ten best strategies for de-cluttering and organizing toys in your child’s playroom.

My daughter, Emily, is the queen of a messy room. We get her room picked up and she's right back in there messing it up. Then, she doesn't want to go in there because it's too messy and then she's hounding me, looking for something to do.

One day, I just got fed up with it and sat down and decided to get her room organized. We took the following steps to organize and declutter her room.

Ten best strategies for de-cluttering and organizing toys in your child’s playroom.
1. Draw a diagram of your child's room to find where to put toys.
2. Purchase plastic bins in several sizes-organize toys first by size to see what sizes you need.
3. Go through their closet and toy bins and see if there are any toys that are broken, or that they no longer play with and get rid of them.
4. Purchase a toy box with different containers and put toys that they don't play with as much in this toy box in the closet.
5. Organize toys by "topic" like cars, dolls, etc. Put these in bins that are labeled as such.
6. Go through toys monthly, cleaning out broken toys and outgrown toys to keep toys at a minimal and save time and space later.
7. Use your closet's top shelves-rotate toys to this shelf and kids will feel like they have "new" toys when you bring out the toys that haven't been played with for awhile.
8. Store bigger toys in basement to free up space in child's room.
9. Use the space under child's bed. Purchase a slider bin on wheels and keep books and crayons and stuff like that for easy access.
10. Get your child involve. Make it fun to keep their things organized and soon, they will keep toys put away and decluttered.

Things have been working out well for us and her room looks very organized and pretty. She likes that things have a place to go and makes it easy to keep her room picked up and organized.
She is excited to show her friends when they come over and they all keep the toys organized and put them back in the right bin when done. It's even taught her to read new words by looking at the labeled bins over and over.

It really isn't hard to stay organized and decluttered. You just have to make a decision to do so and stick with it!

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Hot Wheels® blogging program, for a gift card worth $40. For more information on how you can participate, click here.” (make sure you link to http://walltracks.socialmoms.com/about)

Ten time-savings tips

With running two businesses (three, really with my blogs) and being a mom and wife, I really need to find ways to make my life easier. I've learned with time what works and what doesn't.
I've listed ten time-saving tips to share for all you busy moms out there:

Tip one:

When it's school season, try to get things ready the night before. Make lunches if they take a cold lunch. Lay out clothes for next day, etc.

Tip two:

Get a chalk board for your kitchen. Writing out the schedule for the week is not only time-saving, it keeps you organized. The two go hand-in-hand to help you out.

Tip three:

Speaking of writing down schedules. Assign chores to your children-and husband. Us moms have a tendency to do it all ourselves. Ask for help if you need it. Reward everyone with a trip to the zoo with the free Saturday you end up having.

Tip four:

Shop once a month instead of weekly. Stock up on supplies and buy in bulk. This will help free up lots of time. Who really likes grocery shopping anyway? This way, you eliminate three trips!

Tip five:

Shop early for holidays. Start getting xmas gifts throughout the year. Then, around Xmas time, you will be able to sit back while others are running around.

Tip six:

Carpool with other moms. If your kids are in a lot of sports, ask other moms to share with driving.

Tip seven:

Make dinners ahead of time. Start on a Monday and make your dinners for the week and freeze them. This is an awesome time-saving tip!! You can finds lots of freezable dinner recipes online on food blogs and sites.

Tip eight:

Pick one day to do laundry. Believe it or not, some moms do laundry three or four times a week. Don't do it! Tell everyone to have their baskets in their rooms and that you will only be doing laundry on Sunday, or Monday, etc. -and stick to it!

Tip nine:

Check emails in the early morning (or, late night) when things are calm. You will find that you can answer them more quickly if you aren't being bothered by "mom stuff".


Tip ten:

Have one big party instead of many. This tip works if you have several birthdays, holidays, ect. in one month. Invite the whole family over at one time and make it a big birthday bash. This is for those big families as well. We all know how busy they must be!


"I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Starbucks blogging program, for a gift card worth $30. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

10 Tips for Keep your family safe on the road

Do you ever think about safety when on the road? Families have a tendency to think more about their destination then the trip to there.

Keeping your family safe during a road trip can mean the difference between a pleasant trip and a disasterous one.

Have you ever thought about your windshield when planning a trip? Windshields can cause major accidents and families could have avoided it by simply checking their windows for small cracks.

Here are some facts about car windshield safety:

A chip could turn into a crack at any time, often when you are least expecting it. Windshield repair is often a safe and economical alternative to a full windshield replacement.


Scheduling a windshield chip repair is easy! Companies like Safelite AutoGlass provide mobile service – wherever your car is – often within 24 hours of your initial call.


Safelite AutoGlass brings you peace of mind by emailing you a Technician Profile before your appointment, showing you a photograph and credentials of the technician coming to your home or place of business.

So what can you do to stay safe during a road trip (or any time)?

Rest
- Make sure you are well rested before taking a trip if you are the one driving.
Stay clear
-Keep your mind clear and focused on your driving to avoid going off the road.
Make stops
-Allow enough time for plenty of stops to refresh yourself.
Bring plenty of things to do
-Bring toys and things for youngsters to do to avoid fights and distractions.
Two drivers
-If you can, have two drivers to take turns to avoid falling asleep at the wheel.
Check car
-Before you go on your trip, have your car checked for low tires, chips in windshield, etc.
Bring plenty of water
-Staying well hydrated will keep you more alert.
Bring emergency supplies
-Always have emergency road service supplies in trunk in case of emergency.
Bring a cell phone
-Have a phone in case of emergency and have your insurance number and emergency contact handy.

Do a last minute check

Check your car over right before you leave to make sure tires are safe and there are no chips in your windows.

What ideas do you have to make a road trip safe?
Leave a comment and let me know!
“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Safelite blogging program, for a gift card worth $30. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

Little switches can make a difference in your life!

Sometimes, life can get a bit boring. Even if you have the perfect marriage, you are the perfect mom, and your job is your dream job. Yes, sometimes you have to "switch it up" to keep things exciting! That's why I try to change things up a bit from time to time. Here are a few things I do in our family life.
Bringing back date night. My husband and I try to go out on date night, but not just eat out like we used to. We are trying new things together (nothing kinky, dont worry!) . We never go to the movies because we think the prices are crazy, but we just recently went to a Mystery Dinner! It was a blast!

Surprise trip. We also like to plan a trip (close to home)- I mean we DONT plan it. Sometimes, it's exciting to just get in the car and go. We have map quest on our phones so we dont get lost and we look up something nearby. We ended up turning a trip to fix a phone into a shopping day and I still think about how much fun we had. A trip doesnt have to cost a lot of money. Think of something thats cheap or even free and surprise your family!


Order in. We like to try different types of food other then the normal ordering pizza, so once in awhile, we get brave and order something we've never tried before.
Going out-alone. Yes, sometimes getting away from each other can switch things up. going out shopping alone refreshes things for me.
Taking the kids. Switching things by TAKING the kids on a date night. We can have fun with the kids coming too. Let them pick what you do for a change.
Family night. We dont have too many chances for family night, so planning a game night helps keep everyone updated on whats going on.
Taking kids out by themselves. I like to surprise the kids by taking them out by themselves and letting them pick where to go. They really love this and they can be a little more nicer and willing to help out more when I do this.
What do you do to switch things up in your life? SocialMoms and Cottonelle want to know and they are giving away a $25 gift card! Stop by and find out how you can win at: http://littleswitches.socialmoms.com/about .
“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Cottonelle blogging program, for a gift card worth $25. For more information on how you can participate, click here.” http://littleswitches.socialmoms.com/about

How do you keep your family happy?

Raising a family is very hard. You need to make sure they are healthy and safe, but have you thought about how to keep them happy? I have been going through a "happy" crisis with my kids at the moment. I have a six year old and fifteen year old at home (my oldest that lives on her own is on her own for happiness-lol) . When you have a teen, happiness is so hard to come by these days. I've been trying to keep him happy lately by helping him with his new found interest- kickboxing. The cost of kickboxing can be a lot, but sacrifising so your kids are happy, is part of a parents job, isn't it? He's also discovered girls, so he has been wanting better clothes and contacts. Yikes! The thing is, I will do what it takes to help him through the dreaded teen years. I know they can be hard and can have lasting effects. My youngest is going through a boredom crisis, so we've been trying to find out what works to keep her happy as well. Summer is coming up soon and I dread having to find entertainment for her on a daily basis. Lately, I have found that she simply wants to spend more time with me. Simple, yet hard to come by free time when you have two businesses. We both like to draw, so I've found that is easy to fit in my schedule. I'm sure that lots of parents find it hard to find free time to keep their family happy. We did just take our first trip together in a long time. We didn't go far-actually, we even stayed in the same state. A little trip, but this was the best time we all had together in a long time. So, I guess sometimes happiness can cost you a lot in money, and other times, it doesn't cost you a dime to keep your family happy. Social Moms and Farm Rich want to know what you do to keep your family happy? They are even highlighting excerpts from your posts, tweets and tips to be collected and featured on http://farmrichsnacks.socialmoms.com, and distributed across the web for all to see! You can also have a chance to win $25 gift card from Walmart. “I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Farm Rich blogging program, for a gift card worth $25. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

Redbox is cool!

Have you heard about Redbox?

My daughter told us about this awesome way to rent movies. No lines. Convience. Cheap rental.

During St. Patrick’s Day month, Redbox is having a Lucky to Have Friends Like You promotion to give everyone a chance to find out how great they are!

Sign up here and spread the word about redbox and you'll earn a free online rental credit every time a friend rents online using your referral link through March 17th.



I am entering a giveaway for free redbox movies and movie snack packs as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club.

10 tips for getting away with great family travel deals.

It's getting to that time of the year when we start thinking about vacations. Because of our schedules and limited time and finances, I have to get creative when it comes to saving money. This allows us to be able to give our kids the chance to get away once in a while.



Alamo and Social Moms have teamed up because they want to know how families beat the rising cost of everything and what deals they use to make it happen!

Here are ten tips I use to get away:

1. Go on off season. We always go off season when we travel. Especially when we go to Florida. November is the best month to go in my opinion. It's not as hot and the lines are shorter.

2. Use company deals. The company my mom worked for offers special deals to their employees. They also have nice suites and cabins at very discounted prices, which is very cool!

3. Online coupons. I love using the internet for deals. Check different travel sites to find packages.

4. Booking a package. Booking your rental car and flight together will save you tons!

5. Save up points. If you belong to My Rewards or other point rewards programs, you can save them up and cash them in at resturaunts and other places to shop while on vacation.

6. Miles. Use your frequent miles-everyone should know about this!

7. City deals. We will be going to St. Louis this summer and by checking online, I discovered that you can get a city membership/pass to go to different attractions at discounted price-oh yeah!

8. Groupon. This is becoming very popular. Check to see if you can get a deal for the place/attraction you want to go to.

9. Stay close. Going to a neighboring city will save gas and time. Find out what attractions are near to where you live and enjoy a vacation near home. Sometimes, these are more relaxing then going far away.

10. Free tickets. Buy one get one free tickets save a fortune, like Adventureland or places like that. Look at your local supermarket to see if they carry them.

I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Alamo blogging program, for a gift card worth $25.

What if you were abducted?

What would your kids miss most about you if you were abducted by aliens?
When we started first seeing the commercials for Disney's new movie, Mars Needs Moms, I wondered if my kids would even notice I was gone. Then, I really started getting curious about what it was they would notice that I did for them. I always tell them that I do way too much for them and they could never survive without me (my husband included).

We started to make a game out of it, by having the kids not come and ask me to help them with anything that they might come across during the day. Boy, by the end of the day, they really realized how much they would miss me if I was gone-I would hope that a simple, I miss you cause I love you would fall in the equation.

Funny, that Social Moms and Disney would have a contest to do with what kids would miss if their mom was abducted by aliens. They are asking for moms to list ten things that their kids would miss if THEY were abducted.

Here are our top ten things your kids would miss most about you if you were abducted by aliens:

1. Making them after school snacks-it's not like I don't put fruit and Little Debbies in our cupboard and fridge for easy access.
2. Finding lost toys and other items-this is a big problem in our house. If it's not right in front of their nose, they can't seem to open drawers or lift anything to see.
3. Reading games- The littlest one cant fully read her games, so mom to the rescue.
4. Taking them to the store-dad could do it, but won't.
5. Cuddle with them before bedtime-awwwww!
6. Keeping fights at bay-they would kill each other if I wasn't here.
7. Helping with homework-or, should I say, DOING homework.
8. Hugs- That one was definitely just Emily. Maybe Jordon would miss them-maybe.
9. Feed the dogs-they would miss the dogs if they starved to death.
10. Make the best desserts-They love my cupcakes.

Do I have you thinking what your kids would miss? Ask them and see what they come up with!
“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms blogging program, for a gift card worth $25. For more information on how you can participate, click here

Simple changes

This year I wanted to change some things in my family's life to help make it better. I felt like we live a fast paced life and not the most healthy one either. I knew I had to do something when my son went as far as to have a teacher print out what healthy foods kids should eat. Oh boy what an eye opener! I knew I really didn't pay attention to our health, but I didn't know that my kids wanted to be healthier as well.

When I heard about Social Moms and Simply Orange wanting to know what simple changes people have been making in their lives, I had to get on board!

I didn't really want to make these New Year's Resolutions, just changing our way of life. Here are simple changes we made in our lives.

1. Change what we eat for breakfast. All of us either skip breakfast, or grab something fast. Usually, that meant a doughnut or fast food. Now, I make it a point to send the kids off with something nutritious, like an orange or oatmeal in a container that they can take with. On weekends, it's eggs and wheat toast.

2. Sit down for meals. Dinner was eaten in the living room in front of the tv. Now, we sit at the table, which allows us to spend time together to find out what the kids did at school.

3. Exercise. Another simple change was adding family exercising. Taking a walk together a couple of times a week allows us to spend time together and get in shape too!

4. Going on a budget. This may seem hard, but it was quite simple. Now, we have more money to spend on family night!

5. Be nicer. This is the most simple change you can do in your life. Being positive to others in your life can bring positive into your life. I've been trying to stop and take a breath before lashing out if I am in a bad mood. Not taking it out on others keeps you from feeling guilty later.

What simple changes would you make in your life if you could? Or, what changes have you made already? I would love to hear from you, or you can join Social Moms and list your own to win $25 Target card.

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Simply Orange® blogging program. If I am one of the first 65 blogs received by SocialsMoms, I will receive a $25 Target gift card and a gift pack that includes a Simply Orange® cooler bag and logoed fleece."

Possibilites

I love this opportunity with Twittermom and Oprah!
Oprah wants to know what "your aspirations and plans for new possibilities in your life is". The Oprah Winfrey show is starting a new series called OWN. Oprah Winfrey Network is going to include specials on informing and inspiring people to live their best life they can. Its kind of like making a New Year's Resolution and doing it!
This is such good timing!
My aspirations and plans for new possibilities for the next year is going to be exciting! I am going to finally get brave enough to get serious with my photography business! I have been doing it on the side for two years now and never had the courage to branch out to do it full time. I love being an artist but never had the confidence to depend on my artistic ability to make a living. I hate what I do right now and have been depressed for some time, though my main business (daycare) has brought joy in the first coup[le of years of business. I had wanted to stay at home to be with my children, butI didn’t have the courage to take a chance doing something in the art field-my true desire. When I decided to do photography, I did it as a side business. That way, if I failed, I wouldn’t disappoint anyone (but myself) I had my ah ha moment and really just told myself that I'm going to do it. You only live once, after all!
I think this OWN will be such an inspiration for me and the fact it is starting the same time that I am is so cool. I feel the Oprah Winfrey Network will be holding my hand along the way. NOT to sound too dorky. Lol.
What would you do to change your life? Are you thinking about starting a new business? Getting married? Moving to your dream city? Let's all decide to take that scary but exciting step to change our lives for the best. Don't be afraid or negative anymore. I'm not and I'm very excited about it and by this time next year, I plan on having that successful photography business and all the perks that goes along with it, like being able to take time off to go to my kids schools for activities. I’m glad that I was able to write this post because I’ve been thinking about writing something about my plans for sometime now and this was the other little push to do it.Oprah Winfrey Network








The New Oprah Winfrey NetworkI wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network blogging program, for a $50 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

Hersheys is at it again!

Hershey wants to know about who I would give a gift boxed chocolates to and why!

I would send a gift boxed chocolate to my daughters teacher, because she has been the kindest teacher that any of my kids have had. It's my daughter's first year at school and she was very nervous. Her teacher helped her adjust and now she is fine!

Who would you give one to?

A. Family

B. Friends/Co-Workers

C. Host/Hostess

D. Teachers

E. Service Providers (i.e. mailman, hairstylist)

F. Other – who did we miss?

Visit Celebrate with Hersheys today!

I am entering a contest for a Hershey’s Pot of Gold prize pack as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club.

A good cause-The Heart of Haiti

Heart of Haiti is helping to rebuild Haiti through "Trade, Not Aid." This means that the Heart of Haiti is using commerce and culture to create social change. This won't just help one-time, it is creating opportunities for Haitian artisans to earn income by creating jobs and income for the people of Haiti.

Through the sale of Heart of Haiti products, artisans are able to be proud by earing income for themselves, their families, and their communities. The Heart of Haiti collection is an array of handmade products for the home -- quilts, metalwork, ceramics, and paintings -- created by Haitian artisans. Each item is designed by a Haitian master artisan and produced by hand in Haiti from recycled materials.

The Heart of Haiti collection has already led to employment of 350 artists in Haiti and has provided some financial benefits for an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 people in the country.

What's great is, most items fall in the $25-$60 range-you can find them here at Heart of Haiti collection on Macys.com.

Please help spread the word about this amazing opportunity for Haitians!

I am writing this post to spread the word about Heart of Haiti through a Mom Bloggers Club member program and that you will receive a Heart of Haiti pendant as a thank you.

10 tips for smart holiday shopping

Make your own gift paper.
There are so many cute craft papers out there these days. Save money on wrapping paper and make it more personable.

Draw names.
Christmas can be expensive if you have a large family. Suggest everyone put their names in a hat and draw names to pick for presents this year.

Take a break.
My favorite part of shopping is enjoying a treat for myself! Give yourself a well deserved spa treatment or pedicure. Buy yourself a new coat to wear while you shop for others. You'll feel less stress when you look your best!

Shop with a buddy.
Having someone with you can help you if you are in a jam for ideas. Two heads are better then one, especially if you need someone of the opposite sex to help find a present for husband, father, etc. Enjoy a nice cup of coffee at a local coffee shop while you are out.

Christmas doesnt have to be stressful.
Invite family members over and make hot cocoa and cookies. Have everyone bring a dish of some sort so you aren't doing all the cooking. This could be a good time to draw names for presents instead of having to buy for everyone.

Reuse gift bags.
I ALWAYS keep all the gift bags I get. Some are so pretty that I hate to reuse them! Pack any christmas bags you get this year with your ornaments and next year, you'll be so thankful that you saved money by not having to get new bags!

Vaseline is not just for babies butts

Twittermom is at it again! They've teamed up with Vaseline to ask everyone what they use Vaseline for. Vaseline Petroleum Jelly is celebrating its 140th Anniversary and they would like to celebrate with their users. tweets and tips will be collected and featured on http://vaseline140.twittermoms.com/, and distributed across the web for all to see.

I personally use Vaseline every day to remove makeup and soften my lips, but there are so many more uses for it!

Here are my 10 tips for different uses for Vaseline:

1. Lip balm of course. It moisturizes and soothes chapped lips and makes them shiny.
2. Moisturizes dry skin- If your elbows are dry, you just need a dap of it.
3. Hand and feet moisturizer-it hydrates and smooths chapped hands and feet. Apply some petrolatum jelly to your hands and feet and then put on mittens and socks. Wait about 10-15 minutes for the vaseline to soak into the skin.
4. Put under eyes before applying cover stick. It will make makeup go smoother.
5. Eye makeup remover- removes stubborn mascara without irritating the eye area.
6. face scrub- mix petrolatum jelly with coffee grounds to make your own scrub.
7. Cream for night time. Warm up jelly a bit and apply to face.
8. Put some vaseline on the base of your nails will stop the color from running.
9. Use for shaving. Use a thin layer over legs before shaving for a smooth shave. Don't use water! 10. Use under blush for soft look. Apply lightly under jaw line.


Now, you need to let everyone know what YOU use Vaseline for. Get on board and blog 10 tips for what you use Vaseline for-it's great fun!

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Vaseline blogging program, making me eligible to get a $25 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

Have you thought about changing your health benefits?

My husband's insurance used to be awesome. We had great dental, which was very helpful since my youngest went through some expensive dental work. Then, when the recession hit, his company went cheap and which insurance companies. We had to make a lot of decisions and we were lost. It was scary and we didn't know what we should do. I hate the insurance we have now and if given a choice, I would love to change some things on our policy, starting with the premium we pay.

Have you ever thought about how your physical health relates to your financial health? Did you also know that you can give yourself a personal health care makeover in under sixty minutes? I never realized that just little changes to your health care plan could have a big impact on how your finances work. What's more important to you? What you pay for co payment? Or, going to a doctor without a referral?


Making health care changes is doesn't have to be hard. You just have to know what's right for your family. I got the chance to find out about how to get the most out of your health care here.
Somethings that I never thought about when deciding on how to put your health care package together.

Here are 5 tips for getting your health care plan in order.

1. Compare different plans and make sure you can afford the premiums that you have to pay in case of a health problem. You never know when the difference between a cheaper premium can be the difference between affording groceries or not.
2. Always ask for generic version of the prescription. Pharmacists don't automatically give generic drugs which can be very inexpensive.
3. Ask it your plan has preventive care that is included in your coverage. Health care plans that include free preventive care save more money in the long run for both patient and insurance provider.
4. Some offer prescriptions drastically cheaper if mailed to you. My mom gets some medicine for only $5.
5. The most important tip is to keep yourself healthy. Take care of your body and eat right will keep the doctor appointments at bay!

Take time to do a 60 minute health care plan makeover to help your finances get in check. Your family will thank you for it!

I would love to hear your ideas on a health care makeover that you could do for your family's finances. Leave a comment and let me know!

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Aetna blogging program, making me eligible to get a $30 Target gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

Trick or treating with Hersheys this year

Hersheys and MomBlogger's Club want to know how I will be celebrating my Halloween this year. I LOVE Halloween, so this is easy!

We love to take one of the trick or treat nights to handout treats to the cute little trick or treaters. I lvoe chocolate, so we like to include Kit Kats in our bowl.

We always go to the pumpkin patch and pick out the best pumpkins to decorate. After we carve tm, we bake the seeds and eat them-yum!

I run a daycare, so we make up crafts and put them in bags with some sweet treats for the neighbors as well.

We also get lots of Hershey's candies and popcorn and watch scary movies all weekend long!

You can plan a great Halloween weekend as well! Visit :http://www.hersheys.com/celebrate/Halloween/ and check out their yummy recipes and ideas for some scary treats the family will love.

"I am entering a contest for a Hershey’s Halloween prize pack as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club."

Looking for a baby photographer?

This is ironic to have this come along when I am turning to specializing in baby photography. If you have a little one and looking for a photographer who specializes in taking baby photos. BABYPHOTOGRAPHERS.COM is just the place to help you capture your baby’s best moments!

I surfed through this site and found lots of great photographers out there. Babyphotographers.com is a great resource for parents seeking information about baby photography. They have great articles on baby photography, featured baby photographers and they are even running a contest now that you could win $2,000 worth of baby photography!

The best part is I'm listed there as well!!

Check out this site and find the perfect photographer for your baby. :)

The Shox Scooter

We finally received our Shox Scooter for Emily to try. It is made by Shred Sled- a company that specializes in extreme sport products for kids. We have been excited to get this toy to ride since she's been wanting one like her big brother's scooter.

This scooter is the first ever active sock absorber scooter-this means that kids are able to perform higher and faster tricks. NOT, that my Emily will be performing tricks any time soon.

This scooter is great for beginners and advance riders. We geared her up and let her try it out back at first. (sorry, I didn't get a a picture of her!) She got the hang of it quickly and the lightweight alulimum makes it easy for her to handle the turns.

I liked the foot surface and felt that it makes it easy for their feet to get a grip on it. Emily played on it to entire afternoon until I finally had to tell her it was time to go in.

If you are wanting to find the perfect scooter for your child, Irecommend the Shox Scooter.

Flavorful Low-Sodium Family Meals

I'm sure that everyone has a bottle of Mrs. Dash Salt-Free Original Seasoning Blend. We use this with everything. Back when I was little, my mom would use the orginal blend. Now, you can find many blends, like Fiesta Lime, Garlic & Herb just to name a few. You can find many more here.

Creating "Flavorful Low-Sodium Family Meals" for my family is basically a daily happening. Using Mrs. Dash in in an assortment of recipes. I just can't see myself not using it. Three of my favorite recipes that includes Mrs. Dash's spices are meatloaf, scrambled egg burittos, and lemon pork chops.

Meatloaf:

2 lb ground beef
2 eggs
cup of bread crumbs
cup of Shredded cheese
1 chopped onion
Mrs. Dash Original Blend

Mix beef, eggs, onions together. sprinkle Mrs. Dash in mixture and place in cooking dish. Bake at 350 for 45 mins and add cheese and stick back in oven for another 5 mins.

Egg Buritos

5 eggs
cut up bacon (7 strips)
Diced tomatoes
Diced onoins
10 Burrito shells
Bagof shredded cheese
Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime

Lemon Pork Chops

4 Pork chops
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 stick of butter
Mrs. Dash Garlic blend


Check out the assortment of Recipes Mrs. Dash offers with the use of their products. There are over 429, though I am sure there may be some more out there that people haven't posted yet.
There are endless varieties of using Mrs. Dash seasoning blends to spice up any food. The reason I love Mrs. Dash seasonings is that they are salt-free. There is no medical reason why I don't use salt, I just choose not to. Mrs. Dash seasonings are all natural too. You have to love that.
Disclosure: I wrote this blogpost while participating in the Mrs. Dash and TwitterMoms blogging program for a chance to get a $50 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.

five simple things you can do for your child to help keep their smiles healthy and bright

With school back in session, my thoughts were on keeping my kids teeth healthy. Twittermoms and Trident Sugar Free Gum are concerned about kid's teeth too! They are wanting to know what moms do to keep their kid's teeth healthy and strong.
Trident Sugar Free Gum was the first brand of it's kind to do studies which showed that those who chewed Trident experienced significantly fewer cavities.
Some interesting facts about Trident Gum:
Chewing Trident sugar free gum for 20 minutes after a meal can help fight cavities. Xylitol, a sugar free sweetener in Trident, has been shown to loosen plaque.
Trident is available in 11 great flavors so kids have lots to choose from!
Brush: Remind children to brush their teeth at least twice a day for two minutes each time, using no more than a pea-size amount of fluoride toothpaste.
Our favorite flavors are bubblegum, spearment, cinnamon, and fruit-plus a whole lot more. We make sure that we grab a pack every time we are at the store. I really feel that Trident helps in keeping cavities at bay.
With my youngest having lots of caveties due to nursing, I’m very concerned about taking care of the rest of her teeth since we went through a lot of dental work. Especially when her pernament teeth come in. I try different methods to keep her interested in brushing. When Trident wanted to know 5 ideas from me, I rushed to type mine!
5 Simple things you can do for your child to keep their smiles healthy and bright:
1. Don't forget to brush their teeth - It can be easy to forget to brush. Getting in a good habit of brushing is a great start.
2. Three times a day - You can't only brush once a day. Morning, noon and night time should be how often they brush.
3. Brush long enough - Have child sing the ABC song or Happy Birthday song to time how long to brush.
4. Make it fun - Let them pick out their toothbrush and toothpaste flavor. They will be more apt to brush more.
5. Make it a family event - Brush the same time that they do to show them that everyone needs to brush their teeth.
Have fun with this and make your own post on what you do to help keep your kid's teeth healthy.
“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Trident blogging program, making me eligible to get a $25 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”