New Year, New You Challenge

~Disclousure~ I received monetary compensation for this post.

We’re looking for you to create a fabulously fantastic collection on Wanelo titled “New Year, New You” where you include products that represent your New Year’s resolutions.

If you enter, you can have achance to win one of the following amazing prizes:

ONE GOLD PRIZE : $75 Zazzle Gift Certificate and feature of 9 products from your collection on Zazzle blog
ONE SILVER PRIZE: $50 Zazzle Gift Certificate
ONE BRONZE PRIZE: $25 Zazzle Gift Certificate

How to enter:

1. Follow the Zazzle store on Wanelo
2. Create a collection on Wanelo.com titled “New Year, New You”
3. Tag every product in your collection #zazzlenewyou
4. Add at least 4 Zazzle products, and include at least 9 products total in your collection
5. Fill out this form to submit your collection

For a full description of the challenge please visit Wanelo Collections Challenge.

I feel like a Cloth Diaper Hoarder

A friend of mine mailed me a set of cloth diapers. She said they were from birth to potty. I was expecting a good amount, but certainly NOT this! WOW! I feel like a hoarder. Me the cloth diaper hoarder. This is a new kind for me. I have never tried these!

They have cute prints on them too! Stars and Polka Dots are two of my favorite things!

Wish me luck!

FREE Julep Maven Beauty-Full Welcome Box

~Disclosure~ This post contains affiliate links!

This month Julep is offering a FREE box to new subscribers! They are usually only 50% off so this is a great deal!

The Beauty-Full Welcome Box from Julep (a $42 value) is the perfect way to start your Maven subscription! As a Julep Maven subscriber, you get first access to trend setting colors and top-rated beauty products every month in addition to plenty more perks!

Julep Maven is the only customizable box of full-size, limited-run nail colors and beauty innovations. That means no surprises, no dupes or colors you don't like. You can see what is in your box each month and have the option of swapping out colors/products you already have or don't want.

Julep Maven is affordable. You get over $40 of full-size products in every box for just $24.99 per month.

Mavens get benefits all month long at Julep - like 20% off, free shipping, early access to secret sales and more - imagine what you can save on yourgift shopping!

A Maven subscription is also a great gift for the nail polish and beauty product lover in your life.

So Join Julep Maven and get the Beauty-Full Welcome Box FREE! ($42 value) Just pay $3.99 shipping with code HOORAY!

Don't forget that the The Winter Escape Welcome Box and Valentine Welcome Box offered at 50% off expire on January 16, 2015. You can see that on my earlier posts, under Deals and Steals!

3 Beer Label Set Review + Giveaway

~I was sent these labels free for my honest review. I was not paid. All opinions are 100% my own.

I love to be able to customize things! So when I saw these custom beer labels from icustomlabel, I knew I needed to get some for my husband. I kept thinking how fun they would be in a bar or game room. You can get so many different options from Weddings, Baby Showers, Birthdays and many others. I wish I had know about them when I had my last baby. How cute would that be..Hi, Please Welcome Teddy to the world, now have a beer!

I received the three labels featured on these bottles. They were very high quality, clear and colorful. The minute we opened them we just laughed! They really are so much fun! I can't wait to make my own custom one's.

They have state of the art printers that allow them to print high quality personalized labels no matter how small or large your order may be. They also offer all sorts of other personalized labels which you can see on the website. The labels I received were high resolution and are very vibrant and bright. The labels can be printed to your exact specifications and you will be amazed at the huge selection of designs that they have to offer. Visit them HERE.

They have graciously offered me a set of labels to giveaway to my readers. Enter below!

Entry-Form

~Today ONLY~ Get Reebok Skyscapes for just $25 & FREE shipping

~This post contains affiliate links of which I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links~

For 1 day only, Reebok Skyscapes are just $25 when you use code SKY25 at checkout! Featuring a unique molded upper with foam to maintain softness, the Skyscape women's walking shoe is a stylish option for everyday escapes. Get on over to Reebok.com before this deal runs out! Some of these are normally $75, WOW!

Shipping is also FREE!! Please note this excludes Harmony styles

LEGO® KIDSFEST Missouri ~Giveaway~

Who wants to go to LEGO® KIDSFEST Missouri? I have TWO tickets to give away to LEGO® Kidsfest Missouri in St. Louis. This event is happening March 20 - 22, 2015 and will include Three Acres of Hands-On Educational Fun for All Ages!

The LEGO® KidsFest national tour stops at America's Center in St. Louis from March 20 - 22, 2015, for the very first time, bringing all of the creative hands-on, minds-on fun of LEGO building and experiences together in this three acre activity- and entertainment-packed family event. LEGO® KidsFest is for children of all ages and builders of all skills and interests.

Among the many LEGO® attractions, families will find:

* LEGO® Model Museum: walk among the dozens of life-sized models made from LEGO bricks
* LEGO® Ninjago: spin the way to being a Spinjitzu member
* LEGO® Mindstorms: play with programmed robots and snakes
* LEGO® Movie: help Emmet and Lucy conquer the bad guys
* LEGO® Fusion: work with real and virtual bricks
* Race Ramps: build a custom car, then race it down the ramp against friends and family
* Creation Nation: construct a creation to add to a custom map of the U.S.
* Construction Zone: enjoy a creative build, play, and display area
* LEGO® DUPLO: explore imagination through building for the younger set
* LEGO® Retail: purchase LEGO® merchandise and official KidsFest tour goods
* Big Brick Pile: build and have fun in a gigantic pile full of LEGO® bricks for creative play and enjoyment
* Monochromatic Builds: construct buildings and more using bricks of a single color to foster group creativity
* LEGO® Disney Princess: create and build a fairytale through LEGO® bricks
* LEGO® Friends: build for the five empowered friends from Heartlake City

"Any family who likes to be inspired, get hands-on and have fun together won't want to miss LEGO® KidsFest," said Vince Rubino, LEGO® Events Manager. "We're bringing so many activities for families in the St. Louis area to test and showcase their creativity and building skills in what is sure to be a family event to remember."

Based on sell-out attendance in previous markets, advance ticket purchase is strongly encouraged. Five identical sessions are available for the three-day tour stop. LEGO KidsFest tickets are $22.50 for adults and $19.50 for children and can be purchased online HERE!

The LEGO® KidsFest 2015 tour stops include Arizona (Glendale): February 27 - March 1; Missouri (St. Louis): March 20 - 22; Tennessee (Nashville): April 17 - 19; and Texas (Austin): September 4 - 6.

On tour since 2009, previous LEGO® KidsFest tour stops have included major cities such as Chicago, Boston, Atlanta, San Jose, Cleveland, Houston and more. Tickets generally sell out and attendance averages 27,000 visitors at each venue. To date, more than 700,000 have enjoyed more than 35 LEGO® KidsFest shows. In 2014, the tour made its first stop in Alberta, Canada, selling out a week before the show. In 2013, the LEGO® KidsFest was awarded Best Proprietary Event by Event Marketer Magazine. The LEGO® KidsFest is managed by BuzzEngine, an event and marketing agency.

~READY for the GIVEAWAY?~ TICKET Giveaway Details are as follows-

One of MY followers will win (2) tickets to the opening night session on Friday, March 20, 2015 from 4-8:30pm at America’s Center 701 Convention Plaza St. Louis, MO 63101

You must be 18 to enter, 1 entry per day allowed. Winner will be randomly chosen by USFG on Friday January 23 and announced on my Blog on Friday, Feb 27 and notified via email. So please make sure you follow my blog by email HERE and/or enter with your correct, most checked email address.

ENTER HERE

Then come back and leave me a blog post comment of who you'd love to win these tickets for!

I encourage you to LIKE and Follow LEGOKidsFest on Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram for all the latest ticketing updates as this event has been selling out in prior cities.

BanZ Collection of Sun Safety Products for Kids!

Created in Australia, BanZ has a complete protection collection of sun safety products for children ages 0-12. Sunglasses, hats, hearing protection and swimwear are available in multiples styles and sizes as well as sunscreen, swim goggles and more.

Want to get a Free Case & Sunscreen Sample? Use the coupon code FREE at checkout to receive a BanZ slip case as well as a sunscreen sample. Click HERE

Watch for my review at a later date, just in time for the start of swim season!

Review & Giveaway Mickel Yantz LLC Print

Who else loves artwork? I'm a sucker for a good print and I secretly have an obsession with sugar skulls. My husband also loves them and so when we married I now have a valid reason to buy them. I buy them for him and enjoy them in secret. You can't imagine how funny it is to see a house full of primitive antique's from the 1700-1800's and then a random sugar skull collection. Ok, it's not the only random collection...

For Christmas I ordered this beautiful Batman sugar skull print from Mickel Yantz LLC on etsy. It was a gift for my husband. I happened to contact him directly because the print I wanted had sold. He was gracious enough to put up a new one from me. It was very hard to hide this print until Christmas. I wanted nothing more than to give it to him the day it arrived. I was good though. Christmas Day came and finally I could give it to my husband. I can't even tell you how thrilled he was. Two of his favorite things in one print. First words out of his mouth were, Can we get more? Well YES!

Included with my husband's print was this card featuring his artwork and on the back a handwritten note and drawing. Honestly for me as an artist living in a house full of artists this was the BEST part! A handwritten/hand drawn note is more precious than gold! Not to mention how thoughtful that he took time out of his busy schedule to jot a quick personalized note.

His shop on etsy is filled with all manner of wonderful pop culture prints...These are a few of my favorites. 13 Disney Villains Sugar Skull Print

No artwork collection (In my opinion) is complete without a little Hello Kitty.

Or a Star Wars Darth Vader Sugar Skull ...I mean that's just a classic for anyone.

Certainly in our household no room is without some Harry Potter memorabilia. Lord Voldemort Sugar Skull Print

You can also find different Little People, Football, and other pop culture prints featuring Disney Villians, Superhero's and Science Fiction characters. The quality of the prints is wonderful, great clarity and color. Color is much more vivid than you can see in these photos. Each print comes packaged in archival, acid free bag With an acid free backer card. They also come signed by the artist.

Mickel Yantz LLC has graciously offered my readers a chance to win a print from his etsy shop. You will be able to choose any 11x14 or 11x17 print.

Mickel Yantz LLC Print Giveaway

Cloth Diapers & why I swore I would not use them!

Cloth Diapers....you say those two words and you hear one of two things. Some mom's you ask about cloth diapers and you get such gushing love and you wonder, can that be real? Do they really LOVE cloth diapers that much? Or are they just saying what you want to hear so you will stop using disposables. After all when you used to think of cloth diapering mama's it was in the terms of green, environmental, tree loving hippies. You see some flowing dressed woman with a daisy chain in her hair. Ok seriously though I love daisy chain's!

Other mama's are like no way, no how am I ever using cloth. Gross who want's to touch that. Washing them would be so nasty. Why would anyone want the mess when you can just throw them away? Plus isn't it super hard and don't you have to change them like every 30 minutes? That was me. I was the excuse making mama. I have Fibromyalgia and Lupus so when I thought of cloth I just saw work and a lot of it, not to mention the ick factor. I remember my mom telling me about hanging diapers on the line in the winter to freeze. No way was that going to be me.

My husband has been asking me to try them since before our first son was born two years ago. I fought and fought and said never, Never Ever! Then I found online blogs and giveaways. I mean I'd had a blog for Antiques, and I knew there were giveaways online but I didn't think people actually won. So I started entering and pretty soon I noticed a heavy cloth diapering trend on the blogging world or giveaways. How could this be? Are these women all nuts? I really thought so. Shame on me. I pride myself of being open-minded. Apparently not open-minded enough. Why would 10,000 people enter a giveaway to win a cloth diaper? The patterns are cute but it's not like anyone see's them.

After months of giveaways, and blog posts and starting my own blog back up with a re-vamp I started talking about cloth diapers. My mom and my husband once again started going at me about trying them. After all here we are living on a homestead/farm raising our own animals for meat, recycling, barely using water, eliminating our footprint but I am still using gross disposable diapers. I hate disposable's...I don't use disposable feminine products so why they said is this any weirder? I dunno, why is it I thought?

So I joined a few cloth diaper groups, spent every waking hour watching blog reviews and giveaways. I wondered how does anyone know what to buy...what do all these weird words mean all in one, all in two, fitted, prefolds, covers. YIKES my head was spinning. I asked some questions in a mommy group on facebook. I didn't really get the answers I was looking for. Quite honestly I still don't have all the answers I am looking for.

A saw on some blog somewhere in blog land a review for a inexpensive diaper, and I got some gift card codes from them. I thought why not, what can it hurt. At least give it a try. So I ordered two diapers. Now don't forget that I have no idea what I am doing here? I just randomly order two diapers and inserts. I really ordered based on the look of the diaper. One had Mickey mouse, and the other an adorable green and blue polka dot. I am a sucker for polka dots.

They arrived, only no Mickey Mouse, I got what (in my opinion) was some hideous animal print diaper with velcro instead of the snaps I'd ordered. I was slightly turned off at the thought of putting such an ugly diaper on my Teddy. I emailed them and they sent out the correct diaper. In the meantime I tried the other two. They were minky's. Soft so so soft. My poor Teddy had been sick and I thought what a treat to wear something that soft on your bum. I'll just try them out so he can be more comfortable. Obviously having two diapers is not enough. Not sure what I was thinking? Probably that I would hate them, and use them once and never again. Boy was I wrong!

Let me tell you cloth diapering is all about trial and error. I Tried and I made a lot of Error's. I forgot to change him...and complete soak through. Oops! This happened more than once I am ashamed to admit. I don't have a diaper sprayer so it's dunking for me. This is not at all as gross as I imagined. Because the whole diaper does not need to be dunked, just to the soiled part. I worried about washing, and for days I was washing two diapers and inserts alone. Really? I finally found somewhat of a understanding with my diapers. I've learned to change him more often. I've learned that the odor of a cloth diaper is that there really is NO odor. That's the best part for me, I can't stand the smell of disposable's now. You know what else I have learned? That I can do cloth diapering? I no longer see myself slaving away washing and changing every 30 minutes. I no longer picture myself outside line drying diapers in the snow. I see myself in a entire other light. A cloth diapering mama, ME!

This will by far not be the last post you see about cloth diapering. Follow me on my journey...maybe you'll learn something with me! Besides how can anyone resist that adorable fluffy bum? I will say for all this trial and error...I am never going back to disposables! It just proves you really never know until you try something!