The Magic House St. Louis Childrens Museum Review

While we were in St. Louis, we had the opportunity to visit The Magic House which is St. Louis Children’s Museum. This was definitely Noah’s favorite thing we did. The Magic House is an amazing place. The whole building is full of hands on activities for kids to do. There were so many things to do. We didn’t get to do them all but we had a lot of fun. Everything was educational. I am a strong believer that children learn through play and using their imagination vs. sitting down and learning from hearing someone talk. It was really neat to see all the children learning without realizing it. We were lucky too because the staff was dressed up for Halloween and Noah was able to Trick or Treat some right in The Magic House.





We really enjoyed working on the car and changing the tires. We also loved fishing in the pond. There was a grocery store that looked like the real thing. Noah and I enjoyed pretending to shop and playing cashier. Another great thing about The Magic House is that you can just let your child roam free and you can just sit back and watch them explore. There aren’t lines you have to wait in. It is a really different environment than the other things we did. There were different rooms and just was really fun. Noah played with Legos for about a half hour with older kids. I love watching Noah interact with others. He has great ideas and is not really shy around other kids. He went up to them and asked to play with them. He was polite and shared well.



We loved the giant water table too. Although Noah had wet pants after that, next time we should do the water table last. He didn’t mind though. He had so much fun playing with the ducks and boats and just splashing around. There were water wheels too. I had to remind Noah to walk carefully in the room with the water table because the floor was wet wet wet. He kept going back to the fishing pond and fishing. He was so proud to catch fish. I was exploring a little too. I had my mom keep an eye on Noah and I went in the bubble room. I saw on the website you can be inside a bubble. I didn’t try to do that because there were kids trying to do it. I did try the other bubble activities. My only complaint was they needed to refill the bubble solution for each of the bubble activities. I was able to make some cool bubble shapes though.



When we were ready to go Noah didn’t want to leave, he wanted to stay there. I think he wanted to move in. I was thinking the whole time that they need to build one of these where we live. We have a children’s museum but it doesn’t compare to The Magic House. I also was a little bummed that we don’t live closer. I could see myself taking Noah to The Magic House on the weekends. I stopped by the gift shop and they have all kinds of cool toys. I found a few little things for Noah and a Magic House T-shirt. We waved good bye to The Magic House and talked about coming back again soon.

Thank you to The St. Louis CVC for sponsoring my family’s trip to St. Louis including tickets to The Magic House. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Headless Horseman at Conner Prairie Review

The day before Halloween, I had the opportunity to do something I had done many times before when I was younger. It was always my favorite thing to do around Halloween. I went to Conner Prairie to see The Headless Horseman. I used to go to The Headless Horseman when I was in Girl Scouts. I don’t remember how many times I have gone. I am so excited I got to go again tonight. It has been a long time since I have been to see The Headless Horseman ride. This is the 27th year that the Headless Horseman has been riding through Conner Prairie. They have more than just the Headless Horseman, they also have an Apple Store with fresh goodies, stories, and other events. I have faint memories of going when I was in Girl Scouts. I know we definitely went but I don’t really remember all the particulars.

I do remember coming back with my Girl Scout Troop and us “seeing” a headless man driving a car. I am certain now that he was not headless but you know he could have been The Headless Horseman’s victim that October night. I was so scared that night. Honestly when I was little I always covered my face when the Horseman made his ride. We go out on a hayride and all the sudden out of the darkness The Headless Horseman comes out to ride. It is not a mechanical thing. It is a real horse and a real Hessian that goes and collects the heads of bad boys and girls. OK, maybe not but you get what I am saying.

There were a ton of people at the Headless Horseman. I got there at 6 pm and there were really long lines. I managed to get an early hayride. The first thing I did what take a picture of the “hot air” balloon for Noah. He has seen it in the air so many times I thought he would love a few pictures of it, up close and personal. I am hoping next summer he is big enough to fly in it. So, it wasn’t dark at all when I went. That was kind of a bummer but at the same time I wanted to get home early enough for Noah. It was cool to be back in Prairietown after such a long absence. It looked the same as I remembered.

The hayride was eerie even though it was light out. It was fun to read all the signs, see the animals and just kind of relax. The Headless Horseman came and tried to take my head but was unsuccessful. I think that if you go to the Headless Horseman you should do a hayride after dark. On the other hand I wasn’t scared after the fact and probably would have been. There were children on my hayride and they were scared. It was a little annoying that kids that rode the night before would ruin it for everyone else. So, tell your kids not to ruin it and not tell others what is going to happen. It was fun and exciting. I also wasn't allowed to take any pictures or video even though the flash was off. I wanted to record the hayride but I wasn't able. I thought it would of been cool to show you first hand. That is part of the reason I wasn't bummed that it was still totally light out.

After I picked all the hay off of me, I went to visit the Mystic. I noticed her before I went on my hayride. The line was long when I got on the hayride and even longer when I got out. I spent at least a half hour in line. I love the Mystic. She is a cute little old lady. She was really nice. I was curious as to what my palm said. She said that I have a really long life line so I will live a long life, I have two profession lines, which is rare. I could be doing two things. I am doing one now but I could do the other and be successful too. She said that I will travel somewhere warm soon. She asked me to send her a postcard. You all know how much I love to travel. She told me I am waiting for “Tall, dark and handsome” which I am. It was all in fun and I am glad I took the time to meet with her.

They also had storytelling, The Disney Movie Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Scary-a-oke, a glow tent and other fun activities for kids. Next year I am bringing Noah with me. We will have fun. I also visited the Apple Store. I loved going to the Apple Store when I was younger. I ended up getting a cut apple with hot caramel on it in a bowl. It was very good. As I was leaving, I could hear the church bell and the wind howling in Prairietown. I could also hear people screaming.

Thanks to Conner Prairie Interactive History Park for inviting me to the Headless Horseman. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

No, I Will NOT Be Facebook Friends with You!

I have been thinking about high school or school in general. It has been 10 years since I was in school and really, not sure how it came up in my head but it just did. There are some pretty random thoughts in my head sometimes so why not blog about them. Two different things came to mind. The first one has to do with Facebook. It seems like almost everyone is on Facebook now. I like it, it is a great way to talk to family that I would normally not talk to. Not, because I don’t like them but because it is so easy to do on Facebook. I am sure I am not the first or the last to think about this but why do people add other people just because they went to school with them or they “knew” them in school. I can totally understand if it is like an old friend you lost contact with. That makes sense. I find it weird that people add people that they weren’t friends with or worse, people they never got a long with. That they hated for some stupid reason. I am all for putting the past behind me and not holding a grudge but really? I don’t really see the point. It definitely seems pretty hinky to me.

I don’t sit up late at night and wonder why so and so didn’t like me, but on the other hand I don’t search them out and friend them on Facebook, in hopes of some magical reunion to work out “our differences” from over 10 years ago. I guess if those people want to be “friends” with someone on Facebook more power to them. For example there is this girl I went to school with I will call her Bobby Sue for privacy reasons who added me as a friend on Facebook. I didn’t accept her request, for a few reasons. One being we were never friends and I couldn’t stand her. Now she just makes my skin crawl and I have no interest what so ever having anything to do with her. She makes my skin crawl because she worked at a brothel for a few years. I don’t want someone like that around my family or in my life. I have no desire to be “Facebook Friends” with someone I didn’t really talk to or wasn’t really friends with. I would much rather put it in my past and not deal with that person again. I totally understand that people change and all that but why even open up that potential Pandora’s Box?

It also leads to talking about being in school again and inquiring about or gossiping about other people. Things I rather not do with someone I wasn’t friends with in the first place. See, no matter how much you think someone has changed or how hard they convince you that catty high school girl comes back out. Of course I don’t mean everyone but more often than not it does. I am not sure if it is because you stir up old memories or feelings about then or what, but it happens. I’ll pass on being involved in all of that. I am not trying to sound like a cynic and I am sure some differences and new found friendships have blossomed on Facebook, it is just not for me.

Do you have any insights in to this? I look forward to hearing from my readers.

Show Me St. Louis!

Recently, my family had the opportunity to visit St. Louis. I feel so lucky that the St. Louis CVC picked my family to take such a wonderful trip. I am so excited to share all about my trip with you guys. I spent quite a bit of time planning my trip using the Explore St. Louis website. I picked out where we wanted to eat and what activities we wanted to do. I wanted to do so much stuff. I wanted to take in the full experience of St. Louis during our trip. If I were to write it all in one post it would be so incredibly long so I will have to break it up in to multiple posts because I have so much to tell you.

I want to start off by telling you some information about the St. Louis CVC. They are the go to ultimate resource to use when you are planning a trip to St. Louis or even if you live there and are looking for new places to visit or restaurants to try out. The website was extremely helpful when I was planning the meals and activities for our trip. There was so much information. I felt like I could get a feel of the places by the descriptions. There are so many different kinds of restaurants in St. Louis. There is definitely something for everyone. I think anyone’s palette could be satisfied in St. Louis. If you only like one kind of food they have many different restaurants to eat at. I think the hardest part of planning my trip was figuring out exactly where we wanted to eat. There were tons of restaurants that sounded so good. I even asked the rep I worked with about some suggestions as to where we should go because she lives there. I figured why not ask a local person. Her suggestions were spot on delicious. As most of you know I love to eat. I am so glad to report that my tummy was very happy every day of our trip.

There is a whole section of things to do on the website. There is a lot of information about each activity and you can really get a feel of if it is something you would like to do. We had so much fun at all the places we visited. They were all so different and Noah loved doing each one. We looked forward to each thing with huge smiles on our faces. Definitely something to help decide what you would love to see while you are visiting. St. Louis is one of those cities that there is so much to do that you wouldn’t possibly know about everything without some help. You could live there for years and not know about all the awesome things to see.

When you go on a trip for business or pleasure you have to stay somewhere. There are so many hotels to choose from and the St. Louis CVC website has information about all the hotels in St. Louis and they include links to the hotels website so you can look at pictures and the amenities. I personally think that it is good to look at pictures of where you are staying before you go. You don’t want to end up at The Bates Motel do you? I love that there are ratings of the hotels. If you are a hotel snob like me who will only stay at a nice hotel it is important. Another cool feature is you can click book a room from the St. Louis CVC website so it makes finding out where to book your room easy. That would be great in a hurry.

There will be more posts about my trip to St. Louis. If you are planning a trip to St. Louis you should check out Explore St. Louis to make the most out of your trip. Stay tuned for more about our adventures in St. Louis.

This trip was sponsored by the St. Louis CVC for my family to come visit St. Louis, my thoughts and opinions are my own.

Halloween with Hershey's Review!

I can’t believe that it’s almost time for Halloween. We got our pumpkins yesterday and we are getting excited about trick or treating. Noah keeps talking about going trick or treating and dressing up. He is definitely like his momma and loves candy. I do limit his candy consumption though. The best part of Halloween to me is the candy. I don’t care for scary movies and that is one of the things I dread when it comes to Halloween time is that there are scary movies on. I am the biggest wimp when it comes to scary stuff. I used to get so excited when I would go Trick or Treating, hello free candy! Any child’s dream come true right?

I had the opportunity to try out some of Hershey’s Halloween candies. They have a few new mixes out there. I think that the success of a good trick or treat bowl is the mix of candy you have and none of those little orange and black wrapped peanut butter things. I was lucky enough to receive the mix of Kit-Kats, York Peppermint Patties, Whoppers and Mr. Goodbars. I think that is a great assortment because I love York Peppermint Patties, I have claimed those for my own.

Noah has been enjoying the Kit Kats. He has actually been sneaking them. He can’t open them too well so he asks me to and gets busted. Kit Kats remind me of my Grandpa Jim because that was his favorite candy. We would bring him one when we would walk to the store. I really like Kit Kats too and I have had one or two. My mom loves Mr. Goodbars which I will share with her. I love Whoppers too. Yes I am a candy junkie. I always have been. I also received some Hershey’s Cookies n Crème bars those look good too. I love that these are all fun sized. It helps when you are a parent and are trying to limit your child’s candy intake or just want a little snack.

Here are all of the new varieties you can get:
• NEW – Twizzlers Assortment 120 Snack Size Pieces (Mini Bars Candy Strawberry, Pull n’ Peel Candy Wildberry and Pull n’ Peel Candy Green Apple)
• NEW – Hershey’s Cookies ‘N’ Crème Jumbo Bag Snack Size Treats
• NEW – Hershey’s Chocolate Assortment with 100 Snack Size Pieces (Kit Kat Crisp Wafers, York Peppermint Patties, Hershey’s Mr. Goodbar Candy Bars, Reese’s Pieces Candy, Hershey’s Chocolate Lollipops, Milk Duds Candy, Jolly Rancher Doubles Candy and Whoppers Malted Milk Balls)
• NEW – Hershey’s Candy Assortment with 100 Snack Size Packages (Reese’s Pieces Candy, Whoppers Malted Milk Balls, Milk Duds Candy and Jolly Rancher Lollipops)



My favorite Halloween candy is Reese’s pumpkins hands down. You don’t normally get those from trick or treating although I wish we did. I buy some of those every year. I love any of the Reese’s holiday shaped candy. They have so much more peanut butter in them it just makes them so good. Maybe it is because you can only get them at certain times of the year but that is top on my Halloween candy list.

So, as you are preparing your little goblins for Halloween in between your carving pumpkins, buying costumes, and making Halloween treats. Don’t forget to pick up some Hershey’s Candy for your trick or treat bowl at your local store and some extra for you. You know, so you don't run out. It just might make your house the most spookatacular house in the neighborhood.

You can also check out a bunch of cool ideas to enhance your Halloween at the Hershey’s Celebrates Website. There you can find more information on Hershey’s Halloween products, as well as costume ideas, spooky screensavers, desktop wallpapers, delicious recipes, craft activities and party invitations.

Thank you to Hershey’s who sent me some complimentary Halloween Candy to try out and review.

Help #beatcancer Today.

My really good friend Victoria, sent me this email last night.
Today at 9am PST the official #beatcancer race for a new record begins at Blog World Expo.


Last year, a Guinness World Record was set by Everywhere,
out of Atlanta, Georgia (raising more than $70,000) for the “Most
...Widespread Social Network Message” with #beatcancer. In 24 hours the
one-word phrase #beatcancer set the record contributing to the 209,771 unique mentions on Twitter, Facebook and blog posts.


To participate, all you need to do is add the hashtag #beatcancer
(all one word) to any tweet, Facebook status update or blog post.
There will be a donation made of ($0.05)* per
mention of #beatcancer on Twitter, Facebook, or blog post during the 24
hour Guinness World Record attempt. All money will be donated to the
designated cancer serving non-profits, LIVESTRONG Foundation, Bright Pink and Stand Up To Cancer. (full details - http://pitch.pe/94888)


Can we beat the WORLD RECORD this year?
I think we can! Let's get to tweeting!

Today is Victoria's birthday so lets all do this!

This is in memory of my Uncle Jim and Uncle Jorge who lost their battle to cancer and were taken from us too soon.

Local News Shows Commercial for Adult store during 5 pm News

Today, started out like any other normal day. I was watching the news at 5 pm on RTV6, cause that is the same channel Judge Judy is on. I noticed a commercial, I think it was the music or something but I was watching it and I was appalled at what I saw. It was a commercial with a man and a woman wearing lingerie, I am not talking some little nightie, like a baby doll, but trashy lingerie, almost see through. It was disgusting. The man and woman were all over each other too. At first I as thought it was like a cable glitch or something, til I saw that it was really a commercial!

It was like Sugar and Spice and Everything nice. It was an ad for an adult sex store. Yes, your eyes are not playing tricks on you. That’s really what it is. Really? Really? It’s just after 5 pm. This is a local station, not cable, during the news none the less. How many times have you watched the news with your children in the room? Maybe while you were cooking dinner? Yeah probably all the time, like me, I like to know what’s going on in the world besides where Dora is going to that day or what kind of math Team Umi Zoomi is going to use to help the kids in Umi City.

I am very protective of what my four year watches. I keep the filth of the world away from my son’s eyes. You know there is a ton of it on TV. I really am upset that RTV6 would accept advertising for the adult store and show it when 99% of kids are awake when their parents watch the news at 5 pm. Ok maybe 11 pm news would be ok….not that I want to see that, but seriously. It would be more likely that a ton of kids wouldn’t see it. Think about it, We all watch the news, we don’t put our kids in another room to do so. It is really disgusting that they have to be exposed to that trash. Seriously it was bordering on soft core porn. Isn’t there some kind of law against this? Something to do with the FCC I believe. I think RTV6 should be ashamed of themselves for exposing our children to lewd and sexual commercials.

Thankfully, my son wasn’t in the room at the time. If he would have been I would be on the phone with the station, giving them a piece of my mind. I am sure thousands of kids saw that commercial. There are only 3 news stations. They have things like Call 6 for Help. Who am I gonna call when they show SMUT? Their slogan is On your side…. More like on your side to morally corrupt your children.

Ho, ho, ho – Fine Christmas Co-co-coa !

Hotel Chocolat is an excellent place to look for chocolate Christmas gifts with a wide selection of different choices across a large price range, from stocking fillers to luxury chocolate hampers. Hotel Chocolat is a British company who grow their own fine cocoa at their Caribbean cocoa estate on the island of St Lucia, and work with farmers throughout the world through their ‘Engaged Ethics’ to enhance the livelihoods of cocoa farmers whose products they use.

Hotel Chocolat makes chocolate from the finest and most wholesome ingredients, and is truly fanatical about using chocolate in all manner of unusual ways. The website has stacks of information that will fascinate the chocoholic; with gourmet cuisine recipes and a wealth of detail for the chocolate connoisseur on how different kinds of chocolate are made.

This seasons advent calendar collection includes the ‘Children’s Advent’ with three cut-out tree decorations, a ‘Teens and Over Advent’, the ‘Ultimate Advent’ in milk or dark, and the ‘Truffles to Share Advent’ with two truffles behind each door. Behind each window of the Ultimate Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar is different velvety 40% milk or 50% milk chocolate seasonal character, covered in nibbly cocoa nibs. The problem with having all this delicious chocolate hidden away is resisting the temptation to skip a few days ahead!

The 2010 Christmas gift range includes stocking fillers with some luxury chocolate selections, crackers and advent calendars. Stocking fillers include ‘Solid Festive Wreaths’- in fruit, nut, and caramel, mini ‘Christmas Dinners’ in chocolate cast shapes, and chocolate ‘Enrobed Fruit’. For children, ‘Milk Chocolate Jolly Santa’ is a merry, munchable Santa cast in mellow 40% milk chocolate, or choose a ‘White Chocolate Best Dressed Snowman’, snappily dressed in a winter berry chocolate scarf.

For a serious chocolate lover, the ‘Christmas Pamper Hamper’ is an excellent gift, with a Christmas Wreath and Yule log to slice and share, amongst eleven other luxury items including Purist range chocolates, including cooking ingredients and festive drinking chocolate.

Hotel Chocolat has an excellent selection of gifts at a variety of different prices so you should find something for anyone you’d like to spoil this Christmas. The advent calendars are especially indulgent and perfect for the exciting run up to Christmas, but remember – only one per day!

This is a guest post provided by Hotel Chocolat.

Why WE TV Why?

Why oh why We TV, why did you take The Cupcake Girls off the air? It makes me so sad, after I wrote a post about the show. I think I should stop talking about tv on my blog because it disappears shortly after. WE please bring back the show. It was my favorite part of Saturday night. Now I am very upset because it is gone. Your replacement, the Golden Girls, really, do you really need to put that show on at more time slots. I swear The Golden Girls are on so many networks, so many times a day. It’s a good show but not as good as The Cupcake Girls. Cupcakes are better than four old ladies from the 80’s. Betty White is probably bathing in money as often as the show is shown.

Seriously WE I am really upset, The Cupcake Girls is actually a great reality show, it’s not full of trash like all the other ones are. It is the best cake or cupcake show because it is real. It’s not competition; it brings joy to this cupcake lover. Please I am asking you to bring it back. I will make you cupcakes myself if you bring it back. It is so much better than those wedding shows that no one but a bride watches. OK they get married and stop watching. I can’t believe you took a great show and totally stopped showing it. It is the best show on WE TV and it makes me so upset I could spit, and possibly enough to stop watching WE all together.

I thought I would share with my many readers about how great the show is and how much I love it. It is also very unique and not like the same CRAP redone that is on every other stinkin’ channel, like the cake shows, cupcake shows, competitions, and wedding shows. It was different, and unique and genuine. I felt like I was catching up with my old friends Lori and Heather when I watched The Cupcake Girls. I cried when they cried. I bawled when Lori found out she was pregnant and during her ultrasound and now I am left without The Cupcake Girls.

I probably won’t be watching WE anymore because this is not right. It’s not like the season ended. Sure I would get that but they stopped showing it before the season ended. WE isn’t producing the show so what the heck is the problem? I am not a happy mama or a happy blogger.

George Foreman Evolve Review

Everyone knows who George Foreman is. I knew about him from his grill before I knew he was a boxer. I have had a few George Foreman Grills in my life and they all ended up getting lost or I think even once stolen. I am not sure what happened to them all. After having to replace them a few times I never got around to getting a new one. So, when I had the opportunity to try out the George Foreman Evolve, I was really excited. I had only had the small ones before. Those were great , but I remember it would take some time to cook enough food for everyone on it.

The George Foreman Evolve is so much cooler than a normal George Foreman Grill because it has 12 different plates that do everything from make muffins and casseroles to waffles, besides of course grilling. I received 2 grill plates with hatch marks, a slider tray and a casserole dish with mine. You can buy the other plates separately. I could not wait to try it out. I decided I would make steak with a soy sauce marinated. It is fun to cook steak outside on the grill but it can be time consuming especially with a 4 year old little boy who is very curious. I also like to grill but I can’t in the winter, too much snow, I am glad to have the George Foreman Evolve Grill to be able to grill inside and make healthy options for my family. Not to mention it is a real time saver, now that the grilling area is so much bigger than a smaller George Foreman Grill.

After marinating the steaks in soy sauce for a couple hours, I put them on the George Foreman Evolve. Almost immediately, I could smell the steak cooking. I couldn’t wait for dinner to be done. I love how it cooks evenly and fast. When the steaks were done, I dug right in. My family really enjoyed how delicious the steaks were and I enjoyed how easy it was to make and use. If you know me very well, you know I hate doing dishes. I love to cook but I hate doing dishes. So, I love that the plates come completely out and you can just throw them in some hot soapy water and be done with it.

The George Foreman Evolve costs $129.99. For more information please visit the George Foreman website.

Thank you to George Foreman for sending me a complimentary George Foreman Evolve Grill to try out, and thank you to the Family Review Network for the opportunity.

Cheerios Ultimate Family Vacation

Sponsored By


Cheerios® is giving you the chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, your ultimate family vacation. As part of a paid promotion for their “Do What You Love” Sweepstakes, Cheerios® is sponsoring my post today about what my ultimate family vacation would be. Read mine, Enter the Sweepstakes for a chance to actually win your own fantasy family trip or one of a bunch of other great prizes.

My ultimate family vacation would be in Hawaii. Noah and I would invite all of my family, including my aunts and my uncle, all of my cousins and their families, my sister and brother in and my mom. We have always been a close knit family but with us all living in different parts of the country we don’t get to see each other as often as we would like. Growing up my cousins and I spent a lot of time together at my grandparents. I can’t remember when everyone was all together. There has always been someone unable to make it. It would just be an amazing family reunion on the beach.

We would go swimming in the ocean, dine on delicious foods, and just have some long needed family time. We would catch up with our lives and reminisce about when we were young. I think it would be great to have us all together again and not have a sad reason for us reuniting. I would try and convince all of the females to take hula lessons. I would love to see all the cousins’ kids playing together and building sand castles on the beach. I am sure we would fill the island with our laughter and love.

Don't forget to enter the “Do What You Love” Sweepstakes, for a chance to win your own ultimate family vacation. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

Pippi Longstocking Day

In a post I wrote about my friend Adrianna, I said that I would write a post about Pippi Longstocking Day. We were hanging out at her house. We had a picnic of Papa John’s Pizza and decided to eat it in the woods behind her house. Well we got lost in the woods and thought we would have to live in the woods because we didn’t think we would ever get out. Of course the wood was not that big and we managed to get out of the woods.

Later we decided to clean up the house because it was a mess. Well we decided to run the dishwasher at least. We loaded it up and put in the soap and thought we would go play basketball in her driveway. We shot hoops for a while and came back inside. We noticed that the floor was all wet and very soapy. It looked like something straight out of a sitcom. We figured out that you can’t put Dawn in the dishwasher. It said so on the label but who really reads the label? Not us apparently. Her parents were gone and we didn’t want to get in trouble. See, Adrianna’s parents are very nice but they are also very strict sometimes.

I decided to call the 1800 number and hope and pray for the best. Somehow we managed to get all the soap out of the dishwasher and then we were just left with the mess. The expensive dishwasher was fine. So, being the brilliant young women we are decided to steal a page out of Pippi Longstocking’s playbook and use sponges on our feet and “mop” up the mess. We also used many towels and it was quite comical and scary at the same time. The floor was very slippery and time was ticking away fast. We were also soaked. We were worried that they would come home and find out what happened. We were really worried that we wouldn’t be able to be friends anymore and that we would get in so much trouble. It took what seemed forever to get it all cleaned up. We changed our clothes, so there wasn’t any evidence. We didn’t speak a word of Pippi Longstocking Day to anyone.

I spent the night at Adrianna’s that night. It was a very stormy night, so we decided to sleep in the basement. We were watching TV and playing really late. Her house had a really sensitive security system and they of course had it on, so we had to make sure we didn’t slam doors, or make too much noise. That was nothing new though. As we were lying in bed watching TV at midnight, the doorbell rang. It scared us. Who shows up at someone’s house at midnight? Adrianna’s parents are very respectable and responsible adults so no one would just show up without calling. Someone checked but there was no one out there. That really freaked us out. We managed to be able to fall asleep after such a long and crazy day.

The next morning we woke up to sirens and flashing lights. We found out that a house couple doors down had been struck by lightning. The family had kids that Adrianna was friends with, so we played with them sometimes. It was really scary but thankfully no one was hurt. We found out that when the lightning struck the neighbors house the doorbell rang at Adrianna’s house and wait for it………

BROKE AND FRIED ADRIANNA’S FAMILY’S DISHWASHER.

The dishwasher we were so concerned about not breaking less than 24 hours before.

Craigslist Scams

I decided to make a scam series, this time I wanted to talk to you about Craigslist scams. I have never used Craigslist for buying or selling. Heck I won’t even use Freecycle even though I get emails for FOUR different locations. Call me cautious. I don’t really like the idea of contacting strangers and going to their home to pick up something. I know many people who have used craigslist for different things, but I have heard too many horror stories, including the craigslist rapist. I like to read craigslist when I am bored. It is kind of like how I used to read the Bargain ads in the paper. I just like to see what’s out there. I would probably never contact someone to actually buy something but I like to look. It’s just not for me and my family.
There are a lot of scams on craigslist especially with cars and even rental homes. If you do end up being a victim you can use  streamline refinance rates to refinance your home to find the lowest prices in your area .

Rule of thumb: If you have to ship a car from somewhere else rather or not you have to pay for shipping it is a scam.

Second Rule of thumb: If you can’t meet with the person in person and get the item or car or keys when you exchange money, it is a scam.

Third rule of thumb: Beware of Western Union, Money Orders, Moneygrams l etc. Heck if I were selling I wouldn’t take a check. I am a cash only type of gal.

I am sure craigslist is a great tool for those who use it, but please be careful in all transactions. If it sounds too good to be true, than it probably is.
Here are some more tips from Craigslist that is a must read if you want to use it. Protect yourself

Craigslist Scams

Email Scams

Lately I have noticed an increase in scams on the internet. There are a lot of scammers that contact you through email. Some of the time it is really obvious it is a scam like when they say you won some ridiculous amount from some kind of lottery. Sometimes I wish that it was real because I would be a multi-trillionaire because “I win” many times a day, every day. Then you have scams that you get through email that make you wonder if it is real. Before I had Noah I signed up for those babysitting and nanny websites. I have had a lot of experience with kids and worked in quite a few daycares and preschools. I went to meet some families and they were all too far away from where I was living and not worth the amount of money I made by the time you took out time and gas for travel there and back.

Of course I got the emails from people wanting me to relocate to like England or New York. I knew those were scams but, when I was pregnant with Noah I got an email. It was from a lady who was relocating to my city and was looking for a nanny. She named a website that I was a member of. I was really excited, it was after all really personalized and everything. I thought that I had a job. I started emailing her back and forth and she said some stuff that started not making sense, like she wanted to send me a check and I would buy her child some toys. I thought that was weird. I have always been taught if it sounds too good to be true than it probably was. I decided to google babysitting scams, the woman’s name etc. I mean her name wasn’t like an obvious scammers name. I finally figured out that my suspicions where true and it was a scam. I was lucky that I hadn’t given her any information accepted a check from her that would have been fake and some horrible tragedy happened and I would have to send money via western union. Some people are not as lucky as me and lose their savings or even end up on Judge Judy.

Scammers are getting more creative and smart. I mean I was reached out through a legitimate website that I was a member of. It wasn’t the first time I was contacted from that site that was looking for a babysitter. I urge you to use precaution when you respond to emails that sound too good be true. You might say you’d never fall for it, and I almost did.

Plastic Balloons

Have you ever played with plastic balloons? They come in little tubes and you put a little of the goop on a straw and blow it up? They also smell kind of funny. I used to love to play with them. I found some at the dollar store a while back and I of course had to buy them. I have great memories of being at my grandparents playing with plastic balloons. I decided I would play with them shortly after I bought them. I was talking to my friend Brandy when I was doing them being a complete dork. I decided I would hit one like a volley ball and I hit it in to my spinning ceiling fan. It was a stupid thing to do. I was really scared. I didn’t mean to hit it THAT hard. Thankfully it didn’t do anything but pop and stick to my ceiling fan. Oops.



Sometimes they get holes in them when you blow them up and you have to either fix the hole or put your finger over it then fix it. It’s easy to do you just pinch it. My favorite thing to do is pop them. I will introduce Noah to them when he gets quite a bit older, since they smell so bad and are kind of tricky. I want to share the memories with my son someday.

Do you remember plastic balloons? Did you play with them as a child?

Gerber Life College Plan

One of the things you have to start thinking about the moment you find out you are going to be a parent or when you find out you are having another child is paying for the child to college if that is something they want to do. I am not one of those parents that will demand that my child goes to college. I am pretty sure he will want to because even at 4 years old, he loves to learn. Many parents start saving for their children’s college education from birth. I wanted to share with you about the Gerber Life College Plan. Everyone knows about Gerber with the iconic Gerber Baby. I learned recently that they offer a college plan to help you save and pay for your child’s future education. It is an endowment life insurance policy. It is designed to help parents save a guaranteed amount of money for their children's college education expenses in a safe and secure way. I am sure a few of you are wondering what an endowment life insurance plan is, I didn’t know until I checked out the FAQ.

I think that this is a great gift to give your child or grandchild. It will help them in the future. You don’t have to worry about losing it by having it tied up in investments and have the stock market crash, and be left with nothing. I know that has happened to a lot of people recently with the economy being so bad off. It is a small monthly gift that will provide a lifetime of education which will provide a future for your child or grandchild. I know in some families it is customary for the grandparents to pay for college, why not start now and have it taken care of without having to pay a large sum every year.

For more information please visit the Gerber Life College Plan’s FAQ.

The Camping Music Fans

There are a few campgrounds in my area, not because I live by a national park or even a state park but because there is a music center close by. In the summer I see many camping tents at the local camp ground, which really is someone’s yard with port-o-potties. There are probably three trees not what you think of when you think of people camping out. I assume they make great money by charging people to camp there. They have tried to sell it many times but I am sure the insurance is really expensive on the campground. Most of the time I only know who is playing by what is written on the welcome sign.

I often wonder what goes on at night after the concert is over, and there are all those people with their camping gear. I am assuming it would be kind of scary because you have no idea how drunk these strangers are what kind of drugs they are on, and what kind of life they lead. I am sure it is one big party but, I don’t think you could pay me enough to spend one night there during a Phish concert which seems to be one of their busiest weekends.

I am curious what the owners must be like. I wouldn’t be able to tolerate the immoral activity taking place on my property if I owned it. I am pretty sure there is illegal drug use at the campground too. I wouldn’t be able to turn the other cheek; I would feel like I had an obligation to not allow that kind of behavior and I probably wouldn’t be very successful in the campground rental business.

Have you ever camped out after a concert? What did you think of your experience? If you haven’t would you put yourself in the situation?

Wordless Wednesday: Dragonfly

I found this dragonfly on my front porch, it was perfect and dead. Noah loves bugs so seeing this dragonfly was a real treat. He wanted to keep it for a pet. It was on our front porch for a few days until the wind took it and blew it away.

Keep Your Electronics Protected with Pelican Cases

In this technology oriented society more and more people rely on expensive electronics like laptops, GPS devices, digital cameras and smartphones than ever before. Not only are these items expensive, but they are usually also very delicate, needing careful handling and safe storage. One of the best ways to safely secure these items and many others is by storing and transporting them in Pelican cases.

For those of you not familiar with Pelican cases, they are the most popular method of providing waterproof and shockproof protection for delicate items of all shapes and sizes. Whether you have a digital camera you want to protect while outdoors, or you need a good, sturdy, waterproof case for carrying your laptop in, Pelican has a case solution. Pelican’s cases range in size from very small, for protecting items like cell phones and pocket sized cameras, to very large cases, for bigger items like rifles, computer monitors and tools. Additionally, each Pelican case is backed by the famous Pelican guarantee, You Break It, We Replace It…Forever.

In addition to the extreme protective qualities Pelican cases provide, they are also very handy for keeping organized. Each case model has available accessories like lid organizers and re-configurable padded divider sets, perfect for conveniently arranging lots of smaller items. Features like these make Pelican cases very popular amongst professional photographers because of the large number of lenses, batteries, flashes, etc that they must carry at all times.

Much like technology in general, Pelican’s case offerings are evolving. Some of the most recently developed case models Pelican now offers include the Pelican 0450, a completely waterproof mobile tool chest, and the Pelican 1510, an FAA approved airline carry-on case.

If you need protection for your smartphone, camera, laptop, or any other valuable gear, I recommend investing in a waterproof hard case from Pelican. It will last you a lifetime, and will increase the longevity of whatever you put in the case as well.

Just For You Video

In a previous post I shared with you about Noah and my song. Just For You which is a song sung by Little Critter. We both love this song and we decided to sing it together for you all. It has been a song that I grew up listening to and one that Noah has listened to many times. Not just by me singing it but on one of his CD’s. Now that his CD player has lost the battery cover and he doesn’t have anywhere he can safely have things plugged in his room he hasn’t been able to have his bedtime music. I tried turning it up and putting it outside his door but it wasn’t working too well and it had to be up really loud for him to kinda hear it.

So without further adieu: Noah and Mommy singing Just For You.



Please Note that the video is black on purpose for security reasons.