of my goals but after looking at the outcome, all I could think was 'beautifully innocent."

Ghirardelli 1/2 Off at Amazon's Deal of the Day

Don't miss the great deal of the day at Amazon!


Ghirardelli 1/2 Off


 

Three Giveaways Ending Tonight: eShakti, ABC Ties & NYC Theater Good Ol' Girls Tickets

Don't forget to enter these three great giveaways ending tonight:


YouthfulTips eShakti Define an eShakti Woman Contest 3/31


YouthfulTips ABC Necktie $25 GC Giveaway 3/31


YouthfulTips 2 Tickets to Good Ol’ Girls in NYC 3/31

HonestBaby Twitter Party 3/31 8-9:00 PM EST

Join the Twitter party tomorrow night with Honest Baby from 8-9 pm ET for a chance to win great prizes to include on Twitter-er will win the grand prize of a seven day Caribbean vacation!


For more information about the twitter party and the prizes, you can go to: http://www.honestbaby.com/win-a-caribbean-vacation-at-our-twitter-party/

Not familiar with Twitter, here is all you need to do:

• Login to Twitter
• Follow www.twitter.com/honestbaby
• Click on your “Home” link (at top) In the sidebar search field, search #honestbaby

Keep checking www.twitter.com/honestbaby to find out the topics and how to win prizes.


Reminder: make sure all of your tweets have the hashtag #honestbaby at the end so that HonestBaby can see them and you can win prizes!

Family Fun Night

So many families are too busy to gather together for fun and family oriented events.  Often times, it's work, other extracurricular activities, busy social lives and internet addiction taking its toll on the family.  Even though I spend a good amount of time on the internet, I do hold my block zones where I focus solely on the children and other family events.  We started a tradition back in the fall for blocking out a Friday of each month for Family Fun Night.  We typically choose a recent release entirely kid focused and a dinner theme to coordinate with it.

Our last Family Fun Night involved a Mexican theme.  I printed a menu with the help of my almost seven year old that included cute Mexican clip art.  She was able to decorate it and pass it around for everyone to choose their selection.

The movie, although not related to any Mexican theme, was Planet 51.  After dinner, we watch the movie and use our counter top popcorn maker to pop the amazingly good popcorn I found from an Ebay seller.  It tastes as good as movie theater popcorn.

If you haven't started a Family Fun Night, you should!  There are endless possibilities to plan one to bring your family back together.

Here are some other ideas:

1. With warmer weather coming, camping is a lot of fun to some and this is the perfect family activity.
2. Plan an actual movie theater night.  Although not as personal as spending time together since you can't openly speak, it's still a great option.
3. Take the kids roller skating!  There are still many rinks open and this is a great way to show off your roller skating abilities.
4. Pull out the board games or buy some new ones.  Even Wii has great games the whole family can play and the bonus is getting a little physical activity!

What are your ideas for creating a fun family fun night?

Egg Decorating Ideas by Martha Stewart

Need some really cute and neat egg decorating ideas?  I do so I stopped by Martha Stewart to find something unique.  These lace eggs are really neat and look like fun.

Here is how to make them:

Tools and Materials:

• Eggs
• Standard egg dye
• Rubber bands
• Inexpensive lace trimmings or scraps from a worn tablecloth or curtains
• Scissors
• Foam board fitted with flathead pins

Lace Egg How-To:

1. Cut lace into strips long enough to wrap around eggs and still have extra to form a sash for holding.
2. Wrap eggs, securing lace with rubber bands. Dye eggs according to dye package instructions. Lift out, cut off rubber bands, and unwrap lace. Let dry on foam board fitted with flathead pins.

Resources:  Inexpensive lace trimmings can be found in fabric stores.   From The Martha Stewart Show, March 2008 

Welcome Nuk on Facebook & Win Grand Prize of $2,500 & More

Join NUK on Facebook and win some great prizes every week in their Bundle of Joy Sweepstakes.

Each week, for eight weeks, one lucky fan will win a NUK prize bundle filled with an assortment of NUK products!

Two grand prize winners will receive a $2,500 gift card to Babies-R-Us!

Promotions starts March 8th and ends April 30th.

*See Nuk's Facebook page for rules and details.

The Squeakquel Movie Teaching the Moves...Dance Moves That Is!

My girls are LOVING their Squeakquel Movie Soundtrack as it's great entertainment for both kids and parents.  Featuring chipmunk'd renditions of classics from Beyonce, Katy Perry, the Bee Gees and many more, Alvin, Simon, Theodore and their girlfriends, The Chipettes, provide hours of fun for everyone.

Every time they hear it, they start dancing and singing.  It's so amusing watching my two year old jamming to it and they both love Singles Lady and can try to imitate the Chipettes in dancing based on what they know of the video.  I think it's a great soundtrack to bring out their creativity, love for music and just an ability to get up and move around to be more active.

If you haven't purchased your copy of The Squeakquel Movie Soundtrack, it's available here and here.

http://bit.ly/7BJXlX

http://bit.ly/7Co4X5

Mamavation Monday (Week 3 For Me)

         

This week was a little tougher with my husband being home as he approaches his year deployment to Kuwait, my oldest (invaluable helper) had a string of doctor appointments for her pregnancy and I have been waiting every month to learn of the job cuts at my employer.  After seeing the before and after pictures of Katie on Mamavation, I was reinspired.

On Friday, I tried interval training on my bike for the first time.  I don't know if I did something right or wrong but the next day, it felt like I had done sit ups.  I have a recumbent bike so perhaps the angle during the high cycling times forced me to use some stomach muscles.  I turned to interval training after Colleen (Mamavation Mom) and my dear friend in Australia, Annie, told me she started it.  We'll see how that turns out!

On Saturday, Bookieboo will be proud of me as I ditched my Nutrasystem and ate a nice salad with a little bit of filet mignon.  I also snacked on some apple slices before dinner.  I rode my bike for 75 minutes and still have to put in some interval time.  We took the kids outside, played ball and raked a little in the yard.

Goals for this week:

• More water
• More vegetables and fruit
• More interval training

If you haven't checked out Mamavation yet, you should.  It's a great group of women who truly inspire a healthier lifestyle.  It's not just about losing weight whereas it's a focus in living healthier and Bookieboo is the fearless leader.

Earth Footwear is a sponsor and provides these great shoes to help you tone and lose weight as you walk.  I bought a pair after seeing Bookieboo and her Twitter Tweets prior to joining the Sistahood and am hoping to win a pair for my pregnant daughter to join me on the walks.  Earth Footwear claims you can burn 4x more fat than ordinary shoes.  I can definitely attest you really feel it and it's not just a burn rather it feels like you ran.  I love mine!

You can join too and participate and there will also be a Twitter party on April 9th.  Just click here to find out more.

I only lost one pound this week but losing something is better than nothing!

Strivectin Coming to Hautelook on Tuesday!

I'm a big Strivectin fan and if you know anything about the product, it is expensive in the store which is why I'm excited to see what sample sale price will be introduced on Tuesday.

Originally formulated as a cream to diminish the appearance of stretch marks, StriVectin has enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top of the anti-wrinkle industry. As one of the leading anti-aging treatments on the market, StriVectin has won praise for their effective treatment of fine lines, wrinkles, and crow's feet. The concentrated formula has been embraced by men and women, alike, because it delivers fast-acting and age-defying results. From facial-sculpting and neck cream to the bestselling stretchmark formula to resurfacing treatments, seeing really is believing with this innovative formula.

The sales starts Tuesday, March 30th so stay tuned and click here to learn more.

Adorable Rockabye Children's Rocker Animals on Sale Now

I bought a ride on rocker sheep for my middle child and it was passed on to the little one who equally loves it.  I spent a ton of money on it and although I like it, I wished they had these when I wanted to purchase one.

Some are priced at $60 and others at $70 and are normally $100 and $120, respectively.

Sale ends 3/29 at noon (EDT).

Click to check it out and more here at Gilt.

yubo's Mother Earth Photo Contest & yubo Eco-Friendly Lunchbox Giveaway 4/16 CLOSED WINNER

CONGRATULATIONS TO....

dreamcleavers@yahoo.com

An e-mail has been send and he/she has 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen by random.org.

Thanks to all those who entered!

If you haven't heard of yubo eco-friendly lunch boxes, you really should. I previously created a review post here that you can read about the great yubo lunch box my middle child received.  My daughter has two other lunch boxes but now, she always picks her yubo lunch box.  She brought home her school folder and inside of it was a pink slip but it was for another child.  A pink slip, at her school, means someone got in trouble.  Apparently this boy was so interested in her yubo lunch box that he opened it up and was caught!

Not only does yubo offer an eco-friendly way to protect the environment with it's reusable pack of containers that holds a sandwich, deserts and sides perfectly, but it looks great.  You can choose among the great template varieties they have to offer of you can customize your own.  The handle is really nice as it's made of material that prevents hands from slipping and both sides can pop off for easy access.  My favorite part is no more baggies and trash!

You have a chance to show off your children's creative side with yubo's new contest:

Celebrate the planet with yubo’s Mother Earth Photo Contest. In honor of Earth Day, yubo is holding a contest asking eco-conscious kids to submit their favorite/best "Mother Earth" photos. yubo will collect photo submissions and choose a winner based on the guidelines below. yubo will then create faceplates from the winning photos and offer them for sale as Mother Earth faceplate designs (as seen below). Net profits from the sale of the Mother Earth faceplates will go to the Earth Day Network.

Contest Rules:

Who: Entrants must be under the age of 11 in order to qualify to win.

What: Photos will be judged based on originality, creativity, photo composition and how well the pictures answer the question: ‘What does Earth Day mean to you?’.

When: Deadline for entry is 4/16/10. The winner will be chosen and announced on 4/22/10, the 40^th anniversary of Earth Day.

How: Each entrant MUST submit 2 corresponding original photos (MUST be taken by person entering contest). Become a yubo Facebook Fan and upload the 2 images to the yubo Facebook Fan Page.

What a great way to promote creativity and an awareness celebrating Earth Day!

All entrants will receive $10 toward their purchase at www.getyubo.com and the winner will receive $50!

The Giveaway:

One winner on my blog will receive their choice of colors and a standard faceplate from yubo!

To Enter:

Follow my blog and go to yubo and tell me which lunch box you like.

Extra Entries (worth two each unless otherwise specified):

• Enter the yubo Mother Earth Photo Contest (leave your Facebook Fan name) and receive five extra entries!
• Become a Facebook fan of yubo.
• Follow yubo on Twitter.
• Tweet about this giveaway (can be done daily).
• Post about this giveaway (five entries)

Trust me, you really want to enter this photo contest and giveaway as the yubo eco-friendly lunch box is loved by my daughter and classmates!

If you don't win, don't forget all entrants to the Mother Earth Photo Contest will receive $10 toward their purchase.

Deadline for entry is 4/16 for the photo contest.

Deadline for this yubo lunch box giveaway is also 4/16 - US only please for the yubo lunch box giveaway

Mother's Day Early Giveaway: Coming Soon

I'm preparing for one of the most special days of the year and that is Mother's Day!  I am thankful for my mother not only because I'm here but because of my children!  Mother's Day is such a special day to recognize the great strength and ability it takes to be a mother.  Being a mother is just not being a mom to your kids but being a mother ends up meaning being a mom to many more.

In honor of Mother's Day, I'm going to put together one giveaway in which I will add as I receive products.

So far, it will consists of:

• Oil of Olay Power of 7 Body Wash & $10 Walmart Gift Card
• Three bottles of name brand perfume
• A box of handmade, beautiful soap by Intentions (Etsy shop)
• Hand soap motion dispenser 
• A Flirty Apron

Watch for more to be added!

This will be one big giveaway and not mutliple.