Monthly Archives: December 2011

ZAGGORA, HOTPANTS™ Sport Shorts Review and Giveaway!!!

Well, it is almost the new year.  You can see that by the calendar but you can also tell because all around us, on magazines, on ads on tv and the Internet there are promotions for losing weight, getting organized and help to stop smoking.  Everyone knows that the New Year brings resolutions of change for many people.  One of the most popular resolutions people make is to get healthy and lose weight.  A lot of people search for a magic pill to do all the work for them.  That is just not reality, if you really want to get healthy you have to eat well, exercise and sleep well.  While there may not be a magic pill that will do that for you, there are ways to enhance your results by giving you a boost with your efforts.  Recently, I was sent a pair of HOTPANTS™ to review.  HOTPANTS™ feel like a neoprene wetsuit, they are designed to be worn while you work out or while you just go about your day, under your clothing.  Let HOTPANTS™ be your secret weapon. HOTPANTS™ are super comfortable and can be worn indoors, or out, on their own or under clothes. Wear HOTPANTS™ when you are going about your day, when you are exercising or even doing the housework!

I tried them on and they are really comfortable and not restricting of any movement even though they hug your body.  They really let you move and workout but they are supportive and I liked them a lot.  What they do is make you get more out of your workout or even just your daily activities by targeting tummy, thighs and butt which most women would say are their problem areas, and where they suffer from cellulite. HOTPANTS™ are specially designed sports shorts that contain bio-ceramic technology, which emits far infrared rays and reflects back the heat naturally generated by the body to deliver warming up of tissue deep below the skin’s surface. HOTPANTS™ bio-ceramics emit far-infrared rays (heat waves) and reflect back the heat naturally generated by the body to promote deeper warming of tissue and breakdown of fat cells. This results in much higher levels of perspiration leading to “flushing out” of toxins and edemas that contribute to the appearance of cellulite. This enhanced body heating also promotes better circulation and lymphatic drainage, the core principle of non-surgical cellulite spa treatments (such as massages).  If worn consistently during exercise, HOTPANTS™ will dramatically reduce the visible appearance of cellulite. Cellulite is biological and can not be eradicated. However, it’s the appearance that is the problem, and that is what HOTPANTS™ targets.

I will definitely be giving them a test run in the next few weeks and I will be updating you on how they are working.  I have recently lost 20 lbs through diet and exercise and I am eager to see what the results will be wearing HOTPANTS™ while exercising and during normal day-to-day activities.  Like I said they are comfortable and really make you feel supported and  strong in your core area and legs.  Many are reporting losing two pants sizes in 2 weeks with HOTPANTS™ and say their skin is smoother, softer and  tighter.  So stay tuned for more of my thoughts in the coming weeks on these.

 

HOTPANTS™ is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.  One lucky blog reader will win their own pair of HOTPANTS™, so they can try the 2 Week Challenge.  Thank you HOTPANTS™ for the review HOTPANTS™ and for sponsoring this HOT giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US and UK residents.
HOTPANTS™ Sport Shorts Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:
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SwaddleDesigns, Swaddle Duo Review and Giveaway!!!

I was recently asked to review SwaddleDesign’s Newest Product, The Swaddle Duo.  This great 2 pack of huge swaddling blankets gives you two fabric options.  A super soft cotton flannel and a cool open weave cotton marquisette.  I have to admit when I touched the cotton flannel,which is the ultimate receiving blanket, I fell in love.  This huge blanket was so soft that I wanted to roll up in it.  Most receiving blankets made of soft cotton flannel are so small, with a few washes they shrink even more and end up more like burp cloths.  Not something you can wrap your baby in, for sure.  These blankets are so large that you can swaddle your baby with ease and it also makes a great crib blanket for an older baby or toddler and is wonderful to take out with you because its size makes it perfect for so many other uses. The cotton marquisette is perfect for swaddling baby in warmer climates and will keep baby cool and comfortable with the open weave.  Luke saw the cotton flannel blanket and loved it immediately.  Luke is a blanket expert, so his opinion carries a lot of clout.  It is big enough that it is a great blanket for a toddler and when I had it folded lengthwise he just came and put his head down on it and kept touching it telling me how soft it was.  If you are looking for a set of swaddle blankets that give you lots of options, check out the SwaddleDesigns, Swaddle Duo.

“The SwaddleDesigns Goldilocks Guide™ ~ baby should not be too hot, or too cold, but just right ~ comfortably warm.” The Goldilocks Guide helps new parents remember the importance of keeping baby comfortably warm. SwaddleDesigns strives to help new parents care for their baby by providing accurate and up-to-date information, so parents may make informed choices. SwaddleDesigns Safe Sleep Program includes recommendations from the AAP and the NIH as the company strives to increase awareness of Safe Sleep practices and help parents reduce risk of SIDS.  Visit the Safe Sleep Page to learn more about Safe Sleep Practices and the SwaddleDesigns Goldilocks Guide.  For instructions about swaddling and sleeping environments visit their How-To-Swaddle information.  Join their exclusive email club, to get the inside scoop for special offers.

 

 

To show you how large the blankets are, this blanket is draped equally on both sides of the crib side.

 

SwaddleDesigns is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.  One lucky blog reader will win a Swaddle Duo pack in their choice of pink or blue.  Thank you SwaddleDesigns for the review set and for sponsoring this great giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.

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Baby Light and Clip, Lighted Nail Clipper Review & Giveaway!!!

As parents we want to be so careful trimming the nails of our little ones.  Still I have heard most parents say they have accidentally cut too close or nicked the skin while trimming the nails, and they feel awful.  It is difficult though, because their nails are so little and it is easy to misjudge if you do not have proper lighting.  I was glad to review the Baby Light and Clip, Lighted Nail Clipper.  This ingenious little nail clipper has a built-in light that clearly illuminates your child’s nail so you can see just where to trim.  You can even use it to trim in a dim room while baby is sleeping, the light makes it easy to see baby’s nails. Also features safety guards to help prevent nicking of baby’s tender skin, comfort handle is easy to maneuver and the handy compartment catches nail clippings.  The included storage case is great for travel and so handy to have.  If you are looking for a great nail clipper to clip your baby or child’s nails then check out the Baby Light and Clip.  For use with babies, toddlers and children.

 

 

Baby Light and Clip is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.  One lucky blog reader will win a Baby Light and Clip Lighted Nail Clipper.  Thank you Baby Light and Clip for the review product and for sponsoring this great giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US residents.
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Cookie Baby Inc.,Personalized Birthday T-Shirt Review & Giveaway!!!

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I love taking pictures and I really like having some special things to commemorate a special event.  I have been taking my kid’s birthday pictures with a shirt that celebrates how old they are.  I think it is a fun and neat way to document the day.  I recently connected with Cookie Baby Inc. and was thrilled to pick a shirt to review.  I chose the Birthday Boy T-Shirt in Design 820 and had it personalized for my son Luke’s 3rd birthday.  Their Website was easy to navigate and choose what I wanted.  When it arrived I could not wait to open it.  It was so soft and well made and  very colorful with Luke’s name on the bottom and a big number 3 to tell the world it’s his 3rd birthday.  On his birthday, he could not wait to wear this shirt and at night he fought with me about taking it off even though it was wet because he spilled his drink on it.  I had to promise him I would wash it right away and he could wear it again in the morning.

 

I thought I would give you all a peek at the cake I made him.

I am thrilled to let you know that Cookie Baby Inc., is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.  One lucky blog reader will win a personalized, short sleeve birthday boy/girl t-shirt.  Thank you Cooke Baby Inc., for the review shirt and for sponsoring this great giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US residents.

Cookie Baby Inc., Personalized Birthday T-Shirt Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

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Darcee’s Hope, Good Karma Necklace Review and Giveaway!!!

I was sent a Good Karma necklace from Darcee’s Hope to review. It is a cute necklace with a meaning behind it! It is meant to promote good karma for the wearer and those around her. I see it as a reminder to be kind and do good for others. The necklace is a round swirl design with a purple gem charm attached, perfect for a young girl. Darcee’s Hope also has other necklace designs that encourage good and making your dreams come true! I think these products can inspire girls to be good and kind to all around them, passing onto others good karma with their good deeds! When my niece got the necklace, she wouldn’t take it off, it made her feel grown up to wear a real necklace!

Darcee’s Hope was created by a mom who believes everyone has the ability to make their own dreams come true and gives you the opportunity to do just that. She even offers email coaching to get you where you want to be! She also is on a campaign to spread good karma everywhere, just ask and she will send you a small packet of good karma confetti!

 

I am pleased to tell you that Darcee’s Hope is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings. One lucky blog reader will win a Good Karma necklace.   Thank you Darcee’s Hope for the review necklace and for sponsoring this great giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US residents.

Darcee’s Hope, Good Karma Necklace Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

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The Guess Who Zoo: 13 Animals Sing Their Stories CD Review & Giveaway!!!

Recently, Mommy Ramblings was asked if we would like to review a CD called The Guess Who Zoo.   Children love animals and they like guessing games. It’s all here in The Guess Who Zoo. In this whimsical surprise-filled CD, the child’s four-legged, flippered and winged friends play leading roles. The animals sing about themselves. The child, playing detective as clues mount line by line, proudly fills in the blank (Bear, Giraffe, etc.) — the last word in the last line of the last verse — and becomes a self-esteem-lifted participating poet. Declares distinguished educator Allan Shedlin, Jr., Founding Executive-Director of the National Elementary School, “The Guess Who Zoo is like a happy combination of Dr. Seuss, Shel Silverstein, and Ogden Nash put to music.

Molly and I were each sent a CD to review with our children.  We reviewed them separately and you will find our thoughts below.

Carolyn’s Thoughts:

This is such a delightful CD, great for car trips where the whole family can play and make the trip more fun for the kids.  The songs, rhyming and music is pleasant and not annoying for parents to listen to with their kids.  Once the little ones hear the songs and rhymes and try to solve who the animal is they get really excited.  When they get them right they feel so proud and even if they get stumped they learn it for the next time.  Before long they were singing right along and having a blast calling out the animals.  My kids love music, singing and playing games so this CD is great for them.  I think it is great for all children ages 2-7.  The Guess Who Zoo was a Parent’s Choice Award Winner and was a Parenting Pick by Parenting Magazine.  The CDs are available only through the Guess Who Zoo Website:www.guesswhozoo.com.

Molly’s Thoughts:

My 4-year-old loved listening to The Guess Who Zoo CD! He would listen closely to what the songs said, and made guesses as to which animal they were singing about! He guessed correctly on some of them, others he didn’t know, but after listening through to the end of the song, he found out what animal did those things, and learned something new! I like how the CD interacts with my child and encourages him to guess the animal. The rhyming words help the kids along in guessing if they are having trouble. When each song was done, we would search for pictures of them so he could see what the animals looked like! My son really enjoyed listening and guessing with the CD, the songs were really fun to listen to with lively music and animated voices! He said his favorite song was about the alligator.
The Guess Who Zoo is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.  One lucky blog reader will win a copy of The Guess Who Zoo CD.  Thank you to The Guess Who Zoo for the review CDs and for sponsoring this terrific giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US residents.
The Guess Who Zoo CD Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:
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Evengrow Turntable For Potted Plants Review & Giveaway!!!

If you live in a colder climate you probably have some large houseplants in for the winter.  I have a huge Aloe plant, it is so big and heavy that it is really hard to move.  I am fairly certain a lot of you have potted plants indoors that you want to rotate, to either maintain, water, clean or adjust for equal sun exposure.  When you have a huge heavy potted plant, it is not easy to do those things.  I was happy to be able to do a review for Evengrow, a turntable for potted plants.  This sturdy green turntable can handle potted plants up to 200 lbs.  It is super easy once this turntable is under your plant to easily rotate the entire plant without damaging your floor or your back.  Now you can easily care for your plants and rotate them so they grow evenly.  Evengrow is made of super tough UV-treated polypropylene plastic that stands up to wear inside and out and handles pots with up to a 10″ diameter and up to 200 lbs.


Evengrow is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings.  One lucky blog reader will win an Evengrow Potted Plant Turntable.  Thank you Evengrow for the review product and for sponsoring this great giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US residents.

Evengrow Potted Plant Turntable Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

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NurturMe Organic, All Natural and Gluten-Free Baby Food Review & Giveaway!!!

One thing that is inconvenient about glass jars of baby food is that they are heavy and clunky when I put them in the diaper bag. I am always worrying that they will bump together and break. Sometimes there just isn’t room for the jars in my small diaper bag. So I was intrigued when I heard about NurturMe dehydrated baby food, and happy to do a review for their product!

NurturMe sent me an assortment of their baby food that came in little packets. The instructions were very easy to understand, just add water, breast milk or formula! We tried out the apple first and my baby loved it! The squash mixed up well and was the same consistency  as you would find in a jar. I love that they come in little packets that are super light and easy to pack even when the diaper bag is stuffed full! I could just throw one in my purse and it won’t really take up much space. One healthy suggestion they give you, is to add a packet of veggies to food like mac ‘n cheese, pancakes or pasta to give your baby a serving of vegetables in the foods they eat regularly!  You can even do this for older kids who are not eating enough veggies and fruit to sneak them in foods they already eat.

Made in the USA, NurturMe’s products are certified Organic by QAI and gluten free! They are a nature conscious company, and their pouches are recyclable made with wind energy. The small lightweight packets leave a smaller carbon footprint than jars.

NurturMe is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win a  gift sachet bag set of food and a spoon! Thank you NurturMe for the review baby food and give-away!!!  Open to US residents.

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No Bake Cake Pops Using OREOS

Long time Mommy Ramblings’ readers, probably remember that my first sponsored review and giveaway was for, My Little Cupcake Cake Pop Mold.  At that time, there was only one style available, the little cupcake.

Well, it has been some time since that first review, and as Mommy Ramblings has grown so has My Little Cupcake.  They now feature other cake pop molds. and I recently had the opportunity to review their set of 4 different shaped cake pop molds available in their variety set.

Now, you may recall when I did my original review, I did not use the no-bake Oreo recipe. but instead used two 9 inch layers of red velvet cake that was freshly baked and crumbled and my own cream cheese frosting.

This time I decided to go with the Oreo recipe that comes with the molds.  It was so easy to prepare.  You just take 1 package of Oreos (3 Sleeves if you buy the family pack) and crush them in your food processor.

 

Then, add an 8 ounce package of cream cheese and process until it is all combined and makes a sort of dough. Chill the dough for 20-30 minutes.  One of the things I noticed was, if the dough is not chilled enough or becomes warm while waiting to be molded, it is harder to work with and will not mold as well.  You may want to work with half at a time, and keep the other half chilling.

Once you get the knack of how much dough you need to make a complete mold, you will easily mold the dough into the variety of shapes.  It is a bit of a messy process, because you need to overfill the molds a little, and the excess will be squeezed out.  Be prepared for your hands to get very messy!

 

When you have finished molding all the dough, you chill or freeze them for another 20-30 minutes.  I found it best to take only a few out at a time and keep the others in the fridge until you are ready. This prevents them from getting warm before you dip them. I found the best results came from the pops that were the coldest, because they are more solid and easier to work with.   So for best results the colder the better because they are more solid and easier to work with.

You need to melt chocolate for the coating. You can use a variety of dipping chocolate, I have found the Almond Bark or the Candi Quick give me the best results. Some of the wafer varieties do not melt thin enough and Crisco is recommended to thin it. I don’t like using Crisco, so that is why I opt for Almond Bark or Candi Quick.

You  need to have your pop sticks handy and a block of styrofoam to hold the pops as they dry.  First dip the stick top in some chocolate, and then stick it in one of the molded tops.  You can place the pop in the styrofoam while you do a few others, and then you can start to dip the first one.

Now, you can get as creative as you want with the dipping.  For instance, with the cupcake style if you want a two-tone color, you need to dip the bottom first and then place it on the stick. Then, when the bottom is dry, you can dip the top in another color.

Another option, is to dip the entire cupcake in the color you want on the bottom, let dry and then, dip the top in a different color. You can also quickly add sprinkles or other decors before the chocolate dries.  I will repeat the key tip is to keep the pops as cold as possible until you are ready to work with them.

You can go crazy with these pops, transforming them into people, animals and more! The Variety Assortment gives you the ability to create many different kinds of cake and cookie pops.  The molds are so easy to clean. I  throw mine right in the dishwasher, and it could not be easier.

The heart mold is one of my favorites because it makes a nice plump pop and there are a lot of ways you can embellish it to look like different things.  I still like the cupcake and think it is pretty easy to get a great two-tone result using it.  The cone is a nice unique shape that can be used for christmas trees, candy corn, hats, and lots of other things.  The ball is good if you want perfectly shaped cake balls or truffles.

In conclusion, I found it much easier working with the Oreo mixture and it was much faster, letting me get to the fun part faster.  Beyond that, the Oreos and cream cheese have a great flavor and moist texture inside the pop.

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Toy State, Road Rippers Come-Back Racers Review & Giveaway!!!

My little ones are big fans of Toy State’s Road Rippers and we recently had the opportunity to review two trucks in the Road Rippers Come-Back Racers Line.  The green Toyota Tundra and the Red Dodge Ram.  These trucks are colorful and full of detail, on the top they have 3 buttons.  One plays music, each vehicle has a unique song.  For the Dodge Ram it is, “Free Ride” and for the Toyota Tundra you get “Move It On Over.”  The other buttons will get the truck revving, lights flashing, talking and taking off.  The truck will go along and then put on reverse lights and make its way back to your child.  My boys have not stopped playing with these and it was nearly impossible for me to get a still picture because they were a blur.  These  vehicles have a mute option if you want quiet play, but who wants that?  Right Moms?  They love these trucks so much that last night they each took them to bed with them and they are the first thing they played with in the morning.  They hold up well to little boys and rough play.  If you are looking for a great vehicle with music, lights, sounds and lots of action then check out Road Rippers Come Back Racers.  They have four great styles: Toyota Tundra, Dodge Ram, Ford Mustang 5.0 and Chevy Camaro. Vehicles require 3 AA batteries.

 

Race off and roll on back! This car takes you from the starting line to the pits, with motorized forward drive and the class come-back feature.  A “light tree” button panel triggers lights, realistic racing sounds, vocals and great licensed music. Comes equipped with a mute switch. Available in four models: Ford Mustang 5.0 playing Radar Love, Chevy Camaro playing Taking Care of Business, Dodge Ram playing Free Ride, and Toyota Tundra playing Move It On Over. Requires three “AA” batteries (included). Available at major retailers nationwide.

Toy State is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  One lucky blog reader will a Road Rippers Come Back Racer.  Thank you Toy State for the review racers and for sponsoring this great give-away on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US Residents.

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