Letters To Karen: Brain Activity

Dear Karen,

You have just proven once again to yourself that you are your own worse enemy.  You always have a long list of things to do.  You are actually pretty good about prioritizing that list.  Your husband was nice enough to get the children out of the house today so that you can catch up (or at least feel less behind) and this is what you do!


Let's recap the last 15 minutes of what went on in your brain, shall we?

"It's near the end of the month and I really need to make these last few days count for my PR work."


"It's been a week since the twins' birthdays and I still need to go through the photos to share on my blog and on Facebook."


"I should really use the bathroom first so I don't have to stop working later."


"Ewwww!  The kids got spaghetti sauce on the hand towel.  I better replace it now before I forget."


"I keep meaning to roll all the hand towels and put them in this empty basket so that the kids can grab a clean one easily.  Maybe then they'll just replace the ones they dirty on their own?  I can do this really quick.  It'll only take a couple of minutes."


"I'm rolling hand towels instead of sorting through my photos or doing my PR work.  This is not good."


"I should blog about this."


And here you are!

Spa Breaks Should Be Mandatory for Moms

To someone like me who rarely gets to enjoy any uninterrupted moments, whether it is time to take a shower, a nap, or even to have a brief conversation, occasional weekend spa breaks sound like a dream come true.  Swedish massages and green tea body wraps aside, just think of the quiet and the serenity, two things that barely exist in my world.

Now I would never trade my three rambunctious children for anything, but it would be nice to have a break once or twice a year.  I'm fairly certain that I am not the only mom that feels this way.  That is why you should consider spa gift vouchers when thinking about Mother's Day gifts this year.  Better yet . . . make the voucher sizable enough for mom and dad to go to the spa together.  Chances are that dad could use a break too. (Don't forget to throw in your babysitting services to make the gift complete.)

Moms Gather for a Kellogg's "Love Your Cereal" Breakfast

Last Saturday, a group of local moms gathered together to enjoy a little breakfast and some honest conversation about breakfast routines in their busy households. A good friend of mine was nice enough to open her home to these moms for this special event. I acted as the liaison between these moms, all with children of varying ages, and Kellogg's. Since the launch of their informational website LoveYourCereal.com, Kellogg's has made it their goal to clarify what are facts and what are myths about children's breakfast cereals.

The guests were served three different varieties of Kellogg's Brand cereal along with fresh blueberries, strawberries, yogurt, two types of juice, milk, coffee, and tea.

In addition to the above, the guests were offered two easy to make treats made from Kellogg's cereals . . . Dark Chocolate Pretzel Treats made from Rice Krispies and Chocolate-Dipped Almond Toast made from Kellogg's Frosted Flakes and Apple Jacks.

After everyone got ready to sit down to enjoy breakfast, all the moms chatted about how crazy things have been since school began . . . from breakfast to the unpredictable school bus schedules.

Then we were joined by the Kellogg Company's Senior Brand Manager via Skype, who engaged this group of moms in an enlightening conversation about the nutritional and economic value of breakfast cereal.

The video below gives a sample of the dialog which took place between these real moms and the Kellogg's Senior Brand Manager . . .

Some of the surprising facts we learned:

• Children's breakfast cereal only comprises 5% of the average child's daily sugar intake.
• In general, children and adults who eat breakfast cereal have a healthier body weight.
• On average, the cost of one bowl of cereal served with milk is approximately 50 cents.
• Kellogg's is the company behind Kashi.
• Several varieties of Kellogg's children's cereal contains added fiber along with other nutrients.

To learn more about the studies and sources behind these facts, visit LoveYourCereal.com .

This event was part of a paid campaign for TheMotherhood.com on behalf of the Kellogg's Brand Company, who was nice enough to provide the goodie bags of swag and informational booklets for our guests to take home.

Back to School 2010 Giveaway: Orange Circle Studio Calendars & Planners [CLOSED]

Orange Circle Studio makes some amazing planners that are stylish, unique, functional, and affordable. I love that their planners are designed with moms in mind, which is something I hadn’t really seen before. I was given the opportunity to try out two of their wall calendars and a mom planner.

At first glance, I had to notice how cute they are! Being a mom of two boys, I don’t get enough girly things in my life so seeing the flowery pink and other vibrant colors really made me smile. Next I noticed that these are not your average run-of-the-mill calendars. These are very well-made, not just made of paper, but something thicker than that. They will not fall apart by the middle of the year, that’s for sure. I also really love their unique designs and that the calendars and planners all begin their year in August, when school starts and mom’s busy schedule begins. All 3 have tons of space for recording your events, but it doesn’t stop there.

The Mom’s 24/7 Calendar is the best wall calendar I have ever seen. The top portion contains the calendar and enough space to write in your events/appointments but the bottom is what makes it truly unique. There is a pad of tear of paper at the bottom that holds a detailed view of your week. You can fill in all the details of everything there and then neatly rip it away when the week is through. Also, the right hand side of that pad is perforated with a “My List” section to fill in your grocery, to-do, or whatever else you need. Then you just tear off at the perforations and you have it to go. Truly an innovative product!

The Do It All Bold Blossoms Calendar is also a great calendar, but doesn’t feature the weekly pad at the bottom. What it does feature is a bigger calendar with more space to fill in information, stickers to mark important dates, holidays, and events, and two pockets for storing important items at the bottom.

Both wall calendars have the ability to be hung by a nail or tack or can be stuck to your fridge with the built-in magnets and both come with a handy pen that fits in a holder.

Last but certainly not least is the Do It All Bold Blossoms 17 month planner. I love the Bold Blossoms design; it’s so feminine and cute.

This planner is the perfect planner for moms. I love the elastic band closure, so nothing slips out. I love the front pocket to hold bills, invitations, and other paperwork. The stickers are convenient for marking holidays, appointments, parties, date nights, birthdays and more. The planner pages are large enough to hold all the necessary information about each event, yet the planner isn’t too big or bulky either. It runs from August 2010 until January 2012 so, for the price of $14.99, you’re getting a lot. It also features a list of 2011 and 2012 holidays, a place for emergency information, an address book, note pages, and 3 column perforated pages for your To Do and Shopping lists, a really unique and genius feature. All in all, this is, by far, the best planner I’ve ever seen and I can’t wait until August to start using all these great products.

To view the full selection of calendars and planners offered by Orange Circle Studio, visit OrangeCircleStudio.com . For a limited time, when you become a fan of Orange Circle Studio on Facebook, you will receive a discount code for 20% off your next purchase.

Thank you to Orange Circle Studio for providing us with sample products free of charge to base this review upon and for providing additional products for our contest prize.

What you can win:
One lucky reader will receive a prize pack containing the following items (ARV $45):

• a Mom's 24/7 Monthly/Weekly Calendar
• a Bold Blossoms Do It All Planner
• a Bold Blossoms Do It All Calendar

Limitations:

This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.

How to Gain Entries:

Browse the selection of planners and calendars offered by Orange Circle Studio. Then leave a comment telling me the name of one item that would help you be more organized (aside from the 3 items reviewed in this article). You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest.

Extra Entries:

1) For 5 extra entries, leave a relevant comment on one of my non-giveaway posts. Then leave FIVE separate comments with the name of the post on which you commented. You will earn 5 extra entries for each different non-contest post you comment on.

2)

For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.

3) For 10 extra entries, blog about this contest linking back to this post AND OrangeCircleStudio.com . Then come back here and leave TEN separate comments with the link to your blog post.

4)

For 1 extra entry each, if you are a Friend of mine on Facebook and/or if you have "liked" the 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires Facebook page, then leave a separate comment here telling me so with the link to your Facebook profile.

5) For 1 extra entry each, follow Orange Circle on Twitter and/or "Like" Orange Circle Studio on Facebook. Then leave a separate comment for each with the link to your Twitter or Facebook profile.

6)

Follow me on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.

7)

Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.

8)

Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

9)

Subscribe to A Blog of Goodies' feed (the sister site to 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

10)

Add my button or blog link to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.

<br /> <a href="http://www.3garnets2sapphires.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd206/Busymonkeez/Graphics4Me/NEWBlogButton125x125.jpg" /></a><br /><br />

(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)


Random Drawing:

This contest will be closed on Monday, August 23rd, 2010 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.

Good luck in the drawing!

What Every Busy Mom Needs . . . Mommy Cards

If you are a parent of young children, then you know that life is not always as calm and serene as in this picture. More often than not, you are chasing after your child with an armful of coats, toys, and other things that belong to your child. If you have more than one child, then it is even more chaotic.

When my son first started preschool, I was not prepared for the quantity of playdate requests and birthday party invitations we received and issued ourselves. During such occasions, usually neither parent has a free hand to jot down their name, phone number, and email address for exchange. That is why I think it is such a smart idea to carry a type of calling card with preprinted information on it. These cards are not business cards, but rather mom cards. Instead of stating your business title under your name, it will actually say "parent of . . . " or "mom of . . . " No pen or paper required.



I think these contact cards are also perfect for including in birthday party invitations. This is much more convenient than writing out the RSVP information twenty or so times. I think a stack of 200 cards would last 3 to 5 years. The cost per year would only be a few dollars and well-worth the convenience. I fully intend to start life as a parent of a kindergartner fully armed and prepared with such cards.

Review: LTDchix Laundry Mom Tee

It is a sensitive subject for me, but since I had twins two and a half years ago, I have not been able to do anything to improve my mid-section. So even though the rest of me is a size 9, my belly has other ideas. For this reason, I prefer to wear babydoll style tops and boxy t-shirts that are about hip-length.

You can imagine how thrilled I was when I found out that the selection of mom t-shirts at LTDchix included a loose-fitting tee. Most online t-shirt boutiques only offer fitted t-shirts or a unisex t-shirt as an alternative. Those are basically men's shirts which are much too long for me.

What I thought about my LTDchix t-shirt:

1) I thought the design was adorable. In fact, I think every mom can relate to almost every humorous design available on the LTDchix website.

2) The shirt itself was constructed of heavy weight cotton and was very soft. It also washed well.

3) This particular style of shirt is very generously sized in the width. I think I could have gotten away with one size smaller.

4) I would really like to see the loose-fitting tee in more colors. This particular style of t-shirt is only $15 each. At that price, I would love to own at least a few.

I am extremely happy with my LTDchix Laundry Tee. It actually would put me in a better mood to wear this while I folded 5 or 6 loads of laundry. To see more fun designs about the plight of the everyday mom, visit LTDchix.com . You can also learn more about LTDchix on the LTDchix Blog and on Facebook.


Thank you to LTDchix for providing us with a review product free of charge.