Gearing up

Today we hit the On The Run store. It's a running store. It's really cool! They watch you walk so they can get a better look at how your feet hit the ground. I'm lucky enough to have wonderfully flat feet. Whoo Hoo! Oh and one of my feet is a little bit bigger than the other. How crazy is that? I found a great pair of shoes that provide me lots of support. Brooks, it's a brand I've never heard of before. I can't wait to see how long they last. Now if the weather would cooperate our training would go a lot smoother.

Today's Quote

Don't regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many.

The Best Night of His Life?

I mentioned that I'm training for a 5K (coming in July) and my son is training for a 1 mile race (coming in March). Tonight was our first evening of training. I ran this race about 2 years ago. I made 2.5 miles and walk the rest of the way. I thought I did great. I was really proud of myself considering I didn't train for it nor had I ever done it before. It was a boot camp sign up. All of enrolled did it together just to see what we could do.

Any way my friend and I took my son to the track to train. We did our best on the track and then we hit the tennis court. From there we went to the local coffee shop for smoothies. My son got 4 scoops of ice cream found the connect four and checkers game and we sat and played for a good hour. He had such a great time. He said, "This was the best night of my life!" Amazing what a little one on one time can do. :)

Today's Quote

People get so in the habit of worry that if you save them from drowning and put them on a bank to dry in the sun with hot chocolate and muffins, they wonder whether they are catching cold.

-John Jay Chapman

Aloha Friday #32

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:
Who is your favorite Muppets character?

Flash Back Friday #32 - Muppets

Just trying to go back to a time when life was a little simpler. I bring you The Muppet Show! Good times.

The Aftermath of My Research

If you have followed along about my research of emotional eating then this post will tell you the fall out and the discovery of what I have learned.

First, when my husband came home the first day and read the white board he was surprised. He was actually nicer than usual.

The second day my husband came home and read the white board he was annoyed. I can no longer write this stuff down on the white board. If I do I have to erase it before he gets home. It's not about him nagging him. It's what's going on in my head. It's thing that I don't necessarily verbally react to but they cause me stress. I would be a raving maniac if I reacted to everything. I have to keep my cool during all of this. Some days it's hard because I feel like a pressure cooking about to blow as each thing piles on.

This is what I have learned. When the baby cries because she is hungry it causes me the most stress. I will grab something to eat right away to snack on while I'm getting her food ready. Her crying raises my stress level the most. The rest of my stress triggers I don't eat. I don't get upset then eat. Here is what happens to me. At the end of the day after everyone is asleep and the house is quiet I get hungry about 9:30pm - 10:00pm. It's snack time. It's sort of like my reward for making it through the day. Is that sad or what?

Everyone has stress and I knew that if I wrote it all down that I would have a pen in my hand all day and I did. I'm constantly moving all day just having three kids, cleaning house and the daily grind. We have been going to the track every day and going for a walk for 2 weeks. Today we played tennis. I wonder what my husband's list would look like if he wrote it all down.

I'm not sure where to go from here with all of this new found information but I am aware.

Wordless Wednesday - Top Dessert Chef

Oh That Boy!

Lately our son has been on this kick about "Top Chef Desserts." He has begun making his desserts a work of art. I had to take a photo and yep that's my Wordless Wednesday for this week. He's a growing boy that is for sure.

I missed soccer season in our little town here. They had the wrong email address for me so I didn't get to sign him up. Luckily the city across the street still had registration going on. I talked to my son about it and asked him if he wanted to play. He does so I signed him up today! Go me.

I think that is when you truly know if your kid loves a sport! They are willing to play no matter what.

Tuesday Toot Meme #31

Yesterday I did a post about emotional eating. Instead of putting everything that upset me in a journal I wrote it on our white board. I started this about 8:30 am this morning and it was this full by 1pm. I counted 22 things that were stress triggers and the day is only half way over. I only wrote down the things that made my heart race and increased anxiety. Then I thought if I drank 8 oz. of water every time I wrote something on the board then I could get my water intake done for the day. That would have been 176 oz of water so far today! That might be way too much. lol I have no idea. I am going to continue researching this because clearly I have issues.

So my Toot Toot this week is going to be for writing down my stress triggers. I bought all new under garments and a couple of pairs of jeans and a tennis racket and balls! Go me. I'm on the road to recovery again. I love my children but I'm glad we had our last one. I need to find my body again. I'm in here some where.

Emotional Eater?

The other day I stepped on the scale and gained a number of pounds that I rather not post. It has occurred to me that I have become an emotional eater. OK - Scratch that, I just figured out that I'm an emotional eater. I really had no idea. I'm past the point of people thinking that I just had a baby. Yes, and that was 6 months ago. Most of the time I can't escape the stress. It's not just my own stress that I carry. I'm a wife so I have my husband's stress and worry. I'm a business owner so I have the stress of cpsia and how to survive. I'm a mother and I carry the stress of my children with me. There is more that I carry but those three departments are my most emotional. I have gotten some good suggestions on how to deal with emotional eating. Someone told me that I should journal about what's going on and what I'm eating. I thought about this today and I think that would be difficult. I would always have a pen in hand if I did that. I think it is a good idea but I have to find a way to deal with it because I can't solve it all. I can't make my husband stop stressing. I can't control the cpsia. Most importantly I can't control the situation with my eldest child. She plagues me the most and is intertwined with a number of other family members. It's very complex and complicated and as much as I try to let it all go it's not realistic.
This is where a nice sweet cold Big Red or Tea come in handy. Maybe a bag of chips for mindless munching and yes I've tried the gum. The gum just loses taste and I chew so hard that it makes my jaw hurt after a while. I am a non smoker now and have been for years. I didn't substitute food for cigarettes, they just became too much trouble. It's hard to preach to your kids not to light up when you have a cigarette in your mouth. Let's not forget about the smell. I couldn't be around my babies smelling like that and having them breath it in from my clothes.
I'm also not necessarily a food lover. I don't eat because I'm so in love with food. I don't fully understand it yet. I can't possibly be the only one out there with this problem. I've heard lots of tricks like drink water before your meals so you don't eat as much. Oh and eat 5 small meals a day! These are all nice ideas but I'm the last person on my list. I have so many people to care for it's hard to remember all these little tricks.
At meal time I cook serve my kids and then feed the baby and try to eat at the same time. My husband bathes the baby and then I rush through the rest of my meal so I can get the toddler and baby dressed. The after hours is my down time. I don't want to think I just want to watch mindless television. I don't want to think about the pressures. I pray every single day for strength. I now have a walking routine and the kids are involved too. It helps but I would love some down time away from every one.
My husband was complaining about the drive home this evening and I thought "WOW you got to sit in the car by yourself!" I know my family would help if they could but they all have their own lives and busy schedules too. I'm not sure what to do but I'm just glad that I'm finally aware of what's happening to me. I told my friend today as we were walking the track, "there's a skinny *itch inside here!" lol
Is it awareness or just one more thing to add to the stress pile?

Popular Vote - 2009 Leading Moms

Even though cpsia hangs over the heads of many small businesses. I am still doing my best to spread the word about my small business. I hope that many of you will not only vote for Happy Panda but those online businesses that are in the running. We would all love your votes and comments. Maybe you have purchased our products or reviewed them and held contests on your blogs. I'm going to list not only my company page for your vote but I'm going to list the WAHMs that I know are running! Here we go.

Click Here!

The Baby Bloak
Baby Fabulous
Baby Fish Mouth
Baby Swags
Back Space Records
BookieBoo
Born 2 Impress
Boutique Up! Daily
Cushie Pushie
Cutie Booty Cakes
DekoPosh
Happy Panda
Jaybird Designs
Laurie's Cobalt World
List Plan It
LTD Chix
Mom 4 Life
One Chic Mama
Ooh LaLa Mama
The Diaper Clutch
Signing Times!
Warm Me

That's it! Good Luck to all of you ladies.

Catching Up!

In case you don't know about the 5 Minutes for Mom Ultimate Blog Party I'm here to tell you it's coming soon! I have the honor again of organizing the prize list. I have a system and I'm always glad to work with the twins. We have lots of prizes and we seem to have a lot of international ones too. I've been sitting on the codes for a couple of weeks now but today I'm all caught up. The prizes are posted and coded and it feels good to be caught up.

Now about that new stroller. It's super and I've walked the track all week. I feel so much better. I can really get that stress off even if it's only for 45 minutes. What I would really like to do is run it off. I have a tendency to carry a lot inside and I don't have a good outlet for it. I'm working on it though, baby steps.

Aloha Friday #31

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:
If you could be a super hero, who would you be and why?

Flash Back Friday #31 - Wonder Woman

After yesterday I'm flashing back to Wonder Woman! Linda Carter rocked this series. Did you watch? I know I did. I thought it was fantastic. It was Wonder Woman and the Bionic Woman those were the heroins I remember from the 70's. What fun.

Did Today Really Happen?

The most disgusting day happened today. It was full of all my children's bodily functions. If I went into detail you would be so grossed out. Why do they always have to do these things when company is over at our house? LOL - It's almost like they secretly plan it. I think it goes something like this...

8yo: OK guys I'm going to school so make sure that you two keep her so busy while I'm away that when I come home she is so exhausted all she can do is let me hang out and watch tv, ok?

2yo: Got it dude! I'll have a few accidents and that should keep her busy with the laundry. I can do my vomit trick too at the dinner table that should help. Now baby, make sure you come out with a poopy diaper too!

6mo: Ga Ga - That's agreeing with what the other two say in baby talk.

After my hubby came home I laid out my entire day for him. Just when he thought my story would end, I would chime in with, "wait - there's more! "

No one explains to you what being a mother is really like until it's too late. Then we all share our horror stories and nod in agreement. "Oh, I've been there!" How we don't have capes flying off of us at all times is a wonder to me!

Today's Quote

Never fear shadows. They simply mean there's a light shining somewhere nearby.

-Ruth E. Renkel

Baby Trend Sit N Stand LX Stroller, Silverstone

This stroller right here has given me my freedom back! I'm not kidding. My friend told me about it and there it was at Toys R Us and now I have my walks again. Our baby girl can't sit up on her own yet and our toddler likes to run around. Using our wagon was just not going to cut it. Now I can put the baby in the front and the toddler in the back. He doesn't like to stand on it, he likes to sit. When he sits down he faces me. Now I can go back to walking our son to school in the mornings. We can walk the track at the park with ease. Our toddler can walk the track too and if he gets tired he can sit and buckle up. It's not as compact as I would like it to be when it folds up but I really like this design. My hubby was impressed with the shock absorbers. I'm happy to have a place to put my little people so that I could have a more active life style again!

Wordless Wednesday - Tool Time

Tuesday Toot Meme #30

This weeks Toot is because I found a stroller that will allow me to get back into my walking routines. I'm so excited! My buddy and I are going to start trying to run a few nights a week. I want to get back to boot camp shape. It's going to take a while but I'm on the right track.

Temper Tantrum 101

Earlier today my Mom and Grandma came over for a cup of coffee and to just hang out and visit. It was really cool! Whoo Hoo adult conversation and everything. Our baby girl was adorable as always and our resident toddler was in full force. It's sort of a blur the order of events but it went something like this....

Toddler decides to go potty, hurray! Yes, go in the potty. He was down to his birthday suit and was refusing to get his underwear back on. I had to chase him around the house and pick him up and put the underwear on. He was throwing the biggest fit. It was so severe he actually threw up in splatter formation all over himself, our couch, me and the floor! Oh yes he really did. He had eaten chili for lunch so our carpet now has nice faded maroon spots. I had to throw him in the shower, change my clothes, clean off my shoes, and grab the carpet shampooer. After everything was cleaned up I looked at him and said, "Now go get another pair of clean underwear!"

The trick to parenting is having stronger will than the kids do. That's tough! I have very strong willed children. Heck this little guy gets so worked up he vomits. LOL - Now this is the real motherhood. I don't know if my Mom and Grandma will be coming again for a visit any time soon. lol

Family Game Night - Battleship

I'm still trying to keep up with our Monday Family Game Night. Tonight only the boy and I played but that's fine, we had a good time. We played a good old-fashioned game of Battleship. I think he won but it was hard to tell because one of us was missing a ship. It's a great excuse for a rematch.

Today's Quote

Be your own hero, it's cheaper than a movie ticket.

-Doug Horton

Does Your Family Know How To Walk Together?

It may seem like an odd question but I began wondering about this today. After we made it through Valentine's Day and 2 days of cleaning we were SICK of being in the house. Of course the rain didn't help much but my hubby and I were bound and determined to leave the house. We took a trip downtown with the kids to walk around and look at the buildings. It was nearly a nightmare! I had images of a scene from John & Kate plus 8 where all the kids are linked together. That's a good idea I thought. Downtown has crosswalks and busy streets and you really have to pay attention. Our kids were walking around like they were on a hiking trail or something. It was not relaxing and pretty scary. We left and opted for the Museum of Natural Science. A lot has changed since I was there last. The place was packed with people. It was a bit scary because our boys would run from one exhibit to another and we had to make sure we all stayed together. Then we had our stroller so we were hopping on and off the elevators. My guess is that if we got out more maybe they would begin to understand how to walk together as a family. Am I crazy or what?

Today's Quote

Better keep yourself clean and bright; you are the window through which you must see the world.

-George Bernard Shaw

Happy Valentine's Day!

Well how did you spend your Valentine's Day? We spent ours cleaning, running errands and finally cooking! He cooked the steaks and I cooked the side dishes. How romantic is that?

Hubby gets lots of brownie points this evening. He called his Mom to wish her a Happy Valentine's Day. He bought all of us including the kids a Valentine's Day card and chocolate. Yep, he bought his baby girl her very first Valentine's Day card. How SWEET!

My oldest son chimes in with, "Mom, Who gave me my first Valentine's Day card?" rofl - I was totally stumped! He was in tears. I had to come up with something quick while my hubby just laughed at me. Arg! I still have to make him a card. I better get on that right now.

Oh and to top off the evening our resident "Tornado Toddler" pushed the off button on my hubby's computer. Now the computer is dead. Happy Valentine's Day? lol

Was That Fun or What?

What a great launch party MomFaves.com had! Josh asked me to blip the party on Twitter for an hour. I had so much fun that I stayed for two. There are so many more people on MomFaves.com now. I've been getting lots of emails of members adding me. That's a good feeling.

My hubby and I have been talking about BlogHer and it looks like we might seriously be making that trip to Chicago. I'm really jazzed. Could it be? I could actually meet some of the people that I read and chat with all the time! I'm excited.

Aloha Friday #30

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:
What are you getting your significant other for Valentine's Day?

Flash Back Friday #30 - PePe Le Pew

Sorry for the commercial but I can't think of Valentine's Day without thinking of that cute skunk that is always chasing after that cat. The cartoons cracked me up! I felt sorry for him most of the time. Delusional skunk! Happy Flash Back Friday everyone.

Today's Quote

Enthusiasm is the greatest asset in the world. It beats money and power and influence.

-Henry Chester

Feeling The Pressure

This might seem a little silly but I'm really feeling the pressure of being a room mom. I have to create games, prizes and goody bags for 22 seven year olds. Oh the pressure! It has to be a good Valentine's Day party right? Oh no I'm not worried about what to get my hubby for the big day. I'm stressing over my additional children. I've seriously lost my marbles. And here stands my toddler in his birthday suit and a pair of Home Depot safety glasses, rofl. My life is hilarious!

Mother of The Year!

My Mom just sent this to me and I had to share it. Who couldn't use a good laugh!? This really looks like something I would do.

Today's Quote

Life is a roller-coaster. Try to eat a light lunch.

-David Schmaltz

Wordless Wednesday - The Pretenders

Pips Invitation

Whoo Hoo I was invited to be the "Blip Master" at the MomFaves.com launch party this Friday. How fun is that? I can't wait. If you've got some good party music suggestions leave them here. Are you a member of MomFaves.com yet?

Tuesday Toot Meme #29

This weeks Toot goes out to all those people who helped to search my friend's missing father. He has Alzheimer's disease at age 63 and he has been an athlete all of his life. He walked over 70 miles for over 36 hours. This was a happy ending considering the situation. Here is to all of us who handed out and posted flyers. Those of us who Twittered, Facebooked, blogged contacted the media and made countless phone calls! Can't wait to see what happens next.

Today's Quote

Never miss a chance to keep your mouth shut.

-Robert Newton Peck

Marvel Monday

I don't know how Mom's do it. I know that most of us just do but sometimes if you sit back and think about all the things you do in one day it's amazing. I always feel like I can't get enough done. If I could just catch up I could have time to sit and hang out. The problem is I have a hard time getting anything finished. I am interrupted by a flurry of dirty diapers and potty training and feeding the baby and feeding the toddler and throw in housework. By the way housework seems the most pointless! Today I did an exhausting amount of cleaning and not even 5 minutes later there was another mess being formed in another part of the house. *sigh*

Each morning I tell my son as he leaves the car "make sure you compliment someone today!" To me if you can find something nice to say about someone it can improve your whole day. It's a helpful tool when kids are trying to make friends too. I also have a standard list of questions that I ask him each day.
1.) What did you eat for lunch? - Very important to find out what kind of food choices he's making.
2.) How was gym class? - This is where you will find out how athletic your child is and how much they enjoy the games being played. Remember the days of team captains? Remember how everyone waits to be picked?
3.) How was recess? - You can get a lot of social information here. Who are they playing with and what kind of games are being played? Who had to sit out?

Granted these are all very socially directed questions because that is where my son needs help. His reading and math skills are very high but when it comes to social skills he's a bit shy. Public school can be very difficult for children for a number of reasons. I read a discussion on Mom Logic the other day that a Mother of a 6 year old had concerns because kids at school were calling her child weird and refusing to play with him. He was left to play on the play ground by himself. That's so sad.

Today's Quote

We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about.

-Charles Kingsley

A Breath of Fresh Air

Jen Harris & Princess Time Toys - Thanks for following along!
After all the craziness of the weekend we finally had a day to catch up on our lives. We took all the kids and dogs in the backyard and had a hotdog roast. Priscilly jumped in her galloping horse and the boys jumped on the trampoline. My hubby melted aluminum. You have no idea how happy is about melting metal in the backyard. This was a BIG deal. Whatever, he's happy and in a good mood so....

My Mom had purchased some outfits for Priscilly but they were too small. This baby is now a whopping 19.5 pounds at 5.5 months. She wears size 12 months. Anything smaller makes her look like she is in sausage wrapping.

One of the stores was The Children's Place. As cute as their clothes might be I could not deal with the loud music. During my return the cashier and I were shouting at each other and we are 3 feet away from each other. I did say, "WOW the music sure is loud!" Rather than exchange the outfit or shop around I just left with the money. Don't worry Mom, I'm going to put it in her piggy bank!

Our next set of returns was at JcPenny. I knew I should have just left after I returned the outfits but she's running low on pj's and onesies. After I stocked up and her big brother picked out a toy bunny with a blanket we had to go to his section. My son has turned into a pj collector. We found some Clone Wars pj's and boy was he happy! They are also selling these dinosaur t-shirts with toys attached for "free." Ha! Don't waste your money because those toys fell apart as soon as we got them home. He was pretty disappointed. Overall it was a good day around here.

I just can't wait until we can get our lives in order enough to where we can really relax with the kids more. Saturday and Sunday mornings are the best! They each get up one by one and hang out with us in our bed. They are all so cute. I'm calling the baby "Gummy Bear" now because that's what she reminds me of when she grins at me with her gummy smile. *warm & fuzzy*

See Kai Run Contest! - From Nancy to Anne

Priscilly has grown out or her pair of Nancy shoes! See Kai Run was nice enough to let us review a pair. When the latest newsletter for their Spring Collection came in my email I fell in love these pair of Anne shoes. They are perfect for her and she has a little bit of room to grow.

These are my favorite Product Features

• Handcrafted from butter-soft sheepskin leather
• Soft suede sole with non-slip rubber pads
• Adjustable Velcro closures make shoes easy to get on and ensure a great fit
• Breathable leather insole and lining
• Padded collars for extra comfort

I am so happy that SeeKaiRun.com is allowing me to give away a pair to you! You get to choose from any pair you want. How do you win?

1. Become a See Kai Run Facebook fan
or
2. Sign up for their Newsletter

Leave me a comment and tell me which one you did. You can do both! Contest will run until 2/14 @ 11:59 pm cst. Winner will be chosen at random and posted here by 2/15 @ 10:oo am cst. U.S. Shipping only. Good Luck!

With the help of my buddies on Twitter, the winner is....
@PMKU #7

Amy2boys

Amy Campbell Smith - Thanks Amy for helping me pick the winner.

OK - Lucky #7 get ready to shop.

Lessons Learned - When Someone Is Missing

As scary as the last 3 days have been I have to tell you that I have learned a lot. Let me share it with you just in case.

If your missing person has an illness for example Alzheimer's disease, there is a Silver Alert. What worked against this particular situation is that he was not 65, he was 63 and therefore was not eligible for this service.

Make sure you have recent photos! Those are very important to have. We even had a photo of the dog. Make sure there is contact information on your dog's collar.

The police make you wait for 24 hours. As an alternative you can contact Equusearch. They know what they are doing and how to organize search parties. They help create and distribute flyers and notify surrounding police departments and alert the media. The media is more likely to listen to their organization rather than just a contact from family or friends.

Many businesses will not allow you to post missing persons flyers in their windows. Wal-Mart only allows the posting of children not missing adults.

Who would help you look for a loved one? Are you a member of a church? What type of community groups do you belong too? What resources do you have to help search?

Homeless shelters will not give you information about who is there but you can send them a photo to identify who the person may be. The emergency rooms are a great place to pass out flyers.

Make sure your cell phones are charged. You will be using them a lot! There are many things that can happen within a 24 hour period. In this case he was missing for 42 hours and traveled on foot over 70 miles.

I'm glad this had a happy ending. I hope that this information will help should you ever find yourself in a missing person situation.

Dennis Shippey Found

Dennis Shippey and the dog "Lucky" have both been found in Angleton, TX. He is currently at one of their local hospitals being checked out. I'm sure he was very disoriented because of his lack of medication. We are very happy that he has been found. Thank you to all of the volunteers who searched, Equusearch for organizing everything, the local and surrounding police departments, the animal control officials in the local and surrounding areas and the bloggers and tweeters!

Dennis Shippey Missing

Missing - Dennis Shippey age 63 with Alzheimer's disease. Last seen at Strawberry Park in Pasadena, Texas at 4pm on 2/5/09. A search party is being formed at the park. He was wearing a TEXANS baseball cap, short sleeve light blue shirt with "Tricathalon Alcatraz Training Camp" printed on the front, dark blue pants and white tennis shoes. He was walking a black and white Beagle Collie mix medium sized on a blue leash. The dog's name is "Lucky." Please contact the POLICE if you have seen him.

Update on retired swim coach
Equusearch.org helps organize a search party.
Local Media is now reporting.
KHOU.com
The Pasadena Citizen

Grab A Flyer!

Aloha Friday #29

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:
What's the worst lie your kid has ever told you?

Flash Back Friday #29 - Lies

Remember the Thompson Twins? Talk about your 80's band. I'm sticking with my theme of dishonesty. Here you go! A funny little video for your memory bank. Happy Flash Back Friday.

The Mommy Radar

Moms how tuned in are you with your children? Have you experienced the "Mommy Radar?" It's that gut feeling that something isn't right with your child. You can't put your finger on it but you know there is something going on. You try to ignore it because when you pay attention nothing good comes from it or at least if feels that way. It goes off when they are doing something wrong or flat out being dishonest. You want to believe them and you know you have taught them right from wrong. Still, that radar alerts you! Mine has been going off. I tried to ignore it really I did. My undeniable ability to follow a pattern of logic just wouldn't allow me to let it go. I had to investigate, just had to for my own piece of mind. I'm not crazy, my kid lied. Do they ever grow out of this stage? Seriously. It's one of my pet peeves. My Mother always told me the same thing. You want to be able to trust your kids. It really stinks when you can't.

Happy Hump Day

Tinateee, gahome2mom, The Fink's - Thank you so much for following along. It's always great to have new bloggers that I can get to know. Today has been a day for thinking. I have to figure out a plan of action to tackle all these things that I have to do. I'm a busy lady that is for sure!

The interview with Classy Mommy went pretty well. I hope that some people will be helped. That is a great question for the cpsia issue. Where do we go from here?

Wordless Wednesday - 3 Stages of Life

Tuesday Toot Meme #28

Toot Toot! That's for catching up on my blogging and all my product reviews. I have been processing orders and sending out prizes from The Bloggy Carnival too. I've got two runny nose little people on my hands and it's a wonder I'm getting anything done. I'm hanging in there though.

ColorMe Company

First let me just say that my kids and I had a great time with this product. We recently purchased our boys a new bedroom set and were short a pillowcase. What a great idea to try one of ColorMe Company's pillowcases for the kids to have something memorable from the family. We received the Waiting for You Horse with the marker set and a card with a crayon set. One of my son's girl friends came over and helped out with our little project.
This isn't just an ordinary pillowcase. Our children get to color all over it and keep it as long as they want.











This is their finished product on the front. Are these kids artists or what?

We turned it over and colored on the back too! We traced their little hands and they doodled all over it. My husband and I wrote them little notes to read too. All we had to do now was throw it in the dryer on a high setting for 30 minutes and let it set over night. No problem until my toddler went to get it this morning. He placed it on our table over drops of strawberry milkshake which he had gotten into earlier this morning. It was time to give it a wash and see how it would hold up. There were not any special washing instructions on the packaging and I washed it like I normally do with cold water and tumble dry. To my very sad disappointment the coloring faded! I looked over the packaging again but the step that I failed to follow was on the marker box. I was suppose to iron it before washing it!
It's still a great product and a great idea. One of my favorite features is the slumber party packages. What a fun idea and what a great project for boy/girl scouts. They have other products to choose from like t-shirts and cards. ColorMe Company not only has great products for kids but they are very involved in giving back to the community. See their charity choice program here. Special thanks to Paul Marciano for creating such a great memorable product for children and keeping his product Made in the USA. Now go get your 20% discount using the code colormelovesmoms! *Don't forget to iron before you wash.*