Influenster Beauty Bloggers VoxBox 2012 Review

I was thrilled to receive the Influenster Beauty Bloggers VoxBox for review.

I'm having some trouble with my camera so I'm going to use the official pictures with a link to illustrate each product.

First, my favorite item was the Not Your Mother's Kinky Moves Curl Defining Hair Cream.  This really holds the curl in my hair so well.  I wore it to work and several people asked me what I had done differently and one person asked me if I had used a curling iron!  That's quite a reaction for just using a different product.

I've already used up the sample and bought a full sized tube to replace it.  It's very reasonably priced.

The scent is grapey without being sweet.  I think it would smell better if there was a bit of sweetness to the scent but it is still a pleasant scent.  It does not leave my hair stiff or crunchy.

http://www.nymbrands.com/products/kinky-moves

I also received a Bath and Body Works Mini Candle.  The scent I received was Black Pepper and Bergamot.

The candle itself is good quality with a strong and long lasting scent.  I will buy Bath and Body Works candles again because of this.

The Black Pepper and Bergamot scent was not my favorite.  It was very manly.  I could imagine this scent fitting nicely in an old fashioned study with nice woodwork and leather chairs.  It's a nice scent but not what I would choose.

http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=11128744&cm_sp=FO-_-Home+%26+Candles-_-Mini+Candles+&cp=12586994.12936192

The Goody Simple Styles Spin Pin is something that I had seen in the stores but hadn't purchased because I wasn't sure how it worked.  I was pleasantly surprised.  The spin pins easily spin into the hair and I was happy to find that they also spin right back out (without catching or snarling) even with curly hair.

The spin pin didn't work perfectly to create an unstructured updo, but for other buns it is very effective.

http://www.goody.com/Products/Hair%20Accessories/Simple%20Styles%20Spin%20Pin

I was very excited to see the NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact in Dark.  This compact comes with a primer, illuminator (a white cream shadow to add brightness) and 4 shadows ranging from silver to black.

This is a cool kit because it has the colors to coordinate for a complete look.  It has a reasonable price and is long lasting.  The primer sometimes has some creasing.  I will pick this up in other colors when I find it at the store.

http://newyorkcolor.com/products/eyes/eyeshadow/individualeyes-custom-compact

The first thing I picked up and used when I opened the box was the Vitabath Fragrance Mist in Asian Orchid and Coconut scent.  I sprayed it on my wrists and when I rubbed them together I noticed that it was very silky and smooth.  It turns out that is because it has conditioning vitamins and antioxidants.  So not only did it smell great but it was also good for my skin!  I definitely notice the difference over using a standard body spray.

http://www.myvitabath.com/Product/InBloomASIANORCHIDCOCONUT8ozBodyMist

The final item that I received is the Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit.  This is a false eyelash kit that comes with the eyelashes, adhesive, and an applicator.  Interestingly it's created from human hair.  The adhesive is applied to the false lashes and allowed to partially dry before being placed on the lash line.  I like that this removes the possibility of dripping glue in my eyes. : )

http://www.myvitabath.com/Product/InBloomASIANORCHIDCOCONUT8ozBodyMist

Disclaimer:  I received these products free to test and provide my opinion.  No compensation was received and the opinions presented are my own.

Fun Pics from the Boston Aquarium

Win a Keurig and Kindle Fire!!

With Fall and Winter approaching,  Mom of One and Having Fun, Oh My Goodies Freebies, There's A Contest 4 That, Freebie Spot, Pardon My Poppet, For Him and My Family, and a number of other bloggers, decided Mommies everywhere will be desperately trying to get away from the cold and take a break from reality. We are giving one lucky winner a Kindle Fire and Keurig's Platinum Plus Brewing System.  You will be able to enjoy a nice, freshly brewed cup of coffee, morning, afternoon or night. Curl up next to a fire, read any book you like on your new Kindle Fire and relax with your cup of coffee. Now doesn't that sound nice? Giveaway is worth $400!!! Who Wants to Win?!

The Kindle Fire Details (from Amazon):
Movies, apps, games, music, reading and more, plus Amazon's revolutionary, cloud-accelerated web browser

• Over 20 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books
• Thousands of popular apps and games, including Netflix, HBO GO, Hulu Plus, Pandora, and more
• Amazon Silk - ultra-fast web browsing over built-in Wi-Fi
• Free cloud storage for all your Amazon content
• Vibrant color touchscreen with extra-wide viewing angle
• Fast, powerful dual-core processor
• Favorite children's books, graphic novels, and magazines in rich color
• Amazon Prime Members enjoy unlimited, instant streaming on thousands of popular movies and TV shows. 
• Kindle Owners' Lending Library - with Amazon Prime, Kindle owners can choose from more than 145,000 books to borrow for free with no due dates, including over 100 current and former New York Times Best Sellers and all 7 Harry Potter books 

Keurig Platinum Plus Details (from Amazon):

• Single-cup home brewing system for use with patented K-Cups
• One-touch control panel; blue backlit LCD display; digital clock; programmable on/off
• 5 brew-size options; adjustable brew temperature; removable drip tray
• Blue-lit removable 60-ounce water reservoir; descale indicator; dishwasher-safe parts
• Measures 13-4/5 by 10-2/7 by 13 inches; 1-year limited warranty

We all know you probably didn't read the details and just want to win... So here's the rules!

-Be honest on ALL entries- They WILL be validated.
-18 and older, USA and CAN may enter, void in Quebec-
-Winner will have 48 Hrs to respond. Failure to do so, forfeits all prizing rights.-
-This is a month long giveaway, so come back for more entries daily!- 
-Have fun and enjoy!-

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Special Thanks To: The Midwestern Housewife, This Girl's No Expert, Coupons and Freebies MomHealth, Beauty, Children and Family and Frugal Washington Mommy.

*DISCLOSURE* No Compensation was received for this post. My opinions are my own and may differ from yours. Products listed are NOT sponsored by Kindle, Keurig, Amazon, or any other company. This Giveaway is NOT Affiliated with Facebook or any other social media networks. Please note that only Mom of One and Having Fun is responsible for shipment/prize fulfillment. There will be no monetary value given instead of products. Mom of One and Having Fun is in control of the Rafflecopter. If there is a problem on the RC please visit Mom of One and Having Fun and comment on the SAME giveaway post. Thank you and enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday

My kids at VA Beach, Busch Gardens, and Gettysburg

We Love to go on Treasure Hunts

My husband has loved creating treasure hunts for our children for years.  He will create clues that lead to new clues and puzzles.  He even has a little wooden chest with an old fashioned lock on it that he puts the treasure in.  Sometimes it's little presents and this last time it was "gold doubloons" (really it was $1 coins) they could use to buy a toy at the store.

Because this is something we enjoy doing as a family I was excited to receive the printable Secret Agent/Spy  Treasure Hunt to review.  It's a kit with fun clues and puzzles that you can hide anywhere you want.  These puzzles really take a treasure hunt to the next level and make it even more fun!  I like that it can be set up as a cooperative game but if you prefer it can also be set up as a competition.

There are lots of game ideas for a spy party here at partygamesplus.com, as well as the printable kit available for $12.99.

I'd love to hear about your treasure hunts and what you do to make it a fun experience!



I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

My Favorite Eye Cream!

I just received my latest order from Dollipop cosmetics and it contains my favorite eye cream ever.  Her Marigold Eye Cream is the only eye cream I've ever fallen in love with.

It's really effective, my skin feels soothed, hydrated and great. It reduces the appearance of my "crinkles". And I don't get it in my eyes (which burns and is a bad thing) because it's nice and creamy but also absorbs quickly.

The price was $7 and shipping was only $3 (shipping for most items falls under this one flat rate, which is a great deal.)  The owner, Jennifer, also sends a free sample in every purchase.  This time I got a clam shell of the eyeshadow "Steam."  I think it will go nicely with "Cinderella", a pretty blue I purchased previously.

Dollipop Links:
Etsy Shop
Craft Cafe Shop
Facebook (Jennifer is planning a giveaway at 2200 likes and she's getting close!)

Disclosure: I previously received a free sample of the eye cream to try and I loved it so much I bought more. No compensation was received for this post.

Rainbow Cake? Nailed it! (not really)

Hopefully my daughter will still love me after I post her craft fail.  In her defense it was moist, delicate, tasty, and her homemade cream cheese frosting was yummy.

My 18 year old daughter bakes when she can't sleep.  She decided to make a rainbow cake (like the lovely ones on Pinterest) and she started it at about 11:00 pm.  These pics were taken at 1:30 am.

First some Pinterest pictures:

 

Then hers:

Wordless Wednesday - True Love

My daughter with Belle.  True Love!

All horses deserve, at least once in their lives, to be loved by a little girl.

Author Unknown

Greek Themed Picnic

I had a lovely afternoon picnic with my family a few weeks ago.  I decided that I wanted to go with a Greek theme, mostly because I had some wonderful spices from Symeon's that I wanted to put to use.

Our menu:
Grilled Greek chicken
Flat Bread
Greek salad
Greek orzo salad
Fruit salad
Chips
Drinks

I sliced chicken breast into strips about an inch thick and marinated them for 24 hours in red wine, olive oil, and Symeon's spices.  Then when it was time to eat I grilled them outside on my gas grill.  Because they were sliced they cooked in only about 10-12 minutes.

I also served some flat bread and pita that I picked up at the grocery store.  That was the one part of the meal that could have been better.  I wish I could have bought some freshly made flat bread.

One of my sisters made a wonderful Greek salad with romaine, cucumbers, tomatoes, black olives, and feta (I think there was more but I can't remember it all).  I mixed my Symeon's spices with olive oil and red wine vinegar to make a delicious dressing.

My other sister made a delicious tzatziki dip with cucumbers, sour cream, garlic, mint.  She basically followed this recipe but substituted mint for dill and she salted and pressed the cucumbers so it was nice and creamy.

My mom offered to make three bean salad and was met with a resounding No! : )  Instead she brought Bobby Flay's Greek Orzo Salad with Mustard-Dill Vinaigrette.   That was our first time trying this recipe but it's definitely a keeper.  (We skipped the shrimp that it calls for)

My mother-in-law made a refreshing fruit salad that was a nice compliment to the meal.

We had a lovely afternoon hanging out in our yard (pictures of yard below) had a delicious but relatively easy lunch that everyone contributed to.  Then in the evening we had a fire and roasted marshmallows.  I had a lot of fun and was able to enjoy the day.

I wish I had taken pictures!  Next time I will.  : )

Today I Learned a Property of Cats

Found on Pinterest

Name that Snake?

We found this snake in our yard.  We checked it against the poisonous snakes in the Adirondack area so we're pretty sure it's not one of those.  Just curious about what kind of snake it was.  Any ideas?

Gardening!

 Spring has finally arrived and I've been able to enjoy planting my herb garden and my daughter's created a flower garden.  My husband also bought me a rose bush.

In my herb garden so far I have basil (lots!) oregano, dill, purple basil (first time), chives, shallots (planted last year), parsley, rosemary, sage and a cabbage.  The cabbage was accidentally added by my daughter who thought she was helping out.  I'm thinking it'll be far too big and I'll need to take it out, but maybe I can get a small head of cabbage first.

Hopefully the vegetable garden will be done next weekend.  Tomatoes are in the ground but it almost froze a few days ago so they were looking pretty wilted.  We'll see how they do.

What are your "must haves"?

Gerber Daisy

My new rose bush

Dark purple pansy

Raised bed flower garden

Herb garden

Want to Win a $300 Prize Package from Dollipop Cosmetics?

Dollipop Cosmetics is having an amazing $300 giveaway celebrating the opening of their new shop!


Here's the link... http://bit.ly/JtFssZ

Simply Like the page and fill out the form.

Here's what you can win!!

3 Dollipop Cosmetics (formerly Frosting Bath & Body) Soaps
10 Random Dollipop Cosmetics Eye Shadows2 O.P.I. Nail Polishes4 Nicole by O.P.I. Nail Polishes1 Dollipop Cosmetics Room Spray1 Dollipop Cosmetics 35ml Perfume1 Dollipop Cosmetics Lotion1 Dollipop Cosmetics Marigold Eye Cream  1 Dollipop Cosmetics Votive Candle1 Bella Il Fiore Light-up Compact Mirror1 Betsey Johnson for Tweezerman Pair of Tweezers1 60ml Sephora Daily Brush Cleaner1 Travel-size Urban Decay Oil Control Makeup Setting-Spray1 Travel-size Benefit Bad Gal Lash Mascara1 1" Zoe Professional Styling Iron1 Large LeSportSac Summer Tote Bag and Matching Wet-bag for Swimsuit.

Pinterest as a Tool for Handling Asperger's

I didn't know it when I started my Pinterest account but I had not only found a way to keep track of crafts I will never make, I had also found a way to calm my 9 year old son who has Asperger's.

My son has a great sense of humor and loves to laugh.  I created a board I named ROFLs and began pinning funny pictures and things that made me smile.  I knew some of them would make him laugh so I started sharing them with him.  Everyday he would ask if I had any new rofls for him.  He made a self-imposed rule that he wouldn't look until I had at least 6 new rofls for him to see.

I've discovered that not only does it give us a chance to laugh together it also often works as a tool to help calm him.  It has helped to avert melt-downs and helped him when he's feeling out of control or angry.  I love it and so does he.

If you look at the album you'll see that he especially likes lolcats, legos, and Star Wars.  You'll also see a few jokes that I pinned for myself to which he says "I don't get it."

http://pinterest.com/karlatrx/rofls/

Here are some of our very favorites: