I have been selected to review and to offer one lucky follower 250 Die Cast Business Cards from the nice folks at UPrinting.com! I know, it seems odd for me, a stay-at-home mom to be interested in business cards, but there are many, many more uses for business cards than you might think! I plan to use mine to promote my blog. I am excited about this, since I will be able to hand them out to other moms, especially those interested in cloth diapering! I am still trying to decide what design I will go with, but there are tons of appealing and unique options to choose from. UPrinting literally offers something that would appeal to everyone! Designer cards, blogger cards and so much more…From marketing materials to personal cards, business cards have developed from the plain boring to a more modern and rounded corners, square cards and slim cards. My hubby is excited about this giveaway, as he is an employee at a busy shop in my area, and feels that these unique cards will leave a lasting impression on his clientele. Anyone can hand out a business card, but not many distribute cards that have such beautiful designs and different shapes! And the cards at UPrinting.com are fully customizable for all of your business (or other) needs. And these cards have a FAST turn-around time of only 4-6 days! Business cards can be a great networking tool, even for those who are not business owners. I have thought of many alternate uses for these fashionable and attractive business cards. These are great for parents, students, volunteers, and bloggers…. Pretty much anyone can find a use for personalized business cards. Here are just a few ideas on how to put these little gems to good use:
These cards can be seen here. Check out all of the limitless possibilities for design! One lucky reader will receive: 250 Die Cut Business Cards for One (1) Winner 2 x 3.5”, 2 x 2” (square card) or 1.75 x 3.5” (slim card) Die cutting options available: Rounded Corners, Leaf, Rounded One-Corner, Half-Circle Side, Circle Paper Type: 14pt Cardstock Gloss, Matte, or High Gloss; 13pt Cardstock Uncoated Color: 4Color Front, Blank Back; 4Color Front, Black Back; 4Color Both Sides Here Are The Rules For This Giveaway: Limited to US residents only 18 years old and above, per UPrinting’s request. MANDATORY ENTRY:
Extra Entries: Leave a separate comment for each entry, and include a valid e-mail address so I can contact you if you win! + 1 Tell me another use for these cards that I have not already mentioned in this post.(Can be done more than once, as long as each idea is different!) +5 Leave a relevant comment on any non-giveaway post, and let me know you did. +2 Friend me on Facebook. Leave your FB name in your comment so I can verify. +5 Like UPrinting on Facebook and leave them a comment telling them you entered this giveaway. Leave me your FB name so I can verify. Example: I entered the Die Cut Business Card giveaway at Newly Crunchy Mama Of 3. +3 Become an e-mail subscriber. There is a subscription box on my sidebar. +2 Follow me on Twitter and leave your twitter name so I can verify. +3 Follow me on Networked Blogs and leave you follower name. Widget is in the sidebar. Just click "Follow This Blog". +3 Vote for me on Picket Fence Blogs. Just click the button on my sidebar. This can be done DAILY. Make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry – and include your email address with each entry. Giveaway ends on March 18, 2011 at 12:00 AM EST Winner will be chosen using random.org and will be contacted via e-mail. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize, or I will be forced to choose another winner! Good luck, everyone! ****In adherence to the FTC ruling on Blogger Reviews and Sponsored Postings,I am disclosing that I will be receiving 250 Die Cut Business Cards from UPrinting.com for hosting this giveaway. No other compensation will be provided, and my opinions are my own.****
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What a wonderful time it is to be a parent. Never before have parents been as proactive in providing the safest and healthiest lifestyles for their babies as they are today. The evidence of this can be seen just by walking through your local grocery store or super-center. There are so many more healthy and eco-friendly products available now than there were when I was growing up in the 80's and 90's. (Did I just give away my age? Yep, this mama is getting old...Ancient, according to my 11 year old!) Anyway, take a look around next time you're at the store. There are so many healthy food choices available to nourish our children nowadays. You can get eggs from free range chickens, and buy organic beef and poultry. You can get organically grown fruits and veggies free of harmful chemicals and pesticides. You can even get organic milk and juices that really ARE 100% juice. And this new, healthy, greener movement is not only evident in the food aisles. It can be seen all over the store. More and more packaging is made from recycled materials now. There are even toilet paper and paper towels made from recycled materials to help eliminate waste. Let's move on to the household cleaning aisles...More and more items have new, green options available, from non-toxic, chemical free all-purpose cleaners that are safe for pets and children, to laundry detergents that are free of dyes and fragrances. Now let's think about the toy and baby section of the store. We are seeing more toys that are free of harmful lead paints, and baby bottles and accessories that are BPA free. There are also baby carriers and clothing available that are made of organically grown cotton. We as parents have never had so many wonderful options available to us to ensure our kids have the healthiest lives possible. We want the best for our children, as well as for the planet we will be leaving behind for them and for future generations. Now let's talk about diapers. Yep, diapers. I am sure you have heard about cloth diapers...We all have. Now what mental image do you get when you think about cloth-diapering? Do you see old-fashioned rectangular prefold diapers with big, awkward diaper pins and squeaky, rubber pants? Do you have a negative impression of cloth? For my first child, the now 11 year old that calls me ancient at the ripe old age of 29, I used only disposable diapers. And I thought nothing of it. It was what people did....They'd run to the store and buy some Pampers, or Luvs in my case to save a few dollars, and they'd diaper their babies and not think twice about it. My now 14 month old daughter wore disposables for the first 6 months of her life. I had honestly never even considered switching to cloth until we unexpectedly got pregnant again when Sophie was only 3 months old. Yes, my 2 youngest children are a mere 12 months apart! At this point, since the pregnancy was unplanned and we were not financially ready for another baby, we started looking into ways to save money. An old friend suggested I try cloth diapers. I have to admit, at first I was turned off to the idea. I had always assumed that cloth diapers were yucky, stinky, difficult to use, and just plain GROSS. Until she came to visit from the Carolinas, and I saw cloth in action on her youngest 2 daughters. Everything I thought I knew about cloth was totally and completely inaccurate. Modern cloth is not a thing like the cloth our grandmas used! The diapers looked suspiciously like their disposable counterparts, and were just as easy to use. And they were so stinkin' cute! So many different patterns, colors, and fabrics to choose from....And no, her children were not smelly. As a matter of fact, I have found that babies in disposables smell more than babies in cloth, no doubt due to the myriad of chemicals found in disposable diapers. I also thought that babies in cloth were more prone to rashes. This, however, is not the case at all. My daughter gets less rashes in cloth than she did while she was wearing disposable diapers. If you want to know how disposable diapers can create bad rashes on babies due to all the crazy chemicals they contain, feel free to Google "dry-max". So thanks to my friend, my love affair with all things Fluff began. I started researching them and learning all I could. I am by no means an expert. I am still learning. I have not tried all the cloth brands and styles on the market. But I have learned a lot about how cloth is far more beneficial to baby than disposables. It saves a TON of money, for one, especially when you have more than 1 child in diapers. Cloth is also far more eco-friendly. Did you know that disposable diapers can take up to 500 years to biodegrade? Just think about what that does to our landfills and waterways! And really, cloth is easy to use, more comfortable on baby's cute lil' butt, and is re-usable. Yes, there are a couple more loads of laundry per week, but once you get a routine, it's quite manageable. These are just a few of the many, many reasons to choose cloth over disposables. So in today's world of living green and making more eco-friendly choices for our families, why aren't more parents choosing cloth? I think it's because they don't have all the facts, and believe all the cloth-diapering stereotypes, like I did until I was properly introduced. Or maybe they've had over-zealous cloth diapering parents get nasty because they weren't using cloth, and it turned them off to the idea. (Yes, this really happens!) I think that if more parents were educated about the benefits and ease of cloth diapering, they might just switch like I did. That's why I am excited to tell you about a very cool project that is currently in the works to spread cloth diapering awareness as well as to discredit some of the cloth-diapering stereotypes. This project is called "The Dirties On Diapering." This is a beautiful and informative coffee-table sized book that uses photo journalism to show cloth in action. It would be an amazing way to spread Fluffy-Love! However, in order for this project to come to fruition, the creator is in need of sponsors and donations, and is even offering some great incentives for your support. Here is a video from the creator, as well as her own description of the project. Words From The Creator Of The Dirties On Diapering:
WHAT IS THIS PROJECT? My plan is to create a coffee-table style full-color book using photo-journalism to display the concerns I have about diapering today. The word about cloth diapering is slowly spreading, but often times I believe concepts like this (especially in the beginning) come across as some activist shoving information in people's faces. Pardon my harsh description, but it's the stereo-type given. I want the majority of this book to be images to SHOW people exactly what we are talking about. I will of course use words, facts, and share stories... but I want at least 3/4 of each page to be about an image. I want people to SEE the landfills. I want people to SEE the health concerns. I want people to SEE how easy cloth diapering is now. The world today is very visual, and I think this is the best way to get the word out. I have already received some attention from local newspapers, but I believe once this book is published it will receive even more attention -- one major goal is that it will make it on tv, the most common visual place to learn in the USA these days. Here is a link to the newspaper article published in the Portland Tribune about this project: http://www.portlandtribune.com/sustainable/story.php... Also, here is a link to my blog where I do much of my planning: http://thedirtiesondiapering.blogspot.com For more facts and information about disposable vs. cloth diapering, please visit the Real Diaper Association webpage! http://realdiaperassociation.org/ WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT? Many people looking at this project already know why cloth diapering itself is so important... but this project is important to me because most people that choose disposables do so because they don't even know there is a choice. Most people who use disposables still think cloth diapers are pre-folds and rubber pants! Or if they do know about today's cloth diapers they are looking at the upfront cost of just one kind of diaper! They aren't looking at the money they will save long term, or that there are cheaper cloth options out there. And yes, the environmental aspect is important to me, but for everyday people that's all they see people being concerned about. Parents often have no idea that they are putting toxic chemicals on their baby all day and every day for years! I want to use this book as a way to educate people. I've had people come to me about why am I using such a main-stream and more expensive publishing company? Because it's not just publishing the book that is important to me. I already know that local eco stores will be happy to sell this book. But I want this book to be in Barnes & Noble and on Amazon.com and in Borders book stores where ALL moms will see the issue! It's all about spreading the word! WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU? Along with that fuzzy feel good feeling you get when you support something that could help change the world in a positive way, you will be rewarded with gifts for backing this project! Yay! You can pledge as little as $1, but the more you pledge the more you get back! You can find all of the rewards for this project along the right side of this page. It's just my little way of saying Thank You for your amazing support! Also! Calling all Green Mama Bloggers! Anyone who blogs about this project, please post a link to your blog in the comments section of this page! If the project is successful, I will make sure that any blogger supporting this project receives a copy for themself and a copy to give away! Sometimes spreading the word goes a long way, and I want to say thank you for helping! A FREE WAY TO DONATE $1! Exciting news today!! Red Tricycle has gernerously offered to donate $1 to The Dirties on Diapering for each person that signs up for their FREE online newsletter! Here's the link: http://www.redtri.com/newsletter-signup and put "Dirties on Diapering" in the referred by box! That's it! Red Tricycle is your local playtime authority, offering fun things for you to see, make, eat and do with your kids in your neighborhood! It's a great website too with lots of great parenting tips and ideas! So sign up today and tell your friends! Thank you so much to Red Tricycle and everyone supporting this project! BACKER GIVEAWAY! And if the rewards aren't enough... if my project is successful, I'm excited to give away a dozen cloth diapers to one random backer! Everyone who backs this project, no matter what dollar amound (even just $1!) will get a chance to win! The lucky winner can choose any brand and diapering system -- as long as it's cloth! I know you can get excited about that! BOOK CONTENT: 1. History of Diapering .....a. Different Cultures .....b. Invention of the Disposable 2. Health Concerns .....a. Toxic Chemicals .....b. Baby's Health (Rash, Athsma, etc.) 3. Environmental Concerns .....a. Landfills .....b. Water 4. Economical Impact .....a. Cost Comparisons .....b. Impact on the Business World 5. Cloth Diapering Today .....a. Types .....b. Washing .....c. Hospitals & Daycares .....d. Traveling Tips 6. Cloth Stories (Moms, Companies, Activists, Organizations) WHERE WILL YOUR MONEY GO? 1. Publisher Costs 2. Kickstarter -- 5% 3. Amazon Credit Card Processing Fees -- %2.5 + 0.30/transaction 4. Backer Rewards 5. Photo-Journalism: .....Travel to Hospitals, Landfills, Disposable Companies, Cloth Companies, & Moms .....Supplies & Equipment Total Estimated Cost: $6,000-$7,000 on a tight budget. The last two times my funding goal was $8,000 but I'm determined to do this even if I end up paying into it myself too! So I'm setting the funding goal at the bare minimum this time - $6,000. Hopefully since Kickstarter is an all of nothing site, we can make it this time! They do allow funding to continue and go over if the funding is met before the 90 days, so maybe we'll even go above and beyond this time! Thank you again everyone for your amazing support! MY CREDENTIALS: I'm a mom of 2 little ones in diapers -- I've used both disposables and cloth before, but am now proudly 100% cloth! I'm a portrait photographer in the beautiful city of Portland, Oregon. I specialize in children, but also do families, HS seniors, pregnancies, couples, weddings, parties, events, art, and more (sugarsnapphoto.com)! Before I had my own children, I worked as a writer and producer at local television stations here in Oregon. I've worked in both the Portland and Eugene news markets. I wrote mostly local news stories and organized content of the newscast, deciding what was in and what was out! I have been doing photography since high school, and took many college courses in photography, film, and journalism. ***Please Note*** This project's intent is to have a positive impact and I will not support speaking negatively of any specific company. This is an opportunity for ALL green companies, no matter how perfect, to come together and help make a change. Baby steps. Baby steps. So as you can see, this is a wonderful project that will help spread awareness about cloth diapering, and may even dis-spell some misconceptions you may have about fluff. For more information about this project, or to donate, please visit one of the above links. And also, if you would be so kind, please "like" this post on Facebook and tweet with the link to my post to spread the word! In a world where so many wonderful, healthy options are available for our babies, why not give cloth a shot? I am glad I did! Calling all Moms! That special day is fast approaching! You know the day I mean....The one day a year we get officially recognized for all the poopy diapers we change, boo-boo's we kiss better, and if your household is anything like mine, one of the few days a year we can expect to get pampered and maybe even receive flowers! (And if our husbands are super-nice, we may even get something sparkly! I am not getting my hopes up, as far as that's concerned!)
I think that we, as Moms, are something to be cherished and celebrated every day, but with Mother's Day quickly creeping up on us, I am planning to hold a very special blog event honoring all Mothers. I will be doing daily posts that will include yummy recipes that even the hubby can handle, should he want to whip you up something delicious, craft ideas, and some of my favorite things about being a Mommy. And hopefully, maybe even some Mommy-friendly giveaways! So please stay tuned between April 20th-May 8th for my Mad About Mama Mother's Day Celebration! ***I am currently accepting sponsors for this event! If you have a product you would like reviewed or would like me to host a giveaway to celebrate that special Mama, please contact me! My contact form can be found under the menu tab that reads "PR Friendly".*** So this is it, everyone. It is now Day 10 of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment. It's been an awesome ride, and we were thrilled to learn that even with all of the craziness that having 2 babies and a preteen brings, we were already pretty well connected to one another. We plan to keep actively practicing all of the wonderful things we have learned throughout the course of this experiment, and we're going to consult our book for ideas, as well as re-visit the steamy night time activities when our bedroom habits get BLAH,lol.... Today's activity is merely to reflect on what we've learned about each other and our relationship over the past 10 days, and think of all the ways we can keep the romance and the spirit of this experiment alive by incorporating the key principals we learned. Although our marriage is in wonderful shape, both physically and emotionally, there are areas we need to work on, like finding more time for just the 2 of us, and planning more date nights and more day time activities like go-kart riding that will get our adrenaline pumping! This has actually been our biggest challenge to date. With the babies around 24/7, we never really get too many opportunities to focus on US. Here are some of the things we plan on doing to keep the flame inside of our relationship burning strong: • Kick the day off right with a 30-second hug to trigger oxytocin (remember, that’s the cuddle hormone). Depending on your schedule, this could be during breakfast, as you’re getting ready, or even as soon as your alarm clock rings. • Add a little mystery back into your love life as you get ready for work—close that bathroom door! • Then send your partner off to work with some warm, friendly touching: Maybe it’s another hug, a kiss, a hand squeeze, a butt grab—whatever shows your partner that you care. • Don’t let the whole day go by without tending to your relationship. Even a quick call to say "I'm thinking about you" can do wonders! • Greet your partner after a long day with another 30-second hug. • This evening, plan a date that includes one or more of your favorite activities from the past 10 days. Maybe you’ll visit a new restaurant or museum together, hit the local rock-climbing wall or tennis court, or snuggle up on the couch together and enjoy a movie. Take your partner’s attributes into consideration: What activities bring out the best in him or the worst in her? • By now, you should be feeling closer than ever. So it’s time to open your toy box, hit the sheets, and celebrate the culmination of the K-Y® Brand Intimacy Experiment with a little intimate exploration of your own. We have had a blast taking part in the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment. It really has brought us closer as a couple, and has helped remind us of the many reasons we fell in love to begin with. Remember, if you are a blogger, you can take part too, and document YOUR journey by entering my GIVEAWAY! (Please leave your entry on my giveaway post...just scroll down!) Not to mention, if you're chosen as one of two lucky winners, you will be receiving an awesome prize pack full of K-Y Brand goodies! A big thanks to K-Y for allowing me to take part in this eye-opening campaign! My marriage is better....and steamier....because of it! For more information about the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment, please visit them at the Couple's Place on Facebook. I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own, and have not been influenced in any way. This evening when I was checking my e-mail, I received a Twitter notification of a new follow from The Mom Pledge. Naturally, I was curious, and visited their website to see what it was all about. Well, it turns out it's about something I can totally relate to: Bullying. No, I am NOT a bully. But I do have an 11 year old son who gets bullied at school, and being a survivor of domestic violence, it's pretty safe to say that I have been bullied myself. Heck, I recently ended a very toxic "friendship" with someone who then took it upon themselves to basically cyber-bully me by harassing my friends and family and spreading lies and major exaggerations about me online.And the things she said were absolutely deplorable, and 99% false. And the 1% that wasn't false was completely mis-construed and made to sound absolutely awful when the ACTUAL truth wasn't so bad. And for what? Did I call and harass this person? Nope. Did I do anything but treat this person with kindness? Nope. I never spoke an ill word about her. So why did I have to endure having my friends and family e-mailed psychotic rantings? What did I do to deserve this horrible treatment? Wait for it.....I was treated like this because I was tired of the never-ending drama that surrounded this person and when they started to bring it in my direction,I de-friended them on Facebook. My friends and family, who thank God knew better than to believe this person, were harassed because I deleted her from my Facebook page.Ridiculous, isn't it?
The truth of the matter is, bullying is not something that just exists in the school-yard. Grown women partake in this every day. They gossip, they talk behind one another's backs, they even try and cause misery to one another and hurt each other on a very deep level. The so-called-friend I walked away from said things to me that were downright cruel. She literally took all of my insecurities and played on them, saying the most hurtful things she could to me, and I cried for weeks, wondering what I ever did to deserve how she was treating me. I easily could have done the same thing back to her, but I didn't. Why would I want to go out of my way to hurt someone? Women can be truly ugly to one another, and more often than not, there is no good reason for it. The Mom Pledge is all about women standing up and making their voices heard against online bullying between women. We, as women, can take a stand and have a zero tolerance policy for this petty and very juvenile behavior. We CAN make a difference, one mom at a time. Are we always going to agree with one another? No. Are we always going to like everyone we meet? Again, no. But we CAN treat everyone with dignity and respect, and we can rise above the urge to bare our proverbial claws and lash out at someone who may or may not deserve it. Life is too damn short to be nasty to one another. We as moms should be helping one another, not HATING one another. I took The Pledge. Will you? Let's stop the hate, ladies, and be a good example for our children. Okay, it's no big secret that after years of being with the same person day after day and night after night, things can get pretty routine. As a matter of fact, I can pretty much tell you exactly what will happen and in what order things will happen on any given day. Not that I'm unhappy with that, of course. I am very happy and comfortable in my relationship. But....from time to time things get TOO routine. There's no rush of excitement involved in settling in on the couch to watch the newest episodes of Chopped Champions. (Which ironically, is exactly what my husband is doing right this second.)
Same goes for the bedroom routine...Things, over time, can become quite predictable. Or even worse, almost scripted. I hate to say that THIS is something we are experiencing right now due to being worn out from taking care of Xander, who is not quite sleeping through the night yet. Okay. Some people say 5 hours IS sleeping through the night, but I beg to differ,lol. Our sex life has become incredibly bor...oops, predictable. I'll spare you the details, but let's just say everything is always EXACTLY the same. Day 9 of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment shows us how shaking things up and getting the adrenaline pumping outside of the bedroom can definitely help get the motor running inside the bedroom, too! Doing things together that get the blood pumping, perhaps things that are competitive or even risky like sky-diving or bungee jumping, help release the brain's natural amphetamines, dopamine and norepinephrine, AKA "brain crack". These chemicals play a huge role in sexual arousal. Now I personally would never in a million years jump out of a perfectly good airplane, and I have bungee jumped once and almost peed myself, and would never be that stupid again,lol. But it DID give me a rush...A natural high. Doing activities as a couple that create this effect can do wonders for things later in the bedroom! Here are some ideas for upping that sexy "danger factor" in your relationship. We can't do many of them right now since we're surrounded by babies 24/7, but we do intend to plan something along these lines just as soon as we find some willing and unsuspecting poor soul to hand the babies off to for a day! -White-water rafting -Hang gliding -Sky diving -Bungee jumping -Go-kart racing -Kayaking -Indoor rock climbing -Hiking -Rollerblading -Ice skating -Playing paintball or laser tag -Horseback riding -Visiting an amusement park Okay. I would never go horseback riding, either, cause horses scare the dickens out of me. But you get the idea. If you want to recapture some of that heart-pounding excitement you experienced so much of early in your relationship, it helps to get your adrenaline pumping outside of the bedroom first! Stay tuned tomorrow for Day 10, the conclusion, of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment! And be sure to enter my bloggers giveaway so you can take the challenge, too, and receive an awesome package of K-Y goodies! For more information about the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment, please visit them at the Couple's Place on Facebook. I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own, and have not been influenced in any way. They say that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. I know that in my house, this definitely proves to be true. My husband loves to be fed, and to put it quite bluntly, is a total glutton when it comes to certain foods. I have watched him kill a 5lb Hershey's bar in a matter of a couple hours. He is addicted to sweets big time. And much to my disgust, he will devour mass quantities of junk all in one sitting, and he doesn't gain a freaking ounce. Ever. Lucky guy! He is always requesting my Chicken Cordon Bleu, or my "bacon chicken" aka Monterey Chicken. The man definitely likes to eat! Maybe it's because I can actually cook and being married to me feeds him properly. When he was a bachelor, he lived off of sweets, fast food, and Pizza Hut. Such a sad, sad existence! While pretty much everyone likes to eat, did you know that certain foods are considered to be aphrodisiacs? Oysters, dark chocolate, strawberries...Even green M&M's are rumored to have libido boosting properties. (Although there isn't much scientific evidence to back up these claims.) Whether it be fact or fiction, food can be very sensual. Plus, it tastes good! I would never in a zillion years eat an oyster, since I do not eat sea food of any kind, but pass me some chocolate covered berries, please! Or maybe some fresh melon and a nice assortment of cheeses and a glass of wine....So many possibilities! Anyway, today is day 8 of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment, and our challenge today was to spend the evening cooking dinner together. I am the chef in the house, (my husband can barely boil water independently!) and I decided to make something to please both of us. I made Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese, as well as a nice green salad and some parmesan garlic bread. And this was homemade mac & cheese, people. No squeezie pouch or nasty powered packet that originated in some blue box that I shall not name. You know the kind. The stuff that little kids inhale. I hate the stuff and find it offensive to all things labeled cheese. Anyway, this dish was guy-friendly bar food meets comfort food in a very odd, yet appealing concoction. It was excellent, by the way! Dan surprised me and DID help in the kitchen. He preheated the deep fryer for the chicken, he trimmed and cut the chicken for me, he did the dishes, and he spent the entire time talking to me! Usually when I cook, he is plastered to the couch staring mindlessly at the TV. Tonight he actually paid attention to me! He even stole several kisses and stood behind me and wrapped his arms around me while I was making the cheese sauce for the macaroni. It was definitely a nice change! It's no wonder that a whopping 83% of couples that cook together regularly report having an excellent relationship, as opposed to 26% of those who never do, according to a recent study. Well, I'm off to take part in the night time activity now before the hubby falls asleep...Can we say dessert? ;) I'm thinking something very 9 1/2 Weeks here,lol Stay tuned tomorrow for Day 9 of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment. And please scroll down to my previous post and enter my giveaway if you're a blogger. 2 of you will be lucky enough to win the awesome K-Y prize pack I received as well as have the chance to document your own Intimacy Experiment on your blog! For more information about the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment, please visit them at the Couple's Place on Facebook. I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own, and have not been influenced in any way. Well, today is Day 8 of my journey with the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment. I must say, it has been an eye-opening experience so far, and has truly helped me see my husband and my marriage with a renewed appreciation and sense of desire. Let's face it....When the newness of a relationship fades and life takes over, it is all too easy to get consumed with jobs, children, chores, and the stresses of everyday life. It is easy to fall into a routine and start taking our marriages for granted.
The folks at K-Y understand that a happy relationship is about MORE than just great sex, and they have created this 10 day program to help bring couples back together, both physically and emotionally. Think of it as couples' therapy without the hefty bill! This program is a ton of fun, and is divided into daytime and nighttime activities to explore with your partner. The daytime activities generally address how to create a stronger emotional bond, while the nighttime activities address keeping the passion alive behind closed doors. It's not time for YOU to win a chance to take this challenge, too! I have been having a wonderful time with it, and my husband and I have felt more connected than we have in months, as we have been bogged down with stress. We have an 11 year old, a 14 month old, and a newborn! So obviously, we needed a kick-start to put the focus back onto our relationship and help us focus more on each other. K-Y is looking for 2 more bloggers to chronicle their journey through the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment with their partners! If you are a family-friendly blogger like I am, you can still participate in this campaign. Like I stated before, there are day and night activities, and you can easily keep your posts PG. K-Y is about more than just lubes and sexual enhancers, although you'll be receiving those, too! The K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment is about bringing couples closer emotionally, and there are tons of helpful suggestions and activities designed to do just that! What will you be receiving? A wonderful K-Y prize package with several full sized K-Y products, the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment program book, a journal to take notes and complete assignments in, and other romantic goodies! So are you ready for YOUR chance to take part in this awesome campaign? Here are the rules. I will keep it simple for this giveaway.
That's it! Easy-peasy! This giveaway will be open until March 10,2011 at 11:59 PM. I will contact winners via e-mail and they will have 24 hours to respond before they forfeit their prize and I draw another name. Good luck! I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own, and have not been influenced in any way. Okay. I am at a complete and total loss as to how to keep this particular post PG rated. So I'm sorry if it's not as detailed as the previous 6 days of posts, but this is a family-friendly blog, and while I don't mind being candid and blunt, I don't want to turn this into a porn site,lol....Any of my friends in real life can tell you, I am NOT shy when it comes to talking openly about sex. I am definitely very comfortable with it, and could probably make some grown men blush! Yes, really. But you, my lovely readers, will be spared all the X-rated details. Hey, my MOM reads this, haha That being said, Day 7 of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment is all about sexual fantasies. We've all got em. I know I do, although I will spare you all the graphic details of that they entail. Let's just say I have TONS of them, and that Mama is a FREAK! We'll just leave it at that. I am actually the more sexual partner in my marriage by far, and really don't have very many hang-ups when it comes to the nookie. So when we got to today's daytime experiment, it was very easy for me. We were asked to basically make a "Love Map" exploring our sexual fantasies, memories, and turn-ons. I could write a novel here, people! These can be mild, or these can be wild. Or maybe a little bit of both! Maybe a certain cologne or perfume gets you all revved up. Maybe a memory of a past experience you've had raises the temperature for you. Maybe it's something you secretly think about, but would probably never make a reality. The possibilities are endless. Or maybe you're a Try-Sexual, and will try almost anything once! (Or twice, if you liked it!) Some people aren't comfortable discussing their fantasies, even with their partners. I am not one of those people. I willingly share my fantasies with my husband, and our sex life is better for it! I've even had some crazy experiences because of it! But that's not something I will discuss here,lol Make these maps with your partner, and share them, if you dare! Who knows? Maybe it could spice things up in the bedroom and give you some uncharted territory to explore! Stay tuned tomorrow for Day 8 of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment. Also, look tomorrow for the start of my K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment GIVEAWAY!! Unfortunately, this is open to BLOGGERS ONLY. 2 of my lucky bloggy friends will be able to conduct their own Intimacy Experiment, and will receive an awesome box of goodies from the wonderful folks at K-Y! For more information about the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment, please visit The Couple's Place. I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own, and have not been influenced in any way. Today I saw an interesting experiment on Baby Dickey, one of my favorite blogs. It gave a list of words and questions that show just how differently people from different parts of the country sound. I decided to participate, since I am an Ohio native who was cruelly transplanted to Virginia at the age of 12. Okay, maybe not cruelly, as it WAS my choice, but I much prefer Ohio,lol. I look like crap, since I am very, very sleep deprived, but oh well. :) You mamas understand, I'm sure! And WHY would YouTube be so mean and use THIS as a still shot for my video? I was obviously in the middle of saying something, and I look gimpy! Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house? What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball? What is the bubbly carbonated drink called? What do you call gym shoes? What do you say to address a group of people? What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs? What do you call your grandparents? What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket? What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining? What is the thing you change the TV channel with? I'd love to see what YOU sound like, too! Link up your posts so I can watch more videos! :) |
PR Friendly Mama!
I'm Brandy, a happily married, proud Mom of 3 amazing kids. If you're interested in building a working relationship, please feel free to e-mail me at: NewlyCrunchyMamaOf3@gmail.com Links We Love :Archives
June 2023
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