Stuff Parents Need

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

Truly Safe Odor Eliminator: PureAyre (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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I think most of us can agree that little babies are soft, snuggly, super cute and that they even smell great, right?

Well, they smell great most of the time.

But they can also produce some rather unfortunate smells. If you use disposable diapers, you have probably either spent a good deal of money on a diaper genie contraption to contain the smell, or you do battle with your diaper hamper to try to keep the smells at bay.

But before I get all smug on you as a cloth diaper user, I have to tell you that we aren’t immune to the smells, either! Our wet bags do help contain the smell, but they can only take so much before they start to smell, too. Trust me, I know.

So is the solution to just spray some air freshener in the baby’s room every day? I hope not! The chemicals in those products are highly questionable for us to be breathing in. We’ve actually banned them from our house, altogether, because we don’t like ingesting the chemicals, nor do we like adding them to the environment.

Lighting candles isn’t really a good alternative, as they aren’t a safe option when you have kids around, or when you are in the season of your life where you are very tired, and therefore, likely to forget that you lit one. What we’ve been doing, instead, is a combination of washing the diapers more frequently (which isn’t great, because then we are using even more water), or just dealing with the smell (which isn’t great for obvious reasons).

So I was excited to learn about a new product on the market called PureAyre Odor Eliminator for Baby. This is the only food-grade odor eliminator on the market, which means that it is the safest way to get rid of icky smells, all without compromising the safety and health of your child, yourself and even your pets. The product is enzyme-based and does not use chemical products or artificial fragrances.

And there’s another great feature that this product has: it can be used to remove stains! I really love when a product has multiple purposes. Our space for housing cleaning products is limited, so it is always a plus to me when one product can meet several needs. I have tried it as a stain remover, and yes, it works!

I also think this is a terrific product for anyone who suffers from allergies or asthma, as chemical-based air fresheners can cause breathing difficulty for these folks. This is a non-issue with PureAyre!

In addition to having an odor eliminator designed for dealing with all sorts of baby smells, PureAyre also has products designed for pets, dogs, marine life and the home. I will say that I have found the baby product to also work fine dealing with cat messes. I used it to clean up a hair ball, and it dealt with the smell and the mess all at the same time!

Buy it!: You can find your nearest retailer of PureArye here, or shop online! Product prices start at just $2.99!
Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

A Change on the Blog for May: Requiring GFC for Giveaways

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Hello fabulous readers,

I’ve been mulling over the idea of requiring following Stuff Parents Need via Google Friend Connect for several months, now. It seems that my readership level has hit a wall, and I need to switch it up a bit in order to try to keep growing. I’ve noticed that this is a growing trend for review and giveaway bloggers to require readers to follow via GFC, and I’ve also noticed those bloggers experience very nice gains in their follower numbers after making this requirement.

I’ll be honest with you; I’m not yet convinced that this is an excellent idea. But I also think it is worth a shot, which is why for the month of May, to enter a giveaway on my site you must follow me via Google Friend Connect. I’ll assess how it went at the end of the month, and make a judgment call at the time about whether or not to leave that requirement or remove it.

Why am I doing this? Well, in order to keep bringing you very cool products that you can win, I have to have a good number of followers. Typically, when I only get to review a product and not also give it away, it is because the company I worked with didn’t find my following high enough to warrant the extra investment in product. This always makes me sad, because I get a lot of joy out of giving away cool stuff! So I want to have the type of blog where companies consistently want to offer a free product to my readers! But to do that, I must keep growing.

If you are wondering, “What is Google Friend Connect, anyway?” Wikipedia has a very detailed answer to this question that you are welcome to peruse, but for all intents and purposes on my site (and most others) it is a very public way to show the readership of your blog. It can be much more than that, but that’s all I’m currently using it for. Just being honest, here.

Please know that I’m open to your feedback on this issue. This blog is for me, but it is also for you!

Explore Asian Heritage Through Classic Stories with Scholastic (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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Do you remember the hilarious story Tikki Tikki Tembo? I read it over and over again as a child. It is a classic Chinese tale that shows why giving really long names to children is no longer the standard practice.

If you aren’t familiar with the story, it basically involves two brothers, one named Chang and the other named Tikki Tikki Tembo (that’s actually only about 1/4 of his name). When Chang falls into a well, Tikki Tikki Tembo is able to get him help very quickly. But when he falls into the well and Chang needs to get help, it takes a really long time because of how much time he has to spend telling people the name of his brother who is stuck! I remember how much fun it was to chant his name over and over again throughout the story; it really does take forever to say!

This latest dvd out from Scholastic brings this great tale to life. I don’t have a copy of the book, so I’m happy to have this dvd so that I can now share one of my favorite stories with Darah. It also contains 5 other stories that all celebrate Asian heritage and illustrate problem solving and friendship. They are also terrific for early readers, as there is an option to view the stories with highlighted captions as the words are read.

Buy it!: Tikki Tikki Tembo is available for just $13.49 on Amazon!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win your own copy of Tikki Tikki Tembo! The contest will run until May 10th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me the name of a book you’d like to see brought to dvd!

My answer: I’d love to see Hooray for Fish by Lucy Cousins on dvd!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like New Video Digital on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary dvd for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Do You Know What Is in Your Lip Gloss??? (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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Have you ever given thought to how lipstick and lip gloss is made? I know I haven’t. Did you know that the vast majority of these products contain beeswax and carmine? And do you know how these products are collected? Beeswax, obviously, is harvested from bees. And anytime you are using an animal by-product in large quantities, the likelihood that the creatures who are providing these products are being treated kindly lessens.

And as for carmine…do you know what it is? It’s crushed beetle scales. Totally serious. And it is in LOTS of makeup. Woah.

Today I’m highlighting a company called Monave. their products are micro-formulated in Baltimore, and the company is woman-owned and operated. You won’t find any carmine in these products, but you will find a large selection of vegan makeup as well as gluten-free makeup (you’d be surprised by all the places you’ll find wheat products when you start looking!).

I had the opportunity to try out the Lip Glaze and found it to be quite beautiful. It was smooth, and not sticky. While it didn’t last very long, I’ve never encountered a lip glaze that does, and it certainly didn’t wear off any faster than other products I have used in the past. The color was sheer, but still noticeable. I quite liked it!

If you are becoming more and more concerned about the chemicals that you are putting on your face or the welfare of the creatures whose by-products might be used for your makeup, then Monave is a company worth checking out. Most of their products are vegan, most of them can be gluten-free upon request, and all of their products are free of irritants, dyes and preservatives.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win 2 lip glazes from Monave! Woo hoo! The contest will run until May 9th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me your two favorite lip glaze colors, and choose wisely, as the winner will get what she puts down for this entry!

My answer: Divine and Ruby Slippers!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like Monave Minerals on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Like Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage. Link

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. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Should I Rent or Buy Textbooks? A Cost Comparison

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This blog post was written by my younger sister, Laura. She is a junior in college, and she works very hard to make her dollars stretch. Check out what she has to say about investigating an option to rent books through Campusbookrentals.com. Oh how I wish this had been around 10 years ago when I was in college!

Every turn you make, it seems that people today are trying to find more and more ways to pinch every penny and stretch every dollar. Being a college student, if I have a penny to pinch to begin with, I’m doing great! Student loans, gas money, food money, and a wedding to plan are all tugging at my financial strings right now, and hello…it’s expensive!

One thing that tends to always sneak up on me towards the beginning of every semester is buying my text books. You’d think I’d remember that I’m going to have to fork over around $400 every semester just for textbooks alone, but it seems to always catch me off guard, and there I am, wondering how in the world I’m going to get the materials I need. $400 doesn’t exactly come easy around here! The process of buying books on campus is stressful aside from financial reasons as well. I can’t tell you how many lines I’ve stood in waiting for a text book so I can be a lucky one and get a used copy. I also can’t tell you how many times I’ve been forced to buy a BRAND new text book because I wasn’t the lucky one in line to get a used copy. So annoying!

Last semester my university started to offer the option to rent your textbooks. Basically, you pay a slightly reduced price off of what you would pay for a used copy of the text book, and you must return the book in excellent condition within a set amount of days from renting. You do not get any money back for the text book when you return it. I sort of looked into this option. I didn’t look very hard at it, because the rent price was still too high, and I figured It would make more sense to just buy a used copy (fingers crossed) and then sell it to a friend for close to the same price I paid for it. Overall, I figured it would be cheaper for me to just buy. However, a lot of my classmates took advantage of renting their textbooks and seemed to be pleased with their results because they felt like renting was their cheapest option. Whatever floats your boat, right?

But it seems that there is an even better option! I recently heard about an online textbook rental company called campusbookrentals.com. I thought It wouldn’t hurt to go online and check out some of their prices and see if they might make renting textbooks a more feasible option for me. Before I checked out the prices at campusbookrentals.com, I stopped at my university book store to price some of the books I will be buying for the Fall semester. Let me begin by saying that renting from this company is DEFINITELY something I will be doing. I’d be silly not to! I’ll let these figures speak for themselves:

Marketing Research
My bookstore: rental price $107.97
Campusbookrentals.com rental price: $37.59
Savings of $70.38!
Business Logistics
My Bookstore: rental price $120.99
Campusbookrentals.com rental price: $76.64
Savings of $44.35!
Consumer Behavior
My bookstore: rental price $92.60
campusbookrentals.com rental price: $25.59
Savings of $67.01!
Who wouldn’t want to rent from this company?? Campusbookrentals.com also offers some unbeatable deals as far as service goes, too. Shipping on all textbooks is 100% free both ways. That’s right, FREE!I also love the fact that this company seems to truly understand and meet the changing needs of college students. They understand that things may go wrong, and that professors may change book editions last minute, or we may decide to drop the course all together. The site has a 30 day money back guarantee that will cover those instances. That’s much better than the 4 day return period at my university bookstore! Also, they offer a 15 day grace period in case you need to hold on to your book a little longer during finals. That’s pretty generous in my opinion!Finally, I love that you have the option to rent your book for a whole semester (130 days), a quarter (85 days) or for the summer (55 days). That’s certainly the most flexible renting system I’ve ever seen used! Although I have not used this site yet, I am so excited about this company! You can rest assured that I am already making out my book list, and as the Fall semester approaches, I will be using campusbookrentals.com, and will probably be using them for my textbook needs until graduation!

If you are currently enrolled in school or know someone who is, be sure to check out this site. I was extremely impressed with the prices and policies of the site, and really wish I had known about them sooner!

Disclosure: I received a 50% off coupon to put toward a future purchase in exchange for my honest opinion. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Good Enough is the New Perfect (GIVEAWAY!!)

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Once in a blue moon, a book comes out that grabs me and pulls me in completely. I am totally immersed in the material, page after page. That’s because it feels as though the book was written just for me. Like the authors tapped into my deepest joys and fears and put them in a book, in a more cohesive manner than I am able to express. Good Enough is the New Perfect, by Becky Beaupre Gillespie and Hollee Schwartz Temple, is one of those books for me.

And here’s what makes the book even more amazing…one of its foundational messages to me, the reader, is that the book WASN’T written just for me. There are thousands upon thousands of women out there who are grappling with these same issues. The issues I’m talking about and that are addressed in this book are ones that became new to me once I had Darah. They are as follows:

  • whether quitting your job is the right choice for you
  • changing your approach and attitude abut what success means
  • navigating the demands of work and home with realistic expectations
  • whether working at home or becoming an entrepreneur is right for you
  • accepting that motherhood is rarely a perfect science
  • being a good (enough) wife
  • riding out the storm when the best-laid plans go awry

You see, my old life just didn’t fit anymore once a child hit the scene. I’ve written about that topic before, here. And I think about it all the time. How do I retain a professional identity while I’ve hit the pause button on my career? Am I starting a new career by blogging? What really makes me happiest? Why can’t I have it all, just like I was promised? And why can’t I do it all brilliantly? Becky and Hollee actually tackle that very issue. Here’s what they have to say about it:

We grew up being told, “You can do anything.” And many of us took that to mean, “You must do everything.” Many of the entry barriers faced by previous generations of women were gone when we entered the workforce, and we felt obligated to make the most of that. But even as we excelled in our careers, the barrage of messages about what was expected of us at home continued. The standards for maternal excellence were rising, and to lofty heights.

Our generation of moms was the first to professionalize motherhood. There would be no mistaking the contributions of at-home moms who approached their leadership in the home the same way they have handled their Ivy League educations and Wall Street power jobs. Moms who returned to work saw the standards set by their at-home peers, and a new power struggle emerged as we tried to make the “perfect” choices. It wasn’t the Mommy War we’d expected.

In Good Enough is the New Perfect, you’ll meet several different women who re-defined what “having it all” looked like for them, and who worked to leave behind the old definitions that seem to plague us. I can’t emphasize enough how inspired I was by this book, and how much more confident I feel about the fact that I’m not currently drawing a salary, but also continuing to pursue unique opportunities that challenge me and keep my mind sharp in different ways through blogging, learning more about marketing, and of course, teaching that course on world religions online!

The point of the book is not to tell you which path you should take, as what I am choosing to do wouldn’t necessarily be best for someone else. Instead, it pushes you to think really critically about what matters to you, and then to embrace putting your time, effort and energy into those things, and leaving behind all that stuff that wears you out but gives you no satisfaction (I’m talking to you, unnecessary housework).

This book is an excellent read, and I highly recommend it for anyone, whether you work full-time, part-time, seasonally, or just work your tail off keeping your kids healthy and happy (because that’s the toughest job there is, so I have learned!). There are great ideas and things to contemplate for each and every one of us. You can purchase Good Enough is the New Perfect on Amazon for $9.41…an awesome price!

 

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. Affiliate links may be included at no cost to you. 

The King and Queen of the Stuffed Animal Kingdom

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I was inspired to write this post after seeing Dear Crissy write about her toddler’s most beloved stuffed animal friends. Check out her post here.

Darah has a growing interest in stuffed animals. I completely support this interest, as stuffed animals were my very favorite toys to play with as a child. She very much enjoys playing with all of them, but there are two in particular that stand out from the crowd. They are her very best buddies, and I get physically ill at the thought of losing either one of them. I just wanted to show them off to you, today, and also capture them in my blog memory.


Bunny and Llama. Thank you for your service. You are trotted all over this house, all day, every day. You are Darah’s security toys and she turns to you for comfort and love, and you are always there for her, ready to give a squishy hug.

Bunny was a gift from her Pa Pa (my father) last Easter (so happy one year anniversary with us, Bunny!). Llama was purchased new at the Memphis Zoo (he was 70% off, lest you think I overpaid 😉 and I even blogged about it!). We gave her two choices of animals that day, and she didn’t hesitate one bit before grabbing Llama by the neck. She hasn’t looked back.

Both of these animals are repeatedly bitten on the nose by Darah. Is that her way of showing them that she’s the leader of the pack? 😉 Does your child have a most beloved stuffed animal?

Have you ever (gasp) lost it??? Tim STILL remembers his favorite stuffed animal (Wicket from Star Wars). He lost it when he was a teenager. Yeah, you read that right. Embarrassed, love? 🙂

A Little Bit About My Faith: Ask, Seek, Knock (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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Here’s a little-known fact about me (at least on the internet): I have a master’s degree in theological studies.

Why?

Well, that’s a good question. The uncomplicated answer is that I used to want to be a lobbyist for faith-based social justice groups (Bread for the World is a good example of one). After trying my hand at the endeavor during graduate school, I learned that lobbying would suck the joy right out of my soul, and leave me a bitter shell of a person. Sounds harsh, but it was true.

But there was another reason I wanted to go to graduate school: I wanted to do a bit of wrestling.

With God.

Huh?!?!

Let me explain. Actually, I think I’m going to let the Tiffany from November 2002 explain (courtesy of an old Livejournal post!)

“This is my time to wrestle with God. And yes, this is a good thing! Did you know that Israel means “to wrestle with God”? I’m so digging on Judaism! Even though it is a fair criticism that I have placed myself in a super-liberal environment, and am therefore risking the level of challenge my beliefs may face, I have found that God, my colleagues, and my professors have been able to take some pretty good swings at my theological presumptions. Just when I think I’ve got it all figured out, someone knocks me over and I discover, once again, that the “sound foundation” I created was only straw.

Furthermore, I wanted to come here so that I would be around people of faith traditions other than Christianity. And man oh man, have my true colors been shown to me. I always liked to consider myself a pluralist, one who had an equal respect for all faith traditions. But seriously, people, who was I kidding? I am so not a pluralist. I am an inclusivist. I like to believe that deep down everyone is a Christian. And I am so wrong. But I love that I know that now. I acknowledge where I am right now, and am really focused on having some dialogue with people who meet God in fundamentally different ways. It’s so amazing!”

8 1/2 years after writing that, I still am striving to be a radical Christian, full of agape love for others. And I fail every. single. day. To be Christ-like is no walk in the park, and the way I approach my faith is even contrary to how many Christians approach it. But I have to go with the glimpses I have seen of the Divine and know them as my truth. I do firmly believe that God speaks to us in more ways than we might ever even realize. And we must take great care and show some humility should we ever find ourselves thinking we have it all figured out…

There are so many different doors that lead to one, but in the end, I think we each have to pick one to go through. For me, that doorway is Christianity. There are two key things I’d love to share with you about what I believe God’s relationship with people is like, based on my own understanding of the Divine. First, I believe that God is intimately connected with humans, and plays an active role in our lives. God wants us to reach out, to ask questions and yes, even to wrestle with God. Second, I believe that God doesn’t want to be thought of as a magic Genie. We are given free will and the ability to make our own choices and to do the hard work we need to do in order to get through life successfully.

This is why Matthew 7:7 is so appealing to me. Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” This captures the essence of how I believe God wants to be in relationship with us. Never hesitate to reach out to God, for it is God’s deepest hope that we will engage in a relationship with Him (it pains me to use gender-exclusive language for God, but alas, I caved in here). And God’s gifts to us are infinite, though perhaps not always what we expect. But on the flip-side, get yourself out there and Ask, Seek and Knock for yourself. Do not leave it all up to God to do for you. You play a role in your destiny, as well.

At least that’s how I interpret this passage. I’m curious to hear what you, my readers, think of it. What does it make you think when you hear it?

Today as part of this post I’m featuring a beautiful canvas print from Red Letter Words. I met Dee, the owner of the business, at Blissdom. After returning home, I found myself visiting her site again and again. I thought her prints were lovely and very inspiring. She has many quotes from the Bible put to canvas, but her selection goes beyond biblical references. I especially love that she can put together custom canvas art, using whatever words or quotes inspire you!

Prices at Red Letter Words vary based upon the size of the print you selected. My print is 12×12, which is an excellent size because it is a bit larger than an 8×10, so it stands out a bit more. Right now mine isn’t even on the wall, but is on the buffet in my dining room. I look at it every single day, and it reminds me to turn to God, and to also take action, myself, if I am in need of something. It has been a blessing.

Win it!: Red Letter Words is excited to offer one Stuff Parents Need reader a 12×12 cafe mount print of your choice (excluding custom orders) (a $55 value!). The contest will run until May 5th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.
EDIT: Please note that I originally posted the value incorrectly…$55 is correct. I apologize for the confusion).

Mandatory entry: Tell me anything that you feel like sharing about your faith, or about your thoughts on religion or a relationship to the Divine. Anything related to the topic works for me!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Tell me the print that you would pick out if you won.
2. Blogger love: Like Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

Rare bonus entry: Like Red Letter Words on Facebook

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. All opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Peanut Butter & Co.: Win a Trip to NYC!!!

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I love peanut butter. And if you don’t have a peanut allergy, I bet you do, too! What’s not to love? It’s smooth and creamy (at least that’s how I prefer it!) and yummy and sweet! It fills me up quickly and gives me fuel that my body needs to trek through the rest of my day (tip: try a banana with a dollop of peanut butter on for a 2pm snack…it’s better than caffeine, in my opinion!).

Today I am so excited to tell you about Peanut Butter & Co., a company that began in New York City as a small sandwich shop, selling just peanut butter sandwiches (only in New York, right?!). Their products were SO outstanding that they now offer their specialty peanut butters in over 10,000 stores throughout the U.S. and Canada, including places like Kroger, Target, Whole Food and Wal-Mart, just to name a few!


I tried 3 of their flavors. First up, is Cinnamon Raisin Swirl. What a delightful spin on peanut butter! It is good on pretty much anything that you’d put peanut butter on and might just be my favorite of the 3 (although the rankings are painfully close). I would call this a must try, for sure!

Next, I tried Dark Chocolate Dreams, which combines the great tastes of peanut butter and dark chocolate into one wonderful jar. I mean, what more do I have to say? Chocolate meets peanut butter…you are going to want to buy this, too!

Finally, we tried White Chocolate Wonderful. Depending on the day, this is my favorite peanut butter from this company (I know…I already said Cinnamon Raisin was my favorite…I’m so torn, you guys!). This just has a rich, creamy flavor that dares you not to come back for another spoonful.

Basically, you just can’t go wrong with Peanut Butter &Co.;’s flavors. I’m going to be on the lookout for The Bee’s Knees around town, because I know that this peanut butter and honey blend is going to knock my socks off!

Each jar retails for $6.00 and they are worth the price, no question, whatsoever. Click here to find your nearest store!

ALSO…Peanut Butter & Co. has teamed up with Warner Home Video, Peanuts Worldwide and Delta Vacation to offer a fabulous giveaway, all in celebration of the release of the movie Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown.

Check out the Happiness in NYC Sweepstakes! From the press release: Five lucky winners will be chosen from three contest periods running throughout 2011, corresponding with the release of each of the three new Peanuts DVDs. These fifteen winners will each receive a prize pack containing Peanut Butter & Co. products, Peanuts DVDs and merchandise. Out of these winners one grand prize winner will be selected to win a deluxe trip for four to experience “Happiness in New York City.” The vacation package includes round trip airfare and hotel accommodations as well as lunch at the Peanut Butter & Co. Sandwich Shop, tickets to a Broadway show, and

For a complete set of rules and to enter, go to http://ilovepeanutbutter.com/happiness

If you win the trip, can I come with you??? 🙂

Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.