Scrutiny by the Masses

Invisalign Mom Advisory Board - Special Occasions Can Still Be Special

This is my daughter Allegra. She was on her way to Ring Dance - a special night similar to prom, but for Juniors, where they are presented with their class rings. She worried about her appearance - what would she wear, how would she do her hair, her nails needed to be perfect, and on and on. One thing she didn't have to worry about was her smile. Due to her short amount of time in the Invisalign, her teeth are already noticeably more straight. She felt more confident in her smile.

The most important part of the entire evening, according to her, was the fact that she could remove the Invisalign trays and not wear them for her special evening. She has been counseled to wear them 22 out of 24 hours, and wore them round the clock for an entire week in order to have some time banked.

This is something that you can't do with traditional braces. You don't have the luxury of removing them for a special day. You can always take your picture with your mouth closed, but the effect is ruined.

She absolutely loved the fact that she could go aligner free for her big event.

I'd like to share this graphic with you. Did you know that your smile is one of the first things that people notice about you when they meet you? Or that those with straight teeth are described as being happier with a high self esteem?

How do you feel about your smile?

I am a member of the Invisalign Mom Advisory Board. My daughter will receive complimentary Invisalign treatment, but as always, I'm sharing my own personal thoughts and opinions.

American Girl Read-A-Palooza

We are big readers in our house. Of course, now that the big kids have gotten to be, well, bigger - the amount of reading that they do has gone by the wayside. My younger kids, though? They always have books around, and I am frequently reading a couple of books at the same time.

My younger set of daughters love the American Girls dolls and, by association, the books that accompany. I think that these books are magnificent - they've learned a tremendous amount of history and count some of these books as their most favorite.

This summer, American Girl is inviting girls and moms to discover the joy of reading while helping a great cause! Read-a-palooza provides girls with fun activities and incentives to inspire them to keep their reading skills sharp and encourage engagement in a variety of different literacy activities! In addition, Read-a-palooza will be contributing to Save the Children through a book purchase donation. Starting May 1 through September 3, $1 from every book purchased from American Girl will benefit Save's U.S. Literacy Program.

This is one program I can get behind.

I'd love to be able to share the wonder of the American girl books with you! One lucky commenter will win a sampling of American Girl books to enjoy this summer. Want to be that lucky winner? Take a minute and browse through the American Girl book offerings - with both historical and contemporary fiction, advice, mysteries and activity books - there's something for everyone! Leave me a comment sharing with me your favorite American girl book. This contest will close 5/15/2012 at 11:59 p.m. and is open to US residents over the age of 18.

Hallmark Does Mother's Day Right

I was recently sent Hallmark's newest Mother's Day offerings. Designed to give Moms and Grandmas a moment in time — a moment they can hold onto and revisit even when their little ones aren’t so little anymore.  I loved the kit, and would love to give one away to a lucky reader! It contains:

Recordable Artwork: Canvas Art Kit, which allows your child to takes a Mother’s Day drawing to the next level by capturing a child’s voice and the story behind the artwork. Equipped with a canvas panel, Crayola washable paints and a big imagination, kids can paint mom or grandma a masterpiece that is then inserted into a 9”x9” recordable frame. For a unique and final touch, kids record a 40-second special Mother’s Day message into the frame and share their unique story behind their art.

As well as the amazing Conversations to Keep: Recordable Book, which is a book in which kids record themselves answering a variety of questions, such as “If you and mom were aliens, what would you look like and what would you name your planet?” Or, “What does Mom do to show she loves you?” We've done this, and it's a total hoot.

In addition, the Mother's Day Kit will contain a variety of cards.

This is a super short giveaway, so your chances are AWESOME. TO enter, please leave me a one word comment describing your favorite gift to give your mom. This contest is open until 11:59 p.m. Saturday May 5 and is open to US residetns 18 years of age and older. Winner will be chosen using random.org.

Don't forget your Mama on Mother's Day!

Canvas4Life

I am a big fan of the canvas prints. I have several around my house. I'm planning to purchase several more.

I think you could safely say I have a slight addiction to the stuff. Whenever I take a picture - and that's often - I'm imagining how it would look blown up on a canvas. It's forced me to become a more precise photographer.

I was contacted by Canvas4life to review their product just a few days after I took this photo of my daughter at her First Communion:

I am very proud of myself for this photo, incidentally. I think it's one of the best ones I've ever taken - and I've taken some good ones.

When I was approached, it took me about, oh, one nanosecond to say yes and to complete the order. Then I just had to wait - often the longest part of the canvas picture process. Canvas4Life had it to me in FIVE days. That's underheard of.

But getting to me so fast must mean that it suffered in the making.

You'd think, but you'd be wrong. I actually think that the quality of this canvas print is superior to either of the other companies that I've ordered from. The colors are absolutely dead on, the detail in the picture is crisp and clear and the wrap is perfect. As a small detail, a full, solid picture hanger was included on the back of the canvas. The canvas ws well stapled and the construction was top notch.

This is a canvas that I can recommend highly.

Would you like to beautify your own home with a delightful canvas of your very own? Canvas4life would like to offer my readers 10% off of any canvas. Simply enter the code MOMTOMASSES10 in the appropriate box on checkout.

And sit back and get ready to enjoy a gorgeous canvas delivered to your door.

I was provided with a canvas to facilitate my review. All, and I do mean ALL, opinions expressed in htis post are my own.

Beautiful Flowers Make Mother's Day Shine

I'm not a big flower person. I mean, I think that they are pretty, but they really don't enter my daily sight line. I might come home from the store with a bunch, especially if they are brightly colored and more of a eclectic design, but it's not standard for me.

Despite this, I really loved my flowers from ProFlowers.

Super Mom with Amethyst Vase

I've never ordered flowers from a company that wasn't local, and I'll admit that I was skeptical. After all, flowers that are delivered in a box by UPS? How can that be good?

The flowers came well wrapped in an oversize box, and with complete and competent instructions as to the assembly necessary. The directions were clear - remove the flowers from their box (but not the wrapping!) and cut an inch from the stems. Fill the vase with the provided flower food and insert the flowers - but don't remove the wrapping for two hours. At that time, cut it open and enjoy your flowers!

Enjoy them I did. They were beautiful and colorful and did much to cheer up the gloom of my kitchen.

If your mom (or grandmom, or wife for that matter) would appreciate a great Mother's Day Flower delivery, ProFlowers is a great option.

Would you like a $50 gift code to order some flowers for the special lady in your life? Leave me a comment telling me your favorite flower and I'll use random.org to pick one lucky winner. This contest closes on 5/6/12 at 11:59 p.m. and is open to residents of the United States over the age of 18.

I was provided with a gift code to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed here are my own.