I have officially started my Christmas shopping!

I can't believe I am actually saying this. I officially started my Christmas shopping today. Normally I start in November, especially because the last two years Izzy didn't really know what was going on. But this year, I think she is really going to get into things more. Everyone knows that I LOVE to get good deals, and I rarely will buy anything without a coupon or sale price. So, today when I was doing the grocery shopping at Meijer's I stumbled upon the clearance toy aisle. I refrained from going too crazy, since all the dolls and games were so cheap! The one item I did get was the junior Candy Land game for 3 years and up. Izzy will love it! I got it for $10 and normally it sells for about $20! I think this week I may go back and pick up the Polly Pocket set since that was on clearance for around $7. There were lots of good deals on baby toys, dolls, cars, and electronic reading toys. I would definitely say it's worth checking out if you live by a Meijer's, they had great gifts for kids of all ages!

Honey, 2 years olds can't wear makeup out of the house!

"But mommy, I'm a big girl!", Izzy says shortly after refusing to go potty on the toilet, thus wetting her panties. I have a budding makeup on my hands. One who thinks she can choose when she is a big girl and when she is a baby. Sometimes I sit and wonder where this girly girl thing came from in Izzy. She rarely sees me get dolled up, since usually makeup consists of moisturizer and foundation, then a few hours later maybe some bronzer, then a few more hours later some mascara. I'm lucky if I get a full face of makeup done in one day! But alas, this is the life of a mom with a toddler. Sure, I like to wear makeup, but there's just rarely time to put it on. However, Izzy thinks that makeup is an everyday must! I laugh so hard because I think she is better at putting mascara on then I am! When Izzy was born, she definitely came into the world knowing exactly who she was, a GIRLY GIRL!

I must admit, it's so fun to do makeup and hair with her. For a treat I'll let her use my makeup brushes and different products on herself, and it's scary how good at it she is. She actually puts the eyeshadow on her eyelids, and is very precise! One time I made the mistake of letting her curl my eyelashes and put mascara on me. My eyelids turned red from being pinched and I had mascara on my nose. But, these little moments are so fun. I love bonding over hair and makeup with my little girl. It's so fun. And yes, while it scares Daddy that his little girl already likes makeup, and tries to reason with him to let her wear it out of the house, he still thinks it's cute.

Sometimes I get nervous that I'm going to be raising a little girl who thinks she needs makeup to be pretty. To combat this we tell her that Izzy and mommy are pretty without makeup (sometimes though, I have to remind myself that I don't need the makeup, and I know we go through that after having a baby and rarely having time for ourselves). So, mommies, let your little girls into your makeup bag, who cares if they make you look like a clown!

Rent Money Giveaway Winner!

Hey guys, I just wanted to announce that Jessica won the Rent Money Giveaway with comment #4! Congrats Jessica!

NIGHT LADY GIVEAWAY! (Check the update)

Our last, (but certainly not least!) giveaway of the night comes from Lynda, the owner of the Etsy shop Night Lady! Check out her shop at nightlady.etsy.com. Lynda sent me the most beautiful brooch to review (you can see it above center), I absolutely love it! It's so unique! One interesting thing is that it's made from all recycled materials, and is comprised of 100% Silk, 100% Satin, and organza. The colors mesh so well together with burgundy, rust, tawny, brown, and coffee cream. In the middle you can see that there are multi colored forest colored glass beads, and 3 light emerald green Czech glass bi-cone beads. On the back there is a small pin sewed on. Lynda did such a wonderful job on this brooch, everything is hand cut, stitched and seared, which gives it such an eclectic vibe. This brooch is definitely my favorite new accessory!

Lynda has decided to add a headband to the giveaway to have something more contemporary so the photo you see above (left) of the headband is also what the winner will be receiving (the winner will receive both!). The headband features a jade green satin headband with a flower made of brown organza, and colored chiffon in purple, green, beige, and brown. The flower is made up of many layers that are fused together then hand sewed together. In the middle Lynda added various green glass beads, then added vintage tube copper glass beads around the sea of green colors. I know you guys will just love this headband!

Now remember, because it's Back-To-School Week I'm going to be giving out 3 extra entries to one person for each of this week's three giveaways. To win the extra entries for the Night Lady giveaway all you have to do is be the person who leaves the 31st comment! I will award the extra entries by putting them in at the end of the giveaway. Now, all you guys have to do is enter to win!

Here's what you need to do for each entry into the giveaway:
1. (This is the mandatory entry) Receive one entry for visiting Night Lady and leaving me a comment to tell me what your favorite item is! Make sure you leave me your email address in this entry.
2. Receive two entries for following my blog and telling me that you do in two separate comments.
3. Receive one entry for being an email subscriber and telling me that you are in a comment.
4. Receive three entries for grabbing my new button and putting it on your blog. Leave three separate comments.
5. Receive five(!) entries for purchasing something from Night Lady between now and the end of the giveaway. Leave five separate comments.
6. Receive one entry per day for following me on Twitter and tweeting about the giveaway! Leave me a comment each day to let me know that you did. http://twitter.com/mommymarina
7. Receive one entry per day for updating your Facebook status and including the link to this giveaway. Leave a comment with a status link.
8. Receive five entries for blogging about this giveaway on your blog and leave me the link in a comment.

This giveaway will end on August 31, 2009 at 11:59 pm. At that time I will choose a winner using random.org and let them know through email. The lucky winner will have 48 hrs to respond before a new winner will be chosen

This is so fun!

This is so fun to post so many giveaways in one night! I just wanted to do an added bonus entry since I'm having so much fun! Be the first to enter each giveaway and you get an extra entry! Just put it in after the first one!

SEALMAIDEN GIVEAWAY!

Ok mommies, here goes giveaway #2 of the evening! Sealmaiden is an Etsy shop owned by Sylke and she is so amazing! You can find her Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5969252. She not only sent me a t-shirt for myself, but she also is going to be sending one out to one of my lucky readers! Sealmaiden specializes in high end, specialty screen printed designs. She uses water-based ink and uses great care in creating each item. Her attention to detail adds a special touch to the t-shirts. Sylke sent me the Rose Crew Neck t-shirt you see in the photo and I personally love it, it fits so well. It hugs in all of the right places and is a bit longer in length than most t-shirts. I love that aspect because one of my pet peeves is when women and girls wear shirts that are too short and when they bend down you see things you don't want to see! So, I love the length! I also love the colors she used in my t-shirt, it looks very unique. I will be posting a picture of me wearing the shirt as soon as our new computer is formatted for our camera! Sylke also just started a childrens line called Youngster that you can find here: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7734930!

Now remember, because it's Back-To-School Week I'm going to be giving out 3 extra entries to one person for each of this week's three giveaways. To win the extra entries for the Sealmaiden giveaway all you have to do is be the person who leaves the 22nd comment! I will award the extra entries by putting them in at the end of the giveaway. Now, all you guys have to do is enter to win!

1. (This is the mandatory entry) Receive one entry for visiting Sealmaiden on Etsy and leaving me a comment to tell me what your favorite item is! Make sure you leave me your email address in this entry.
2. Receive two entries for following my blog and telling me that you do in two separate comments.
3. Receive one entry for being an email subscriber and telling me that you are in a comment.
4. Receive three entries for grabbing my new button and putting it on your blog. Leave three separate comments.
5. Receive five(!) entries for purchasing something from Seal Maiden between now and the end of the giveaway. Leave five separate comments.
6. Receive one entry per day for following me on Twitter and tweeting about the giveaway! Leave me a comment each day to let me know that you did. http://twitter.com/mommymarina
7. Receive one entry per day for updating your Facebook status and including the link to this giveaway. Leave a comment with a status link.
8. Receive five entries for blogging about this giveaway on your blog and leave me the link in a comment.

This giveaway will end on August 31, 2009 at 11:59 pm. At that time I will choose a winner using random.org and let them know through email. The lucky winner will have 48 hrs to respond before a new winner will be chosen

LIBBY LU BOUTIQUE GIVEAWAY!

Our first giveaway tonight comes from Ruby at the Libby Lu Boutique on Etsy. Her Etsy name is FooFooandMore and you can visit her shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5149596. Ruby is a grandmother to 4 lucky little girls and her passion is creating beautiful boutique style girls clothing but at budget-friendly prices. She even has a layaway plan for those looking to save up for her items! Best of all, Ruby has been kind enough to give one lucky reader an adorable girls dress! She is even going to allow the winner to choose from two different styles! The first dress is called the Olivia Twirl Dress in short sleeve, and the second dress is called the Classy Abby Peasant Dress, either would be adorable on the lucky winner's little girl! Now, because it's Back-To-School Week I'm going to be giving out 3 extra entries to one person for each of this week's three giveaways. To win the extra entries for the Libby Lu Boutique giveaway all you have to do is be the person who leaves the 17th comment! I will award the extra entries by putting them in at the end of the giveaway.

Here's what you need to do for each entry into the giveaway:

1. (This is the mandatory entry) Receive one entry for visiting the Libby Lu Boutique and leaving me a comment to tell me what your favorite item is! Make sure you leave me your email address in this entry.

2. Receive two entries for following my blog and telling me that you do in two separate comments.

3. Receive one entry for being an email subscriber and telling me that you are in a comment.

4. Receive three entries for grabbing my new button and putting it on your blog. Leave three separate comments.

5. Receive five(!) entries for purchasing something from the Libby Lu Boutique between now and the end of the giveaway. Leave five separate comments.

6. Receive one entry per day for following me on Twitter and tweeting about the giveaway! Leave me a comment each day to let me know that you did. http://twitter.com/mommymarina

7. Receive one entry per day for updating your Facebook status and including the link to this giveaway. Leave a comment with a status link.

8. Receive five entries for blogging about this giveaway on your blog and leave me the link in a comment.
This giveaway will end on August 31, 2009 at 11:59 pm. At that time I will choose a winner using random.org and let them know through email. The lucky winner will have 48 hrs to respond before a new winner will be chosen

BACK-TO-SCHOOL WEEK #1!

Hey everyone, just a reminder that the Rent Money hair pins giveaway ends tonight, so keep entering! Also, I will be staggering the release of 3 new giveaways tonight! I am also going to be giving 3 extra entries each out to 3 lucky people during them, so stay tuned to find out how you can win the extra entries!

So Excited!

I am so excited, tomorrow is the first day of my last semester of college! It feels like yesterday I was a clueless freshman! I should have finished last spring, but I ended up needing to take an extra semester because of when I was pregnant with Izzy. All in all, I'm pretty proud of myself for staying in school and toughing it out. It is almost bittersweet though that tomorrow is my last first day back at school because Izzy loves my college campus and we frequently go on walks around the lake there. I am ready to be done with my classes though and get my diploma come December! In honor of my last semester the next two weeks will be BACK TO SCHOOL week with the giveaways! I have lots of fun things planned, so stay tuned!

~Marina

Dancing Wired Giveaway Winner!

Congrats to Cassidy for winning the Dancing Wired Giveaway! Check out Cassidy's blog at http://www.the1sttimearound.blogspot.com! Also, keep showing some love to Dancing Wired! She has lovely necklaces that would make great personalized gifts!

Don't forget that the Rent Money Giveaway is still going on!

Last Chance!

Hey guys today is the second to last day to enter my friend Cassidy's giveaway for a Britax carseat at www.the1sttimearound.blogspot.com! Good luck everybody!

Rent Money Review and Giveaway!

Hey girls, so this week you have not only one giveaway to win something, but two giveaways! Don't forget to keep entering the Dancing Wired giveaway to try to win the beautiful necklace!

The second giveaway this week comes from Kate at Rent Money! She is a recent college graduate trying to earn extra money so that she can move to NYC to pursue her dreams! Isn't the name of her etsy shop so clever!? Check her site out at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7756630. Kate sent me a beautiful pair of hair pins and I love them! They are so unique and look so beautiful in my hair. As soon as our home computer is back up and running I will post a picture of the pair she sent me! One of the things I love about Kate's work is the way she packages and presents the hair pins. Each set of hair pins costs only $3.50 which makes them beautiful AND affordable! The hair pins come shown like you see in the picture, with a mini envelope as their carrier, which is also stamped "Rent Money". Because of the way she packages them I think they look very upscale and expensive, which I think is really going to make her hair pins popular!

Kate is also going to be giving one of you lucky readers a set of hair pins! One lucky winner will be receiving the Bernadette hair pins in Seafoam Green! Check out the listing at http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28380567. Now, all you have to do is enter!

Here's what you need to do for each entry into the contest:
1. (This is the mandatory entry) Receive one entry for visiting Rent Money and leaving me a comment to tell me what your favorite set of hair pins is! Make sure you leave me your email address in this entry.
2. Receive one entry for following my blog and telling me that you do in a comment.
3. Receive one entry for being an email subscriber and telling me that you are in a comment.
4. Receive two entries for grabbing my button and putting it on your blog. Leave two separate comments.
5. Receive three(!) entries for purchasing something from Rent Money between now and the end of the contest. Leave three separate comments.
6. Receive one entry per day for following me on Twitter and tweeting about the giveaway! Leave me a comment each day to let me know that you did. http://twitter.com/mommymarina
7. Receive two entries for blogging about this giveaway on your blog and leave me the link in a comment.

This giveaway will end on August 25, 2009 at 11:59 pm. At that time I will choose a winner using random.org and let them know through email. The lucky winner will have 48 hrs to respond before a new winner will be chosen.

Piggy Paint Winner!!!

Hey girly girls, we have a winner for the Piggy Paint giveaway! The A Giveaway Everyday Blog is going to recieve a $20 dollar gift certificate code to pick out any of the lovely and adorable colors of nail polish! Congrats!

Dancing Wired Giveaway!!!

Hey mommies, I have an awesome new item to tell you about! It comes from Dena at Dancing Wired! She sent me a great bubble word necklace that has the word "believe" on it, with a beautiful background of a tree-patterned paper. It's so unique, I love it! Because our home computer crashed last week and won't be back up and running until Monday, I can't post the picture of my necklace until then, but the necklace you see on this post is similar to mine. Dena doesn't just make bubble word necklaces, she also makes some beautiful home decor items such as inspirational words made out of wire and accented with beads, wall hangings, and shadow box art. It's all so unique and creative! Best of all, she is going to be giving one of my lucky readers their own bubble word necklace and the winner will get to choose the word on the necklace (or put their child's name on it, so cute!) and pick the colors! Check our her awesome site on etsy at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5985906 , I know you will just love the many different items that she makes!

So, here's what you have to do to enter the giveaway:

1. (This is the mandatory entry) Receive one entry for visiting Dena's etsy site and leaving me a comment to tell me what your favorite item that she makes is! Make sure you leave me your email address in this entry.
2. Receive one entry for following my blog and telling me that you do in a comment.
3. Receive one entry for being an email subscriber and telling me that you are in a comment.
4. Receive two entries for grabbing my button and putting it on your blog. Leave two separate comments.
5. Receive three(!) entries for purchasing something from Dancing Wired between now and the end of the contest. Leave three separate comments.
6. Receive one entry per day for following me on Twitter and tweeting about the giveaway! Leave me a comment each day to let me know that you did. http://twitter.com/mommymarina
7. Receive two entries for blogging about this giveaway on your blog and leave me the link in a comment.
Good luck everyone!
This giveaway will end on August 21 2009 at 11:59 pm. At that time I will choose a winner using random.org and let them know through email. The lucky winner will have 48 hrs to respond before a new winner will be chosen.

Wow, a hectic week!

Hey mommies, it has been one hectic week in our home getting ready for the school year to begin, running errands, you know, the normal mommy things. A friend (who doesn't have kids) made a comment to me the other day and basically said how she doesn't really think being a mom must be a hard or busy job (I know mommies, you guys are probably falling out of your chairs laughing right now, but unfortunately, she was being serious!). I know non-mommies can't really understand what we do on a regular basis, but we all know it's definitely not easy! First of all, as mommies, we are always on-call 24/7 making sure we are always alert to the needs of our children. Second of all, we are raising human beings, which is the most rewarding-yet still challenging task in the entire world. We have to make sure every need of our family is taken care of, which is no easy task. I started to realize that we need to give ourselves credit for all that we do! So, mommies out there, promise me that this weekend you will take one hour for yourself to relax and recharge. Take a bubble bath, read a book, take a walk, just do something fun for yourself! Because we all know, a stressed mommy isn't as effective as a happy mommy, and we need to teach our children to take time for themselves once in a while to de-stress so they can lead productive lives someday!

Have a great weekend mommies of the world! ~Marina

If you love reading your kids will too!

One of our favorite family activities now that Izzy is getting older is reading. I just love how excited she gets in the morning when she plops into our bed with a big stack of books! It's so amazing to see how Izzy's little mind just soaks up every little detail of the story into her mind. Reading is so important for children in their life-long development. It's a habit we should all be getting our families into. The more our kids see their parents reading (instead of doing other things like watching t.v.), the more they will want to read, and the stronger their learning habits will become. What's also important when it comes to reading is making it fun. I know little kids usually want to sit down for story time no problem, but older kids sometimes have other ideas of how they'd rather spend their time. I know sometimes us moms can get so busy with our day to day lives, what with the errands, the cooking, and the cleaning that we forget that the habits that we show our children are the habits they will develop and practice. This week I have a challenge for everyone. Why not turn the t.v. off this week and take a family trip to the library? I know that you mommies out there must have some books on that summer reading list that you haven't gotten to yet, why not go check them out? Then, when you return home have some family reading time. Make a yummy snack and crack open a good book. I bet you'll all have a great time spending quality time with each other instead of watching t.v. Here's an even better idea, why not enjoy this summer weather and go reading together at the park? There's so many fun ways to instill the importance of reading into your children's minds. If you show them your habits, they will soon practice them. So have some fun with your kids this week and enjoy some good books! Let me know if you come across some exceptionally good ones! Have fun everyone! ~Marina

We have a winner!

And the winner of the Ginger Louise outfit is.... comment #4 from Abby! I will email her to let her know and she 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. Keep entering the Piggy Paint giveaway and stay tuned for more giveaways to be posted soon! ~Marina

The "Bad" Cookie Monster!

I have to share this story about Izzy because it is so stinkin cute! Last night she woke up around 12 AM and didn't fall back to sleep for about an hour, then woke up again later in the night because she was very worried that there were monsters in her closet. She said it was the "bad" cookie monster...I guess us moms have no clue that the real cookie monster has an evil twin out there! Anyway, so my husband and I tried to get her to relax about it, we rubbed her back, laid there for a few minutes and then left the room. She wanted to come into bed with us so bad, but we've been down that road before, they end up in your bed once and then they think they can get away with it all the time! So, once she was assured and comfortable with the idea that the bad cookie monster was not in her closet she fell back to sleep.
Fast forward to naptime today. I went into her room to wake her up so she wouldn't sleep too late and where was she? Not her in bed! I just about had a freak out moment cuz she was no where to be found! Then, I heard some scratching coming from inside her closet. She had taken her pillow and blanket and taken her nap in the closet, which is not that big so it couldn't have been very comfortable! I guess the good cookie monster was in there today instead of the bad one. Now here's to hoping the bad one doesn't come back tonight so we can all get some sleep!

Don't forget

Hey mommies, just a reminder that you need to put your email address in your mandatory entry comment so if you win I can email you so you know you did! That way you don't miss out if you win! ~Marina

Piggy Paint Giveaway!!!

Hey mommies, I am so excited to be adding this giveaway today! I have absolutely fallen in love with this nail polish! First off, the creator of Piggy Paint.com, Melanie Hurley is a stay-at-home mom who has 2 little girls who love nail polish. She created Piggy Paint as a safe alternative to the harsh, chemical-filled regular nail polishes that we normally see in stores. Piggy Paint is non-toxic, odorless, and hypoallergenic, which makes me, as a mom feel very confident that I am keeping my daughter safe while letting her use it! The wonderful people at Piggy Paint were kind enough to send me and Izzy an adorable color of nail polish called "Girls Rule", which is a perfect shade of bright pink for little girls! She had the best time getting her nails done, and I felt so good knowing she wasn't breathing in any harsh chemicals in the process (or ingesting anything bad if she put her fingers in her mouth)! I also tried the polish on my own fingernails since I figured I am always using my hands to prepare food for Izzy, so it only makes sense for mommies to wear this too so they don't accidentally get anything unsafe in their children's food after having manicures! The nail polish remover is also odorless, which is the first I've ever seen in my life that has no smell! WOW! I recommend visiting their website so you can see even more cool information about all of the different aspects of Piggy Paint!

Well, you lucky mommies and daughters out there are about to have a chance to win a $20 dollar gift certificate donated by Piggy Paint! Also, for everyone else Piggy Paint is offering a special coupon code that you can use until September 15, 2009. All you have to do is go to PiggyPaint.com and when you check out put in this code: "MAKER15L". Another bonus is that anytime you spend at least $25, domestic shipping is free!

Here's what you need to do for each entry into the contest:

1. (This is the mandatory entry) Receive one entry for visiting PiggyPaint.com and leaving me a comment to tell me what color of nail polish you will buy if you win the giveaway! Make sure you leave me your email address in this entry.

2. Receive one entry for following my blog and telling me that you do in a comment.

3. Receive one entry for being an email subscriber and telling me that you are in a comment.

4. Receive two entries for grabbing my button and putting it on your blog. Leave two separate comments.

5. Receive three(!) entries for purchasing something from Piggy Paint between now and the end of the contest. Leave three separate comments.

6. Receive one entry per day for following me on Twitter and tweeting about the giveaway! Leave me a comment each day to let me know that you did. http://twitter.com/mommymarina

7. Receive two entries for blogging about this giveaway on your blog and leave me the link in a comment.

Wow, that is a lot of entry possibilities! Have fun and good luck!

This giveaway will end on August 16, 2009 at 11:59 pm. At that time I will choose a winner using random.org and let them know through email. The lucky winner will have 48 hrs to respond before a new winner will be chosen.

Update on my iPod

So, I tried the bag full of rice to dry out my iPod. It worked enough to turn it back on and charge it, but the sound comes out gargled, and the screen is dark. I am hoping my hubby will get me a new one for Christmas this year!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! Stay tuned for another giveaway to be added tomorrow night!

~Marina