Random Updates

Collectiong my thoughts around the Interweb this morning...

My Hallmark giveaway is up at Whoa Momma.

My letter to Santa on Suburban Diva.com

And a great local event to attend on Saturday--Snowfest!

Whew. It's been a busy morning....

It was my birthday, but I'm giving you a gift

You know all of those wonderful cards you all sent me for my birthday revolving around drinking and sparkles? Well, right back atcha!

Hallmark is providing two of you lucky readers with some beautiful greeting card gift packs. These include those wonderful recordable cards for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, and some of their redesigned 99 cent everyday cards.

I have to tell you, I sent my Grandpa a recordable card of the kids for Valentine’s Day, and when we came up to visit he pulled it out from the drawer he keeps by his chair. He loved it and listened to his great-grandchildrens' voices over and over.

So leave a comment here or Divamail me by Wednesday, May 6th, and we’ll have a drawing for the winners just in time to get you hooked up for Mother’s Day.

Ready, set...Comment! (I even included a picture of my birthday cake to inspire you. Jerks.)

Suburban Diva pizza?

I've got the coolest contest for April. If you are local, or even if you plan on visiting the Tampa/St. Pete area in your lifetime, then we want to give you dinner at Vincenzo's restaurant--my personal favorite.

Simply come up with the toppings for the "Suburban Diva" pizza, and you'll win 1 of 2 $50 gift certificates to one of the best restaurants in town.

We'll play like this: submit your topping ideas to me at Divamail@SuburbanDiva.com and at the end of the month we'll have a big tasting party at Vincenzo's with the top topping recipes. Winners will receive the gift cards, a book, a great dinner and any other prizes I can come up with. (If you are not local, play along anyway and I'll make sure you win a tasty treat as well.)

Keep in mind that I am a pretty adventurous eater and love all things food related except broccoli. The winning pizza could end up on the menu, so start emailing those ideas! I will pass along more details on the big party as we move closer.

And the winners of paint are...

What a colorful world this will be...

There were so many wonderful, touching, humorous and general fabulous comments left for this Olympic paints and Exterior Stain giveaway, that I was very glad to select the winner by random drawing rather than have to choose among the stories.

I could totally relate to the seemingly endless home redecorating projects like Alter Ego Jenny’s 100 year old house or Jenna’s 11 month Master bedroom redo.

I could see the color swatches gone terribly wrong in Shel’s “eggs and ketchup” kitchen or the “you know the color of the nurse's office where you went to elementary school?” mint green of Becki’s basement.

I was also touched by CatalystMom’s efforts to decorate after IVF, “the birth and now life with our three year old toddler and the birth of my new business.” And Sdurviage’s needs after Hurricane Dolly gave them extensive damage to their homes.

So as you can read, it was good thing this contest was random. And the two randomly selected names out of the hat are Mikki W. from Tampa and Karianna. Mikki will receive enough Olympic paint of her choice to “transform our kitchen…I am dreaming in shades of gold and cranberry with little toy chefs accenting around. Kind a like elf on a shelf…” (or whatever project she likes) and Karianna will receive exterior stain and cleaner to get her deck, fence or Tiki hut ready for spring. (Not sure if they make a purple stain or not…)

Congratulations to our winners, and thank you all so much for sharing!

Greening Our Schools

They turn off the water when they brush their teeth. They shuffle the recycling bins to the end of the driveway. Paper or plastic? How about canvas?

With help from the kids, your home is getting greener by the day.

But what about that other place where they spend their days? Is your child's school as green as it could be?

Terra Wellington, author of "The Mom's Guide to Growing Your Family Green: Saving the Earth Begins At Home," says the effort "starts in your home and moves outward from there." Much like the anti-litter campaigns of the seventies, our children need to integrate good recycling habits by learning it culturally.

She outlines a complete "green school action blueprint" in her book, but shares these tips that parents can help implement in their child's school.


~Homework: Ask your child's teacher if some assignments can be printed on both sides of the paper. Paper consumption is automatically cut by 50%.

~Use and donate recycled paper rather than virgin paper. According to the Bureau of International Recycling, recycled paper not only saves trees, but the manufacturing of recycled paper generates 70% less air pollution and 35% less water pollution.

~Assign a "light monitor" to make sure lights are turned off and computers are in standby mode. A standby setting can reduce power over 90 percent, helping to conserve energy.


~Encourage "litter-less lunches" by packing lunches in reusable or recyclable material like aluminum foil which is endlessly recyclable. Ideally, any food waste should be composted and then used in a school vegetable garden maintained by students.

But perhaps the biggest impact for greening our schools is how we get there. By using the school bus we save energy and money. According to Wellington and the American School Bus Council (ASBC), diesel school buses:

~Take 36 cars off of the road per bus.

~Are 8 times safer than passenger cars and use more green diesel technologies.

~Save 3.1 billion gallons of fuel every year.

~If another 10% more children rode school buses, another 300 million gallons of fuel could be saved annually.


~The daily fuel cost to transport a child to school is $3.68 for a private vehicle but only $.73 if that child rides a school bus.

And to help your school get greener, IC Bus is sponsoring an essay contest for students to win a $3000 scholarship and a hybrid bus for their school. Students are asked to submit a 500 word essay on how their school is going green. Go to AmericasGreenestSchool.com for more tips, contest details and to enter.

Entries are accepted until April 30, 2009--just in time to celebrate Earth Day.

Good green habits are great lessons for homework and in the classroom.

Wrapping up the week

Let's take care of some housekeeping business first, shall we? After all, I don't do that around my own house so I might as well do it here.

We've got contests going! First, don't forget to leave your comment here on TheMotherhood.com to be entered into the Olympic paint giveaway. Second, my friends Thom Flicia and Kimberly-Clark are still hosting the Room-A-Day giveaway, so keep entering for a $25,000 room makeover!

I've been busy this week in between trying to get Jessie strapped in her car seat without rupturing my spleen,and interviewing a bunch of interesting folks which I will post next week. One of whom is the fabulous Pim of Chez Pim, who discusses all things foodie related. I was in heaven.

The agenda for the weekend? Right now we're negotiating who is going to the Harlem Globetrotters tonight and who gets to stay home. It's a silent argument since Sean is in bed from his 411th mouth surgery in the past 2 weeks.

Which probably means I'm going to watching the Washington Generals tonight.

I wonder who wins...

Make Your Dream Room Come True with Olympic Paint and Exterior Stains!

Maybe your dream home doesn't include 6 to a bathroom and avocado green couches and macramé, but everyone sure can have a bunch of fun coloring our individual castles. For two lucky readers who share their dream indoor and outdoor spaces, Olympic paint is going to help make that happen.

Simply leave a comment on SuburbanDiva.com, here, or TheMotherhood.com and you could be eligible to win enough paint or stain to transform a room in your house or an outdoor deck.

Leave those comments by midnight on Sunday, March 1, 2009 and we'll announce the two winners on Monday.

Use the tools on Olympic.com to help you get inspired. Paint a virtual room with different color combinations and find tips on how to make all of your painting projects look beautiful.

Let's hear all about your dream rooms.

With or without the Astroturf.

Winners

Okay you crazy readers, I've got the envelope right here to announce our Valentine's Day winners...

First, our generous friends at Hallmark are giving the five recordable cards to Jodi, Kathy T., Kirsten, Chris and Natalie. If you don't live within a 10 mile radius from my house, please email me your address and I'll send you some recordable love!

Next, chocolate...The See's Valentine's chocolate heart will go to Marcy S, from Michigan. Marcy, the entire divaverse is soooo jealous right now.

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Chocolate....

How about some chocolate to go with those Valentine's? My favorite chocolate supplier has some Valentine's Day chocolates for you!

See's Candies is going to give one random reader a pound of their yummy goodness if I don't rifle through the box before we draw a winner on on Wednesday.



Divamail me or leave a comment and you'll be entered to win.

I heart you, See's.

A Valentine's Giveawy from Hallmark

I blog. I Twitter. I am Linkdin and my Face is Booked. I shop, bank, connect, learn, and am entertained online. I can even write my own basic HTML code. Even though I don’t know what that stands for nor can I figure out the remote control, I am pretty technologically savvy comparatively speaking.

However, there are just some things that cannot be replaced by technology, and one of them is getting a good, old-fashioned card in the mail.

But maybe they are not so old-fashioned. Hallmark has introduced its new line of recordable greeting cards that allows the sender to record a 10 second message in their own voice that plays when the recipient opens their card. No plug-ins, no websites, no codes to enter to retrieve. It’s absolutely awesome.

For Valentine’s Day this year, my kids recorded a special holiday greeting to their great-grandparents. A simple message, but the fact that it was in their own sweet voices made it extra special. It’s something that can be played over and over again.

I can see this making any occasion that much more special--a thank you more thankful and Happy Birthday more sincere. At $6.99, it’s an affordable way to give a smile to your special someone.

I’ve got 5 of these cards to give away to YOU. Leave a comment that could be recorded into a 10 second Valentine’s wish, and you can win one of these fun cards.

Wish someone a Happy Valentine’s Day the new old-fashioned way.

So I was chatting with my friend, Thom Filicia...

Sometimes when I browse through those glossy pages of design magazines, I think, sure they’re beautiful, but not exactly practical for a living, breathing family with a penchant for Italian food and Crayola products. Those white sofas and glass carpets wouldn’t last a minute in my house--or in anyone’s I know.

So when I got an opportunity to ask celebrity designer, Thom Filicia (Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and Dress My Nest) how to practically decorate a family home with kids, pets and husbands, he offered some very helpful advice.

His design philosophy begins with the concept that everyone’s “interior should tell your story.” Your home should reflect your personality and “what makes you unique and authentic.” So decorate with those family photographs and mementos from vacations, and anything else that makes you happy.




And what to do with all of those Legos? “Embrace the idea that kids are there,” he said. You’re going to have toys in your home--the key is organization.

~Look to Kindergarten classrooms for organization ideas. Teachers are masters of having to organize lots of different materials for many different kids.

~Use inexpensive bins and cubbies to keep the clutter under control.

~Make it fun--Make kids part of keeping their own space organized. Thom loves to use a stopwatch for a fast pick-up or to sort things by color in a matching game while picking up.

~No room should be “off-limits” to children, but do explain that certain rooms serve different purposes than others. The living room isn’t the best choice for coloring, but the playroom or kitchen table is.

~For kid’s rooms, he warns not to invest too much into trends or specific interests. Kids grow out of things faster than you think, and it may be Barney this year, but karate the next. Keep the backdrops neutral so the room can mature with the child.

And as we Mommas already know, frugality is going to be a top decorating trend of 2009. Thom assures us that’s a good thing. “Be honest with yourself about your budget and your goals.” He says we should definitely “reuse and repurpose what you already have.”


~Move things to different rooms to change the look.



~Add a coat of paint to older furniture or to make odd pieces coordinate.

~Shop at flea markets, Craigslist and tag sales, but also be on the lookout for really great bargains at traditional stores. You may be able to pick up a great deal on good quality pieces that will last for years.

~Don’t be afraid to “mix the timely with the timeless.”

And if you still need help? How about a $25,000 room makeover? After revealing his redesign of the dressing rooms on ABC’s, “The View” on Monday, Thom announced the Room-A-Day Giveaway sweepstakes to award 16 lucky winners $25,000 each for a room makeover sponsored by "The View" and Kimberly-Clark. Enter online daily through March 6, 2009 at RoomADayGiveaway.com or http://www.abc.com. Winners will be announced daily on “The View” beginning on February 2nd.

For more of Thom’s tips, pick up his new book, Thom Filcia Style, or check out his blog.


Maybe we’ll make it onto those glossy magazine pages yet.

(Photos Courtesy of Thom Filicia)

Cutting up boxes on Boxing Day

Post-Christmas post to post a hello.

Like you, we are all worn out with paper cuts from opening so many gifts. It was wonderful with lots and nothing going on. We had a fabulous meal with friends, and all fell asleep without doing the dishes. Just the way Christmas should be.

Sean took the girls to the zoo, and I just got finished mailing off $27,000 worth of rebates. Why can't they just give me the discount in the store where my very presence is proof of purchase rather than 17 copies of receipts and cutting labels from original boxes? Seriously, I could have saved 3 hours of my life today. I really want to get writing--jump start on assignments plus getting back to the novel since my only personal goal of 2009 is to finish it by my birthday. (Which I know is the exact same goal of 2008, but obviously I failed on that endeavor and now I save on stationary.)

So as I clean up 2008 to make room for 2009, I've got to announce our last two winners of the year:

See's Chocolate Gift certificate winner is Susan S. from Oldsmar, Florida and the HP Photosmart Wireless Printer goes to Sharon S. from Middleport, New York. Congratulations to the winners and a big thank you to all who entered. I hope the New Year brings many more contest opportunities.

Okay, I'm going back to work now. Or a nap.

Ain't technology grand?

First and foremost, Merry Christmas to all! My favorite day has arrived, and shortly I will be signing off to bake something with the kiddos. But rest assured, we'll still have the computer on, because we will be watching this:



M. has been giving us updates all morning. It's the best.

But if I can pull him away long enough, he'll be picking our See's chocolate winner. And there's still time to enter the HP Printer contest...

Merry Christmas!

Gifts for you, bangs for me

After filling 100 Chinese takeout boxes with sesame noodles and baking up 16 dozen mini Yorkshire puddings for the party-turned-out-of control-tomorrow, I'm ready to get a haircut.

No, of course that doesn't have anything to do with the other, but everything is answered in the order it was received this week.

While I'm deciding on bangs today (what do you think?) you can enter all of my contests and read all of my other posts, and if I survive the next 48 hours, we'll back here on Monday.

Happy weekend.

Crunch Time

It’s crunch time.

Crunching nuts for the snicker noodles. Crunching the red tissue to wrap in gift bags. Crunching the pavement to finish the shopping. Crunching the keyboard to get everything written and turned in on time. Crunching the star anise for the marinated olives to serve on Friday (please don’t ask). Crunching time.

I won’t lie to you and tell you I’m at all comfortable with this. Even today--on a Monday--the day of false confidence, I still feel overwhelmed at the enormity of the tasks ahead this week. But somehow, task by task, item by item, marinated olive by mini Yorkshire pudding I will prevail with proper inspiration.

Chocolate.

I’ve got a box of See’s candies on the table, and every time I walk past it to change laundry loads, I stuff my mouth like the dining room table is a quickened conveyor belt and I am Lucy at the candy factory. (Don’t tell Ricky I want to be in the show!)

I imagine crunch time is not exclusive around here, so I’m sending you some chocolate inspiration, too. I’ve got a $25 gift cert certificate to See’s Candy to give away to one of my Ethel’s. You can use it for a chocolate gift to yourself, as business gifts or just apply it directly to your soul. It’s up to you.

Divamail me your favorite chocolate candy type--mine is the chocolate-covered cherry--and that’ll be enough to earn a spot in the Santa hat for a drawing next Monday, December 22.

So let’s redefine "crunch time" as a peanut-cluster chocolate candy this week, shall we?

A Toasty Treat from The Children's Place

If I had my way, we would all spend the month of December in our pajamas. There's just something about an oven filled with cookies, a fireplace filled with logs, and a tree filled with ornaments that begs for a warm pair of p.j's to be filled with little bodies.

However, it's not always easy to find a pair that isn't reminiscent of Ralphie from A Christmas Story--something my older boys are definitely not excited about.



So this year we compromised and found some at The Children's Place that we all love.


This is the pair my son is sporting right now. And because I want to see your family equally as adorable, I am giving away a $30 gift card to one lucky, jammie-loving reader courtesy of the generous folks of The Children's Place.




Be the 10th caller...no just kidding. Send me a divamail telling me how you love pajamas and I'll enter you in a random drawing to be drawn on Monday, December 15 to win the gift card.

Warm and snuggly holiday wishes to you!

(And you might want to stay tuned to this blog as well as SuburbanDiva.com for some more really awesome giveaways in the coming weeks. Just sayin'...)

An early gift

I've got an early gift for you....







I've got a great prize package from Paramount Home Entertainment that includes Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, The Furious Five and Shrek the Halls (with a Shrek plush doll). Simply email me your interest and if I draw your name from the Santa hat, it’s all yours. Send by Monday, 12/8/08 to be eligible.

Oh yes, and even if you don't win this week (more giveaways through the holidays, I promise) you can pick up a holiday classic, Suburban Diva: From the Real Side of the Picket Fence, by yours truly for the bargain price of $15 which includes a personalized copy, gift-wrapping by a diva elf, and shipping anywhere you'd like. Divamail me the particulars and I'll get you laughing over Sean's Christmas light stories in no time...

A Soap Star, A Diva and Diapers

There is no doubt that my children and the Intern would call me a big loser for many reasons, but today I am officially--albeit loosely and tenuously--amongst those ranks....

Check out the "Celebrity Mom Spotlight" on Generation Huggies, and check out that mug on the same page as Alison Sweeney of "Days of Our Lives" and "The Biggest Loser" fame...yep, that's me! Gabbing about my thoughts on motherhood while along side of some other (ahem) famous welebrities. I am honored to be amongst this talented crew!

And so can you!

Submit your 60 second video regarding motherhood by November 20, 2008 and you could win prizes and be a part of a national ad campaign! Vote for others and with or without a video submission, enter to win the sweepstakes for $30,000!

Have fun and go Moms!

Win 30k for doing what you already do everyday

It’s a question that doesn’t have one simple answer. A riddle that will produce as many different responses as there are…well, riddles. And although there isn’t only one right answer, everyone wins when we Moms think about the question…

What does motherhood mean to you?

In celebration of their 30th Anniversary, Huggies is offering a forum for Moms to answer that very question in 60 second video clips that may be featured in an upcoming online ad campaign.

Go to GenerationHuggies.com to get the information, as well as to enter their sweepstakes for a chance to win $30,000 and tell the world about your journey through this beautiful mess we call motherhood.

I’m going to be helping spread--and gather--those powerful words from Moms next weekend here in Florida, (more on that exciting event later) but until then, check out the motherhood.com-- a truly remarkable site that is absolutely going to change the way Moms use the Internet. You really don’t want to miss this…

Vacation Eve

I'm sorta ready. Packed loosely--like basil leaves.

We plan on leaving at some unholy hour tomorrow, which I have written about here. Why? I'm not sure.

Meanwhile, I need to tie up some loose blog ends, so here goes:

~Matty's cast came off today.

~I have a new contest up on SuburbanDiva.com to win a new Land's End Backpack. Make sure you enter.

~The floor looks amazing. We were a couple of boards short because one of the boxes was defective, but it looks smokin'. And so do the muscles of Sean and the Intern after cutting and nailing for 15 hours yesterday.

~We're missing two Thirsty Thursdays which I'm none too pleased about.

~I will never eat popcorn again.

~Make sure to read Whoa Momma! while I'm gone because I'll be posting there, too.

~I really should finish packing. Or make pesto.