Back To School Discount at Fashion Playtes

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Connie

Fashion Playtes is offering back to school discount for first time purchases. Girls can design their own clothing at Fashion Playtes. It’s their own custom made dresses, tops, jackets, hoodies and more. Let her add rhinestones, graphics, appliques, underlayers, ruffles, ribbons, and even your own label with your name! My daughter loves her shirt and dress and wears them with pride.

Know that you’re daughter will have an outfit or piece of clothing that is as unique as hers! And best of all, save $10 on your purchase! Makes a great gift from grandma, auntie or godmother too. Help make her Back To School special with her own custom designed clothes from Fashion Playtes.

(affiliate link)

Avocado Dress-Up Site and Coloring Contest

Posted on August 17, 2010 by Connie

Avocados From Mexico, the website that provides information and recipes about avocados announces their Dress-Up site and coloring contest. The Dress-Up contest opened August 16 and ends September 19 at midnight PT. It’s open to children aged 4 – 12 years of age from the US.

This contest is fun and easy! Just print the black and white coloring page of one of the Avocado Amigos – Ava or Al – then color and design the page. Add hats, facial features and other accessories, color Ava or Al and then upload the image to the website (must be uploaded and entered by an adult).

Three winners will be chosen from the following age categories:

4 years and younger
5 – 9 years old
10 – 12 years old

These are the prizes:

Grand prize – $250 Bank Issued Gift Card
First Runner Up prize - $100 Bank Issued Gift Card
Second Runner-Up prize – $50 Bank Issued Gift Card

And for parents, there’s some amazing recipes from Celebrity Chef Rick Bayless on the main site. As well as Back To School recipes such as this one:

Avocado Breakfast Burrito

Ingredients:
6 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
4 (8-inch) flour tortillas, warmed*
4 slices ham (about 4 ounces)
4 slices sharp cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
1 fully-ripened avocado from Mexico, halved, pitted, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup salsa

Preparation:
In bowl, beat eggs with salt and pepper. In large skillet over medium heat, melt butter; add eggs; cook and stir until set. On each tortilla place one slice each of ham and cheese; top with eggs, avocado slices and salsa, dividing evenly. Roll up and serve immediately.

*To warm tortillas: Place tortillas on a plate; cover with a dampened paper towel. Microwave on high until warm, about 1 minute. Discard paper towel; wrap tortillas in cloth napkin to keep warm.

I wrote this blog post at the request of Avocados From Mexico, making me eligible to win a $25 iCard gift card.

Back To School Already

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Connie

This summer has flown by and it’s back to school time for us in two weeks. My daughter will be attending middle school this year so it’s a big transition for all of us. We are prepared though! We’ve already been to visit the school and will be back for their open house.

This weekend is tax free shopping in my state, so we’re going to hit the stores for the school supplies she needs. This always makes both of realize that it’s time to get back into a routine. It’s actually exciting too when there’s new books, clothes, and other supplies in the house.

I tell my daughter about what it was like for me at back to school time, especially when I was starting high school, which was an all girls school. This brings some humor into our talks as she can’t imagine that I went to a school without boys, not that she likes boys or anything!

Top 9 Costume Occasions Beyond Halloween

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Connie

For those of us who like dressing up, costumes aren’t just for Halloween. If you play your cards right, there are plenty of other occasions where you can get away with wearing a costume. Here are 9 of our top favorites.

Renaissance Festival – Every year, when the Renaissance Festival comes to town, scores of people attend – and a great deal of them attend in costume. Most costume retailers online have an assortment of Renaissance and historical costumes to choose from. Another option is to browse thrift stores and vintage clothing retailers, and put together your own costume.
Theme Parties – Theme parties are becoming quite popular! A lot of people enjoy throwing decade parties – the 20s, 50s, and 80s are the most popular decades – where guests dress up and dance to period music in a house decorated with period décor. Other theme parties include vampire parties, pirate parties, and just about anything else the host can think of!
Book Release Parties – What better way to celebrate the release of a long-awaited new book than with a costume? This kind of party was popular for the release of Harry Potter and Twilight Saga books, with many attendees dressing up as their favorite characters.
Conventions - It is almost impossible to go to a convention without seeing tons of attendees in costume. The classic example is the Star Trek Convention, but costumes are popular at others too, such as Disney, anime, and comic book conventions.
Masquerades - Many of us, when we think of masquerades, think of formal balls, such as those in Phantom of the Opera and The Man in the Iron Mask. Masquerades are still around today, however — they are simply parties were everyone is expected to come wearing a costume and mask. The excitement is in not knowing who you are partying with, of course!
St. Patrick’s Day – St. Patty’s Day is one of our favorite holidays! This is the day when everyone is Irish – you get the luck, the drinking, and everything else. Whether you are going to a St. Patty’s Day parade or a party at your friend’s house, costumes are welcomed and encouraged!
Mardi Gras – Depending on where you live, Mardi Gras may be a big deal, or not much at all. But you don’t have to live in New Orleans to celebrate Mardi Gras! Instead of staying home watching the parade on TV, invite some friends over for a private Mardi Gras celebration – and tell them to come in costume!
Christmas - Everyone loves Christmas — whether they celebrate religiously or not, this is a fun and festive holiday season for many people. This is also a time when you see a lot of costumes at work and at parties: elf costumes, Santa and Mrs. Claus costumes, reindeer antlers, and so on. May everyone be merry and wear a great costume!
Photos – One of the most fun times to get dressed up in costumes is for photos. Think about it – you could send pictures of your adorable newborn in an even more adorable costume for double the oohs and ahhs.

Although we tend to think of Halloween as the supreme costume holiday – and in many ways, it is – there are many other reasons throughout the year to dress up. Wearing costumes is fun because it gives an opportunity to be someone else for a little while, or at least to have fun like someone else! What are some of your favorite excuses to dress up?

About the Author: This post is by Vern, who enjoys writing about everything from business to biology and fashion to fiction. This post was inspired by an adventure in shopping for childrens costumes with his daughter for a school play.

Momma’s Chic Motion Sickness Bags

Posted on August 2, 2010 by Connie

Momma’s Chic Sicbags has come up with the perfect solution to the problem faced by thousands everyday!! Great, disposable and sanitary MOTION SICKNESS BAGS that can handle even the toughest messes. These bags are HUGE and are available with several unique logos. The TRAVEL DESIGN displays all kinds of travel including, car, trucks, boats, cruise ships, helicopters and canoes just to name a few. Each bag comes complete with its very own SANITIZING WIPE for safe and quick clean-up. The bags can be folded to fit in a coat pocket, glove compartment, handbag or a back pack. The other logos include a design for MORNING SICKNESS, something that most pregnant women suffer through, and a design for children’s use, comically named PUKE UNIVERSITY. These unique bags are available in packs of 3 or packs of 10 per design.

These functional and attractive bags are the perfect addition to your car, boat, camper, school bags, pocketbook. You never know when the need will strike, but you will know you are prepared for the emergency. Pregnant women will find them extremely helpful when commuting or when driving. Moms and Dads with toddlers will also be grateful if they have these great motion sickness bags with them when the unexpected happens. These oversized bags will hold up to almost any emergency use and the bags have tabs for safe and sanitary disposal into any garbage facility. You will never have to worry again about nausea or vomiting when you have these bags with you. No more embarrassment in making a mess of your car, train seat, or friend’s boat!!

THESE BAGS ARE GREAT GIFTS FOR THE NEWLY PREGNANT MOM IN ANTICIPATION OF THE DREADED MORNING SICKNESS!! Grandmas- to -be should give these as a gift immediately. It will be most appreciated by the moms-to-be!

Elmer’s Bag It Forward Charity Post

Posted on July 31, 2010 by Connie

I was tagged by Robyn of Robyn’s Online World to take part in the Elmer’s Bag It Forward Charity Post -

The Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward is charity blog meme, bloggers are able to raise $10 per blog post for Adopt-A-Classroom by writing a blog post and donating a virtual bag of school supplies . Elmer’s will donate $10 per each post written to Adopt-A-Classroom, up to $10,000.

HOW CAN YOU JOIN? It’s easy.

Participate in the Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward and by giving away a virtual bag of school supplies and creating a blog post with specific rules described below.
Elmer’s will donate up to $10,000 to Adopt-A-Classroom.
You can give as many virtual bags as you want.
The Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward will officially begin at 12 AM EST on July 22, 2010 and end at 12 PM EST on September 10, 2010. Blog posts submitted to us before or after that time period will not be counted.
The blog post link has to be submitted in the comment section below for your participation to be counted.
In addition copy and paste the following text into your blog post:

ELMER’S VIRTUAL BAG IT FORWARD RULES

Copy and paste these rules into your blog post.
Create a blog post giving a “virtual bag of school supplies” to other bloggers or write about your Back to School shopping trip at Walmart.
Link back to the person who gave you a bag of school supplies.
Let each person you are giving a virtual bag of school supplies know you have given them a bag.
Leave your link in the Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward comment section. You can also find the official rules of this virtual #bagitforward program there.
Elmer’s is donating $10 for each blog participating in the Virtual Bag It Forward Donation to Adopt-A-Classroom (up to total of $10,000 for blog posts written by August 12, 2010).
Please note that only one blog post per blog url will count towards the donation.

Here is the photo you can use for your virtual bag or create your own!

I’m giving virtual bags to anyone who wants to accept them and write a the same type of Elmer’s Bag It Forward charity post.

Back To School Shoe Shopping

Posted on July 17, 2010 by Connie

While we’re still enjoying summer and the activities that go along with it, some of us are back to school shopping. We have to buy school supplies, uniforms or clothing, accessories like backpacks and lunch bags and shoes. If you’re like me, you want to get the best quality and longest use for what you buy, especially when it comes to children’s clothing and shoes.

Children grow quickly and there’s often that struggle choosing between clothes and shoes that fit perfectly and those that have a little “give” so they last longer. It’s rare for a child to go through a school year with the same pair of shoes or the same outfit.

When buying children’s shoes and clothing, look at the fit carefully. It’s important not to buy anything too large as it will feel uncomfortable and not look right on your child. Shoe fit is very important for children because shoes that are too large or too small can cause blisters, pain and difficulty walking.

Remember back in the day when you’d go shopping for children’s shoes and there would be a salesperson to fit shoes? They knew exactly what to do. They ‘d measure, try on shoes and check the fit as you walked. I found a video that teaches you how to do your own fitting for boys school shoes. You can use this for girls shoes as well. You’ll learn how to check fit around the ankles, heels and the width of the foot.

You’ll be buying the right fitting shoes on your own after you watch this video.

Dental Health For Children

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Connie

I recently found a battery powered toothbrush that helps my daughter stay interested in cleaning her teeth, but having her maintain her dental health has been a big issue this past year. On top of that, she has problems with her teeth that she was born with. She’s only 11 and has had 3 oral surgeries. She will definitely need braces and possibly further surgery.

Keeping her teeth healthy is a chore. It’s hard to clean her teeth because she has a small mouth, because her teeth are crowded and because she doesn’t make it a priority. My husband and I have done many things including using a reward system to help her brush her teeth, but nothing seems to work.

I dread if she’ll need more oral surgery or dental work that requires needles. When she had an IV in the past, it was scary for all of us. We’re fortunate to have an oral surgeon and his staff that works well with our daughter. I understand that there’s a San Diego sedation dentist that does good work too. We live in Florida so traveling there is out of the question, but for anyone in that area take a look at what he does.

Ten Tips To Prepare Your Tween For A Cruise

Posted on July 1, 2010 by Connie

Ten tips to prepare your tween for a cruise vacation:

Planning The Cruise – When you’ve narrowed your choices down by what you can afford, let your tween in on the planning phase. Gather brochures, library books about the areas you’ll be visiting and visit the online cruise sites. Many of the online sites provide video tours. The brochures and sites include information on what is available for children, tweens and teens to do on board, which is plays a big role in the choice of your cruise.
Buy Clothes – Choosing cruise attire will help your tween get in the mood for the activities on board, the excursions, the pool, etc.
Countdown The Days: As your cruise gets closer, mark off the days on your calendar or use an online countdown calendar. This increases the fun!
Music Downloads: Find music from the places you’ll be visiting and download it for your tween. Let them get an idea of what to look forward to.
Attend A Formal Dinner: Either prepare one at home or go to a formal restaurant so your tween is ready for formal nights on your upcoming cruise. It will make you all comfortable not having to remind them what fork to use, etc. Although mistakes are overlooked on cruises, it’s nice to at least know some of the basic manners.
Visit The Cruise Forum: Almost every cruise line has their own forum now. Join and/or visit to learn about what regular cruisers are sharing. There’s usually up to date information about the tween clubs on board.
Choose Excursions: Involve your tween with deciding on what excursions to take. Read about the rules and regulations carefully to see if there is an age limit.
Earn Money: Give your tween extra chores so s/he can earn some extra money for the cruise. There’s souvenirs, tween club sleepovers and other extras that are tempting. Provide the opportunity for them to make money so they can pay what they want.
Camera: Let your tween have their own camera and be responsible for it during your cruise. Find an inexpensive one at a yard sale, online or give them your hand-me-down. Let them practice taking photos before the cruise so they’re ready to shoot lots of their own when you’re on board and sight seeing.
Motion Sickness Items: Just in case, talk to your tween’s doctor about what is recommended for motion sickness. Buy it and bring it along.

: Image by jshyun via Flickr

We’re off on a Carnival Cruise within the next few weeks. This will be the third cruise for my 11 year old daughter. She’s enjoyed every one.

Do you have any questions or suggestions for tweens traveling on a cruise? Please leave a comment.

Supplements For Health

Posted on June 21, 2010 by Connie

My 11 year old daughter goes through phases of eating everything in sight to not eating at all. Common problem, right? Add to this that she has serious allergies and gets sick often, causes me to be concerned that she needs something extra to make up for the food she’s not consuming. I’ve bought vitamins and supplements that are made for tweens. She’s OK with taking them, but when she doesn’t have an appetite, it’s like trying to ask her to eat something extra. So we’ve gone back to those gummy, yummy, candy-like vitamins. She’ll eat two of those each day without a problem. Of course she understands that they are not candy.

Another thing that helps my daughter remain on track with her vitamins, is to take them when I take mine at breakfast time. I take vitamins, glucosamine and prescription medications every day. We eat a healthy breakfast, talk and both take our vitamins while we’re enjoying our meal.

I’ll continue to teach her about nutrition and provide healthy foods for her, but while this stage is going on, supplements are a way to get the things she needs to continue growing and be healthy.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post.

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