Archives for September 2011

Sand Gone- Product Review and Giveaway!

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Sponsored by Tomoson.com

Living in Florida I was especially excited about this product- SAND GONE.
SAND GONE is a dry body powder that, when applied to sand covered skin, removes the sand and leaves the skin soft and smooth while feeling fresh and clean.  Not only are we right near the beach here in Florida but my daughters also have sand at the playground at their school.  I am CONSTANTLY brushing sand off of their sweaty feet in the afternoon.
Since we didn’t have a beach trip planned this week I decided to try Sand Gone on my daughters when they came home from school after playing at the playground.  Sometimes I wonder how they get so much sand in their shoes and how they can stand it all day but that’s another issue.
Sand Gone comes in an attractive eight ounce jar with a screw-able lid. Within the jar is a microfiber applicator. It is extremely soft but also durable. It can be cleaned by household washers and dryers when necessary. The applicator also has a strap across it to help secure it to the user’s hand as the powder is applied.
I sat my daughters outside with their shoes off when they got home from school.  I opened the Sand Gone, dipped the applicator into the powder and rubbed it on my girls’ sandy feet.  It worked great!  All of the sand was gone and they were left with soft, fresh feet.

The dry, white powder is both non-toxic and non-talc.  It also contains a hint of coconut fragrance.  Sand Gone is best used when cleaning up while leaving the beach.  However, Sand Gone works perfectly well when cleaning up after the sand box, playground or wherever one encounters sand.

I like Sand Gone because it’s like having a “dry shower” from a jar.  In addition to removing the sand, Sand Gone also removes the salt from your skin after a day at the beach.  No more uncomfortable ” scratchy feeling” under clothing during the drive home.
Sand Gone is great to take with you to the park, beach, or anywhere you will come in contact with sand.  It’s a MUST HAVE in FL, that’s for sure!
Want your own Sand Gone?


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

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Action Alert- Product Review and Giveaway- A MUST READ FOR PARENTS WITH KIDS WHO USE THE INTERNET!!!

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Are you worried about your child’s safety online?

Do you really know what they are doing, who they are talking to, and what they might be saying?

Internet safety is a big concern for many parents!  I am so grateful and relieved that I found Action Alert.

Action Alert is a revolutionary internet parenting device.  It of course is no substitution for parenting, but it is a tool to help with the job.  Any child can click on the wrong thing when sitting at the computer, even with an adult by their side, and be exposed to inappropriate content.  Action Alert protects against this!

All you do is plug Action Alert into an open USB on the computer and set up an account.  Within minutes you can start monitoring what is happening on your computer.  You can set the controls based on your families individual needs, what sites you want to allow, etc.

The statics are horrifying-

1 in 5 children have been sexually solicited online

7 out of 10 children view pornography

40% of children are bullied online 

Some of the features include:

Access Control- The computer is disabled with Action Alert is unplugged

Activity Notification Alerts- Receive inappropriate activity alerts via e-mail or text (if someone types an inappropriate message to your child while they are online you will get an alert IN REAL TIME!!!)

Activity Video Recording- Record 60 hours of all computer activity (keystrokes, what is clicked, etc.- play it back just like a DVR)

Time Allowances- set daily parameters for when the computer can be used

Site Blocking- block unwanted and inappropriate sites

Content Filtering- allows only safe searches to be conducted

Keystroke Logging- tracks usernames, passwords, and both sides of chat and e-mail conversations

STOP CYBERBULLYING

STOP ONLINE PREDATORS

STOP ADULT CONTENT WEBSITES

STOP INAPPROPRIATE CHATROOMS

STOP INAPPROPRIATE SOCIAL NETWORKS 

I played around with Action Alert and it worked well.

It was very easy to set up (plug it in, install it, set up a password, decide on settings and your done- 5 minutes MAX).

I like that I can also set how long each day my children can play on the computer- no more fighting with me when time is up.  They can’t argue with a device plugged into the computer.  And the best part- if they pull the Action Alert out of the computer, they will not be able to get online.  PLUS, it will e-mail me right away that the Action Alert has been removed.  I even set it up so it will send me a text message as soon as the Action Alert is removed.

You can also set it up to text and e-mail you when your child is being bullied online, solicited inappropriately, on the computer during a time when they aren’t supposed to be, etc.

I HIGHLY recommend this for any parent of children who use the computer and the internet.

It sells on the Action Alert website for $29.99 plus S&H and it’s worth every penny!

Also check out www.InternetSafetyDad.net, the blog of Brian Lawson, a computer expert, father, and founder of Action Alert!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for performing this review. I received a free product to try out and review.  The opinions and statements expressed by me in this post are my own personal and honest opainion of this product.

 

Want to win your own Action Alert?  Enter Below:


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Weezer the Sneezer Finds a Home- A Book Review

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Weezer the Sneezer Finds a Home by Ronda Sarner Anderson is an adorable book about a poor lost little kitty who just wants to find a home.

He searches all over for a warm place to stay and someone to love him but all the other animals turn him away.

Finally he finds a young girl named Sunny who takes him in and gives him a forever home.

This sweet book is great for children from 3-6.

Both of my daughters (5 and 7) thought it was adorable and my 5 year old was proud to be able to read it all by herself!

This book is available for purchase on the Weezer the Sneezer website.

Ms. Sarner Anderson has another book, Giraffes Don’t Take Baths coming out in a few months so be on the look out for that!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for performing this review. I received a free book to review and the opinions and statements expressed by me in this post are my own personal and honest opinions of this book.

 

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Soda Stream- Review and Giveaway!!!

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I was recently given a Soda Stream to review and I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun my family and I are having with our new “toy”.  Ok, it’s not really a toy but everyone in my family is having a great time with it.

Soda Stream is a home soda making machine.  It doesn’t require electricity or batteries to work and it is very easy to operate.  Plus it uses fresh water and syrup.  That’s it!

1. Fill the bottle with cold water (or use tap water and refrigerate it.)

2. Attach the bottle to the Soda Stream Machine and press the button on the top until you hear a loud noise.  It scared me the first time I heard it but now I know to expect it.  Press the button until you hear the noise 2 more times.

3. Unscrew the bottle and slowly pour in the flavor syrup.

4. Cap the bottle and carefully tilt the bottle back and forth to mix the syrup.

5. ENJOY!

It’s so easy.  I love that my family can have FRESH soda whenever we want it.  I like that there is no corn syrup in the flavor syrups in the regular versions and the sugar free versions are made with Sucralose.  My children don’t drink soda but they like when I make seltzer with the machine and add a bit of lemon or lime juice to it.

I also LOVE how eco-friendly this product is.  I am no longer contributing to landfills or having to recycle lots of bottles.  All I have to do is rinse out the bottle and make more soda!

Soda Stream comes in MANY flavor varieties that are just like popular soda brands.  They have their own versions of Coke, Coke Zero, Sprite, Dr. Pepper, Ginger Ale, Fresca, Red Bull, and more!

You can order the Soda Stream syrups online or you can buy them at several local retailers including Bed, Bath, and Beyond.  Bed, Bath, and Beyond is also where you can exchange your empty CO2 cartridge for a full one (for a fee).

Disclosure: I was not compensated for performing this review. I received a free product to try out and review, and the opinions and statements expressed by me in this post are my own personal and honest opinions of this product.

Want your own Soda Stream?  Enter to win your own Soda Stream Kit below:

(US Residents 18 year old and over please)


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Meridane Jewelry Review

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Sometimes companies contact me to do product reviews.  With this review, I contacted them.  I recently saw another blogger do a review for a Meridane pendant necklace and I just had to check it out for myself.




Meridane is a family owned company and everything about it has meaning.  For example, the name of the company, Meridane, comes from the name of the designer’s children- Merida and Dane.  But let’s get back to the pendant that caught my eye.

The story about how the pendant came to be is a very meaningful one.  Sally Short, Merida and Dane’s mother, created the design based on one special phrase- LOVE IS ALL U NEED.  Sally was doodling and wrote all the letters to this special phrase one on top of the other and then added a peace sign on top.  She liked how it looked so she sent the design off to be cast in silver.

When her children came home for the holidays and saw her beautiful pendant they noticed that when it was turned on it’s side they could see the letter “K” in it.  Knowing that there was no “K” in the phrase, LOVE IS ALL U NEED, they decided to see what other letters might be hidden in the design.  Lo and behold they were able to find ALL 26 letters and the numbers 0-9 plus the original peace sign in the symbol.  They were all hiding in plain sight.


What this meant was that this charm could mean anything to anyone.  You can create your own personal message.  You could even change it every day.  I am a sentimental fool so this really caught my eye.  One day I put the pendant on and when someone asked me what it meant I told them it spelled out my daughters’ names.  The next time I wore the pendant I was feeling a little down so I decided that my pendant said,”You can do it, Cori”.

I love that about this piece.  It can mean anything, to anyone, at any time.  They even include a blank guide for you to write a message to the person who you are giving the pendant to.  It can spell, I LOVE YOU or WILL YOU MARRY ME or I WILL SURVIVE, just to give a few ideas.

This Meridane pendant would make a great gift for either a man or a woman because it comes in many styles.  It is sold as a pendant, bracelet, charm, or earrings.  You can also choose between silver, gold, bronze, wood, acrylic, and pewter finishes.  With such diversity it can be worn by males, females, young or old.  I LOVE that!

Here are some examples of the different styles available.

Check out the Meridane website to purchase your own Meridane jewelry!

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Splenda Essentials- A Review and Giveaway

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When I was approached to do a review of Splenda’s new line- Splenda Essentials I knew it would be a great review for me to do.  I LOVE Splenda.  I use it all the time in my coffee, iced tea, and more.  When I am at a restaurant and they only have pink or blue packets I use them but not happily.  I try to always take my own Splenda with me in my purse.  I even have Splenda packets in the little compartment in the front of my car.

So lets get back to Splenda Essentials.  The 3 varieties of Splenda Essentials are Splenda with Vitamin B, Splenda with Antioxidants, and Splenda with Fiber.  I love that now I can continue to use the Splenda that I already LOVE and it now has added benefits that make it healthier for me, too.  To me Splenda is not too sweet, it’s just right.  I love knowing that I can sprinkle it on a grapefruit or strawberries and easily add more fiber to my diet.  Or sprinkle a packet in my coffee and get added vitamins.  It’s great when things I already love get added benefits and with Splenda Essentials, that’s just what I get!

SPELNDA® ESSENTIALS No Calorie Sweetener with B Vitamins
• SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS with B Vitamins has the great taste of SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener with the added benefit of 20 percent of the Daily Value of vitamins B1 (thiamin), B5 (pantothenic acid) and B6, per packet
• SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS with B Vitamins is an easy way to help consumers cut back on the added calories from sugar, while helping them to reach their daily vitamin B1, B5 and B6 needs

SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS No Calorie Sweetener with Antioxidants
• SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS with Antioxidants has the great taste of SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener with the added benefit of 20 percent of the Daily Value of antioxidant vitamins C and E, per packet
• SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS with Antioxidants is an easy way to help consumers cut back on the added calories from sugar, while helping them to reach their daily vitamin C and E needs

SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS No Calorie Sweetener, 1 Gram of Fiber
• Each serving of SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS with Fiber has the great sweet taste of SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener with the added benefit of 1 gram of healthy fiber
• SPLENDA® ESSENTIALS with Fiber is an easy way to help consumers cut back on the added calories from sugar, while helping them to get a small boost of healthy fiber

 

Would you like to try Splenda Essientials yourself?  If you visit the Splenda Brand Facebook page and click on the new ESSENTIALSTM tab, you can request a free sample of the new Splenda Essentials product and share with other users what’s ‘essential’ to you.  By doing so, you will be entered for a chance to win a travel mug with a $25 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card! Three lucky winners will be announced each day— but that’s not all. For every 10,000 sample requests received, the Splenda team will give away a $1,000 Visa gift card!

You can also find yummy Splenda recipes on the Splenda Website.

I received a full size boxes of each of the 3 new types of Splenda Essentials to facilitate my review but I was not compensated in any other way.  This review is entirely my own personal opinion.

You can also enter to win full size packages of all 3 varieties of Splenda Essentials by entering here:


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Shadora- Jewelry Review and Giveaway

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Of all the things that I have offered to me to review, jewelry is one of my favorites.  I am a woman after all!  So when Shadora offered to have me pick a piece of jewelry from their website to do a review and giveaway I was so excited.

Shadora offers lots of beautiful jewelry at WAY below retail prices.  Buying from Shadora is a great way to add some beautiful bling to your wardrobe without breaking the bank.


The jewelry I selected was a pair of beautiful 1.5 Carat Emerald Cut Blue Topaz Sterling Silver Dangle Earrings.  They are a shade of blue that reminds me of clear blue ocean waters.

I have received so many compliments on them.   I love having daughters because they are great at noticing when I wear new things.  My 5 year old got in the car after school and noticed my new earrings right away.  “Mommy, your earrings are so pretty!” was the first thing out of her mouth the day I received them.  Even my husband noticed right away and told me how much he loved them on me.  (Good man!)

I like that all of Shadora‘s products come nicely packaged in a gift box and ready for giving.  I will be buying several holiday gifts from Shadora this year.  (Shhhh, don’t tell anyone on my gift list!)

EDITED TO ADD- I totally forgot to mention two of my favorite words- FREE SHIPPING!!!  Shadora offers FREE shipping on all orders!!!

I received 1 pair of sterling silver earrings to facilitate my review but I was not compensated in any other way.

These opinions are entirely my own.

Here’s how to win your own pair of topaz sterling silver dangle earrings:


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Envirosax- Product Review and Giveaway

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I recently received several ecofriendly reusable Envirosax bags to try out with my family from Conservingnow.com.  These bags are not only beautiful, but functional,  as well.  Conservingnow.com was nice enough to send the Optimisitc Envirosax Bag Style #4 for me:


and TWO of the Envirosax Bunny Style bags for my girls:

My Little Helper Modeling her Envirosax bag:

There are 46 different styles of Envirosax including some Sesame Street ones for children.  There are styles to suit everyone’s tastes.  They are very stylish yet functional.  I love that I can bring them where ever I go and I don’t feel like I am dragging an ugly sack with me.  They roll up very small and can fit right in my purse or in my glove compartment so I can always have them with me when I shop.

And the styles for children are adorable.  No matter where we go, my girls like to bring their Bunny Envirosax bags filled with their toys and books.

Conservingnow.com also offers FREE decals that people can put in their car windows as reminders to take their reusable bags with them when they shop.  I know I personally want to always use reuasable bags when I shop but I am often already in the store when I remember.  Now with this FREE reminder decal from Conservingnow.com I have a visual reminder on my car to remind me when I get out of my car.

ConservingNow.com Free Car Window Static Cling Reminder

Here is some information on Conservingnow.com.  I love how they care about the environment and they have made it their mission to education families and school children about protecting the environment.  As a former teacher I especially love the work they are doing with schools.

WHO IS CONSERVINGNOW.COM?

ConservingNow.com was created by a mother and daughter who are very passionate about the environment. As more people began to think about carrying their own reusable bags, it became clear that  people needed a little help to change the habit of using convenient plastic bags to reusable bags. The idea was conceived after watching shopper after shopper when asked at the checkstand, “Paper or Plastic?” exclaim that they had forgotten their bags AGAIN.

The founders also believed that simple actions could have a huge impact on the environment and consequently launched a community called www.conservingnow.com for earth friendly people who care about the planet. Their first campaign is all about eliminating plastic bags from the environment. Their community members are concerned about future generations and what they will have to live with because of our “disposable habits”. Their community members understand the harmful effects that plastic bags have on our environment and are committed to take action.

ConservingNow.com’s goals are threefold:

1) Change behavior of adults (use reusable bags for all shopping trips).

ConservingNow.com came up with a FREE CAR WINDOW STATIC CLING to remind shoppers to grab their bags when they leave their car.

www.conservingnow.com/content/bring-your-own-bag-static-clings

2) Educate young people and their families about the harmful effects of plastic bags to our oceans and environment.

ConservingNow.com has classroom kits for teachers as well as free resources for parents, families, teachers and schools.

http://www.conservingnow.com/teaching-our-children

3) Create a community change blog.

ConservingNow.com has a one-stop resource where individuals, municipalities and corporations can find out what other areas of the country are doing either with environmental initiatives or legislatively.

http://www.conservingnow.com/blog

ConservingNow.com also sells reusable bags, ecokits and other assorted reminder products. 100% of their profits go toward funding classroom kits and individual static cling reminders.

In their first year, Conservingnow.com’s community has grown to over 125,000 members each of whom has received a FREE static cling reminder. They are really seeing tremendous traction with city-wide, corporate, community organization and school initiatives through their partnering programs. Additionally, they have distributed classroom kits to schools across the United States and Canada along with the thousands of downloads of their parent and teacher materials.

ConservingNow.com also has over 11,000 very active fans on Facebook. ConservingNow.com hosts a daily dynamic conversation, covering all aspects of living a greener life.

ConservingNow on Facebook

Given that most individuals use on average 500-700 plastic bags per year, ConservingNow.com‘s community is responsible for keeping over 60 million bags out of the ecosystem and they have only just begun!

ConservingNow.com is actively working with supporters, partners and like-minded individuals to help spread the word. Won’t you join us? It is by working together that we can really make a difference!

I was given the 3 Envirosax bags mentioned from ConservingNow.com to facilitate my review but I was not compensated in any other way.  This review is entirely my own honest opinions.

Win your own Envirosax bag:


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Designerliners- A Review and Giveaway!

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I’ve never really thought much about what I put into my garbage container or what it looked like. Then I found Designerliners.

Designerliners are stylish biodegradable, made in the USA trash bags that can beautify any room in the home.

The bags come in ten different color/pattern combinations:

Pink Polka Dot

Orange Polka Dot

Navy Blue Polka Dot

Red Gingham

Gold Gingham

Black Leopard

Blue Leopard

Red Toile

Blue Toile

Black Tattersol

You can purchase Designerliners right on their website, on ebay, and on Amazon.  They are easy to use and would be great to dress up any bathroom for a party.  I’m not saying have a party in the bathroom, but your guess might have to go and why not make it pretty for them!  These really are super cute!


You can buy Designerliners in packages of 12 for $6 plus shipping.  Pick the one that matches your room and dress up your garbage.  The only problem I had was that it was almost too pretty to put that first piece of garbage in it!

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

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Mixbook.com Photo Products Product Review and Sale

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Mixbook is a leading photo products company that helps people create custom photo books, cards, and calendars. Whether starting from scratch, or using one of our thousands of professionally designed templates, every Mixbook product is 100% customizable. With Mixbook, you can truly Make It Yours™

I was recently selected by Mixbook to review one of their products- photo cards.  My daughters’ birthdays are a few months off but I didn’t want to waste this opportunity so I created custom 5×7 flat birthday party invitations for my younger daughter’s birthday party.

Or I should say WE created invitations.  The Mixbook online program was so easy that my 5 year old daughter was able to create her own birthday party invitations.  I helped her place the wording and important details but she was able to drag and drop graphics and design her own birthday party invitations.  She was so proud of herself and what she created.  I was so impressed with how easy it was.  We started with one of the templates but then we moved things around, deleted items, and added other graphics.  If my 5 year old and I could create a great invitation together, any one can!

I always like doing special things for my girls’ birthday parties and that includes the invitations.  I usually buy invitations from companies on ebay that design them.  I LOVE that we found Mixbook because now we can do them ourselves.

I plan on trying out the photobooks on Mixbooks next!  What will you create?

Here’s what we created.  Names and dates blurred to protect the innocent.  LOL

Front

We were able to put the swirls on both sides of the invite.  Then my daughter picked 2 birds, rotated one, put them facing each other (kissing as she said) and then added the heart on top.  I helped her add her picture to the top and she chose to have her picture in the shape of a heart.

Back

This weekend is a great time to check out Mixbook because they are having several different sales for the Labor Day Weekend. 30% off Orders $49+ or Free Shipping on orders over $35 or

Labor Day Deal: 50% Off Additional Pages on All Photo Books
Coupon: XTRA50PAGE
Valid: Expires September 4th, 2011 11:59 PST
Restrictions: Shipping not included. This offer cannot be combined with other coupons, vouchers, Groupons, or applied after an order has been placed

September Deal #1: Save 30% on orders over $49 at Mixbook
Coupon: MX3049
Valid: Expires September 30th, 2011
Restrictions: Shipping not included. This offer cannot be combined with other coupons, vouchers, Groupons, or applied after an order has been placed.

September Deal #2: Get Free Shipping on orders over $35 at Mixbook
Coupon: SHP35MX
Valid: Expires September 30th, 2011
Restrictions: Offer applies only for free Ground Shipping. This offer cannot be combined with other coupons, vouchers, Groupons, or applied after an order has been placed.

 

 You can also check out Mixbook on Facebook and on Twitter.

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

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