Shabby Apple Nothin' Like a Dame Dress Giveaway (~$70 Value) - US Only 1/7

Just because Christmas is nearly here, there is a new year around the corner and what better way to ring it in then a new women's dress from the Shabby Apple?  Whether you might be going to a party, going on a cruise, preparing for Valentine's Day as it's really not that far away after this giveaway is over or you just want to feel pampered and fabulous, this is the giveaway for you!  Shabby Apple has an entire selection of flirty, stylish dresses for women, by women and of women.  They know what we want which is to look feminine and beautiful regardless of where we might be or have to go.


There is a great selection for the holidays that I just can't decide which is my favorite:

  

One lucky winner will receive this gorgeous Nothin' Like a Dame dress (retails $78)!  It's a beautiful dress and it can be easily worn on the beach, at home, at a party or at work.  It's one of those dresses that is versatile while accentuating a woman's beauty.


Check out the Shabby Apple now and on Facebook and Twitter.

To enter, please complete the Rafflecopter form below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



*Disclaimer:  I received no compensation for this post/giveaway.

Mamavation Monday: Slumber Party

Another Mamavation Monday and boy do they come along fast!  I forgot what week we're on but I always keep the sistas in mind when I contemplate making a bad choice.  I've written before about how I instilled the help of my family in a weight loss challenge to get us all ready for a family reunion in July.  So far so good!  I can state that this year, I beefed up a bit as that's because I'm a stress eater and it's been a stressful year.  I have lost 25 pounds in 2011.  Since I started my weight loss challenge with my family which coincided with this segment of Mamavation Mondays, I've lost 15 pounds and I couldn't be happier.


I've used Dukan Diet, Atkins Diet, calorie counting and finally ended up with Slim-Fast.  I like Slim-Fast because it helps me to count calories with convenience yet I can opt for healthy snacks and meals.  It's the best of both worlds for me.  I've also started running in addition to biking so that should also help.


This week on Mamavation:

MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV

BLOGGING CARNIVAL: This week’s blogging carnival is sponsored by Santa’s little helpers – @YumYucky, @EcoFoilPans, and @Mamavation. 2 blogging carnival participants will receive something out of the big holiday bag.

WHAT’S IN THE BAG?
Shakeology Prize (4 prizes): 4 individual packets of Shakeology, Supplement Facts sheet, and 30-day recipe calendar. @YumYucky (Josie) is  a Beachbody Coach and You can find Shakeology at her Beachbody shop. Shakeology is a nutrient-dense powerhouse in smoothie form with over 70 healthy ingredients to help you lose weight, increase energy, eliminate toxins, stay regular and improve your overall health – all with no artificial ingredients.” Smaller sampler quantities are available here.

Eco-Foil T-Shirt (4 prizes): These t-shirts are comfy and great for every day workouts. Don’t forget to buy some Eco-Foil pans for your next party. These disposable pans are 100% recycled and will make your holiday cleanup  an easy task. Check them out on Facebook and enter their Photo contest.

Workout DVDs from Mamavation (3 prizes): Start your New Year in high gear with new workouts. Have a variety of DVDs at your house to keep it fun and interesting. Don’t forget to vote for Mamavation for Best Health Blog of 2011. Each vote counts AND you can vote daily.

For a chance to win one of these prizes, answer one of the questions in your blog post and link back to the Mamavation website. <--details here

What is your biggest achievement of the year?

My biggest achievement this year was turning my children into health conscious little ones.  With my goal to getting healthier, I incorporated changes that fed into them.  Now they ask for salads and sometimes, they ask for apple slices and milk in their rare Happy Meals.  My eight year old turns down soda and is aware of eating healthy versus any image type issues (i.e. getting fat).  For that, it's my biggest achievement.  I have to say that is Leigh's influence for all the scolding she has done on my posts in the past about healthy losing weight versus bad losing weight (smile).

*Disclosure:  I’m writing this to be entered into a giveaway sponsored by YumYucky, Eco-Foil, andMamavation and hosted by Mamavation – a community dedicated to obesity prevention & weight loss for women.

Do Good for Free: Dr. Praeger’s Launches Charity Program on Facebook for Holiday Season 12/31

Happy Holidays! In the spirit of the season, Dr. Praeger’s is launching a “1 Like = $1” charity campaign on Facebook, to run through December 31st. For every new “Like” the Dr. Praeger’s Facebook Page receives, Dr. Praeger’s will donate one dollar in product to the Food Bank for New York City, up to $1,500.

Also, Dr. Praeger’s will be giving Facebook fans the opportunity to vote on the wall for their favorite three food banks across the country to each receive a $500 donation. Voting will also run through December 31st. The 10 food banks included in the vote are:

• The Greater Boston Food Bank
• Feeding South Florida (Miami)
• Greater Chicago Depository
• San Francisco Food Bank
• Los Angeles Regional Food Bank
• Gleaners Community Food Bank (Detroit)
• Food Bank of the Rockies (Denver)
• North Texas Food Bank (Dallas)
• Center for Food Action (Bergen County, NJ)
• Oregon Food Bank (Portland)

Scrolls from Santa: Worth Every Penny!

Thinking of sending a letter from Santa to those on your nice and naughty list?  I always look for something special and unique every holiday to dazzle my children and I think this will do the trick.  A scroll letter from Santa himself delivered in this cute candy cane delivery box with a detachable ornament, Rudolph bands and the choice of Christmas glasses, snow, coal and reindeer collars that are adorable.  Scrolls from Santa are just plain cute!

   

 

What an adorable package for your children to receive for Christmas!  I received a code to create one scroll in the deluxe package and although I have not received it as I ordered it a few minutes ago, I wanted to share this because it's so cute.  I was so taken by the ease of the process, the options to add stocking stuffers and more that I bought another one because I just can't send one to only one of my children right?  I will say that they tend to be costly after shipping but given what you are receiving and the special nature of the present, it's well worth the cost.  If you use JOLLY10, you might score a 10% off discount.  I found that on another blogger's post that is only good for the first 50.


Here are my pictures and I can tell you that they are worth the cost!  The glasses make the lights look light gingerbread men and other shapes, the bracelets are the "in-thing" and the scrolls are nice done on wooden scroll rods.  The tube comes from the North Pole and has an ornament on top.  My girls loved them!

Here are some more pictures to give you an idea how precious these are:

 

Stay up to date at Facebook and Twitter!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Last Day to Enter Giveaway Bash!

Welcome to the 10,000 Coupon Diva Queen Giveaway Bash! We have  joined together with some AMAZING BLOGGERS to bring you a Giveaway to remember!  To enter simply follow the rules on the Rafflecopter, you must LIKE each Blogger to be entered. Make sure to stop by their site I am certain you will find some interesting information, great savings and tons of deals. The contest runs from December 12th thorough the 19th the winner will be chosen via the Rafflecopter Widget on the 20th. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the email or another winner will be chosen. Here is the list of Bloggers in Our Giveaway!!

Coupon Diva Queen

My Couponing Life

My Tots Exactly

One Busy Moma

Saving For My Family

Atl Deal Finder

Suburban Coupon Mom

The Chic Couponista

Learning To Be Frugal

Embracing Beauty

Wrap to Lose Inches with Jolene

Coupon Clipinista

Cyns Coupons 4u

Support Handmade with Katie

Mom Blog Society

Coupon Clipping Moms

Athena's by Shanna

Sweet Pea Saving

Vienna and Beyond

Frugal Mom Rocks

The Qpon Qweens

Acadiana's Thrifty Mom

Health, Beauty, Children and Family

Mommyhood's Diary

Good Luck Everyone!!!

Imagine Fashion Designer 3DS Review

Imagine giving your little fashion diva a game that lets them make believe in a world of fashion designers?  Do you have a child who loves fashion and fashion design?  If the answer is yes, you have to check out the Imagine Fashion Designer game for Nintendo 3DS. This is a very cool game for the budding fashionista!  My middle one loved all the designs she could make and although I had to help her with the path of becoming a top fashion designer, it's something she will easily learn.

Here are some of the features:

• Bring your unique fashions to life in a stunning 3D view and you can keep them in your own virtual closet.
• Customization options are endless!  The player will be able to create what they want without having predefined patterns so the original pieces are really unique.
• The players will discover the latest trends and develop their fashion skills, Learn tips from fashion journalists and will experience fun fashion challenges.
• If they have a friend who plays, they will be able to check out each other's designs, participate in fun challenges and even buy, sell and give their fashion designs to each other!
• With this unique Nintendo 3DS feature, the player will be able to capture their favorite patterns with the 3D camera to create even more unique pritns.  Realistic looking touchable fabrics will leave them in awe and the 360-degree views will let them see every facet of their fashion creation.

It's truly a fun experience even for the older teen or even an adult with the guilty pleasures of being the next top fashion designer.  Both my girls really enjoyed the game and I can think of one other girl, my cousin who loves fashion, who would love this game!  It's a lot of fun, easy to use and captures the imagination of your little ones to explore new fun and creations!

Thank you to Ubisoft for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Ubisoft. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own.

Bob Evans $25 GC & USB Drive Giveaway 1/7

Bob Evans is something that I don't get enough of and I can admit that I love their food.  I received a Bob Evans GC and portable drive as a promotional and since I can't use it, I decided to pass it on to one of my readers.


To Enter:


Please use the Rafflecopter form below.  Note: You can use your FB account to login or your e-mail/name.

Oral-B Stages & Crest and Oral B Pro-Health

We recently held an Oral-B Stages, Crest and Oral B Pro-Health party as part of my participation with MommyParties.  It was a great experience for the children mostly because they received these really cool toothbrushes from Oral-B, floss picks, their very own toothpaste, Cars II Gummy Vitamins and Cars II DVD!  My youngest one, who insists on being a princess, loved the Oral-B Stages 3 Princess tooth brush.  I can tell you that there were not a more excited group of kids who looked forward to taking their vitamins, brushing and flossing their teeth.  Having their very own kid-oriented oral health products was the kicker for them.

I cannot forget that the kids are also big Cars fans and most has not seen Cars II yet so this was the icing on the cake.  Our party started out with activities provided in our MommyParties' kit while everyone arrived.  After that, we had some Christmas fun with cake pops, cookies and other deserts before the big event started.  After our cake pops, I thought it was the ideal time to introduce the Oral-B Stages toothbrushs, Pro-Health For Me Rinse, the Pro-Health For Me Floss Picks and Pro-Health Paste.  So my bathroom became a watery mess but they had fun.

 

 

The kids were very excited to watch Cars II and although my children didn't like the vitamins, the others did so they were much loved as a gift.  The other big thrill were our popcorn boxes just like at the circus.  They really had a great fun and learning more about how to brush your teeth, the importance of flossing, brushing and rinsing were great.

 

What I liked about the Oral-B Stages toothbrushes is they taught my children and party attendees how they help to protect tender gums, that they help to surround and clean teeth and also helps to reach the back of their teeth as I know my own kids have trouble with that.  The smaller brushes are ideal for small hands and not to mention the appeal of using a Disney Princess brush!  They even have tips on customizing hygiene care for your children.

Did you know that you can begin good hygiene care starting at 4 months?  There is this great parent's guide here.

Follow OralB and Crest on Twitter. 

*Disclaimer:  I was provided by Oral-B and MomSelect the items to host this party, I was not compensated.   This review is solely my honest opinion of these products.)

ABBA You Can Dance Party! #UbiABBA #spon #CleverGirls

If you were a kid or teen in the 80's, you definitely remember ABBA!  I know I do and I loved the songs.  I always remember hearing them on the radio as we didn't have CDs or even video games that would let us partake in the guilty 80's pleasure.  What a sin right?  Now, better late than never, we get to enjoy the music we grew up with and either annoy our kids or brainwash them into liking it!  I succeeded in both since I have kids ranging in ages from 4 through 23!  Evil laughs can be heard after the party we had!  As part of my participation in Clever Girls, I was able to host my own ABBA You Can Dance Party!


For our party, we were also provided a gift card to help ABBA'ify our party.  I thought it was appropriate to try to have some great 80's foods like Doritos, chicken wings, avocado dip and chips, pizza and a variety of drinks.

Our party included a fun disco ball that set the atmosphere let alone the thrill of the kids who attended.  The beauty with the ABBA You Can Dance for wii, is there are so many songs to choose from and you can pick from single dancer to two dancers to a group.  What fun that is and I can tell you it's a work out!  Even if you don't want to dance and would rather sing, you can take a chance with Karaoke and belt out some fun tunes.

I will admit my youngest, who is four, did not like the music but that's okay.  We all had a lot of fun and even those that were too young to know the music, they learned quickly to adapt to the catchy tunes and the movements.  For some Christmas fun, this would make a great gift to have after eating all that food or to start the New Year on getting healthy as you get groovy to the music.


KEY FEATURES:

The Timeless Music of ABBA
Enjoy all the hits – 26 in all – from ABBA’s rich catalog of classic songs, now digitally remastered for Wii™ and your home entertainment system.

You Can Dance
Unleash your inner dancing queen and play for fun or to set a new top score to challenge yourself and others. Play any way you want with up to four friends.

Mini-Musical
Perform a story through the music of ABBA! Experience the magic as you play a role in a mini-musical of ABBA’s songs.

Karaoke Mode
Up to two additional friends can join in on vocals. Simply follow along with the on-screen lyrics.*

A Must-Have for Fans
Get immersed in the amazing world of ABBA with authentic content including their music videos, live concert footage, and classic photos!

*Wii-compatible microphone required, sold separately.




*Disclaimer:  I received this game via Ubisoft. Please click here to learn more about Ubisoft. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own.

Starting an LLC

I guess it's time to start seeking an official LLC for my blog and other activities as well as an accountant for myself and my eight year old's non-profit.  Has anyone done this on their own and have any advice on what to look for in an accountant and what needs to be done to form an LLC?

Give and Get the Gift of Sleep Giveaway 12/31

We’re all pulled in multiple directions these days – women are spending 48.3 hours multitasking each week and men are following close behind with 38.9 hours per week. It’s no wonder we’re all so exhausted!

Next year though, you can help those you love control their exhaustion with a Zeo Mobile Sleep Manager. Zeo Mobile is a revolutionary way to monitor and manage sleep. Help those you love take control of their sleep by tracking it, finding pesky ‘sleep stealers’, and getting sleep improvement tips. It makes a great gift for everyone on your list, even your hard-to-shop-for friends; husbands, your parents, parents with newborns, insomniacs and other frustrated sleepers. Because when we sleep better, we do better.

Zeo has partnered with us this holiday season to offer you a chance to win a free Zeo (plus everyone who enters gets $10 off til 12/31)! 

To enter the promotion, get started by clicking here.

Good luck!

How to enter: 

Click here to enter this giveaway. This form will prompt you to ‘Like’ our blog and Zeo on Facebook and enter your name, email address and zip code (to prove you are a US Resident). You will need to connect to this app through Facebook to enter.

Important Rules: Entries to this giveaway must be submitted through the form above. Many partner sites are participating in this giveaway with Zeo, so winners will be drawn from all qualifying entries. Limit one entry per person; more than one entry per person will disqualify entrant. Zeo is the sole administrator of this giveaway and is responsible for drawing winners, contacting winners and prize fulfillment. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You understand that you are providing your information to the sponsor(s) of this promotion and not to Facebook. 

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Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Subscribe Main Feed

*Disclaimer:  I will receive a $25 Amazon gift code. Plus I'll be entered into a drawing where one lucky winner will receive a Zeo Mobile & a Kindle!

Star Wars The Old Republic

Calling all gamers!  Who is already signed up to play the new Star Wars' The Old Republic?  It's the biggest thing getting ready to hit the gameosphere and was curious if any of my readers will be playing?  Since Sony shut down Star Wars Galaxies at the end of this year, The Old Republic offers some big time fun for those that love Star Wars and MMOs.  My daughter, the oldest, has signed up for her account and tried to play the beta version unsuccessfully so she's going to try again once she returns to Georgia this weekend.

Shameless Starring William H. Macy: A Fan?

Have you caught Shameless yet?  It's a show about a single father of six who is usually drunk while his six children learn to raise themselves.  Starring William H. Macy who plays Frank Gallagher who lives on his disability checks.  Frank  leaves his eldest daughter Fiona to hold down the house, donning the proverbial apron and making sure her younger siblings do their chores, keep a clean(ish) house and stay fed.  Fiona, in a difficult position being the eldest of the Gallagher children, takes the responsibility of child-rearing which often results in humorous outcomes. For example, in episode four, the middle Gallagher child Debbie, after becoming depressed with her Aunt's passing, decides to steal a toddler from a birthday party. Fiona and the rest of the siblings devise a plan to return the boy to his family while going unnoticed by the increased police presence in the area. 

It's a story line that has played throughout the years of an older sibling taking on the burden of a parent or parents but this show is full of comedic points and drama. It's captivating in that many people will most likely find a character to relate to. Often times, many of us feel a similar weight of the world as Fiona has. It may not have been the intent to make her the caretaker but it happens. I'm usually in the position in my family of being the one who makes everything alright. We had a family tragedy about seven year's ago in which everyone expected me to find the solution.  As Fiona faced, it's something that had to be taken care of and without hesitation, you jump right in.  I've been the go to person far too often and it can be taxing and burdensome.  On the other hand, it can also be rewarding when everything turns out well.  Fiona took a delicate situation and as usual, led the path forward to recovering for the sake of the family and especially Debbie.  Have you been in the same situation where you are the person everyone turns to in order to right a wrong?  

The complete season will be available December 27th on both DVD and Blu-Ray.

If you want to see more, check out the Shameless trailer now!

*Disclosure:  I have been hired by Warner Bros. WBWord division to promote Shameless Season One on DVD.