One thing we love to do as a family is enjoy movie nights together. It's one of the few pleasures we come together for, since the kids vary greatly in age, my oldest being 18 and the younger being 7 and 8 years old. They don't have much in common with such a gap, and movies are something they can connect on. 

Another thing we absolutely love is music. I come from a very musical family, and grew up surrounded by musicians. Some of my favorite memories include going to gigs and band practices as a kid. I even performed a bit myself for a bit. 

When we got word from the folks at Lionsgate Entertainment that their hit movie, "Forever My Girl" was coming to Blu-Ray, we couldn't wait to see it. This movie has everything, a love story, father daughter bonding, and life on the road as a professional musician. 

Oh, and ice cream. We received an amazing basket full of ice cream party fixins' to help celebrate this Blu-Ray release. We decided to have an Ice Cream Sundae and Root Beer Float party on the deck, and then head inside for Movie Night to enjoy the film. Keep reading to check out pics from our little celebration. 

Mother's Day is coming up soon, and I know we Moms can be hard to shop for. For example, where many ladies prefer bling and Netflix binges, I don't watch TV, and I prefer my hippy beads to diamonds and pearls any day. 

Moral of the story: Every Mom is different, and there is no "One Gift Fits All". 

The folks at BioSphère Naturel come close to that, though, as they offer a range of natural beauty products that are sure to pamper and delight Mom this year....All while remaining gentle to the skin. 

And what woman doesn't love to feel pampered and beautiful? Am I right, or am I right? 

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Spring is here! What better way to celebrate the longer days of Spring than with delicious Manuka Honey treats that the entire family can enjoy?

PRI’s Manuka Honey is considered by many to be the “best” quality honey made from the protected and pristine environment of New Zealand.

What Makes PRI Manuka Honey Products Special?

Pacific Resources International is an exclusive importer of various New Zealand Manuka Honey, health and beauty care products. Their award-winning products include Manuka Honey, Pacific Sea Salt, Propolis Lozenges, Proper Crisps Chips, Manuka Caramels, and Manuka Honey Health and Beauty Products!

Pacific Resources International (PRI) was the first company to introduce Manuka Honey to the U.S. and owner David Noll has dedicated his career to bringing native and natural New Zealand wellness products to U.S. soil. David works closely with a variety of New Zealand companies to ensure that products are made with pure, natural, and quality ingredient.
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New Zealand is one of the last bastions of purity as an environmentally protected and GMO Free region with the cleanest oceans on the globe. Case in point, Manuka is the gold standard for honey and is produced exclusively in New Zealand from
bees and flowers that are environmentally protected. Enjoy these safe and soothing products every day and feel great using them!

As always, PRI's Manuka Honey includes no artificial flavors, colors, no corn syrup or refined sugars and NO preservatives.

I'd love to share some of my family's favorite Manuka Honey snacks, so keep reading to learn more and for your chance to win a fantastic snacking prize package! 

Superior Source Vitamins are MicroLingual® with “Under the Tongue Technology” that works fast, and are quickly absorbed into the body, dissolving in seconds. Did you know that...by swallowing supplements, as much as 50% of the potency is lost in the high acid environment of the stomach? With Superior Source, this is no longer a problem! ​

Okay, so I have a gripe with Mother Nature right now. 

It's April 17th, and I am sitting comfortably inside my house watching it SNOW. Elsa clearly forgot to take her meds, and has a bone to pick with humanity. 

Yep. It's snowing. In late April. Gotta love NE Ohio weather, right? 

Anyway, I have been in the process of updating my Spring wardrobe because eventually the sun has to prevail over this seemingly endless winter. It HAS to warm up sometime.... right? So even as the snow falls with no clear end in sight, I have visions of sundresses, sandals, and sunglasses dancing in my head. Some of my favorites of the season would have to be the brand new Ed Hardy eyewear from Addicted Brands. 

Launching in January 2018, Addicted Brands is ready to provide style-savvy consumers with a whole new selection of sun and optical eyewear. The collection, which is designed from handmade acetate, includes men’s, women’s, and unisex models. Unlike similar brands and materials, which retail for more than $250.00, Addicted Brands eyewear is available for an MSRP of around $100.00 or less. Their goal is to bring consumers modern and designer-looking glasses without the designer price tag. In addition to opening 1200 physical stores across the United States, the company will soon announce significant partnerships in the retail and digital industries.

In our home, gaming is serious business. While my 18 year old son and my husband prefer to play adult-themed games that are usually rated M, the littles play games that are a lot less graphic and a lot more age appropriate. 

Some of our favorite, kid and parent approved games? 

Nintendo Selects, of course! 

Nintendo Selects is a collection of classic Nintendo games that fit any budget for owners of a Nintendo 3DS or 2DS system. Games include favorite characters like Kirby, Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, and even Link and Princess Zelda, just to name a few. 

As a mom who is always on the go, I've had to deal with some pretty sticky situations. The worst are when the kids grab or touch things that are....well...questionable in nature. This could be from things that are found on the ground to some mystery gunk from a shopping cart. 

If you have kids, you know that there are always about 3,592 ways that they can come into contact with germs. I think that's just part of a child's curious, inquisitive nature. When in doubt, they like to touch and explore things. This is great for learning about the world around them, but not so great for the mom in me that doesn't want to deal with illness from said germs and bacteria. 

This is where Elyptol saves the day. I always keep some of their Natural Antimicrobial Hand Sanitizer Gel or Spray in my bag to tackle whatever life happens to throw my way. With small kids who like touching everything under the sun, our Elyptol gets plenty of use. 

If you are lucky enough to have access to a garden you will know just how lucky you are. It provides you with a nice private place to enjoy being outdoors as well as somewhere to entertain. Plus, of course, if you have children, it is a safe place for them to play in.

Perhaps the only drawback is the maintenance. If you enjoy gardening, having to go out there and work in it every week is a joy. But, if you loathe gardening the opposite is true. In that situation, maintaining your garden soon turns into a real drag. However, it need not be that way. Provided you choose the right plants you can usually get everything done in just a couple of hours every month. Take for example evergreens, once established; they require virtually no work to look take care of.

Where to buy evergreens
You will find a great range of Evergreen Trees from The Tree Center and other similar firms. It does not matter if you have a handkerchief-sized garden, a patio or a huge plot they will have evergreens that to suit that space. Importantly, firms like this will help you to work out which evergreen trees and shrubs are best for you. They will know if a particular variety will grow well in your acidic, free draining garden and can also advise you about pests and local regulations. This last point is important because in some towns, cities, and states certain varieties are banned.

Once you have worked out which varieties you can potentially grow you can start coming up with ways to use them. As you will see, they are really versatile plants and trees, so there are lots of potential options.

Hedging
Fast-growing evergreens like Leylandi make beautiful dense hedges. Typically, once established they only have to be cut once a year. You can choose the height you want them to grow to. Once they reach that height, you just cut the top off.

As screens
You can also use narrow evergreen trees like Thujas to screen off various areas of your garden. This variety is perfect for creating a play space for the children, somewhere to dine outside that is out of the wind. A lot of people use them to screen off a section of a big garden so that they can leave it to grow wild and become a sanctuary for wildlife.

To create decorative features
Evergreen trees make fantastic focal points. Many varieties can easily be trimmed into attractive shapes. It is not hard to create a beautiful green sculpture that looks fantastic in daylight and can be up-lit at night. They are also really good for creating structures like arches or green shelters. As you can see from this webpage there really is no end to what you can do with these beautiful trees. Scroll to the end of the page to see a stunning example of how an evergreen tree can be turned into a spectacular feature using topiary.