Showing posts with label Product Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Product Review. Show all posts

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Holiday Cards- It’s Time! {Shutterfly Review}

Have you had your family pictures taken for the year? I know quite a few people, including myself procrastinate until right around the time Holiday cards start arriving your mailbox. In years past I’ve been late or haven’t done it at all- last year I went digital and just put my “card” on my blog but this year I’m determined to get it done before Christmas! I remember as a child my parent’s having a wall or door full of cards and I always loved looking at the different ones and seeing photos of family and friends I hadn’t seen in a while. The door of cards was like one of our holiday decorations, and to me the Christmas cards with photos are the best ones!

In the past I’ve done the flat holiday photo cards that you can have printed at Shutterfly on matte or glossy photo paper for a very reasonable price, but this year I have discovered that Shutterfly has beautiful folded cards. These cards are printed on premium cardstock available in 5x7 size. I definitely like the extra quality of the premium cardstock folded cards and love that you can add your photos to be printed onto them instead of having to separately print a photo and include it with your card. Theses are cards also allow enough room for a photo inside and your holiday letter.

I haven’t yet decided which ones I’ll be getting from Shutterly yet because they just have so many options. Here are a few of the cards I like. I’ve decide to just put the kids on the card this year because I don’t think we’ll get around to a family picture in time (I know you’d think with me being a photographer that it would happen but it just means that I’m too picky about my picture that I’ll never decide.) So I think I’m going to need a card with multiple picture options because I highly doubt just from past experience that I’ll get a really good photo of all the kids together but I’m still keeping my fingers crossed.

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While you’re working on your photo Christmas cards at Shutterfly you should also check out their cute Christmas gift tags! You can purchase a set of 25 gift tags with envelopes for only $15.

Buy It: Head on over to Shutterfly and check out their Holiday cards! They are all 25% off until November 3rd. Of course as with any card company the more you order the better discount price you get but their cards range from $0.30 for the Flat Photo Cards to $1.12 for the Folded Greeting Cards (if you order a bulk amount) the price is a little more if you want less but still a great deal! Oh and I almost forgot all of their cards also include envelopes! So that makes it an even better deal. If you spend $30 or more you can use the code SHIP30 for FREE Shipping! (Be sure to add some of those gift tags to your cart because the free shipping when you spend $30 or more will apply to them also.)

Blogger Friends you can receive 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly! Just click HERE for more details!

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Shutterfly. I received product free of charge but was not compensated monetarily.

Tillamook Cheese {Review & Giveaway}

Tillamook is the only brand of cheese we really ever eat in our house and it’s been that way for as long as I can remember. When I think of cheese Tillamook is what comes to mind. Its kind of like how we call tissues Kleenex- Kleenex is a brand not an item. Pretty soon it’s going to be that way with cheese. Please pass the Tillamook instead of please pass the cheese, at least it would be in a perfect world :).

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I had to include a picture of the box that Tillamook sent me because I think it’s great. I showed it to my dad and at first glance he actually thought it was a block of cheese. I think he was a little disappointed when he found out it was only a box. :)

About Tillamook- from their site:

Tillamook Cheese tastes better because it’s made better: it’s made by a farmer-owned co-op that’s over 100 years old, it’s made without artificial hormones, and Tillamook naturally aged cheddar cheeses are made each and every day. The difference in taste has made us the #1 selling natural cheese in the West and earned us the honor of “World’s Best Medium Cheddar Cheese.”

Generally we purchase the medium cheddar cheese for our everyday cheese eating but you’ll often find a variety of other flavors in our fridge. I love the Tillamook pre-sliced cheese for the ease in making sandwiches and you will always find at least one package of the Tilla-Moos (both the Colby Jack flavor and the regular Cheddar Cheese flavor) in our fridge for snack time. We also love the extra sharp flavors of cheese- the White Cheddar Extra Sharp for making our favorite homemade Mac & Cheese and the Cheddar Extra Sharp for eating with crackers.

Thanks to Tillamook I received three free cheese coupons to feed our cheese addiction, a cheese slicer and a heart shaped sandwich cutter. (This post is giving me a craving for cheese, I think we’ll have some grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.)

To connect with other cheese fans, trade recipes and find coupons for Tillamook products you can follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

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Win It: Tillamook has offered one of my readers the same great package I received- 3 Free Tillamook Cheese Coupons, Tillamook Cheese Slicer, and Heart shaped sandwich cutter.

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 11th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Tillamook. I was sent product free of charge from Tillamook to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

PetCakes {Review & Giveaway}

I get quite a few packages each day and our UPS man but he normally doesn’t come until later in the afternoon so when he showed up at 10am we were pleasantly surprised. My daughter instantly wanted to know what was in the package. I peeked inside and then tossed all of the PetCakes out of the box at once at her- she was ecstatic! I then spent some time showing them to her reading off all their names, then I left her to play for a few minutes. The next thing I knew she was standing next to me with her arms full of PetCakes! She was trying to carry all four of them and just kept saying, “Happy Day! Happy Day!”

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They are the cutest little cupcake dogs that are soft enough to cuddle with yet fun enough to play with for kids that are a little older. My five and six year old daughters also were thrilled to see them when they got home from school. I wasn’t excited about the prospect of having to pry them out of my 2 1/2 year olds hands but luckily we were sent a set of 4 so the 2 1/2 year old kept two of them an the other two girls each got one and everyone was happy. They instantly sat down and started playing “Pet Shop” with them and I loved that they recognized that the cupcake wrapper the dogs had come in could double as a dog bed.

These would make a great birthday present or stocking stuffer!

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From the Company:

Well Made™ Toy Manufacturing Corporation, introduces PetCakes™, a new collectible plush pet line that will be a sweet treat for children ages 3 & up. Each PetCakes animal features a "frosting" hat, comes nestled in its own cupcake wrapper and has its own whimsical backstory. At first look, children will see a delicious cupcake but will then be surprised by the pet they find snuggled inside! Combining sweet faces and cuddly plush with a clever cupcake theme, PetCakes are collectible and provide hours of open-ended imaginative play. PetCakes make perfect gifts for a special friend and for pet lovers. They are ideal for birthday party favors, stocking stuffers and as rewards for good grades. Most of all, PetCakes deliver the kind of fun kids eat up!

Buy It: Series 1 (the Dogs) of PetCakes are now available online at www.toysrus.com and etoys.com for $13.99.

Win It: Well Made Toys has offered one of my readers the opportunity to win two of these great PetCakes!

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 10th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of PetCakes and Well Made Toys. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Smiley Cookie {Review & Giveaway}

Thanks to Smiley Cookie my family and I (mostly my family) had the opportunity to review these delicious cookies! I like to get my own pictures of the product but my husband and kids were just too fast, I was lucky enough to get a cookie.

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Smiley Cookie sent us a dozen of the Original Smiley Cookies. The kids loved that they were all different colored faces because then they could pick their favorite color. Of course after they tasted one they had to try each color and then all the colors were their favorites! The frosting was thick and the cookies were fairly moist- that’s always my complaint with sugar cookies is that they are just too dry- but these cookies were perfect. I was also very surprised at the size of the cookies! These cookies were huge- like the size of a pancake. I had to slow my kids down in eating them because they were eating like two or three cookies when they ate one of these Smiley Cookies.

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Smiley Cookies are made fresh daily and shipped within 48 hours and have a 100% satisfaction guarantee. I love the idea of Smiley Cookies as perfect cookie gifts because my kids are always asking if we can make cookies and send them to their aunts, uncles and grandparents who live out of state. I’ve always said no just because I didn’t want go to all the hassle but this would definitely be a great way to do that!

Not only do Smiley Cookies have a variety of different cookies and cookie gift basket options they also offer custom cookies where you can choose your own shape (circle, flower, heart or star), your icing color and your smiley face color. These custom cookies start at $12.99 a dozen.

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Be sure to check out their Jack’s Sweet Dozen- Halloween Smiley Cookies to add a little fun to your upcoming Halloween celebrations!

Buy It: You can buy the Original Smiley Cookies I received for $11.99 a dozen. With shipping only $5.95 for your entire order!

Win It: Smiley Cookie has offered one of my readers a dozen Smiley Cookies!

MANDATORY ENTRY: Follow my blog via Google Reader and leave a comment here letting me know that you’re following. (1 Entry) MANDATORY PART 2: Follow Smiley Cookie on Facebook and/or Twitter. (1 entry each method)

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 9th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Smiley Cookie. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Rock ‘n Learn {Review & Giveaway}

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My six year old who’s in first grade this year was reading before she even stepped foot in a public classroom and we didn’t have much to do with that so we didn’t have to work on trying to help her learn how to read, however my five year who’s in kindergarten this year is doing a great job but we’ve had to work a little harder with her. Most of the time we find her sister reading books to her and helping her sound out the letters and Kindergarten has also done a fabulous job of helping her learn new skills towards reading but I was looking for some fun new ideas and found Rock ‘n Learn.

From the Website:

Rock 'N Learn, Inc. began as an idea that would help children learn by putting educational material to music with a current sound-the kind of music that kids enjoy and find motivating. Rock 'N Learn programs help students learn math, phonics, reading, early childhood, social studies, Spanish, test-taking strategies, writing, and science. Our DVDs incorporate cool music with exciting, colorful imagery.

For this review I decided on the Read Along Stories DVD from Rock ‘n Learn. I wanted to get something that both of my girls could enjoy and at the same time something that would help my daughter increase in her reading skills. I love that the Read Along Stories DVD contains four well known stories which made it easier for my daughter to follow along. I loved that my daughters were able to follow along with the story right on the screen with the “bouncing ball” concept (there wasn’t actually a ball but the words were highlighted in yellow). I actually watched the DVD while my kids were at school with my two year old and read along with the stories and found her trying to copy the words I was saying. One of my two year olds favorite parts of the DVD was of course the songs! I like how the DVD has many different menu options so you don’t have to watch the entire thing but you can pick the individual story you’d like to read/watch or pick the song you’d like. After one story and one song my two year old wanted more songs! She was up and dancing on the coffee table. I really liked how the song wasn’t just a song but basically retold the entire story in a simplified song format that was catchy and upbeat.

Rock ‘n Learn also included some of their new ruler backed bookmarks in our package which my six year old loved! She has started reading chapter books and loves bookmarks so that definitely made her day!

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Buy It: You can purchase DVD’s from Rock ‘n Learn for only $19.99 but they also sell Book and CD combos for only $12.99 and replacement books for $3.00 (this is a nice feature in case your book gets worn out or lost).

Do you a discount? Of course you do! Use this coupon code JQ7711 (continental U.S. residents only) and you will receive 25% off your entire purchase!

Win It: Rock ‘n Learn has offered one of my readers their choice of DVD or Book and CD combo!

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 8th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Rock ‘n Learn. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Pür Minerals {Review & Giveaway}

Mineral makeup has become very popular. I discovered it about six months ago and have been trying different brands to find one that I really love. I had heard a little bit about Pür Minerals and decided to contact them and they were very happy to send me one of their Starter Kits for review. The starter kit came with

- 4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Makeup SPF 15

- Mineral Glow

- Universal Marble Powder- Pink

- Chisel Makeup Brush

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I don’t wear very much makeup but the 4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Makeup has become a must in my morning routine! I love that it feels light but gives great coverage. I really hate that whole caked on makeup look that you can find with most foundations, especially liquid ones.

I was a little unsure about which color to get because I think light is a little too light for me but I didn’t want the pink tones in the Medium Blush color and my skin isn’t quite olive enough for the Golden Medium color. The Mineral Glow was the perfect addition to the light colored Pressed Mineral Makeup because it gave it that extra little bit my skin needed for the perfect color! Then I topped it off with a light brush of the Pink Marble Powder across on my cheeks.

It literally took about 60 seconds to complete the entire three step process. If you’re a full makeup kind of girl the just add some eyeliner, eye shadow, mascara and lipstick and you’re out the door in only a few minutes.

I thing I love most about this kit is that it gives you a totally natural look so if you want to look as if you don't have any make up on and just have great skin and an even skin tone that is nice and smooth, you can!

From the Company:

This Pür Minerals mineral makeup starter kit is pür-fectly packaged and portable! These travel sizes of our most popular mineral makeup products will be the bait to get you hooked on Pür Minerals! Once you have experienced the beauty of mineral makeup, you will never go back to traditional cosmetics.
This exceptionally priced mineral makeup kit includes:

  • 4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Makeup (.15oz): The cornerstone of Pür Minerals, this one-minute mineral makeup miracle is your mineral foundation, powder, concealer and SPF protection all in one neat makeup compact. Completely free of oil, alcohol, fragrances, preservatives and chemical dyes, this mineral foundation is actually good for your skin!
  • Mineral Glow (.12oz): A touch of sun in a makeup compact, this mineral powder will impart a natural, sun-kissed glow to your skin.
  • Universal Marble Powder (.10oz/3g): Give your skin back that rosy glow you were born with. Porcelain through Tan Start Now kits come with Marble Powder in Pink. Medium Dark through Deepest include Marble Powder in Spice. This multi-purpose mineral makeup can be worn on your eyes, lips and cheeks.
  • The Chisel Makeup Brush: The magic behind the mineral makeup look! The only makeup brush to use for application of your 4-in-1 Mineral Makeup, it provides maximum coverage and an amazingly smooth finish.

Buy It: You can purchase the Starter Kit for $37.00

Win It: Pür Minerals has offered one of my readers a Starter Kit!

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 7th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Pür Minerals. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Pillsbury “Love the Pie” {Giveaway}

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I love baking! Especially in the fall and winter months because there are so many great holidays that allow me the excuse to make all those yummy treats with extra calories. Luckily my husband usually takes everything to work with him so I get my taste of all the different treats I love and then he takes the rest from the house so I don’t sit and eat an entire pie or an entire plate of cookies. In the fall I really enjoy baking with apples! When I was offered the opportunity to participate in the Pillsbury “Love the Pie” promotion I was excited to hear it was all about apples and pie! Pillsbury and My Blog Spark sent me some really awesome apple themed goodies to help me make a pie!

We actually have a couple of apple trees in our yard that don’t yield very much or very large fruit but we have a really great neighbor friend up the road who showed up at our door with a bag of apples from their trees, her timing was perfect!

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Of course my kids had to get in the kitchen and help!

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The crust is my least favorite part of making pie so I was extremely grateful for the free coupon I was sent for a package of Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust.

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If you are planning on pies for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday or just to celebrate the Fall season be sure to go HERE and grab a $.50 off coupon for Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust.

We decide to make the Perfect Apple Pie receipt that can be found here on Pillsbury’s site or on the side of the refrigerated pie crust box. Then we of course ate it with vanilla ice cream and drizzled some caramel butterscotch sauce on top!

For even more delicious pie ideas throughout the year you can visit Pillsbury.com/pie for fun and easy recipes to satisfy every season!

You can share photos and recipes of your own with other pie lovers on Pillsbury Love the Pie Facebook Fan Page or Follow Love the Pie on Twitter.

Win It: One reader will win a Pillsbury Love the Pie Prize Pack!

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 6th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: I was sent information and product free of charge provided by Pillsbury through MyBlogSpark to review and giveaway but was not compensated monetarily.

Little One Books {Review & Giveaway}

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Little One Books has a wonderful variety of books,music and video for children from birth through age five! I love that their site is broken up into age sections. This feature makes purchasing a gift someone really easy! I generally have a pretty hard time to trying to figure out what books should go with what age range because my oldest daughter is reading about two grade levels ahead of what is normal.

Thanks to Little One Books my daughters received the Eloise Collection (Volume One) on DVD. They have quite a few books so I decided on the DVD set. The DVD set came with three individual DVD’s in their own cases, Me, Eloise, Eloise in Hollywood, and Eloise in Springtime. (The girls have actually seen Eloise in Hollywood before because we borrowed it from the library so I knew they’d loved the rest!) Retail Value $24.98- great bundle price since the DVD’s separately sell for $14.8 each.

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From the Website:

Eloise comes to animated life in this delightful and hilarious adventure of The Plaza's most famous six-year old. It's Eloise's sixth birthday and she's planning the most special party ever! Everything is going just right until a new girl - a young Japanese violin prodigy named Yuko shows up and steals all of the attention. Eloise decides it is her job to show Yuko just how fun the Plaza can be. The two new friends take off on a "rawther" extraordinary adventure that takes a surprising turn and they almost miss the big day! Imagination runs wild and being bored is never allowed in this adventure featuring the talented voices of Lynn Redgrave as Nanny and Tim Curry as Mr. Salamone!

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Winter is over in New York City and Nanny is going on a much-needed vacation. Eloise's temporary nanny - the young, hip and beautiful Nicole shows Eloise an exciting, artsy side of New York City she knew nothing about. They have a lot of fun together until Nicole starts spending too much time with Bill, Eloise’s favorite Plaza employee. She must overcome her jealousy and learn an important lesson about love and friendship. Featuring Mary Matilyn Mouser as Eloise and Lynn Redgrave as the Nanny.

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A big time movie producer invites Eloise and Nanny to Hollywood, and the Plaza Hotel's most famous six-year-old is instantly overcome by visions of overnight stardom and red-carpet premieres. When Eloise arrives in Tinseltown only to be asked to audition for a role in a major studio film, she thinks her glamorous dreams may actually be coming true. It's an adventure full of famous actors, crazy directors and behind the scenes fun. But Eloise soon discovers making a movie isn't always as exciting as it seems. Will she be able to pull off her secret plan to stop from becoming a huge Hollywood star and go back to being just plain fabulous Eloise? Imagination runs wild and being bored is never allowed in this fun-filled animated adventure featuring the talented voices of Lynn Redgrave, Tim Curry, Cynthia Nixon, Lacey Chabert and more!

Little One Books has a team of professionals that have personally reviewed and selected each and every item in the store and you can even read as to why they chose each particular product in the “Why We Chose” section on each product page. Each product is matched to what they feel is the youngest appropriate age group so while the Eloise Collection of videos was marked in the 4 year old category that doesn’t mean that my 5 and 6 year old won’t love them!

Little One Books is your one stop shop for your upcoming holiday shopping! I believe that books, music and videos can make some of the best gifts and they’ve taken most of the hard work out of the selection process for you so head on over to Little One Books and take a look at all their great products without even having to step foot in a bookstore.

Buy It: You can buy the Eloise Collection (Volume One) on DVD and many other great products from Little One Books.

Do you want a discount? Little One Books is offering FREE shipping on all orders through November 15th!

Win It: Little One Books has offered one of my readers a $25 gift certificate!!

You must be a Google follower of my blog to enter.

Mandatory Entry: Visit Little One Books and leave a comment letting me know what you’d purchase if you win!

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You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 6th at 11:59 PM (CST). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Little One Books. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Friday, October 22, 2010

$25 Visa Gift Card & Date Night Dinners {Giveaway} CLOSED



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Do you remember your first date with your spouse, significant other or boyfriend/girlfriend? While my husband and I disagree on what was actually our first date we can both recall pretty easily what we think they are :). I wasn’t able to find a picture of us on a date because we didn’t have a digital camera but I did find one us that was taken by my parents on their digital camera when we first stated dating.

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This was only 7 1/2 years ago but I think we both look so young! I suppose having three kids can make you feel and look old.

These days with three kids and a hectic schedule it’s sometimes really hard to find the opportunity to have a real date night and often we find ourselves sitting down to watch a movie after all the kids have been put to bed, which can be really late. Well tonight is Friday night and here we are sitting at home again. I did however receive an offer from MyBlogSpark today that was their Date Night at Home Wanchai Ferry and Macaroni Grill dinner packs. So we decided to go ahead and make a nice dinner and at least try to enjoy that (even if the kids were in the next room).

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Can you even believe that these two pictures are even the same people?

I love to cook but on a Friday evening after a long week I’m most of the time too burnt out to want to cook. I loved the ease and short amount of prep and cooking time involved in both of these box dinners. They both came with most everything you need except for the chicken and a couple little things like butter, milk and oil. The result was a meal that’s almost as good as a dish you would order at a restaurant and the entire family enjoyed it! I will say that the Wanchai Ferry Orange Chicken and the Macaroni Grill Creamy Basil Chicken Pasta was a little bit odd together because they are two different tastes but they both sounded really good so I didn’t mind and it gave us some options to choose from because my husband doesn’t like rice. So while we didn’t get to fully enjoy a nice date night together just the two of us without kids I’m hoping that the Visa gift card we still have will help us make that happen on another night.

Win It: I’m am excited to say that one of my reader’s has the opportunity to win this same prize pack we received! Boxed dinner kits from Wanchai Ferry and Macaroni Grill and a $25 Visa Gift Card!

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment with your best tip for having a fun date night at home! (You must be a follower of my blog to enter this giveaway.)

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You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 5th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: I was sent product free of charge provided by Wanchai Ferry and Macaroni Grill through MyBlogSpark to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Whirl-a-Style {Review & Giveaway} CLOSED

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Do you have an “on the go” lifestyle or find yourself wearing the same boring ponytail?

The Whirl-a-Style is said to be great for:

-Athletics, Dance, Gymnastics, Cheerleading, Ice Skating, Equestrian Women,

-Women in uniform markets including Flight Attendants, Military, Police & Fire Fighters, Hospital Personnel and Food & Restaurant workers

I don’t typically fit into any of those categories but I think a Mom can definitely be an “On the Go” lifestyle. As I find myself always running in each different direction trying to get kids ready to go and by the time I’m done I’m worn out and my hair is thrown up in a boring ponytail and I find myself in the same fashion/beauty rut each and every day. The Whirl-a-Style I think can be a more fashionable way for me to easily wear my hair. It only took me about 30 seconds to get it all put together and didn’t require a whole bunch of bobby pins or clips.

It also looked SUPER cute on my daughter (picture above). She kept it in her hair for about 2 hours and finally asked me to take it out because she was getting ready for bed. With all the running around she had done and playing it didn’t look like it was falling out at all. My older six year old daughter wore it to school the next day and I was sure it was going to be falling out or taken out by the time she got home, but I was surprised to find it still intact and her hair still looked lovely! (She’s my daughter who always takes her hair out at school, she’ll start the morning off with a ponytail or braids and when she comes home they’re gone.)

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From the Company:

Each Whirl-a-Style Hairstyler device has a special slit through the center of the product where the hair is pulled, then rolled and styled as desired. Its simple, unique design does not pull hair or add weight to the head, both of which have been known to cause discomfort and headaches with other products.Whirl-a-Style Hairstylers are made from a synthetic material which grips the hair without tangling it.

The Whirl-a-Style comes in five different sizes:

Mini: Brilliant for the more edgy, urban look.

  • Small: Fantastic for smaller decorative buns and trendy knots or twists or shorter length.

  • Jumbo medium: For medium or shoulder length hair, thick or thin.

  • Large: For traditional looks like a French Twist or traditional bun for long or medium length.

  • Jumbo large: For especially long or thick course hair

Buy It: You can purchase the Whilr-a-Style for $9-10 (depending on size).

Win It: Whirl-a-Style has offered one of my readers the chance to win one of these great hair products!

Mandatory Entry: Follow my blog via Google Friend Connect (found on the sidebar), and leave a comment here stating that you’re a follower.

Be sure to leave your email address in each comment so that I have a way to contact you if you win! Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 5th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Whirl-a-Style. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

All Things Girly {Review & Giveaway}

All Things Girly is a shop I found on Etsy that I would refer to as a hidden gem! The majority of their products are hair bows but they also have a couple of really cute tutus. The thing I love is that you can also request that All Things Girly make you a custom item and with the talent of the products listed you can expect a high quality bow!

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I have three little girls who are all very girly and love all hair bows and accessories. Katie at All Things Girly so kindly sent me the adorable Ladybug Baby Clip and a large Ladybug Bow. My two year old who loves all bugs was ecstatic to see the little ladybug clip, but she won’t let me put it in her hair because she wants to just carry it around looking at it. My six year old came home from school and I noticed she was wearing a red shirt so the larger bow fit her outfit perfectly! I’ve seen quite a few bow shops on Etsy but think the quality of items from All Things Girly and the great price makes this a shop you won’t want to pass by!

Buy It: You can find these cute bows at All Things Girly. (The Ladybug Baby Clip is only $2)

Win It: All Things Girly has offered one of my readers their White & Black Bat Hairbow- perfect for Halloween!

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You must be a follower of my blog to enter this giveaway.

Mandatory Entry: Head over to All Things Girly and leave a comment here letting me know which one item in their shop you like the best!

Be sure to leave your email address in each comment so that I have a way to contact you if you win! Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

Extra Entries:

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 4th at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of All Things Girly. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Mod Mum Baby Slings {Review & Giveaway} CLOSED

I know there are quite a few different baby slings out there but I was highly impressed when I found Mod Mum’s Baby Slings. I loved their website!

Mod Mum sent me the Jane Reversible Baby Sling to review.

Baby Sling Pouch Jane Small_th[2] Baby Sling Reversible Jane Small[2]

I've tried slings before but never have seen such a comprehensive website. It's aesthetically pleasing but also is so good at teaching you how to wear the sling and use it properly. They have some really great how-to instructions and videos that really helped. I had to look at the video a couple of times to get it right, and my newborn was not happy when I first tried putting her in but once I got her comfortably put in it she went right to sleep!

I couldn't believe it! This little one is most comfortable when she's sleeping on one of us. It is nice bonding time but makes it difficult to get anything done, especially with a two year old around. The sling makes it possible to have that bonding time while still having both hands free to get my laundry and dishes done and even to (gasp!) eat breakfast. :) I love it love it love it!

Baby Sling Infant Lily Small[2]

Pros:

  • - So comfortable that baby can sleep in it
  • - Allows you two free hands to get things done
  • - Great fabric colors and patterns
  • - High Quality Material

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Mod Mum also has some really great SALE prices available right now where you can purchase one of their slings anywhere from $15-$49 (the Organic Baby Slings normally priced at $74 are marked down to $49!)

(I originally thought I’d review this with my 2 year old daughter because she is always wanting to be held. Which in turn means I don’t have my hands free to get anything done. She fit in the weight categories for the hip carry with Mod Mum’s sling but she didn’t like it- it may have just been the time of the day or she was distracted and wanted to play, not be held but I decided to pass this on to my very good friend who has a newborn to let her review it.)

Buy It: You can purchase Mod Mum’s baby slings on their website anywhere from $15-$64.

Win It: Mod Mum has offered one of my readers their choice of baby sling.

You must be a Google follower of my blog to enter.

Mandatory Entry: Visit Mod Mum and leave a comment letting me know which baby sling you’d love to have!

Be sure to leave your email address in each comment so that I have a way to contact you if you win! Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

Extra Entries:

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Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 3rd at 11:59 PM (CST). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Mod Mum. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Orglamix Organic Mineral Makeup {Review & Giveaway} CLOSED

I’m not the kind of person who wears a lot of makeup so when I discovered mineral makeup about 6 months ago I was excited because I felt like it gave me the coverage I wanted without feeling weighty or looking like I had a ton of makeup on. I’ve tried a few different brands and companies. Recently I have been seeing reviews for Orglamix around the blog world and just had to try it!

Cheri was so kind to send me three of the Mineral Eye Shadows, Vanilla Birthday Cake, Sandalwood and Acai. Vanilla Birthday Cake and Sandalwood are generally colors I am more likely to wear but the Acai was definitely a bold experiment. When I received the eye shadow they are were nicely packaged in a cute little green drawstring bag and my package had a nice light perfumed smell. Luckily I have brushes that I’ve used for mineral makeup but Orglamix also sells a wide range of individual brushes and brush kits. The Vanilla Birthday Cake color and Sandalwood color were exactly what I expected but I was surprisingly pleased with the Acai. With mineral makeup I feel like you can put it on as light or as dark as you want much easier then regular makeup. This was definitely true with the Acai Mineral Eye color! I was able to wear it to the perfect shad I wanted without it being too bold because while I think it looks great in the pictures I just don’t think it would fit my style and personality very well.

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I love that Orglamix Mineral Eye colors are sparkly! My little girls can wear sparkle and glitter and now I feel like I can get away with it. I was actually doing my girl’s hair and makeup the other day for a Halloween party and my husband jokingly said, “Why don’t you ever dress up like a princess.” I just laughed at him- well now I can without looking silly. These eye shadows give me just the right amount of princess!

Orglamix also has a Weekly Special section where one of their Mineral Eye colors is currently featured for only $2.50 as the color of the week (currently it is Cilantro). Which makes it half the price!

About the Company:

The finest ingredients nature has to offer and products made with love are at the heart of Orglamix. Founded in a kitchen in Chicago, IL, creator Cheri Tracy’s homemade concoctions have become staples in makeup bags worldwide. Professionals, celebrities, and makeup junkies swoon for the wide array of shades and unique finishes to suit every mood: sparkle, shimmer, duochrome or metallic. In a very short amount of time, Orglamix has built up a cult following by providing the most luxurious products, all made from the heart- naturally. Powerful yet pampering, Orglamix delivers an organic and glamorous mix that’s the ultimate in natural luxury.

Buy It: The Mineral Eye Shadows are only $4.99 each with a shipping cost of $2.95 for the first item and only $0.60 for any additional!

Win It: Orglamix has offered one of my readers any 3 color combinations from the following formulas: Pure Organic Mineral Eye, Blush, Glow, Foundation or Color Corrector. (Mix and Match)

You must be a Google follower of my blog to enter.

Mandatory Entry: Visit Orglamix and leave a comment letting me know something you’d love to have!

Be sure to leave your email address in each comment so that I have a way to contact you if you win! Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

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(When Tweeting please use @bethwillis01 and #Orglamix)

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Giveaway is open Worldwide (international shipping included). Ends November 2nd at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Orglamix. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Pink Princess {Review & Giveaway} CLOSED

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I’m a mom of three little girls and grew up as the oldest of 6 girls and only 1 boy and I love to dress my little girls up in all kinds of girly things with matching accessories and yes I’m that mom who will be caught with kids in matching outfits, especially when it comes to dresses.

When I was offered a review opportunity from Pink Princess I had a really hard time deciding what to get. We had just purchased the girl’s holiday dresses and while I fully believe that little girls can never have too many dresses I had a hard time choosing which one of my girls would be the recipient of something beautiful from Pink Princess, not to mention Pink Princess has about a million different items in their store so that made it even harder.

My five year old had the time of her life looking through all the beautiful Holiday Dresses but I think her favorites were the Flower Girl Dresses- she just loved all the really formal looking ones. I finally ended up getting the Black Fleece Swing Holiday Coat for my six year old because it’s starting to get a little cooler and she’s the only one of my girls who’s grown out of everything and never has anything nice to wear to church to keep her warm.

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I had kept the coat a surprise for my daughter so when it arrived she was ecstatic! I have a black coat that I wear each Sunday to church that’s similar looking and she thought it was very cool to have a coat just like mom’s. She loved how soft and fuzzy it was and I loved that the material felt like top quality that would last- but my favorite part- it’s machine washable!!! Those of you with little kids will know how very important it is to have machine washable clothes and it’s especially hard to come by in dress clothes.

About Pink Princess:

“Our company has been in the children’s clothing business for over three decades, spanning the entire spectrum of kids’ apparel, from casual play wear to black tie formal wear. In the early nineties, in response to very high customer demand for formal wear, we shifted our focus to the special occasions market. A decade later, we are now an industry leader in both girl dresses and boy’s formal wear, with flower girl and pageant dresses amongst our biggest sellers. Naturally, with the establishment of Web commerce, we took our business online, where we now share our beautiful little girl dresses and little boy suits with the entire world.”

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And for those of you with little boys in your life they have some of the most charming suits, Boys Formal items and accessories.

Pink Princess offers FREE Shipping and FREE Returns on all apparel.

Ships Same Day when you order by 4pm EST.

You can also use this code TENOFF125 to receive 10% off any order over $125.

Buy It: You can purchase the Black Fleece Swing Holiday Coat that my daughter received for $41.99.

Win It: Pink Princess has offered one of my readers a $15 Gift Certificate!

You must be a Google follower of my blog to enter.

Mandatory Entry: Visit Pink Princess and leave a comment letting me know something you’d love to have!

Be sure to leave your email address in each comment so that I have a way to contact you if you win! Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

You must complete the Mandatory Entry before you can complete any additional entries.

Extra Entries:

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6. Put my button on your blog (3 Entries)

7. Follow me via Networked Blogs (1 Entry)

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9. Enter another one of my current giveaways (1 Entry per giveaway)

10. Write about this giveaway on your blog and link it back here to this giveaway post and leave the URL directly to your post in a comment. (3 Entries)

11. Subscribe via Email (3 Entries)

Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Ends November 1st at 11:59 PM (PDT). A winner will be chosen using random.org and notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond after contacted by email. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: This review is based on my own honest unbiased opinion of Pink Princess. I was sent product free of charge to review but was not compensated monetarily.