Stuff Parents Need

Easing the chaos in the nest, one find at a time.

Finding the Perfect Gift (and the Perfect Cookies for Santa!): #HolidayGuide Made Easy

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I’ve mentioned before that I have 25 people to buy for on my guest list. TWENTY FIVE!!! Just when I start to get a little grouchy about having to do this much shopping I step back and remember two important things:

1. Giving gifts is my love language. It is a joy to be able to give.

2. What amazing gifts I have been given simply by having each and every one of these people in my life. I am overwhelmed by how awesome they each are.

It’s good to take a moment to remember those things, because then it keeps me from being a Grinch and turns me into more of a Santa, feeling downright jolly about the task ahead of me.

Yesterday morning we had our fourth intensive wrapping session. We wrapped and labeled gifts for about 2 hours. And I spent a good deal of time pouring over the list for everyone and determining who I was finished shopping for, and who was left. I then wrote down each person’s name and a budget for each person on a separate list, along with some initial gift ideas I have. This list will live in my purse and go with me everywhere until every last name is crossed off! My hope is to be done by Thanksgiving, but I predict a serious shopping session on Cyber Monday to finish things off.

Now that I know exactly WHO I’m shopping for, I can more easily search for ideas about WHAT to get these fine folks. Party Blu Prints has JUST (as in maybe an hour ago!) released a fantastic holiday gift guide and I want to share with you some ideas it has generated for me!

First up, the gents. Guys are the hardest to shop for, in my experience. I was really excited to see the OtterBox case featured in this #HolidayGuide. Just last week Tim and I broke down and replaced our ancient iPhone 3s with the iPhone 4S. What a difference that upgrade made! And since we have young kids, protecting the phone is a must. My own independent research indicated that the OtterBox was the very best case, and that research is validated by this gift guide. I’ll take one in black, please. Oh yes, this is going under the tree!

Next, I’m looking for a small gift for my mother-in-law. When I saw Nivea lotion in the gift guide, I was reminded of the test I recently conducted where I compared bargain-priced Nivea lotion to my favorite moisturizer. I was genuinely surprised to see that Nivea had much better lasting power. My mother-in-law lives in a desert climate, so a moisturizer that REALLY works is a necessity. This will fit the bill just perfectly.

I’m also looking for a hostess gift for a holiday party we’ll be attending. The holiday e-guide reminded me that a gift doesn’t have to be store-bought to be fabulous. There’s a great recipe for homemade sangria. That happens to be one of my very favorite adult beverages, so giving it as a gift will make it extra special. And it will be extra EXTRA special if my gift gets served at the party! 😉

Finally, I’m looking for some ideas for fun ways to entertain guests in my own home for the holidays. During the first two weeks of December, we will have several family members coming at various times to stay and visit with us. I want our home to be very inviting and festive, but I also have to be realistic about what I can do on my own and what might require some outside help. When I saw the Pepperidge Farm Candy Cane cookies in the guide, I knew that they were going straight on my shopping list.

Pepperidge Farm is something I very much associate with the holidays. Santa Claus always expected this brand to be on the plate we left out for him on Christmas Eve. We made sure to grant his wish every year, in the hopes that he would grant ours! I love that the Milano line has a mini cookie which will be perfect to keep on the kitchen counter for snacking on-the-go. And the fact that it has a candy cane flavor is just too perfect.

I noticed in the guide that these cookies are exclusive to Target. My closest Target is 25 minutes away, so I don’t go all that often. But I’m making a special trip this afternoon to go get those holiday cookies! In addition to having them on hand for guests, I also need a few weeks to taste-test them and make sure they are the right choice for Santa. Mothers have so many tough jobs, and this is just another one of them. But I’ll do it out of love and dedication to my family. 😉

Are you working on your holiday gifts list and figuring out exactly  how much shopping remains? Definitely flip through the Party Blu Prints holiday e-guide. You’ll get some great ideas for gifts to buy, gifts to make, and tips to remember to keep the next few weeks festive, fun and light on the stress.

After I’m back home with my Pepperidge Farm cookies this afternoon, I may just whip up the mocktail recipe in the guide. Anyone case to join me? 🙂

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias®  and Pepperidge Farm  #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Helping Santa Bring Magic to 3 Little Girls: #DisneyPrincessWMT

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With a 3 year old in the house, we are in the throes of the princess craze. This is an issue that I felt nervous about up until just a few months ago. I never liked receiving “Daddy’s little princess” onesies or anything that was overly sparkly or blingy or that had crowns all over it. I thought that perhaps if I curbed the amount of such things in our home that my daughter might not go ga-ga for princesses.

But let me tell you how her love for princesses, and Disney Princesses in particular, came to life. Last year one of my nieces requested The Little Mermaid on DVD for Christmas. As you probably know, you can’t buy this DVD new in a store, as it is locked away in the Disney Vault. Ebay is one of your best bets. I ordered a used copy online, and when it arrived I wanted to make sure it worked before I wrapped it up. And I let Darah watch it with me. I thought it would be fun to share with her my favorite Disney movie.

And the rest, my friends, is history.

Ariel is her favorite (which I sort of love since Ariel is also my favorite). She can find Ariel most anywhere (some of my favorite locations where she has managed to find her include Home Depot, a convenience store at 5am on Thanksgiving morning, and the curio cabinet at her Grammy’s house).

There are still many Disney movies that she hasn’t yet seen, but she is starting to learn more about more about each princess, and she is adding to her list the movies she has seen. Beauty and the Beast was recently playing at a friend’s birthday party in the background (it was a princess theme). She plopped right down and watched the whole thing, and she had the cutest expression on her face the entire time.

I have learned over the past year since to lean into this season of life, rather than try to prevent it from happening. Every Disney Princess has some amazing qualities that I try to highlight so that the focus isn’t on being pretty. We’ve been playing, “under the sea” for a year now, and the focus of that game is to go on a brave adventure, just like Ariel, who isn’t afraid to take a risk. We also pretend that our hair glows like Rapunzel (#2 on her list of favorite princesses) and use that power to heal others when they are not well, demonstrating kindness and empathy. Tiana never ever gives up, even when the odds aren’t in her favor. She has a tenacity from which we all can learn.

If you have a Disney Princess fan in your home, be sure to download the Royal Ball app (download here for apple and here for android), which is totally free and lots of fun. We downloaded it before heading to Walmart to be big helpers for Santa Claus. Through this app, you can get yourself ready for a royal ball by building your own outfit (gown, necklace, shoes, tiara) and making your own custom carriage. Once you arrive at the ball, you use your phone to dance at the ball. It’s really cool, because you get to see the ballroom as if you were in it, and as you dance or look up or down, the screen moves with you. I will fully admit to taking this app on a few spins through the living room, myself!

I highly recommend that you download this app before you head to a store that will have some Disney Princess signage, as there are pictures on these signs that will unlock additional dresses.

I also really love that you can bring a bonus carriage to life right in the store when you snap a photo of the Cinderella Blu-Ray DVD. Basically, this app can make a trip to Walmart so much more fun for any Disney Princess fan. And if you are doing a little holiday shopping, it can also keep your little ones distracted while you take some stuff over to the layaway department! 🙂

On our most recent shopping adventure, we were being special helpers for Santa Claus. He asked us to get 3 Disney Princess bicycles for 3 little girls in Chattanooga. His sleigh was getting very full, and having these bikes already here would sure help him out! Darah was excited to be summoned for such a special task and took her role quite seriously! If you’d like to follow along with our entire shopping experience, check out my Google+ album.

Sadly, the store was completely out of Disney Princess bicycles. Santa isn’t the only one who wants to be gifting these this year, it seems! We went with a back up plan and purchased 3 Fisher-Price Little People Princess Song Palaces. I bought every single one they had on the shelves. Looks like Disney Princes stuff is really hot!  I like that this particular item is safe for princess fans as young as 18 months, and it has lots of different places for imaginative play. It even has some fun sound effects to add to the magic!

You may be wondering why I wanted to buy 3 items and why we were being special helpers to Santa. Well, 2 of the items we purchased are going to go to the Angel Tree. As a mom, I know what it is like to have your child ask for a very special toy for Christmas. And I can imagine how hard it must be to know that getting a gift like that isn’t a possibility. Darah asked for a bike this year, and I am going to get one for her (she doesn’t know that little girl #3 we are shopping for is her!). I want to pay it forward and get the same bike for 2 other 3 or 4 year olds in my community who have the same wish as Darah, but whose parents can’t afford it on their own.

After I got home, I decided that as cute as the Little People Princess Songs Palace is, I really had my heart set on getting the bikes, so I went to Walmart.com and ordered 3 of them there. Shipping to my house was completely free, which was awesome! I’ll be doing another post in a few weeks and I’ll be sure to show you the bicycles in detail! They arrived at my house 2 days after I ordered them (totally serious) so I’ve already had a sneak peek! Can’t wait to show them to you!

While you wait for the big bicycle reveal, be sure to check out lots of different ways that other shoppers have had a blast with Disney Princess items, and get some great ideas for parties, games and gifts! And don’t forget to follow Disney on Twitter. I’m really enjoying following them and getting little doses of joy and sunshine from Walt and those who have followed him in my Twitter feed!

Do you have any Disney Princess items on your holiday shopping list this year? I’d love to hear about them!!! Santa is going to have a Rapunzel doll in his sack to leave for Darah on Christmas Eve! 🙂

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Disney Consumer Products, Inc  #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Shopping for Fall Basics on a Budget: My CookiesKids.com Experience

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When it comes to obtaining clothes for my children, I am lucky beyond measure. Darah is granddaughter #4 on one side of the family and Layah is granddaughter #7. Additionally, one of my sisters-in-law has a knack for finding great deals on really beautiful children’s clothing online, and we inherit those clothes after her kids have worn them. It is really awesome. But even with all that access to great (and FREE!) clothes, I still find that I need to supplement some things, especially as Darah gets older and the clothes heading her way have been worn for longer periods of time and might need to be replaced. A few weeks ago I realized that I was having some trouble getting Darah fully dressed in the mornings after the weather got a bit cooler. I made a list of the articles of clothing I kept reaching for but that weren’t there in her closet. And I was surprised by how many basics were needed! I was missing the following:

  • black long-sleeve shirt
  • white long-sleeve shirt
  • jeans
  • basic skirt
  • footed tights in a basic color (white, black, red)
  • black pants

I’m on a tight budget (who isn’t, these days?) so I was rather nervous when I saw how many things I needed to get. I wasn’t really sure how to get all of these items without spending more money than I really could afford to. And as many of you can understand, its not a fun feeling when you are struggling to figure out how to meet a need for your child. I turned to CookiesKids.com to try to find these basics at a good price. I had been hearing a lot of buzz from other bloggers about the huge inventory and the unbelievable prices, so I decided to go for it. I did my shopping at 4 in the morning (ah, the beauty of the internet!) so that I could shop in peace and quiet and not have to even put on any makeup! Darah is interested in clothes I bring home for her, but at 3 years old, she still has precious little patience for actually browsing in a store. If you’d like to follow along with my shopping experience, check out my Google+ album here.

One of the tricky things about shopping at CookiesKids.com is the fact that they carry a large assortment of brands. And that means that fit can vary quite a bit. I’m impressed that CookiesKids.com is working hard on a solution with a program called Alva Kids. You can find the icon by the size option. Once you register with this free and easy program and provide it with some basic information about your child’s measurements, you can better know how each brand on the site is going to fit your child. That’s very cool and can save a great deal of headache! Since I was shopping VERY early in the morning, and since I have a child who is very petite, I skipped this size, knowing that there was no possibility of a 3T in any brand being too small for her. PEOPLE, LEARN FROM MY EXAMPLE. I should have taken a few minutes to do this, because I ordered a few long-sleeve shirts, all from one particular brand, and they were all too small. I was really shocked by this, and then annoyed at myself because I could have prevented the problem.

CookiesKids.com did have a very impressive variety of clothing options and I found myself going down a few rabbit holes as I spotted things not on my list that were so pretty. I mean, how adorable is this sweater dress?! And just $9.99!

I actually stumbled upon some gray cords and some gray leggings, neither one of which were on my list but both of which I decided to purchase as staples for this year. I’m so glad I did! But perhaps my most awesome find was a set that included black pants (which was on my list) and also included a really cute black and gray fashion top, and the price was amazing…just $6.99!

This shirt was SOOOOO soft. And it also has a little bit of tulle at the bottom to make it sassy, which Darah especially loves. In fact, when it was time to model a different outfit, she asked if she could keep the top on just a little bit longer. I happily complied with her request, and it gave me an opportunity to see how her new gray cords would work with the top. They looked great! They are also a better option than jeans for her, as she finds jeans to be stiff and doesn’t really like wearing them. She’d actually wear dresses all year if she could, but at some point, pants are a must. So this outfit is a good compromise for her because she feels like she is wearing a dress, just with pants underneath!

Then we moved on to a white top (which will get near-constant use this season, I predict) and those gray leggings, which were from Esprit and still only cost $6.99. They are the cutest things ever!

I think #CookiesKids is a really good online shopping option for parents who need to stretch their dollars as far as possible but who still want to find kids fashion that is on-trend. Again, I want to stress the importance of doing a little bit of prep work by registering for Alva Kids so that you can buy with confidence and you know that everything you order is going to fit as it should!

Even if you don’t have to worry to much about the latest kids style because your child is in a uniform at school, Cookies Kids is still a great place to find good deals on those school uniforms. Basically, they’ve got something for everyone! They are also celebrating their 40th year of business, so you know they are doing something right!

And if you happen to live in the NYC area, Cookies Kids has 7 stores there. For the rest of us, shopping with this store is a possibility 24/7 by going online. You can also stay up to date on the latest happenings (and the SALES!) by following Cookies Kids on Facebook and Twitter. You can also use the code stuffparentsneed to save 10% on your order from now through 12/14/2012! Woo hoo!

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and CookiesKids.com #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

How I Discovered the Difference Between Smooth and Genuinely Soft Skin

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When I was in my mid-20’s, I had at least 15 bottles of lotion. I was a huge fan of shopping at Bath & Body Works and I would go absolutely nuts during their semi-annual sales. My skin smelled great, but I couldn’t help but notice that its conditioned never really improved beyond the first hour of applying the products.

Eventually I got so overwhelmed with my collection while also feeling so underwhelmed by the performance of the lotions that I quit buying cold turkey. And it took me about 4 years to work through my lotion collection. I now only own two bottles of lotion for myself, and both of those were given to me as gifts.

I’m currently using the Renew lotion and have always been pleased with the results. It’s a stark contrast to my former lotion picks in that it is in a very large container and it is unscented. But my skin feels smooth for hours after applying it. It sits on my bathroom vanity and I usually remember to apply it after taking a shower.

Lotion is an important component for baby massages, which Layah absolutely adores. Darah also loves to apply lotion herself and asks to do so whenever she sees me using it. For my girls, I go natural/organic. I have a goal to eventually set the same standards for my own lotion use,  but I have yet to find an organic product with lasting results for my skin.

Speaking of my skin, I should mention that making my skin feel soft is a very VERY hard thing to do. You see, I have Keratosis Pilaris, which is a very common skin condition that causes lots and lots of little tiny bumps. They don’t itch or hurt, but they also don’t go away. No amount of exfoliating or hydrating will cause them to fade. Trust me, I’ve tried it all, and I’ve done my research on the condition. The bumps are here to stay.

So any lotion I try out on my skin really faces a serious challenge. How do you make bumpy skin feel soft and smooth? I recently headed to Target to do some comparison shopping in the lotion aisle. Want to follow along with my adventure? Click here to see the whole trip and my thoughts about what I saw.

I brought home a product from Nivea, and did a side-by-side comparison of it with the Renew lotion I have been using for the past several months. Below you will see the Renew product on the left and the Nivea product on the right. I immediately noticed how much thicker Renew was, and that left me feeling nervous for Nivea.

After applying both products, I immediately felt both arms, and they both felt quite smooth (remember, “smooth” is a relative term when talking about my skin). I couldn’t tell a difference right away, but I didn’t really expect to at first.

I waited 10 minutes, and then I checked again. I thought that my left arm, which had Renew on it, felt a bit softer than my right arm, which had Nivea. I asked Tim’s opinion (he didn’t know which arm had which product) and he thought the Nivea arm was softer. So we agreed to disagree.

But here’s where things got really interesting. Four hours after applying the product I had Tim feel again. He said, “The right arm (which, as a reminder, is the Nivea arm) feels genuinely soft, and the left arm feels artificially soft…like it has a layer of lotion sitting on top of it.” I was dumbstruck by his observation. And after hearing it, I realized that he was right. The Renew lotion did make my skin feel soft, but it didn’t do a great job of actually absorbing into my skin, whereas the Nivea product penetrated the surface. Below you will see a picture of my right arm. It may not look very different on the surface, but the beauty of this product is that it goes beyond what lies on the surface to provide a more lasting hydration.

After having this experience of wading through the truly overwhelming selection of lotions available, and then realizing that I was being fooled by my own lotion into thinking I was getting good results, I was left with a few thoughts. It is easy to understand why so many women just throw their hands up in the air and either get whatever is on sale or stick with one brand so they don’t have to think about it any more. Even I have been relying on family to give me whatever lotion they like as gifts so I don’t have to mull over my options! And I absolutely believed that a thicker lotion would always mean a better lotion.

I’m surprised by my results, and I feel happy to have a new lotion that I am now using with complete confidence. I look forward to seeing how using Nivea Extended Moisture will impact the overall health and softness of my skin over time.

I would love to hear about your lotion routine. Do you have a favorite product? Are you overwhelmed with the options out there? And have you ever been fooled into thinking that a lotion was improving your skin when it really just sat on top of it to give the illusion of working? Do any of you also have Keratosis Pilaris?

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Heinz Cleaning Vinegar Helped My Coffee Get It’s Groove Back!

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Between the rise of Pinterest, the hipness of green cleaning, and the increased appreciation for being thrifty, this really is vinegar’s time to shine. It has SO many purposes and my goodness, what a bargain it is!

In my home, we use vinegar as part or our cleaning arsenal primarily because it is a way to have chemical-free cleaning, but we are also drawn to it because of its cost-effectiveness. Vinegar is part of a cleaning solution for our mop.

 

We also use it as part of a conditioning rinse for our hair in lieu of store-bought products. And yes, it really does work well!

(Looks like our bottle could use some deep cleaning with vinegar!)

And we use it in our dishwasher as a rinse aid.

Until recently, I thought that all vinegar was the same, and so why not buy the absolute cheapest vinegar I could find? After all, isn’t being thrifty part of the point, here?! Heinz has recently come out with Cleaning Vinegar, which is specially formulated for the types of jobs I mentioned above, along with lots and lots of other cleaning possibilities. You can learn all about my shopping adventure and my close look at all the different vinegar products I found at Walmart here.

When inspecting the vinegar labels, I did notice that the #HeinzVinegar offers a higher concentration of vinegar (6% instead of 5%, which is a 20% increase). That means that this really is specially formulated for better cleaning results, and that this isn’t just clever packaging. Heinz Cleaning Vinegar really is different from everything else available on the shelves.

While I was reading the label, I saw the recommendation listed to use vinegar to clean coffeemakers. Evidently vinegar can remove mineral build up that occurs over time.

how to improve the taste of coffee

I was very intrigued by this, as I use my coffee maker about 5 days a week to make my beloved iced coffees. I was very curious to see if I could taste any difference after cleaning my coffeemaker, so I did an experiment. I made coffee as usual and set aside a glass for myself. Then I followed the instructions for cleaning the coffeemaker, which included using full strength vinegar and doing a brew cycle with it, followed by two brew cycles with plain water to rinse.

The water after the vinegar “brew.” It was definitely a little discolored!

Then I made a pot of coffee and I used the exact same coffee, same filter, same sweetener, and the same milk. I even used the same glass and the same straw! 🙂 The coffee on the left is the “pre-vinegar” coffee and the coffee on the right is the “post-vinegar” coffee.

I was expecting, at best, to taste a very slight difference. But that’s not the result I got. The result was…well…sort of MIND BLOWING! The best way I know to describe the taste difference would be that the coffee on the left tasted like my tastebuds were wearing sunglasses, and the coffee on the right tasted like my tastebuds were basking in sunshine. The difference was so extreme that I threw out my old coffee (and you guys, I’m not one to waste precious coffee. EVER.).

I actually did a little dance in my kitchen as I sipped on my new coffee. It tasted SOOO yum! And then I got my planner out and made a note to clean my coffeemaker once a month with Heinz Cleaning Vinegar.

How can Heinz Cleaning Vinegar help you find cleaning solutions that work for your family? Did you know that natural cleaning could be so effective?

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and HEINZ #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

What Do You Know about Menopause? Preparing for “The 2nd Talk”

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So I’m going to go on record here and say that I’m relatively certain we are finished having children. At least biologically. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for my two healthy little girls, and am so thankful that we were able to have them. I think enduring a third pregnancy would put me permanently on the other side of crazy, though, and for the sake of my current family’s happiness, we should leave well enough alone!

So now that my child bearing days are over I’m ready to get educated about a life change that will be occurring a bit down the road, and that I know embarrassingly little about: menopause.

It’s coming, people. Maybe not for a while, but it WILL happen, and I’d really prefer to not be caught off guard by it. We fear what we don’t know, right? And truthfully, I am somewhat afraid of it. But that’s easy enough to change by equipping myself with some knowledge!

Poise has an entire site devoted to “The 2nd Talk” and I have been spending quite a bit of time on the site this morning, watching unscripted videos from women who have gone through menopause and checking out all the resources that are available so that I can better understand the symptoms of menopause and also some of the solutions to problems that can occur during this life change.

One very important thing that I’m learning about menopause, and that I want to make sure you understand, is that this period of our lives does not need to be veiled in mystery, and it CERTAINLY doesn’t need to be veiled in shame or embarrassment. There’s power in speaking out about these issues and in coming together as women to have open, honest discussions about how our bodies are changing. In fact, The 2nd Talk website encourages us to celebrate this transformative time in our lives. I love that language, as it kicks shame and embarrassment to the curb!

I also learned that October 18th is World Menopause Day, and it’s a day when a whole lot of conversations and even events will be taking place globally to raise awareness about menopause.

Poise has also launched a set of products especially for women going through menopause, and I headed out to Walmart to learn more about them. If you’d like to see my entire shopping adventure, check out my Google+ album here.

I want to make sure you know where to find these products if you are experiencing menopause. I found them in the same section as feminine wash and vaginal dryness products.

 

 

 

I put all 3 available products in my cart. I’m really impressed that getting three different products to help with three different problems associated with menopause only cost $12. That’s fantastic! Additionally, this month All You magazine has a $1.00 off coupon for #PoiseFab5, which sweetens the deal even more! Additionally, I saw a coupon offer on the Poise The 2nd Talk website (scroll to the bottom right corner). But wait! There’s more! You can also snag a coupon from Walmart (just be sure to watch the video so that you can be re-directed to the coupons afterwards!) So there are plenty of opportunities to make these affordable products even more affordable!

I think all of these products from Poise are fantastic and can help address some of the less-than-fabulous aspects of going through menopause. In particular, I want to highlight the Poise Body Cooling Towelettes. I spent a lot of time in the pharmacy section at Walmart, and there is NOTHING like this product available other than what Poise has just released. After watching the videos online and learning more about what a hot flash must feel like, I can say with certainty that I’d want to have this product on hand to help me get through it more comfortably! A huge thanks to Poise for creating a product that help meets a real need of millions of women!

My mother is actually going through menopause now. So when I think of menopause, I think of my mom. She seems to be going through this change gracefully, overall. Though I will say that even in the dead of winter, she has every fan in her house turned on to help her endure the hot flashes! So she’s going to be getting these body cooling towelettes to use and enjoy!

Mom has also been educating me on bone density issues, as that is of primary concern to her as her hormones change. There is a lot to know about aging and menopause, and I’m really thankful that Poise has stepped up to create an online community full of answers to questions and helpful advice so that when our bodies are ready for menopause, our minds are ready, too, fully equipped with a good understanding of what changes are on the horizon and how we can help ourselves feel great during the journey!

Poise has a wonderful and comprehensive website that I stronlgy encourage you to check out. They are also active on Twitter and Facebook, and that’s another great way for you to keep your finger on the pulse of all things related to menopause. And for all your Pinterest fans out there, check out the Poise Fab 5 board!

What questions do you have about menopause? 

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Poise #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions listed here are strictly my own. 

My Triumphant Return to Walgreens: Who Needs Coupons with Deals Like This?!

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I used to rock out with coupons every week. I vividly remember stocking up on diapers for Darah when I was pregnant (this was before I knew about cloth!). I amassed 6 months’ of diapers for her, and paid, on average, about 25% of the retail cost per package. It was pretty awesome.

I stopped couponing for about a year after Darah was born just due to a lack of time. Once I got her into a parents’ day out program and once we found our new rhythm in Chattanooga, I got back into couponing. And once again, I got wonderful deals, largely at drugstores like Walgreens. I routinely saved between 50-75% on stuff I needed, as well as stuff I could save for later.

But as soon as morning sickness with baby#2 set in, I was off the couponing wagon. And I have yet to get back on. I’m just short on time, folks! I’m sure you can relate.

But here’s the weird thing: I’ve noticed that because I don’t use coupons anymore, I feel as though I shouldn’t even visit my favorite drugstores. It’s like I have this mentality that if I don’t know how to maximize the deals for the week and get all those Register Rewards then there’s no point in even trying. So I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve been in Walgreens in the past year. And I used to go every single week! I think in some weird way I felt as though I would be a failure if I shopped without all those coupons.

But just this past week, Walgreens unveiled a new program that is SUCH a good thing for people just like me: the ones who love to save money but who also need to save time. They now have the Balance Rewards program, and Layah and I ventured into the store I used to frequent to get signed up and see what all the buzz is about. You can see my full shopping experience (including two diaper changes BEFORE we got out of the house! Sheesh!) in my Google+ story here.

Here are some highlights:

 

This is my (little) big helper, Layah. I successfully got her in the car, finally! She’s ready for our adventure.

I signed up for Balance Rewards at the front register. The salesperson was very helpful and had me all set up in 3 minutes!

I was THRILLED to see that Walgreens sells milk at a competitive price. This is actually cheaper than what I pay at the grocery store. I’ll be back for milk next week, and the week after, and the week after…

JACKPOT!!!! Walgreens had all their summer toys marked down by 75%, and the selection was great! May I suggest that you make a stop at your nearest Walgreens today to see if you have the same good luck I had? 🙂 I bought several cool gifts for our gift closet (those birthday party invites keep rolling in!).

I learned all about some of the great features of the rewards program, such as the fact that if you can build up your points a little bit more, your payout rate improves ($50 for 40,000 vs. $5 for 5,000 points). And please check out the pharmacy chat option that Walgreens offers its customers!

When looking through the sale flyer, I was really impressed with some of the point earning opportunities. By spending on Zyrtec and/or Children’s Benadryl (which you’ll likely need at some point this fall!) you get 10,000 points, which is basically like getting $10 back!

While I have a dinosaur model of the iPhone, those of you who are slightly more up-to-date will most definitely want to download the free mobile app. You can keep track of your points balance on your phone, shop online (oh heck yes! Free shipping with orders over $25 and under 10 lbs!), and even ask a Walgreen pharmacy professional a question. Gotta love a store that takes the convenience factor to a whole new level.

Walgreens is definitely on the cutting edge of offering a variety of ways for its customers to save time AND money. I’m so very glad I got over my fear and stepped back into the store. What I found waiting for me were great deals galore!

You can keep up with all the latest and greatest Walgreens happening by following them on Facebook or Twitter.

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Walgreens  #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

A Lesson in Gratitude for Sharing with #SpinbrushCFK

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You may remember that about a week ago I did some shopping for oral care supplies to donate to a local nonprofit organization as part of the #SpinbrushCFK Simple Service Project. I purchased several items at Walmart, and if you missed it, you can read all about my Champion for Kids shopping trip here.

We donated the oral care products to Room in the Inn, which is a transitional housing facility for women and their children who are experiencing homelessness. It was my aim to get Darah very involved in this project, and for this to be an opportunity to talk about sharing and gratitude. I started off by laying out all of the products we were going to donate for Darah to see (I’ll tell you about the aluminum foil, which likely seems out of place, later).

Darah was quick to notice the Arm & Hammer brushes that had stickers, and picked them up to give them hugs.

When I told Darah that we would be sharing these toothbrushes with other children, her face fell. She let me know in no uncertain terms that she wanted to keep these toothbrushes. I’m actually really glad that she felt that possessiveness take over, as it gave us the opportunity to really talk about sharing.

I asked her to think about the times when she has gone to someone’s house to play, and how wonderful it was when they shared with her. I also asked her to think about all the times that mommy has come home from the thrift store with new treasures, all because someone else donated them to share. I told her how thankful I was that people share with us all the time, and she said that she was thankful, too.

Then I told her that part of loving other people is to share with them whenever you are able. We had the opportunity that day to share with other people, and isn’t that so wonderful? At this point, she really got excited about sharing, and it made my heart melt. If Tim and I can raise children with compassionate hearts, we will have left the greatest legacy.

So we got in the car and went to Room in the Inn. Upon our arrival, Darah immediately spotted the playground!

We then headed inside and met with Mary, the administrative assistant and former client. She had an amazing story to share and I’m so glad we had the opportunity to visit with her.

 

Then I asked Darah to unpack all the things we brought to share.

The products I selected were based on a conversation I had with the staff at Room in the Inn before I went shopping. I called to see which oral care products they needed the most, and I’m so glad I did, because the answer surprised me. They said they actually had an over-abundance of toothpaste, adult toothbrushes and dental floss, but that they had nothing for children. They also mentioned to me that they could really use some aluminum foil, so I picked some up for them while I was shopping (check out how I found a really good buy on aluminum foil in my Google+ shop link!).

Before you make an in-kind donation, you might want to give the site a call to make sure you are getting what they really need the most. The answer may surprise you, and your call will definitely ensure that your donation gets put to use!

I want to encourage you to check out the Champions for Kids nonprofit and think about small act you can do to help better your community. You can follow them on Twitter or Facebook, too.  And if you liked those fabulous toothbrushes with the stickers, get connected with Spinbrush and Arm&Hammer via Facebook and Twitter, too!

Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Champions For Kids #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own. 

Making a Difference in My Community: #SpinbrushCFK

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Did you know that children living in poverty are twice as likely as their more affluent peers to suffer from tooth decay? I’m not very surprised to hear this, as MANY people in this nation, even those who have basic medical insurance, lack dental insurance, and a trip to the dentist can be a real budget-buster.

But these kids who have untreated oral disease suffer daily from pain and from the embarrassment of having discolored or damaged teeth. While I don’t have the funds to help cover dental bills for another family, I CAN help on the prevention side, and so can you!

I’m part of the Champions for Kids program, which seeks to gather folks together to donate oral care supplies to local nonprofits who work with children. I’m participating in the Spin into Action SIMPLE Service Project, and through this, I’m going to be donating some oral care items to Room in the Inn, a Chattanooga residential program for women and children experiencing homelessness.

Room in the Inn is an impressive program, because it works with the women in the program for anywhere from 3 to 9 months to help them find stability and reduce the likelihood that they will find themselves homeless again in the future. Health care, life skills training, parenting classes, mentoring and assistance with finding affordable housing are all offered. I really respect what the program does!

Two days ago I went shopping  at Walmart for some oral care supplies to donate, and you can check out my shopping experience here, if you like! Here are a few highlights:

Cute Arm & Hammer spinbrushes! You can customize your look with stickers!

It’s important to look for flouride-free toothpastes for little ones who might not remember to spit it out after brushing!

Anti-cavity rinses are a great way to help prevent tooth decay in children. 

I hope you are inspired by this post and might be able to make a donation of oral care products to an organization in need in your community. If you decide to be one of the Champions for Kids, please go to www.championforkids.com/simple and let us know that you are one of millions who has made a positive difference! You can also keep up with what’s happening with this program by following Champions for Kids and Spinbrush/Arm&Hammer on Twitter!

Stay tuned for an update next week where I tell you more about my donation experience!

Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Champions For Kids #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.