Top Droppers ~ August

Thanks to the following blogs who dropped the most here in August

Moonangelnay on Etsy ~ A contemporary handmade, fine art, photography, crafts, gifts, jewelry, fashion and Etsy focused blog, sharing weekly features, tutorials, original works and interviews of the new artists of Etsy.

my kids are my world ~  This is a blog about my life as a wife and mother of three kids, who are, obviously, my world.

Sandypetals ~  Blog about Gardening, Jewelrymaking and Life in general.

Crazy Mom With 4 Boys ~ I'm a mom of 4 boys. I have been married to the love of my life for over 20 years. We enjoy sports, cooking, gardening, crafts, painting, music, watching movies and I love to shop.

World Dream Cars ~  The latest update on world dream cars from various model.

feeding my family of five ~  I write about the things I cook for, and with, my family.

Da Dude's BBQ Thought ~  Da Dude's BBQ Thought & other things. The thoughts and rantings of a Barbecue God Wanna be!

Lovely Purses ~  this blog is all about creativity, my love of fabrics, bag design and construction, useful sewing advice, trends and current projects

Resume of Career Catastrophes ~  Forty plus hours a week, plus commute time... we live to work/work to live.

PetsBlogs ~  Loads of pet-related information, stories, news, a pet directory, and reviews of the best pets blogs.

Who Comes Up With These Names?

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Boudreaux's Butt Paste. All opinions are 100% mine.
I would really love to know who sat down one day and decided to call this diaper rash cream Butt Paste.  I love the name!  In fact, when my sister was doing her baby registry, she added this stuff just because she liked the name.  Little did she know that she would love the product, too, and continue to use it for both of her children.

I am talking about Boudreaux's Butt Paste. This stuff was "specifically formulated by a pharmacist with direction from a respected pediatrician to provide effective diaper rash care", so it works really well.  If you have ever had a child with severe, or even mild, diaper rash, you know how important it is to use a product that is going to make their little bottoms feel better.  There is nothing worse than using a cream that is hard to get off, because that just means you have to wipe harder, which ends up making the diaper rash worse.  With Butt Paste, you don't have to worry about that, because it wipes off very easily.  This stuff has been talked about on Oprah and The Tonight Show, and it was even featured on TLC's While You Were Out.

If I ever (bite your tongue here) have another child, I would use this product.  If you want to sample it before you buy it, click the link above and fill out the simple request form.  I think once you try it, you'll be hooked.

Win Some Great Stuff!

Small Town Mommy is having a giveaway, and it's a good one.  One lucky winner will win a bunch of General Mills stuff and a $25 gift card to Target.  You can enter here.  The giveaway ends tonight, so get a move on.  Good luck!

Mother Goose Blanket

I have been cleaning like crazy the past couple of days.  With the kids in school, I have been getting a lot done.  While doing laundry, I found this blanket.  I cross stitched it for Brandi while I was pregnant with her.  Brandi now uses it for her baby dolls, but i am going to steal it back and put it up for when she has babies.  Even though it has her name on it, I think she will love using it for her own kids.

Healthy Snacks For Brandi

We are starting our second week of school, and the kids are adjusting well.  I know it will take a couple of weeks to get back into our routine completely, so I have tried to have a lot of patience.  Having things ready the night before helps the mornings run smoothly, so I try and have book bags packed, lunches made, and clothes laid out before the kids go to bed.  There is nothing more frustrating than finding out ten minutes before the bus comes that one of the kids doesn't have any clean socks.

My youngest is in third grade now, and I was hoping that I wouldn't have to worry about sending a snack with her for during the day.  The first couple of days, the teacher said no snacks, but eventually she changed her mind.  I don't like sending snacks like chips and cookies though.  I prefer Brandi take fruit or a granola bar.  The only downside to this is that healthy snacks can get expensive.  I have though about buying healthy snacks online, but I am not sure what she will eat.  I found a coupon for Glennys , where I can get 15% off all natural 100 calorie brownies.  I am not sure I would send them with Brandi to school, but I am pretty sure I would like them. 

I mean, they're chocolate, right?

I Can Do This! I Think. Maybe.

I have a habit of scouring etsy and saving the pictures of the things I like.  I know the artists and designers are hoping to sell their creations, but sometimes I come across something that I think I might be able to make on my own.  This little elephant Christmas ornament is one of those things.  The only thing I am questioning is how the clay sticks to the glass.  Glue?  If so, what kind?

Oh, for $10, I might just buy this guy. I mean, it is adorable.

Get Organized, Or Sleep?

 The kids are back in school.  Yesterday was their first day, and I will admit to doing a little happy dance once they were on the bus.  The I took my lazy butt back to bed.  It was so nice to sleep in a quiet house, with no arguing and fighting.

I want to get this house organized in the next few weeks.  When the kids are home during the summer, I find it's a losing battle to keep the house clean.  Now that I am home alone during the day, I can crank up my music and get things done.  The first thing on my list is cleaning the girls room.  They have so much stuff in there.  It's not trash, but it's also not stuff they play with every day.  There are totes of clothes that Kasi has outgrown that I am saving for Brandi.  There are boxes of collectibles, like Barbies and Precious Moments, that we have no room to display.  Even though we have a storage building (that is filled with Junior's tool and stuff) in the yard, I am still thinking about renting a self storage building.  I would use Self Storage Milton Keynes, but they are a little far from where I live.  I need something close, and cheap.

Maybe then, I can get all the totes and boxes out of their room, and finally get it organized.  Or at least that is what I am hoping.  I may just spend the next two weeks enjoying the quiet by sleeping in and watching movies.  We'll see.

Want To Win These Soaps?

Me too! 

They are made by Buttons Bubbles and they are her Jivin'Java kitchen soap.  They get that yucky onion/garlic smell off your hands. 

Mom. Undecided is hosting this giveaway, and you can enter here.

Good Luck!

Finding The Right Cell Phone Plan

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Boost Mobile. All opinions are 100% mine.
The other day, I did a post about Junior and I getting new cell phones.  Right now, we have "pay as you go" phones, and while they do the basics, I want something that is a little fancier.  I want to be able to get online to update my Facebook status. (Priorities, right? lol)  I was checking out Boost Mobile, and was actually a little surprised to learn they they have phones plans that do not require a contract, and that is really what we need.  They offer different monthly plans, ranging from $50-$60 dollars, depending on what options you want.  I also love their Re-Boost program, where they offer a couple of different ways to pay your bill.  You can use your debit or credit card to pay online or on your phone, or you could pay in person.   They also offer the option of setting up automatic payments.

A very good friend of mine was telling me how much she loves her Blackberry, so I was interested in finding out more about BoostMobile's Blackberry plan.  I can get a plan for $60 a month that offers unlimited nationwide talk, text, web and email.  For me, that's a pretty good deal.  It would allow me to check my email during the day when I'm not home, and also feed into my Facebook addiction. 

Oh, and it would also make it easier for the school to contact me if something happens to the kids.  I guess that is what is really important.

Mosaic Giveaway

How cool is this picture? 

It is made from a bunch of tiny pictures, and I love it!  I want to win one of my own, and you can too.  Just head over to Mom. Undecided and enter here.

She has a bunch of giveaways going on right now in celebration of her birthday, so make sure and check them all out.

Is It The Right Time To Go Back To School?

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of USC. All opinions are 100% mine.
Have you ever thought of going back to school?  It's something that I have been thinking about for a while now, and I think now is the right time.  I figure I can take the basics at a local college, and then apply online to a school where I can get a Master of Arts in Teaching degree.  That's right, I think I might want to become a teacher.

"The USC Rossier School of Education’s MAT@USC offers current educators and aspiring teachers the prestige of earning a Master of Arts in Teaching degree from an elite research university with the convenience and flexibility of studying online."

How cool is that?  I know it will be hard work, but it will also be rewarding.  The school offers a tuition reimbursement program, which I will definitely be looking into, even though I hope to qualify for some grants or scholarships.  They also have an accelerated program, which can be completed in as little as 12 months.  I know there is so much program information I still need to look through, but I am a little excited about it. Studying from home is ideal, too, because I can do the mom thing at the same time.

I just hope that I don't let my fear of public speaking and my extreme shyness get in my way.  One step at a time, I guess, and maybe one day I will be a member of the USC Trojan family.

Deleted. All Gone. Now I Regret It A Little Bit.

A little over two years ago I had my breast reduction.  The weeks (and months) leading up to it, I chronicled on a blog.  Then stuff happened, and I deleted the entire thing. 

I wish I hadn't done that.  I was feeling so many different things at that time, and it would be nice to have a look back, especially since a friend is now facing the same surgery, and therefor the same fears.

If only I could go back...

Am I Being Copied?

Do you know exactly what your readers are looking for, and taking from, your blog?  We all write posts with the hope that someone, somewhere, will benefit from it.  We share our experiences, hoping that we can reach people who are going through the same things, whether it be good or bad things.   The hard part is not knowing if you are reaching people.  Sure, you know you have visitors to your blog, but wouldn't you like to know what they are copying and taking with them?  You can use Blog Copy to find out.  This site monitors your blog, and lets you know which posts people are connecting with, by the showing you which parts of your posts are being copied and pasted. 

This information can be used to discover which key words work for you, allowing you to give your readers more of what they love.  I assume it will also help with search engines.  I'm no expert blogger, but I am curious to see what people are taking from my sites. 

Aren't you?

I've Never Played Slots Online. Have You?

I have never been to Vegas or Atlantic City.  There is even a place to gamble in North Carolina that my brothers-in-law like to go to when they visit that I have never been to.  Heck, I've never even played slots online.   I think the main reason is because Junior and I don't have money that we can safely lose, and that's the only way I would ever gamble.  I have heard too many stories of people betting away their lives savings.

If we ever do get some extra money, though, I would love to drive to Vegas.  Knowing me, though, I would probably spend all my time taking in the shows.

I Think I'm Destined To Win!

Yesterday, I wrote a post about my obsession with magnets.  Today, I found this giveaway on Mom. Undecided.  She is giving away magnets!

These were made by Intentional Glass, and you can find here etsy shop here.  She has so many beautiful things in her shop, too. 

If you want to enter this giveaway, check it out here.  Good luck!

Magnets

I love magnets.  Seriously, it's like an addiction.  Check out my fridge:

That's only the front.  The sides are also covered.  I have magnets from most of the states I have visited, lots of elephant magnets, and even more "bag clip" magnets. My favorite ones, though, are the ones that my kids have made me over the years. The old elementary school they used to go to did a fundraiser where they made magnets out of the kids artwork.  I always bought those. 

I was thinking that this year, something like that would make great gifts for the kids grandparents.  I did a search for sites where you can make refrigerator magnets, and luckily I found a site that will work for what I want.  My biggest obstacle now is going to be getting Ryan to draw something that doesn't involve AC/DC or skulls.  At 15, that seems to be his obsession right now.  I'm just glad my girls still like to draw hearts and rainbows. 

Work From Home

I have been looking for a job, and I am kind of hoping to find one I can do from home, other than blogging.  I read about this company named 2PONS Magazine that pays you to sell advertising space in their magazine, and it sounds simple enough.  You can Apply Here Start Tomorrow.  My only worry is that I am not sure how well I would handle rejection.

Top Droppers ~ July

The following blogs dropped on this the blog the most last month:

Moonangelnay on Etsy ~ A contemporary handmade, fine art, photography, crafts, gifts, jewelry, fashion and Etsy focused blog, sharing weekly features, tutorials, original works and interviews of the new artists of Etsy.

Forex trading blog  ~ Forex blog covering market events, and tips for learning to trade forex.

 Vietnam travel ~ Vietnam travel

Entrecard dropper ~  Entrecard dropper, Entrecard tips

my kids are my world ~  This is a blog about my life as a wife and mother of three kids, who are, obviously, my world.

 Sandypetals ~ Blog about Gardening, Jewelrymaking and Life in general.

 Ask Ms Recipe ~ A food blog like no other where I will answer your recipe questions and include your website with the answers.

 Online Tips ~ Get the tips on Insurance, Mortgage, Loan, and others.

 World Dream Cars ~ The latest update on world dream cars from various model.

feeding my family of five ~  I write about the things I cook for, and with, my family.

Thanks everyone!