Tiffany Merritt - Stuff Parents Need

59 Days Until Hurricane Harbor Opens at Six Flags Over Georgia!

March 24, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 6 Comments

I serve in a compensated role as a Six Flags Supermom. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own, as always.

I spent this past Saturday looking long at hard at the place where Hurricane Harbor is being constructed at Six Flags Over Georgia. I even got to get up close and personal and see how everything was coming along. As of two days ago, it looked like this:

Oh my, they certainly have their work cut out for them! But the crew I met was confident about their progress, even with all the setbacks that the tough winter provided this year (we don’t do snow in the South, y’all!).

Let me show you around a bit!

This is Paradise Island (formerly Skull Island) and it is a place that kids of all ages absolutely love! This interactive water play area serves as the entrance to Hurricane Harbor, and has dozens of slides, water elements, and lots of fun. Last year my kiddos spent the better part of the day in the park right here!

But starting this year, there will be SO MUCH MORE when it comes to water fun at Six Flags Over Georgia.

As you pass Paradise Island, you’ll come to Tradewinds, which will have some fantastic shopping (forgot your swimsuit or your towel? No problem!). You’ll also see Tidal Wave Cafe, which will offer a fun variety of yummy things to eat. After all, you work up an appetite when playing in the water! This area is also going to have a bath house for changing, as well as locker areas if you want to rent one to stow away all the things you don’t want to get wet.

The Six Flags Supermoms were all pretty excited about what we saw next. The centerpiece of the 7 acre Caribbean getaway inside Six Flags has got to be Calypso Bay, the GIGANTIC wave pool. It has 38,000 square feet and will hold 800,000 gallons of water and produce 4 foot waves. It is going to be THE place to have fun in the sun at Six Flags this year. You can find me there on one of their loungers, to be sure!

For all you brave souls out there, this is going to be the ride for you. Tsunami Surge will be a tower of slides up against this hill. It will include a 5 story drop and a moment of zero gravity. Who needs to go to space camp? Just head down Tsunami Surge to experience weightlessness! 🙂

If you head to Six Flags Over Georgia in the next few weeks, be sure to ride on the Sky Buckets, as you’ll get a great birds-eye view of many of the slide pieces for Tsunami Surge, as well as for the Bonzai Pipelines, which is another awesome water slide element you’ll find at Hurricane Harbor. I’m sure glad I’m not in charge of putting those puzzle pieces together!

Hurricane Harbor may look like this today, but it is coming together VERY quickly, and in just 59 days, it will be an incredible tropical oasis right outside of Atlanta, Georgia. And the best part? Hurricane Harbor admission is included with your park ticket price. Are you ready to make some waves???

How to Shop Online for Gently Used Clothing (And Earn Money!)

March 21, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 3 Comments

Referral links included. Read on to find out how you can get your own to share Twice with your friends!

A few months ago, I noticed that my little sister, Laura, was raving about an online clothing store called Twice. It reminded me a bit of ThredUp, in that they both sell gently used clothing items online. Twice is limited to women’s clothing, though, and tends to have a “tighter” selection. By that I mean that they are pretty darn picky about what they will accept. The result is a lot of really nice clothes, so that’s really good for the buyer!

I also appreciate that Twice has a list of the brands they will accept. Plain and simple, if the brand you want to sell isn’t on the list, they won’t accept it, even if it is totally adorable. That might be a little frustrating to the seller, but unlike ThredUp, where you just send in everything you’ve got and hope for the best (and are often SUPER disappointed when 75% of it gets rejected), you at least have a good idea from the start if your clothing has a chance of being accepted.

How to Sell on Twice

If you want to sell clothes on Twice, you ask for them to send you a pre-paid shipping bag. The bag is sized generously, and can probably hold up to 15 items, just depending on their bulk. They provide good guidelines to help you determine if you should send something in or not.

I went through my closets and found three items I never wear and that I was ready to send to the thrift store. Why not send them in to Twice for a little cash, instead? I sent in one item from Banana Republic and two items from LOFT.

It took about 10 days for an offer to come through from them. One item was rejected due to having a small stain on it (I hadn’t noticed it, but I believe them that it was there, as I’m not exactly the world’s most observant person). The other two were accepted. I thought the payout was a little low (I earned $3.00 for both items, and I was offered an additional .75 if I turned the cash into store credit, which I did). For me, though, I ultimately felt at peace with the decision, as I sent in things I would have just donated, anyway. This way I earned a little credit to buy something new (to me).

If you feel like you could get close to what Twice is selling clothing for by selling it on your own, then don’t send it in for them to purchase, as they will likely offer you somewhere between 10-25% of what they plan to sell it for. But if you don’t have the time or the savvy to do that, then send it on in and be done with it!

How to Buy on Twice

Now for the buying part (which is the most fun!). One tip I have for purchasing clothing online is to go with the brands that you know work for you. I was very pleased to see that on Twice you can not only sort by size, but also by brand. I immediately started looking at their listings from Ann Taylor and from LOFT. I know this company well, and I have confidence that their pieces will fit me.

And what do you know? I found a pretty red tank from Ann Taylor on the site for $10.95. Is that more than I would pay at a thrift store? Yes. But I got a retail/online shopping experience while shopping for gently used clothes, as opposed to a thrift store experience, which takes quite a bit of time, and sorting through a lot of duds. I knew when I saw this that it had already been carefully inspected, and so I wouldn’t get it home and discover a stain or a hole (I have done that COUNTLESS times with thrift store purchases). And I didn’t have to leave the house to find it, either! Sometimes it is worth paying a bit more for things to come straight to your door.

How to Get The BEST Prices on Twice: Share!

While my tank was $10.95 plus a few dollars in shipping, I paid way less than that, because I had a $10 credit thanks to signing up through my sister, who was already a member. If you’d like to check out Twice, I have a $10 credit to offer you! They reward their members who spread the word. If you sign up and then make a purchase, you get $10 off your first order, and then they send me a $10 credit. If you want to sell something, you’ll get another $10 credit (and so will I!). And then if you tell your friends about Twice and send them your referral link (every member gets one), then THEY can get $10 for signing up and another $10 for selling enough to earn a $10 or higher offer, and you get rewarded just like they do. My little sister has earned over $100 in credit to the store just by shouting from the rooftops about her love for Twice. And here’s my favorite thing about the credits: they will let them apply to shipping costs! Most places never let referral credits go toward shipping, so kudos to Twice for really looking after their members!

To get your credit, all you have to do is sign up. That’s it!

If you sign up and buy something, PLEASE tell me what you found. I absolutely love shopping with friends and want to hear about your treasure hunt!

So Crazy It Just Might Work: Brushing Teeth in the Tub!

March 20, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 3 Comments

This paid post is brought to you by the as part of a Type-A Parent Community Sponsored Post.

Does anyone else out there have trouble getting your kids to brush their teeth for more than 15 seconds? That’s about how long my preschooler thinks it takes to get her pearly whites nice and clean.

Um, no.

My 22-month-old, who is totally not old enough to be in charge of her own oral health care routine, begs to differ. “LAYAH DO!!!!” is what she screams while grabbing her toothbrush and then proceeding to eat the toothpaste and chew on the toothbrush like it is a piece of candy.

Once again: um, no.

I needed to devise a plan that would keep the girls in one place, and inspire them to brush, brush, brush! And then I thought, “Why not clean their teeth when they are cleaning everything else?” So I marched the toothbrushes and toothpaste over to the tub. And that is where they live now, true story.

Clean Your Body, Clean Your Teeth!

I can’t promise you that this tactic is going to work for your kids, but I can tell you that it is working GREAT for mine. Brushing teeth has become yet another activity that the girls have added to their bathtime fun each night, and I have found that the little one will copy what her big sister is doing (actually brushing her teeth) and the older one will brush for much longer before wanting to be done if she’s brushing in the tub. So everyone ups their tooth brushing game! Executing this is so simple. Just grab your kids’ Crest, put it on the tub railing, and they will get the idea!

Oral-B Disney Timer App

Of course, not every single night can be a bubble bath extravaganza around here. Sometimes we’re just running behind in life and have to skip the bath. And we don’t do morning baths, either. So for the start of the day and for nights without tub time, we turn to the . It’s FREE (yes, indeed!) and it gives your child a timer AND a visual to show where they should be brushing, and for how long. It does 30 seconds for top right, and then 30 seconds for bottom right, and then over to the other side.

I may have used it a time or two, myself, as I totally don’t usually brush for 2 minutes (I would have guessed that I came close, but after watching those seconds tick away, I realized I fall way short of the recommended amount of time). The app helps me get in the habit, too!

So that’s the latest crazy trick I have up my sleeves, but it is SO simple and SO effective. Bath time = brushing time, and using the app keeps us on track!

This is a paid post is brought to you by the as part of a Type-A Parent Community Sponsored Post. Featuring sixteen of your favorite Disney and Marvel characters, use this app to seamlessly encourage your kids to brush longer. Collect a new digital sticker after each successful two minutes of brushing; track progress with stars and milestone badges on the Brushing Calendar. Longer, happier brushing for your little one is just a download away!

Getting some relaxation time with MAM!

March 19, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · Leave a Comment

by Alanna Peters

I received a complimentary product from MAM for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

What relaxes you? For me it’s a cup of coffee (or a pint of beer…depending on what time/day it is!) For my newborn, it just happens to be my boobs. Babies naturally have a sucking reflex, and usually Mom’s breast is what they need/want. However, sometimes Mom isn’t always available or doesn’t want to be used as a human pacifier. (Seriously!) My little one is trying SO hard to find her thumb but is only successful at finding it about 10% of the time. We are working to get her to take a pacifier for those occasions when she so desperately needs to suck in order to calm herself enough to fall asleep. Right now we are trying the MAM Start, which are sized specially for newborns. Aren’t they cute! (They also come in pink and blue.)

The suggested retail price for MAM Pacifiers is $5.99 each or $7.49 for a pack of two. I highly recommend getting a pack of two so you can keep one at home and keep a spare on hand in your diaper bag!

Here are some highlights of MAM pacifiers:

lightweight
orthodontically correct
BPA-free, PVC-free, lead-free and CPSIA-Compliant
thinner, softer nipple puts less pressure on baby’s jaws and teeth
variety of products for different ages and stages

MAM has won numerous awards for its products and is a proud supporter of numerous charities that reach expectant parents and children in need globally. MAM knows that being a parent is hard, so its mission is to combine the best in technological innovation, medically sound function and contemporary design to provide parents with smart and simple solutions and to give babies the best start in life. I highly recommend that you check out the brand’s product range which includes anti-colic bottles, teethers, oral care items, and more! MAM’s award-winning products are sold in 30 countries and over five continents.

For more information about MAM products, please visit mambaby.com.

Follow MAM:
Facebook: facebook.com/MAMbabyUSA
Twitter: @MAMBABY
Pinterest: Pinterest.com/MAMUSA
YouTube: Subscribe to MAMbabyUSA
Blog: blog.mambaby.com

Getting Into Essential Oils as a Skeptic

March 18, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 43 Comments

I’m happy to be sharing my story with you all, but please know that I am not intending to diagnose, prescribe, or promise cures for any conditions. Always consult with a medical professional if you have questions about combining essential oils with a prescription regimen.

Just about two months ago, my friend Kayla Aimee started telling me about the wonderful results she was seeing for her family by using essential oils for things like supporting the immune system and helping occasional sleeplessness. I could hear the excitement and passion in her voice, especially since she is NOT the type to ever try to push a product on someone, and so I ordered a kit of essential oils from her, just to try some stuff out.

And I will be the first to tell you that I wasn’t really sure what I was getting into, but I was pretty darn sure that it wasn’t going to work for me. I’ve purchased essential oils before at health food stores, and I’ve NEVER EVER been impressed with the results I have received beyond them making a room smell good. I never found that they helped me relax, fall asleep, or did much to improve skin problems.

When my oils arrived, I started doing a little experimenting. I started by using a diffuser to get some of the oils in the air so I could enjoy smelling them, and also see if they helped do things like wake me up, energize me, or calm me down (depending on the oil or oils I used). And I did feel as though they were working, although I was still skeptical: this could just be a placebo effect, and be the result of me wanting them to work (because I had just spent $150 plus shipping on this large kit of oils and I didn’t want to feel like a total fool, you know? ).

And then I decided to purchase the Essential Oils Pocket Reference , and I actually spent a great deal of time recently just reading over it. It helped me tremendously! I got to read about the science behind essential oils and how they are distilled. I also read about the lack of regulations across the industry and the subsequent extreme variance in quality and helpfulness of oils. The guide also offered some specifics about how these particular oils are produced, and that helped me understand why they are lauded by so many thousands of people and seem to produce outstanding results. On the practical application side, the reference book gave detailed recommendations for which oils to use (and HOW to use them) to address a wide variety of wellness issues. They distill in small batches (it would be more profitable to distill in larger quantities) and they third party test every batch they make. , and I actually spent a great deal of time recently just reading over it. It helped me tremendously! I got to read about the science behind essential oils and how they are distilled. I also read about the lack of regulations across the industry and the subsequent extreme variance in quality and helpfulness of oils. The guide also offered some specifics about how these particular oils are produced, and that helped me understand why they are lauded by so many thousands of people and seem to produce outstanding results. On the practical application side, the reference book gave detailed recommendations for which oils to use (and HOW to use them) to address a wide variety of wellness issues. They distill in small batches (it would be more profitable to distill in larger quantities) and they third party test every batch they make.

Here’s an example of their commitment to consistent quality: they recently became out of stock of an oil that I love called Valor. I wanted to order more, but noticed they were out of stock. When I inquired about when more would be coming in, I couldn’t get a definitive answer. It could be as early at 3 weeks, or as late as 2 1/2 months. I was a bit frustrated at this answer, as it just sounded like someone in the ordering department REALLY screwed up!

As it turns out, this is just a reflection of the dedication the company has to quality. They had a batch of product come in that didn’t meet their expectations, and rather than put out a product that folks were already lined up to buy, they opted to wait for the next round. And you know what? That one may not make the cut, either, which is why they aren’t making any promises. I totally respect that, because many companies would choose to sell something that was “close enough” in quality.

As I have spent a bit more time getting used to the oils and learning about different ways to use them (diffusing, topical application, and ingesting), I have been becoming a bigger and bigger fan. I have realized that these oils contribute to better health for my own family, as well as for other families. And at the end of the day, one of my very favorite things to do is to come up with strategies that solve problems. When I get to do that, I’m in my happy place. That’s why I blog about products and services that I love (or don’t), love to share ideas that are quick and easy and get the job done, and help busy parents like myself find ways (big and small) to make day-to-day life just a bit easier and more fun. That, my friends, is why 4 1/2 years after starting this blog, I’m still jabbering away!

I can’t wait to share more with you about how essential oils are supporting wellness left and right in my home. I purchase these oils regularly so I signed up for a membership with Young Living, which means I get to place an order each month with discounted prices, as well as discounted shipping. I’ll keep you all in the loop about when that order is coming up, because I’d be happy to include others on it (helping my readers find solutions AND helping them get the best price? I’m in heaven!!!). If you’d like to join a small facebook group I’m in just to learn more about oils and how to use them (it is NOT a sales-y places, just a sharing place), then feel free to join the Oil Love Facebook group!

More essential oils posts:

Supporting My Lungs and Sinuses Throughout the Seasons

DIY Shower Disks for Congestion

Essential Oils for Weight Loss

How to Get Started with Essential Oils

Use Lemon Essential Oil to Safely Remove Crayon Marks

How to Get Free Essential Oils Without Starting a Business (It’s EASY!!!)

How to Get Rid of Hiccups with Peppermint Oil

How to Strengthen Brittle Nails with Essential Oils

Support a Healthy Immune System with Thieves

Have you ever tried essential oils? Did you have a disappointing experience like I did at first? Do you think I sound like I’ve gone off my rocker just a wee bit? And do you have any questions about oils or any problems that you are curious if oils might potentially help with? I’d be delighted to try to find the answer for you!

Honest Company Organic Dish Towels Review: An Honest Assessment

March 18, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 1 Comment

Referral links included. All thoughts and opinions are my own, as always.

I’m really having a lot of fun showcasing all of the Honest.com products that I’m trying out. If you’d like to my list of detailed Honest Company reviews that I’ve done, definitely check those out before deciding what to order from them.

Today I’d like to show you a product that might surprise you to find in the Honest Company lineup: organic dish towels. These are, in my experience, work horses in the kitchen, yet they aren’t any sort of official cleaning product.

These come in a pack of 2 for $7.95. I think that’s comparable to a price you might find in a store for traditional dish towels. I actually think the price is on the low end for comparable dish towels made with organic cotton, though!

The design is simple, but quite lovely. I’ve been using my 2 dish towels frequently, and find them to perform just as well as other similarly-designed dish towels. They absorb well, and they are sturdy enough to take on scrubbing jobs, too.

I actually purchased a second set after trying out these towels for myself, as I think they make a lovely and practical hostess gift. I would be delighted to receive something like this from guests, and I think the price point is very reasonable for a gift like that, too.

How to Get a Good Deal (And a GREAT Deal) on Honest Company Dish Towels

Ok, so since these dish towels are priced at $7.95 on the website (remember, you get 2), that makes them a good item to include in your essentials bundle. Essentials bundle items cost you $7.20 each, so since this item’s starting price is higher than $7.20, you will save money on it if you purchase it in a bundle. With that said, it is also a great item for you to add on to the bundle additions. When you purchase a bundle, you get to add up to 3 extra items to your bundle order, and each of those 3 items are offered at a 25% discount. So if you purchase these as an add-on, they will cost just $5.96!

Is This Your First Order?

If you are new to Honest.com products, you need to get yourself all of the freebies available before placing an order. I’ve got a post that tells you how to get a bunch of stuff totally free from Honest.com as a welcome gift! 🙂

Sound-Off

Have you tried the Honest Organic Dish Towels, yet? What did you think about them?

Organic Gardening…For the Rest of Us

March 17, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 1 Comment

This post brought to you by Organic Choice. All opinions are 100% mine.

Our next door neighbors are a rather quiet bunch in the winter months, but in the spring, summer, and fall, they are totally boisturous, colorful, and have a lot of visitors over.

photo credit: hello from lauren via photopin cc

You see, we live next door to a community garden. Yes, we are so lucky, indeed. The girls frolick and play alongside raised beds with organic goodness, ranging from chard to zucchini. We were even fortunate enough to be given a plot of our own one year. And we planted cherry tomatoes, all sorts of herbs, and strawberries.

Those poor strawberries never had a chance and didn’t amount to anything. And the tomatos grew with just ferver that they pretty much overtook the whole bed. We weren’t disciplined about keeping everything in its proper area, nor were we diligent about picking those cute little tomatoes every day while they are in season. That garden plot was a RED HOT MESS.

Only the herbs seemed to quietly keep to themselves, not causing any difficulties. They just did exactly what they were supposed to do. They were the rule followers of the plot, and they were just wonderful. Our food never tasted so good as when we added fresh herbs to it.

Now, we may not have been ready to take on an entire garden plot, but we did learn a few things, and we’re ready to try our hand at organic gardening again this year, but in a more realistic way for ourselves.

First, we’re going to go small, and do a contained herb garden that will just stay on our back porch. We can only handle gardening in small doses, it seems. We’ll be using Miracle-Gro Organic Choice for our potting soil, as it is designed to be safe for edible gardening. If you are going to be growing organic herbs, vegetables, or any other food this year, make sure you’ve got an organic soil product like

Miracle-Gro Organic Choice. The bag we’ll be using looks like this:

Organic Soil photo 72859510_22_zps758b34b4.jpg

From our experience, herbs are hearty, easy to care for, and produce fragrant, useful results that will have a major impact on how awesome your food tastes. And I know exactly what I’ll be making as soon as the basil is ready this summer: spaghetti carbonara

What about you? Are you into organic gardening? Do you have a kitchen garden in your backyard, or a community garden plot, or are you looking for a place to start if those options sound overwhelming? Can I recommend that you buy your favorite herb and in the modified words of Elsa, “Let it grow!!!!”

Organic Soil photo 72859510_22_zps758b34b4.jpg

I am Still In Shock Over These Prices…

March 16, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · 8 Comments

This post brought to you by Dollar General. All opinions are 100% mine.

Oh my word, you guys! I have discovered something AWESOME!!!

A few days ago, I headed over to what I would have considered a rather unusual place to go clothing shopping. I had $50 to spend, and I was supposed to find some cute spring fashions for members of my family.

So at the mall $50 would buy one or two items. But instead, I picked up lots and lots of stuff for every member of my family. And I wasn’t at the thrift store, either.

I shopped at Dollar General.

Here’s a picture of my haul (minus a dress and headband that Darah wore to school…you’ll see it in a minute!).

I’ve shared the prices of the items that I’m not featuring in separate pictures above. Aren’t they awesome??? A tab-sleeve top for $5.85? With a tank-top under it, it would be totally appropriate for an office setting. Packs of socks for $3? Yes, please! A hat with Disney fairies on it for $3? They actually had quite a bit of Disney merchandise in the store, and the prices were terrific. Actually, they were better than terrific. Check out my new spring outfit, inspired by the colors of my sorority, Chi Omega.

I can’t believe I scored an on-trend outfit for less than $12! And Tim also got a striped shirt for spring. He got an even better deal than I did!

I mean, honestly, that’s better than the price tags at my favorite thrift store.

Darah’s outfit, though, was my very favorite. Check out this super fashionable high-low dress with an Aztec print.

Her dress was the single most expensive item I purchased, coming in at a whopping $7.00. And of course, I couldn’t leave little Layah out. While her pick wasn’t exactly screaming, “Spring!” it was just too irresistible to leave in the store. And the price was OUT. OF. CONTROL.

$3.51 for a top AND bottoms. Now I will tell you that the bottoms on this particular outfit seem to be rather huge. They will work just fine any time she’s in a cloth diaper, but since we are working on potty training, I’m hoping those days are almost behind us. But for the price, it’s worth it to get it taken in, even.

I took my mother-in-law shopping with me and we both kept commenting about how surprised we were to find so many great pieces of clothing, and to find such fantastic sales and even great regular prices on the pieces that weren’t on sale (like the hat, socks and headband). I will say that the Dollar General I shopped at had a whole lot of clothes crammed into a fairly small section, and that meant that I had to do a bit of digging. But when the prices are this hot, I don’t mind rolling up my sleeves and doing battle with tangled hangers and such.

But if you are less patient with such situations in store, fear not! You can shop apparel online!

So tell me, friends: did you know that Dollar General even sold clothes? And did you have any idea that they were this cute and this affordable??

Disney Princess Pop-Up Game: A Perfect First Game Choice!

March 16, 2014 · by Tiffany Merritt · Leave a Comment

What’s the first board game you remember playing as a child? I have a vague memory of chutes & ladders, though I much preferred Candy Land. The board was bright, cheery, and there weren’t too many opportunities to really get in a pickle, which made it less stressful (yes, stuff like “skip a turn” TOTALLY stressed me out as a kid).

Darah is a lot like me, so I wanted to find a board game for her that would be less about winning or losing, and more about entering into a fun world for a little while and enjoying the process.

Hasbro sent us the Disney Princess Pop-Up Magic Tangled Game (one of 3 princess pop-up games that can be played separately, or combined for a much larger board). I was able to explain the rules to Darah very quickly, and we were playing within just a few minutes of getting it out of the box.

Since you can move ahead up to 6 spaces at a time, the game can go pretty quickly, but that’s good for a 4-year-old, who isn’t typically going to be interested in playing one round of a game for 30 minutes.

It is only designed for 2 players, and I would recommend that one of the players be a grown-up in order to make sure that the pop up tower isn’t destroyed by little curious hands!

This game is a very reasonable $9.74 on Amazon right now. If you’ve got a young Tangled fan in the house, this will be a hit. We play it frequently!

I’m actually eyeing the larger Pop-Up Magic Castle Game, which is currently on sale for just $14.99. This might be a perfect birthday gift for Darah, and it will increase the number of players all the way up to 4 (or potentially 6, since we could maybe use the Tangled characters on the other board? Not sure how that works!). Anyone out there own the larger game and can offer commentary on how the games are connected?