Scrutiny by the Masses

Guitar Hero On tour: Modern Hits

This is a compensated review for Mom Central - I was supplied the game for review.

The makers of Guitar Hero introduced Guitar Hero On Tour: Modern Hits for the Nintendo DS system, a follow-up to the On Tour and Decades games previously released. The game features 28 songs, all radio-edits of modern rock hits from bands including Coldplay, Fall Out Boy, Weezer, The Strokes and Wolfmother. Besides being able to take the game on the road, the Nintendo DS has a wireless feature that allows song streaming and multiplayer modes. Imagine all of the kids in the backseat of your car entertaining themselves and challenging each other!

My kids LOVED this game.  It kept the quiet for literally hours of each day that they played, and they actually (gasp!) cooperated and taught each other the tricks.  It took a few minutes for them to discover how to strum without the notes sliding past, but once they passed the learning curve, it was smooth sailing.  Mackenzie and Gabriel say that their favorite part of the entire game is the dueling, where you fight against another player - chosen for you - and select your level.  The winner is given more points and you can use the points to buy a new wardrobe or guitar.

As an aside, I'll be SO glad when they get sick of Dirty Little Secret - they've WORN that song flat out for me.

Check out the game, available for Nintendo DS - I think you'll like it!

Botanics Organic

Boots, the UK’s #1 cosmetic and beauty brand, just launched their first organic line, Botanics Organic – an affordable, eco-friendly collection that makes it easy to green your beauty routine. With packaging made from recycled materials and products such as Smoothing Face Polish, Rosewater Toner & Body Butter, Botanics Organic is not only good for your skin but it’s good for the environment too. Even better – all products are under $25 and are available at Target.com!

I was pleased to be sent a sample of these products, and I have to say that my very favorites are the Hydrating Day Cream, with nourishing almond oil, and the Smoothing Face Polish.  Sold at Target stores, these products are a treat -  high quality and a wonderful way to make you feel pampered without blowing the budget as you would if you bought a Cosmetic store product.

Check these out the next time you are in Target!  YOu'll probably see me in the row, sniffing all the products to my noses delight!

Make Up by Lauren Luke

Recently I was sent a make up kit to try, and I have to tell you, I was pretty impressed.

A make up artist based - I think - in the UK, Lauren Luke has a set of Youtube videos to explain how to copy certain looks - The Smokey Eye, Vintage Glams - and each look has a palette to go with it.  Not being the most adept at make up application, I followed the video and was impressed with how nice my eye make up looked.  The cosmetics were top notch, heavy and smooth, and I really liked the oversized mirror included - I never seem to have a mirror handy when I need it.

These kits are a great value and I highly recommend them, especially since you can watch the videos over and over until you master the look you are striving to copy. 

Check them out!

Frosty Father's Day - A Treat For The Entire Family

This is a compensated review for Wendy's on behalf of Mom Central.

One thing my kids love is ice cream in any flavor, shape, presentation or form.  One thing I love is treating my family as inexpensively as possible, even if it's a holiday - like, say, the upcoming Father's Day, perhaps?  Just because it's a special day dedicated to daddy's everywhere doesn't mean you need to break the bank. Spending time together is the best gift of all - and a bonus of some chocolate that won't break the bank doesn't hurt.

For the past three years, Wendy's has made it a Father's Day Frosty Weekend tradition to donate 50 cents from the sale of each Frosty to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. The money raised goes to the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program, which funds full-time adoption recruiters at local agencies across the U.S., who in turn pair up parents with foster care children needing homes. So, you and your family can enjoy a tasty (and affordable!) Frosty together, knowing this campaign assists children across the country in finding a family of their own.

Involve the kids in this great cause by having them create a fun Father's Day eCard on FrostyCard.com. For every card they send, Wendy's will donate an additional 25 cents to the Dave Thomas Foundation. Kids can attach coupons for "taking out the trash" or "washing the car" onto the cards for Dad.

I'm planning on having my kids create cards and then taking the entire family for Frosty's - my personal favorite is the chocolate with the m&m's mixed in, but I think that the new coffee/toffee sounds yummy too!

Mamapedia - Info is Food for the Soul

This is a compensated review for Mom Central.

Mamapedia enables you to search answers for your most pressing questions, such as childhood crushes, renting a house, and summer camps, to get empathetic and insightful answers from moms around the country. A virtual encyclopedia of Mothers' wisdom, Mamapedia allows you to quickly navigate through thousands of diverse categories to find the thoughtful, sympathetic-and most importantly-helpful answers to all of your questions. Mamapedia brings millions of women together online, both nation-wide and in our own communities, so we can help each other tackle those difficult parenting questions or even just give recommendations on our favorite pediatricians, playgroups, and kid-friendly restaurants.

Well, that's all very well and good, but how does it work?  I decided to take a look and see.  With age related sections, an area for mom - with subsections for health and fun - and even health, finance and home, I easily spent over an hour surfing around.  Constantly updating "live mom searches" tell the most recent searches, so you can keep your finger on the important issues. I entered the name of my city in the search bar and came up with more than 20 questions, and spent an enjoyable chunk of time - that I should have spent folding laundry! - answering said questions.

Check this site out - I think you'll enjoy it!

Nothing to See Here - Unless You Want to go to Blogher

This is my entry to try to win a trip to Blogher '09, thanks to the great giveaway by JVC!

With six kids involved in cross country, soccer and muay thai classes, as well as the everyday drama that comes with life in a big family, there is constantly something to record, something to remember.  Having an Everio HD camcorder would help me be able to capture the shots on goal, the breaking of the tape, and the high kicks on the bag that describe our family.  I'd love to be able to show my blog readers the songs that my autistic daughter sings when she thinks no one is looking, and the ability to do a video post on my exercise blog, showing how to correctly execute a pull up, would be an amazing bonus that I've dreamed about since I started my blog six years ago.

As small and light as an Everio HD camcorder is, it'd be a delight to pop it into my pocketbook and take it with me everywhere I go to record the humor in my life - that is, if I can find the humor in getting pulled over by the police while my six year old sits in the back seat, telling the police officer, "Good job!  I told my mommy she was going too fast!"

Pick me, Pick me, PICK ME!!!

A Rip Roaring Success of a Day

Rain, Rain, RAIN. Enough already - do you HEAR ME?

When I was approached to host the Virginia Beach Hebrew National Picnic with a Purpose, my immediate area of concern was weather related.  Not rain, though - heat.  Typically, weekends in my fair city in the month of May end with sunburned shoulders and noses, and a promise to try a new and different type of deodorant next time.  It's HOT here, and humid and muggy. 

But, for whatever reason, this month has just been wet.  Today was no different.  I started scouting the weather reports ten days ago, and as today approached, the forecast refined and crystallized, all the while focusing on more and more rain. I worried about many things for this picnic - who would attend, how could I get more people to attend, what would I serve that would be memorable for dessert, how would I get all of the stuff for a picnic for 80 people actually out to the park, how would we set up the park, what games and activities would be fun, how would the Seton House feel about being our charity, and would it rain the entire event out. Last night I checked the weather, and it said that Sunday would feature severe thunderstorms, several inches of rain, and plunging temperatures. I freaked out and sent an email to everyone invited, letting them know that the picnic was still on, most definitely, but I'd probably change the location - so keep your eye on your email.  And then I waited until the next day. 

Who Doesn't Like Juice?

Time's up!  The winner is #7 - Bama Cheryl!  You have 48 hours to contact me or the prize will go to the next winner!

I've been asked to do another giveaway from Campbell's  - a company that I'm DELIGHTED to promote.

This giveaway includes a free case of the new V8 V-Fusion^®  100% juice varieties and an embroidered V8 V-Fusion^®   L.L. Bean tote and boat bag, a retail value of: $75.00.

For one entry, leave a comment.  For another entry, tweet this giveaway and leave me the link in a separate comment.  For a third entry, blog about this on your own blog and - again - leave me the link in a separate comment.  This contest will close on May 21 and - I'm sorry - is only open to residents of the United States.

Good luck!  I'm so jealous of you guys - I'd LOVE to win this one!

Country Crock

This is a paid post for Mom Central
 
I'm a big fan of butter, but it's none so good for the hips and the thighs.  I was glad to try Country Crock, the spread that I grew up on, and see if it had changed any. I'm happy to report that it is exactly the same, taste wise, but now calcium has been added.  Each serving provides 100 mgs of calcium - about 10% of the daily recommended requirement - and 20% of the daily value for vitamin D.

Check out the site for more information on this new product, and you can also take the country Crock Calcium quiz for a chance to win a $25 Visa gift card.  You can also enter for a chance to win a family vacation for 5 to Yellowstone National Park.    An easy to spread butter substitute, with added calcium, AND a money making opportunity? Sign me up!

From the site:  Yet 9 out of 10 girls, and 3 out of 4 boys don't get enough calcium, and a recent study indicates that there has been a decline in Vitamin D levels among Americans, both children and adults, over the past 10 years.  Getting enough calcium into the diet is important for the development of strong bones and teeth, while Vitamin D is needed to help the body absorb calcium, although very few food are natural sources.

Notes From Let's Fix Dinner!

This was a sponsored trip from Stouffer's.

I can not tell you when I have experienced a more well run event.  From the initial email, which gave me plenty of time to make arrangements - although I blocked my calendar off for the WRONG days, a detail I didn't catch until the day before I went!  - to the box of treats and the binder with all of the pertinent information that I received a week before - truly, there was no detail left unanswered. 

Looking at the list of foods made by this company, I was amazed to see how many reside in my house on an almost constant basis. Macaroni and Cheese, Lean Cuisine Power Bars, chicken lasagna,veggie lasagna, hot pockets - literally, my entire pantry and freezer could showcase this company!

The flight arrived on time, and after meeting up with Elizabeth and Lisa, we found our way to the hotel and checked in.  I always get so.tired when traveling, and so I elected to stay in the room and do some work, deciding that I'd just skip dinner.  Except that when I got to the room, I saw the little red tag from Stouffers - the one I realized signified goodness whenever it appeared - telling me that room service for that night would be covered.  Awesome!

The next day began in the Nestle test kitchen, where we were treated to some really cool displays and  the amazing sight of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies being taken warm from the oven.