Frigidaire Adventure in Clean Contest plus Stain Fighting Tips

Visit Facebook.com/Frigidaire and share you own personal Adventures in Clean, Frigidaire will donate $1 to Save the Children, as part of its $750,000 commitment to the cause. It’s simple to share your Adventures in Clean – just upload a photo and the online app turns it into your very own movie poster!  Kind of cool, right?  Plus, to help spread the word, everyone who participates will be entered for a chance to win a new Frigidaire Affinity® washer and dryer featuring Ready Steam™. If you want to get more information on all the great products Frigidaire has don't forget to check out their site here.

10 Steps to Cleaner Clothes for Frigidaire by Tara Aronson

1. Immediately rinse or blot away spills on your clothes with cool water to prevent stains from setting.
2. Read fabric care labels before you wash. Your clothes will last longer if you know how to treat them.
3. Sort laundry by color, wash cycle needed, and water temperature required. The Frigidaire Affinity’s Permanent Press cycle washes with warm water and less agitation, resulting in less wear and tear on your sturdy jeans, khakis, and sweaters; the Delicates cycle uses cold water and light agitation to gently clean swimsuits, workout clothes, and lingerie.
4. Before washing stained garments, pretreat or prewash the spot using the Affinity’s Rinse & Spin cycle. If at first you don’t succeed, wash, wash again.
5. To keep snags and lint to a minimum, zip zippers, button buttons, empty pockets, and brush away lint before tossing duds in the hamper.
6. If your clothing is heavily soiled, your load large, or the water cold, add extra laundry detergent. Use the Affinity’s Heavy Duty cycle for sturdy but really dirty items like jeans and towels; choose the Sanitize setting to use the hottest water available to get rid of germs and grime as thoroughly as possible.
7. Check wet garments for remaining stains, and re-treat as needed before drying. Heat will set stains.
8. Dry only full loads. Tumbling a handful of garments prolongs the drying time by reducing the tumbling.
9. Fold shirts and T-shirts to prevent wrinkling. If the shirt has buttons, button it at top, middle and bottom. Lay facedown. Fold both sides of the shirt so they meet in the back, with the sleeves aligned with the side folds. Fold the tail up to the cuffs, making a straight line at the bottom. Then fold in thirds crosswise. For T-shirts: a child’s T-shirt needs only one crosswise fold in half; an adult’s should be folded into thirds.
10. Fold shorts and pants by aligning the inseams and outer seams of the legs and fold so that a crease forms at the front center of the legs. Fold in half or in thirds, depending on the size of the garment.

Disclosure : By posting this informaiton, I am eligible for a drawing. Regardless,  all of my opinions are my own.

Fiber One® 90 Calorie Brownies Contest and Review #myblogspark

If you have been possibly dreaming of a brownie that will satisfy your sweet tooth craving to help you stay on track--I actually have something for you!   New Chocolate Chip Cookie flavor Fiber One® 90 Calorie Brownies, combine your absolute fave  dessert flavors: chocolate chip cookie AND brownie!  When you´ve got brownies dancing through your head, but don´t want to over-indulge, this moist and chewy chocolate chip cookie brownie is the perfectly portioned 90-calorie snack and it won't ruin your bikini body that you worked so hard to get this summer!

Each serving provides 20 percent of the Daily Value of fiber (5g)* Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookie flavor features semisweet chocolate chips in a cookie-batter brownie topped with a dark chocolaty flavored drizzle  3g of total fat per brownie-not a lot at all!  Chocolate Chip Cookie flavor Fiber One® 90 Calorie Brownies make a great afternoon snack with a cup of coffee or a light latte.  It really satisfies those chocolate cravings whether you are at work, at home or even on the go. I stash five one in my purse--you never know! While you are at it check out Fiber One® on Facebook here and let them know what you think. Would you like to try them yourself?  Don't forget to enter my contest below to win this great survival kit with lots of goodies too! a Rafflecopter giveaway  Disclosure:  The product, gift pack, information, and additional sample have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.”

The Original Dish Drying Mat

THE ORIGINAL DISH DRYING MAT

 

Who likes to be stuck drying dishes?  Not me!  I used to get so annoyed by the dishtowel that lasted about 30 seconds before becoming sopping wet.  The Original Dish Drying Mat is a better way than placing those dish towels on the counter when drying pots, pans, and dishes. It has a laminated design that provides incredible absorbancy and cushions your delicate dishware as it dries.

• Holds 4 times its weight in water

• Cushions delicate dishes and stemware

• Machine washable and highly durable

• Folds and stores easily

It's machine washable and highly durable so you can use it over and over!  It stays fresh and clean that way.  I have had one that I bought last year on my counter and it still looks like new after tons of washes. I was excited to receive a another The Original Dish Drying Mat complimentary through Influenster that was perfect for my 1st floor kitchen sink. How lucky can a girl get?   I find that it is so handy having a dish drying mat there too since I do a bunch of my cooking and washing in that sink there as well.  

It is easy to care for too:   Allow The Original Dish Drying Mat to thoroughly dry between uses. Frequently machine wash with like colors in cold water with a liquid detergent and before first use. Tumble dry low. Do not iron. Do not use bleach, fabric softener or dryer sheets.

By the way, The Original Dish Drying Mat is available exclusively at Bed, Bath and Beyond.  It is very reasonable at $4.99 too!

Review: Woolite Extra Dark Care and a FREE SAMPLE!

I grew up using Woolite^® to wash delicates.  I always loved that luxurious scent and the elegant looking bottle.  My mom always used it on special items such as Angora and Cashmere sweaters, bathing suits and lingerie. I always remember a bottle of Woolite^® in the laundry room growing up!  Of course I always have Woolite in my own home and use it frequently.

I was excited to find out through CrowdTap about a few new laundry products that Woolite has recently  introduced including Woolite^® Extra Dark Care.  It was wonderful because I received 12 very generous samples of Woolite Extra Dark Care to share with friends through CrowdTap.  It was fun to have a real excuse to meet up with friends and neighbors and share my love of Woolite with them! I love that Woolite^® Extra Dark Care was created with  a special formula that gently cleans and helps maintain the original color intensity of all your dark clothes.  That includes my expensive, designer denim.  I don't want my expensive jeans that cost me $200 to fade!  It won't cause fading, shrinking or stretching, so dark colors stay super bright and clothes look like new for longer than with a regular detergent.  I love the way my dark clothes STAY dark--no fading here as long as I use my Woolite Extra Dark Care.

I was excited to see that Woolite has a great coupon available on Facebook for Woolite Extra Dark Care.  Click here to access the Woolite Facebook  page and "like" them to sign up for a high value coupon!  Let me know what you think.  These coupons are usually only available for a limited time so hurry on over to Facebook and grab your coupon before you go shopping!

Review: Lindt Excellence Chocolate Bars Caramel with a Touch of Sea Salt and Coconut

I was very excited to receive two new Lindt Excellence bars at my door this past week.  What could be more exciting than Lindt chocolate??  Nothing, of course!  Both bars were dark chocolate and were two flavors that sounded delicious to me:  Coconut and Caramel With a Touch of Sea Salt. Don't they just sound delectable?  

Well, they were both super yummy.  The Coconut Excellence Bar was fantastic…like a grown up version of a Mounds bar. Definitely more sophisticated and rich though!  The Coconut Excellence Bar consisted of smooth dark chocolate flecked with bits of moist coconut.  It was a family favorite. 

I think my personal fave was the Caramel With a Touch of Sea Salt. I just LOVE chocolate, caramel and sea salt together. There’s something about that combination that just really tastes incredible to me…a deep dark chocolate with a sweet and chewy caramel and the flavor from the sea salt are perfect together.

*I received these Lindt Excellence Bars as part of my membership in the Lindt Excellence Influencers group.  My opinions are always my own.

The Many Uses of Ivory

IVORY SOAP is a great all around soap you can use from top to bottom in your home! 

I received a full sized bar of Ivory Soap complimentary as part of an Influenster Voxbox program.  I was really excited because we all know that this is something that everyone can use.  Who can't find 100 uses for a bar of Ivory soap?

A bar of Ivory soap is the perfect foil for sunscreen covered skin.  Didn't you know?  Here's the secret for getting all that sticky sunscreen off of you and the kids at a bargain price.  No scrubbing or rubbing either.   I love using Ivory in the shower to really get all that spray sunscreen cleaned off my skin after a day at the beach.   Unlike so many other soap bars on the market that strip skin of its natural moisture, Ivory's pure formula cleanses the skin thoroughly without unnecessary perfumes and lotions.  Believe me, it is really gentle on kids and adults alike!  Now you know so go on out and buy a few bars.  Make sure you pack a bar or two for that week or two at the beach house too! 

 I also like to keep a bar of Ivory in the laundry room for laundry stains. I rub it on all kinds of stains (even grass stains) and let them soak away in a little Rubbermaid tub while I relax and read a book.  When it is wash time, I throw everything right in the wash. How much easier can wash day get?

I also love that Ivory is a real bargain--especially in this day of the squeezed economy--we have to try and save everywhere we can. Ivory is one of the least expensive bars of soap on the market per oz!  Try it and let me know what you think.

 

I received this product complimentary for testing purposes from Influenster and Ivory as a participant in the Mom VoxBox campaign

Quaker Soft Baked Oatmeal Cookies

QUAKER SOFT BAKED OATMEAL COOKIE

Okay, you all know how much time I spend in the gym and how healthy I try to eat, right?  Well, we all have to allow ourselves a big little treat here and there to stay happy and I am no exception!  I love Quaker Soft Baked Oatmeal Cookies.  There are a variety of flavors to keep the whole family happy too from Banana Nut to Chocolate Almond and Cranberry Yogurt in addition to the Oatmeal with Raisins that I tried.

Quaker Soft Baked Oatmeal Cookies are not too sweet or to big for a nice treat.  The portion size is perfect whether it is for you as a mom or your little one.  I love the fresh cinnamon flavor and those soft raisins too!  Each yummy little cookie is individually packaged and made with Whole Grain Quaker Oats so you can feel good about eating them yourself or giving one to the kids!  Each serving has only 6g of total fat so go ahead you can enjoy without the guilt!


I received this product complimentary for testing and review purposes from Influenster.com.  All opinions and experiences are my own.

Cadbury Ice Cream Bars High Tea Party

Cadbury™ Ice Cream Bars

We had our Cadbury High Tea Party this past week featuring Cadbury™ Ice Cream Bars by Blue Bunny.   It was so hot outside that I decided to make iced tea to have along with our Cadbury™ Ice Cream Bars and bring the party outside so we could enjoy the cool water in the pool.  I made a beautiful caramel frosted vanilla cake from scratch and decorated it with M+M's and included a ton of sliced fruit to keep us cool as well.

Everyone enjoyed the Cadbury Ice Cream Bars but I have to say the the Chocolate Covered Vanilla Bars were the most popular of all!  There are a bunch of flavors to please any taste including the yummy Cadbury™ Double Chocolate Ice Cream Bars and  Cadbury™ Chocolate Almond Ice Cream Bars.  Each box has 8 bars so there is plenty for everyone.

It was something different and fun. I thought it was cute that several of the children that were at the party immediately recognized the Blue Bunny Cadbury™ Ice Cream Bars from tv commercials that they had seen.  That got them even more excited because they were telling us all about the tv commercial!

All in all we had a fun day.  I can't wait to pick up more Cadbury™ Ice Cream Bars to have on hand for the next hot weekend. There is nothing like a cold, creamy ice cream bar to cool you down on a warm summer day.
I received materials and ice cream as a complimentary service through MomSelect.  All the opinions and ideas were my own.

Be the first to view some of the stunning fashion photography and dreamy dresses featured in the Leon Max Collection Summer 2012 lookbook.  I love the Leon Max Collections for the Summer...they are always a spot-on look for me and the Summer Collection is so cool and refreshing. I love all the gorgeous colors! Let me know what you think...

Verizon Insider “Feed Your App-etite” Party

I was really excited to be selected to be a part of the Verizon Insider program through CrowdTap recently.  I was chosen to receive  a great package of goodies to use at a Verizon “Feed Your App-etite” Party in my home.  It was so much fun!  We really had a great party with lots of moms and dads and kids in attendance! We checked out some apps and picked up some new ones that we had really been coveting thanks to Verizon too!  I loved being the tech queen--I demonstrated a lot of the apps that my family has been enjoying for the guests and showed them how they worked--then we downloaded them to their phones thanks for Verizon!  Believe it or not, I was able to help some friends download a bunch of game apps that they didn't have yet like Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja.  We also got some of the moms set up with a few great relaxation apps too--they needed that!  The dads all wanted crazy games so we had a bunch of fun downloading what we wanted thanks to Verizon.  I think several of the guests became a lot more comfortable with adding apps after my tutorials too--that was a great...now they can download all they want without a struggle.

We enjoyed some great snacks including a yummy cake that I baked, lots of fresh fruit and ice cream as well. It turned out to be a beautiful day perfect to be outside and in and out of the pool as well. We made sure all the phones stayed well AWAY from the pool area!

Have you checked out  Crowdtap yet? Crowdtap allows you to tap in online to engage with some great brands, test products and even share them with friends and earn cash while helping charities at the same time.  What could be better than that?

 I received a bunch of super goodies my party...a great FREE Verizon Swag Bag with the following items…

~ Party Guide containing great ideas

~One $35 American Express Gift card to buy refreshments
~One $50 American Express Gift Card to offset download purchases

If you are a Crowdtap member, login to your Crowdtap account and click on the “New Actions” tab frequently to see what you have available.  Remember that by simply signing up and logging in every day you will start to see more opportunities available to you!

Influenster Summer Mom VoxBox

I was really excited to be chosen by Influenster to receive a new round of VoxBoxes...this time it was a terrific Mom VoxBox!  There was a bunch of great items for me and my family to try and have some fun with during these warm summer days of July.  Here is a little peek into my Mom VoxBox:

IVORY SOAP

I received a full sized bar of Ivory Soap.  Now this is something that everyone can use.  I love using Ivory in the shower to really get all that spray sunscreen cleaned off my skin after a day at the beach. Unlike so many other soap bars on the market that strip skin of its natural moisture, Ivory's pure formula cleanses the skin thoroughly without unnecessary perfumes and lotions.  I also like to keep a bar of Ivory in the laundry room for laundry stains. I rub it on all kinds of stains and let them soak away in a little Rubbermaid tub while I relax and read a book.  When it is wash time, I throw the stained item right in the wash with the Ivory on it and the stain comes right out!

imPRESS-ON MANICURE BY BROADWAY NAILS

This is the best invention ever for busy moms.  I don't have the time that I used to for my nails and those time-consuming manicures but I still like to look put together.  Here is a way to get your nails looking shiny and chip free in a few minutes. These press on nails are truly easy as they sound.  All you have to do is peel off, press on, and just like that you are done.  Your nails look fantastic and so do you!  There are 36 colors and patterns to choose from including trendy brights, classic darks and funky animal prints.  There is something for everyone. 

STASH SUPERFRUITS TEA SAMPLER

Here is my favorite start to the day and sometimes even my escape from the day's stress!  You always have a good variety of teas with Stash Superfruits Tea Sampler. A wonderful blend of herbal tea and green tea fruits flavors are an easy way for any mom to relax naturally--it really works for me.  I really love that all Stash Teas are 100% natural--only botanical ingredients are in each tea bag. Who wants any thing in there that you can't pronounce anyway? I love the variety....I choose my flavors based on my mood too!

QUAKER SOFT BAKED OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIE

Okay, you all know how much time I spend in the gym and how healthy I try to eat, right?  Well, we all have to allow ourselves a big little treat here and there to stay happy and I am no exception!  I love Quaker Soft Baked Oatmeal Cookies. They are not too sweet or to big.  The portion size is perfect.  I love all the raisins in there too!  Each yummy little cookie is individually packaged and made with Whole Grain Quaker Oats so you can feel good about eating them or giving one to the kids!  Each serving has only 6g of total fat so go ahead you can enjoy without the guilt!

THE ORIGINAL DISH DRYING MAT

Who likes to be stuck drying dishes! The Original Dish Drying Mat is a better way than placing those dish towels on the counter when drying pots, pans, and dishes. It has a laminated design that provides incredible absorbancy and cushions your delicate dishware as it dries. Its machine washable and highly durable so you can use it over and over!  I have had one that I bought last year on my counter and it still looks like new after tons of washes.

DENTEK FLOSSERS FLOSS PICKS
I never thought that flossing could be so much for me my child.  Dental floss for kids?  Think again!  DenTek's Floss Picks are so different--they are uniquely designed with an easy to maneuver handle eliminating the hassle of flossing. The colors and flavors...so much fun for me my child!  The pre-strung floss slides comfortably between each tooth.. it lets you floss like a pro.  DenTek Floss Picks are specially designed for sensitive teeth and gums so no worries about getting hurt either.  Trust me, they will love the flavors and colors so much they will be flossing every day.


DINO LINGO
We have been having so much fun with Dino Lingo this past week. Dino Lingo is a fun and interactive way to teach a new language to your child. It was designed especially for families looking for children's language learning products to use at home.  What could be better than the comfort of your own environment to learn something new?  Dino Lingo uses interactive techniques that incorporate child's play and storytelling. They use colorful animations and entertaining songs to capture children and help them learn naturally. Dino Lingo is available in over 30 different languages so you can pick the one that is right for you.


If you are interested in checking out Influenster you can take a peek here. I have been a member for over a year a love it!

2012 ING New York City Marathon 30 Spots Plus Free Training!

Ever thought about entering the 2012 ING New York City Marathon, but needed a little extra inspiration to get you there? Or, maybe you tried to get into the NYC marathon through the lottery, but were one of the thousands who didn't get selected? Well, today might be your lucky day! The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, dedicated to curing spinal cord injury and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis, is looking for enthusiastic, inspiring and committed people to run in honor of those who cannot. The Foundation has 30 coveted spots available on Team Reeve for the 2012 ING New York City Marathon, taking place on November 4, 2012. Participants are required to raise a minimum of $4,000 for the Foundation. To apply for a spot, simply visit http://tinyurl.com/82auwxs to fill out the application. Applications will be vetted by the Foundation, with winners being notified within approximately one week of submission. Additionally, Team Reeve has teamed up with exclusive training facility La Palestra in New York City, which will provide free coaching, strength training, nutrition counseling and training runs to all Team Reeve members. If you live outside of New York, the staff at La Palestra will provide tele-coaching. So, to all you runners out there...Go Far. Be Inspirational. Do Good. The MyBlogSpark Team The information was provided for this post by The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation through MyBlogSpark.

Almond Butter Balls - Savvy Chefs - Recipes - Naturally Savvy

 I just had to share this super EZ and healthy AND yummy Almond Butter Balls recipe with everyone.  If you enjoy almond butter it is for you!  Try it for a quick snack before the gym or on the go this summer! #NaturallySavvy


Almond Butter Balls - Savvy Chefs - Recipes - Naturally Savvy

Let's Be Honest...All About Moms Blog Contest

Purex recently shared with me some hysterical videos about  everyday life as a mom featuring funny lady Molly Erdman.  You have to check them out...they will have you laughing and totally relating as I did. There are a bunch of different videos about everyday life as a busy, crazy mom that you can totally relate to-trust me!  Don't forget to pass them on to your g-friends so they can have a good laugh too.  Sometimes I just need to laugh because it all gets so crazy--you know what I mean?

Check all of them out on the Purex website and don't forget to check out all the great new products that Purex has to offer.  You can also check out the Purex Let's Be Honest videos on Youtube as well.

Don't forget to report your favorite video back to me and post it here.  You can also get additional entries by liking, sharing and retweeting your favorites!

a Rafflecopter giveaway