I'm sure I don't have to tell you that the buzz for this year's BlogHer conference has already started. Lots of us look forward to this all year. As the conference gets closer, companies are going to start offering various sponsorship opportunities from full conference attendance to money to offset the expenses.

Typically, companies have created an application process that includes submitting all your stats, writing an essay on your site as to why you want to attend, asking others to vote for your entry, changing your avatar, posting on every social media channel you have and linking back to their site using a specific phrase. Now, I get the reasoning behind it. I really do. But I don't like it.

Back in 2009 I participated in one such contest and made it to the finals. I was excited to have been chosen because I like (and use) Mabel's Labels and appreciate the way they've handled their social media and blogger outreach. But, and I'm being honest, by the end of the process I felt a little dirty. Not because of anything Mabel's Labels did. I just didn't like who I turned into in my attempt to win. I didn't like feeling that I was "against" the other finalists or the idea that any one person "deserved" to go more than the other. That's not what this community is supposed to be about.

That was the last time I entered for any type of conference contest. For me, I couldn't keep writing the same post over and over. My reasons for wanting to go to these things haven't changed, so the posts themselves wouldn't be that much different than one another. Writing one post for each company who offered would have been just too much. I decided to think a bit more outside the box and save up all my revenue. And that's what I did. 

I know companies think the posts/voting method is the best way to approach these things and increase their profile and SEO. But I look at it this way: when celebrities offer to make a donation to a charity or cause once they reach a certain number of Twitter followers it's a total turn off. Just make the donation without the conditions. I know that gesture would sit much better with me and my opinion of them would go up. It's rare that people do something for nothing. But those are the people who stand out, and in my opinion, inspire loyalty.

Mabel's Labels is offering a full ride to BlogHer again this year but with a huge twist. If you want to attend, fill out an entry form. That's it. No turning your blog, RSS feed, Twitter stream and Facebook page into a billboard. I hope they can hear my standing ovation.

Again, I understand wanting to be visible and create buzz. But the other methods really only seem to generate buzz about the event, not the company offering up the sponsorship other than a "thank you" for the opportunity.  Mabel's has completely embraced the KISS principle with their sponsorship. Even the name, Mabel's Labels Non Contest, is perfect execution. 

Congratulations to the team at Mabel's for, what I think, has set a new standard in social media outreach and blogger engagement. Well done! 

What do you think about brands and conference sponsorships? What would you like to tell the brands about effective ways to leverage their presence at conferences? 

If you were a company, how would you execute your sponsorship?

*Not a sponsored post. I'm not affiliated with Mabel's Labels, just totally impressed.

Out of the Blue

It's been almost a year since I really cried about not having another baby. It happened during BlogHer in New York. I was outside the American Girl store of all places. I went from perfectly fine to crying my eyes out in seconds. The same thing happened while I was watching Parenthood last night. When Julia told Joel she "wasn't done", I nodded along. Yes, I thought, I can relate to that feeling. But when Christina told Adam she was pregnant? I completely lost it.

I knew the decision wouldn't be easy. I even told Phil there were no guarantees I wouldn't hate him every so often though that's irrational and totally not fair since we made the decision together. But I wasn't angry with him last night; just really, really sad. Surprised too, because I thought I've moved on and learned to live with it. I guess I was wrong.

The Hunger Games Trilogy, Very Valentine | Book Reviews

The amount of books I'm reading is directly proportionate to how much I ignore my site. As you can probably tell, I've been reading A LOT. I seem to have really good reading juju because it's been awhile since I've picked up a book that sucked. (and with that, I just jinxed myself)

These are the books I've read over the last three weeks:

I loved all of them!

I've read all of Adriana Trigiani's books except for her essays and young adult titles. I love her writing style, her characters and how all her books are about the importance of family. Brava, Valentine is the second book with Valentine Roncalli as the main character. The Roncalli family business is custom made shoes. How could I not like the books?

If you have not heard of the Hunger Games series, I'm not sure we can be friends anymore. I take that back. If you say you did not enjoy the Hunger Game, *then* we can't be friends. I know the premise of the books sounds bad; kids from a futuristic dystopian society forced to fight to the death; but that part of the series kind of takes a backseat to the love story, political unrest, family and friendship. At least it did for me. I cannot wait for the movie!

What are you reading? What should I add to my shelf on GoodReads?

*Amazon affiliate links used

So, So Smooth

Scene: It is day four of Spring Break. The mother has been feeling guilty for trying to stay on top of her work and be entertainment central at the same time. She gives up on the work and takes her son to the park where she gets rained on and freezes her ass off for two hours, despite the blanket and gloves she had in the car.

Son: I love you, Mom.

Mother: I love you too.

S: Thank you for taking me to the park today.

M: You're welcome.

S: Tomorrow, we can do anything you want.

M: Aww, that's sweet of you.

S: We can even go shopping, and I won't complain because you were nice enough to give up some of your precious time for me. 

End scene.

I honestly don't know where he gets it!

A Hoppy Easter Giveaway

***Contest closed***

When we checked into our rooms for the Hop screening, there was a gorgeous basket waiting for us. It's full of goodies perfect for an Easter basket: coloring books, bath gels, lip balms, candy, drumsticks, a Pink Bunny beret and a stuffed EB, Pink Bunny and a chick. It's all adorable! But, Tyler has decided it's "too young" for him so I want to share the wealth with you.

Enter to win a basket full of Hop goodies!

1. Have you seen Hop yet? What did you think? If not, what do you put in your children's Easter baskets? Leave a comment below. This is required.

2. I MUST have a way to get in touch with you! I will have to delete comments with no contact info.

3. Comments will close on Sunday, April 17th at 11:59pm CA time.

4. I will use random.org to draw the winner and post the results/notify winners via email and Twitter.

5. For two bonus entries: (not required) Tweet, and/or post about this contest and leave each of your links in a separate comment (three contest entry opportunities total). You will need a free Twitter account.


6. Because of the timeliness, if the notified winner has not responded within 24 hours a new winner will be chosen.

7. You do not have to follow or subscribe to this blog as a method of entry. Tweet only once per day. Leave one comment for each entry. Here is the URL to this post: http://bit.ly/HOPBasket

8. The contest is open to US entrants only.

9. NOTE: Some of the items in the basket may not be suitable for small children (candy, bath items, lip balms).

Disclaimer: The items in the basket are part of the giveaway but not the basket itself. Universal provided the contents as well as my lodging and incidentals for the junket. They are not part of this giveaway. I am shipping the items to the winner on my own. 

Congratulations, Laural!

The Hop Junket: A Real Housewife in Beverly Hills Pt 2

You may have heard there's a new Easter themed movie opening today. I went to see HOP a few weekends ago as part of a press junket. I'll be honest, my expectations were low. The early trailers were not inspiring. Live action and CG hybrids that both kids and adults enjoy seem to be a rare breed. I'm hoppy (get it?) it to say that HOP is one of those rarities. 

Parents will enjoy it because it's humorous, has great music and dialogue and is well cast. Kids will love it because of the sight gags, music, drumming and colors. 

The movie has themes we've seen before: finding one's passion, living up to the expectations of our parents, the relationship between fathers and sons, believing in magic and the need to find your own way in life. One of the good things about HOP is it doesn't beat us over the head with the themes and lessons.

We were lucky enough to get some time to interview James Marsden, Russel Brand, Kaley Cuoco, Tim Hill and Chris Meledandri. I enjoyed speaking with all of them just as much, if not more, than watching the movie itself.

It was easy for me to not get caught up in the messages of the movie because director Hill and producer Meledandri did such a great job with the visuals. The scenery in HOP is beautiful.

Mr. Chris Meledandri: One thing that Tim was very intent on was that, if we were going to be peeling back the curtains of this mythology that you’ve never seen before, that just the depiction of the world itself visually had to be spectacular.

Tim Hill in between Catherine and Dan; Chris Meledandri kneeling

It had to have the scale of spectacle that you would associate with a part of our cultural mythology. Tim worked for months and months and months with our teams of artists in really trying to visually define what this magical place underneath Easter Island has, what it would look like.

He [Tim] then had to figure out how to immerse the audience in it. He’s done a fantastic job. The virtues of these mediums that we’re working in are that world is just marvelous and fantastical, but on the other hand, you really believe that you're in it.

I grew up in a pretty religious household, but my parents hid a basket for me and we went to Easter egg hunts. I was curious how the movie would treat the role of the Easter bunny and if parents who have children who still believe would need to do any backpedaling to keep the magic alive. That's not the case with HOP.

Blogger: My two oldest children are the same age as your children and I’m wondering how you deal with the magic of holidays. Is your 10 year old son mumbling things to your five year old daughter?

James Marsden between Renee and EB

Mr. James Marsden: No, because my 10 year old son is a believer. He hears things from kids at school, but my wife has been really good about that. My wife still believes. She’s said, “My father taught me that if you believe in it, it’s there.”

Tyler still believes in magic though I have a feeling that will change in a few more years. If, after seeing HOP, he asks me if the Easter Bunny is real I can paraphrase Russel Brand (who voices EB):

Blogger: Did you ever or do you now believe in the Easter Bunny?

Mr. Russell Brand: I believe in the possibility of all things because of the nature of infinite space. If the universe is infinite, that means, inevitably, all possibilities exist.

So, somewhere, there is an Easter Bunny. Somewhere else, there's a one-legged Easter Bunny. Somewhere else, there's a robot Easter Bunny. There’s an Easter Bunny crossed with a Darth Vader because of infinity. With infinity, everything would occur.

Me, Meredith Sinclair and Kim Grundy

Who knew that a discussion of a family film would evolve into something so existential? 

I won't recommend Hop for kids under 5. It's not scary but there is a scene they might find disturbing (think Fatal Attraction), but I can honestly say Hop is a movie I won't mind seeing a second time.

Other recaps of the movie, junket and interviews:

Matt from Geek Dad

Renee from Cutie Booty Cakes

Meredith writing for Mom in the City 

Dawn writing for 5 Minutes for Mom

Catherine from Her Bad Mother

Dan from Single Dad Laughing

Kim writing for She Knows

Sara writing for Baby Center

My own photos from the HOP press junket on Flickr. Photos in this post courtesy of Chris and Kristen Photography. Thank you to Universal for hosting me for the weekend and providing hotel and meals.

A Real Housewife in Beverly Hills

Two weekends ago I headed up to Beverly Hills to stay at The Four Seasons and attend the HOP movie press junket. You know, a typical weekend. Before I left I did a little grocery shopping, a little straightening up and made a pot of chili for the boys to have leftovers. I tried to squeeze in a mani/pedi too. I told Phil I was heading out to get one and I got an eye roll back.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Well, I don't want to show up in Beverly Hills looking like a stay at home mom."

"You are a stay at home mom."

"Yes, but that doesn't mean I have to look like one!"

In the end I decided replacing my foundation was more important than my having my nails done. I left Friday afternoon and almost the entire drive up to LA I was obsessing over my appearance. My gray hairs were out in full force, I was in desperate need of a good blow out, I'd broken two nails and my stress acne was flaring up big time (thus the need for new foundation). 

Hi Russel Brand, nice to meet you. I'm Hot Mess Housewife.

Alright vanity, you win.

Instead of heading to the hotel when I got off the freeway I went straight to Beverly Center and the nearest MAC counter*. I had my face done, complete with fake eyelashes.

Now, I didn't have it done because I was worried about what everyone else would think of me. I did it for myself. Sure, I could wear makeup every day. But, why? I'm home alone all day. It's not the same as being out and about.

When I was a "working mom," putting on makeup and curling my hair was part of the package. I looked nice. Now, my standard uniform is a ponytail, jeans, wedges and a comfortable top. When I see other ladies all made up to go to Costco, it seems kinda silly.

For one night, I wanted to feel confident and self assured. I wanted to feel pretty. If you haven't tried them out, fake eyelashes do it for me, every time. 

When I got to the hotel, I pulled on my Spanx, my new shirt and boots and walked out of my room feeling like a million bucks.

L to R: Catherine, Kim, Dan, Meredith and Sara

Seana and Renee

I met new people, made new friends and was able to do it with a real smile. Not a self conscious one.

What do you to make yourself feel like a million dollars?

*I saw Amy Adams at the Clinique counter. She is just as pretty in person and tiny! I'm not used to being taller than anyone else! Thank you to Universal for the royal treatment (and my hotel, movie tickets and awesome food)! Photos courtesy of Chris and Kristen Photography

Fun with Space Mountain Pt 2 | Wordless Wednesday

Disneyland March 2011

Ancestry.com Blew My Mind

photo © 2007 Rick Audet | more info (via: Wylio)

Ancestry.com has been doing heavy TV advertising on some of the networks I watch regularly. I know a few people who have used Ancestry and have enjoyed it. Personally, I haven't had much interest in digging into my family history. I mean, I want to know, but I don't want to know; if you know what I mean.

When I first started seeing the commercials, I got really jaded. I don't know where it came from. The conversations in my head went something like this:

Thanks, but no thanks. I'd rather not see written evidence of how my family was probably split up and I definitely don't want to know who owned my great, great grandparents. But thank you anyway.

It got to the point where I'd change the channel when the commercial came on. It seems so irrational and silly, but it's true. I'd get this little ball of anger in the pit of my stomach. I know I could spend several weeks on a therapists' couch to figure out where all those feelings came from! 

I do get angsty and bitter during Black History Month so I'm sure there were some residual feelings from there. Call me crazy, but the mental images I get when I think of African Americans and trees aren't the kind to inspire me to log onto their site.

But then I saw another commercial and my whole perspective changed. This one had an African American man as the actor. He said pretty much what I had been thinking, only politely. Then, at the end of the commercial, he said something along the lines of, "sure, I saw that my grandfather came here as a slave. But I also saw that he ended up a business owner."

KABOOM!

My mind? It was blown.

In that one sentence, Ancestry managed to completely change how I felt about the site. I'd been thinking of it from a totally negative viewpoint. I had such big blinders on, I couldn't even see the positives. Who knows what kind of information I could find if I were ever to dig into our family history?! It can't all be bad, right?

I guess I should say thank you to Ancestry. I always appreciate a good swift kick in the arse and being forced to re-think previous misconceptions. ETA: Heather's comment below reminded of something I meant to put in my post which is to commend Ancestry for recognizing there might be a need for that kind of commercial message and handling it in such a compassionate (though realistic) manner.

Who or what has kicked you in the arse before?

*This is not a sponsored post. I tried to find the actual commercial on You Tube but couldn't. If you find it please leave a link!

Stock Up Trips to the Store - Is it Worth It? | Frugal Friday

Oops! Forgot to schedule this for yesterday!

I'm going out of town this weekend. One thing I had on my to-do list is stock up on a few groceries for the boys. I didn't have time to do a major grocery run so I chose the best advertised specials from this week's grocery store fliers and made three stops to Albertson's, Ralph's and Vons. 

Yes, that is a kind of a lot of running around, especially with gas prices the way they are. But, I was able to take advantage of several specials and combine them with coupons for added savings. That's when making a special trip is worth the effort. For example, take a look at my Ralph's trip:

I took advantage of the March Into Savings promo and got an automatic $10 off my total. I forgot one coupon in my binder (grrrr!) so I only used 2 which took another $2 off. Before the coupons and promo my total would have been $49.48. For my 22 items I paid $18.60. Also, with today's purchase I've earned enough bonus points this period to get a $5 voucher good on any future shopping trip. 

My Albertson's and Vons trips were similar. I spent a little more at Albertson's than planned because I got a few things not on my list (green foods for Tyler's St. Patrick's Day lunch). Still, my total for 22 items was $46.60* ($104.63 before savings). My Vons total for 10 items was $20.42 ($40.84 before savings). 

Before savings: $195.31

Spent: $85.62

Savings: $109. 69

Items: 54

Not too bad. The most time I spent was in going through the fliers, cutting the coupons and making my lists. If the sales are good, and they include items you actually use, take advantage of it. At Albertson's, Honey Nut Cheerios are $1.88 this week. They are pretty much all Tyler eats so I stocked up. I bought 6 boxes (and one Kix for me). 

I used $4.65 in coupons and paid $9.51 for seven boxes of cereal, or $1.35 each. Since I really can't stand paying more than $1.50 for cereal, this trip was definitely worth it. I had two more $1 off coupons and would have purchased 5 more but I don't have that much room in my stockpile. 

People use the phrase "time is money" to say why they don't like to use coupons. I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again: we make time for the things that are important to us! Saving money is important to me. Not paying full price if I don't have to is important to me.

Now, if only I could take that $109 in savings and set it aside. If I kept adding all my savings for the rest of the year, I bet I'd have my Louboutain's by Christmas! 

So, where do you stand? Is it worth it to you to make special trips to the store? How do you feel about couponing in general? 

Happy St. Patricks Day!

Wearing the family name

Green mustard in Tyler's lunch

Part of my husband's tattoo

Here's hoping you don't get pinched! 

(unless you're into that sort of thing)

Fun with Space Mountain | Wordless Wednesday

Disneyland, March 2011

Turning the Tables on My Mom

I bet when most of us were in our early teens, and we would call our friends to complain about our parents we'd say would never grow up to be like our moms. I know I did. Of course, as an adult, I see how almost inevitable it is that we'll inherit some traits from our parents. Now, that I'm a mom myself, I really can't think of anyone I'd rather be like.

Aside from the whole giving birth to me thing (since that's a given), she's done so much for me. Mom didn't complain when I'd finish both Sweet Valley High books the same day we bought them. She taught me how to use tampons. Literally. She let me wear her fur coat to prom. She bought me my first car. And my second. I think I just finished using the last pencil in the box of one gross that she sent me to college with (I'll save you the Google, it's 144). When we go to Costco and I ask if she wants to split something with me, she'll say yes even if she doesn't really want it.

My mom and I talk to each other at least once a week if not more. Now that she got an iPhone, she emails me even more often with things like, "what is pinging?!" in the subject line. But, despite how frequently we talk, we never run out of things to say when we're together. It's pretty rare that I get to treat her to a night out. It's almost always the other way around. But, a few weeks ago, I decided to take my mom on a date. We went to see Cavalia, a new Cirque du Soleil show. I took her to dinner before the show. Granted, it was only soup and paninis at Corner Bakery, but I think she was pleasantly surprised when I paid.

We got lucky during the show. One of the members of the animal training staff sat next to us. It was neat to hear him talk about all the horses, things that go on behind the scenes and what it takes to put a show like that together. The horses were beautiful, the music and acrobatics were great and the show itself was fun. It was nice because I don't think going to see a Cirque show is anything we would have done on our own.

Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling well that day. I could barely keep my eyes open the whole way up to LA. I got there early and pulled into a parking garage and sacked out for half an hour with the car running so I could keep the heater on. By the time the show was over, I wished we could have gone out for a nightcap but it was pretty late and I needed to get on the road. My mom stayed up well past midnight to wait for my call that I'd made it home safe. Because she's awesome like that. One little show isn't nearly enough of a 'thank you' to my mom for everything she's done for me. I hope I can repay her again sometime.

Have you been able to do something special for one of your parents?

*I was provided with tickets to the show. No cameras were allowed, thus no pictures. :(

Virtual Cooking Class | Join Me at The MotherHood

This is a sponsored post

I'm not as much of a cook as I used to be. Before we had Tyler we were a lot more adventurous in the kitchen. We'd open a cookbook, choose a recipe and give it a try. These days, I don't experiment as often but I can follow the heck out of a recipe. Still, I do like to surround myself with kitchen inspiration, just in case. I subscribe to Food Network magazine and Rachel Ray. I added three new food blogs to my reader just last week (and made two of her recipes). I also have cooking shows on as background noise almost all day.

It was a no brainer to say yes when I got an email asking me to co-host a class in the Web’s first-ever virtual cooking school, Cooking Connections, through The Motherhood. The show chefs are two of my most favorite bloggy friends, Busy Dad and Mr. Lady.  Jim is one of the only people who can text me at 11pm and get me to come meet him for drinks and Shannon is my girl crush. The show, airing this Wednesday, is Cooking with Dad, and if Jim's videos from our Tastemaker days are any indication, it's going to be good.

When: Wednesday, 3/16 at 8pm ET

Where: TheMotherhood

My lovely co- hosts:

Angry Julie: Angry Julie Monday | @AngryJulie

Mishelle Lane: Secret Agent Mama | @secretagentmama

Ashley Evans: Schadenfreudette | @schadenfreudett

Tanis Miller: Attack of the Redneck Mommy | @redneckmommy

Dan Deguia: Deguia.net |@deguia

Lotus Carroll: Sarcastic Mom | @SarcasticMomLC

PJ Mullen: Real Men Drive Minivans | @pjmullen

MomoFali: Momo Fali | @momofali

Robin Sue Joss: Big Red Kitchen | @bigredkitchen

Eddie Carroll: Life, One Pixel at a Time | @middletonrare

Jim and Shannon will be live video feed, and my co-host and I will be sharing stories and tips for having fun in the kitchen with Dad (and/or the other non-cooks of the family) in the comment section. If you Tweet, follow the conversation #CookingConnections. Care to join us?

The class is sponsored by ConAgra and hosted by TheMotherhood. I'm being compensated to participate and invite you to come have fun with me. The statements that Jim and Shannon rock my socks are my own opinion.

Thinking Of Japan and Sending Prayers

photo © 2006 Giulio Bernardi | more info (via: Wylio)

I was going to do another Fashion Friday but my heart isn't in it today. I fell asleep on the couch watching the news coverage of the devastation in Japan. The images of the waves of water moving through communities will stay with me for a long time. I can only imagine how much worse it will be when the waters completely recede and the cleanup, rescue and recovery efforts can begin. 

On Twitter I mentioned that before social media (and I guess before becoming a SAHM), it was very likely that I wouldn't have know about the quake and tsunami until I woke up the next day. And even that would depend on whether I had time to turn on the news while getting ready. How things have changed!

The Huffington Post has a thorough piece on who is collecting funds for relief aid. At times like this, it's reaffirming to see humanity come together but also sickens me to see those who take this as an opportunity to commit fraud and prey on our sense of giving. Please make sure you donate to a reputable, legitimate organization.

My thoughts and prayers are with everyone in Japan as they deal with aftershocks and new quakes; To all who have loved ones and family over there; to our military who are on their way to help; and anyone else with ties over there.

How to Embarrass Your Kids at Disneyland

Every ride you go on, even if it's not a coaster, raise your arms and start singing Taio Cruz's Dynamite. 

Big Thunder Mountain, March 2011

"I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, saying ay-oh, baby let's go!" 

Totally works.

Sometimes I Miss Having a Landlord

When we bought our house, I had grand visions of being able to take the fixer, put our stamp on it and turn it into a reflection of our personalities. I had the idea that we'd be able to steadily take the ugly canvas the previous owners gave us and create a space we both love and want to share with others. 

I thought by now, we'd have made it through all the upstairs rooms and we'd have this great place to relax and entertain. Not so much. In the almost four years we've lived here we've only been able to do the kitchen, and even that isn't all the way done (Phil would want to me to make sure you know that the incompleteness of the kitchen is all my fault). 

It shouldn't surprise me then, that the things that were falling apart when we bought our place aren't holding up over time. I don't know why I assumed something that was already broken wouldn't get more so after years of use. Case in point, our downstairs toilets. They suck. They've only got one job to do and they can't handle it. They're constantly overflowing and backing up. The plunger has become another bathroom accessory. A few days ago, the flush chain thing (which is how I would ask for it at Home Depot) in Tyler's bathroom broke for the second time. 

At this point, we think we should just get another toilet. We didn't want to replace it until we were ready to remodel the bathroom, but who knows how many more years will go by before that happens! So, I'm researching potties. In the interim, we have to keep the toilet usable for Tyler. If he wakes up the night it's easier for him to use his own bathroom rather than go upstairs and I definitely don't want him waking us to use ours. The solution? Hand flushing. 

If by some wacky coincidence the other two bathrooms in the house are occupied I'll hold it until my eyes turn yellow rather than stick my arm in the back of the toilet to lift the rubber stopper, but I think Tyler actually gets a kick out of it. Once we told him it was clean water back there he didn't seem to mind, but I do. It's bad enough all the toilet seats are almost always up but now I have to look into the tank, too. I don't think it could possible get anymore ghetto than this! Hopefully I won't have to live with it like this for too much longer. 

Have any of you had to replace a toilet recently and can recommend a model? Preferably self cleaning, mildew resistant, stain and smell resistant with an auto lower seat and lid? 

Skype Premium $10 for 3 Months | Groupon Deal

photo © 2010 SEO | more info (via: Wylio)

This is a pretty neat deal. I like that Groupon is thinking outside the massage and facials box. 

I've been using Skype a lot more lately and I love it. Forget business meetings, Skype is for stay at home moms! 

In the past few weeks I've video chatted with both Steph and Beej, two of my longtime bloggy friends and two of the funniest people I know. It's so great to take an online friendship offline and actually talk to the people behind the words in our feed readers. 

Plus, anything that lets me simultaneously connect with friends face to face, Tweet, fold laundry, and finish my coffee while it's still hot without getting that crick in my neck from holding the phone between my ear and shoulder I am all for!

I've been trying to get my Grandparents on Skype, I think today's Groupon could be just the deal to make it happen. Are you on Skype? What do you think?

Fine print: Deal is listed under Chicago, but it's national. Expires Apr 10, 2011. Limit 1 per person, may buy 2 additional as gifts. Limit 1 per Skype account. HD available only with HD camera. Not valid for users with US accounts through Skype Manager or Administrators. *Affiliate link

Dresses and Wedges for Spring | Fashion Friday

Disclaimer: Please ignore my hair, lack of make up or pedicure and focus on the dress and shoes. :D

You wouldn't know it by my almost daily uniform of jeans, but I'm really girly. I love, love, love dresses and skirts. They always seem to 'come back' in style as the must wear look for spring or summer. What I'm seeing in my magazines under spring trends are dresses and wedges, which is a look that totally works for me since I'm short.

I love the fun pattern and great colors in this dress. They're both definitely me. If I had any skills with a sewing machine, I'd make the dress more fitted at the waist so it fell in an A line. I debated pairing it with black wedges, but that didn't feel very spring like.

The dress is from Target but I'm not sure I'll keep it because of the fit. At only $15, it's a great deal and I can see wearing it instead of capris. What do you think, is it too 'maternity' for me?

Holly's Inbox, Scandal in the City : Book Review

I checked out both books in the Holly's Inbox series at the same time. I finished the first book last week and the second, Scandal in the City, over the weekend.

The second book is just as cute as the first. The characters are the same but some of the relationships are explained a bit more. 

I didn't love the ending. It was a little too pie in the sky, but that's chick lit for you. This book is slightly shorter than the first book at 544 pages. I've heard rumors of a third but couldn't find confirmation anywhere. It makes sense, given where this one left off.

What have you finished recently? Anything I should know about?

I Wish I Was Brave Enough!

I love the way this looks, but I just can't commit!

Happy Birthday Dr. Suess!

The three books on top are mine from when I was little. They've been passed down from me, to my brother and then to Tyler. I'm saving them for my brother when he has kids of his own. My mom can still recite the first few pages of Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb because I made her read it so many times. 

Thank you, Dr. Suess for being so timeless. Thank you for helping me introduce my son to colors, counting and rhyme. Your books are a great way to get kids interested in reading and learning to love words. The lessons in The Lorax and Horton Hears a Who are just as relevant today as when you wrote them. Happy Birthday!

Well Played Kid!

Tyler and Phil rough house with each other at least once a day. Tonight, they were play fighting when I walked into the room. Tyler turned to look at me and Phil popped him one.

DS: "Hey, that's not fair!"

DH: "You weren't looking, how is that not fair?"

DS: "Mom distracted me!"

DH: "So, now it's mom fault?"

DS: "Yeah, because she distracted me with her beauty!"

All together now: awwwwwww.

IHop, Chik fil A, Coffee Bean | Frugal Friday March Freebies

photo © 2010 Ginny | more info (via: Wylio)

Make a note on your calendars. There are some great freebies happening in the first few days of March. 

March 1: IHOP is hosting its fourth National Pancake Day  from 7am-10pm. While the pancakes are free, the event is raising money for Children's Miracle Network. 

March 1: If you have a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf near you, stop into their spring open house from 4pm-7pm for free samples of either the Spring Peach Tea Latte, Spring Peach Iced Latte or Peach FruTea.

March 4: I love Chik fil A. They've hosted special military days in the past. Plus I appreciate that they are closed on Sundays. On Free FryDay, ask to try the new Heinz ketchup packet and get a free order of waffle fries. 

So much yumminess! And so much jiggly-ness if I take advantage of all of them! Do you know of any other freebies coming up? Leave them in the comments and I'll update the post.

*Always check with a location before you go.

Bloodroot and Holly's Inbox: Book Reviews

Last week I finished two books I really enjoyed, Bloodroot by Amy Greene and Holly's Inbox by Holly Denham. Bloodroot only took me three days to finish. I heard about it the books section of one of my magazines. I loved it! I don't know why I'm fascinated with stories whose characters have 'the touch' or some other mystical power. Same with books set in the south (location was part of the reason I loved The Help, too). This book has childhood friendships, familial loyalty and a little bit of tragedy. It's set in Appalachia and spans almost 50 years. I was sucked in within the first few pages. 

Holly's Inbox is set in Britain. Every book that came out after Bridget Jone's has had some type of comparison. This is one is called Bridget Jones meets technology. The story is told entirely through emails between Holly, her friends, her family and co-workers. It's not a small book at 672 pages but since it's not all text, it reads really fast. It's cute and funny just as chick lit should be. I have the sequel but am only about 20 pages in. Interesting side note, Holly Denham is the character's name. The author is actually a man. 

Both these books would be good beach reads.

Invitation to the Souplantation Test Kitchen | Things That Pop Up in My Email

My Dad took me to Souplantation for the first time. I was in college. My brother and I were visiting him for the weekend and he suggested it. We went and I was in heaven. Any restaurant that has a huge spread of carbs that I can re-fill at will is my kind of place! Back then, the wait staff would bring around brown paper bags at closing and let patrons take home the muffins left at the bar. 

Anytime we went to visit my dad after that, we'd always ask for Souplantation and wait until just before closing to go. One time, we went the night before we were to leave on a road trip to Vegas. My brother and I made a bee line for the muffin bar and stuffed those bags as full as we could. We ate muffins all the way to Vegas and back.

One semester in college, I scheduled a three hour break in my Tuesday, Thursday classes. I'd take my books to Souplantation right before the pricing changed from lunch to dinner and I'd study for hours grazing on sourdough, pasta and fro yo. Looking back, the fact that I gained a ton of weight should not have come as any surprise. But, I did get good grades that semester.

Fast forward to Tyler's toddlerhood. We decided to take him to Souplantation to see what kind of veggies he'd like. It was the perfect place to spread a lot of little piles of food in front of him and let him go to town. Today, when I tell him he used to happily and willingly eat beets, he looks at me as though I've grown an extra limb. Souplantation is still his favorite restaurant. 

To this day his plate looks almost the same as it did when he was little: noodles, kidney beans, peas, corn, shredded cheese, pizza foccacia, sourdough and blueberry muffins. Lather, rinse and repeat. The last time we went to dinner, he did express slight interest in my baked potato with bacon, cheese and chicken* but I'm not holding my breath.

Where's all this going? Well, it's just a lot of backstory to help you understand why I was so psyched when I got an invitation to meet some of the execs from Souplantation a few weeks ago. All week leading up to the event, Tyler kept telling me how lucky I was. "You're spending three whole days there? You're so lucky! I wish I was going, too. Can you bring me back some noodles?"

I've said before that one of the best things about blogging has been getting to meet to execs from companies I admire and having them listen to our ideas, share their visions and ask if there are ways we can help them achieve them. I made a few suggestions as to how they could honor our men and women in uniform and make school fundraising a little easier. Add to that one of the contacts I made has asked for my help with their social media and it was a win all the way around. 

People often ask me what the benefit is to attending a blogging event. I never know what I'm going to get out of an event until I go. I have no idea if I'll write about events I attend until they're over and I can find a way to weave something personal in that will (hopefully) make it interesting for you to read about. 

In this case, how could I pass up the opportunity to meet the people behind a company I've loved since I was a teenager?

What about you? What do you get out of blogging events? Is there a company or brand you'd love the opportunity to get to meet with?

*They'll probably get mad at me for telling you this, but instead of buying the side of chicken meat at the salad bar, I take some of the chunks out the chicken noodle soup. 

This is not a compensated post though Souplantation fed me well for the three days of the event. Caryn of Rockin' Mama has a little bit of video of the event and I have a few pictures on Flickr.

Neglected Blog, But More Family Time

Hello! I was gong to apologize for not being around but I changed my mind. I wouldn't have anything to blog about if I didn't step away from the screen every once in awhile, right?

My Gramma was here visiting. She's set to head back to the midwest soon and wanted to spend a little more time with Tyler. Gramma spends the winter at my mom's, arriving in early November and leaving in February. This year's trip has been a rough one for her. Two friends and her brother died while she was here. My mom said after she got back from the east coast for her brother's funeral, she seemed to have lost a lot of her usual energy and vitality. I think it was good for her to be with her Sweetie Pie (me) and Grandbaby.

Gramma and Tyler are totally in love with each other. They have such a great relationship. That they've been able to spend so much time together over the years is something I'm happy to be able to have done for him. Some of my happiest childhood memories are of time spent with my grandparents. 

We didn't do a whole lot while she was here, but that's the cool thing about Gramma. We don't have to. We shopped, she showed me how to make chicken and dumplings and we all played Wii. My Gramma is a lot more competitive than I remember and a pretty good bowler too. We took her Tyler's hockey practice and she said 'woops!' every time one of the kids fell, which was often. And we laughed. A lot.

We've been teasing Gramma about her selective hearing. We say one thing, but she hears something totally different. The resulting conversations have often been hilarious. Example:

Me: Gramma, do you want an Oreo?

Gramma: Sure, thank you. (as she takes the whole sleeve) Where did you get these Oreos in a sleeve? Don't they usually come in a package?

Me: I got the Family Size box at Target.

G: You don't want to tell me? Why not?

Me: What?!

Gramma: Why don't you want to tell me where you got the Oreos?

Me: I said I got them at Target.

Gramma: Oh. I thought you said you didn't want to tell me.

Me: Those two sound nothing alike!

Gramma: You're right, I guess they don't. Want an Oreo? 

Oh my gosh, we were hysterical. Reading it, it doesn't seem very funny. I guess it was one of those, 'you had to be there' moments. 

Anyhoo, that's where I've been. I'm staring down a whole week's worth of To Do's but it was totally worth it. My Gramma makes me happy. Hopefully I'll be back to regular (maybe semi regular) posting next week. Happy Friday!

O Magazine $5 | Mamapedia Deal

I love it when magazine subscriptions drop down like this! My current subscription total is up to 16. 18 if the freebies I found this week go through. What can I say, I'm addicted! 

Mamapedia is another site offering daily deals (current subscriptions to those sites about the same as my magazines!). One of their current Sweet Deals is a one-year subscription to O Magazine for $10. Code OPRAH5 should take $5 off at checkout (please let me know if the code isn't working). The deal is on the right sidebar.

I definitely want to keep up with this subscription since her show is ending. I like OWN but not as much as The Oprah Show. Are you watching OWN? What do you think so far?

*Offer fine print: Valid for 1-year subscription only. Valid for new subscriptions and renewals. Limit (1) per household. May purchase as gifts. Offer valid Feb 11-14, 2011 only. Will automatically receive subscription in 4-6 weeks after order placed. Affiliate link.

Print Grocery Coupons at Cheap Sally: Frugal Friday

Yesterday I Skyped with Steph and one of the many things we talked about was budgeting and saving money. I told her continuing to trim our grocery budget is a big priority for me. One thing that has helped me the most is printing grocery coupons. 

Many sites will issue one or two new coupons throughout the month, but for the most part, printable coupon sites are re-set on the first day of month. I've bookmarked all the sites I go to and I try to hit them all within the first two days of the month. If I wait too long, many of the good coupons hit their print limits. 

Earlier this week I got an email from a local PR firm about a new site for coupons. Since I hadn't heard of it before I thought I'd share in case you haven't either. Having access to multiple sites for printable grocery coupons is the best way to get duplicates of really high value coupons or for items you buy all the time. 

The coupons on Cheap Sally are powered by Coupons.com which is my favorite site (look under the more savings tab). Cheap Sally also has coupon codes for online shopping, discounted gift cards and event tickets. I'll keep those things in mind but I know for me, the grocery coupons will be the most valuable part of the site. 

What site do you visit most for printable coupons? 

Peekaboo! I See You! Wordless Wednesday

Oprah Let Me Down

For the past few weeks I've been juggling two books. One was our December/January book club selection and the other just because. Both are really meaty books, 600+ pages. Both are on Oprah's book lists. Both of them suck! 

I usually stick with a book. No matter how awful it is, I'll keep plugging away, especially if the book is something tons of other people talk about and love. Well, not this time. I waved the white book mark, threw in the proverbial towel. I took Freedom back to the library yesterday after about 250 pages. 

I didn't like the characters. I didn't like Franzen's writing style. I didn't care about the story. It was a giant snooze. I feel like a quitter but I have about 50 books in my 'to be read' and most of them look so good. I'd walk past them all on my way to bed knowing that one of them was going to knock my socks off and then open Freedom. I couldn't take it anymore. 

Then there's Wally Lamb's I Know This Much is True. I'm about 360 pages into it. I was really looking forward to it because both Deb and Mary loved it. But it's soooooo depressing! Not that depressing is bad. I've read books with heavy themes before and still enjoyed them. But this? Whoa.

We already had our book club meeting so I know the ending. This one I'm going to stick with (I think) but only because I want to see how certain plot lines play out. I will say I enjoy the writing in this book much better than Freedom. I haven't read too may of Oprah's book club selections but I've liked all the titles I've read. Until now.

What books have you waved the white book mark on? Have you read Freedom or I Know This Much is True? What did you think?