I have a bit of a love affair with T.J. Maxx. Could it be the hunt, knowing I am certain to find treasure? Perhaps it is the fabulous prices on fashion that is still in style? I’m thinking it may also have something to do with their amazing housewares section that pulls me in like a moth to a flame. I never know what I’m going to find when I go and that is half the fun!

Locally, our kids go back to school next week. It was obvious when I visited that there were plenty of families doing their school shopping here and with good reason. I found great looks like this feminine military. (That top seriously makes me wish there was one left in my size!)

To cool black rocker argyle. And to to think argyle used to be thought of as preppy. Not anymore!

These leather jackets had me doing a double take. Not only are they eye catching for the look, that purple one has my name on it, but just check out that price!

And T.J. Maxx isn’t just for women and girls fashion. I found these awesome Guess Jeans for guys, normally $89 for only $29.99. They were a current and classic style. Not irregular or with some super trendy detailing. Any guy would love to wear these and any guy (or mom) would love to buy them at that price!

And with plenty of options for junior and girls and boys fashion, you really can shop for Back to School or just for fall for your entire family!

If you still haven’t gotten around to getting a new backpack, T.J. Maxx had a huge display to choose from and a great price.

But on this trip I was shopping for me. Just me with NO kids. Since this doesn’t happen often I had to take some time to browse for myself and found some great fall sweaters like this win.

I couldn’t resist so I picked up a similar one in brown. The quality is fantastic. It is a heavier weight but with 1/2 sleeves that allows me to breathe a bit. It is a great layering piece and will be the perfect addition to my fall wardrobe at $29.99. This is me feeling fancy free in my new sweater and dying in the heat doing it. (Try not to laugh at my pose. We kept getting wind gusts and I just finally went with it instead of trying to get my hair out of my face. Work with me here.)

The baker in me can not resist the housewares section and when I spied this amazingly girly yet modern apron I *knew* I had to have it. It was a total want, not a need but once I found the matching oven mitt and pot holder I was sold.

If this doesn’t scream fall fashion I don’t know what does. Doesn’t it almost look like a cute dress on its own? I’m in love with those frilly ruffles and I have no idea why.

I already made some apple crisp in it the other night and totally looked the part! (Which was so important in the privacy of my own home where nobody saw me…yeah.) The apron was only $12.99 and the pot holders $5.99. For under $20 I bought myself some happiness. Well worth it!

Since 1984 T.J.Maxx, and bighearted customers like you, have raised over $14.7 million to support Save the Children’s U.S. Programs which provide early education, literacy, physical activity and nutrition programs to children in need. And this year we’ve made it easier than ever to give. You can:

• Purchase a special edition tote bag at any T.J.’s and we’ll donate the profits.*
• Give at any of our registers and 100% of each dollar donated will go to Save the Children’s U.S. Programs.
• Post a tote to your Facebook wall and we’ll donate $1, for every bag shared.**

Every little bit counts, so give if you can and together we can help children in need succeed. Thanks for being so thoughtful.

*34 cents per bag sold. While supplies last.
** up to $50,000

Please visit Totes for Change via the T.J. Maxx Facebook Page where you can share a tote on your Facebook wall to donate $1 to Save the Children! Help support this great cause!

To see more great fall fashion looks, visit T.J. Maxx Feel Good Fashion and check out the  T.J. Maxx store locator to fine a store near you.  If you suddenly feel depressed because you don’t have a T.J. Maxx near you, have no fear. Perhaps you have a Marshalls instead?

Marshalls is one of the nation’s leading off-price family apparel and home fashion retailers with over 820 stores spanning 42 states and Puerto Rico. Marshalls offers a wide selection of current season, top quality, brand name fashions for the entire family as well as giftware and domestics for the home at prices 20-60% less than department stores, specialty boutiques and catalogs. For the nearest Marshalls store, call 1-800-Marshalls begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              1-800-Marshalls      end_of_the_skype_highlighting, or visit www.marshallsonline.com.

Happy Treasure Hunting!

Disclosure: Thank you to T.J. Maxx for providing me with a gift card to check out the fashion finds currently at T.J. Maxx. My thoughts and opinions remain 100% my own and yours may differ.

I personally like this format best but you can list it however you like as long as you include an end date and link directly to the giveaway post.

Blog Name – Prize (end date)

I will do this each Thursday so please come back next week to link up!

Here are some of giveaways currently running:

Win 4 tickets to Six Flags with no blackout dates through 1/5/11!

Win a Eucerin Gift Bag with a $50 GC to Sunglass Hut!

Win a copy of Benjamin and Bumper to the Rescue and a Make a Mouse Craft Kit worth $28!

Win a copy of WordWorld: Pirate Sheep and Dive Olly Dive! Under Pressure DVDs

LOW ENTRIES!

Don’t forget to stop by The Shopping Mama to link up your giveaways and enter to win awesome giveaways, including a Vera Bradley Tote!

I love zucchini. I loved eating it grilled or sauteed, especially with some yellow squash. But what I really enjoy is baking with it. Shredded zucchini, much like carrots or apples are great for making moist and flavorful baked goods. From cakes to breads to muffins, zucchini rocks. I’ve already featured two recipes on my baking blog. So of course I asked my mom if she had any zucchini left in her garden last week. She asked my dad to give me some from the garden and put it in the back of my van.

I was completely not expecting to find THESE when I got home.Now that is some MONSTER ZUCCHINI. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed but had trust in my handy dandy KitchenAid Rotor Shredder/Slicer attachment which I knew would fly through the shredding.

But what I hadn’t counted on was this. I never imagined that a single zucchini would net me 17 cups! Since most recipes call for 1 or 2 cups of zucchini, I think I’m set for the year after one. I plan to give a couple to my husband to bring to work. Because for the love, there is no way I can process or use four more that size.  I think I might end up like 5 minutes for mom with a freezer full of zucchini instead of blueberries.

If you are also looking for recipes in which to use the zucchini from your garden, check out my Zucchini Bread and Zucchini Pineapple Cake posts on Oh My! Sugar High. And be sure to watch out for more recipes because as you can see, there is no doubt I’ll be adding more.

And if that KitchenAid mixture attachment is making you drool, keep an eye out here on Baby Loving Mama for the chance to win your choice of KitchenAid attachment!

For more Wordless Wednesday check out Oh My Sugar High, The Shopping Mama , 3 Kids and Us, Jennifer Leigh Designz, 5 minutes for Mom and Seven Clown Circus.

I know that my boys are a bit addicted to books. And for the longest time I think I was a bit addicted to buying them for them. That is, until my huge bookcase became overflowing and they starting to infiltrate the nearby dresser. I’ve since weeded some of them out and now I’m a bit more selective about what I choose to add to their library. After seeing the adorable cover and synopsis of the children’s book, Benjamin and Bumper to the Rescue by bestselling author Molly Coxe I thought it was a perfect time to add a new book into the mix! With real photos an adorable mouse and elephant heroes, how could I resist?

Benjamin and Bumper to the Rescue is a truly unique picture book that delivers a pint sized view of a larger than life adventure. Photographs of incredibly detailed dioramas and a story chock-full of ingenious plans, humorous situations and surprising twists make this endearing tale of Benjamin, a fuzzy mouse and Bumper, his true-blue elephant friend, an instant bedtime classic. Skillfully photographed by Olivier Toppin, Coxe’s uncommonly endearing felted wool characters are wonderfully alive, and her carefully gathered props of buttons, antique toys and cracked dishes are perfect for kids who delight in searching the illustrations for all of the tiny details that reveal themselves at the turn of every page.

Check out this video to get a closeup look at this fun adventure!

Both my boys were captured by Benjamin and Bumper. I wasn’t sure what they would make of the wool characters and if they would see them as heroes or simply stuffed animals. I needn’t have worried. Warren has a favorite stuffed elephant that he must sleep with each night so he loved being able to imagine him as Bumper. I think both of them enjoyed the story even more knowing they could imagine their own adventure using their stock of animal friends.

It is a longer story but one that easily kept my boy’s attention, with their interest engrossed in both the adventure and detailed photographs.  This sweet tale is sure to be a hit with your children as it was mine.

In order to add to the fun, I’ve got a giveaway that not only includes a copy of the book but also a Make a Mouse Kit, which will make two mouse friends for your child! (Don’t worry if you aren’t crafty, sewing is optional and I will send you instructional video!)

Buy it:

You can purchase Benjamin and Bumper to the rescue at a list price of $16.95. It is currently available for a reduced price with free super saver shipping on Amazon and can be purchased from Barnes and Noble or try your local bookstore. If the mouse kit is just what you are looking for, you can purchase it from Brave Mouse Books for $14.95 (plus $3 s/h) or as a set with the book for $28.44 (plus $4 s/h).

{ GIVEAWAY }

One of my readers will win a hardcover copy of Benjamin and Bumper to the Rescue and the Make-A -Mouse Craft Kit, a $28.44 value!

MAIN ENTRY: Tell me why you’d love to win and who the book would be for!

Want more entries? (I have no doubt!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

-Like Brave Mouse Books on Facebook
-Give a little comment love on the Brave Mouse Books Facebook wall & reference this post
-Enter any of my other current giveaways and tell me which one (leave a comment for each)
-Like Baby Loving Mama on Facebook
-Follow Baby Loving Mama publicly
-Subscribe to my feed in a reader or by email
-Follow BLM on twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can do this daily!)

Win an adorable Benjamin & Bumper to the Rescue Book & Mouse Craft Kit $28 value! @babylovingmama http://bit.ly/bgnCzi #giveaway PLS RT!

-Add my button to your blog
-Blog about this contest (must be at least 30 words) with a link back here and to Brave Mouse Books (3 entries)

This contest will end on 9/15/10 at 11:59 pm CST. U.S. & Canada residents 18+ only. The winner will be drawn via random.org and will have 72 hours to respond to winning notification email before I draw another winner or do a live giveaway.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for the purpose of this review.  This has no bearing on my completely honest thoughts above. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared are 100% my own.

I love getting my Kraft Foods: Food & Family magazine in the mail. I enjoy checking out new products, reading tips, getting coupons and of course gawking at the wonderful recipes. Unfortunately my kids are in their super picky stage so I can’t try half the recipes in there unless I’m willing to make two meals, but I don’t always let that stop me. This past weekend I tried the Apple-Cranberry Slaw found in the Fall 2010 issue.  I’ve fallen in love with the texture of cranberries and apples in my slaw and definitely want to experiment more with that combination!

Ingredients

1/3 cup Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing

2 tablespoon maple flavored or pancake syrup

1 pkg. (14oz) coleslaw blend

1 apple, chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)

1/4 cup chopped red onions

Directions

Pour dressing and syrup in large bowl and mix together.

Add in apples, craisins and red onions and stir together. (Unfortunately I was out of red onion so I substituted yellow onion.)

Toss with coleslaw blend. A blend with red cabbage would be beautiful but I had to make do with what I had. Enjoy with ribs like we did, which tasted fabulous, or perhaps try with a chicken salad croissant. The possibilities are endless!

Only 90 calories and 2.5 grams of fat per 3/4 cup serving. 8 servings

This recipe and more can be found at Kraft.com.

I love Sundays with warm cinnamon rolls baking in the oven. Nothing beats the smell and sharing the warm, gooey rolls with my family. You might have even seen my recent post from Oh My! Sugar High where I featured this Pillsbury Cinnamon French Toast Bake which utilizes Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls.

It was so delicious and extremely easy. It worked perfectly for our Sunday birthday celebration for our just turned 4 year old!

And I’m very familiar with the Pillsbury Grands Cinnamon Rolls which I featured with my Wilton UltraGold review early this year.

What? You didn’t think I made these bad boys homemade did you? Nah….but they sure look goooood don’t they? They have me craving some right now! Just place and bake and they are ready for you to indulge in no time.

In an effort to recapture Sunday mornings as the ideal occasion to reconnect with family and loved ones, Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls is teaming up with Melissa Joan Hart, star of the new ABC Family sitcom “Melissa & Joey,” for the My Sweet Sunday Moment contest, where you and your family have a chance to win a seven-day “week of Sundays” vacation to California, including a visit to area theme parks and Melissa Joan Hart’s sweet shop, SweetHarts! Enter today by visiting Pillsbury.com/SweetSunday and telling Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls why your family loves Sunday and why you want more of them for a chance to win.

I also have a fun giveaway to help you celebrate your own sweet Sunday. Aren’t you just itching to press the Doughboy’s tummy?
Be sure to enter the Pillsbury My Sweet Sunday Moment Contest. But hurry, it ends September 2nd! All entrants will receive a printable coupon for Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls! Don’t forget to follow Pillsbury on Twitter and like them on Facebook for extra chances to win this giveaway and  for contest news and great tips, recipes and more from Melissa Joan Hart.

{ GIVEAWAY }

One of my readers will win a Pillsbury “My Sweet Sunday Moment” prize pack which includes a coupon for Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls, Pillsbury Doughboy Giggle Doll, blue silicon spatula, blue silicon pot holder and dishcloths (shown above).

MAIN ENTRY: What Sunday traditions to do you wish to bring to your family?

Want more entries? (I have no doubt!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

-Like Pillsbury on Facebook
-Post on the Pillsbury wall what you think of their My Sweet Sunday Moment Contest or their cinnamon roll products, referencing this post
-Follow Pillsbury on twitter
-Enter any of my other current giveaways and tell me which one (leave a comment for each)
-Like Baby Loving Mama on Facebook
-Follow Baby Loving Mama publicly
-Subscribe to my feed in a reader or by email
-Follow BLM on twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can do this daily!)

Win a Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls Prize Pack & My Sweet Sunday Moment @pillsburytreats @babylovingmama http://bit.ly/a6J5uQ #giveaway PLS RT!

-Add my button to your blog
-Blog about this contest (must be at least 30 words) with a link back here and to Pillsbury (3 entries)

This contest will end on 9/14/10 at 11:59 pm CST. U.S. residents 18+ only. The winner will be drawn via random.org and will have 72 hours to respond to winning notification email before I draw another winner or do a live giveaway.

Disclosure: I received the same prize pack as up for giveaway for the purpose of this review. The coupons, review and giveaway was provided by Pillsbury through MyBlogSpark. This has no bearing on my completely honest thoughts above. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared are 100% my own.

What would you do with a million dollars? Is it hard for you to imagine? After receiving treatments from over 300 filmmakers, four short-films have made it to the final round of the Discover Card Film Challenge which is in support of Discover Card’s Everyday Giveaway where one lucky card user will win $1,000,000. The films range from funny, to inspirational to dramatic, but most importantly original and entertaining. Check out the video descriptions below.

Cash or Credit

This film employs an ingenious “split-screen” storytelling technique to simultaneously show what one man’s future would or would not be like if he used his Discover card to win $1 Million. The two narratives inventively intertwine to present a curious, compelling fable that makes the case for using your Discover card on purchases, big and small.

Clouds

In this dialogue-driven short, a dad and his two sons lie on their backs staring up at the clouds passing by while they daydream about what they would each do with one million dollars. In the process, the three watch the clouds assume the very shapes of their dreams, and a father is able to view the world through the eyes of his children.

Good Fortune

One man’s misfortune becomes a blessing in disguise, as his life takes a turn for the worse, and then a sudden turn for the better. In all this commotion, our main character discovers a poetic way to honor his friends and share his newfound wealth. He anonymously hands out sums of money folded into origami cranes and develops an important new relationship and a new life’s work.

Genie

A mysterious stranger approaches John late at night in a lonely diner, and our protagonist must make a difficult, life-changing choice. The once-in-a-lifetime offer: a stranger gets to meet his or her true love and live happily ever after–or John can keep the suitcase holding $1 Million. This allegory explores the themes of generosity, selflessness and desire.

After watching the wonderful finalists I found it hard to decide on a favorite. I love the split story telling of Cash or Credit which answers the question what if I did this or that simultaneously then merges the two realities at the conclusion. Clouds reminds me of my own husband and boys and I can completely relate to how quick I am to be practical as an adult instead of letting my imagination go wild. My two very favorite though were Good Fortune and Genie, both of which show selfless choices. I think Good Fortune flows better but in this end I have to go with the love story of Genie which doesn’t rely on money to make a person happy. Check it out and see for yourself.

In the spirit of giving, in finding your head in the clouds with your kids and living life to the fullest, I have four tickets to Six Flags to give to one of you! It may not be a million dollars but the memories can last forever, courtesy of Discover.

Be sure to check out all the finalists and rate the videos at www.discovermillion.com. Don’t forget to use your Discover Card for the chance at one of the 75 prizes every day, all year long—plus a $1 Million Grand Prize at the end of 2010. It’s is their way to thank you for making Discover your card of choice.

{ GIVEAWAY }

One of my lucky readers will walk away with a set of four tickets to any Six Flags amusement park in the U.S. through 1/15/11 with no blackouts! This is over a $200 value!

MAIN ENTRY: I’d love to know which of these Discover videos is your favorite!

Want more entries? (Of course you do!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

-Post the million dollar giveaway to your Facebook profile
-Tweet about the million dollar videos with this link
-Enter any of my other current giveaways and tell me which one (leave a comment for each)
-Like Baby Loving Mama on Facebook
-Follow Baby Loving Mama publicly
-Subscribe to my feed in a reader or by email
-Follow BLM on twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can do this daily!)

Win 4 tickets to any Six Flags Theme Park, courtesy of Discover Card! @babylovingmama http://bit.ly/br6UQZ #giveaway PLS RT!

-Add my button to your blog
-Blog about this contest (must be at least 30 words) with a link back here and to the Discover Everyday Giveaway (3 entries)

This contest will end on 9/13/10 at 11:59 pm CST. U.S. residents 18+ only. The winner will be drawn via random.org and will have 72 hours to respond to winning notification email before I draw another winner or do a live giveaway.

Disclosure: I received a DVD as a thank you for posting this giveaway for my readers but no other type of compensation was received. This has no bearing on my completely honest thoughts above. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared are 100% my own.

Moon Dough is a new molding compound from Spin Master, the makers of Moon Sand. Moon Dough is different in that it never dries out so you can use it over and over again. It is super soft and very light, similar to marshmallows or cotton candy. Another bonus is it is hypo-allergenic wheat-free.

We had the chance to try out the Moon Dough Barn Set which retails for $19.99. It contains three packages of molding compound in blue, yellow and white, a fence and hay bale mold along with a barn which spits out a cow, pig, horse or chicken. (Some descriptions include a sheep and don’t include a chicken or horse. We definitely received a horse and chicken but not a sheep.) All the molds are in 3-D and can stand on its own!

Our Experience

Both of my boys, ages 4 and 2, had a blast with the barn. They loved turning the crank and watching an animal magically be spit out of the barn door. I found it was easier to help them a bit with filling the mold or else animals missing faces or looking rather deformed popped out because not enough compound was used. (Not that they really minded.)

I opened two of the bags of compound but quickly went with my usual Play-Doh instincts and put the blue away. It is very difficult to play with more than one color unless you are fine with the colors being blended together.  The compound itself has a very cool texture and is super light and fun to play with on its own.

The two molds created very detailed haystacks and fence. The amazing part with the fence is that they can be interlocked together to create a very long fence. Once my older son Lucian discovered the molds that was all he wanted to play with. I did have to take them out of the molds for him and didn’t find them all that easy to remove myself.

Final Thoughts

Overall my kids were thrilled with Moon Dough. It kept them entertained for well over an hour until we had to put it away for lunch. My boys asked to play with it again later that day and keep asking about it daily. The only problem? This set isn’t as mess free as the makers want it to appear. While it is less messy than Moon Sand (which my kids also frequently ask to play with) it isn’t any less messy than Play-Doh, except that it is at least dry and doesn’t stick as bad. But the crumbles were every where after playing and I had to vacuum up the dining room rug and wipe down my son’s booster seat. As you can see the blue ink ended up on the chair but it did come out after washing.

I’m happy that this set makes my boys so happy but I’m not as keen on the mess it creates. This will be something that I take out again to play with for sure and will probably buy more modeling compound but we’ll only pull it out when I am able to cope with the mess created.

Buy it:

Moon Dough is available at Amazon, Toys “R” Us, Target, Walmart, Kmart, A.C. Moore, Michaels and etoys. The barn set retails for $19.99 while smaller sets are $9.99 and $14.99. You can purchase Moon Dough refill packs for $4.99 for a double and $2.99 for a single.

Disclosure: I receive this item for review from Moon Dough through Team Mom. I was not monetarily compensated for this post and my opinion remains 100% my own.

I personally like this format best but you can list it however you like as long as you include an end date and link directly to the giveaway post.

Blog Name – Prize (end date)

I will do this each Thursday so please come back next week to link up!

Here are my giveaways currently running:

Win a Eucerin Gift Bag with a $50 GC to Sunglass Hut!

Win a set of three books from Blue Apple Books worth $30!

Win a copy of WordWorld: Pirate Sheep and Dive Olly Dive! Under Pressure DVDs

Don’t forget to stop by The Shopping Mama to link up your giveaways and enter to win awesome giveaways, including this Bumbleride Flite and Carrycot worth $315!

And be sure to head on over to my other blog, Oh My! Sugar High to enter to win this amazing Ghiradelli Chocolate Basket!

ENDS FRIDAY MORNING!

What do you do get when this handsome fella, who happens to be your husband, gets totally paranoid that we are sitting in the splash section at SeaWorld and insists that both you and your brother-in-law must vanquish your camera to your in-laws sitting way in back because he is afraid something will happen to your cameras and you both listen?
This is what happens. This is the only picture you get of the “show” at SeaWorld.

And what do you all say at the end of the show when not a single person in our section gets wet? You got that right Warren. “Oh no!”

For more Wordless Wednesday check out Oh My Sugar High, The Shopping Mama , 3 Kids and Us, Jennifer Leigh Designz, 5 minutes for Mom and Seven Clown Circus.

Eucerin is on a mission to make people think about their skin and take care of this important organ year round.  With the Eucerin Daily Skin line you can maintain skin health instead of simply solve an issue. When your skin is healthy it is beautiful and confidence is sure to follow.  With that mission in mind, here is this month’s Eurcerin Amassador message regarding the importance of balance sun exposure!

While basking in the sun can feel replenishing and bring us a sense of both mental and physical renewal, the amount of vitamin D our bodies need on a daily basis can absorbed in just the first 15 minutes of our exposure to the sun. Understanding the factors affecting our skin’s reaction to the sun can help us plan our time in the sun.

FACTOR #1 – SUNLIGHT

The strength of sunlight is the main factor for the quantity of UV radiation your skin can be exposed to. Latitude, altitude, time of day, season and cloud coverage can all have a dramatic effect on the sun’s impact on our skin. Even reflected sunlight from windows, pavement, water, snow and sand can raise the risk of overexposure.

FACTOR #2 – SKIN COLOR.

As skin color is determined by the amount of melanin present in the skin, ethnicity can also play a large role in sun exposure. Often a result of a group’s distance from the equator (and its stronger sunlight), darker skins are more resistant to the effects of sunlight than fairer skins. African-Americans, for example, are 20 times less likely to develop melanoma than those with white skin. Conversely, one study found that African-American women aged 15 to 49 have more than 20 times the risk of vitamin D deficiency than Caucasians. Different skin colors will react to UV rays at different speeds. So one should be mindful of her skin’s susceptibilities when considering her exposure time or adding protection.

FACTOR #3 – SUNSCREEN.

The strength of sunscreen is determined by its Sun Protection Factor (SPF), a number that measures the amount of UV radiation required to sunburn with the sunscreen on, relative to the amount that would burn skin without it. For example, SPF-15 allows about 1/15 (about 6%) of the UV rays that would penetrate the skin without the sunscreen on. SPF-30 would allow 1/30 (about 3%) and so on.

The Eucerin Skin First campaign focuses on taking a pledge to protect our skin and keep it healthy, to make skincare a priority and to treat skincare more like health care.  I encourage you to stop by the Skin First website, take the pledge and learn more!

After spending a week in the scorching heat of Texas while visiting family, it became even more obvious why protecting our skin is important. With a long day at Sea World in the water park it became obvious that our skin protection at a whopping 90 SPF still wasn’t enough to protect all of us. Thankfully my kids held up well with just a bit of color but I was kicking myself for being so foolish.  While making sure they were well covered I forgot a few parts of myself and paid the price.  I certainly felt the affects on my chest where I burned this sensitive skin badly. We also should have been reapplying often but we got caught up in moving from one thing to the next and accessing the locker holding our sunblock was not convenient. Someone slap my hand, would you?

To help you with balancing sun exposure, I would like to introduce you to Eucerin Everyday Protection Lotion 15 & 30; Face & Body which I have been enjoying these past few weeks.  These products make it easy to keep yourself protected at all times without the typical sunscreen smell and as part of a daily moisturizing routine!

For this month,  I have a fun skin care giveaway to help you balance your sun exposure this summer! And if you stop by and take the pledge at the Eucerin Facebook page on the SkinFirst tab you will receive complimentary product, while supplies last!

{ Giveaway }

I have a Eucerin Gift Bag for one of my lucky readers which includes a $50 gift certificate to Sunglass Hut and Eucerin Everyday Protection Lotion in SPF 15 and SPF 30.

MAIN ENTRY: Take the pledge to put the health of your skin FIRST. (If you have already done this, just tell me below!)

Want more entries? (You should!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

-Watch a Eucerin video in my upper right sidebar & tell me something you found interesting (2 entries)
-Like Eucerin on Facebook
-Leave a comment on their Facebook wall with a link to this contest & how you feel about skincare
-Follow Eucerin on twitter
-Like Baby Loving Mama on Facebook
-Follow Baby Loving Mama publicly
-Subscribe to my feed in a reader or by email
-Follow BLM on twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can do this daily!)

Win a Eucerin Gift Bag w/ $50 Sunglass Hut GC & lotion with SPF from @EucerinUS @babylovingmama http://bit.ly/chfK0B  #giveaway #skinfirst

-Add my button to your blog
-Blog about this contest (must be at least 50 words) with a link back here and to Eucerin Skin First (3 entries)

This contest will end on 9/8/10 at 11:59 pm CST. U.S. residents only. The winner will be drawn via random.org and will have 72 hours to respond to winning notification email before I draw another winner or do a live giveaway.

Disclosure: I received this same Eucerin gift bag for sharing this with my readers. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared with these products are my own and yours may differ.

WordWorld is a creative yet educational show that can be found on PBS KIDS. Their world is made of letters that spell the word they represent and words come alive! You will find silly characters along with phonics, spelling and letter recognition!

Both my boys ages 2 and just turned 4 love WordWorld but often miss it on PBS because the timing of the show hits their nap time on our local PBS channel. Anytime we get a DVD we are thrilled for the opportunity to watch it anytime we like! The newest World World DVD: Pirate Sheep was no exception. Pirate Sheep was their favorite from this collection because they love the treasure hunt where they follow clues and rhyme! I love to watch them interact with WordWorld as they watch. With sounding out words and the letters they recognize, I know they are learning!

Expisodes included in this 60 minute DVD:

Pirate Sheep – Sheep, Duck, and Shark fins a message in a bottle at the beach which leads them to a special treasure! Like hearty pirates, the trio follows clues to rhyme their way across the sea!

Superhearo Sheep – Sheep becomes WordWorld’s first superhero, saving the day with the letter “S”!

Mail Mix Up – Duck offers to help Kangaroo deliver the mail to his Wordfriends, and causes chaos when he accidently delivers the wrong letters to everyone.

Wee Little Whale – Sheep rescues a tiny whale and brings her home to live in her haystack. But what happens when Whale starts to grow?

Bonus Features:

• “Wee Little Whale” Behind the Scenes
• Includes 4 Build-A-Word Songs
• “Take the Stage” Music Video

Another fun DVD from N Circle Entertainment is Dive Olly Dive! Under Pressure.

In Dive Olly Dive! Under Pressure you will find underwater adventures in world with bright and vivid colors and stories that teach children about working together as a team!

In one adventure, Olly and his friend Skid have trouble getting along when working with a powerful magnetic device. Suddenly, the two quarreling friends find themselves literally stuck together, which forces them to cooperate with each other and solve the problem.

Working together is also the theme of another sub-tastic adventure when Olly and his friends go on a daring rescue mission. The gang teams up to spring an old lobster, Grandpa Claude, from a lobster trap so he can celebrate his 100th birthday. Can they do it?

Whether they’re rescuing and old friend or helping return some lost jellyfish to their proper homes, Olly and his friends demonstrate how to successfully work together as a team.

Expisodes included in this 55 minute DVD:

• Sub Magnet
• Pressures’s On!
• Grandpa Claude
• Doug’s Apprentices
• A Jelly Old Time

Buy It:

Word World: Pirate Sheep and Dive Olly Dive! Under Pressure can be purchased from Amazon or directly from the NCircle Entertainment website.

{ GIVEAWAY }

N Circle Entertainment would like to offer one of my lucky readers a copy of both Word World: Pirate Sheep and Dive Olly Dive! Under Pressure DVDs!

MAIN ENTRY: Visit N Circle Entertainment and tell me another DVD not featured that you would love to purchase for your family!

Want more entries? (Of course you do!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

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Win the fun WordWorld: Pirate Sheep & Dive Olly Dive: Under Pressure DVDs @babylovingmama @ncircle http://bit.ly/8XrePI #giveaway PLS RT!

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.This contest will end on 9/7/10 at 11:59 pm CST. U.S.  residents 18+ only. The winner will be drawn via random.org and will have 72 hours to respond to winning notification email before I draw another winner or do a live giveaway.

Disclosure: I received samples for the purpose of this review but no other type of compensation was received. This has no bearing on my completely honest review above. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared with these products are my own and yours may differ.

The day has finally arrived. Today is the day you turn 4. I can’t hardly believe that my little baby is already four year old. And I bet that you can’t believe that after asking several times a week for the past three months if it is your birthday or if you are four yet, I can finally say “Yes!”

Earlier this week we celebrated your birthday with family in Texas and confused the heck out of you. After an exhausting day at Sea World your Aunt Heather and Grandma decided to go pick up a cake for you since they wouldn’t be able be here with you on your big day. You thought that we went the whole day without telling you that it was your birthday and the amazing part was that you didn’t care. You even loved those trick candles that everyone thought was so funny.

You were so stinkin’ excited that it you couldn’t contain yourself. You just had to start singing. And what do you love to sing? ACDC….

If the line at 1:07 doesn’t make you crack a smile or giggle I don’t know what will!

Modern looking baby products with an innovative twist always grab my attention. Such is the case these stylish mOmma feeding products from Italy. With advanced technology, mealtime is both fun and safe with all products being BPA and phthalate-free.

Innovation, technology, movement and colors. mOmma is a revolutionary line of baby products that encourages baby to discover their surroundings with products that are unique in shape, movement and color, thus transforming each moment of your baby’s mealtime into a moment of growth, learning and pleasure.

A complete line of products designed according to baby’s changing needs during the various phases of growing. These simple but innovative products help baby become more self-assured and independent.nd

We received a collection of products from the mOmma line, including these 9 oz. roly-poly cups. Their unique design keeps them from tipping over and come in a non-spill and straw design in both green and orange. While all mOmma products are dishwasher safe, the wash brush makes it even easier to clean their rounded shape.

Both the my boys really like the mOmma cup with straw which retails for $12.25. Warren enjoyed trying out something that looked new and different and the ergonomic handles make it extremely easy to hold.  The rubber bottoms helps with skidding and spills and rounded bottoms keeps the tops from hitting potentially dirty surfaces. He is drawn to the squishy material of the straw and I’m curious how well it will stand the test of time with his biting.  So far I haven’t discovered any teeth marks!

While my two year old Warren struggled a bit to figure out how to close it, his older brother was more than happy to show him how it works. I love cup products that don’t leak as Warren still enjoys tipping his cup over and splashing the contents out on occasion. The non-spill cup cousin for $13.25 is the perfect starter cup that will grow with your child.

Available individually or as a set for $22.00, the  mOmma warming plate, spoon and fork also have some cool features. The utensils also have a spherical base with keeps the tops from touching the dirty table and have a protective cover that provides a hygienic case for travel that doubles as an extendable handle. The feeding plate has two compartments designed for easier feeding and has a wide base to avoid tipping.I love the look and overall design of these products. The only downfall is the higher price tag that comes with this innovation.

Other mOmma products including a collection of soft teethers and feeding bottles. You can see all these products and more at the mOmma US website and also enter to win the mOmma’s messiest mOments photo contest for a chance at a prize package of the line valued at over $100. Hurry, this contest ends on September 2, 2010!

Buy It:

You can purchase mOmma products at specialty stores or online at Amazon, diapers.com and MommaUS. Amazon currently has these products at reduced prices with free super saver shipping!

Disclosure: Samples were provided to me by mOmma through Team Mom. My opinions are 100% my own and not influenced by monetary compensation.

I personally like this format best but you can list it however you like as long as you include an end date and link directly to the giveaway post.

Blog Name – Prize (end date)

I will do this each Thursday so please come back next week to link up!

Here are my  giveaways currently running:

Win a Crayon Romper Set from The Baby Bunch

Win a set of three books from Blue Apple Books worth $30!

Win a $25 gift certificate to Little One Books!

Don’t forget to stop by The Shopping Mama to link up your giveaways and enter to win awesome giveaways, including this Bumbleride Flite and Carrycot worth $315!

And be sure to head on over to my other blog, Oh My! Sugar High to enter to win this amazing Ghiradelli Chocolate Basket!

We’ve been gone this past week to attend my brother in law’s wedding in Texas which we turned into a week long trip. And yes, we are crazy to go to Texas on vacation in August. Thankfully our family also has an awesome outdoor pool that always feels like bathwater thanks to the scorching heat. Nothing like cooling off in the pool on a hot day. The boys were in heaven playing with grandparents, uncles and cousins, along with mom and dad too!

For more Wordless Wednesday check out Oh My Sugar High, The Shopping Mama , 3 Kids and Us, Jennifer Leigh Designz, 5 minutes for Mom and Seven Clown Circus.