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.

Follow Friday (Take 2) :)

Friday Follow Again!

Catch what USA Today said about Babies, the new movie premiering Mother's Day

Ficklets and Adorable Baby Clothing for Easter & Every Day

As Easter approaches, I can't help but think what a wonderful day to dress up and embrace all that Easter stands for.  Whether you are going on an Easter egg hunt, a family function or church, getting dressed up is fun.  This post is focusing on two of my favorite mompreneurs:  Ficklets and Adorable Baby Clothing.

FICKLETS:

If you are looking for cute Easter bag stuffers, check out the great selection from Ficklets.  They are perfect for your little one's glasses and come in over 100 varieties.  If your children don't like wearing glasses, they might have a new way of thinking about them after they get to put these little adorable charm huggers on them.

Ficklets are becoming the greatest invention for kid's eyeglasses since they give them the ability to personalize without breaking the bank.  They are interchangeable and easy to wear, inexpensive to buy and will make your little one happy.  My niece loves her Ficklets.

Ficklet's inventor, Ros Guerrero, came up with this great idea as she tried to meet the needs of her beautiful daughter, Gem.  The word "ficklet" means to change a lot hence the wonderful creation of Ficklets was born.  You can read more here.  Ficklets is not only innovative in the idea and creation of Ficklets but Ros is the most compassionate, caring person I've met.  She provides wonderful customer service and is hands on.

Ficklets is becoming international hit too:

“I’ve quickly learned that eyeglass charms transcend style and cultural differences because I’m seeing orders pour in from customers around the world, including the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Venezuela, Dubai, Ireland and Russia,” says Guerrero. “This means children of any nationality are able to feel more confident when wearing their eyeglasses. The future is wide open for Ficklets.”

Whether you want something different for Easter or have a little one that wears glasses, you should check out http://www.ficklets.com/ as there is something for both boys and girls.

How to Train Your Dragon Special Friday Screening

Paramount teamed up with TwitterMoms to tell all you moms about a special morning screening this Friday for How to Train Your Dragon.

From the studio that brought you “Shrek,” “Madagascar” and “Kung Fu Panda” comes “How to Train Your Dragon.” Set in the mythical world of burly Vikings and wild dragons, and based on the book by Cressida Cowell, the action comedy tells the story of Hiccup, a Viking teenager who doesn’t exactly fit in with his tribe’s longstanding tradition of heroic dragon slayers. Hiccup’s world is turned upside down when he encounters a dragon that challenges him and his fellow Vikings to see the world from an entirely different point of view.


DreamWorks Animation's “How to Train Your Dragon” was produced by Bonnie Arnold and directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois. Rated PG.


Get Tickets to How to Train Your Dragon Online!Visit the Official How to Train Your Dragon Site  

Meaningful Beauty, CellCeuticals & ProActive: Do They Work?

I've used so many different products to prevent aging and there are a few I haven't tried yet.  I got a big boost the other day when I went to the grocery story my daughter works at with her and the cashier and bagger both asked her "is that your older sister?"  Talk about heaven!  It was as if Gerard Butler was before me with a box of Godiva chocolates in the near buff.  Okay ... it wasn't exactly that good but it's as good as it's going to get!

You name it, I've probably tried it.  There is on informercial that intrigues me and it's Cindy Crawford's Meaningfulbeauty.  The infomercial discusses her plight to find the right beauty regiment and how long she's been using the products created by the person behind Meaningfulbeauty.  It all seems logical as she does look AMAZING!

I'm curious if anyone has tried it and the results?

One of my past favorites was CellCeuticals but I have since moved on.  With CellCeuticals, as I was just reminded via a comment on my other blog, it doesn't help at all with acne.  The poster noted how her acne was horrible and quit using it.  The one thing I noted from my experiences with CellCeuticals and to date, any other beauty product, is my continued use of Proactiv. 

    If you have acne, is there another product you prefer?

 
   

Gilt's Special: Ore Originals Children's Eating Sets - Ends 3/29 at Noon

Look at the cute sets of children's eating trays I bought.  You get all four pieces for only $10!  They have a ton of other great products on sale at Gilt for kids along with amazing looking chocolate!

I didn't buy one of these but it was tempting as they had so many to choose from and were on sale from $60 and $70:

Want to get some or check out the other great sales?  Click here.

Chocomize for Easter & Special

You still have time to order some customized chocolate from Chocomize!  Chocomize is not your ordinary chocolate and definitely the same ol' Easter candy you are use to.   You still have time to order by March 29th for delivery in time for Easter.

I was able to try out Chocomize for Valentine's Day and they are a unique company started by three young entreprenuers.  The idea is unique in that you can customize your chocolate with a huge array of choices.

Right now, they've even added some special ingredients for Easter so check them out!

SPECIAL:  Until March 29th they are offering a 20% discount on the special Easter bar featured in their favorites section.


Chocomize is also running a golden ticket special.  One final randomly chosen winner will receive it and will get the chocolate of the month club membership for three months!


*Disclaimer: I received no compensation for this post.  I like Chocomize :)

Everybody Loves Babies: Premiering Mother's Day Weekend

As part of my participation with BzzAgent, I'm spreading the word about a new movie coming out that is near and dear to parents and especially moms.  Everyone loves babies but what about watching the story of four babies at once?  When I watched the trailer, my computer became an instant magnet with all my kids running over to see it and of course, we didn't just watch it once!

Get ready for a visually stunning and joyful new film that simultaneously chronicles the lives of four of the world's newest inhabitants in Mongolia, Namibia, San Francisco and Toyko.   The film will cover first breaths to first steps all at once.  This unique movie will premier in theaters Mother's Day weekend. 

This really looks like a touching movie about life and also about cultural differences.  I watched in amazement at the stark differences in the lives of some of these babies as well as noticed how similar they are.  You'll see what I mean at the beginning of the trailer with the two little ones playing and what transpires!

To see more, check out the preview now:




*Disclaimer:  I'm participating in the BzzAgent's Babies Ambassador program whereas I may receive a prize for participating.  I have not received any compensation for this post.