Thursday, September 5, 2013

Back To School Survival Tips from Claritin and Glamamama

Disclosure: "As a member of the Children's Claritin Mom Crew, I receive product samples and promotional items to share and use as I see fit. No monetary compensation has taken place and any opinions expressed by me are honest and reflect my actual experience."

Yo mamas, it is Back To School time already, can you believe it?  I have lots of good tips to save you time and money so keep reading!  We always need to make sure we are prepared for anything that comes our way so every bit of help counts when it is back to school survival, all of us mamas know it is never ever mama for herself...it is one mama helping another, right?  I was happy to get some great Back-to-School allergy tips from my friends at Claritin that I could share with my mom friends like you online and in person. Check out all the great tips on allergies plus my own great back-to-school advice from back-to-school shopping tips to lunch box inspirations.


Back to School Allergy Tips 
 
1. Be sure to have Children’s Claritin, the #1 pediatrician-recommended non-drowsy allergy brand, on hand!

2. Multi-vitamins are building blocks to having a strong immune system. Make taking a multi-vitamin part of your child’s daily routine. Mine love the NatureMade gummies!
3. Let there be light! Mold doesn't like sunlight, so try to keep your curtains open during the day. Should be easy during the summer and fall months!
4. Did you know that most pillows trap allergens, dust mites, and bacteria? Monitor the cleanliness of the pillow your child with allergies sleeps on and replace if necessary. Buy an extra one so you are not always washing too!
5. Back to school season means lots of laundry for many moms. Be sure to remove laundry from the washing machine promptly. Set a timer if you need to. Allowing wet clothes to sit in the washer means mold can quickly grow there.
6. Monitor pollen counts and adjust outdoor before and after school activities accordingly. Dry, windy days can be particularly high in pollen.
7. Showering or bathing at the end of the day as opposed to the morning can be helpful in removing allergens from body surfaces and hair.
8. Stay hydrated! Always send your child to school with a bottle of water. Drinking lots of clear fluids through the day can help get rid of toxins and flush them out the body.
9. Don't forget the healthy lunch, mama. Many fresh fruits and veggies taste more fun when you pop them on a skewer and keep the colors bright. Yellow and red peppers, cherry tomatoes, grapes, small pieces of cheese.... 
9. Peak pollen production typically occurs in early morning, so try to plan outside activities at other times of the day.

I also got a few goodies to share...online and in person. I received 5 Back to School "Survival Kits" from Claritin as  a member of the Claritin Mom Crew which made it easier for me and several of my mom friends in my neighborhood to manage the chaos of back-to-school. Everyone loved them.  All my friends are so like me...we get overwhelmed and are forever writing notes to ourselves and losing birthday invites.  The kits were met with sincere enthusiasm.  Julie said, "Aaah, now I have no excuse to not R.S.V.P for the next bday party since it is going to be on my refrigerator with that big magnet clip!"  Barb was so happy because she gave her daughter Kate all her post it notes for school and needed a new supply.  Thanks Claritin!

The kits included:
  • (5) Back to School "Survival Kit" Pass-Along Packs including:
    • Children's Claritin post-it notes (Mom, Don't forget now!)
    • Children's Claritin shopping list notepad (cheese, fruit, veggies)
    • Children's Claritin refrigerator magnet clip (birthday parties!)
    • Children's Claritin pen (write your notes!!)
    • Children's Claritin/KaBOOM! voting reminder cards (charity!)
  • Back-to-School allergy tips to share with online and offline friends
  • Back-to-School E-card to share with Moms online 
Here is your own Back-to-School E-card so you can share with all your local mom friends too! Simply insert the E-card image into an email, add your own personal message, and email it to your fellow moms to wish them a productive school year! Don't forget the descriptive subject line like “From One Mom to Another- Best Wishes for a Great School Year!”



Here's a giant sparkling wish that your new school year is a success for all your children and you mama. Remember to keep Children's Claritin, the #1 pediatrician- recommended non-drowsy allergy brand, on hand for all those pesky allergies.

IPad Mini GIVEAWAY + NEW Purex Laundry App for iphone and Android!

Laundry stains....ugh! Have you ever just sighed to yourself and tried everything to get out a stain?  Red wine on your favorite luxury white jeans?  That beautiful blouse that you splurged on with a greasy splotch? 

The NEW Purex Laundry App for iPhone and Android can really help you get the right answer to how to get out those icky stains and fast.  I downloaded it to my iphone and my my hubby's phone too.  My husband likes to do his own laundry. I know. He was a bachelor for many years and likes to do his laundry his way. Is it the best way?  Nah, I know it's not but what can you do.  He is always open to suggestions and really likes suggestions from other people that he is not married to. He was actually interested in the Purex app because he loves and trusts Purex detergents to clean his clothes problem free.

The app is very easy to use.  I can figure out easily how to care for all kinds of fabrics from cotton to silk.  I just select the fabric care button, scroll to select the particular fabric, and then click HELP.  It gives all the washing and drying directions for that kind of fabric. Easy, right?

There is even a special Stain Guide. Click on Stain Guide and then scroll to select category, stain, then the material. All you do then is just click Get Solution. I love it especially for those tricky fabrics like silk and other delicates. 

How about the special clothing label decoder?  You know all those weird symbols like a triangle on your clothing labels that you never know what the heck they mean. Purex even has a decoder to figure out what they mean and how they can help you care for your clothes!

Here are the features of the new Purex Laundry App for iPhone and Android you can choose from:
  • Stain Guide: Expert advice on how to treat your toughest stains.
  • Label Decoder: Find out what those funny little pictures on your clothes' tags actually mean.
  • Fabric Care: Helpful care instructions for popular fabric types. 
  • Ironing & Folding: Learn the basics of properly ironing and folding a range of clothing.
  • Laundry Time: Here to make sure you never forget about another load of laundry.
  • Promotions: A summary of all current Purex promotions.
  • Mix-N-Match: A fun little memory game to pass the time waiting for your laundry to finish.
  • Product Info: Key information on Purex products.
  • Barcode Scanner: Scan Purex products to learn more about them.
The Purex Laundy App is great for everyone, especially those high school and college kids just learning to do laundry.  Maybe I will even download for my child and let her start to do her laundry solo! 

Don't forget to enter the great iPad Mini giveaway too! To celebrate the new Purex Laundry Help App, Purex is giving you a chance to win an iPad mini.
Download the app and ENTER HERE today for your chance at the grand prize! Be one of three winners.


Saturday, August 31, 2013

Save up to 60% on Movie Tickets & Concessions with DealFlicks

Disclosure: I received this information through Sverve and dealflicks. The post may  contain affiliate links.

 Movie Ticket Deals, Discounts, Offers, & Coupons | Dealflicks
Do you just love to go to movies but get so frustrated with how expensive they can be?  How about if you have a few kids to boot?  Add it up by the time you pay for the movie, a few snacks and drinks and the cost $$$ really gets up there! Now, you can save up to 60% on Movie Tickets & Concessions with Dealflicks!

Finally there is a reasonable solution to keep everyone happy from the theatre owners to the customers.   As tickets prices have gone up and the economy has spiraled down, theatre owners could clearly see that people were not going to the movies like they used to because of the cost. Who has that kind of cash?  Not me! Enter the ideal solution:  Dealflicks.
Dealflicks has partnered directly with movie theaters to help them fill those empty seats (data indicate that 88% of movie theater seats are empty on an average day). You get great discounted movie ticketsDealflicks negotiates with theaters to bring you amazing deals on tickets, popcorn, and soda so you can have your fun and save too!

Check it out and start saving today:  Save up to 60% on Movie Tickets and Concessions | Dealflicks

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

CrowdTap The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Movie Premiere Party

Disclaimer:  I received a complimentary ticket to the movie The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones and a digital download of party ideas through Crowdtap.  As always, my opinions are my own.
#Shadowhunters  #Crowdtap  #TMI
I recently had the opportunity to host The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Movie Premiere Party thanks to Crowdtap. My party was full of lots of fun, action and excitement since everyone was all pumped up to go to the movie.  Fortunately, we didn't have to worry about any warlocks, vampires or demons invading my house but we were excited about seeing them in the theatre.

We had a really super party with a bunch of my friends last week before the movie.  I did my best to decorate the house reminiscent of the Pandemonium Club too and made it kind of dark and freaky with Memes in the corners to add some fun. Want to check out some of the Memes and maybe create your own too?  Go right to the City of Memes here and see how creative you can be!

To make my party really fun I mixed up a funky Eyeball Salad (gotta have something healthy!) some Elixir of life Punch to give us strength and power before the movie and Jace's Faerie Plum Cake for a special dessert. I wanted to have fun with my friends before we headed out to the movie premiere so I pretty much prepped all the food and drinks ahead of time. I picked up some nice red and white wines to add to the mix as well. Crowdtap had shared some rad recipes like these that were super easy to whip up for your own party.  Straight from Taki's Diner, here they are:

ELIXIR OF LIFE IMMORTAL PUNCH
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups white sugar
6 cups water
2 (3 ounce) packages strawberry flavored Jell-O® mix
1 (46 fluid ounce) can pineapple juice
2/3 cup lemon juice
1 quart orange juice
2 (2 liter) bottles lemon-lime flavored carbonated beverage

Bring the sugar, water, and strawberry flavored gelatin to a boil in a large saucepan; boil for 3 minutes. Stir in the pineapple juice, lemon juice and OJ. Divide the mixture into 2 separate containers and freeze.

Combine the contents of 1 container with 1 bottle of the lemon-lime flavored carbonated beverage in a punch bowl; stir until slushy. Repeat with remaining portions as needed.
I put some good quality vodka out so guests could choose virgin or high test to their personal taste.


JACE'S FAERIE PLUM CAKE
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup whole milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
9 or 10 large black plums, halved and pitted
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for pans

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine 3/4 cup sugar, the milk, oil, and egg. Fold into flour mixture. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, and smooth tops. Arrange plums, cut sides up, over batter. Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar, and sprinkle over plums. Dot with butter. Bake until tops are dark golden, plums are soft, and a toothpick inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, 30 - 35 minutes. Let cool. (Cakes are best the day you make them; leftover cake is great for breakfast the next day.)

My guests dressed as their fave characters.  I was Clary, of course!  We played TMI Trivia and TMI Charades for fun too. We were all laughing..especially at me since I am so bad at charades.  Hey, it is all fun when you are with your good friends, right?  Here are a couple of easy TMI questions for you to try and solve:

Vampire motorcycles run on what substance?
Which Angel gave the Mortal Instruments to Shadowhunters?

Too easy for you?  Check out all the challenging questions and test yourself at the Mortal Instruments Quiz and see how you and your friends do!

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Movies is an action packed movie with great actors like Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell Bower.   It is guaranteed to keep you and your best friends entertained and on the edge of your seat. Don't forget to come on back and let me know your thoughts!