Tatyana Vs The SwimSuit

August 12, 2012 by 4 Comments

My friend Tatyana spent the summer seeking out the perfect bathing suit- and I think she has finally found it. Read on to see why she loves this suit so much- and why it may be perfect for you, too! We have very different body types, and I think it is good to see how different shapes and cuts can benefit different women. Take it away, Tatyana!
Can I just tell you how much I love my A.N.A. bathing suit? I was happy to know that the A.N.A. line comes in various styles from tankini, bandini and a two piece. The A.N.A. line also has some great colors to suit every woman’s taste. I was happy to know that this line also has accessories like shorts and cover-ups to go with their bathing suit.

It has pieces to mix and match as well to allow flexibility in swim wear. My one piece, chocolate colored swimsuit fits like it was made for me. The silhouette it creates would never let you know that I was a bit overweight. From a slight distance, I look like a very curvy woman, and close up I still look like curvy without the “extras”. The ruching in the front hides the little bulge with ease. The straps are wide and do not hurt the shoulders or leave any ugly red marks. The little skirt in the front and the back allows me to hide my little bathing suit lines on the bottom.

It does not ride up when I went diving or swimming and it does not balloon like some other skirted bathing suits once you get in the water. After putting in on, I felt like stepped out of a 1930’s movie [Read more…]

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Mashtini- Fun Food from @BobEvansFarms GIVEAWAY

August 9, 2012 by 34 Comments

August 19th is National Potato Day, and our friends at Bob Evans have some fun recipes for you to try out. So cute- Martini’s with mashed potatoes instead of alcohol. We even did a “kiddie” version, my son loved it. Instead of the harsh alcohol with syrup-y sweet flavors why not try some awesome Bob Evans mashed potato recipes like, Sweet Swirl Mashtini, Mediterranean mashed, and the incredible Bob Evans Wildfire Mashtini (which is the one we did).

With the right ingredients and some Bob Evans mashed potatoes, anything is possible. Carbonara mashed potatoes, or a Club Mashtini both with crispy bacon- and what’s not better with bacon, I ask you?

Here are a few of the fun recipes:

Club Mashtini
Prep time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4 mashtinis

INGREDIENTS:
1 package (24 oz.) Bob Evans Original Mashed Potatoes
1/4 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
1/4cup ham, diced
1/4cup Bob Evans oven-roasted diced turkey (from Bob Evans Restaurant) or 1/4 cup of any diced, cooked turkey
1/4 cup cooked bacon pieces, crumbled
1/4 cup ranch dressing
4 mini gherkin pickles (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
1.Prepare Bob Evans Original Mashed Potatoes by following the recommended microwave instructions on the package.
2.Place about 1/3 cup (1/8 package) of mashed potatoes in a martini glass.
3.Sprinkle 1 Tbsp. diced ham on top of potatoes.
4.Place another 1/3 cup (1/8 package) of mashed potatoes on top of diced ham.
5.Sprinkle 1 Tbsp. of each on top of mashed potatoes: Swiss cheese, turkey and crumbled bacon pieces.
6.Lightly drizzle ranch dressing over toppings.
7.Garnish with toothpick and sweet gherkin.

MEDITERRANEAN MASHTINI
Prep time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Serves: 4 mashtinis

INGREDIENTS:
1 package (24 oz.) Bob Evans Original Mashed Potatoes
1/4 cup pepperonata
1/4 cup marinated artichokes, chopped
4 oz. grilled marinated chicken, sliced
1/4 cup prepared pesto sauce
Parmesan crisps

DIRECTIONS:
1.Prepare Bob Evans Original Mashed Potatoes by following the recommended microwave instructions on the package.
2.Place 3/4 cup (1/4 package) of mashed potatoes in a martini glass.
3.Sprinkle 1 Tbsp. each [Read more…]

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Safari LTD Review – Fun Kids Toys

August 9, 2012 by 15 Comments

Toobs! Little Man’s favorite 🙂

No, its not the newest Blue Man Group Show- it’s the super mega huge Jungle Mega Toob. The Mega Toob is twice as big as the regular toob, and houses 24 animals. Ranging in nature from alligators to zebras and lions, if it’s in the zoo chances are pretty good the critter is in this toob. Also, since it is a Safari Toob, the toob itself doubles as easy storage. The top opens and closes simply, making this ideal for vacations or bringing to restaurants and keeping little hands busy. He also got the Red Panda, Orangutang, Lion, and Baby leopard. Red Panda is by far his favorite toy DuJour.

What the? Are you nuts? You may be wondering why would I want to spend my vacation looking for small plastic zebras strewn about the car? Well, the answer to this is simple, don’t give the little ones the whole toob in one shot. As you notice the number of critters [Read more…]

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Lucy The Elephant- Unique New Jersey #FamilyTravel

July 31, 2012 by 14 Comments

There are some very unique attractions in NJ. Of course, I mean unique in the kindest of ways. There are Jersey Devils and Vortexes, albinos who attack cars, and of course enough ghosts and aliens for even the most hard-core skeptic to get goose bumps. (Have you ever read an issue of Weird NJ? You totally have to!) Today we are checking out Lucy the Elephant in Margate Beach, NJ. Lucy is a building in the shape of an elephant that you can actually go inside of. Lucy the Elephant is a part of New Jersey history.

Lucy was built by a real estate investor who was trying to drum up interest in the area in hope of pulling in investors, land owners, and tourists. The idea worked and Lucy was first built-in 1881 for the cost of $38,000- which at the time was quite the fortune. Lucy has acted as quite a few humble abodes as well as vacation homes and now a hot [Read more…]

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Hanging Out with @ZylieTheBear in Central Park at #OasisDayCamps (AND #Win a Bear!)

July 30, 2012 by 17 Comments

Me and my Little spent the morning in Central Park with the makers of Zylie the Bear and Oasis Day Camp (where my son attended camp for a month this summer). The kids had a great time playing together, with lots of activities planned and of course- meeting and learning about the guest of honor- Zylie!

Zylie is a bear after my own heart- she likes to travel 🙂 Zylie the Bear, an innovative new teddy bear line that is all about fashion and adventure, has a silly little brother, likes to learn, visits a museum, and has a Panda friend from China named Shen. In her first book, which was read in parts to the kids, we learn about Zylie and what makes her so much fun. The kids, both boys and girls alike, had a great time hearing her story and playing with the bears. Then, all the “little campers” had a morning of recreational and creative [Read more…]

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Great Back-To-School Clothing with @FrenchToastcom

July 29, 2012 by 16 Comments

Little Man is about to enter Kindergarten- which is both very exciting, and making me feel like a sad sack all at the same time, LOL. He will be attending a school that requires uniforms, which will make getting dressed in the morning all that much easier.

He looks like such a big boy! Everything he is wearing is from French Toast, the clothing and school uniform company. We did shop around, and I can say without a doubt that this is the fastest, easiest, and least expensive way to get his uniforms. I think it is also the best, and though this year his school is not registered with French Toast, I hope to encourage them to to so by next year. I was not thrilled having to go to a store 25 minutes away, stand in line, make my order, then wait 30 minutes more to have it filled just for a few things that needed to be embroidered. VERY annoying. French Toast does it all- plus faster, less costly, and delivers to my door with the same school uniform quality you would get in the pricey store. BLAH.

PLUS, they give participating schools 5% cash back on all orders. Why would any school that requires uniforms not [Read more…]

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Sexy and You Know It? Check Yourself Out in Fresh Produce

July 29, 2012 by 6 Comments

Showing Off My Fake Simba Tattoo! LOL

Yeah man, you know you have to flaunt it if you’ve got it. (And you know you’ve got it, bow-chicka-wow-wow! LOL) Fresh Produce is a fun clothing company that I recently discovered- and adore. It was actually enjoyable to shop and choose my favorite styles and colors, and when it arrived, I was not disappointed. I love to shop, but can do it for myself only rarely. When I get a new item, and it doesn’t meet my desire or it’s description, it is so very upsetting. Then I need to deal with the hassle of returns or exchanges, and deciding if I want to bother with the company again. I am glad to say that I love the dress, and my shopping experience as well.

I’m the type of person who won’t often sacrifice comfort for fashion. Except maybe some fab shoes now and again, LOL. It can be hard to shop for dresses and tops because I have a large chest, even when I wear a minimizer. I found that this dress was PERFECT with a little half top (like a bra-cover-up) underneath it.

Fresh [Read more…]

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Springfloat from Swimways Review and Giveaway

July 27, 2012 by 38 Comments

It is way too hot, and has been for too long. Pretty much every part of the countryhas felt the heat this summer. Crops drying up in the mid west, streets melting in the south, people melting in the north east. Fires in the southwest. Its been a warm summer to say the least. The best way to beat the heat?

Water, and lots of it. Pools, oceans, lakes, ponds, puddles. Anything you can dip into and cool down with. 😛

This will only last so long, until its time to doze off. So why not get a pool toy to lounge in? Check out the Spring Float. These are the nifty floats made by SwimWays, they fold up small and bounce up to fully useable in no time. There is a small inflatable portion of the floats, but they are easy to fill. They also come in different sizes and types, from sun seats to canopies for the little ones. The Spingfloats are all great fun.

Little Man used one as a baby, and they have adult sizes and even one for doggies! Swimways recently launched a new website, specifically created to aid in the development of children’s swimming. Check out the resources, which include tip sheets and facts from TeachMetoSwim.com if you are teaching your little ones to swim, like I am this summer 🙂

Swimways has coupon available for $2 off the purchase of any two Swimways products. https://www.swimways.com/Documents/sw_coupon.pdf So you can start saving right away.

One of you can win a Swimways Springfloat- here is how to enter!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: giveaway, review