Blink of an eye

     Well I attempted to resurrect my blog a while back, which I just realized was 4 years ago. Life has been so busy, I was working and I was always on the go. Last week we made the decision as a family that I would put in my notice at work. Friday was my last day. Bittersweet because I will miss my favorite customers (cook/server) but I am glad to be able to focus my time to getting my family on track. There was never enough time.
 

     The  reason for the decision was to be able to homeschool my daughter Piper. She is an amazing sweet, funny, energetic 11 year old girl now. In the spring we got the diagnosis that we have been waiting for. She has autism. She is high functioning and unless you are with her a lot you wouldn't be able to tell. She gets overwhelmed easy and needs to take a break. She has times when it comes out as anger or crying. She was having a bad time with peers and and staying focused in class. Also having OCD doesn't help. My days now revolve around giving her the best learning environment for her and being here to help her deal with the pressures of 6th grade online schooling. I will get into it more later but for now I am here, whether anyone reads this or not :) I know I will go stir crazy so I want to get back to what I love. Creating and blogging :) It will make the days go by a little better :)

To Blog or not to Blog...

Hello all it has been a long time... It has been almost a year since I have posted here. Life happens. Family issues, time, kids, stuff happens. I am really wanting to get back to what I enjoy. Do I have any of you left out there? I would like to get back to daily blogging and doing reviews. If you read this can you please leave me a comment to show me that I still have some of you there :) We are in a new house in a new town,and are now the proud caretakers of 11 chickens!



We have also adopted 2 loveable 3 year old puggles named Jacob and Bella (lol)

Our girls are growing like weeds! Piper isn't a baby anymore :( Paige is blossoming into a beautiful pre-teen (and has the attitude that goes with it) 

We learned recently that Piper needed glasses. She likes that she has 2 pair so she can alternate between her 2 favorite colors... pink and purple.

 During the big thaw we had last month we took the chance to go outside and get dirty and play in the chicken coop too. We are loving the country life!

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey presents DRAGONS in Youngstown, Oh... giveaway and discount codes

My children love the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus shows and they will be having a wonderful time again this year when we go to see DRAGONS! It is an amazing family experience and everyone young or old can enjoy it!

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey presents DRAGONS is coming to the Covelli Centre in Youngstown, OH March 30-April 2, 2012.

Friday, March 30, 7 p.m.

Saturday, March 31, 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Sunday, April 1, 11 a.m. 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Monday, April 2, 7 p.m.

Don't forget to attend the pre-show an hour before showtime to meet some of the stars and participate in some circus tricks!

Who wants a discount?

To take advantage of this great discount, click here and use the code MOM6 online or by phone at 1-800-745-3000 and save $6 in advance!!!

No double discounts (not valid on top of the Opening Night or Kid’s discounts). Limit 6 per transaction. Valid now through 3/29/12. “Enter offer code/password” and please unselect “Kids/Youth Ticket” in the Ticket Options box in order for code to work)

To take advantage of another great discount, click here  and use the code MOM3 online or by phone at 1-800-745-3000 and save $3 day of show!!!

No double discounts (not valid on top of the Opening Night or Kid’s discounts). Limit 6 per transaction. Valid 3/30/12-4/2/12 “Enter offer code/password” and please unselect “Kids/Youth Ticket” in the Ticket Options box in order for code to work)

"DRAGONS is a once in a millennium event that honors The Year of the Dragon. Circus performers from the farthest reaches of the earth have assembled for Ringling Bros.^® Presents Dragons to showcase their astounding acts of bravery and astonishing athleticism. Ringling Bros. Ringmaster Johnathan Lee Iverson presides over this fantastical celebratory tournament of circus champions that brings together mystic dragon lore with authentic circus feats. Dragons is a never-before-seen blend of renowned spiritual and real life legends that can be found only at The Greatest Show On Earth^®!"

Kidlandia Review and $50 Giveaway

Now a days it is hard to find something for your kids that is not the same as all of their friends. I was delighted when I was offered a chance to try out the personalized experience at Kidlandia.com. There are many different items to choose from that you can customize. Choose from Disney Princess, Spongebob, Cars, and even their own magical creatures.

The fist item I made was a family map. I imputed all of the names of our family and their site created a custom treasure map with places and kreatures (that is how they spell it) named after us.

Here is a close up view...

I love it! I am going to have it framed so I can hang it with our family photos. 

I chose 3 custom placemats also. 1 for a gift for a friend's son and 2 for my girls. You can put as many names as you would like in to have them show up in the design. 

Piper's is Disney Princess and it is titled the Ocean of Princess Piper and her birthday is the national Holiday. 

Paige is more a a Spongebob Squarepants type a girl. They are laminated and very sturdy.

How cool is this Pixar Cars placemat from my friend's son? I added in his mom, dad, and sister. He absolutely loves it!

I have been looking at a few more things I know Piper would love for her birthday in March. Check them out online or on Facebook.

How would you like to spend $50 on whatever you wanted on Kidlandia.com? Follow the directions below to enter...

*I was provided this product free of charge for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed are my own and in no way influenced by the sponsors* 

Zhu-Zhu Pets Babies Review and Giveaway

My girls LOVE Zhu-Zhu pets! They love the pets and how they interact with the house and the different sounds they make. I was sent a new selection of them to test out.

Have you seen the Zhu-Zhu babies yet? They are the cutest little things! They come with accessories and a blanket to snuggle them up with.

 They work with the Patty Cake Preschool. It can be used alone or connected to the main house pieces. This is what we did.

"Watch in amazement as the mommy hamsters, energize the set, causing the baby hamsters to scoot around on the floor while the airplane spins and the TV set plays a silly movie! "

They were a welcome addition to our collection which is ever growing. They have a flocked fur that makes them nice and soft.  I am going to get the other 2 for the girls so they will have the whole set!

How would you like to win the same set I received?

The prize pack includes...  2 Zhu-Zhu pets, 2 Zhu-Zhu babies sets and the Patty Cake Preschool playset!  To enter the giveaway follow the directions below!

*I was provided this product free of charge for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed are my own and in no way influenced by the sponsors*

New England Coffee Review

Like I have said before I live on coffee. The amount of coffee drank in my house has now doubled now due to my mother in law moving in. Before that I was the only one and it didn't really matter what type I made because I had no one to share it with. It is nice to have someone else to drink it with. We love buying flavored creamers and testing them all out. I hadn't really given much thought to maybe using flavored coffee instead.

I was introduced to New England Coffee and now I am hooked. You have no idea how excited I was to open the box and find pumpkin spice coffee, I love anything and everything pumpkin spice flavor! My mother in law and I were very quick to brew our first pot. The aroma that filled my house was heavenly. We added only a touch of milk and sugar and the taste was wonderful. The whole pot was gone in a matter of an hour!

Now the second flavor we were sent was Eggnog. To be fair I do not like the taste of the real stuff so I was skeptical that I would like the coffee any different, but in the spirit of true product testing...I brewed some. Let me just say that neither of us will be putting this on our try again list. This is not to say that someone who likes the taste of said nog wouldn't like it.

All in all I would give New England Coffee a thumbs up and they have a quite a few flavors that I am interested in trying!

*I was provided this product free of charge for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed are my own and in no way influenced by the sponsors*

Petcakes Minis Review and Giveaway

It is no secret that we are Petcakes fans in this house. They are adorable and the kids love them. They have the series1 and series 2 pets. We were recently sent a set of the Series 1 collectible minis and they are a big hit!
They are super cute and the girls like that they are small like a lot of their other playset toys.

They have a soft "fur" that makes them loveable all the more! You can find them HERE. 

The great people at Well Made Toy have offered 1 of my readers their very own set of these adorable pets. To enter follow the directions below!

*I was provided this product free of charge for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed are my own and in no way influenced by the sponsors*

Slanket Review

We love to cuddle up in the living room and have movie night once or twice a week and there is always a fight over who gets which blanket between my girls.

I was very happy when I was sent a Slanket for kids for Paige to test out. She loves peace signs so it was easy picking the right one for her. She loves it!

They have a large selections of designs for everyone adults and kids! I saw one that would be perfect for my niece because she loves dinosaurs. It's called the Slankesaurus.

I have tried the "other" blanket with sleeves and I will say there is a big difference in the quality. The "other" one is kind of rough, short, and the sleeves are tight. Paige loves that she can eat popcorn or read a book while wearing her Slanket because the sleeves are roomy and it covers her whole body and keeps her snug as a bug in a rug (as she says) haha.

You can check them out online at TheSlanket.com or on facebook.

*I was provided product free of charge for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed are my own and in no way influenced by the sponsor*

Ultimate Nail Studio review and giveaway

My girls received this great set by Faber-Castell via Creativityforkids.com and I would like to share them with you!

What little girl doesn't love doing her nails? The Ultimate Nail Studio was a big hit for Paige! It comes with everything your little girl needs for a fabulous manicure! 


It includes a nail dryer, pedicure slippers, toe separators, 2
 press-on French manicure sets, nail art stickers, nail buffer and file, cotton balls, glitter, and 6 bottles of real nail polish in fun colors.Everything gets stored inside the spa bag. 


My favorite part is the nail dryer. My girls can never sit still long enough for their nails to dry so this is great!

 The great people at Creativity for Kids are offering one of my readers this very same set! Follow the directions below to enter!

Disney On Ice Mickey & Minnie’s Magical Journey Playing the Covelli Centre from December 15-18, 2011

My girls love the Disney Princesses and I loved seeing their faces light up last year when we went to Disney on Ice "Princess Wishes". This month we will be going again but this time the theme is "Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey". I know Paige will love seeing Lilo and Stitch, and Piper is a big fan of The Lion King. 

Make imagination your destination!  Join Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse on a journey into the magical worlds of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Peter Pan and Lilo & Stitch.  From Ariel’s enchanting undersea kingdom to Never Land with Peter Pan and his sassy fairy friend Tinker Bell, you’ll be captivated by the music, beauty and laughter in a journey so magical, you’ll never want to go home!

Save $8 in advance with CODE: FFA8

Restrictions: Valid at the Covelli Centre Box Office, online at www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 1-800-745-3000. No double discounts (not valid on top of the Opening Night or Kid’s discounts). Valid now through 12.14.2011.

Save $4 on day of show with CODE: FFA4

Restrictions: Valid at the Covelli Centre Box Office, online at www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 1-800-745-3000. No double discounts (not valid on top of the Opening Night or Kid’s discounts). Valid 12.15 – 12.18.2011.