TV Shows I've Given Up On

By now, it shouldn't be a secret that I love tv.  I always have.  My DVR is often my favorite way to relax - and it is quite busy recording all of my shows.  One of the biggest differences between Tim and I is that he likes to watch mostly sports - whereas I like anything but sports.  Very rarely, we'll find one we both like (Dexter, Friday Night Lights, to name a few.  PS I will always love Tim Riggins.)

Over the years, there have been a number of shows that I have been committed to.  (Uh, Grey's Anatomy?  When will you end?)  There have also been shows that I've given up on.

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// Vampire Diaries.  Even my extreme love for Damon can't keep me interested.  I really, really enjoyed this series before Elaina's transition - since then, it's been a little "meh" in my opinion.  I even deleted four unseen episodes because they've just been sitting there on my DVR.

// Red Band Society.  Truth be told here, I didn't watch more than two episodes.  I'm a sucker for teenage dramas, so I thought I would be all over this.  I found it a bit depressing and over the top as far as devastating things that can happen.  Not to mention the fact that it is completely unrealistic.

// Revenge.  This one barely made this list.  I started watching it recently on Netflix, and I don't know why it lost my interest.  I liked the idea of it, but always found myself choosing something else over it.  Those of you who still watch it - should I go back?

// The Taste.  I'm not much of a foodie, but I liked the premise behind this one.  Sort of Top Chef meets The Voice.  Recently, I've seen some commercials for the beginning of this season - and all they did was remind me that I didn't miss it.

// Stalker.  I was so excited for this one - and even Tim watched with me!  But again, it become too predictable and almost boring to us.  If we'd both rather do laundry than watch this, it's a problem.

// Always Sunny.  The early years of Always Sunny were amazing.  I can't pinpoint when it stopped being funny to us, but it did.  Maybe it felt a little forced?  Is it even still on?

// Almost Scandal.  My sister got me to start watching this in the Tampa airport when our flight was delayed five hours.  I wasn't in to it.  It could have been the fact that we were sitting there for that long, or that we were sharing earphones - either way, I didn't get past the second episode.  Last year, after hearing all of the hype, I gave it another try.  And I'm so glad I did!

Have any of you given up on the same shows?  Any others that didn't make my list?  And while we are at it, share your favorites so I can add them to Netflix.  Bonus points if the men in your life like it too.  I wish there were more shows that Tim and I liked to watch together.  Right now we only have Homeland and Shameless (PS we're behind on both, so don't spoil anything!)

Linking up with Anne for Wednesday Wishes.

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Family, Friends and the Hawkeyes

I told you Friday that I was going to Iowa to tailgate, watch the Hawks, and relive my college days.  I did just that... and more.  As promised, I did make it back for Monday, even if I am feeling quite old today.

Tim's best friend and his wife went with us and we made the best of our weekend together!  Saturday started early, as all Iowa tailgating days do.  We bundled up, made hot chocolate with Bailey's, and remembered life as teenagers as my Dad drove us to our tailgating destination. 

In case you don't know, we played Wisconsin.  Tim is the oldest of twenty three grandchildren.  23.  Including spouses, seven of us are Hawkeyes and five are Badgers - so far.  It's a family rivalry and we love to give each other a hard time.  Some of us met for the day, and it was so much fun.  I love spending time with our families - there is so much love, fun and memories made each time.

Today I'm thankful for my parents - who drove us to Iowa City, watched the girls all day, and then made the trip back to pick us up later that night.  I'm grateful for Tim and his family and all of the love there.  I'm grateful for friends that feel like family.  Most of all, I'm thankful that both Tim and I chose to go to school at Iowa.  If we hadn't, we never would have met - and none of this past weekend would have happened.

Being in Iowa City reminded me just how old I am - but we still managed to have a great time.  I finished the day with a Marco's grilled cheese, and for that, I will never be too old!

Linking up with Emily.

Cheers!

We made it through another week friends.  This weekend, I'm off to Iowa City to tailgate, go out, and generally just pretend that I am a college student again.  Let's hope I survive and make it back for Monday.

While I am off reliving my youth, take a moment to read these posts from this past week.  And, go and visit my co-host, Brianna from XO, Brianna Leigh.

"The Cup Song and Some Blogger Love" by Knock on Wood Blog.  I love Amanda's performance of this!  And the outtakes at the end are hilarious.  This is a must see!

"Napa Valley Day 1" by Martin Manifesto.  (Also, Day 2 and Day 3).  Napa Valley is somewhere I've been begging Tim to take me for years.  Leslie breaks down her activities - and even will share her itinerary if you ask nicely!  Bookmarking this to pick her brain once we finally book a trip.

"The Importance of the Father/Daughter Bond" by Love the Here and Now.  I'm very close to my Dad and understand first hand how important this is.  Watching Tim with our girls is so amazing, and something that I wish for every little girl.

"...Let's List It" by the Florkens.  Any post that gives a blogger content to write about, is one to save.  If you haven't already checked this one out, I highly recommend it.  You might even come up with your next blog post idea!

"A Letter to Myself" by The Samantha Life.  I love this open, honest letter that Samantha wrote to herself.  I think we can all learn this lesson - don't be so hard on yourself.  Give yourself a break, and enjoy everything that you have been blessed with.

What are you favorite posts from this week?  Link up below and tell us!  One rule: Please share at least one post by another blogger in your post.  Hop around to see the rest of our faves and say hello!

An InLinkz Link-up

When Your Phone Stops Working

This is not a "how-to" post, as I am about as good as a newborn when figuring out technology.  Although I'm pretty sure a newborn would figure things out more efficiently than I would, but I digress.

If you are friends with me on Facebook, you saw yesterday that my phone decided to take a bath with A.  I immediately took it out of the bath and dried it off, but the sound wouldn't work.  Not devastating, until I tried to make a phone call.  No sounds = no calls.  What's the point of a phone if you can't make calls?  (Never mind the fact that I rarely actually speak on my phone, but I digress again).  So, I turned to Pinterest and quickly plunked it in to a bowl of rice.

Meanwhile, I felt a little lost.  That is, until I realized how wonderful it was not having my phone around.  Seriously!  The first few hours were strange, I kept reaching for something that wasn't there.  But once I got used to it being gone, it was so nice.

I hate to admit it - but my phone gets a lot of my attention - even when my girls are around.  It's almost like an addiction.  Check email, check twitter, tweet, browse Facebook and Pinterest.  It's never-ending.  But without my phone, I was more in the moment.  I listened to my girls giggle, read books to each other, and make each other laugh.  I sat down and colored an entire picture with E.  I rolled around on the floor with A, just to make her squeal with delight.  I did these things for hours, without interruption.

I'm ashamed that I don't do this more often.  It was such a great day, pure joy even, with my girls.  It made me realize even more that time with them is short - that they will never be this small again.  I am taking this "oops" situation and running with it.  I'll be shutting down my phone every morning, while they are both awake, and just living in the moment with them.

Although I don't wish that any of you drop your phone in a pool of water, I do wish that my lesson can be learned by each of you.  It's easy to get wrapped up in technology, but enjoying each moment is much more important.  It's only fitting that I link up with Anne from Love the Here and Now today for Wednesday Wishes.

And, for the record, the rice trick does work.

Where is Home?

Many people consider home is where they live.  The place they go to every day after school or work.  Where their mail gets sent to.  Me?  Of course my residence is "home", but so is Iowa.  The place I grew up - where my parents are - the place where I go and everything feels like it hasn't changed.  I'm fortunate to live less than four hours from Cedar Rapids, and try to get back at least once a month. 

When Amanda announced her new link-up, Tell Me About Your Town, I was eager to get started.  I will mostly be sharing things about my hometown, Cedar Rapids, but for some of the link up prompts I'll be writing about the western suburbs of Chicago, where I currently reside.  Today's prompt is "things you are thankful for about your town".  This one clearly belongs to Iowa.

I grew up in a town of just over 120,000.  Not huge, but not small either.  (And no, I did not grow up on a farm - a question I get a lot!).  I lived there all the way until I went to the University of Iowa, which is just 30 minutes south.  There are so many things that I am thankful for:

|| The people.  I didn't realize how dang friendly everyone was until I moved away.  People ask "how are you?" and really want to know.  They hold the door for you, help you carry things, and when someone pulls over to help you and your broken down car, they really want to help - not rob you.  (Yes, that happened to me - another post for another time.)

|| My friends.  I was lucky enough to go to elementary, middle and high school with the same kids.  Of course, multiple elementary schools merged in to middle, and multiple middle schools merged in to high, but I always had the "core" people I knew since Kindergarten.  These days, I only see one when I go home - but when we are together, it's like no time has passed at all.

|| Diversity.  This one might be a shock to some of you, but I was fortunate and grew up with a diverse group of people.  My high school even offered Japanese (which I took).  And, I was lucky enough to study abroad in Japan when I was only seventeen years old.  (Spoiler - this is what my series is about).

|| Low crime.  Growing up, I hardly heard of crimes.  This could be because I was sheltered from it, but I really believe it's because it didn't happen often.  When I was in college, one of my roommates used to make fun of me because on the nightly news, they had a segment called "Big Ole Fish".  Viewers could submit photos of the big fish they caught, and they would feature one a night.  My roommate thought it was hysterical and "weird", but to be honest, I'd rather watch that than what she grew up watching, being from the south side of Chicago.

|| Shopping was exciting.  Ok, so don't get me wrong here.  I still absolutely love shopping and am excited any time I go (especially if I'm going sans children).  But in Iowa, I didn't have everything at my fingertips like I have in Chicago.  We would frequently take weekend trips to Minneapolis or Chicago just to shop.  It was fun and exciting, and I don't do that anymore.  I also didn't spend as much money!

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I'm more than a little proud to be an Iowan.  I'm grateful that my parents chose a place to raise us that felt like a small community, but offered things similar to a larger one.  I love Iowa.  I'll be the first to defend it, share random facts about it, and would move back in an instant - if only I could convince my Chicago-loving husband. But for now, I will take shopping over the Big Ole Fish on the news.

Linking up with Amanda for "Tell Me About Your Town" and Emily for "Grateful Heart Monday".

 

Finding the Good

There is always something good in every day.  Always.  For me, it could be chocolate, wine, dinner with a friend, or simply a really great hug.  We had some unexpected stressful situations this week - so for today, my "good" is Blogger Love.  I love showcasing awesome posts from the week and sharing them with you.  And the posts that you share with me through this linkup?  I've found so many new, amazing bloggers from it.  To add to the many other reasons why I love Fridays, this link up has made the list!

The Rules: Please share at least one post by a blogger other than yourself.  This is so we can meet new bloggers that you think are great!  I really don't want to have to delete links that don't do this.  That's it - just one rule!

Here are my faves from this past week:

"Blog-Mas" by the Grits Blog.  I love Christmas.  I love blogging.  Let's put them together and form Blog-Mas!  Ash and her co-host, Tay have provided us prompts for each day in December.  I have two planned and might throw in a few more.  Fun link up!

"My Answer to Working with Advertisers" by Helene in Between.  Have you gotten the vague "We'd love to work with you!" email, which basically means "Please pimp our product, but we won't pay you!"?  It's awkward.  Amanda gave me some great responses to use, and I'm adding Helene's suggestions to my arsenal.  Basically, know your worth and don't be afraid to ask!

"A Reader Survey is Good for your Blog Soul" by Whispering Sweet Nothings.  I've toyed around with the idea of a reader survey - because honestly, I don't know who most of you are.  Besides stats on my posts, I don't know what you like and don't like!  Shane breaks it down for us and gives good tips on how to do a reader survey.

And now I've just realized that my three faves this week all have to do with blogging.  Sorry for you non-blogging readers!  For the rest of you, I hope you find them useful - I sure have!  Have a great weekend friends, and find some good in your day today!

An InLinkz Link-up

A Thanksgiving Vlog

So, Faith finally broke me down and got me to do a vlog.  This was a bit challenging to do - I couldn't get my sound to work, so it just ended up like a video on mute.  Pair that with being completely uncomfortable, I was ready to give up.  Then, Melissa came to my rescue and told me exactly how to make a video.  Have I mentioned that computer things are not my forte?

I love watching other bloggers vlog - it makes me feel like I know them a little better.  You can see their mannerisms, hear their voice, and it seems like they are talking directly to you.  So I thought, "why not?"  I'll try anything once!

So here I am - a Golden Vlog all about Thanksgiving!

The Good and Bad of Being Me

We all have qualities about ourselves that we love, and some that we don't love as much.  Getting older has proven one thing to me - I definitely know what I like and don't like about myself.

Today I'm linking up with Amanda for List Yourself.  I love this idea of a link-up - it's based on a book that Amanda read, where it gives you prompts to make lists.  The point is, at least in my opinion, is to make these lists and discover more about yourself.  Plus, tell me a blogger that doesn't love lists and I'll give you chocolate.

Today's prompt is: List all the qualities in yourself you the least - and the best.

Qualities I like the least

|| I'm sometimes judgmental.  I really try not to be, but I usually judge people based on my first impressions - good or bad.

|| I forgive easily.  This could also be a good trait, but I've been burned by a few exes because of this.  I've learned to stand my ground and make people earn my trust back.

|| I'm lazy.  I hate working out, I hate cleaning, and most days I just want to lay on the couch and watch tv.  There are exceptions to this of course - deadlines at work, playing with my girls, spending time with loved ones.  But if I'm home alone (rare) or during naptime?  Yea I'm usually not doing anything productive.

|| Going with the above, I procrastinate.  In college, I would almost always write my papers and study the day/night before.  Still true today - and my real life job revolves around deadlines.  It stresses me out!

|| I'm not always the most patient.  This is something I'm really trying to work on, especially with my girls.  Some days they just really test me, and some days I snap. :(


Qualities I like the best

|| I give good advice.  People ask my opinion on things, ranging from childrearing to fashion.  Maybe it's because I say what's on my mind, not always what they want to hear.

|| I love.  And I love deeply.  My friends and family mean the most to me, above all else.  I will go out of my way to make sure they are happy.

|| Besides the patience bit above, I'm a good mom.  I love my girls, let them have fun, but also teach them how to be good people.

|| I make people laugh.  I'm sarcastic, and you can always count on me for comic relief.

|| I'm organized.  Bills, budgets, groceries, packing - I do it all.  My attention to detail is spot on and comes in handy every day.

|| I'm a great judge of character.  My first instinct is almost always correct.


When I first started writing this prompt, I was a little nervous.  Did I really want to lay out all of my best and worst qualities for the whole internet to see?  Of course I did.  As intended, this post has made me look at myself in a new way.  And in the end, isn't that how we grow and become better people?

We're going to let my girl Kate Spade sum it all up:

 

I am wishing for more patience with my girls.  Also to finally get myself in gear and drop the laziness.  I need to work out, clean, get organized.  So much to do!

Linking up with Amanda and Anne.

Stitch Fix November + Giveaway

Another month, another box of goodies from Stitch Fix.  I honestly get so excited when this box shows up!  My sister is now getting them too, so we exchange photos and each others items.  I also send photos of my items to my bff's to get their opinions, because really, how is a girl supposed to decide on clothing without her friends?

 

Level 99 Lilah Skinny Jean - $128.  The price alone was enough for me to say "no way", but the fit was pretty bad too.  Sent Back, and officially asked for them to never send me pants again.  Way too depressing!

 

41Hawthorn Rosa Tab Sleeve V-Neck Blouse - $58.  Love the color, love the fit.  The sleeves can either roll up or be left down.  Kept.

 

Market and Spruce Chaimbers Cowl Neck Knit Top - $48.  This sweater had potential.  I loved the cowl neck, but the material made it cling in a few places I'd rather not have it be clinging.  Sent Back.

 

41Hawthorn Concord Striped Draped Pocket Cardigan - $58.  Upon first glance, I was not a fan of this cardigan, but I couldn't tell you why.  On?  A different story.  It drapes at the perfect angle, and long enough to wear with leggings and boots.  The colors work well together, a dark tan and hunter green.  Kept.

 

Bay to Baubles Courtney Knot Studs - $28.  (Wedding ring shown for size).  Oh how I wanted to love these.  I have actually been looking for earrings just like this, but these were way too big for my face.  If they were a little smaller, I would have kept them.  Sent Back.

Overall, I was really happy with my fix.  Evidenced by the fact that for the first time, I kept more than one item.  Can't wait for my next one!

I am also part of an awesome birthday giveaway, hosted by Becca at Becoming Adorrable.  Enter below and Good Luck!


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Showing Some Love

The week is over and it feels like full-on winter here in Chicago.  It's cold.  And windy.  The only thing missing is snow and ice, but that will be here sooner than I know it.  Even though I love snow, the ice I can do without.

It's also Friday, which means it's time to show some love to bloggers whose posts inspired me this week.  This week, my co-host is Laci from Sequins in the South.

"List Yourself #1" by Knock on Wood Blog.  Amanda has a wonderful idea with her new link-up, inspired by a book she read.  (find more about that here).  In this post, Amanda lists all of the names she was ever called - good or bad.  I love lists, so this link-up is right up my alley - and really, what blogger doesn't like lists?

"Easy Pumpkin Puppy Treats" by The Grits Blog.  My pup Charlie is so spoiled, but this is not a secret.  And these puppy treats by Ash look super easy to make, so needless to say it's happening.  Lucky dog :)

"Moms..." by My Cup of Sparkle.  A mom is a mom, end of story.  Elisabeth shares a conversation she had with a friend about single moms vs. married moms.  There are so many children in our country that just want to be loved, and if a responsible adult is ready to do that, why does it matter their relationship status?

"Tell Me About Your Town" by Notes From A Newlywed.  Amanda's new link-up is right up my alley.  Each month there is a theme, and we will write all about our towns.  I will mostly be writing about my hometown, but can't wait to read about others towns too.  The bottom line is, "Make me want to visit your town!".  So fun.  Plus, I will be co-hosting one of the months!

So there you have it.  My faves from this week.  What were yours?  Please link up below, and remember: You must share at least one post by a blogger other than yourself to remain linked up.  We want to keep this link up about others!

An InLinkz Link-up

I hope you all have a fun (and warm!) weekend!

A Labour of Life

Have you all met Linda at A Labour of Life?  She's a Canadian fashion and lifestyle blogger that always has a fresh spin on everyday life.  Her daily outfits are so fun - her spin on everyday essentials is something to take inspiration from!  I love how she mixes patterns and makes it look great, something that I've always wanted to experiment with.  Then there is this super easy yet fun Halloween costume that she shared with us this year.

Linda's outlook on life really opened my eyes - that we shouldn't wait for the perfect moment, but make any moment perfect ourselves. Go ahead and read her post, it will make more sense after!

 To get to know Linda a little better, I asked her some questions.  Read below to see some great answers!  My favorite is her answer to what American things she wishes she could buy in Canada... that kind of thing fascinates me!

What is your favorite accessory?

Large statement necklaces, I cannot narrow it down more than that because I do have a lot but I love a great necklace and a scarf oh yeah and a great purse... hard to pick a single item but I think I will go with a great necklace.

How do you put an outfit together - is there one piece you always start with?

I usually pick one thing that I really want to wear and work around it, sometimes its a pair of shoes or boots and sometimes a necklace and I will build around that item,  like Monday I had to wear my new leopard booties and I built an outfit around the boots, but other days I have decided to wear a necklace and work around that. So its not always the same thing I work around but there usually is one thing that I get the urge t wear and have to go from there.

(I love the leopard booties, see above!)

 

How many pairs of shoes do you own? (be honest!)

As I hang my head in shame I just passed the 150 mark.. and it would have been a lot higher but when I relocated to Ottawa 7 years ago I left a lot behind.  Don't judge me please I do love my shoes.

(No judgement here... shoes are a girls best friend!)

 

Wine or beer?  Or something else?

This one is tough, I love both.. Beer I have a tendency to lean towards lime beers but I do love my light beers but wine well, we have a wine cellar and vacation around spots where we can visit vineyards so I guess I have to go with WINE.

 

What's one thing from the US that you wish you could get in Canada?

The awesome yogurt flavours you have...sounds silly but you have such a great selection of Greek yogurts.  (Used to be Brown sugar cinnamon pop tarts and Peanut Butter Chocolate pop tarts but we now get those here, yea).   I have a list of grocery items I purchase everytime I am in the states.  Also, I do wish we had tailgate parties like you have in the states, you guys have awesome football and awesome tailgate parties, I love the atmosphere.  Hockey is amazing but we do not have the same party atmosphere.

What's your favorite vacation spot?

I have to go seasonal here,  In the fall I love the Poconos or Williamsburg and in the dead of winter the Mayan Rivieria.

It's Saturday morning.  Where are you/what are you doing?

Saturday Morning you will find me snuggled on the sofa with my cat and my computer, with a gigantic cup of tea.  I love a Saturday with no plans, no expectations and just me time.  I usually try and catch up on blog posts I have missed reading. In the warmer months you will find me outside on the deck, still with computer and tea in hand or floating in the pool.  I am a Saturday homebody.

 

Why do you blog?

I love sharing all the pieces of me, i post outfits during the week, crafts, food and travel on the weekends. I started out blogging because I thought I was being "to vain" posting outfit and shoe pictures on Instagram and blogging was a way to express myself in a forum that I had no idea was so, so very popular and then I got immersed n this world we call blogging and got hooked, now I blog as a way of communicating with new friends and to keep a record of life. I love the relationships that develop with fellow bloggers and that is what most keeps me motivated to continue.

Make sure to check out Linda here:

Bloglovin // Twitter // Blog // Instagram

Eat and Organize

Last month, I wrote about my goals for October in regards to food.  Looking back, I probably should have had goals such as "don't eat all of the leftover Halloween candy", or "stop eating like you have the metabolism of your 18 year old self", but I would have failed miserably at those so I guess it's a good thing those weren't my goals.  Let's revisit:

Make homemade pasta.  Unfortunately, this was a big fail.  I didn't realize how many steps it took (and tools!) so although I did keep looking it up, I never purchased the necessary gadgets.  I did however tell my Mom that I wanted to learn how to do this - and when she asked if it was "Christmas present-worthy" I said yes.  So maybe in the New Year I will be able to cross this off my list.

Try a new food.  I'm not sure if this should be counted, but I did try an actual coffee drink from Starbucks for the first time.  I've said before that I don't like coffee, but while in Nashville my friend got an Iced Caramel Macchiato made with soy milk, and it was delicious!  So delicious that I've ordered one on my own since then.  Does it count?

Make one new recipe each week.  I completely rocked this one.  I made Caramelized Italian Chicken (amazing), Chicken Gyros (so-so), Garlic Parmesan Pasta (easy and yummy - I added turkey meatballs) and Chicken Teriyaki (make this now!).  It gets difficult week and week to plan meals, so I always love finding new family favorites to incorporate.

For November, the challenge is organize.  This is one I desperately need because I feel with two littles, our things are constantly multiplying.  I have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to organizing so I'm excited to get in to it.  My goals:

1.  Clean out E's closet
2.  Clean out my closet and move my summer clothes to storage
3.  Clear out my makeup and body care stash.  Let my friends have at it and take whatever they want.  I have way too much from Ipsy and Birchbox bags and will never get to it before it goes bad.  This also includes things I have tried and did not like for whatever reason.  (Dinner Club girls get ready!)
4.  Clean out the front hall closet

As you can see, I have a lot of work to do in closets.  We are bursting at my house's seams and do not have any storage left.  Clearing out some of our junk will make me feel less like I'm drowning in clutter!

Today is Wednesday, so I am also linking up with Anne and wishing that I can make time to actually do the above tasks.  I also wish that I don't get stuck in E's closet, reminiscing about when she was smaller, although I can guarantee that this will happen. :)

Awesomeland + A Giveaway!

Who watched Modern Family last week?  Awesomeland seems like a place I would like to go.

The Awesome link-up was created by Anne and it's quickly becoming one of my favorite link ups.  Who couldn't take time out of their day to focus on great things going on in life?  Let's get to it.

 

 

1.  Leftover Halloween candy (although I'm debating if this is truly awesome...)

 

2.  Texts from blog, turned real life friends

 

3.  Firepits in the Fall

 

4.  A Hawkeye win!

 

5.  Lemon Essential Oil in my water

 

6.  Going out to dinner with my besties - and everyone having an awesome meal.  New favorite restaurant!

 

7.  Watching E finish a difficult puzzle - all by herself

 

8.  Payday.  Until it's time to pay the bills!

 

9.  Travelling home to Iowa

 

10.  Planning vacations - St. Thomas here I come!

 

Do you know what else is awesome?  Giveaways!  Enter below for a chance to win a $105 Visa giftcard as well as ad space!

 



Lisa @ Showered With Design // Katelynn @ XO, Katelynn // Liz @ The Fitness Blondie //Emily @ Martinis & Bikinis // Brianne @ Being Bracco // Karissa @ Karissa and Company // Rebecca @ Renovating Rebecca // Amanda @ As The Wine Cork Turns//Anne @ Love The Here & Now // Justine @ Life As A Baltimore Girl// Just Jessie //Janessa @ Running on Empty //Amber @ InDuffinitely Me // Emelia @ Dream Big and Buy The Shoes // JC @ Sweet Love and Ginger // Kate @ Green Fashionista // Brianna @ Sincerely Brianna Leigh//Kelsey @ Random Randts // All The Joys // Molly @ Awfully Big Adventure //Kelsey @ Blonder Side of Life// Just Georgia Peachy//Meghan @ Champagne and Suburbs // Amanda @ Knock on Wood //Mary @ Eat Drink and Be Mary//Misty @ Handbags and Handguns //Ericka @ This Crazy Thing Called Life // Nancy @ Sincerely and Sarcastically// Classy & Sassy Mrs. // Keeping Up With Ashley & Cody

 

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Influenster #BraunTherms VoxBox

source

This little gem was delivered to me with perfect timing.  E had developed a cough, wasn't sleeping well and overall just seemed to not be herself.  Whenever this happens, my mind immediately goes to the worst case scenerio, and I am unable to feel better until my little ones are acting like themselves again.  Needless to say, a thermometer becomes my best friend quickly.

I had a forehead thermometer in the past, but was never very confident in it's accuracy.  It even said in the instructions to "take the temperature three times and use the average".  Umm, I'm sorry but when dealing with sick kiddies, this is the last thing I want to do.

The Braun No-Touch Forehead Thermometer does not have these issues.  To be sure, I did take E's, A's, and my own temperature five times each.  Each were in .1 of a degree for all three of us.  The best part?  You can turn off the sound, and you don't even have to touch it to their skin.  That's a win-win when your babies have finally fallen asleep! 

While E was sick, I went in numerous times overnight to take her temperature.  I felt confident that the numbers were accurate, and didn't have to wake her to find out. 

Overall, even if I had not been given the Braun thermomether through Influenster, it's a must have for anyone that has every had to wrangle a sick, cranky child to get their temperature.  I highly recommend!  It's only $41 on Amazon, much cheaper than the other forehead thermometer I once owned.  (which has now been tossed!)

**I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  All opinions are my own.