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Friday, November 15, 2013

Nana's Sewing Closet + Giveaway


Today I have an awesome giveaway for you courtesy of Nana's Sewing Closet,


The winner of the giveaway will receive one custom handmade dress that is valued at $30-$35 depending on the size ordered. *Please note that some of the dresses in the shop are over this prize value but the winner may choose one of those and pay the difference.*

One top of the giveaway we are offering a 10% discount code off of any order. Good through Friday November 22, 2013.

10 % Discount Code:    Holiday2013
To help us spread the word some of my lovely blogging friends have offered to post this giveaway on their blogs so make sure to go visit them and say hello.

Dara from Not in Jersey | Kera from Nugget on a Budget |
| Becky from My Sweet Moose | Julia from Eternal Girl |
|Shelby from Stay Crafty My Friends | Dawn from Dawn's Disaster

| Sara from Confessions of a Redheaded Mama | Beanie Blogger Opportunities | Janine from Confessions of a Mommyaholic |
| Mommy Blog Hoppers | Tiffany from My Safe Havens |
| Shana from Organized Chaos |

| Cassandra from The World from the View of Two |
| Ashley from Mrs. Mama |
A big thanks to all the lovely ladies help in supporting Nana's Sewing Closet's first ever giveaway! Rafflecopter is down below to enter. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Thursday, November 14, 2013

I Can't

Since I told Jenn I was going to post a link up to her #ICant post. Here I am, taking a break from my homework (gah) to share with you a list of my I Cants.


First things first. I just can't walk up to an escalator and walk right on. Seriously. I even tried to put mastering the escalator as one of my work goals (true story), and going down is far worse than up.



Skinny Jeans. Really people. Those things are evil. I remember hating them so much as a kid, struggling to get my foot through that tiny fitted ankle hole was the devil, I mean, the toes always went through just fine, but the heel? You must be double jointed or have no  heel to wear those. It felt like it took hours to get that daunting task done as a kid. Eff all of that!

Oh, and men in skinny jeans? What the heck is all of that about? Bad move boys, BAD move! Come on, doesn't this guy remind you of the dinosaur from Meet the Robinsons? "I have big shoulders, and little legs"




Do hair. As in, hair in my hairbrush. I will throw them away before I will even empty them because it will make me hurl. A friend of mine was talking about how she was cleaning out her tub drain, and went a little too far. I'm gagging right now just thinking about it. Oh, and this picture her husband sent me. Totally hurlworthy.



And if you follow TheEverydayMomma on Instagram, her shower pic made me gag. Hair on the shower wall? I can't do it. Cats? Heck no! They cough hairballs up allll the time. DISGUSTING, and now I can't stop gagging. I will never come back to this blog post ever. I.just.can't.


I actually have a big list of these ICant. But I will save those for another day. The last one I will share today is a major issue I get picked on for big time.





use wooden utensils, or wooden anything. Popsicle sticks, corn dogs, sausage on a stick, you name it. I.just.can't It honestly is a texture thing and I just can't stand holding them, and them going in my mouth? Hell to the no! Chopsticks? Uh, I'll use a fork. And red wine goes with that because most of it is so dry it feels like a popsicle stick in my mouth. It makes me cringe just typing this!








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Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Sponsor Schmonser


 I have been experimenting with sponsorships lately. I have sponsored quite a few people in the last few months or so. I just dove in because I really wanted to see what it was all about and really get a clear understanding of the ins and outs of this sponsorship business. I'm just going to cut to the chase here: I have been extremely disappointed with a few of the people I have sponsored in the past. I won't sit here and name names, but you can guarantee I will not be contacting them, or reading their content anymore.

So many sponsorships offer this thing called "social media love" buyers beware; you are not showered with shout outs, replies, or anything of that nature with most. So really, social media love comes in a tweet or post that says welcome_____________ to my sidebar this month, and that is all you will get for your entire existence. I say if you are going to go into this sponsor thing, don't go in blind.

I sponsored one of these people and was completely ignored. 2 emails, both ignored. One saying I would love to participate in the giveaway they were doing (part of the sponsorship), and another introducing myself. Both ignored. No social media shoutout; not even welcoming to the side bar. Hell, they weren't even following me on anything.

Now, I know not everyone is everyone's cup of tea....I know I'm not, and to be honest, I could care less if people don't like me. But really guys, why approve an ad if you, yourself see that you do not mesh with someone, and why make false claims to do things that you clearly had NO intention of ever doing? Can we say FALSE advertising? And please direct me on where I can go to get a refund.

I am sure I am not the only person that has been in this boat, but just in case I am, I will give you some tips or advice.

I urge you to watch the people you want to sponsor. Do they make good on their promises? Is there follow through?

If you want some advice on who you should sponsor (most bang for your buck) I would go with a few select people.

What I really looked for in sponsoring was content.

Could I relate to it?
Was the blog interesting?
Did it entertain me?
Do I want to get to know this person?
Could I be potentially see myself as friends with this person?

I mean, why bother wasting time and all those precious dollars on a lost cause. 

I played around with location. I first started looking for local bloggers offering sponsorships. What better way to connect with someone when you share the same city? Really, location is NOT important. Seems I have been burned more in my own city than anywhere else. Go Houston!

After the content, and playing around with location, I looked to see what these sponsorships really offered. I really looked for the most bang for my buck. I honestly think with Jenn. I found the most bang for my buck and I highly recommend her (and no, I wasn't bribed, asked, nor did I have a gun held to my head to say this).

-I'm not turning my nose up at any of the people I have sponsored just because I didn't name drop you in here-

Yes, I too am playing around with the other side of sponsoring and putting myself out there for others because I don't think it is right to treat people like crap. I might yank it, I might not. I do know that Kaitlyn has the same ideals that I do behind her sponsors. Spending time to get to know them, and not just letting them fall to the waste side.








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Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Fun Times

Our weekend started off like any other weekend- except it wasn't like any other weekend because Mr A was home (not at work) and Baby Bear slept in. We decided to grab some breakfast, and then we had to get the oil changed in my car and have it inspected. Typical every day stuff, right? Think again! (this is ME we are talking about) so the guy comes up to me and starts running his mouth about some port I thought he said LBD (it's the OBD port, oops) and not being able to connect to it. Really, I had NO idea what that meant. Then they told me to go buy a fuse. When I got into my car, I noticed when I started it, and as I was putting it in drive, NOTHING on my dash was working (it was working before) Look, this is me in drive



And here is reverse, and neutral

This is 5mph

Yeah, my gauges and dash were no longer working but they claimed they didn't do anything. Never ever use Halvoline anything for an oil change or inspection,  or anything!

We did get the dash semi working and I got a prognosis on my car. My fuses are now in the right spot, which I couldn't have done without the help of a friend. He is a lifesaver and I am extremely grateful for their help!

Saturday, November 2, 2013

A Day Late- Happy Halloween!

I hope you all had a Happy Halloween! I know we did. There was a gnome, pippi longstocking, and of course, there was Baby Bear. She just HAD to be a ladybug. Not just any ladybug, but a BLUE ladybug. Which lead to my panic. Lucky enough, I found someone that could do it. So all my thanks goes to Kara with Mommas Tulle Shed and her custom work.












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