Rave & Review

The Strength of 1

Strength can come from surprising places, and for many people, breast cancer is one of them.  From long battles by courageous women to inspiring survivors who educate others on the power of prevention and early detection, there are a whole lot of heroes out there fighting for a world without breast cancer. 

Sometimes it’s as big as a multi-day walk that crosses state lines, other times it’s a little act such as organizing a community fundraising event, but we all have the power to make a difference.  I personally know quite a few amazing women who have shown remarkable strength and resolve in the face of cancer, and who have made a difference to so many others. 

I’m sure you know someone as well, someone who inspires you and demonstrates the strength of one.  Well, now is your chance to share the story of those who took action to positively impact the fight against breast cancer.  The makers of Freschetta pizza are encouraging you to share a story about The Strength of 1, whether it’s your own story or that of someone you.


From now until October 12, 2012, you can participate in The Strength of 1 campaign by visiting the Freschetta’s Facebook page and creating your 250 - 500 word entry.  After all entries are collected, the Freschetta team judges will select the top three stories for public voting.  Freschetta pizza Facebook fans can then vote for their favorite story and the final three stories will receive donations to a cancer charity of their choice.

Even if you don’t have an amazing story to share, you can still take the pledge from now until the end of October to show you have The Strength of 1 power within you. You can do so at www.facebook.com/freschettapizza, as well as follow their link to spread the word to others via Twitter. 


About The Strength of 1 Campaign

Now through the end of October, the makers of Freschetta® pizza are helping to promote breast cancer awareness through their The Strength of 1™ campaign, which includes the sponsorship of Bright Pink, the only national non-profit organization focusing on the prevention and early detection of breast and ovarian cancer in young women while providing support for high-risk individuals.

The mission of this The Strength of 1™ campaign is to inspire everyone to realize they can make a difference – big or small – in the fight against breast cancer. There are many ways to take part in the campaign, including: share a story about how someone has made a difference; take The Strength of 1™ pledge on Facebook; or help spread the word on Twitter. In addition, by sponsoring Bright Pink, the makers of Freschetta® pizza want to show women that they have the power to take their breast and ovarian health in their own hands.

I occasionally receive compensation in the form of products for posts.  However, the opinions I share are solely my own.

Fire Prevention 101: Clean Out Your Dryer Vent with Dryer Vent Pros {$100 Cash Giveaway}

In terms of things that scare me, a fire in my home is in the top 5.  When the fire department visited my daughter’s preschool last year I made sure I was at the school that day and then I read the paperwork they gave us from cover to cover, following all of their tips for fire safety. 

But, the one thing I thought I could ignore was the part about cleaning out the dryer vent.  Yes, I clean the dryer’s lint filter with each load, but I just didn’t think much about the actual dryer vent.  Partially, the newness of my house is to blame because I was under the mistaken impression that a house that’s less than 5 years old wouldn’t need cleaning for a few more years at least. 

Apparently I was wrong, because just look at what came out of them this past week when Dryer Vent Pros cleaned them out for us. 

Yes, I know.  At roughly the size of a watermelon and dense with lint, hair, and fibers, it was a fire hazard if I ever saw one, and mine was one of the best the technician has ever seen.  But, not only was this a huge hazard, all of this lint was keeping our dryer from functioning properly, and goodness knows our old dryer doesn’t need any help at all not functioning efficiently. 

Now that I’ve read up more about dryer vents, I feel silly for never having them cleaned before now.  My dad even warned me a few years back about all the gunk that was removed from his dryer vent {we’re talking garbage bags, people} and I thought “oh, I’ll do that after 10 years or so”, which apparently is far too long in between cleanings.  Especially now that we have two young kiddos who create laundry like it’s their job, we do a ton of laundry around here and we should really be doing a cleaning once a year.  Yes, a year… not every decade.  

And really, cleaning your dryer vent with Dryer Vent Pros is a small price for peace of mind and for keeping your dryer running as efficiently as possible.  All prices are agreed upon before the job even starts, which are established by how hard the dryer vent is to reach, not how long of a vent run you have or how much buildup.  Even better is that they have all the latest tech gadgets to make the process as easy as possible, including a camera line that they run into your vent that they can show you on their tablet computer before starting so you can make sure yours need cleaning before the cleaning begins.

The whole process took 30 minutes or so, and most of that was locating the vent.  In our case, the dryer vent is on the roof and it’s really high up there, so the technician spent most of the time getting a good access point and then going up and down the ladder.  Once he was up there with his gadgets, he started up the high powered air vac and ran his rotary brush through the line a few times to clean the length of it and then he cleaned the dryer transition tube and the dryer vent screen and finally checked the airflow reading.

Oh, but I haven’t even told you my favorite part: they never even set foot inside your house.  That’s right, no having to unhook the dryer and clean up the laundry room for them to work, it’s all done through the exterior dryer vent and all the mess never makes it indoors.  And once they are done and you see the pile of lint, hair, and debris they have sucked out, they cart all the junk from the vents away with them. 

See all the lint and dust in the air and on the ground as they clean?  None of that was left for me to pick up, and nothing made it in the house at all.  Pretty awesome, right?

While I would love to tell you that my old dryer now dries like a pro, after the cleaning it is substantially better than it had gotten over the past few months.  I had originally attributed the lack of performance entirely to its old age, not even considering the dryer vent as the issue, but I’m happy that our dryer is not declining at the rate I thought it was and I don’t have to restart the dryer 3+ times for one load of clothes anymore. 

In addition to the savings of not running the dryer over and over, I feel so much better knowing all of that is gone from our vents and they are clean as they were when we turned the key in the lock.  Laundry may never be my favorite chore, but at least I’m no longer worried about it reducing our house to rubble.  Want to know more?  Check out their website that shows you all the ways to reduce your fire risk as well as videos and links about the importance of cleaning your vents yearly.

Dryer Vent Pros is located in Everett, WA and serves all of Western Washington.  If you aren’t already, I would highly recommend you follow Dryer Vent Pros on Facebook.  That’s where they post their monthly specials and deals that you can refer to when calling or making an appointment online.  In support of our troops, this month they are offering a free first floor basic cleaning for any veteran that refers a paying client!

On October 25th at 11:59pm PST a winner will be drawn at random and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to contact me or a new winner will be chosen.  US only.

This giveaway is now closed. Thank you to all who entered and congrats to Amy P who won the prize!

A big thank you to Dryer Vent Pros for coming out and cleaning our vent as well as providing the giveaway for one lucky winner.  As always, all opinions are 100% ours and no form of monetary compensation was received in exchange for this Rave Review.

Enjoy Music Anywhere with the Sound Step Recharge from Soundfreaq {Review & Discount Code}

By Tyler, Editor and Author

I’ve always been a little bit retro in my musical tastes.  I still own a CD player, I have lots of records {yes, records!}, and I firmly believe that folk is going to make a resurgence.  But, while I loved our multi-disc player and our turntable at our old house where we could hear it all across the entire 900sqft, our full stereo system just didn’t fit into our main floor living room at our new house, which meant it was relegated to the upstairs movie room. 

Granted, it’s still nice when we want to watch a movie or have a dance party upstairs, but I’ve always been sad that the bedrooms and the main floor of our house are just so quiet all the time.  Sure, there’s Pandora on the laptop, music stations on the TV, or plug-in speakers for the smartphone, but if I want some real sound, what’s a boy to do?    

The answer, of course, is a compact music dock that can play music from your smartphone or tablet, which allows you to access your music stored on your many devices.  But, that brings up other issues if you’re a family like ours and have many different devices that aren’t compatible with each other all holding music, as well as the problem of having to give up your tablet or smartphone every time you want to play some tunes. 

 

Thank goodness I found a solution to all of my music dock issues as well as issues I hadn’t even considered when I found the Sound Step Recharge from Soundfreaq.  Now, instead of docking my smartphone and then coming back to check it every few minutes, I can simply send my music via Bluetooth right to the Sound Step.

Even better, if I feel like listening to music in the backyard, the garage, or even out at the lake, I can simply charge it and then take it with me when I go.  The fact that it has a rechargeable battery in it is definitely one of our favorite features, because who wants to buy a different stereo for every place you might need one?  In fact, our next goal is to pair the Sound Step with a projector and have some awesome outdoor movie nights. 

And, since the Sound Step works over Bluetooth, you can use any device that streams audio, so there aren’t the compatibility issues you get with iPod/iPhone specific devices.  And, even better you can have multiple devices synced to it so everyone can get in on the music.  

Another option for playing your music is by using the free Soundfreaq iPhone/iPad/iPod touch app, which adds FM radio in to what you can play.  This was something that really stood out, especially since we don’t have a single radio on the whole main floor of our house.  This came in really handy in those times when we couldn’t agree what to listen to, or when we were just sick of what we had on our phones. 

While all this portability is great, the Soundfreaq still lets you get the benefits of a docking station by having an Apple 30 pin connector with enough space to even hold up your iPad, as well as a USB connection on the back.  Both of these can be used to charge your device as needed so you don’t end up killing your phone or tablet battery for a little bit of music. 

For those times when you do dock your phone, there is an included remote that snaps in and out of a cool storage area in the bottom of the Sound Step that lets you control the volume as well as song, station and source selection, power, and the “U-Cubed” {UQ3} sound effect status. 

It’s cool that the remote gives you as much control as the iPhone app, especially for my wife who can’t get the app on her phone.  I personally like being able to fine tune my music both ways and although we never really turn off the UQ3 because it sounds so much fuller with it on, I appreciate the option.

All of this portability, flexibility, and expandability doesn’t come at the expense of good looks; the Soundfreaq is a beautiful piece of technology that can fit in just about any decor.  Since the goal of our living area was to not have an entertainment center filled with components, I love that the Soundfreaq is so small and streamlined that it can easily hide on a mantle, a bookcase, or hutch and not look out of place.  It may have a natural bass response, vocal clarity and stereo separation with a 2.1 speaker configuration with sub-woofer, but yet it is about the size of a loaf of bread. 

Having something so small, compact, and functional was a big deal to us because music is a big part of our lives, and having it through our whole house is literally the one and only thing we miss about our last home.  Now with the Sound Step it is really easy to fill every room with high quality sound, whether or not there is an outlet nearby. 

The Soundfreaq Sound Step Recharge retails for $149.99, but you can get a great discount right now at the Soundfreaq e-store.  Simply enter the discount code “momblog” to receive a 10% discount on the Sound Step Recharge as well as all other products in the store.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Soundfreaq and received a product sample to facilitate my review.  As always, all opinions are 100% ours. 

Mamas & Papas Gingerbread Knitted Blanket {Review}

My daughter completely overestimates my ability to turn yarn into something pretty.  Although I can crochet {a little}, I certainly am not going to be making blankets, hats, or sweaters any time soon.  Yet, every time we go to the craft store, she likes to load up our cart when I’m not looking with yarn in every color of the rainbow so I can “yarn her a blanket”… and I have to break her heart every time.

Thank goodness I am crafty enough to do the next best thing – order her a beautiful blanket from Mamas & Papas.  I first saw the Gingerbread blanket from afar at the ABC Kids Expo last year, and even though I was across a large room, I fell hard.  And, apparently I wasn’t the only one because the rep said it was the single-most talked about item in the booth all day long.  I must say, I’m not a bit surprised; just like all the other goodies from Mamas and Papas, it is a little retro, very colorful, and way more fun than anything I would ever be able to make. 

And, the Gingerbread blanket is truly gorgeous.  It looks like a beautiful heirloom afghan that is passed down from generation to generation, but it also has a modern-vintage feel that is so in right now.  It is made from super soft cotton yarn and trimmed with cotton edging that makes it feel even more substantial and cozy while snuggling.   

When my daughter first saw the Mamas & Papas Gingerbread , her reaction was just as I expected and she claimed it right there on the spot.  Ever since it arrived, it has been her go-to blanket and she has spent literally hours snuggling it on car rides, covering her while relaxing on the couch, and while sleeping. 

As much as my daughter loves snuggling the blanket, I love that it is machine washable and looks great even after several washes.  And, I’m not the only one who thinks so; we get compliments on it whenever we’re out and about and everyone wants to know who made it.  I’m tempted to lie and say I “yarned it” for my kiddos, but no one would ever believe I had enough time to make what is quite possibly the world’s cutest blanket, so I always end up telling them it's Mamas & Papas. 

And, then of course, I have to tell them about when we were in London and happened upon one of their stores when I was newly pregnant.  Being that we were already crazy excited to be shopping for a little one, we loaded up a cart with adorable baby clothing and drooled over their strollers that we couldn’t get in the States.  Even today, those clothes we brought back from the Mamas & Papas store are some of my favorites, the ones we can’t bear to part with even though we aren’t anticipating any more babes. 

And, now we get to add the Mamas and Papas Gingerbread Blanket to the list of things we cannot let go, things that we will save for grandkids.  In fact, I love it so much that I’m going to be getting the Whirligig blanket for my son this year so they can have a matching pair for their rooms.

Buy: You can buy either the Gingerbread Knitted Blanket or Whirligig Knitted Blanket for $44.99 from Mamas & Papas.

A big thank you to Mamas & Papas for sending the Gingerbread Knitted Blanket to facilitate this review.  As always, all opinions are 100% ours and no form of monetary compensation was received in exchange for this Rave Review.

Team #Cinchspiration - I Need Your Help

I’ll admit that when I thought about starting with Cinch on an “inch loss” plan, I figured it would be pretty smooth sailing.  I had visions of 12 weeks flying by and me in my pre-pregnancy jeans by fall.  Unfortunately, losing weight for me is never quick, and considering I had two pregnancies to gain, I might have to cut myself some slack. 

Although I’m still losing, it’s just not as fast as I would like. See this picture at the beach?  Notice how I'm basically hiding behind my son?  I really don't want to do that forever.  I want to feel comfortable and attractive again, and I want to do that when the kids are still young.

Here’s my 3 month update:
27 pounds to lose
Month one check in -5
Month two check in -2
Month three check in -4
Which leaves 16 pounds remaining to my goal.

But, I’ve got a secret: I don’t think I’m going to stop at my original goal.  I really, really want to get to the point that I love being in front of the camera again, and I think my shape has changed so much during the pregnancies and then after the car accident that I think I need to lose more than I had originally planned for that to happen.  I figure I’ve got 3 months left on the Cinch plan so I might as well take full advantage and see what I can do to make that happen.

Yes, that's me... hiding again.

Unfortunately, losing more each month means I’m going to have to kick it up a notch.  Because at the rate I’m going, I’m looking at only losing 22 pounds total, which wouldn’t even meet my original goal. 

So, in addition to the Cinch plan, I’m going to set a mandatory 30 minutes of exercise every. single. day.  I’ve always been active at night and once hubby gets home we usually go on a walk, a bike ride, or jump on the trampoline at home, but I’m going to start incorporating exercise into my mid-day as well.

I started throwing in a walk every day it’s not rainy and that’s going well so now instead of driving everywhere I walk wherever I can.  I’ve started to walk to pick up my daughter from school with my son in a stroller, which just so happens to be down a very steep hill and quite the workout.  That gives me 30 minutes of exercise on those days, but the other days I’m trying hard to come up with an exercise and am coming up blank. 

Since so much of what I do revolves around the computer, I think mid-day inactivity is mostly to blame for my semi-stalled weight loss, not my diet.  Since I've been following the Cinch plan, I've been eating a whole lot better in general and I feel more energetic and lighter, but it just isn't showing on the scale or in the mirror as fast as I would like.

I know many of you are in the same boat in terms of mid-day inactivity and I would love to hear what has worked for you in maintaing your weight or losing.  Anything at all would be helpful, even if it’s just small tips, so feel free to offer any advice on ways to fit in exercise in an already packed schedule!

Follow along with me as I make it to my goal as well as read about other success stories.  You can also follow The Shaklee Company through their website, Facebook, and Twitter.  Keep up with all the Cinchspiration bloggers by following #Cinchspiration on Twitter and Pinterest! This is a sponsored post as part of the Shaklee Corporation’s Team #Cinchspiration Campaign.  I have received free products, online support and incentives for participating.  My opinions are my own.  My results are not typical.

American Girl releases Caroline Abbott, the newest Historical Character

A few weeks ago, my preschool-aged daughter and I started learning about the War of 1812.  Yes, I know it’s a bit late for me to be learning about a war I should have learned all about in High School and I also know it’s a bit early for her to start learning about war at all, but that’s what American Girl will do to us. 

Just like after we were introduced to American Girl Kit Kittredge via a package from Santa and we spent the time after the holidays learning about the Great Depression, this past month we’ve been back to “studying” in a very fun way.  American Girl’s newest Historical character, Caroline Abbott, made learning about the War of 1812 fun and very relatable for my daughter.

The day that I read American Girl was releasing Caroline Abbot this fall as their new Historical Character, I was thrilled.  I will admit I see hundreds of press releases each week and very rarely do they rate at any level on my excitement meter, but there’s just something exciting about an addition to the American Girl family.  And, since this is the first Historical Character released since my daughter’s been interested in the brand, it made it all the more exciting for both of us.

When a press kit with an advanced copy of the book arrived, you would have thought it came with the actual doll by how thrilled my daughter was.  Mind you, the child cannot actually read on her own, and this wasn’t a colorful picture book, so I was really surprised to see that level of enthusiasm over a chapter book.

But, that afternoon we began reading it together and by the second day I found myself engrossed in the story.  While it wouldn’t be something I picked up and read on my own, I found I loved explaining all the details to my daughter so she could best understand and it made for some great mother-daughter bonding time.

And, once again it reminded me why I love the American Girl brand.  Instead of producing doll after doll with simply a different color dress and different eye and hair colors, American Girl dolls come with their own elaborate back stories that are rooted in actual history.  And, Caroline’s story is just as riveting as I have come to expect.   

The first book of the six book series, Meet Caroline, is set during the beginning of the War of 1812, and begins with Caroline doing what she loves best, sailing Lake Ontario with her father.  When a British officer boards their boat and takes her father prisoner, Caroline makes a promise to her father to stay strong and steady until he returns.  During the rest of the novel, Caroline must help her mother tend to the family’s shipyard and stay focused on keeping her promise to her father.

I personally loved the history parts of the book, even though they could sometimes be challenging to explain to a kiddo who has very little historical knowledge to build upon.  By using examples of things she already knows about geography, history, and a little bit of war knowledge by her cousins, uncles, and grandparents have told her about their time in the service, we’ve been able to make it through most of the book and are quite taken with the story.

My daughter loves how the theme of bravery is introduced and all the ways Caroline shows how brave she is even during very scary times and it seems to be resonating well with her.  I’m excited to finish the book and then move along to the other 5 in the series and then we will start saving for the doll herself.

Besides the books and the Caroline Abbott doll, there are a whole bunch of new covetable items in the Caroline series, including her boat {seriously adorable}, a canopy bed, an elegant party table and chairs and even her own parlor!

A big thank you to American Girl who sent the book, Meet Caroline, for us to read. As always, all opinions are 100% ours and we were not enticed to write this post in any way.

Saying Goodbye to a Great Man

This last weekend was incredibly rough as we all prepared to say goodbye to a truly wonderful man and an amazing grandpa/great-grandpa.  While I don't do many personal posts here on the site, I thought I would share a picture to honor my Grandpa Doc who passed away last night surrounded by loved ones. 

I found this picture in a stack of old photographs from my parents and realized that it shows the first time my grandpa ever got to meet me.  While all of my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins lived in Washington when I was born, my family was living in San Francisco while my dad was in medical school so it wasn't until I was a few weeks old that I finally got to meet my extended family when we made the trip up North to visit. 

I love how proud my sister looks with her new baby sister and I love even more that the shot was taken not at my Grandpa Doc's house, but at my other grandparents' house in the same town.  Clearly, there was a lot of love welcoming me into the family as both sides came together that day to celebrate.

Grandpa, I hope on your last day you felt all that love coming back to you tenfold.

And, because I can't resist, here's a few more recent shots. Yes, he was racing my daughter up a ramp and high-five-ing as late as last week.  I told you, he was an amazing man.

And with my son, joking and making each other laugh.  I believe this is a dog and pony show, but I could be wrong.
While my kiddos are young and won't remember everything about their great Grandpa Doc, I know they both love him dearly and I look forward to sharing all of my {many} stories someday. 

Someday, when the pain isn't so fresh, I will share the story of how my grandpa and I made a dollhouse one summer and how he laughed so hard at my "house plan" that my grandma came out to see what was so funny.  I will tell the story of how we went hubcab hunting together along the roads, how we went clam digging on the shore in the early mornings, how he would take us to the bank to get Sacajawea dollars, and how painful these past few years were as we watched him have periods of confusion mixed in with times where he was very much present and aware.

But, mostly, I will tell them how loved Grandpa Doc was and how much love he had for all of his family.  Grandpa, you will be missed by all of us.  

MAM Anti-Colic Bottles and Perfect Pacifiers {Review & Giveaway}

My son is a MAM baby through and through.  From pacifiers to toothbrushes and teethers to bottles, he loves anything MAM.

In fact, as soon as he took a bottle, it was this one from MAM.  Yes, in pink. 

We seriously love this bottle, as does our little guy.  Not only does it have that all-important MAM nipple that he requires, it’s got some seriously cool features that make it unlike any other bottle on the market, such as:

•    an anti-colic design 

•    self-sterilizing in the microwave

•   for formula and breast milk

•    easy for little hands to hold.  Their bottles have a cool contoured silhouette that allows baby to self-feed and then graduate to the one-hand hold as they grow.

Whether or not your child suffers from colic, I would highly recommend getting a set of anti-colic bottles.  I prefer MAM’s design because it doesn’t incorporate snorkels or tubing that I then have to clean, but also I found that it works really well. 

Instead of the tubing, snorkels or vents that I hated, the MAM anti-colic bottles have a removable, vented bottom that holds a silicone seal to give maximum airflow and prevent air bubbles.  While I don’t understand all the science behind their anti-colic design, I can say that it really works.  We never once had an inverted nipple or airflow problem after switching to the MAM bottles with my daughter and then when we used them the second time around, my little guy never suffered from tummy issues or colic symptoms. 

But, while I have been touting the benefits of self-feeding and the anti-colic design for years now, I’m embarrassed to say that I had absolutely no clue that their anti-colic bottles were also self-sterilizing.  Since this is not something I would have ever guessed my husband and I both would overlook, we were both incredulous when we read it online.  Surely, they can’t mean OUR bottles, right?

It turns out they do mean our bottles, because they are definitely self-sterilizing.  See bottom right image with the nipple in the enclosed bottle?  Pop that whole thing in the microwave with a little bit of water and you can easily steam clean it with no extra accessories or machines. 

Seriously, check out for yourself how the MAM bottles self-sterilize… and then you are free to laugh at us for not realizing it on our own.

As much as we love the MAM bottles, we love their pacifiers even more.  I’m guessing many of you are very familiar with the iconic MAM pacifier, especially if you’ve hung out with our little guy for any length of time. This is what he looks like when he's tired - snuggling his favorite blanket and tracing his pacifier with his finger.

Because he loves his pacifier so much, I’m constantly running out for a new one after his ends up disappearing in the garden, being eaten by the dryer, or misplaced on a playdate so I was really excited to see their new line of pacifiers called the Perfect Pacifier. 

Initially, they took some getting used to because the nipple shape is a bit different than the classic MAM nipple and he handed it right back to me.  But, knowing that he would take it if he had no other options, I decided to use it as my safety pacifier for when we were out of the house, and it worked out well.  Once he got used to it, he seemed to actually prefer it.

And, I really like it as well, especially all the science behind it.  The MAM Perfect Pacifier has a symmetrical Dento-Flex nipple with an extra thin neck and is even softer than other nipples.  It was designed by Orthodontists and Pediatric Dentists to put less pressure on baby's jaw and teeth as they grow, which makes me feel better as that's my #1 concern with pacifiers.

We all really loved trying out the newest MAM offerings over the past two weeks and adding to our vast MAM collection.  Once again, I have been won over by their incredible designs and all the engineering and thought that goes into each part of their line.

To buy: The Perfect Pacifier is available in 2 sizes and numerous designs and is available at Walgreeens, which means I'm heading there this weekend. MAM Anti-Colic bottles are available in 5oz and 8oz sizes from Walmart and come with size 1 nipples.  Since all their bottles and nipples mix and match, you can buy larger size nipples as your child grows. 

One lucky Rave and Review reader will win a MAM anti-colic bottle and an assortment of MAM Perfect Pacifiers {$19 value}

To Enter: Visit MAMbaby.com and tell me what product of theirs you think would best soothe your fussy baby.

And, as always, there are extra entries available! {Please leave a separate comment for each completed}

2 Extra Entries - Post on your Facebook wall about this amazing giveaway {MAM Baby bottle and pacifier giveaway http://t.co/jcZM19It} and tag MAMbabyUSA and Rave & Review

2 Extra Entries {per method} - Follow Rave & Review! Subscribe by RSS feed, Subscribe by email, become a fan of R&R on Facebook or add R&R to your blogroll or sidebar {code in sidebar}.

1 Extra Entry {daily} - Twitter.  Retweet this tweet after following @MAMbaby and @RaveAndReview

2 Extra Entries - Blogger Bonus. Blog about this giveaway linking back to this post and leave an address where I can find your writeup

1 Extra Entry - Comment love. Enter any of my other giveaways and/or comment on any non-giveaway post! 

1 Extra Entry - Pin or Like this post {use the buttons at the bottom of post to make it super easy! Can be done once per article}

On October 15th at 11:59pm PST a winner will be drawn by Random.org, announced here and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to contact me or a new winner will be chosen.  US only.

Winner, winner!  This giveaway is now closed.  Thank you to all who entered and congrats to:  #84 Melissa Belle said... #2 I follow your page on Facebook. I'm Melissa Belle there.

A big thank you to Team Mom for sending the MAM bottles and pacifiers to facilitate this review as well as offering a giveaway to our fabulous readers. All opinions are 100% ours and no form of monetary compensation was received in exchange for this Rave Review.

Skineez Skincarewear is Shape Wear and So Much More

I’m lucky that I’ve grown up in an age that has never had to wear corsets.  Beyond the standard slips, camisoles and regular undergarments, my generation has been fortunate that shape wear is not a daily requirement.  But above that, we are very lucky that the shape wear we do have is nothing like what our parents and grandparents wore. 

In fact, some of it is even {gasp} comfortable.

This summer, I was introduced to a brand called SKINEEZ Skincarewear and unlike traditional shape wear, it does more than just support and slim, it actually cares for your skin.  Skineez calls themselves Skincarewear because it’s the only shape wear that is infused with skincare ingredients that help tighten, tone and smooth while you wear them.

As someone who has been through two pregnancies and is just now shedding those extra baby pounds, I knew going into it Skineez wasn’t going to be a miracle cure.  I knew it wasn’t going to give me back my tight abs and pre-pregnancy body, but I also thought it couldn’t hurt, either.

Since comfort is my thing, I decided that I wouldn’t be able to do something like a waist cincher or anything heftier than a light shaper so I went with some Skineez shorts that would be good under dresses.  I figured that way they would be practical all summer long and even through the fall as skirts are my normal attire.

But, once the shorts arrived and I slipped them on, I realized how soft and comfortable they were and knew they would be useful for far more than wearing with skirts.  They could easily be worn under pants and dresses, or even alone as workout gear and would be a great way to pamper your skin on a daily basis or while you get in shape.

While they are just a light shaper and I didn’t look 15lbs lighter nor did I look like a super model, I did love how great did at smoothing and shaping and how they didn’t make me hot and uncomfortable.  Even though I didn’t look like the models on their ads, I still felt good in them and loved how my skin felt even after I took them off.

Thanks to a bunch of stuff I have no idea about like micro-crystals infused with anti-aging and moisturizing agents like retinol, red algae extract, caffeine, shea butter and Vitamin E, the best way to describe it is that Skineez feels like a luxurious lotion, but without the greasy feeling.  Their garments come pre-infused but they will last through 10 washes, which is why I love that they include their Skineez Slimming Spray with every purchase so you can re-infuse right at home. 

I’m still not sold on shape wear on a daily basis, but I do love that when I have a special event or I’m going on a bike ride, I can easily slip on my Skineez and reap the benefits even after I’ve taken them off.  There’s very little pampering in my daily life these days, so even such a small thing is actually quite nice and it makes wearing shape wear far more easy to justify.

Whether or not you typically wear shape wear, I bet you can think of a few dozen places you wouldn’t mind wearing Skineez to.  From working out to dressing up and everywhere in between, I’m sure you will find Skineez that would be perfect for you – from thigh shapers, panties, shorts, leggings, tights, tops, and even exercise bras, Skineez has you covered.  You can check them all out at myskineez.com and shop directly from their site as well as in-store at Macy's and more.

A big thank you to Skineez for sending a sample to facilitate this review.  As always, all opinions are 100% ours.

The Children’s Place Holiday 2012 Preview Event

We love The Children’s Place and are very lucky to be surrounded by numerous store locations so we can pop in frequently to see what’s new for the season.  But, this year I got a bit of a sneak peak of the holiday line while in BlogHer and it was adorable. 

The Children’s Place holiday preview was one of the many NYC events hosted by the amazing Nicole Feliciano of Momtrends.  The event took place in the heart of midtown at the historic Bryant Park Hotel and just a short walk from the BlogHer convention. 

Liz from A Nut in a Nutshell, Xenia from Thanks, Mail Carrier, and me. We were THERE! TOGETHER!

Coming in from a hot and humid day on the streets of New York, when we arrived on the Momtrends suite level, it made it immediately feel a few dozen degrees cooler.  With “snow” drifts and winter clothing meeting us at the door, it was as if we stepped right inside a large snowglobe full of cute - with an amazing view of the city. 

But, as gorgeous as the view was both in and out of the suite, what was really cool was how the party was laid out.  Instead of having racks of clothing, stiff and formal mannequins, or glossy posters with the new collections, we got to see the clothing the way it was intended – running around the party on a bunch of super cute children. 

Since this wasn’t a formal event with table, chairs, and itineraries, bloggers mingled around the suite and oohed and aahed over all the new styles while the kid models, wiggled, giggled and generally were adorable.  Also in attendance at the party was The Children’s Place designer, Michael Giannelli who explained how he spots a trend, makes it kid-friendly, and then brings it to life in The Children’s Place line.

While there were quite a few fall and winter items from The Children’s Place that I’m really looking forward to, their hats and accessories this year kept grabbing my attention.  I mean, just look at all this cute – doesn’t my son simply need all these hats? 

And all these sparkles!  Seriously, my daughter would love these.  Okay, even I would wear some of them...

Be sure and check out all the adorable new winter and holiday items from The Children’s Place that will be arriving in stores nationwide.  While you wait for your local store to stock all these hats and accessories so you can buy them for my kids, check out The Children’s Place on Facebook and on Twitter