Kroger Cart Buster! Win a $25 Gift Card!

Get ready for the Cart Buster Savings Event exclusively at Kroger and the Kroger Co. Family of Stores. You’ll see Big Savings Storewide on some of your favorite brands! And look out for some special offers and coupons only available at the Kroger Co. Family of Stores, and only available for this event!

Beginning the week of February 26th, 2012, shop the Kroger Co. Family of Stores biggest-ever promotion and find the hottest prices around on more than 35 brands, across more than 60 categories from General Mills, P & G, Pepsi, Nestle, Kraft and Kroger Banner Brands. During the Cart Buster Savings Event, you’ll find great savings in almost every department at the Kroger Family of Stores, which includes: Kroger Ralph’s King Soopers City Market Dillon’s Smith’s Fry’s QFC Baker’s Owen’s Jay C Food Stores Hilander Gerbes Food4Less Pay Less Super Markets Scott’s Food & Pharmacy Check your local store to confirm the exact dates for your Cart Buster Savings Event. Here are just a handful of the great brands participating in the event: Cheerios Lucky Charms Pillsbury Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper Yoplait Progresso Totino’s Green Giant Cascadian Farm Tide Charmin Bounty Pampers Pantene Crest Iams Febreze Old Spice Bounce Pepsi Ruffles Quaker Tostito’s Rice A Roni Tropicana Stacy’s Sobe Mountain Dew Gatorade Looking for even more ways to save time and money? Visit CartBuster.com beginning 2/26/12 to find money-savings digital coupons, shopping lists and more. And starting 2/29/12 you can participate in the “Deal of the Day”! How does the Deal of the Day work? During seven days of the Cart Buster Savings Event, 2/29/12 - 3/6/12, there will be a super hot, exclusive offer good on one participating Cart Buster item. Each offer will be exclusive and available for one-day only – but the offer will be good for the duration of the entire event. You’ll see savings of up to and over 50% with the Deal of the Day offers – maybe even some freebies - and that’s on top of the already-low, low prices that Cart Buster has to offer! Look for seven days of “Deal of the Day offers” beginning 2/29/12. The Last Deal of the Day offer will be up on 3/6/12. But don’t fret - the Cart Buster event will continue even after the Deal of the Day ends. Check your local store for the exact end date for the Cart Buster Savings Event.

(Hit the "Read More" if you don't see the the Rafflecopter entry system!!)

Live Clean Baby #Review

My little girly has some of the worst eczema I've ever seen on her chunky little legs.  I always feel terrible when I see her scratching away at it, and there's nothing I've been able to try that really seems to help.  Prescription creams don't really do any good for her.  I'm always super cautious when I'm trying new things on her, and I've only used baby lotion a time or two on her.  I know lotion would help, but I've been so wary of what's in the products and I know when mine flares up, some lotions make it feel worse.

We recently had the opportunity to try Live Clean's baby collection.  I was pretty excited to check out all the goodies that arrived, and I was SUPER excited to see that they're eco friendly and made with 98% plant ingredients.  The more natural the better when it comes to things you put on your skin, in my opinion!

We tried out the moisturizing baby bath and tearless shampoo and wash right away, the box arrived around dinnertime and after dinner, the babies NEED baths, lol.  I was happy to see that this shampoo is tearless AND mostly natural.  Most of the natural baby shampoos aren't tearless because of the chemicals used to make them tearless.  (Go figure.) 

Little Miss Princess has never had a bubble bath.  This was her first experience (because of her skin, I try to keep her baths as neutral as possible and didn't want to risk her having an itchy-scratchy reaction).  She LOVED it.  I think the products work well, and they smell AMAZING.  I keep sniffing their heads, I just love it.

Let me talk about my favorite product for a minute, though.  Like I said, I'm always a little iffy about trying things on her and even these products were no exception.  Her legs have been getting drier and drier the last couple of weeks, resultant of the weather I'm sure.  We have been using the shampoo/wash and baby bath for a bit and she hadn't had any kind of reaction so I decided to try the moisturizing baby lotion on her to see if it would help.  Help it did!  With just a couple of days use we've seen HUGE improvement!  I put it on before bed, as I put her into her jammies so she can't mess with it too much and get lotion everywhere.  Her legs are nowhere near as dry as they were.  She still scratches, but it's not as bad as it was.  Her chunky lil legs are looking SO much better.

I'm so happy to have had the opportunity to check these products out, the lotion is absolutely amazing and, like I said, they all smell FABULOUS!

 Disclaimer: This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. Thoughts are my own. I was sent products in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

Friends with Kids (Sneak Peek!)

I don't know about you, but I LOVED Bridesmaids (the movie!) On March 9th, the Bridesmaids cast will be reunited in Friends with Kids, an ensemble comedy about a close-knit group of three New York couples and their two single friends entering that stage in life where children begin to take center stage.



Synopsis:

Friends With Kids is a daring and poignant ensemble comedy about a close-knit circle of friends at that moment in life when children arrive and everything changes. The last two singles in the group observe the effect that kids have had on their friends' relationships and wonder if there’s a better way. They decide to have a kid together - and date other people.

Jennifer Westfeldt wrote, directed, and stars in the romantic comedy Friends with Kids. She plays Julie, a Manhattanite whose biological clock is about to run out, so she convinces her longtime platonic best friend, Jason (Adam Scott) to father a child with her. They seem to have a much easier time juggling the responsibilities of new parenthood without the complication of being in a relationship with each other, which is in contrast to the two couples they are closest to. As their friends' marriages implode, Julie and Jason's happy equilibrium topples over as well when he falls for a hot young artist (Megan Fox) and she begins dating a successful businessman (Edward Burns).

There are big laughs and unexpected emotional truths as this unconventional 'experiment' leads everyone in the group to question the nature of friendship, family and, finally, true love.

Will you be checking it out on March 9th?  Or soon thereafter??  I can't wait, it sounds like a girls night out to me!!

Brains! @ThinkGeek

Unique jewelry is awesome. I'm finally to the point I can wear jewelry again because the babies are big enough to pretty much leave it alone.  This is huge.  I LOVE wearing bracelets and necklaces, and for the most part it's nothing fancy.

A few months ago, my sissy got this AWESOME anatomical heart necklace that I was am totally jealous of.  When I came across the anatomical BRAIN necklace, I was almost beside myself.  I don't know why, I'm not particularly zombie-obsessed or anything, I just think it's freaking awesome.

See?

What's not to love about that?  It's pretty heavy for a necklace, you can definitely feel the weight.  I think my favorite part of the whole thing is that the way it stays on the necklace cord is by the brainstem wrapped back behind and up underneath.  AWESOME.  This necklace is hollow on the back side.  I'm guessing that's because it's heavy enough without all the extra weight that would be added by having it be 360 degrees of "brain-ish".

So whether you're a zombie freak, medical junky or you just like unique necklaces, this could be for you!  

Buy It!

You can find the anatomical brain necklace for $39.99 at one of my all time favorite stores, ThinkGeek.

Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

"Cancel The Mold" With #TilexClean

Eww, mold and mildew! Yep, we're going there.  Did you know that 100% of homes have these disgusting, uninvited house guests?  Well, that's an astounding statistic.  It's true, though.

Mold and mildew love the bathroom because it's humid, warm, generally dark and there's plenty of "food" for it to chow down on (*gag*).  Beyond the bathroom, mold is commonly found in window sills, refrigerator seals, under the kitchen sink, air registers and entryways. It grows in moist environments and room temperature conditions. Did you know that regular cleaning with a bleach-based product can effectively kill mold?

In general, I'm not the biggest fan of bleach, but I do use bleach-based cleaners in the bathroom to keep things under control.  I try to do it when the kids are away or at least at the other end of the apartment because I worry about them breathing that stuff in too much.  In our apartment, the bathrooms are window-less so I can't just pop open the window to air it out, or pop open the window when we're using the shower to let all the humidity out.  I'm conscious to turn the fan on when I'm in the shower (and in my bathroom, it turns on with the light, so there's really no way to forget it unless I want to shower in the dark!)  The kids' bathroom is the one I'm not very good at remembering, but since they leave the door open or I'm in there, it's not much of an issue right now.

If you're like me and don't want to use harsh cleaners all the time, or even just in between cleanings, try spraying your shower and tub with vinegar following showers.  It can help keep things at bay so you don't need to use the stronger cleaners as often.  You can also wipe down your tub and shower after use...if there's no moisture, it's harder for mold and mildew to grow! 

Tilex's new Mold Stain & Mildew Stain Remover, Refreshing Breeze can help control these mold and mildew "guests" in your home and help keep you healthier!  Mold and mildew are pretty nasty to look at (and smell, if it gets that far), but they're also bad for your health -- from allergies to severe health issues.



To celebrate the newest product to the Tilex lineup, Tilex is hosting an exciting sweepstakes with lots of cool prizes! Enter on the Tilex Facebook page and you will have a chance to win one of three 40” flat screen TVs or one of ten Netflix subscriptions. Also, if you share the news about the sweepstakes with your friends, you’ll receive an additional entry for each friend you invite.     


Disclaimer: I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Tilex blogging program, for 8,000 My SocialMoms Rewards Points. For more information on how you can participate, click here.

@pedipedfootwear: The New Spring/Summer 2012!

The pediped® Spring/Summer 2012 collection makes its debut with more than 75 new styles and color combinations across pediped® footwear's three signature lines: Originals®, Grip ‘n’ Go™ and Flex®.  Highlights of the collection include a new sole for the Originals® line and an expanded Adventure Line. Kids everywhere will be able to enjoy the outdoors in style with footwear featuring a trendsetting color palette of metallic, jewel tones and bright accent colors, and comfort with all shoes in the collection offering pediped’s signature comfortable fit.  With styles ranging from water-safe shoes, gladiator sandals, athletic styles, boat shoes, Mary Janes and more, pediped’s expansive Spring Summer 2012 collection includes a shoe for every need and occasion!

I have a HUGE love for pediped shoes, both for Tiny Man (I really need to come up with a big boy bloggy name for him, geesh!) and Little Miss Princess!  Here are some of my FAVORITES!  I've been pinning them on Pinterest all over the place, so if you follow, please forgive me for the overabundance!

Seriously.  I.LOVE.THESE.SHOES!!

Don't forget, you can sign up to be a pediped Insider on www.pediped.com to be the first to know on special promotions, new product introductions and more!

Cellunlocker.net Review!

I tried something completely foreign to me a couple nights ago. I had a cell phone that I wanted to unlock and wasn't really sure how to go about it. I hit Google for some info.  I knew I didn't want to pay the amounts that I know are charged at phone places and thought there had to be some better way.

I'm not particularly phone smart, I've got enough "techy smarts" I suppose..I manage to do this blog and I use my computer for hours each day.  I wasn't sure if I'd be able to figure out the cell phone unlock though.

I searched for my particular phone (Samsung Exhibit 4G) and everything I found kept pointing back to Cellunlocker.net.  I was wary, I'll admit, I mean how many scam-type sites are there out there?  Once I felt that I had read enough positive things, I decided to give it a try. 

It was SUPER easy.  They walk you through the whole thing, you put in your phone's IMEI number (they tell you how to find it), your email address and name.  If there's an unlock code for your phone, they tell you so and you can proceed to the payment screen.  I LOVE that they take PayPal, it made me much more confident to purchase because I know my info is safe with PayPal and that they have their own guarantee (so if the unlock code didn't show up, I felt like I had a back up plan).  The unlock codes are $24.99 -- totally worth it in my opinion, you can do it yourself at home, you don't have to send your phone anywhere and it's at least HALF of what you would pay if you took it in somewhere if you don't "know a guy."

With it being President's Day, I wasn't sure how long it would take or if someone had to be there to manually send the code or something.  Nope, it's all automated.  Within minutes, I had the email with the unlock number!  That email walked me through how to put the code in, and quite honestly, within minutes I was using my new-to-me phone with my SIM card! 

I'm so excited to have a smart phone now!  I don't use all the capabilities, but it's fabulous to feel "like everyone else" in this little way!

ScentSationals Review

ScentSationals Wickless Candle is a wax melting warmer and the fabulous scents to go along with it!  I love making my home smell good, I have 2 cats and 2 babies in diapers, so anything to keep the smells down is HIGH on my "for me" list! 

We had the opportunity to check out a couple of warmers and some yummy scented wax.  I love the plugin warmers for in the bathroom.  They don't take up any counter space and they're up out of the way of the kids. 

The wax is great, it smells delicious and it lasts just as long as other brands I've tried (and it's much better than the kind I bought from a retail store, to be honest)  I love, love, LOVE the price, $3.99 regular priced!  There are six cubes per package, so when you split that up and figure each one lasts a couple of days (the way I let them stay on, it lasts a lot longer if you don't turn them on and leave them on like I do!) that's a far better price than for a candle.  The warmers are a lot safer too, no flames, no fire hazard.


Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

BOB THE BUILDER: HERE TO HELP

If you build it, they will help! Preschool favorite Bob the Builder™ and his Can-Do Crew are back for all new construction action and exciting adventures in Bob the Builder: Here To Help coming to DVD, Digital Download and On Demand February 21, 2012 from Lionsgate and HIT Entertainment. Whether they’re being extra helpful on the job, making sure the local stage show goes on, celebrating a good friend’s birthday or just having fun, Bob and his company lay the foundation for super-sized adventure, ready with the tools and the teamwork to teach even the youngest builder that the Fun is in Getting It Done!

Bob the Builder and his Can-Do Crew are Here To Help in this action packed collection as they get the job done and share tales of teamwork from the building yard. Scoop and Lofty learn that they can accomplish a lot with a little help from their friends; Scrambler is in for a big surprise when he accidentally frightens Lofty and must dig deep to repair his friend’s confidence; Scoop needs a truckload of teamwork to save Wendy’s birthday celebration and Scratch learns there’s no one star of the show as everyone must work together to save Fixham’s History Day celebration. Dizzy spins some chaos on the lighthouse ramp and must rely on teamwork – and a newfound talent for wheelies – to fix the mess. Join Bob and his machine team as they lend helping hands, scoops, cranes, shovels and more to build lasting friendships in these Can-Do tales of teamwork and fun! 



Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

BARNEY™: MOVIE PACK 3-DVD SET

Looking for quality movie time with the kids at a great price? Barney™ has a tee-rific deal for you! For the first time ever, enjoy three Barney movies filled with fun, friends, music and more with the Barney: Movie Pack 3-DVD Set, arriving February 21, 2012 from Lionsgate and HIT Entertainment. It’s a three-DVD movie adventure with Barney and his playground friends as they travel to the Rainforest, learn the ABCs and take a vacation to exotic lands all for an incredible low price of $19.98.

Trusted by moms and adored by children, Barney displays sharing, caring, imagining, dancing and learning on television and through digital media, live events, home entertainment, toys and publishing. The Emmy® award-winning series, Barney & Friends™ is one of the top-rated preschool shows today, airing on PBS KIDS® and Sprout®. From a super safari to exploration of the animal kingdom to exciting vacation destinations, Barney and his pals deliver a dino-mite time with every viewing!

Included in this set are:

Barney: Jungle Friends
Barney: Animal ABC’s
Barney: Let’s Go On Vacation




Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

THOMAS & FRIENDS™: MOVIE PACK 3-DVD SET

It’s full steam ahead with the ultimate Thomas & Friends 3-DVD movie set! Settle in for family movie night with exciting adventures on the rails at an incredible value. Thomas & Friends: Movie Pack 3-DVD Set steams into stores February 21, 2012 from Lionsgate and HIT Entertainment. Meet a new engine from far away, discover a new town on the Island of Sodor and see how the engines learn to work together in this trio of fantastic Thomas movie adventures.

Included in this set are:
* Thomas & Friends: Hero of The Rails
* Thomas & Friends: The Great Discovery
* Thomas & Friends: Calling All Engines




Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

Mr. Chewy Winner!

Congrats to the winner of the Mr. Chewy Giveaway! 

PaciPlushies #Review

Dear Paci-Plushies: Where were you last year??  Each of my kids had a passing paci-phase, usually when they were a few months old and generally just in the car or to fall asleep with.  Talker Man used them the longest, but he self-weaned before he turned a year old and so did the other two.  (Yes, I know, I was lucky, lol!)

Paci-Plushies are absolutely adorable little stuffed animals that hold tight to those pacis, making it easy for you to find in the dark, or for baby to find and navigate the paci back into their mouths.  It makes the pacifier itself easier to find (it can't hide as well with an animal attached!)  I love that the Paci-Plushies adapt to any big name brand pacifier, so no matter which one your little one decides they like best, you don't have to get a pacifier keeper specifically designed for that brand.  This means that if you have a couple of different little ones and they decide on different paci's, you can keep using the same Paci-Plushie! 

These will be going high on my list of baby shower gifts!  At $14.98, it would be a great gift basket addition or gift on it's own.


Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. "Crystal Cove Curse"

I have a couple of huge Scooby Doo fans living in my house.  Since we dropped the cable, these days we generally only get to watch it on DVD.  I love when new DVDs come out, like this new Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated: Crystal Cove Curse, because it breaks up the repetition.  ;)  You guys know what I mean.  I think if DVDs could be worn out, the Scooby Doo ones would be the first to "go" so to speak.

Synopsis: The adventures of a talking dog and his four human pals as they try to unravel the strange and haunted history of their hometown. The tone is comedic, but it will never lose the edge that our heroes are in some frightening situations. The stakes are real. Now you can see the second 14 episodes of Season 1 together in this set.

Sneak Peek!

Buy It! 

Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.

The Amazing Mat #Review

The Amazing Mat is just that..pretty amazing!  It's basically a doormat that goes on the inside of your house (or wherever you want to place it, I suppose!).  The mat has 30 "sticky" sheets that each collect germs, dirt, allergens and all the other stuff that ends up on the bottoms of your shoes throughout the day.  It keeps the stuff on the mat and prevents it from going any further into your house!  It's GREAT!  It has cut down on the amount of outside dirt coming in, and I love it because it means that my floors are cleaner for Little Miss Princess to crawl around on.

It's very similar to what's used in many hospitals to stop the spread of germs and dirt, but this is made just for home!  There are several colors and patterns of mat, so you can choose just the one that fits in with your home.

When the top sheet gets dirty, you simply peel it off and start fresh with a new sheet!  Each sheet is numbered so you know how many you have left and when you may need to purchase a refill.  Since it's winter here, we haven't gone through very many sheets yet, but I can imagine in the summer with all the playground dirt and everything that we would otherwise be tracking in, this will be great!  As it is, I've noticed a difference in the amount of physical dirt that I would normally sweep up.  (Granted, I still have to sweep the daily Cheerio floor collection, but at least it's not so gross!)

For a bit better of an explanation and demonstration, check out this short video!

Buy It! 

You can purchase The Amazing Mat on their website -- there's a special introductory price of $29.95 going on now!

Disclaimer: I was sent product from the above company in return for my honest opinion and review. No other compensation was received.