Archive for the Category »giveaways and reviews «

21
May 2013

Old School: Braces Then, Invisalign Now

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Disclaimer: This post is sponsored, but the story and opinions are my own.

Did you have braces when you were a kid? I did not, but I probably needed them. Still do, in fact. But the last thing I want to deal with is a bunch of metal in my mouth at (almost) 40 years old. I bite the inside of my cheeks often enough as it is. I can only imagine how much worse it would be with braces.

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(Sugar Jones, getting her 80s on.)

So when I originally heard about Invisalign, I really wanted to find out more about them. I thought they were way too expensive for me. I thought old school braces were my only really option. And then I heard that Invisalign was doing an educational event, so I went to check it out.

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(Rory knows something you don’t know.)

And I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Invisalign costs about the same as traditional braces, with fewer office visits. Oh, and none of those broken wire emergency visits, either. Once I was on a fishing trip with a bunch of friends, and we were out for at least an overnight trip. And yes, one of the passengers (a good friend) had braces. One of her wires CAME LOOSE and was poking her in the cheek. There was no chance of an emergency office visit. So I took some pliers and put the wire back in the bracket for her. ON A BOAT. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN. No lie.

And people wonder why I am certain I’ll never get braces. THAT RIGHT THERE is why, y’all.

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(Gigi doesn’t like the thought of food stuck in her teeth. Or you taking a photo of her eating. You pick the right one.)

And yes, it’s a great option for teens, too. Oh how I wish this had been around for me when I was a teenager. But I’m glad it’s an option when my boys are older (I think my oldest is probably going to need help when he’s old enough). And if your kid loses a tray, it’s pretty easy to reorder one. I love that, as I have a feeling that’ll be important since I have two boys that already can’t remember where they put things. :)

Invisalign

(Nicole is recreating her teen look here. No need for headgear with Invisalign!)

And now that I have diet restrictions (I’m diabetic), it’s nice to know that I wouldn’t be even further restricted with Invisalign, because you can take the trays out while you eat. That is AWESOME.
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(Maggie and me – birthday sisters)

One important thing I learned is that not all dentists are certified Invisalign providers, so make sure you use the doctor locator to find a provider near you.

As I get older, I do think about how I’d love to get rid of the annoying overbite I have. I would love that so VERY much! So my next step is to find a provider near me and talk to them about payment plans. While it’s still not cheap, advances in technology are moving so fast that it’s getting more affordable. And doggone it, I need to take care of me once in a while. I think this is something I would be very happy doing for myself.

And if I do, I will let you know!

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25
Apr 2013

Xtreme Customz by Ridemakerz: It’s a hit!

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I had the chance to host MommyParties, sponsored by Ridemakerz Xtreme Customz. We hosted 10 boys and their moms for a fun car-themed party. And let me tell you, these “carz” were a huge hit.

xtreme customz by ridemakerz

I didn’t tell my son ahead of time that we were having a party or what it was about. He is mad about cars and I knew he’d beg me for days to open the box. So I waited to tell him the night before and it was almost too much for him to bear. :)

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Some of the boys were new friends, as I knew their moms but my son hadn’t met their sons. He was ecstatic. That’s him above.

All of the boys had a great time opening the boxes and assembling their Xtreme Customz cars. The target age range for these cars is 5-7 and I’d say that’s about right. The cars need some assembly: you snap the chassis into the body, add the tires & wheels & accessories. Some of the pieces are held in the package by clear little rubber bands, so keep that in mind when you open them.

Xtreme Customz

The cars are a little hard for your young one to assemble by themselves. They’re going to need some help getting everything out of the package and put together. And some models were easier than others were.

Once the boys got their cars together, it was nothing but car noises and races and crashes galore. They had a ball running all over our clubhouse with their Xtreme Customz. It was seriously loud with that many boys running around, but it was a good chaos. :)

boys playing with Xtreme Customz

The boys put them through the paces, crashing them off of the stairs and pool table, and even into each other. Although a piece would come off here & there, they easily popped them back on and kept going. I think only one small accessory broke (and that was during assembly) out of all of the cars. And these boys weren’t exactly gentle with their cars. :)

They played contentedly for at least 45 minutes — uninterrupted. And all the moms told me that their boys continued to play with their cars after they got home, too. That speaks to how cool these cars are. I think my son slept with his car for several nights after as well.

assembling Xtreme Customz

I’ve been a pretty big fan of Ridemakerz for a while already. I think we have 4 or 5 of their regular line of cars. These new Xtreme Customz are much smaller and start at a better price point – $9.99. You should be able to find them at Target and Toys R Us. (I even found them at Amazon.)

They were a big hit with all the boys. In fact, my almost 3-year-old has been trying to grab it and play with it, so I think there might be more Xtreme Customz in our future. Ridemakerz makes a good product. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to others. I may or may not have one (or two) of my own that the boys are NOT allowed to play with. Maybe. ;)

Full disclosure: We received a kit of 10 cars. All the boys got a car at no charge, and I was asked to post & share. I participated because I really like Ridemakerz. :)

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24
Oct 2012

Review: Graco SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40

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Last week I went to a #GracoSafety home party where I got to check out a SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40. I’ve been a fan of Graco for a long time. In fact, my oldest has a Graco car seat because it has the highest weight rating I could find for a 5-point harness seat: 65 lbs. And that’s a huge comfort considering my son was so big he outgrew his infant car seat way early – I wanted to make sure he didn’t outgrow this one before he hit four years old.

Which brings me back to the new SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40 – it is rear-facing up to 40 lbs. Oh, how I could have used that when my oldest was a wee babe! My youngest is still under 40 lbs. (and my back is so, so grateful for that as I put him in and out of his seat every morning), so he can fit in this seat – without getting scrunched.

You see, the base of this seat is adjustable, so your child can have additional legroom as s/he grows. So you have fewer worries about their knees being halfway to their chest. And it has a little footrest that they can put their tootsies on – great for protecting your seats from those toddler shoes.

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(Danielle & I inspecting the seat. Photo from SITS.)

What were we looking at? There’s an adjustment for the headrest, which also moves the straps. NO MORE RETHREADING STRAPS. Cue angel choirs singing – that is one of my least favorite things about car seats.

So why IS it a big deal that this seat can go from infant to two years old in rear-facing mode? Because the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children now stay rear facing until the age of two. And while I’ve seen seats that are rear-facing, I’ve never seen one that goes from infant all the way up to two that does that. And with the adjustable straps, you have an easy-to-use seat that will keep your kiddo in the safest position for them.

#GracoSafety(Closer view of the seat.)

And I love this seat so much that I’m giving it to a friend who has an infant (I think he’s close to 2 months old now) so she can be sure that he’s safe all the way up until he’s a toddler. She’s a first time mom and I’m hoping that it gives her one less thing to worry about. And since it’s from Graco, I feel confident that it’ll be reliable and comfortable for her precious little cargo.

 

The Graco SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40 – the first and only newborn to two-year infant car seat that actually grows with your baby from four pounds all the way up to 40 pounds. The car seat is designed for a parent on the go. The infant car seat can be easily removed from the base and used as a carrier when the infant is small, providing portability and convenience so you can easily move your infant in and out of the car without disturbing them.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently made the recommendation to keep all children in rear-facing car seats until the age of 2. Graco set out to make this product so parents can keep infants rear facing longer while still keeping them comfortable.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Graco. The opinions and text are all mine.

Category: giveaways and reviews  Tags: , , , ,  One Comment
03
Oct 2012

A review of Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender

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Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender
A Life in Pictures
by Sean O’Hagan
Publication Date: Oct. 16th, 2012

I recently received a review copy of the fantastic book pictured here. And I was super excited to see it arrive on my doorstep. Freddie Mercury is one of my favorite musical artists of all time. I grew up listening to Queen. One of the very first Homecoming games I ever went to had We Will Rock You as the theme. (I think we did We Are the Champions one year as well.) In fact, for many years I had the buttons they handed out with our mascot and the Homecoming theme written on it. Ahem. ANYWAY, did I mention how much I love Queen?

I have to admit that I had heard Bohemian Rhapsody for years and years. I liked it, of course, but I really got to know it all over again in Wayne’s World. Yep. I was in college (the first time) and a friend loved that movie so very much I think we watched it in the neighborhood of 25 times. Maybe more.

In the years to follow, I rediscovered so many Queen songs: You’re My Best Friend, Death on Two Legs, Killer Queen, Flash Gordon (yep, even saw the movie), I Want to Break Free, Another One Bites the Dust (ooh, wait, I think that was a Homecoming theme song, too!), Bicycle, Under Pressure, Fat Bottomed Girls…. Really, I could keep going.

When you first open the book, there’s a great history of Freddie Mercury and Queen. And I absolutely loved the section that talked about the amazing infectious qualities to Bohemian Rhapsody. (Another aside – I didn’t know who Scaramouche was until my college English Lit classes.) Some really good stuff.

And then, you reach the photos. So beautiful and touching. I was a little sad looking through them, it made me miss him and his music so much. But it is also a wonderful tribute to Freddie. There are some stunning photos in there, with bits and pieces of Freddie’s history woven throughout. I haven’t even gotten to the audio interviews yet, I’ve been so lost in the photographs.

If you are a fan of Freddie Mercury and / or Queen, I think you’ll really enjoy this book. It’s still sitting on my desk, waiting for me to flip through it again. It’s definitely a keeper.

[I have one very small quibble - the descriptions next to the photos are in a fairly small print. As my eyes get older (hey, I'm not OLD, old, but still, the 40 bus is about to hit me, okay?) I find it harder to read really small print. We're talking smaller than normal book print. So grab your reading glasses - you might need them. Not that we fans of Freddie are aging or anything. Not at all.]

For days after I first cracked it open, I thought about how much Queen’s music has been a part of my life. I even listened to a playlist that Sondra set up on Spotify, and fired up their rotation on my iPod. Bittersweet, but beautiful. As one of my friends commented on my photo of the book when I posted it to Facebook:

“Greatest Rock Voice Ever”

I think that says it all.

 

Disclosure: I received a review copy from the publisher, Insight Editions. Opinions are my own. Book link uses my Amazon affiliate account.

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13
Sep 2012

And the Hullabaloo winner is…

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Drum roll…

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Holy cow, Rory, that was YOUR comment! Emailing you now. Congrats!

And thanks to everyone who entered. We hope we’ll still see you there. Come say hi – I’ll be the mom with the frazzled look chasing two boys almost 5 and almost 2. (HA – see if you can spot me in a crowd of similar-looking [frazzled] moms. Go ahead.)

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08
Sep 2012

Giveaway: Hullabaloo Family Arts Festival

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I love family activities. I don’t think we do enough of them. Our work schedules are crazy and it’s hard to find that family time together, but I really want to. I want to build great family memories for our kids. Things they’ll sit around and laugh about when they’re older, but look back on fondly.

So I’m trying to find fun things to do with them (that involve more than our typical trips to the swap meet on the weekends). And I’m really looking forward to taking the boys to the Hullabaloo Family Arts Festival on the 22nd – especially since it’s right in our neighborhood! There will be music, food, dancing, a creativity zone, and even some authors reading their children’s books.

And to share the excitement, we’re going to give away some tickets.

Hullabaloo Family Arts Festival

Date: Saturday, September 22nd

Time:  11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Location:  Liberty Station NTC Promenade, also know as the North Promenade

Admission:  $7 per person; children under the age of 1 are free;  Family Pack of tickets:  $25 for up to five family members total (note: due to a technical snag with our ticket vendor, we are not able to offer the family-pack online. Families can purchase them the day of, or we will be selling them at a few of Steve’s shows in the next few weeks.)

But don’t worry, if you don’t win tickets, you can still buy online and skip the lines when you get there!

Oh, wait. I bet you want to know what you’ll win, don’t you? Well get ready, because it’s quite a package, and I might just be a little, teeny bit jealous. Maybe.

Each giveaway winner will receive:

- one Family Pack of tickets, good for up to 5 people (children under 1 year are free)
- A FREE copy of Hullabaloo’s newest CD, Raise a Ruckus!
- A Clif Kid goodie bag
- A free pass to Mon Petit Chateau, good for a one-day visit, up to three children (siblings only)
- one $50 gift card to Renewal By Andersen Windows
- 1 pass to Smart Kids Time, courtesy of SoCal Kids San Diego
-  1 family pass to the Marie Hitchcock Puppet Theatre, also courtesy of SoCal Kids San Diego
- $20 of babysitting services from Urban Sitter!

Giveaway winners will collect their giveaway prize when admitted to the festival- they will go through the will-call line.

And here are some of the great sponsors of the event; I hope that you’ll thank them if you go. I know I’ve been needing a sitter and have heard good things about Urban Sitter, so it’s high time I went and checked them out. (No affiliate or paid links here, people.)

Mon Petit Chateau: http://www.mpchateau.com/

Urban Sitter: https://www.urbansitter.com/

SoCal Kids SD: http://socalkidssandiego.com/

Renewal By Andersen: http://www.renewalbyandersen.com/

Dance to EvOLvE: http://dancetoevolve.com/dancetoevolve-home/

Okay, so you want the rules, I bet. It’s simple. Leave a comment to enter. I’ll use a random number generator to choose the winner. Contest ends at 9pm on next Wednesday the 12th. I need to have the names in by Friday, so if the winner doesn’t respond by Thursday, I’ll choose another. Sorry, I know that’s short turnaround, but I’ll do my best to reach the winner. Please confirm that you’ll be able to make the festival, as that’s where you’ll get all of the additional goodies. Ready? Go! We’ll see you there!

In return for the giveaway, we get entry into the festival. That’s it. It’s a cool event that we’re glad to see come to Liberty Station.

Category: giveaways and reviews  Tags:  9 Comments
12
Jul 2012

When I’m not here, I’m there

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I’ve been writing elsewhere a bit and wanted to share a couple of recent posts. I hope you enjoy, and please feel free to go over & leave a little comment love!

First, I went to Sonoma County for Travel Mamas, and wrote about my adventures there. Now I totally want to go on a romantic retreat with hubby.
Fun for couples along the Wine Road in Sonoma County

And then I wrote about my favorite social media management tool, Sprout Social, for Fandom Marketing. PS) There’s a t-shirt giveaway, so please go and enter!
How Sprout Social helps brands spread the love

Category: giveaways and reviews, other writing  Tags: , , , , , , , ,  2 Comments
17
May 2012

And the winner is…

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The winner of the Avenger’s giveaway is:

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Comment #3, Darlene. Congrats! I’ll contact you for further information.

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27
Apr 2012

MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS giveaway

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So, I don’t know about you, but I’m kindof a little teeny bit looking forward to a movie coming out next week. Maybe you’ve heard of it?

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(image courtesy of MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS)

And it might have a little bit to do with Tony Stark. Maybe, but I’m not telling. Okay, so it’s not *just* Iron Man. It’s all of the characters, brought together in one place. And I’m even a little partial to The Hulk. I grew up watching Bruce Banner on the TV show(even though it’s not exactly like the comic). You know, the one with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno? Yeah, that one. Reminds of when I was a kid. So I’m a little curious to see how the character is handled in this movie (no, I didn’t see the other movies that led up to THE AVENGERS, but now that they’re all coming together I wish I had).

Anywho, I think it’s going to be pretty cool. And even cooler, I get to give away some sweet AVENGERS gear. Here’s what’s up for grabs:

- MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS t-shirt in adult  sizes of S, M, L, XL
- MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS set of 6 buttons
- MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS one pair of limited edition 3D glasses

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I love those buttons. Want!

So here we go. Contest rules:

-Must live in the US
-Must be over 18
-Winner must respond to email announcing winner within 48 hours of notification or a new winner will be chosen
-You get to choose your shirt size and which pair of glasses you’d like, which MARVEL will do their best to accommodate/fulfill based on demand
-Contest void where prohibited
-CONTEST ENDS ON MAY 12, 2012 AT MIDNIGHT PACIFIC. Entries after that time will not be counted

HOW TO ENTER:

-Leave a comment telling me which character is your favorite, and why
-You can “like” my Facebook page for one additional entry (come back and leave a comment to let me know you’ve done so in order for the entry to count)
-You can “like” MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS on Facebook for one additional entry (come back and leave a comment to let me know you’ve done so in order for the entry to count)
-You can follow MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS on Twitter for one additional entry (come back and leave a comment to let me know you’ve done so in order for the entry to count)
-And you can tweet the contest out for one additional entry (come back and leave a comment to let me know you’ve done so in order for the entry to count)

 

That’s it! Hope you enjoy the movie!

Disclosure: No payments or freebies for me. I just thought it’d be fun to do a giveaway for the movie coming up. I like THE AVENGERS. That’s it. Prizes will be shipped directly from the sponsor.)

Category: giveaways and reviews  Tags: , , ,  10 Comments
26
Apr 2012

If I could I would run away and join the Circus

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Last night I got the chance to see Cirque du Soleil for the very first time. And what a show to see for your first. It was premiere night for TOTEM by Cirque du Soleil and man, do they put on a production. Cirque du Soleil has been putting on shows for close to 30 years. I wondered how they could be original and creative and amazing after all that time. But they are. They are fantastically good at what they do.

TOTEM is about the origin of our species. It starts with a big shape covering the stage that’s reminiscent of a turtle. But underneath that shell there’s a surprise in store for you. And from that moment, you will be mesmerized by the whole thing. The acrobats, the actors, even the stage are amazing. I have never seen a stage like that. It was like it was alive. Not only did it serve as part of the show by having scenery reflected on it, it moved like a serpent or scorpion.  I was blown away by the imagination of the people who built the set.

I’ve seen some Cirque du Soleil shows featured on television. Each time, I have watched, pretty much incredulous at the feats performed. Nothing, but NOTHING compares to seeing it live. I found myself holding my breath more than once, sure that someone was going to miss their cue or timing by just a teensy bit. But they never do.

Dude, I can’t even walk across the room without tripping over something (yeah, even when the kids toys are actually put away). These actors/ acrobats/ crazy, scary good performers are flawless.

And these women:

image courtesy of TOTEM by Cirque du Soleil

Wow. Just… wow. They were incredible. I can’t even look at a unicycle without falling over. And these women were throwing things. With their feet! While on a unicycle that’s, what, 7 or 8 feet tall? Who does that? These women do. And they are fantastically talented at it. I am running out of adjectives here. I am not kidding. I cannot stop talking about it.

Wait til you see the guys that climb things like monkeys. I almost got a headache I was holding my breath so much. I have never seen things done midair like that. EVER. And the cosmonauts? I will give you a little spoiler and say that I got really excited when I saw them pull out the Russian barres. Three of them. At the same time. If it weren’t so scary and required amazing acts of skill and balance, I would absolutely love to do it. The jumping in the air? I would love. The balance? I would totally fail at. Big time.

I was talking with some friends during intermission and we all agreed that we love that Cirque du Soleil gives new life to these amazing performers that a couple of decades ago could never happen unless you were able to do something that got you into the Olympics. Some of these performers are talented on that level. Actually, all of them probably are.

One more thing. I cannot forget the musicians. (My daughter would hurt me if I did.) They went from tribal sounding music to gypsy music to almost techno music (using scientific instruments, no less). They are wildly talented. I should have bought the soundtrack. But maybe you can pick it up for me, because I have a code for you to save some money on tickets if you get them before Mother’s Day. How’s 25% off hit you? Buy just two tickets and you’re looking at saving around $50 or so in certain sections.

By the way, when you look at the map, don’t be deceived by the seating chart. While it may look like you’re a ways from the stage when you’re in the upper rows, you’re not really. You can see everything just fine. Yes, there are some supports that may block a little, but it’s really minimal. The action moves around enough that it won’t be an issue. So here are the details and fine print:

TOTEM by Cirque du Soleil has hit San Diego, and you can save 25% on tickets and make this Mother’s Day more memorable!

Get 25% off price level 1, 2 or 3 tickets on select performances, and treat mom to an unforgettable experience. TOTEM is now performing for a limited time at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Click here to take advantage of this generous offer: http://tinyurl.com/MissPrissTOTEMMD

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In order to receive this special offer you will need to be a Cirque Club member–registration is fast and free, and Cirque Club members receive advance access to the best seats under the Grand Chapiteau, ticket upgrades, partner promotions and insider information on the world of Cirque du Soleil!

Applicable on select performances on Price level 1, 2 & 3 only. Prices shown during the purchasing process already reflect this offer and will appear as a 25% discount on each ticket. Maximum of 19 tickets per purchase. All tickets subject to regular service and delivery charges. Cannot be combined with any other offer. Not applicable to previous purchases. All sales final, no refunds nor exchanges. Offer expires May 14, 2012 at 11:59 p.m. Offer applicable on TOTEM in San Diego, CA.

Disclosure: I received tickets to the premiere. I was asked to please provide a review, but all words, save the promotional text for the discount, are my own. I really do love Cirque du Soleil and have always wanted to attend a show.

Category: giveaways and reviews  Tags: , , , , ,  6 Comments
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