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« Previous EntriesExtra Hour Wishes
Friday, April 6th, 2012Right now, I really wish I was here:
The reality is that I am at home getting ready to have two Passover Seders at our house Friday and Saturday evenings. So I will be looking for a hidden Mickey in my matzoh, but not sure that will happen. Hmmmm….
So while I am off helping TechyDad get everything ready, I leave you with a not too serious question.
If you had three extra hours in the day that were just for you, how would you use that time?
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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.
Aloha #197
Neosporin’s New Eczema Essentials and Coupon
Sunday, February 26th, 2012The winter weather may have been nice to us this year, but the dryness has been harsh at best. With the heat pulling the moisture out of the house, our sensitive skin suffers a lot. My kids and I often are the lucky recipients of eczema during these long, cold months of the year.
Over break, my oldest has been complaining a lot about his back being itchy. Sure enough, I pulled his shirt up and saw what I feared. Red, scaly, itchy, dry patches = eczema back. He seems to get it on his back, my youngest on his legs, and my poor hands are a mess – which makes typing/knitting/crafting hard to do at times. We have a large collection of Eczema creams, moisturizer lotions, and more.
A few weeks ago, I saw an ad for a new eczema product that caught my eye. Then, I had the opportunity to participate in a campaign for the product and share a high value coupon. Yes, the makers of Neosporin – who I have trusted to help stop infections from cuts and scraps now have a line of products to help with eczema.
Thanks to this coupon, I am heading out this weekend to get some of the cream to try on my kids. I trust the Neosporin name, like that it says it will help quickly, is a good daily moisturizer, and is unscented. More information about the new line of Neosporin Eczema Essentials Products:
When children have eczema, its negative effects are not felt by the child but by the entire family. Parents want to be the hero and bring relief to this popular skin problem so Neosporin has come out with a line of products to bring relief to the skin and the entire family overall.
#1 Daily Body Wash
• Proven gentle and non-irritating, even on eczema-prone skin
• Fragrance-free, soap-free
• Gentle enough for everyday use#2 Daily Moisturizing Cream
• Deeply moisturizes
• Relieves itch on contact and irritation due to eczema
• Helps strengthen and restore the skin’s natural barrier function
• Fragrance and steroid-free#3 Anti-Itch Cream
• Clinically shown to improve dryness, flaking and appearance of redness
• Maximum strength of itch relief
• For occasional use
I will keep you posted once we try the cream. I have my high value coupon (link above) and will be heading to Walmart or another retailer’s first-aid aisle to find this to test out on our dry winter skin and see how it calms our eczema symptoms.
Disclosure: I wrote this post as part of a compensated Global Influence campaign. As someone who has eczema and two young boys with it, it was my pleasure to share information and a coupon about this new product that we hope to try. As mentioned, we have not used this yet, but Neosporin is a brand that we know and trust.
Disclaimer: This post is not meant to be taken as medical advice. If you are worried about eczema, please consult your doctor to ask question and get additional information from them.
Picnik Replacement Possibility
Friday, February 24th, 2012Photos are a huge part of my blog. I include them in almost every post that I write. Thanks to Picnik, I often made collages, added in text, or placed a fun sticker for a holiday within my pictures. Imagine my reaction when I heard that Google was going to cease operating Picnik in their current location this April. To say I was devastated would be an understatement. Sure they said it would be integrated on Google+, but it was far from the same. The new space for Picnik was not as easy to use, hardly as flexible, did not have the features I needed, and would not allow me to download my creations to put onto my blog.
I asked TechyDad to see if he could find me another solution. Sure, I could use a great photo publishing program like PaintShop Pro, but the reality is I wanted something that did not take a lot of time to learn and would be quick and easy. The other day he told me about PhotoScape. That night, I put it on my computer and had some fun.
First I made a collage of photos from Disney parks.
Then, TechyDad told me that one of the great benefits of PhotoScape is you can put any font into it to use. So I downloaded a Disney one to use, along with another one. After that, I saw the stickers/stamps that you can add to photos. Check out the boys to see what I was able to do, along with the sign near Figment.
I am still exploring all of the possibilities with this new tool, but I really love it. Even TechyDad has joined in on the fun. Check out the Wordless Wednesday that he had this week using PhotoScape. Is it as easy as Picnik was right away? Not initially. Still, I think it may be more powerful and once you understand a few little quirks – it is fun and has so much to offer.
So my questions to you this week:
Are you a fan of Picnik and what will you be using once it closes in April? If you don’t use Picknik, what do you use to touch up or create items for your blog?
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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.
Aloha #192
In Search of Hakuna Matata
Sunday, January 22nd, 2012Stress, it happens and it can leave you dreaming some odd things.
One of my recent dreams was similar to this scene that we saw at Disney on Ice back in December.
Of course, my dream was of me as Peter Pan and someone else in the Captain Hook role. I no not know who that other person was because a few could have been staring in that special scene.
I know, you are thinking that I am supposed to be an angel. LOL – even angels have reality check moments where they take on another personality a la Stitch.
Disney is definitely on my brain. Watching the videos made me smile, laugh, and forget about some of the things happening in real life for a few moments. I hope you enjoyed them as well.
Not My Hair in the Food
Friday, January 13th, 2012The title pretty much explains it all. Last week, TechyDad stopped on his way home from work to pick up some dinner because it was one of those nights. We opted for some subs. I was really in the mood for some grilled chicken and ordered that. As we were eating our dinner, I noticed a medium length hair of a color that is not mine sticking out of my sandwich.
Insert gagging noises, expressions of horror, and rage.
That was the end of my meal since there was no way I was eating something that was served to me with an unknown hair within it. TechyDad called the store and was told he could go back in for a new sandwich and see the manager. Oh sure, just what we want to do so late on one of the coldest nights of the year with two kids that need to go to bed soon. NOPE, I was not taking that as an answer. I decided to call and ask to talk to the manager. The manager came onto the phone and blew me away with the cluelessness. She did not get how bad this situation was, offered no solution, and certainly NEVER said she was sorry. The next morning, I went to the website of the main company since I did not have a way to get in touch with the local owner. This is what I wrote to them:
My husband decided to stop on his way home to get subs for dinner to take home. He ordered a roasted chicken and veggie patty. As I was eating mine, something caught my eye. A hair was embedded in my sandwich that was clearly NOT mine. That was it, I was done eating. I was disgusted with this. What I was not ready for was what happened when we called the store. First, my husband called. He was told to go back to the store to talk with the manager. He hung up and told me. It was dinner time, we have two young children, and it was freezing. He was NOT going back to the store at that point in time. I picked up the phone and asked to talk to the manager. It was a little after 6:00 at this point. I did not get the managers name. She was less than helpful at best. The manager clearly did not get the gravity of the situation. She stated "Oh you are upset and don’t want your food?" No kidding I was upset, disgusted, and appalled with how she had no clue how to handle this. I told her I was finished and was going to contact corporate. This is when she suddenly seemed to care and wanted to know what she could do. I told her no thank you and hung up the phone. Your Twitter feed helped me to located this page to report the incident. I would like to know what is the proper protocol for avoiding hairs into customer food and what is supposed to be done when a customer finds one within their meal.
Thank you in advance for your assistance with this matter.
After some time, an e-mail from the owner of the store arrived. It was 2-3 sentences long and did not really apologize, state what happened, or anything else. They may have thought it was a sorry, but it was not. Stating that you are “sorry that your experience at my store was not satisfactory” and telling me to print out the e-mail for a free sub next visit does not cut it. Nope, my business will now be going to a new location and I will make my own sandwiches at home without feeding my family hairs.
So my question to you this week:
Have you ever gotten a hair in your food at a restaurant? What did you say and what did they do in response to the situation?
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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.
Aloha #186
Tuesday Tales – Envy Combats the World of Cyberbullying
Tuesday, November 15th, 2011
There are days that I thank my lucky stars that I am no longer a kid in school. Children today have it much different than we did growing up. Not only will they be mean to each other with words and punches thrown, but the online world has forever changed everything.
Bullying has always been around, but the lasting effects of bullies is new and drastically different. Thanks to social media, a simple poke at fun against another child will last FOREVER. Kids do not understand that everything placed on the internet is forever and can not be taken back. Simply deleting an item does not make it disappear.
Tweens, Teens, and even younger children know how to use Twitter, Facebook (even younger than the 13 year age minimum), and other online websites/blogs to assert their power. With a simple mobile device, a photo can be sent around the world. In an instant, reputations will be changed and the damage done. The worst part, anonymity can often hide a lot of things from the novice. Of course, nobody online is completely anonymous.
Why do I mention this? Well, cyberbullying is a reality in society today. Not only does it exist with adults, but also with our innocent children. Children have killed themselves after endless online and real life attacks have pushed them into the darkest of places that exists. When I was teaching middle school, I actually used an assignment to help catch a cyberbully. Yes, having a webmaster as a hubby paid off and taught at least a few kids (and parents) a very BIG lesson.
Author Gregg Olsen tackles this tough subject area in the first of his Empty Coffin Series called Envy. I introduced the book several weeks ago when I was finishing it up. Since that time, it has been on my mind a lot.
Bullying is a problem that our entire society needs to address. Parents, teachers, and others within the lives of children need to work on sensitizing children on how to recognize a bully, what to do if they are bullied, and how to help a friend that may be the victim. We often take this for granted because a lot of kids do not realize they are actively being bullied. Yes, even if it is painfully obvious to some, many kids are so hungry for social acceptance of any kind that they appear to ignore it. Are they really, or are they internalizing it? Envy takes us along this journey as two super sleuth twins uncover the pain that another had endured for so long.
As I said before, Envy kept me on the edge of my seat. I saw some items coming, but did not see others. I knew the connection with real like cyberbullying cases that had been in the media and liked how it was incorporated into the story. My mind was racing as I read. I wondered what other items could be done in the real world to protect other kids from this fictional fate. The sad truth, it is happening in the world. Cyberbullying is taking the lives of innocent individuals that feel trapped.
My hope is that people being more aware of this topic thanks to it being in the news, being incorporated in books like Envy, and on other platforms that we can help our youth. We may not be able to completely stop cyberbullies, but we can let then know that we care and will help in any way possible. Envy would be a great book to read with tweens and teens to discuss this topic. I can see it being used in a social setting, with teachers, and other venues.
Author Gregg Olsen has also talked about this topic. On his website, Olsen recently wrote a post called Changing the Question on Cyberbullying. He begins this section of his news notes with the following:
Not long ago, I asked readers “How Mean Are You?” I’ve been thinking a lot about cyberbullying lately, and now I’m wondering "How Brave Are You?"
Within the article, he goes into explaining how and why he changed the initial question. It is a very powerful read – especially with the quotes from kids. It hit me hard to know that some teens felt that if they told someone about their cyberbullying problems that it would only make matters worse.
I worry about this a lot for my children. My oldest has already been a victim of bullying and he is only in third grade. I cringe and worry about what I do not know, what he may be thinking, and what could happen to him behind the scenes. Thanks to people like Gregg Olsen and others like The Bully Project – people will be exposed to this reality and hopefully we can help our children.
Let’s take this time to discuss the hot topic of bullying. Have you experienced it, have your children, or do you know someone else? Weigh in and let’s share ways that we can help each other as victims, parents, educators, and others that need to wake up and see the problem that is bullying in society today.
Disclosure: I received this book complimentary of Sterling Publishing in order to facilitate a review. No other compensation was given. The opinions expressed are my own and the fact that it stuck a nerve was just a nice bonus to talk about something else that has also been on my mind.
The Humidifier Saga
Monday, November 7th, 2011Our doctor has been telling us to us a cool mist humidifier with the boys to help them when they are sick. For years, we have tried humidifier after humidifier and they have never worked. Each time the doctor tells is, we have to remind him that we are THE ones that are the joke of of the humidifier industry.
A while ago, my Aunt T needed to downsize a humidifier to one that she would be able to refill on her own. She knew that we were having issues and gave it to us. We had never set it up until Sunday. When I got back home, the little guy was miserable. So TechyDad hauled out the humidifier and tested it out in our bathroom. Check out what happened.
Why yes, it actually works. Not only is cool mist coming out of the humidifier, but the water level goes down after a short amount of time. So now with any luck, we can set this up with the boys for tonight to help the little guy who is so stuffed up. For now, JSL is intrigued with the “smoke” that is coming out of the machine.
Do you have a cool mist humidifier? I would love to know what you have that works. We may purchase another for use in a different room.
The Great Veggie Dilemma
Friday, November 4th, 2011Confession time. I have one child that is a fantastic eater. NHL is eight and has almost always been good about eating fruits, vegetables, and other nutritious items. Sure, there was a small point in his toddler life that he refused a few things here and there. When he was little, he would order broccoli and mushrooms on a pizza as toppings. Yes, he would request broccoli as a side dish.
Enter JSL, a four year old picky eater at best. Daily battles over what he can eat and what he will not eat happen. Where NHL will give things a “no thank you” try and usually like it, JSL will go on a hunger strike. His preferences will change from day to day, so TechyDad and I never know what preferences we will face. Chicken nuggets that he devours one day, may be tossed to the side three days later. We simply never know. We are able to get him to eat other protein sources. Nutritional drink supplements, cheese, PB, and sometimes Greek yogurt if we stand on our head.
Where we get to a stumbling block are fruits and veggies. JSL will not eat grapes, strawberries, or most other items. While cherry picking, he ate some in the orchard, but declared they were gross afterward. Apples are hit and miss, as are bananas. About the only way he loves fruits are in a smoothie. We can do that from time to time, but they are not as easy to do on the fly.
Vegetables rarely pass by JSL’s mouth in a whole or recognizable form. SERIOUSLY! He used to eat cucumbers and possibly some other items if we could bribe him. Not any more. We have attempted those recipes where you hide items in them, but they are quite time consuming thanks to making vegetable purees. Oh and most of the time he would not touch them anyway.
While out shopping the other day, I needed some pasta. I usually purchase whole grain pasta since it is the healthier option. Something caught NHL’s eye. He saw the colored vegetable pasta from Barilla. I told him to pick one out. He selected the Piccolini that has zucchini and spinach.
The other night, we made that with the Ronzoni Garden Delight we already had in the house. Both have a full serving of vegetables in each portion. What did the picky eater think? That photo above is JSL devouring the pasta. It may not be a solution, but it is a good alternative to have when we are going to serve the kids pasta.
So my question to you this week:
What food items do you battle with your children over or did you refuse to eat when you were a child?
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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.
Aloha #176
The Importance of Pixie Dust Moments
Friday, October 28th, 2011There are days when everything just seems to blur together. Life as an adult can be overwhelming at best at times. There are so many things going on with everyone in the house. Add in other drama and it can make you wonder when the ride is going to stop for you to get off. These are the moments where I feel like I am the White Rabbit, constantly late for a very important date or something else in life.
Of course, there are also the times that I remember how much we have and are lucky not to have to deal with. When I get like this, I have my family, friends, and others in my world to toss a little Pixie Dust my way. 
They remind me that it is okay to vent, whine, and groan – however, I have to keep on moving and remember that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Some days, this may be harder to remember than others, but it has to be done. Something that helps me is to look back at our magical moments from trip to Walt Disney World. Recalling the laughter, smiles, fun times, and everything else makes these not so pleasant items vanish for at least a short time to let me wish upon a star.
So my question to you this week:
What do your “Pixie Dust Moments” looks like and how do they help you to push through.
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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.
Aloha #175
Nightmares of the Preschooler Kind
Thursday, October 27th, 2011The boys go to bed at about 8:00 most evenings. Typically, they sleep through the night really well. Sometimes, one will get up to use the bathroom and then go back to sleep until 6:30 or 7:00 if we are lucky. Watching the boys sleep peacefully is a wonderful thing. This means no stuffed noses, coughing, nightmares, or anything else traumatic. Here is an example of just this. JSL sleeping nicely on his Pillow Pet Puppy.
Unfortunately, sleeping around here has not been going well for most of us. The little guy has been up at least two times a night the last 4-5 days. He is usually in a panic and wants someone near him. TechyDad has tried to settle him back to sleep in his toddler bed, but that does not usually work well. If JSL settles, he will start to whimper soon after. Needless to say, we allow him to join us in our queen sized bed. Two adults and a 4 year old is a bit much for this space.
So what does a four year old have bad dreams about? These are some of the items JSL has mentioned:
- The Roku remote was lost for ever.
- His stuffed Tigger came alive and someone made it dead (his words)
- Mommy and Daddy threw away all of his toys.
The lack of sleep is starting to take it’s toll on the adults in the house. Caffeine can only do so much for broken and low sleep amounts.
Have your children had nightmares? How do you help them to settle back to sleep and ease their fears? What types of things have your children had bad dreams about? Please let us know. Sure we have an eight year old, but it’s been a long time since we had nightmares like this with a little kiddo.
