January, 2010 | The Angel Forever

Monthly Archives January 2010

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Chocolatey goodness from Israel

Posted on January 11, 2010 8:52 pm by TheAngelForever

One of my friends from a Mommy group lives in Israel. Not too long ago, she asked if I wanted to do a goody swap. There were a few items that she longed for from the States. In exchange, she would send some items that are special in Israel for my family to enjoy.

Wednesday afternoon, as I pulled into the driveway I noticed there was a package on our front steps. As I got closer, I could tell what it was. Check out the cool box:

NHL assumed that the box was just for me. He gets grumpy when Mommy gets packages in the mail and he does not. I quickly told him that this was for the entire family. He asked what was inside. I told him he would have to wait. Once the boys had taken off their winter gear, they chased me into the kitchen to open the box. This is what was inside:

These were all new to me and looked really interesting. So what are they? In back (left to right): White & Milk Chocolate Coated Cookie Crisps, White & Milk Chocolate Coated Biscuit Snacks, Crunchy Stars with Whole Cereal Coated Milk Chocolate, and Nougat Filled Crunchy Cereals Coated with Milk Chocolate. In front are chocolate gelt/coins.

This evening, we decided to open everything up for the boys to try (and us to sample as well). Here are their reactions:

As you can see, the boys loved everything. We were nice and allowed them to try a few pieces from each of the varieties. Now, I am on a mission. I need to find the new bags of Tootie Rolls that are marked kosher (they were set to ship Dec 2 to stores). Have been to many stores and still not there, so perhaps they were not shipped to stores just yet. If anyone has seen them in the States, please let me know.

Thanks to my friend for everything. I promise I will hunt down the goodies for you or figure out something else that you would like.

Categories:
bloggy friends food glorious food friends fun jsl nhl photos yummy

Focus on Family Fiber (Review/Giveaway)

Posted on January 10, 2010 8:52 pm by TheAngelForever

Raise your hand if you have enough fiber in your diet. . . . do you?

I think TechyDad and I can safely say that we do really well with this. Thanks to previous weight loss regimens, we know how important fiber rich foods are daily. Not only are they good for your digestive system, but they also keep you feeling full long. Sadly, there are days that I know the boys do not get enough fiber. Sure we buy whole wheat/grain breads that have a lot of fiber in them, but that is just not enough for the kids.

My six year old will eat veggies that get him a little bit closer to the correct amount of fiber on some days. JSL is a very stubborn two year old. If it is green, or looks like a vegetable, chances are he will not touch it or let it pass his lips. It is a constant battle that has caused us to get creative with meals. TechyDad has done a series on his blog about some of the items we have tried (Cooking with TechyDad Sneaky Weeky).

The little guy definitely suffers at times from the lack of fiber in his diet. Let’s just say he can get plugged up and he is not a happy camper when this happens. About a year ago, my mother saw a product in a magazine and asked me if I should look for it to help JSL. It was Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies. I searched and finally found them at our local Target. We bought them and when I knew JSL needed them he would get a penguin and they would work their magic on what ailed him.

We also packed them with us when we went to Disney World in May. We have noticed that JSL does not like to do his "business" of sorts when we travel. Going away for a week, we knew he would be a miserable mess after a few days. We packed our Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies and they kept JSL regular and smiling the entire trip.

Recently, I was contacted by one of my PR contacts and asked if I would have my boys try the Fiber Gummies. I told her that we already used them and had been meaning to blog about how they helped our family. I was sent a complimentary bottle of them and told I could also run a giveaway for my readers.

Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies facts:

Introduced in 2009, Pedia-Lax® Fiber Gummies, are a daily fiber supplement made for kids by Fleet. These days, many kids lack the proper amount of fiber in their diets. Today’s guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends 25 grams of fiber per day for four year old children. Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies are a daily supplement to help kids ages 2-11 maintain better digestive health and stay regular. The penguin-shaped Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies are sugar-free, calorie free, gluten-free and made with natural fruit flavors. A recommended serving is three gummies every day. The following chart shows what this supplement would be equivalent to:

Suggested retail price is $7.99 for a bottle of 60 gummies; available at Target and Walgreens, also online and other supermarkets and retailers nationwide.

Our thoughts:

Both of the boys love the Fiber Gummies. My 6 year old is actually jealous that his little brother gets them more often. JSL has learned to ask for them if he has a difficult time doing his business. As stated above, we have been using them for almost a year already and have had great success using them to help little digestive system.

As a parent, I love that the Fiber Gummies are sugar free and approved by dentists. I know that while broccoli and other fiber rich foods are best, that I have a safe alternative to help my boys get the needed fiber in their diets.

Giveaway:

Thanks to Fleet, one lucky reader will be able to win a bottle of their own Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies. This is perfect time for this giveaway since January is National Fiber Focus Month.

Rules for Giveaway:

MAIN RULE – Answer the following questions: What fiber rich food does your child like? What fiber rich food is a no-go with your child?
1 Bonus Entry – Head over to the Pedia-Lax website and tell me something that you learned/liked while visiting.
1 Bonus Entry – Tweet about the giveaway on Twitter. Be sure to include @TheAngelForever and Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies Giveaway in the Tweet. Please leave a direct link to your Tweet in a separate comment for each daily entry. Example Tweet (feel free to use): Focus on Family Fiber in January and get a chance to win a bottle of Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies from @TheAngelForever http://bit.ly/6dP35b
1 Bonus Entry – Subscribe to my RSS feed (or let me know if you already are) in a separate comment.
1 Bonus Entry – Leave a comment on any of my non-giveaway posts from the month of December/January. Be sure to leave a comment here to let me know which one. This Bonus entry may be done only twice per person.
3 Bonus Entries – Write a post on your blog linking to my blog about the Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies giveaway. Be sure to leave 3 comments about this to get credit for all of your extra entries

To enter, please follow the rules above within the comment section. Contest starts today, January 10th, and ends at 10:59 EST on January 18, 2010. You do not have to be a blogger to enter, but must leave a valid e-mail address for me to contact you for mailing address once the giveaway is over. I will select the winner using random.org and contact you via e-mail. You will have 48 hours to claim the prize. If there is no response, another winner will be selected. Open to U.S. residents only.

Disclosure: I received a package of Pedia-Lax Fiber Gummies complimentary of Fleet to facilitate this review. As previously mentioned, we had already purchased many on our own prior to this review. No other compensations was given. The opinions expressed in the review are my own feelings about the product that our family tried/uses.

Categories:
health awareness jsl looking back nhl Product review

Disney on the brain

Posted on January 9, 2010 11:09 pm by TheAngelForever

If you have been following my blog long enough, you probably know that I am a HUGE fan of Walt Disney World. I have been there so many times over my life that I can not keep track. (Mom and Dad were not too helpful either.) I actually opted to take a family vacation to Disney World last May in lieu of going to BlogHer ’09 in Chicago. The deals were just too good to be true and the timing was right for us.

I sat and watched as BlogHer ’09 came and went. Then, everyone was talking about TypeAMom while I sat at home. This week, I heard rumbles about a Social Media Mom Celebration that was going to take place at Walt Disney World.

HELLO!!!! Could anything be more perfect for me as a first time conference? I think not! For more information, please head over to the fabulous post on 5 Minutes for Mom.

TechyDad and I talked about it as I waited for my invitation to arrive. Thursday afternoon it came. Without looking back, I booked the event. That night, we decided to extend our stay at Disney. Why not, right? We’re already paying for the airfare and who knows when we may get another chance to spend time in Orlando. By Thursday evening, I had plane tickets for all four of us and we were trying to get quotes on hotel/tickets/dining for the rest of the week. Friday, the little guy and I went to a travel agent and I put in a call for quotes from AAA. This morning, TechyDad and I tried out the new (for us anyway) online Disney advanced dining reservation system. Even with short notice, we were able to get some very nice Table Service meals. One favorite from our trip in May and a few new places for dinner and character breakfasts. Once those were made, we went back and booked the rest of the lodging/dining/park admission. In 24 hours the hotel booked up the standard room, so we had to go premium. Not thrilled about that, but we love Pop Century.

As I sit here sipping some decaf coffee, I am in disbelief. This is so unlike us to plan and go someplace so quickly. Still, as you will read on the 5 Minutes for Mom website, it was too good to pass up. TechyDad and I are looking forward not only to Disney World, but also meeting in person so many people that we have "met" online over the last 3 years. Another interesting item to note, my 3 year Blogoversary is days before we leave for this trip. Hmmm. . . perhaps that is what I should say I’m celebrating while visiting.

Now I am going to relax for a few days as more details come in about the #DisneySMMoms event. Then I will try to figure out what we need to pack for the trip. I have been to Disney a lot, but have never been in February before. This is all new to me. So in advance, I apologize if Disney is on my brain a little too much, but well I’m a kid at heart and can not wait!

P.S. Is it bad that I never finished blogging about our trip in May? Guess I may have to finish some of that up, especially JSL’s actual 2nd B-day while we were there.

Disclosure: Our family was provided with a discounted price for the days of the actual event. The additional days for our surprise Disney vacation were purchased at our own cost since we are long time Disney fans. All opinions about this event are my own and are not influenced by monetary compensation.

Categories:
Disney fun TechyDad travel vacation web fun

Lost in the movie world

Posted on January 8, 2010 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Since NHL (6) was born, I can probably count the number of movies that I have seen in the theater on one hand. The last was Twilight for a girls day out with a friend. We saw this quite a bit after the release. Prior to that, I think we saw a movie before JSL (2) was born with my brother and his wife. The one before that was NHL’s first time in a theater. We saw Happy Feet with lots of extended family over Christmas break while out of town.

Seriously sad isn’t it?

Although I like going to the movies, the cost is not worth it to me. I like being in the comfort of my own home, being able to stop the movie when I need to use the facilities and tossing the kids into bed if they fall asleep. We recently won a Roku Box and decided to get Netflix with it. Thanks to this we have movies on demand and can have a few DVDs at home.

My problem: I can’t remember all of the movies that I wanted to see when they were in the theaters and are now on DVD. I should have made lists, but I never did. Right now I have Julie & Julia, along with Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to watch. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs is next on our Queue and after that a bunch of things for TechyDad, the boys and some television shows.

So my question to you this week:

What movies have you seen lately that you would suggest we add to our Netflix queue?

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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 MckLinky there if you are participating.

Aloha #81

Categories:
Aloha Friday Movies

Trapped by the winter

Posted on January 7, 2010 10:46 am by TheAngelForever

Winter is here and there are days that I just feel trapped. Not only trapped in my house, but in my own skin. I can not simply pack up the little guy and head out to the park to enjoy some sunshine. For several months, the sky is gray and we hardly see the sun or any hints that it exists.

Bundling up to head out into the extreme conditions often does not feel like it is worth it. Instead, we stay in the warmer house and try to keep busy. I know that one of the things that will help me to feel better is to exercise. I think I am tired and feeling sluggish from lack of activity. My pedometer is back on and I see the lack of steps in my winter life. The reality is there. . . once again I need to Move it, Move it! It has less to do with helping in the weight loss department, and more for making ME feel better.

I need to stop worrying about my post H1N1asthma/lungs and kick it into high gear. I need to get back to where I was before we went to Disney World. I want to get sick of hearing Leslie Sansone and tune her out while walking and kicking 25+ miles a week. I need to find all of the EA Sports Active parts and moan/groan about how it hides squats and lunges into every nook and cranny of the work out. I need to walk/run in place while watching things on the DVR while wishing I had a treadmill or elliptical machine.

I want to stop feeling like this (a special thanks to my 2 year old model):

I think if I get my rear in gear I will be more motivated to count my points and stick to my healthy living. If I don’t feel like sludge moving in slow motion perhaps my attitude will change. I know I need to do this for ME.

Excuse me while I go and find my workout clothes and dust off my Leslie Sansone Walk at Home DVDs – Mama needs a work out pronto!