GIVEAWAY- SkinMD Natural

I told you how excited I am about SkinMD Natural barrier lotion HERE.

Did you send for your free sample?HERE



SkinMD Naturals have given me a full size bottle to give away!!


To enter:
leave a comment (one entry)
follow my blog (one entry)
tweet about this giveaway (one entry)
Blog about this giveaway (one entry)
post my button on your blog (one entry)
Please leave a comment for each you choose to do:)


Contest will run through January 15th when a winner will be chosen at random.

SkinMD Natural-a Rave Review

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I'm really excited about this lotion!! It works really well and does what it says it will. I respect that. But what I am most excited about is what it doesn't have and doesn't do!!

No animal products or testing
Dermatology tested
No Fragrance
No colorant
Hypoallergenic
No Paraben
Non-comedogenic




I have extremely dry skin and a son who is sensitive to fragrance, colorings and a lot of fruits. I have spent soo much money on lotions that burned my sensitive skin or didn't do as they promised. Parabens don't sound like a big deal but they are estrogen mimickers and throw my hormones for a huge loop. They come standard in most lotions. I have pretty much given up and live with dried, cracking and bleeding hands most of the year. Not fun and not pretty.

The whole concept of Skin Md Natural is described as "..an entirely new concept in skin care requiring a new classification: "Shielding Lotion". A shielding lotion keeps moisture-robbing irritants away from the skin while the proprietary "super" humectants hydrate the skin throughout the day." Doesn't that just make sense? The lotion goes on light and dries quickly leaving you feeling like you improved.

I suggest you try a sample!!HERE There are several options and all are very worth it.

Will you leave a comment and let me know that you ordered a sample and let me know what you think when it arrives?

Gingerbread House brings some Merriment

I'm drowning in domesticity and deprived of merriment! HELP

My daughter rang the bell for The Salvation Army with her Keepers at Home Girls' Club in front of Walmart yesterday. I ran inside and bought a Wilton gingerbread house kit. It took way too much work to get from there to here but so be it at this point in my life:)






If your holidays didn't involve a gingerbread house making time...HERE is one for you to play with:)

Id like to get a box of graham crackers next year and get EVERYONE involved. My three year old LOVES seeing Christmas lights on people's house and SCREAMS "GINGERBREAD HOUSE." While I was trying to put him down for a nap, his siblings kept telling him how exciting it would be to eat a gingerbread house when he woke up. he got pretty frustrated with them for talking nonsense. This could get interesting. What am I saying? It WILL be interesting.

Giveaway: Canon Photo Printer :)

Because my last post officially declared it Photo Time and because it is the season of giving...I have decided to personally sponsor a giveaway:)

I have to give away a


Canon SELPHY CP780 Compact Photo Printer:
Compatible with both Mac and PC
Preview, edit and add creativity to your images on a 2.5” LCD
Enjoy photo lab quality with 4” x 6” images produced in under a minute.
Print without borders in Mini & Full Labels, Credit Card, 4” x 6” and 4” x 8” sizes.
Print from a computer, or any compatible: memory card, camera, DV camcorder, camera phone or optional BU-30 wireless Bluetooth unit.


You can find lots more info, manufactures description and reviews here

I have spent a lot of time whining here and trying to explain. Id really like to start giving back with some nice giveaways:) Will you help me by commenting away and showing companies that there really are people out there and that if they give me things I will give them away:)

You May enter by doing each of the following and commenting once for each:

Find one thing that I am doing right on this blog and tell me so I can continue
Become a follower of this blog
Follow this blog on facebook
Post my button on your blog...
and for TWO entries you can blog about this giveaway and link back here


I will take entries up until Christmas and then hurry and send this out to one lucky winner to print THEIR Christmas pictures!!

Its Photo Time

Well, I complained soo much about my camera and it finally died on Thanksgiving. I now miss having so so picture and kind of prefer them to nothing at all:) I was sick on Black Friday but ventured out a little late and bought a camera. Then took it back and got this one:

It has 12 mp and came to under 100 with a photo printer. It only takes 3 pictures without a memory card though. But I am NOT complaining.
I have since ordered this to keep it in:


I was TOTALLY drooling over the camera cases for the DLR that I really want. but I am going to be content for now, and work on getting enough swagbucks for something spectacular!!

Christmas Cards

I love love love getting Christmas cards in the mail and reconnecting with friends!!

I don't want to spoil the surprise of ours this year but I do want to let you in a secret while there is still time:

I just ordered 50 photo cards for $3.19 shipping!!!

www.seehere.com coupon code: newbaby (after you put the cards in your basket:)



A dear friend contacted me and offered to do a family picture for us. If you are in my area: contact me--she's good and affordable:)

Oh Christmas Tree!

Are things easier for other people? Am I just a HUGE HUGE whiner?

Saturday my baby came down with a fever. 103-104. I was up all night with him. Sunday my husband "fell" sick. Monday was my husband's birhtday. We did nothing. He heated up the soup I had made the day before. My oldest son became sick and spent the next day and a half in bed. I feel fine but am cranky and impatient. I had plans. I want the tree up. I want Christmas music playing.

A tree is a big deal for us each year. Normally, I am very matter of fact: If we dont have the money for it--we dont need it. My husband is very black and white and thinks that since this applies to everything else in our lives it should apply to Christmas Trees too. Can you believe his logic? There is and should not be anything logical applied to Christmas trees!!!

Last year we were given an artificial Christmas tree. It is beautiful. We acquired a train table this year! We were blessed with new couches this year too. Wow huh? What could I possibly find to complain about? None of these good thigns actually fit in our small living spacce. The challenge: fit ALL in the small living space and leave room for "living." Hmm... add in sick toddlers and babies and whining husbands and bickering sickies. This cranky, impatient Mommy isnt feeling very magical.

I moved and moved furniture, which of course involved more and more cleaning. I pulled on the side of the tain table to move it, which I have told everyone else NOT to do because it will break. It broke. I layed the tree branches out in the sun to dedust. I vaccummed. I ran over a banana peel. I had to clean the carpet and take the vaccumm apart. The WHOLE vaccum apart. AND someone had the nerve to turn off "my" Christmas music in the process!!


Finally everyone else caught my excitement and wanted in on the fun. Babies woke up from naptime. Someone convinced my three year old that he could help. He is now taking ornaments on and off the tree and proclaiming what a good helper he is. At 6 am, he brought my favoriate ornament to me, in bed. The tree topper is also broken and we discovered AFTER putting everything up and decorated that the tree is leaning. Would you like to SEE the tree? Have I told you about my camera breaking at Thanksgiving?

Piggy Paint-An exciting discovery!!

I have been on the hunt for natural fingernail polish FOREVER!! My son is highly highly sensitive to smells. Both my nine year old daughter and I are nail biters:( I could NOT bring myself to put the toxic chemicals of fingernail polish on my daughter. Whenever we'd go to a health food store or drug store she would ask if they'd have nail polish that we could use. Nope. Searched and searched. One health food store asked me that if I did ever find natural fingernail polish, what was I going to remove it with?

THEN!!!






Piggy Paints are:

Water based (not flammable)
and FREE of formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, biphenyl A, ethyl acetate and acetone...
and made in the USA!


YAY!!!

Melanie Hurley is the founder of Piggy paints and the mother of two little girls.
Melanie explains the necessity and inspiration of Piggy Paints:
"One day while we were painting nails over a foam plate, my daughter dropped a glob of her solvent-based polish onto the plate. Shortly after, the paint began to bubble and “ate” through the plate. I looked in dismay at the hole in the plate and decided to test all of her other “kid” polishes on the foam. Within minutes, ALL of the solvent-based polishes began to bubble and eventually left big holes in the plate. From that day on, I decided that any flammable substance that could eat through foam was unacceptable for my children’s fingernails, which would inevitably end up in their mouths."

I contacted Piggy Paints and they sent me a bottle of polish AND natural remover to review. YEP. That is how I will remove the natural fingernail polish, thank you very much:)

WE LOVED IT!!! The color we received was great! My daughter was so amazed that there was no smell. It went on well and stayed on. I was excited that it was natural and safe but so so impressed that it is high quality, comes in great colors and stays on!! I am so excited and now want these for stocking stuffers or maybe Holiday festivities:




********I have a discount code for my readers!!!**************
Enter: HANDFUL15L expiration January 31, 2010
for 15% off anything on the website including sale items.

**Spend over $25 and domestic shipping is FREE! They ship worldwide!
PIGGY PAINT


I was given a sample of Piggy Paint polish and remover to review. I was not compensated in anyway for my opinion of them.

Book Review- "From Peanuts to the Pressbox" by Eli Gold

From Peanuts to the Pressbox, by Eli Gold (with M.B. Roberts.)
is a well written, easy to follow memoir of a young boy living out the American dream in the sports industry. The book follows his journey from a young sports fanatic to becoming one of America's top sports broadcaster.

Eli Gold is man's man. He is someone that inspires you to put your faith back into the men of sports. In this memoir he shares a glimpse of his friends, experiences and sports history, revealing that there are other admirable men in this industry worth believing in and routing for. He covers his experience and history of a variety of sports: From minor league hockey to Nascar, from SEC football to the AFL and many others in between

I shared this book with my thirteen year old son who loved it. He enjoyed it's fast paced narrative and history and enjoyed getting acquainted with other sports announcers and athletes. I felt good about sharing this book with my son--we dont share the same obsession and desire for all things manly and sports inspired. I was however searching for a common ground to show him what determination and good character can bring to your life experience.

*I was given From Peanuts to the Pressbox, a memoir by Eli Gold (with M.B. Roberts. from Thomas Nelson publishing from the publisher to review here on my blog. I was not compensated in any other way nor was my opinion swayed.

You can find more reviews or purchase your own copy here:
From Peaunts to Pressbox-Eli Gold

Help for my living room?

I have showed you my living room before. In all its glory:
I got an amazing deal on couches and worked on this room a bit....I was hesitant to show you the room because it isn't *done*. I'm not sure what ever is really *done*




A lot has changed in here that I am excited about but it is no way near designer show room AND the room is really small and needs to serve a lot of purposes:)

**I found some Waverly drapes at Good Will, for $10.00 a panel, they are washable and lined.

**There is NO light in this room despite the great lamps I got at a hotel storage closeout...I bought this at the thrift store AND bought some metallic paint in a color that I like...it isn't perfect, but it was $7.00 and we now have light :)

**The brown and black pillows came with the couches. I'm trying to figure out how to cover them without sewing:) The smaller pillows are covered with Dollar Tree Slip covers.

**The oil painting next to the door is also part of my recent "inheritance"

**I got a cream colored knitted throw from Target for $10.00. I lOOOVE it and it feels like Autumn when I curl up in it on "my" new couches:)

If you have any suggestions of things that *I* can actually DO or work towards....please share!!

My Living Room

You may remember that I got a small inheritance recently. Our living room furniture was borrowed and really not cutting it.


I was searching and searching for dining room furniture...

THAT didn't fall into place: but these did:


Originally from Ashley Furniture, I scored big time at Big Lots....for $329.00 Each.

It was really really hard to hand the checker 7 $100 bills. REALLY HARD. he assured me that it was a really good deal and to check the prices at the Ashely furniture store.
WOW. Apparently, I really scored.
I also have an amazing amazing friend with what she calls her "little red wagon" This amazing trailer that folds up into almost nothing in her garage but held both couches. She had this magic elastic netting to hold the couches in and could maneuver her husband's truck and this trailer with both couches well enough to whip us into the parking lot of a Starbucks with what seemed like no effort. Wow again.

**Photos to follow:)

I shared this adventure with the ladies at:
www.lifeasmom.com


head over there to see all their frugal ideas:)

Reformation Day

I really really don't like Halloween. I don't want to celebrate it and I don't want to celebrate in reaction to it. I don't have nay traditions to pass down and havent decided exactly what my ideal is...My husband was able to pick up an "extra" shift which is good but made for an extra long day for me:)

I have NEVER carved a pumpkin. My dear friend, Jane, decided to show us how. She got pumpkins for everyone, tons of supplies and made a HUGE pot of chili (and cornbread and honey/butter)



I was all excited for Gabriel, being his first pumpkin carving and all. Then I relaized, with a little help, that it would be a first for me and ALL five of my children.


Nate wasn't too sure about it all. But had a GREAT time once he let himself:)





Erin blew me out of the park with her carving of something profound..IN JAPANESE!!




Luke discovered that if you stuck your head way down in the "pumpkin guts bucket and screamed that IT ECHOED!!


Here is the conspiring that led to an Awesome "G" pumpkin.







Here are the works of the day...they look good...



AND SOOOO good all lit up. Apparently, pumpkin carving is very forgiving.