Harry Potter Holiday Gift Guide 2013

For all you Harry Potter Fans out there...
Warner Bros. has released an official Harry Potter Gift Guide! These amazing Harry Potter inspired products feature everything from wizard wear and accessories, to collectibles, to home decor. Wouldn't you love to have one of these?

Harry Potter collectible wand

This year’s catalogue offers a host of new items, including the Harry Potter Remote Control Wand from The Noble Collection, which allows the user to magically control any IR device with the flick of the wrist. Also newly available is the United States Postal Service Harry Potter Limited-Edition Forever stamp collection – perfect for stocking stuffers and for all those looking to send their holiday cards the Muggle way. Leggings from boutique fashion label Black Milk, fresh Hot Topic-exclusive apparel from Bioworld, a limited-edition Hogwarts castle ornament from Hallmark and more can also be found within the guide.

Needless to say, I am ridiculously excited about this. I also have this AMAZING Harry Potter Prize Pack to give away to one winner! It includes:

Dumbledore Wand Pen and Bookmark Set
Harry Potter Collectible Wand
Harry Potter Glasses

Enter for your chance to win, below! A winner will be chosen on Monday, December 23rd. Giveaway open to US residents only.

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Chick fil-A Free Breakfast and Giveaway!

This is my friend, Mr.Cow:

Whenever I see Mr.Cow at my local Chick fil-A, he always greets me with a warm hug or a high five. He makes life a little better and paired with some delicious chicken, that's a winning combination. We also love going to the events that our store offers, like family night (complete with bounce house)! We don't mess around - we love good food and nice people, and that's exactly what Chick-fil-A gives us.

My favorite meal at Chick fil-A is breakfast! I always go for the Chicken, Egg and Cheese on a bagel because it's super yummy! Hubby's pick is usually the chicken breakfast burrito. And the kids are obsessed with the Chick fil-A Chik-n-Minis (mmm honey butter). Look at this picture and tell me it doesn't make you want to reach inside the screen and grab it:

Chick fil-A is doing free breakfast all this week! If you signed up on their website and have your reservation, you're good to go. If not, there will be more promotions like this one in the future. Be sure to sign up here so you can be notified of these events.

If you're a San Diego resident, we have a fun giveaway for you! Mama Sparkles is giving away a Chick fil-A Breafast Basket! It includes a Chick-fil-A T-shirt, a Plush Cow, and coupons for free breakfast entrees.

This giveaway is open to San Diego residents ONLY, and the winner will pick up the prize at the Chick fil-A Sports Arena location.

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Sparkle Spotlight - Rockabye Baby!

Bean and Pinga have been doing a lot of dancing this summer. Bean will turn on the CD player and blast his favorite tunes and start busting his moves. And before long, Pinga will have joined him. Here's their new favorite CD to rock out to:

Rockabye Baby! and their impressive selection of albums transforms your favorite band's tunes into soothing melodies that are simply wonderful to listen to. Bean has been rocking out to Rockabye Baby's lullaby renditions of bands like Bjork, The Beach Boys and Guns N' Roses ever since he was a baby. He's six now and he still enjoys them.

Rockabye Baby sent me the new Lullaby Renditions of Michael Jackson CD to listen to. This album definitely does justice to the King of Pop. What I love about these albums is that the songs are not "dumbed down" from their original version and simply turned into baby music. Rather, they are recreated into beautiful instrumental melodies, while still maintaining their original elements. Favorite tunes around here are ABC, Remember the Time and Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough.

Here's some video footage of Bean and Pinga in action. Pinga promptly climbed in her bed afterwards, so I'd say their dancing session was a success.

You can buy the album and listen to samples here.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a copy of Rockabye Baby's Lullaby Renditions of Michael Jackson. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to August 21st at Midnight and tell me what your favorite Michael Jackson song is. Please leave your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Family Time Fun Games

Have you been to The Organized Parent lately? In addition to all of the useful advice for parents like me who could use a little organization in my life, they also have tons of great products for sale. For instance, the Family Time Fun Games are the perfect way to spend some fun, quality time with your family, especially when life seems to get extra busy.

I was able to play the Original Dinner Games with my family. This is an award-winning collection of 51 dinner games to play while you eat. The best part? No game board or game pieces required! This was so easy to just open the box and pick out a game to play. The games are written on cards, which are color coded and organized into different sections such as: Memory Games, Creative & Critical Thinking, Phonics & Vocabulary, Numbers & Math, Silly Games and Social Skills. The games require little or no preparation, and really excel at getting the whole family involved.

While the games at best suited for kids age 6 and up, my four year was able to get in on the action as well. He's a pro at Milk Man Race, where you have to be the first to finish all your milk! There are also variations suggested on some of the cards to make the game more suitable for little ones.

Check out the entire line of Family Fun Time Games here. If you choose to purchase any of these fun titles, you can receive 15 % off! Just use promotion code 21512 at checkout, before December 30th.

You can also win a copy of Gather Round Dinner Games right here! This one features 132 dinnertime activities to play while you eat. Just push the button and complete the activity that lights up!

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a copy of Gather Round Dinner Games. To enter, comment on this post prior to December 21st at Midnight and tell me a game you enjoy playing with your family. Please leave your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Thank to The Organized Parent for this review opportunity.

Merry Mailbox

Last month was a busy one. It was Halloween, Bean was adjusting to preschool, Pinga didn't sleep at all and...I opened an Etsy Shop!


As a child, I was constantly writing letters. It's always such a thrill to get a real letter in the mail, and to this day, retrieving the mail is my favorite part of the day. You can read about how much I love the mail here. Anyway, I felt inspired to open up Merry Mailbox and its accompanying blog, so that's exactly what I did.

At Merry Mailbox, I sell personalized letters from Santa Claus. I hope to open it up to other holidays and occasions in the future, but for now you've got three options. You can choose between the regular personalized letter, the religious personalized letter or the Baby's First Christmas letter.

I'm really excited about this, and the letters I've written so far have given me more joy than I ever could have imagined. I'm hoping I'll get to write many, many more of these as the holiday season approaches.

WANT TO WIN? To celebrate, I'm hosting a giveaway! One winner will receive a personalized letter of their choice. To enter, just leave me a comment. If you like, you can visit my Etsy Shop and tell me which letter you would choose if you won. Do this before Tuesday, November 15th at Midnight. Please also consider following me on Facebook and Twitter. You won't get any extra entries for doing this, but you'll get my appreciation for being awesome.

I hope this excites you as much as it excites me. Who will I get to write that letter to?

*The winner is #12 Stacey. Congratulations!

Freschetta - Proud To Support Pink Giveaway

Freschetta is supporting National Breast Cancer awareness this month with their Proud To Support Pink program. You can show your support too, by purchasing specially marked packages of Freschetta pizzas and Artisan Pizza Crusts. Simply enter the code on the package at www.ProudToSupportPink.com and $1 will be donated to the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to support breast cancer research.

The site also has a place for people to share their personal stories with breast cancer or the stories of a friend or loved one. In addition, they are also giving away 50 pink iPod shuffles each week! Another 50 iPod shuffles will be given to cancer centers around America to be used and enjoyed by breast cancer patients during treatments.

Let me tell you - Freschetta frozen pizza is yummy! I really didn't have high expectations for it but I was pleasantly surprised. The cheese is real, and there is nothing "fake" tasting about it. My family really enjoyed eating it and I think that this will be our go to choice for frozen pizza in the future.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a coupon to try any variety of Freschetta frozen pizza and two pairs of Freschetta Proud To Support Pink earphones. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Wednesday, October 19th at Midnight. Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

*Thank you to Freschetta, who provided me with a sample to review. All opinions are my own.

Gnaw On This

When Bean was a baby, I used several items from Boon. In fact, I still do. I find their feeding, bath, and organization products to be extremely handy, even now. What's more, is that they feature innovative designs that are functional. It's the best of both worlds!

I recently had the chance to check out the Gnaw, which is one of their newer items. It's a stylish, multi-purpose teething tether, which is perfect for Pinga since she loves to put everything in her mouth. It has a handy little clip that I can attach to her clothes so that it can't go flying through the air or get lost. It also sports a sturdy, mesh-like opening at the top, for putting snacks or teething toys inside. I even put a little spoon inside and used it to feed her baby food. Sometimes, we don't even put anything inside - Pinga is satisfied with just gnawing on the tether itself. I'm not sure if the mesh fabric is meant to sustain babies' teething and gnawing, but so far we haven't had a problem with it unraveling or anything like that.


I'm happy to have found another great product to add our collection of Boon products! I think this one will last a long time, as well.

Follow Boon's Blog
Follow Boon on Facebook
Follow Boon on Twitter

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a GNAW. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to Tuesday, August 23rd at Midnight. Tell me another Boon product that you like. Please include your email address. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Sparkle Spotlight - Lisa Leonard Designs

I had the pleasure of hearing Lisa of Lisa Leonard Designs speak this past weekend at Bloggy Boot Camp. I can honestly say that Lisa is a genuine, inspirational person with fabulous big hair. Jewelry in general is not really my thing, but I may have to rethink that after visiting her website. It's full of lovely hand stamped items and trinkets that I would love to have. Today she's running a giveaway for one of these:


That's a custom fairy wand, people. A wand. Hand molded. Made of pewter. Right up my alley. You can enter the giveaway here. While you're there, take a look around won't you? It's a beautiful place to be.

Create, Explore and Imagine with Lazoo

For all you parents out there looking to nurture your child's creative spirit and help cultivate a sense of play, look no further than Lazoo. Lazoo is based on a collection of award winning children's books and has now expanded to include plush toys, adorable clothing for boys and girls ages 0-4, and accessories. The product line incorporates vivid colors, unique fabric combinations and challenges children to think creatively and explore all possibilities. I think this ballet tutu skirt and sweater combo is especially cute:



When I have my baby girl this is the kind of outfit I want to dress her up in! I can just imagine her playing and exploring her little heart out in this. Here's the great news: starting on November 15th, you'll be able to buy Lazoo products exclusively at Babies R Us! Pricing for the items will range between $6.99-$14.99 and will remain available throughout the holiday season. I am so there! Be sure to check out Lazoo's equally eye-catching website for more fun and information on the products.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a Lazoo tee, plush and book package. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to Friday, November 12th at Midnight. Go to the Lazoo website and tell me which product you like best. Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Candyland!

My three year old son has a new obsession and that's playing Candyland, that bright and colorful fun boardgame by Hasbro. Every day without fail, he wants to play "the candy game" with me. And I don't mind at all - I'm really impressed with the way he gets into it. This is the first game that he's actually seemed to understand and he plays fair, takes turns and smiles the whole time, especially when he draws the lollipop card.

Hasbro has redesigned the game to give an even "sweeter" experience. There are all sorts of delicious sounding lands, like Cupcake Commons, Gummy Hills and Chocolate Mountain. There are fun characters too, such as the Duke of Swirl and Lord Licorice. I actually never played the game as a child so it's all new to me, but I'm having a blast playing with my son! Hasbro and MyBlogSpark sent me an awesome package so that I could put on a fun Candyland party of my own. I received a gift card that I spent on decorations and yummy food, including candy!




I also received a brand new Flip video camera, with which I recorded a super cute video of some of the kids playing the game:



We did some Candyland coloring and then everyone went home with their very own copy of the game. Good times!

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a copy of the Candyland boardgame. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to Tuesday, November 9th at Midnight. Tell me what your favorite game was as a child. Please leave your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Kohl's Cares For Kids

Ever since I heard about the new Toy Story 3 movie about a year ago, I've been eagerly waiting for opening night. The waiting is finally almost over, but in the meantime my son and I get to enjoy the awesome merchandise from the Kohl's Cares for Kids program.

Of course we own the Toy Story movies, but for some reason my son is never interested in watching them. He would much rather read the books. It's become a daily ritual for us. The plush toys are also adorable...they're almost too cute! Woody, Buzz Lightyear and the Dinosaur are all available for just five dollars. One hundred percent of the net profit for these great books and plush characters goes to children’s health and education initiatives nationwide. This year marks the 10th Anniversary of the program. To infinity and beyond!

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a Toy Story prize pack. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Friday, June 4th at Midnight. Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

A Box Tops Education

Occasionally I'll see people clipping what they call "box tops" and I never really understood the reason for it. Now, thanks to My Blog Spark, I get it. You can earn money for your kids' school simply by buying the foods you love to eat. Nice concept...I like it!

From now through May 31, SuperValu stores and Box Tops for Education are giving you a chance to win 50,000 bonus box tops for your school. That's worth $5,000! Just register here, and click the link to the 50,000 bonus box tops sweepstakes. You will automatically receive 5 Bonus Box Tops just for signing up.

SuperValu and General Mills generously gave me a $25 American Express card. I was pleasantly surprised to see many of my favorite products participate in Box Tops, like Pillsbury crescent rolls, Betty Crocker brownies, Yoplait Kids Yogurt and Chex Mix. Yum!

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a $25 American Express Card. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to Tuesday, May 25th at Midnight. Tell me which Box Tops products are your favorite! Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Thank you to My Blog Spark for this review opportunity.

Small Steps Toward A Greener Life

Lately, I've become appalled at the amount of paper products that we use around the house. Between wiping up constant toddler spills, blowing runny noses and cleaning dirty faces it really all adds up.

Marcal Small Steps sent me a a few of their recycled products to try - bath tissue, facial tissue, paper towels, napkins, the works! A good thing too, since we were out of toilet paper yet again. I had never tried recycled paper products before, but what a great idea! Using them made me feel a whole lot better. Plus, they're soft and get the job done. I would definitely use them again.

Marcal Small Steps' products are hypoallergenic, free from dyes and fragrances, whitened without chlorine bleaching and made from 100% recycled paper. There is also a handy tree calculator on their website that you can use to calculate how many trees you can save by using their products.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a starter kit featuring an assortment of Marcal paper products. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to Monday, May 24th at Midnight and tell me your best "green" tip! Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

* I received product samples for review purposes.

Marble Racers - Review and Giveaway

About a year ago, my son "stole" my teddy bear and insisted on sleeping with it every night...until now. I have Marble Racers to thank for this. We received a six pack of these cool, clear cars that feature a marble that lights up when you shake the car (or drop it, as my son soon discovered). They also come with decals to decorate your car, which he found quite enthralling. He even brought them to church, where he became the main attraction with the other children.

For as much as my son loves the cars, I was surprised when he wanted to take them to bed with him. He's never wanted to take a toy to sleep with him, only Mommy's teddy bear so this was a pretty big deal. And he's insisted on sleeping with them since the first day he got them. I'm happy that he loves his new cars so much - and happy that I finally get my bear back.

Marble Racers are available at CVS stores in CA, NV and AZ and also online They retail for $7.99. You can also take advantage of the limited buy one, get one free offer. Click here for details.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a complete set of six Marble Racers. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Friday, May 21st at Midnight. Please include your email address. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Thank you to Mom Select for this review opportunity.

National Geographic Little Kids

It seems like I'm constantly getting parenting magazines in the mail. As I flip through them, my three year old always like to look at the pictures of babies and kids, and point out various animals in the ads. The last time we did this, I thought "He really needs his own magazine." I couldn't really think of any appropriate titles though, until the National Geographic Little Kids issues came in the mail.

As soon as we opened them, he grabbed them and squealed with delight.. He wouldn't even let me touch them. "Mine!" he exclaimed, and that was that. I snuck a peek after we put him to bed. I love how little it is - at 6 1/2" by 7", it's the perfect size for him to hold. It definitely doesn't skimp on the fun though. Each issue is full of gorgeous full color pictures of animals, fun activities and games, and these awesome wild animal cards in the middle. It's aimed at preschoolers age 3 to 6, and also their parents. I was impressed by what I saw and eager to try out some of the simple science experiments in the magazines with my son...that is, if I can get them back from him. You can purchase a subscription to National Geographic Little Kids (6 issues for only $15) here.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive the current issue of National Geographic Little Kids. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Monday, April 19th at Midnight. Please include your email address with your comment. WInner must provide a US mailing address.

This review was written as part of a campaign for the Family Review Network. Thank you to National Geographic for sending sample magazine issues free of charge.

Seventh Generation Cleans Up Nicely

Last week I ran out of bathroom cleaner. Really bad timing, as I had been putting off the whole cleaning of the bathroom for a while. Then I decided that maybe I'd clean up the various spills that had accumulated in the kitchen and discovered that we were out of paper towels. Miraculously though, the mail came and I received a nice package of cleaning supplies from Seventh Generation through MyBlogSpark.

I've been wanting to try out these products ever since I heard about the the diapers and how well they work. While I still haven't tried them, I can tell you that I'm pleased with the cleaning supplies. I always felt kinda bad about using toxic cleaning supplies, not only because of my toddler but because of the environment as well. Seventh Generation products are environmentally friendly, and their new line of botanical disinfectant cleaners work like a charm! They contain thymol, a component of the herb thyme which smells really good.

So I set to work. I cleaned up the spills with the 100% recycled, unbleached paper towels and used the bathroom cleaner. The wipes smell especially good and made cleaning hard surfaces a breeze. My toddler even got in the action and "helped" wipe things up. I'm also enjoying reading through The Conscious Kitchen book that they sent, which discusses what’s good for your health, what’s good for the planet and what tastes great. Thanks to Seventh Generation, we were able to do a "naturally" good job cleaning up!

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a Seventh Generation "Disinfecting Cleaning Kit." It includes a disinfecting multi-surface cleaner, bathroom cleaner, wipes , a copy of The Conscious Kitchen, a cleaning caddy made from recycled plastic, and two rolls of 100% recycled, unbleached paper towels. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Friday, April 16th at Midnight. Please leave your email address with your comment. WInner must provide a US mailing address.

Have Your Cake...And Eat It, Too!

Ever since I made cupcakes for the first time, I've been wanting to bake more yummy treats. And now, thanks to Safeway and Betty Crocker I can. They sent me a coupon for a free Betty Crocker brownie mix and all the tools I need to create something sweet, just in time for Easter.

Betty Crocker's new website bakesweetmemories.com features delicious recipes for everything from Easter bunny cakes to morning brunches. Now I just have to decide what to make first! Also through April 6th, you can visit the Safeway family of stores to purchase Betty Crocker SuperMoist Cake and Traditional Brownie Mixes at the special price of $0.69! Even if you miss the sale, check bakesweetmemories.com for great coupon offers that download right to your Safeway Club card.

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a "Spring Sweet Treats" prize pack. It includes a silicon baking pan, stainless steel mixing bowl, oven mitt, Betty Crocker mixing spoon, and a $25 Safeway gift card. To enter, leave a comment on this post prior to Monday, April 5th at Midnight. Tell me your favorite treat to make. Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Thank you to MyBlogSpark for this review opportunity.

Le Baby Hair Gel - Review and Giveaway

I have, on occasion called my son "Harry Potter" because of his wild hair. Get a load of this:


That's really what his hair looks like most of the time. Daddy is pretty good at combing and styling it, but I need a little more training in that department. For me, help comes in the form of Le Baby Hair Gel. Made especially for babies, kids and anyone with sensitive skin, the gel is hypoallergenic, fragrance free and contains no harsh chemicals. It also keeps hairstyles in place, which is key when it comes to my son's crazy hair. Here's what he looked like after I used Le Baby hair gel on him:



It's not the most stylish hairstyle ever (I'm still learning), but I think he looks alot tamer. What's more is that the tube is green which is my son's favorite color so he loves when I use it on him. It's also super easy to throw in my bag and take it with us wherever we go...because with my son's hair, we're going to be using it a lot!

WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive a tube of Le Baby hair gel. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Tuesday, March 30th at Midnight. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

I received a product sample for review purposes.

Stylin' with Petunia Pickle Bottom

I don't currently own a diaper bag. When my son was a baby, I used the free one that was given to me at the hospital. When that one quickly wore out, I used one that I received as a gift. Not too much later, I was given a super cute purse from my mom that just happened to have little pockets on the sides that worked perfectly for bottles and sippy cups. Two years later, I'm still using the same purse.

Right now though, I'm eyeing the limited edition Heirloom, in honor of Petunia Pickle Bottom's tenth anniversary. It's got some pretty impressive features, including the ability to wear it as a messenger bag or a backpack, built in changing station with changing pad, four bottle pockets and a Petunia Pickle Bottom monogrammed wipes case. Talk about luxury! If, and when my purse wears out, and if and when we get around to having baby number two, a diaper bag from Petunia Pickle Bottom is going on my wish list, k?


WANT TO WIN? One winner will receive the Heirloom diaper bag from Petunia Pickle Bottom. To enter, leave a topic related comment on this post prior to Monday, March 22nd at Midnight. Please include your email address with your comment. Winner must provide a US mailing address.

Update: The winner is #212 Shayna. Congratulations!