In the course of my life, I can vividly recall two incidents where I got a black eye.  One was earned when I was walking on top of ladder-style monkey bars and lost my footings... a few days before my First Communion.

The other was from a hard ball flying out into right field where I was firmly positioned.  The batter cracked it my direction and I estimated where I needed to be.  Then I stood there for what seemed like an eternity with my glove in place and waited for the ball to come.  Figuring I had misjudged my position, I moved my glove just as the ball would have landed in my glove.

It's not that the event itself was such a good memory, but it's a solid reminder of a time in my life that I've probably never thanked my parents for.  A chance to be part of something.  A time that taught me about inspiration, hard work and teamwork.  You see, the right field that I stood on had been a real field just a few years before... and still would have been had it not been for the actions of my parents.  I lived in a rural area and my parents took the initiative to build a Little League baseball field from the ground up.  They followed that up a few years later with a softball field.

There's a whole lot to that story that I can share at another time.  I'm just thankful for what my parents did and praise anyone who puts forth the same efforts.  If you'll be watching the Super Bowl commercials, keep an eye out for the Frosted Flakes commercial... it kind of puts my story into perspective.  Actually, you can watch the commercial now on their website!

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Thanks to everyone who entered! 

Congratulations to Charlotte (Life's a Charm) for her entry into the Vaseline Clinical Therapy Lotion giveaway. 

In case you missed it, I've started a new contest for a SmartShopper Grocery List Organizer - one very slick gadget.  Stop by and enter!

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Like most other people, I'm trying to rethink my eating habits for the new year.  I'm not doing the best job at it, but at least it's in the back of my mind.  For Christmas, I received a much-needed Crock Pot upgrade. I decided to start planning a meal for the Crock Pot for each Monday since we have after-school programs that make planning dinner a headache. I also made a point to start scanning my various cookbooks and Cooking Light magazines for healthier dinner alternatives.

The very first week that I did this, I picked out three new recipes. Since I try to do all my shopping on one day, I usually make a decent list then head to the store. That Friday, DH said "Let's grab some lunch then hit the grocery store. We're out of bread and other stuff." He was right, we couldn't even make school lunches let alone sandwiches for us. I said "Sure, let's go get the necessities."

We got to the local grocery store and he glanced at my hand-scribbled list. Baffled, he asked "Where are all the ingredients for the new recipes?" I said "I haven't written them down yet." He replied "I thought that's why we were coming." Misunderstanding, I guess. I thought we were just getting the basics. That afternoon, I sat down and wrote my grocery list for the new recipes.

So the following day, we headed out to WalMart. Figured we could get everything there while picking up a present for one of Miss M's classmates. Guess what... they didn't have one of the ingredients I needed. I would need to stop by the grocery store, again, the following day. Good thing, because I realized that when I transferred my recipe list onto my grocery scratch pad, I missed something anyhow.  Three grocery trips in three consecutive days just for the sake of a few new recipes is not reasonable.

But this past week we hit Sam's Club a little more prepared. Then the other day flew through WalMart with a nicely prepared list including notes about which products to use coupons on.

It wasn't that I had created a new shopping style... it was because I was using my brand-new SmartShopper Grocery List Organizer.  OMG.  It's the coolest gadget.  It's magnetic and sticks to your fridge (or has mounting clips for hanging elsewhere.)  When I realize we're almost out of something, I walk to the SmartShopper, press the button and say "Milk" and it brings up a list of three items that it thinks I may mean.  If the item is among them, I click the select button and it adds it to my list.  Trying to use it when you have a cold is a little more difficult since the computer can't decipher stuffy-nose language.  Even Miss M (age 6) and Miss K (age 4) have added items to our list! 

When I am running through a recipe, I remove it from the fridge and set it next to me to record the items as I realize I need them.  No more chicken scratches on note paper to decode while at the store and no more missing items when I recopy my recipe list onto my grocery list. 

Let me tell you though, keep the printed master list of items handy until you get the hang of it.  All four of us tried to get the SmartShopper to recognize that we wanted to buy "Pears" at the store but none of us could get it.  No matter how we enunciated or spun it, it just couldn't figure out Pears.  I finally broke down and looked at the list to find that it isn't included.  But no biggie, there's a feature to add items AND record the voice to go with it. So next time we say it, it knows what we want.  It also recognizes some brand names so be sure check the list or ask for something by name first if you have a preference.  If it's not on the list, you can always add it.

A cool feature is that it can maintain two separate lists.  I keep one for the grocery store/WalMart and another for Sam's Club.  If you only want to maintain one list, you can utilize the second one for errands.  You can choose from the 65 existing - such as bank, library, post office and even ones like "donate blood" - or add your own.

As I said before, there's an option to add a coupon note or even change the quantity.  When you're ready to go, print out the list and head off.  It's all separated by categories like produce, dairy and pet.  Click on the picture for a better view. 

This is such a cool gadget that I've already started using it daily!  If you think this will help you organize your life, check out SmartShopper's website for participating retailers or Amazon.  Otherwise, here's your chance to win one! 

One SmartShopper Grocery List Organizer.
Participants -
...must provide a US mailing address.
...must provide an email in the first comment, email me directly with an email address or have email accessible from their profile. Winner has 72 hours from posting/notification to respond.  If winner cannot be contacted, I will move on to the second random selection.

Sometime on February 6, 2009, a winner will be chosen at random (using random.org) from all comments left.

How to enter:

For the first entry -
(1) Check out SmartShopper.
(2) Come back here and mention a specific fact or detail you read about the product that wasn't referenced in my review.

For additional entries -
(a) Earn an additional entry by adding my NEW button to your sidebar.  Not in a scrolling bar that requires a wait of more than a minute for it to show up.  Come back here and leave a comment stating that you did so. 

(b) Link to SmartShopper. Come back here and leave an additional comment stating that you did so.

(c) Earn THREE additional entries if you publish a blog post regarding this contest and link back to it. Come back here and leave THREE comments providing the link to your post.
(d)  Earn one additional entry for sharing this post via one of the following:  Digg, Stumble, Facebook, or Twitter.  Leave a comment with which ONE you did and your ID for that service. 

(e) Leave an extra comment if you subscribe to my feed.

(f) Follow me using the Blogger feature (there's a button on the top of the page.)  Of course, don't forget to leave a comment.

Be sure to check out my other reviews and giveaways and stay tuned for more to come!

146 comments

Congratulations to Rhonda Martin (exotic1) for the bonus entry that won her the Dove Beauty package!

For those who didn't win, be sure to enter my other giveaways!  There are a few currently running that end yet this week and I'll be starting some new ones this week also!

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I'm not one to go shopping. The things I like don't fit and the things that fit make me feel frumpy.

So DH went to work to custom design some new digs for me. Hours of blood, sweat and tears. Lots of measuring, color picking, trying it on for size then making adjustments and trying again. It's done and now I finally get to show it off.  Maybe I'm biased, but I think it looks great.

No, it's not a new outfit - it's my new template here at SAHM Reviews.  It was all part of the Christmas present he gave me that started with him registering the SAHM Reviews domain.  He's done pretty much all he can do for now and has handed it off to me.  I'll be working to fill in a little bit of background information and add details to allow advertisers and public relations representatives to easily contact me.  As I type this, I'm beaming with pride.... I am so excited about it.

For those of you who don't remember what my old design looked like, I'm still using it on my personal blog, SAHM Ramblings.

In addition to my regular network reviews, I've been working directly with some PR firms to have the chance at reviewing awesome products for reputable companies.  During my scheduled trip to BlogHer09 this summer, I hope to meet personally with professionals in the industry to strengthen existing working relationships and create many new ones.  Having an image that fits the role is important to my success in forging ahead with SAHM Reviews and taking it to the next level. 

What does all this mean for my reader?  Hopefully great content on interesting products with giveaways thrown in as icing on the cake.  I would love to hear what everyone thinks!  If you experience any difficulties with the new layout, please drop me a line so it can be addressed and corrected.

If you're reading this via RSS or email please drop by and check out the new look!

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I don't recall when it was, but back in my younger days, I used to bet people $5 that they couldn't find the states on the back of a $5 bill.  I even gave them a chance to look it over before accepting the bet.  More often than not, they would flip it over find the word "States" as in "United States of America" and say "It's a trick.  You're just going to point at that."  Before I go any further, I want to explain that no money ever exchanged hands so technically it wasn't a bet.  It was more just an opportunity to show off something that lots of people didn't know.

Smiling, I would say "No, that's not it. It's not a trick.  Keep looking. Iowa is even on there."  They would continue their search and sometimes say "There it is! I didn't know that was on there."  It was more likely that they would just throw in the towel and ask. 

All these years later, I decided to teach the same lesson to Miss M and Miss K.  As a way to introduce them to our new EyeClops BioniCam, I helped get it into focus at 100x magnification and they set out to find "Iowa" on the back of the $5 bill.

As cool as the cash was, the kids were tired of looking at it and wanted to explore the rest of the house. 

I brought it to Miss M's school the other day for her teacher and explained that they are welcome to borrow it if they could work it into the curriculum.  He showed it to them that afternoon. The next day, he said the kids were already asking for it again.

The EyeClops BioniCam actually has video capabilities also but we were enjoying just snapping regular digital pictures of it.  When the kids (Miss M, Miss K, DH) were done fiddling with it, I pulled out the USB Drive and popped it into my computer to easily download the pictures. 

For reference, this isn't something we had purchased.  Jakks Pacific sent this for DH to try out because I had been joking with my Jakks representative about how DH thought it was cool.  She was smart to ship it to us because we absolutely love it and can see a lot of educational benefit to a 'toy' like this. 

A few noteworthy issues that I want to point out though.  There are different versions of this product so make sure you get the one with the USB drive.  If you do buy the one with the USB drive, don't miss pulling it from the package.  It's not inside the rest of the clam shell packaging but rather attached direct to the cardboard box with it's own little viewing window on the front of the box.  (I almost threw ours out!)  Finally, if you do upload the pictures and plan to keep them you should rename them as to what they are. When something is magnified, it's difficult to recall what was this or that and when you upload another batch, the numbering starts at PIC001.jpg again.

Overall, this is an awesome toy that can be used for fun or for educational purposes.

If anyone is interested in purchasing one, I'm absolutely shocked to see it on sale today at Amazon!  It's normally $79.99 but today it's under $27!

Thanks to Jakks for allowing us to try this product out!

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When I was in college, I was the historian for our chapter of Delta Sigma Pi (business fraternity). The job of the historian was to keep records of the activities of the chapter, including a photo album. Instead of doing what historians before me had done and taking pictures and compiling them into an album, I created a scrap book. Mind you, this was way before scrapbooking had evolved into what it is today. I have decided that my time as historian sucked every ounce of creativity out of my body because these days... I have zilch.

Couple my lack of confidence with my lack of creativity and the result is that I don't do much craft stuff. I would love to, but I just don't make the time and commit to it. Part of me keeps telling myself that as the girls get older, I'll start back up again. For Christmas, I actually looked at latch hook projects hoping that maybe there would be a beginner one that I could start Miss M on.  No such luck.

I admire people's work on Etsy and other websites, in books and magazines and at craft shows.  Although I'm not actively working on craft projects, I do enjoy seeing how these different hobbies are changing and people are making businesses out of them.  The one thing I am proud of is my new hobby of gardening.  Not really that I'm good at it, but I'm learning and reaping some healthy benefits. 

Once again, Mom Central presented me with an intriguing blog tour. A newsletter presented by Crafts n Things magazine.  I opted to participate in this because I wanted to see what they had for gardening ideas since I'm still learning the ropes.  I also believe that lack of creativity does not mean you have a lack of ideas.  With magazines like Crafts n Things, there are plenty of ideas around and seeing some of it could inspire some creativity.  If not, there are a great variety of predesigned projects... and some really cute ones too.

I flipped through the magazines when I received them and was amazed at the detail of the projects.  For example, it wasn't just a picture of a blanket to crochet.  It was a picture, a list of required supplies, a legend of abbreviations being used and step by step directions.  So often when I flip through magazines, I see a great idea then look at the directions only to find that they're written for people who totally know what they're doing.  It's intimidating and doesn't make me want to attempt any of it.  The Crafts n Things magazines make me think "Hey, that doesn't sound so hard. Maybe I should find a small project and dip my feet back in."

But this magazine provides a wealth of ideas for people who already have their feet wet in crocheting, knitting, sewing, quilting, glass fusing, card making, embossing, stitching, paper crafting, stamping, painting, felting, oh geez, there are so many things... And their free newsletter gives some great ideas at no charge. (Hence the term "free").  Go ahead and sign up for it... it doesn't cost anything.  You may find some new unique ideas for home decor, gift giving, and gardening. 

Thanks to Mom Central for the nudge.  Guess I should go pull out my crochet stuff and get to work on a cute project... just to say that I still can.  It's like riding a bike, right?

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My package arrived and included boxes of Special K Italian Tomato and Herb crackers and Special K Multi-Grain crackers in the 90 calorie packs. When I saw the multi-grain ones, I immediately thought "Oh, Special K's version of Wheat Thins. Whoopee." Given a choice, Wheat Thins would not be on the top of my list. So I tried the Italian Tomato and Herb ones first.

I'll tell you what, those are fantastic. If you put a box of White Cheddar Cheese Its in front of me, I could eat the entire box. They taste awesome but I never feel totally satisfied and just keep eating. That's not the case with the Special K Italian Tomato & Herb crackers - they tasted great but are hearty enough that I didn't feel the urge to just sit and eat them all. DH and Miss K both tried them and liked them also. Miss K smiles whenever she sees me eating them and proudly helps herself to a small handful. My mom and dad both tried them and liked them also with my mom commenting that they taste great alone. I was enjoying eating them with cottage cheese as part of a light lunch or alone for a snack.

Overall, this has been an eye opening experience. Not only did I find that Special K makes more than breakfast cereal, but I also found out that the other stuff is good! As fate would have it, right after receiving this sample, our local grocery store had Special K cereal on sale. They have a lot more flavors than I realized. So we purchased Blueberry, Cinnamon Pecan and Chocolatey Delight. A friend had previously recommended the Cinnamon Pecan and I had tried it on a prior occasion and knew it was good but the Blueberry and Chocolatey Delight were new flavors for me. The Chocolatey Delight didn't last long once it was opened because DH and I both ate it!

2 comments

In November, I was battling a case of horribly chapped hands.  I hadn't started using the Dove products yet nor the Vaseline Clinical Therapy.  As part of my normal everyday routine, I wash my hands more times than I can count.  I could go on for a while listing the various events but you would get bored, leave and miss a great review.  Basically, I wash my hands a lot.  To top it off, I was using alcohol-based unsoaps at the gym and elsewhere.  And my hands reflected it.  They totally protested it.  They wanted to run away.  Yes, my hands wanted to run away.  Well, not literally.  But they were completely dry, cracked and bleeding.

Then on a trip to the local grocery store, I noticed bottles of Skin MD Natural on the counter by the pharmacy window.  There was a testing bottle sitting there just calling my name   So I tried it.  That's what it's there for, right?  Good products know to put out a sample bottle because they know you'll get hooked once you try it.

Guess what happened?  My hands loved it.  It's silky and doesn't feel at all greasy.  I'm not an impulse buyer so I wanted to research it at home before making a purchase.  I wasn't familiar with this particular brand nor with the terminology of shielding lotion as opposed to just lotion.

Low and behold, within days of that visit, I was contacted by 21st Century Formulations and Family Review Network asking if I wanted to test out to a bottle of Skin MD to review on my blog.  Well, since I was thinking of researching it anyhow and possibly buying it ummm, let me think... yeah. Duh. Of course!

As part of the campaign, I received a bottle of Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion plus Sunscreen in the mail a week or so ago.  Sunscreen in the summer makes total sense but how many people think about applying it when they aren't wearing a swimsuit?  You probably think you don't need sunscreen in the winter, but your skin is constantly exposed to UV rays.  Your face gets a double dose of UV rays in the winter as the sun is reflected off the snow.

I recall my MIL talking about how she used glycerin on chapped hands when she was a kid.  I've heard that from other people too.  Skin MD has a proprietary formulation that has a moisturizing factor of at least 6 times greater than glycerin. It only takes a little dab to cover your entire hands so make sure you pay attention while you're dispensing it.  I made the mistake of trying to put some on my hands while being distracted by the kids.  What a mess.  I had to rub my hands on Miss M's hands and arms just to get rid of the excess.  A little goes a long way.

If this lotion sounds like something you might like to try then check out the store locator for a test bottle near you.  They also offer a guarantee and samples.  When you're done checking the store locator, the guarantee and the information about the free samples, read on for how to enter my giveaway.

One bottle of Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion plus Suncreen SPF 15.

Participants -

...must provide a US mailing address.

...must provide an email in the first comment, email me directly with an email address or have email accessible from their profile. Winner has 72 hours from posting/notification to respond.  If winner cannot be contacted, I will move on to the second random selection.

Sometime on January 31, 2009, a winner will be chosen at random (using random.org) from all comments left. Winner will be posted on PRIZEYWinners.

(1) Check out Skin MD Natural and read the testimonials, how and why it works or view the video demonstration.

(2) Come back here and mention a specific fact you read about the product that wasn't referenced in my review.

(a) Earn an additional entry by adding my button to your sidebar.  Not in a scrolling bar that requires a wait of more than a minute for it to show up.  Come back here and leave a comment stating that you did so. 

(b) Link to Skin MD Natural. Come back here and leave an additional comment stating that you did so.

(c) Earn THREE additional entries if you publish a post regarding this contest and link back to it. Come back here and leave THREE comments providing the link to your post.

(d) Leave an extra comment if you subscribe to my feed.

I appreciate being included in this blog opportunity and sincerely want to thank Family Review Network and 21st Century Formulations.

Stop by Family Review Network for links to participating blogs for this and other group giveaways!

58 comments

My girls are a little young for the games that we played then but we still occasionally will play something like Animal Soup as a family. More often, the thing that includes all four of us revolves around one of our gaming consoles. We introduce them to a variety of cultural events, conventions and collector shows so we don't feel guilty about spending time playing video games with the kids.

Before Christmas, an EA (Electronic Arts) representative sent me Hasbro Family Game Night for the Wii. With the holidays, things were a bit crazy but I took it on vacation with us when we went to visit my MIL and BIL in Alabama. I'm so glad I did.  We really had a chance to put it to the test because there were five adults and two kids present to switch between the various games. It includes a variety of the games we grew up with like Yahtzee, Sorry, Connect 4, Battleship, Boggle along with a new game, Sorry Sliders.

Hasbro Family Game Night allows you to play in a few different modes with up to 4 players. Only have one controller? No fear - it's playable with only one but flows much better if each player has their own controller. I didn't find a way to use existing Mii characters so you just enter your name and pick from a short list of picture avatars (hot air balloon, soccer ball, a few faces). The process of adding a name is a bit daunting though since it uses a wheel format where you can only spin right/left until you hit your desired letter. A standard point/click virtual keyboard would be a much better option. Thankfully, you only have to add your name once and it stores it so it isn't that big of a deal.

The graphics for the entire thing are cute including animation when you select a game and when you put it away. As another example, Mr. Potato Head is the emcee for Sorry Sliders. The overall visuals of FGN are very colorful and enjoyable to watch.

As for sound effects - the game aspect is awesome but the sounds you hear in the background while playing your game get old very quick. Family friend, T, asked "Why are there sirens in the background? Does the family live in that kind of neighborhood? Let's have family game night in the slums." I swear I could have slugged him because now every time I play the game and hear the sirens that's all I can think of. At least it makes me laugh though.

The girls' favorite game was Sorry Sliders so I'll tell you a little about it first... It is fun with an easy learning curve. Adults playing it will probably put more of a strategic spin on it but kids can play it too. The remote took a few tries to figure out - swing it up like bowling. Reading the instructions would have solved that problem much quicker, but we were much too anxious to play to sit and read the instructions. Pfft. Same thing happens with every other item we own so it wasn't anything new to this video game.

I can't say which my favorite is - I really enjoyed revisiting Sorry.  I haven't played it in years and couldn't even remember the rules.  They take care of that for you by adding plenty of notes as to what the different cards do and what it takes to get out of the home.

I've always had a special place in my heart for Yahtzee.  When I got older I justified playing craps as being 'just like Yahtzee.'  Playing Yahtzee on Family Game Night was fun and even when playing solo doesn't seem quite as lonely as being the only person picking up the dice in the real-world version.  I've played Yahtzee type games on the PC before but you don't get the whole feel and experience of shaking the dice.  With the Wii controller in hand, you can shake to your heart's content.  One caution about Yahtzee in FGN for the Wii though - The scoring system is a bit glitchy.  You have the option of using the pointer or the arrow keys to record your score.  I can't explain it very well but will say that using the keys is a better choice because the pointer tends to jump to the wrong line.  You know how frustrating it is to have a large straight and go to score it but accidentally end up clicking 0 on full house?

Boggle was probably the game I was most surprised by.  I never played it much as a kid (although DH and his family did quite a bit).   Wasn't sure if I would enjoy it but once we started I got hooked.  When I should have been typing blog posts, I was playing Boggle.  As a family, we opted to play it as a team.  One person had the pointer and clicked the letters to spell the words.  The rest of us took turns shouting out the answers.  It's timed so having a steady hand with the Wii remote is a huge plus.  Oh - and learn to go fast since it's time.  It was comical when we first loaded it up because my husband, BIL and family friend were all fighting over whose turn it was next with the remote.  DH said to his mom "I can see you and the neighbors sitting around (the Wii) playing Boggle."  One cool feature of the Boggle game is that it had a hint at the bottom that showed how many letters the longest possible word remaining was - and what letter it started with.  When you finished the round, a list of possible words was displayed so it actually helps to improve your Boggle vocabulary.  I won't say it helps your overall vocabulary because we couldn't figure out what some of the words were or in what language.  T, the family friend who was playing with us is nationally ranked in Scrabble.  There were several words that he tried that weren't accepted.  I didn't realize that Scrabble and Boggle have different dictionaries but apparently they do.  But for those of us who aren't Scrabble brainiacs, there were plenty of words to keep us busy during our allotted time.

Miss M and I played Connect 4 - a game we don't even own.  She isn't familiar enough with the entire concept to see ahead to different moves but she picked up on it quickly and as long as I didn't rush to win we had a great time playing it. 

Overall, this is a very diverse game and a ton of fun.  Thanks to EA (Electronic Arts) for putting together a game that brings back such happy childhood memories for me and is reinventing family game nights for families everywhere!

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When I was a kid, Santa graced us with the holy grail of gifts - an Atari 2600.  We graduated in a Coleco then later a Nintendo 64.  I don't recall my parents ever having much interest in it.  Why should they since it was just a fancy electronic toy. 

I'm about the age right now that my mom was when we got the Atari.  Since I love video games, it makes me wonder if she would have enjoyed sitting and playing with us.  Maybe it was just a matter of frame of mind for the time.  Actually, I'm sure it is.  How do I know?  Because both my mom and my MIL were intrigued by my Wii Fit when they had a chance to try it out. 

During our visit to Alabama last summer, we took our Wii and Wii Fit with us.  Mainly as something to fall back on if the kids (or if we) got bored while we were there.  We took turns playing various games and the Wii Fit and all of us had a great time.  During our Christmas trip this year, we didn't need to tote it along.  My MIL already had her own.  Yes, my MIL is among the growing population of baby boomers who are finding a benefit to owning a Wii and Wii Fit.  Although my mom and dad don't own one, I can foresee it is something they will in the future - mainly because my mom continues to express interest in it and enjoys using mine when she is over.

Think about it - how many people get together to play bridge these days?  Canasta anyone?  Pinnacle?  My MIL played Wii games with her sister and BIL when they visited her for Thanksgiving.  She also played Boggle (Hasbro's Family Game Night) with us when were there at Christmas.  Not only does the Wii help get kids off their butts, it helps everyone.  At least anyone who is willing to give it a try.  If you can get over the fact that you may look silly, you'll enjoy yourself... and if there are several friends (of any age!) playing, chances are that you're not the only one looking goofy.  It's one of those things that makes you laugh and wish you had the camera rolling to earn yourself a cool $10k from funniest home videos.  Best part is that it is fun.  As an example, I tried out We Cheer for the Wii with my girls and found myself laughing constantly.  I actually encourage them to play it so I have an excuse to join in! 

But it's not just about the body, it's also about the mind.  The gaming consoles are creating mind games that put your cognitive skills to the test.  In my post about Zenses for the DS, I briefly told the story of how my MIL decided she wanted a Nintendo DS.  During one of her visits, we took her to GameStop and purchased a DS and Brain Age.  Aside from making her plane ride home more enjoyable, it was so she could play games like Brain Age.  She wants to keep her brain sharp and said that playing a variety of 'Brain' games on the DS was very effective.  The Nintendo DS is actually something I was going to recommend my folks purchase to help pass the time on their annual snow bird drive down south.

GameStop is seeing an increase in sales from people who are interested in the physical and mental benefits of console game systems (like the Wii and Wii Fit) and handheld game systems (like the DS).  They launched a January promotion called "Sharpen the Mind, Shape the Body."  Mom Central is hosting a blog tour about the GameStop promotion and I was almost begging to participate.  (Wave, wave. Hi GameStop. My MIL is the poster child for your "Sharpen the Mind, Shape the Body" promotion.)

Any of this sound like fun?  Stop by your local GameStop to find out whether you would benefit from a DS, a Wii, a Wii Fit or any of their other products.  They have open systems on display for testing out and the staff is always very helpful.  Too embarrassed to try it out in front of other people - call ahead and ask when their slow time is.

If you're thinking of making a purchase, ask about their special incentive - “all shoppers who spend $35 or more on designated products will receive a free 12-month trial subscription to their choice of Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Redbook, Good Housekeeping or Esquire.”  What's not to love about free magazines.

Once again, Mom Central is responsible for bringing about this review.  They are a wonderful, informative group and I want to thank them for this opportunity!

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Shortly after moving back to the Midwest, I was invited to a luncheon at a neighbor's house.  She's a nurse and had the nicest spread of healthy foods - all of it delicious.  Chicken salad on whole wheat pitas with sprouts instead of lettuce.  Fruit and other finger foods, too.  But of all the things she served that day, the one that stuck most in my head was a product I had never heard of before.  She called it Stevia and explained that it's an all natural sweetener that contains fiber.  She told me it could be found at health food stores or in the health food section of nicer grocery stores.

I was intrigued and it's been in the back of my mind ever since.  When I planted my garden this past spring, I recall seeing Stevia plants at the store.  When I decided I wanted to plant one, I went back to the store and found they were gone.  The guy told me it was a fluke that I even saw one.  Apparently they flew off the shelves.


My mom happened to be over when I received the box and immediately said "They don't sell that yet. I've been looking for it."  Completely dumbfounded, I asked my mom if she had heard of Truvia.  (As you recall, I had never heard of this before!)  She said "I've been hearing it on commercials for a little while now but haven't found it at the store yet."  DH opened up a packet and we all tasted it.  My mom said that it's sweeter than other products.  It was sweet, I agree.  But DH pointed out something that was more interesting.  It didn't have an aftertaste.  It was very clean tasting.  I was surprised to see how fine it felt and looked.  Artificial sweeteners look created.  Truvia doesn't.  That's probably because it's not artificial.  Best part is that it's calorie-free.

Now I have to say that I have a total sweet tooth.  I used about the same quantity (packets) of this that I typically do of other sweeteners.  But it's nice that it's natural and calorie-free.  I don't feel quite as guilty about using it. 

When I was at the store, I double checked to see if our local grocery store carried it.  They have the same box of packets that I received but don't carry it in bulk.  Not that I'm surprised - the other sweeteners entered the market the same way.  Besides, they don't even show the product in bulk on their website!  Their website does contain several recipes using Truvia though.

This naturally sweet review was made possible by Mom Central.

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Have you ever told someone about a really great restaurant.  Good food, easy to get a seat. Then one day you go back to the restaurant only to find that it's packed and you should have made reservations. Or maybe you find a favorite product and tell people about it then find it is always out of stock when you go to the store? Or when you get lousy service somewhere and tell everyone about it?

That's the power of Word of Mouth marketing and Vaseline experienced the positive side of it first hand. They gave samples of their new Vaseline Clinical Therapy lotion to one woman, Petal Ruch in Kodiak, Alaska. She recommended it to 27 of her friends. They recommended it to theirs and it went on and on.  Check out the YouTube videos about the story.

Between testing out the Dove, this wonderful Vaseline product and one other, I haven't had the cracked skin at all.  But since I wanted to really get an idea of the intensity of the Vaseline Clinical Therapy, I started using it on one of my very chapped heels but not the other.  With only a few weeks of using this, I was able to notice an extreme difference - what had been very rough skin is now becoming normal.  I'll continue to use it in the manner to see how much it improves... then I'll start using it on the both.

I love WoM marketing and live it. When Vaseline sent me a bottle to try, they provided me with a few others to hand out. I received 4 extra and proceeded to give them to my mom, my SIL and two friends from the gym. One of my friends from the gym said her hands felt so much better after just one night of using Vaseline Clinical Therapy. Like me, she's a mom of young children. That translates to washing your hands a lot of times throughout the day. It's bad enough with all the washing, but add the Iowa winter weather to the mix and it's horrible. Not nearly as cold as Kodiak, Alaska but still not very skin-friendly weather.  I had been experiencing some pretty nasty dry skin but it's really cleared up lately.  

The Vaseline representative also has one more bottle for me to "prescribe" to one of my readers! But before I get to that, I want to point out that they are sponsoring a sweepstakes on the Prescribe the Nation website. "Grand Prize (1): Glaciers/Denali/ Goldpanning In Alaska: An eight (8) day/seven (7) night trip for the Grand Prize winner and three (3) guests to Alaska." There are also coupons available on that site. I'll be sending you there as part of my giveaway so be sure to take advantage of these other promotions while you are there!

The Prize

Sometime on January 29, 2009, a winner will be chosen at random (using random.org) from all comments left. Winner will be posted on PRIZEYWinners.

How to enter:

(1) Go to Prescribe the Nation and read the story.

(2) Come back here and tell me one person (besides Petal) who participated and how many people they prescribed. (EDIT 10:30 am 1/17 - clarified rule.)

(a) Earn an additional entry by adding my button to your sidebar.  Not in a scrolling bar that requires a wait of more than a minute for it to show up.  Come back here and leave a comment stating that you did so.

(b) Link to Vaseline Clinical Strength. Come back here and leave an additional comment stating that you did so.

(c) Earn THREE additional entries if you publish a post regarding this contest and link back to it. Come back here and leave THREE comments providing the link to your post.

(d) Leave an extra comment if you subscribe to my feed.

(e) Follow me using the Blogger feature at the top of the next column.  Of course, don't forget to leave a comment.

Thanks to Vaseline for prescribing Clinical Therapy to me and providing extras for me to prescribe to others!

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Back in 2004, I found out that MMs had started doing personalized MM candies.  There were only a few color options and you could only add words.  I thought it was a neat concept - very new and different from anything else out there.  But for the price, it would have only been worth it for a very special occasion.  When my MM-loving MIL was getting ready to retire, I considered printing some up to send to her retirement party.  But nobody was as excited about it as me so I passed.

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Do you ever have something happen that gives you flashbacks to a little piece of what made you who you are? Not bad things, just silly stuff like why you may refuse to eat a particular food or use a particular product.

That happened to me recently when Dove representatives contacted me asking if I would be interested in trying their products. You see, back when I was in college, my doctor commented during a routine visit something to the effect of "Your skin is abnormally dry." Duh, doc. I live in Iowa... and it's winter. Dry skin is a given. Skin that is not dry is a rarity.  But he said that skin shouldn't be so dry that it is constantly cracked and bleeding - which mine was.  Fine, doc. What do you recommend? He said I should switch to a mild soap like Ivory. I don't recall what I was using, but it obviously wasn't good for my skin.  So I took his recommendation and bought Ivory.  I used it exclusively, even when I moved out of the frigid skin-cracking weather of Iowa.

Years later, my mom visited her dermatologist and was told that goat's milk soap is one of the least harmful soaps to use. After deciding she liked it, she purchased some from a local vendor and shipped it to me in California.  Moms know best, so I tested it out.  My sensitive skin didn't react to it and it became my new favorite soap. Each year for Christmas, my birthday or just when I would return to Iowa fro California, she would restock my supply.

I'll admit that I'm totally a cheapskate.  But even claims by Dove and other companies to take "The 7-Day Challenge" (or other similar satisfaction guaranteed or your money back promotions) didn't sway me. I was sticking to the "If it ain't broken, don't fix it" mantra.  When I would receive free sample bars of quality products, I would proudly put them in the guest bathroom for visitors to use.  I've religiously used the goat's milk soap all these years.

So when the Dove representative contacted me a few months ago, I wasn't eager to respond. I was busy and pretty sure I wasn't going to try their stuff out anyhow.  Here's the video they sent me to encourage me to try it out:

When I had some time (like a few weeks after they first contacted me), I reluctantly agreed. Making sure to be completely up front about my pre-existing opinions, I explained "I’ll be honest, it’s been years since I even tried the Dove beauty bar. Since I have sensitive skin, it’s one of those things that I just didn’t talk myself into. But I would be more than happy to give it a shot (or one of the body washes) but wouldn’t want to provide a review of it until I had used it for at least a few weeks. That way I would be confident with whether my skin would react to it." 

So I sucked it up and tried it.  The worst that was going to happen is that my skin would become dry and I would use one of the new lotions I'm testing out (Skin MD and Vaseline Clinical Strength) and I would go back to using my goat's milk soap.

Dove Go Fresh Beauty Body Wash - It's the bar in a bottle.  Except it was the cucumber and green tea scent so it smelled different.  Worked great though and didn't leave me itchy.

Overall, I've been pleased with all the products that I tried and plan to check out what other Dove products might fit into my new Dove-ized life.  If you want to try out some Dove products, be sure to check to see what coupons and samples they may have on their site.  Better yet, I'm giving you the chance to win some great Dove products!

The Prize

Sometime on January 27, 2009, a winner will be chosen at random (using random.org) from all comments left. Winner will be posted on PRIZEYWinners.

How to enter:

(1) Go to Dove and check out their various products.

(2) Come back here and comment on one of their products that you have never used but would like to try... and why!

(a) Earn an additional entry by adding my button to your sidebar.  Not in a scrolling bar that requires a wait of more than a minute for it to show up.  Come back here and leave a comment stating that you did so.

(b) Link to Dove. Come back here and leave an additional comment stating that you did so.

(c) Earn THREE additional entries if you publish a post regarding this contest and link back to it. Come back here and leave THREE comments providing the link to your post.

(d) Leave an extra comment if you subscribe to my feed.

(e) Follow me using the Blogger feature at the top of the next column.  Of course, don't forget to leave a comment.

I want to thank Dove for having enough confidence in their products to send so many out for me to try. Also for providing the prize for this giveaway! And thanks to my readers for sticking it out through the extremely long review!

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