linqia – Page 8

Child Safety Tips For The Home

October 23, 2015

This post is sponsored by Smith & Noble but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

H is in full exploration toddler mode 24/7 lately. This makes mama very nervous. He has no fear. He jumps off of things, climbs everything, opens every drawer and cabinet. He is very busy and keeps me on my toes. The other day, he figured out how to get in our cabinet even with a childproof lock on it. He is a smart one. He grabbed one of my spray bottles of cleaning solution and it scared me half to death! I ran over to him and grabbed it and gave him a very serious talk. It got me thinking though, have I read many child safety tips and how safe is our house, really?

After reading a little bit from Smith and Noble, I realized that there are far more dangers in our home than I realized.

Here are a few basic child safety tips for your home:

Cover Your Outlets

Have Child Friendly Window Treatments – Smith and Noble recommends you move all climbable furniture away from windows and use cordless window treatments in homes with small children due to strangulation risks. Special offer – replace unsafe treatments with new ones and save $50 per treatment. Go here and sign up to receive the code.

Use Safety Gates Around Stairs or Unsecure Areas

Use Childproof Locks

Have a Working Smoke Detector in Every Room

Have a Plan for Your Family in Case of an Emergency or Fire

Window treatments are definitely one thing I did not think about when buying our home. You learn a lot after owning your first house. Our next house, I am definitely looking for safe window treatments. In the meantime, I would love to win $1,000 worth of window treatments from Smith and Noble! How awesome would that be? I’m thinking plantation shutters. Enter Here!

Do you have any other child safety tips? Be sure to check out this checklist for child safety and enter the $1,000 Sweepstakes!

Halloween Recipe: Mummy Dogs

October 19, 2015

This post is sponsored by Pillsbury but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Halloween has been my favorite holiday for as long as I can remember, but it has been made even better since having kids. I enjoy picking out their Halloween costumes (while I still can – sort of), making cute little crafts, participating in our church’s trunk or treat and making yummy Halloween recipes! Last week, I decided to make H a fun little Halloween themed lunch! He wasn’t feeling great and I wanted to make him a special treat to lift his spirits.

One of H’s current favorite foods is of course, – the hotdog. #AmericanKid Since this is his favorite, I decided to make Mummy Dogs. The perfect Halloween themed lunch!

I preheated the oven to 375 and while I waited for it to heat, I rolled out my Pillsbury crescent rolls and grabbed my pizza cutter and began to cut thin strips. After I had several cut, I dried off my hotdog wieners and began wrapping the strips around them. I didn’t try to make it perfect and in fact, I noticed that the sloppier I got with it, the better they looked, so don’t be afraid to go a little crazy.

I left a little room for the eyes for after they baked. After they were all wrapped up, I placed them on a cookie sheet and popped them in the over for 9 minutes (or until golden brown). Once they were finished, I let them cool for a couple of minutes and then used mustard as eyeballs. I added a little ketchup (or in this case “blood”) to H’s plate because he loves to dip everything.

These were a huge hit with my son! I think I will make it a little tradition in our house to make these every October. They are so easy and a big hit with the kids!

Be sure to grab your $1 off Pillsbury Crescent Rolls coupon while supplies last and enter to win $10 in the rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Nickelodeon TMNT Costume and Spooktacular Extravaganza at Party City

October 16, 2015

Thank you to Nickelodeon for sponsoring today’s post and inspiring me to customize Halloween for me and my family thanks to Party City!

We are getting so excited for Halloween! It is by far my favorite holiday as it is during my favorite season and centered around pumpkins, dressing up in fun costumes and sweets! I have had SR’s Halloween costume for months. Yes, months. Before she was even born, I knew what she would be for Halloween and I planned accordingly. This year, H is old enough to where he can now tell me what he wants to be…apparently. I had a really cute little “couple costume” planned for the kids but oh, no! H wouldn’t have it. He knew exactly what he wanted to be! TMNT.

With Ryan’s birthday party happening tomorrow, I had a few last minute decorations to grab while I was there including a birthday banner, confetti, and Halloween paper plates! As always, Party City saved the day because they had all of these items and so much more!

I had also sort of planned to make H a Halloween costume using the accessories at Party City, but I caved when I saw the adorable TMNT costume that he wanted. It was just too cute and he is so adorable in it. It was also the far easier option, and sometimes, I have to give into convenience.

The best part about shopping for our Nickelodeon Costume is that with any Nickelodeon in-store purchase, you will receive a free digital poster for your kiddos. It is such a cute idea and a great way to get them even more excited to be their favorite character.

We had so much fun shopping for H’s costume and he was excited to pick it out. Check out the video I created of our shopping experience! Your heart might melt a little when you get to the end. Can you say adorable kid?

Join the #SpooktacularSweeps Twitter Party on 10/15 at 9pm EST! Here are the rules for a chance to win a $100 AmEx Gift Card!

What are your kid’s going to be for Halloween?

Loaded Avocado Bar and Giveaway

October 13, 2015

This post is sponsored by Old El Paso but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Growing up in the state of Alabama, you are forced to choose between Auburn and Alabama at birth. The parents choose for you and that is the team you pull for for the rest of your life. You are raised to strongly dislike the opposite team and their redneck tendencies. The Iron Bowl is the biggest game day of the year. Not the super bowl. Winner accepts bragging rights until the next Iron Bowl and the losing team can be found looking at their shoes for the rest of the year. It’s a really big deal.

Most football Saturdays are spent with family and friends. I love to have easy snacks around the house and I enjoy serving my favorite game day recipes. Whether I serve my Mexican Layered Dip or Frankenstein Guacamole, you can usually bet Avocados from Mexico will be served up in our favorite appetizers. This past week, we celebrated our 4th anniversary. I was reminiscent on one of my favorite parts of our wedding – the loaded potato bar! It was delicious and everyone’s favorite. I thought it would be fun to set up a Loaded Avocado Bar as a healthier alternative for our game day Saturday! I ran to Publix to pick up my Avocados from Mexico and other toppings. I love shopping there because they have the best coupons and deals!

Included on our Loaded Avocado Bar:

Avocados from Mexico
Shredded Cheese
Sour Cream
Bacon Bits

Other Delicious Options:

Salsa
Cheddar and Chives
Pea Dip
Bacon and Blue Cheese or Ranch

I recommend using very ripe Avocados and a spoon or chips!

We had fun eating our loaded avocados and watching Gameday on ESPN before we went to Birmingham! It was such a fun and relaxing way to spend our Saturday. I loved setting up this loaded avocado bar and I am looking forward to doing it next time we entertain guests! It’s a fun twist on our wedding favorite!

Enter to win $10 Paypal Cash in the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Do you eat Avocados? What is your favorite way to eat them?

Benefits of Drinking Water and How to Save with Filtered Water

October 9, 2015

This post is sponsored by Pfister Faucets but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

I learned a very valuable lesson during my pregnancy with Sophie-Rae. I need to drink more water. Preferably, filtered water. It was especially important during my pregnancy, but it is still extremely important today. I’m not only breastfeeding, I’m a mother. I am chasing around 2 kids under 2 every day, all day…and night. It’s not as glamorous as it sounds. I know you are all so jealous right about now. 😉

Water is so beneficial to our health and overall happiness. Why? Because it keeps you healthy and gives you energy! It definitely helps me keep moving during the day. Here are a few benefits to drinking water:

Healthy glowing skin

Rids the body of toxins

Energizes your body

Curbs your appetite

Keeps you focused

Not only am I trying to drink a lot more water these days, I also give water to my son and use filtered water for my daughter’s formula bottles when I need them. I have been spending $5 on a case of bottled water every couple of weeks for all of us. That money really adds up. It is important to me that my family drinks healthy and clean water. After testing out tap water using a Water Testing Kit, I was totally grossed out – further confirming why I began drinking bottled water in the first place. After I heard about the Pfister Clarify Faucet, I knew I had to try it! This faucet is exclusively at Home Depot and is the only currently available faucet with Xtract technology.

Results of The Water Testing Kit:

Old Tap Water: I surprisingly found out that our tap water is not as bad as I thought it would be. That is good news for my neighbors! There is still room for improvement, however.

New Filtered Water Through the Clarify Faucet: The filtered water was definitely cleaner. It had lower levels of Copper, Iron and Chlorine.

Well, I think the results are pretty clear. I’m so thankful for our new water filter faucet. It is saving us so much money and is more environmentally safe which is an added bonus. I can pour it in my favorite water bottle and go! No more worrying about plastic.

Do you drink tap water or filtered water? Do you have a water purifier?

5 Things Successful People Do Every Morning

September 21, 2015

This post is sponsored by General Mills and Nature Valley Bistro Cups. All opinions are my own.

Kate Middleton, Hillary Clinton, Lorelei Gilmore. What do these women have in common? They are all very successful. Each in their own way. I love Kate Middleton and have thoroughly enjoyed ~~stalking~~ watching her journey through duchess life and motherhood. She is someone I look up to. I am not a fan of Hillary Clinton, politically, but again, she is extremely successful in politics. Lorelei Gilmore…who doesn’t want to be her? To raise a child at a young age, make it from a maid to the owner of your own inn, marrying Luke? Because, in my head, they are married now. Successful people intrigue me. I like to study certain habits of certain people and have learned a few things that successful people do every morning.

Make a To-Do List – I am a listoholic. I make so many lists throughout the day. Making a general list of things I need to get done really helps me to stay focused on what needs to be done. If I don’t make a list, I tend to get way off track and don’t ever get as much done.

Eat Breakfast – It’s no secret around here that I love breakfast. Eating a little something in the mornings helps to jump start your metabolism and get your body working. I am so beyond excited about the latest thing that I found at Publix the other day! Y’all. Nature Valley makes oatmeal in bistro cups. Meaning you can literally throw it in your brewing machine and boom. Breakfast is served! It is ridiculous how excited I was when I first saw this. It’s delicious, it’s fast and it’s pure genius. Run, don’t walk to try some for yourself! Oh, and don’t forget to grab this $3 off coupon!

Exercise – I don’t do this every morning, but I try to. Sometimes, life gets in the way and I don’t get a workout in until the night, or not at all. Exercising and stretching really gets me going. I feel like I get so much more accomplished when I get up and move for a bit. Even if it’s a few minutes, a 10 minute yoga sesh can do wonders!

Quiet Time – I enjoy reading my bible and praying in the mornings. It is not something I have been consistent with, but it really helps me focus on what matters and what is important. It prepares my mind and heart for the day. It really makes the biggest difference. Having this quiet time can be a very refreshing way to start the day on a positive note. During this time I also love to sip on a cup of coffee. It is relaxing and helps me really wake up and be alert and present.

Get Dressed – Yes, that is so “duh Logan,” but I have to make a conscious effort to do this everyday. Especially now that I am not working. I can get away with wearing pajamas most days, but I choose not to because there is something about getting dressed that makes me feel more confident and ready to tackle the day. Plus, it’s not as embarrassing when your neighbor knocks on your door at 3p.m. and asks why on earth you are still in your PJs (true story).

Now, back to this genius breakfast in a mug, Nature Valley Bistro Cups are so easy to make! All you do is:

1. Pour the oats into a mug.
2. Put the k-cup into your brewing machine and turn it to 6oz.
3. Stir the oatmeal and let it stand for 1 minute.

Breakfast is served!

Enter in the rafflecopter below to win $10 Paypal Cash!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

How to Have the Perfect Night In

September 17, 2015

This post is sponsored by BOOMCHICKAPOP but the content and #BringtheBoom moment are my own.

Around 8p.m. once the kids are all tucked in bed, I have a couple of hours all to myself before hitting the sack. During this time, I typically finish up any blog tasks that I didn’t get done during the day and then its party time! Well, not really, but it feels that way to me. I am a bit of an introvert, so there is nothing I enjoy more than a quiet night in. These nights are rare, but are so rejuvenating to me. So, how do I create the perfect night in you ask?

First, late night snacks are a must! Good for you if they are healthy choices. Sometimes mine are and sometimes they aren’t (I’m talking to you, ice cream). One of my favorite snacks is popcorn. Since I was pregnant with SR, I have been on a major popcorn kick. recently noticed these fun bright colored bags of flavored popcorn at the grocery stores, and so I had to try it out for myself. I am absolutely in love with BoomChickaPop! Best part? It is already popped, so all you have to do is sit down and enjoy it! It is also gluten free. I bought the sea salt flavor because I prefer regular popcorn to flavored, but it is definitely worth a try.

Second, I set the mood with a candle and maybe a little music. I love to have background noise on at all times. Music is so soothing and can really help me relax.

Third, pick out a good book or movie! This week, I have had the pleasure of reading and reviewing Kate Morton’s new book The Lake House (insert school girl giggles and bounces). I have really been enjoying diving into a once again incredible book by my favorite author! Look out for my review coming soon! There is just something about unwinding and getting hooked on a good show or book right before you go to sleep. Reading definitely helps me unwind.

Right now, you can share how you bring the BOOM on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram using the hashtag #BringTheBoom for a chance to win three Halloween kits, a $50 Target gift card and free BOOMCHICKAPOP products! They will choose the winners and mail prizes out the week before Halloween. Be sure to share share share!

How do you enjoy your alone time? Do you prefer a night in or out on the town?

Crazy Things That Happen When You Travel

September 11, 2015

This post is sponsored by Gazelle but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Traveling is something that Ryan and I are very passionate about. We met in Gatlinburg, Tennessee while traveling, we traveled a lot throughout our dating years, we started off our marriage by traveling to London and Paris and just last month we went to the Bahamas. Since having children, we haven’t been able to travel as often (for fun, anyways). We are currently planning a big trip to Europe for next summer and are growing more and more excited. We were laughing the other night about how every time we travel, something crazy happens. It never fails, we can’t ever just have a normal trip. To name a few:

My son brakes his leg – He broke his ankle a few days before we left for our cruise. Talk about bad timing.

We lose a phone – this has happened a couple of times. Luckily, we ended up finding it both times, but if we had not, thank goodness for Gazelle!

We drive off with the iPad on the hood of our car…and then run over it. – Yes, this happened. Even worse? A few other cars ran over it as well. Bye bye iPad. Very painful memory.

Ryan loses his tube pass in London – luckily this happened our last full day there, so we just opted to buy tickets every time we rode the tube (subway) for the rest of the stay. It was an expensive mistake.

I don’t know that we will ever pay full price for our iPhones or iPads again. Buying used through websites like Gazelle are so ideal! They are extremely affordable and you are always getting great quality with Apple.

With kids heading back to school and the holidays fast approaching, it is time to start thinking about an affordable phone for them that won’t make you absolutely sick if something happens to it. Gazelle offers great cell phone options for kids and even has them filed under age appropriateness. If you sign up for their emails, you can stay in the know on all of the latest offers, tips and promotions! If you are ready to buy, you can get $10 off your first purchase!

Has anything crazy ever happened to you on your vacation? Have you ever broken or lost a phone?

Progresso Bread Crumbs Pasta

September 7, 2015

This post is sponsored by General Mills but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Happy Labor Day! In some ways it feels like summer just began but on the other hand, I am tired of 95+ degree weather! Bring on the fireplace weather! This fall semester, I am challenging myself to cook one to two new recipes every week. I have really been wanting to challenge myself and step out of my comfort zone in the kitchen and I have decided I will share a few of my favorite with all of you! After all, fall is about cozying up by the fire with a good book, cup of coffee and food. Lots and lots of food.

Ingredients:
Progresso bread crumbs
2 1/2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 tsp. Minced Garlic
8 oz. Linguine Pasta
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:
Cook pasta according to directions on the package. While pasta is cooking, heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a pan over medium heat and add the minced garlic. Stir constantly for 30 seconds and take off of heat and let stand for about 5 minutes. Drain pasta and pour pasta into a large bowl. Toss in all ingredients and serve immediately.

I added a side dish of salad with Kraft Italian Dressing and shredded cheese to complete our Italian meal! It was easy, quick and delicious. Even our toddler loved it! That is an A++ recipe in my book.

Now you can win $10 to try these products for yourself! All you have to do is visit Progresso or Kraft and leave me a comment telling me which recipe you’d like to try! Enter in the Rafflecopter below! Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check back here or on Twitter for an amazing coupon starting September 10th! Coupon details here:

• $2.00 off Publix Produce with the purchase of Any Four (4) participating products
Participating products: select Old El Paso items**, Ro*tel Tomatoes, Hunt’s Tomatoes, Kraft Natural Shredded Cheese, Avocados from Mexico
**Items include Dinner Kits, Seasoning Mixes, Enchilada Sauce, Refried Beans
• $2.00 off Publix Chicken with the purchase of Any Four (4) participating products
Participating products: Progresso Bread Crumbs, Progresso Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth, Kraft Salad Dressing, Kraft Natural Shredded Cheese, Hunt’s Tomatoes
• $1.00 off Any Five (5) Ro*tel Tomatoes (10 oz.)
• $1.00 off Any Five (5) Hunt’s Tomatoes (14.5 oz.)
• Save $1.00 on Avocados from Mexico when you buy three (3) Old El Paso products (1-31 oz.)
• Save $1.00 on three (3) Betty Crocker casserole potatoes (4.5-5.1 oz.)
• Save $1.50 on two (2) Betty Crocker Cookie Mixes (12.5-17.9 oz.)

3 Cheers for Breakfast + Giveaway

August 17, 2015

This post is sponsored by Cheerios but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

I used to never eat breakfast. Give me a cup of coffee and I was good to go. Lately, however, I have been eating breakfast and lighter dinners since I have been trying to lose my baby weight. I have grown so used to eating breakfast that when I don’t, I am starving and grumpy by the time lunch rolls around. When we went on our cruise, we ate really big breakfasts. It was amazing and I was in heaven.

Aside from the delicious French toast, scrambled eggs and bacon that was given to us on the cruise in unlimited quantities, my go-to breakfast is usually cereal. I have even passed this habit down to my son who loves his Cheerios. When I say love, I mean it! “Cheerios” was one of Hamp’s first words. As soon as he could talk, he found a way to ask for his Cheerios. He prefers them to waffles and almost any other breakfast foods (other than fruit and yogurt).

Cheerios are the perfect snack for kids. They taste great, come in so many delicious flavors now and have wonderful health benefits. Guess what!?! Publix is even offering a BOGO coupon for Cheerios!! Be sure to snag it while you can!

I recently discovered that people make so many other delicious recipes using Cheerios that go far beyond cereal! I’m talking muffins, ice cream bites that are making my mouth water and so many more! Check out all these delicious recipes here! Talk about mixing up your breakfast!

Giveaway Time!! Win $10 by:

1. Visit Cheerios and leave me a comment telling me which new flavor or recipe you’d like to try!

2. You even get a bonus entry for printing the BOGO coupon! Just leave me a separate comment letting me know you did!

I will pick one winner in 3 weeks! Good luck!

What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?