Thursday, June 30, 2016
Custom Photo Pillowcase – Just $4.99
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
A Pound of Prevention: How to Stop Creepy Crawlies in Their Tracks
An ounce of cure is worth a pound of prevention. With that in mind, take as many steps as you can to keep the creepy crawlies out and your kids safe. Here’s your simple, cost-effective guide to protecting your family before infestation becomes a burden on them in the form of time, money and toxicity.
Before the Bugs
The best way to keep pests at bay is to eliminate their food source, and for many pests, it’s the food we leave lying around. It’s so easy, yet so hard to do, especially with little ones snacking at home with you all day. But making a habit of sweeping any leftover food and crumbs after mealtimes will help in this effort.
When weather permits, take meals and snacks outside to the patio or a local park. This is beneficial not only for the sake of comfort, but also from a cleanliness standpoint, as crumbs will fall on the grass and not your dining room floor. Plus, this is a great way to get kids to eat (no swings until after you finish your food) and play outside.
Eliminate Food Sources
Make sure your pantry is sealed up tight. Plastic bags protect food from bugs, but only if they’re sealed! That goes for pet food, too. You shouldn't leave it out at all, even if it’s only overnight because you don't want to provide a midnight buffet to potential pests.
Make sure you keep the lid on your garbage can closed and store it as far from the house as possible. And make sure to get rid of newspapers and cardboard right away and far away from the house. They’re a breeding ground for cockroaches.
Bed Bugs 101
If you’re a thrift store junkie or spend a lot of time traveling and staying in hotels, don’t forget about bed bugs.
While some people have no reaction to bed bug bites, many suffer from painful swollen welts all over their bodies from a bed bug infestation. The Environmental Protection Agency warns that while a few bed bugs can be frustrating, a full-on infestation can be devastating and costly. So, make sure to check all your luggage and thrifted items thoroughly before you bring them into your home.
Bed bugs love to hide in the seams of mattresses and furniture, but they can also be found everywhere from beneath loose wallpaper to the cracks where the floor and ceiling meet. If a space is big enough to fit the width of a credit card, it’s big enough to house a colony of bed bugs.
Look for small red, brown or black spots on bed linens, curtains or furniture. Red and brown spots resemble rust and are produced by bed bugs being crushed. Smaller black spots are bed bug excrement that bleed on fabrics like a felt-tipped marker.
Spills and Seals
Two simple ways to prevent bugs of all kind from getting into your home are sealing up points of entry and keeping spills and standing water to a minimum.
Even the DIY home improvement beginner can get a caulking gun for less than $5 with tax. Use it to seal up any spaces around doors, windows, floorboards and plumbing pipes. This will also help you save money on heating and cooling costs!
Tips For Giving Back During Summer
This time of year, charities are often forgot about. During summer, there are no school drives for the local food pantries and businesses put on a halt on their charitable work as people head out for vacation. Lisa Tomasi, Philanthropy Expert and Founder of e-giving site YouGiveGoods, stresses that now is the time to help non-profits, and has provided her insight for families who want to band together and help a good cause, while still enjoying summer.
Tips for Giving Back During Summer:
1. Get the kids involved.
Kids are home and looking for something to do. They have loads of energy, creativity and enthusiasm. Talk to your kids about ways they can make a difference in your community this summer – they are never too young to start. Fun activities like a car wash or lemonade stand can collect money for a cause. A summer food drive is a great idea. Kids love using the technology at YouGiveGoods.com to run an online food drive. They can tap into their social networks and learn how to use social media for good. Setting up a drive is simple, free, fun and most importantly, gets much-needed food items delivered to local food pantries.
2. Get the grandparents involved.
Retired people are a great resource for charitable work. Many welcome the responsibility and interaction that come with volunteer work but don't know where to start. Recruit your parents, grandparents, older neighbors, and senior center patrons to help support your cause.
3. Collect donations at your next family or business event.
Is your business holding a summer picnic? Are you planning a graduation, birthday party or just fun get together? Why not ask each attendee to bring a canned good to your event? Set up a table to drop off and showcase the goods you've collected. We promise this donation table will be a happy topic of conversation at your event.
4. Make a difference as a family.
Family time is important to many over the summer months. What better way to motivate and bond a family than to work together for a greater good? Studies show that kids that see parents and grandparents volunteering are more likely to volunteer and donate to charity as they get older. Animal lovers, call your local animal shelter and set up a time for the whole family to go in and volunteer. Families of book lovers can run a book drive for area kids' summer programs. Outdoorsy families can grab gloves and a garbage bag and clean a local park. Active exercise enthusiasts can organize a neighborhood run or fun walk benefiting a cause. Choosing your cause, organizing and planning the event, no matter how small, will be some of the most rewarding family time you've ever spent. Imagine how you will all feel when you have accomplished your goal, together.
5. Virtual volunteering.
If it's hard for you to commit to a scheduled time and place to volunteer, virtual volunteering is a relatively new option for you to consider. Contact the nonprofit that is close to your heart and discuss virtual volunteer opportunities. A few hours of your time using your home computer can make a big difference to a nonprofit. Offer your expertise in accounting, marketing, graphic design, party planning, logistics, and more.
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
First Comes Love #SRC2016
I am participating in the Summer Reading Challenge again this year! I love it! The book I am currently reading is First Comes Love by Emily Giffin.
About The Book:
Growing up, Josie and Meredith Garland shared a loving, if sometimes contentious, relationship. Josie was impulsive, spirited, and outgoing, Meredith hardworking, thoughtful, and reserved. When tragedy strikes, their delicate bond splinters.
Fifteen years later, Josie and Meredith are in their late thirties, following very different paths. Josie, a first grade teacher, is single - and this close to swearing off dating for good. What she wants more than the right guy, however, is to become a mother - a feeling that is heightened when her ex-boyfriend’s daughter is assigned to her class. Determined to have the future she’s always wanted, Josie decides to take matters into her own hands.
On the outside, Meredith is the model daughter with the perfect life. A successful attorney, she’s married to a wonderful man, and together they’re raising a beautiful four-year-old daughter. Yet lately Meredith feels dissatisfied and restless, secretly wondering if she chose the life that was expected of her rather than the one she truly desired.
As the anniversary of their tragedy looms, and painful secrets from the past begin to surface, Josie and Meredith must not only confront the issues that divide them but also come to terms with their own choices. In their journey toward understanding and forgiveness, both sisters discover that they need each other more than they knew - and that in the search for true happiness, love always comes first.
My Thoughts:
This is a great book, and makes me miss my sisters immensely, who all live in different states than I do! A nice story line that travels from childhood to adulthood.
About The Author:
Emily Giffin is the author of seven internationally bestselling novels: Something Borrowed, Something Blue, Baby Proof, Love the One You’re With, Heart of the Matter, Where We Belong, and The One & Only. A graduate of Wake Forest University and the University of Virginia School of Law, she lives in Atlanta with her husband and three children.
Monday, June 27, 2016
Friday, June 24, 2016
Thursday, June 23, 2016
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Cool Gifts From Calendars.com
Father's Day may be over, and all those Grad parties are wrapping up. But Calendars.com has some great gifts for any occasion, such as something fun for Summer birthdays, or items to put in a care package for a college kid heading off to new beginnings in the Fall. Check out these cool items we got for Jason for Father's Day from Calendars.com.
Star Wars Stormtrooper Wrap Around Mug - Feel the caffeine of the DarkSide flow through you as you enjoy your morning coffee or tea in the new Star Wars mugs!
Deadpool Comic Playing Cards - This official deck of Deadpool playing cards features 52 unique images from the Merc with a mouth’s comic history.
Dolcedi Sweetener #Summertime2016
The coming weeks are going to be a tea lover’s paradise now that it is officially Summer. It is finally warming up enough to enjoy a cool glass of iced tea outside, plus June is National Iced Tea month! Dolcedi, a product of the Rigoni family from Altopiano Di Asiago in Northern Italy, is an all-natural liquid sweetener made exclusively from 100% organic apples and is a low-glycemic alternative to sugar and other sweeteners. In fact, Dolcedi has 25% fewer calories by weight than table sugar. It is the perfect addition to sweeten up any iced tea, as its neutral flavor will enhance the tea’s sweetness without altering that tangy tea taste.
This organic (and vegan) delight comes in a 350g squeezable bottle with a dripless cap, making it an easy addition to anything that calls for sugar.
Check it all out at Rigoni di Asiago on Facebook, as well as Rigoni di Asiago on Twitter.
Monday, June 20, 2016
Explore Cuisine #Summertime2016
What's a picnic without a pasta salad? Give this dish a healthy twist with pasta from Explore Cuisine! Explore Cuisine products are all vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO and made from organic ingredients. Jam packed with protein, iron, and fiber, these pastas are the perfect alternative to other glutinous pastas. Feel great knowing that you are serving a meal made from organic chickpeas, beans, and lentils! So get your basket packed and enjoy!
This recipe for Organic Chickpea Fusilli with Eggplant, Tomato, and Green Onion from Explore Cuisine is the perfect picnic meal and easy to prepare.
Ingredients:
1 package chickpea fusilli, cooked
1 large Japanese eggplant, small dice
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
4 garlic cloves, smashed
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 T. parsley, chopped
2 green onions, sliced
Preparation:
Toss eggplant with olive oil. Roast at 400°F until brown and tender.
Toss tomatoes and garlic with olive oil and roast in the same oven until the tomatoes are blistered. Remove the garlic and finely chop.
Toss eggplant, garlic, tomatoes (Including juices) with fusilli. Add a splash of olive oil if needed.
Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with parsley and green onion.
Chill and serve.
Check it all out at Explore Cuisine on Facebook, as well as Explore Cuisine on Twitter.
#CheezItUp Giveaway
Sam’s Club & Cheez-It are giving away Sam’s Club memberships and packages of the new Cheez-It Sandwich Crackers, which are available for purchase at Sam’s Club.
Monday, June 20th at 12AM ET to Friday, June 24th at 11:59PM ET.
Ten (10) Grand Prize winners will receive a prepaid Sam’s Club membership card valued at $45.00.
Ten (10) First Prize winners will receive an 18ct pack of Cheez-It Sandwich Crackers valued at $7.32.
Users can enter the giveaway by heading to the Sam’s Club page on Savings.com and submitting their email address on the form at the top of the page.
The winners will be chosen through a lottery drawing and notified on Tuesday (6/28) via the email address they used to enter.
See complete Official Rules for entry instructions, full prize descriptions, restrictions and other important details.
For Your Pain #TryLivRelief
LivRelief
is the best pain-relief treatment
on the market, and clinical trials
have shown just how fast it acts
and how long its relief lasts.
Here are five ways it differs
from other topical pain-relief
treatments on the market:
Targeted Relief:
LivRelief
products are the only ones that use Delivra
,
a patent-pending transdermal delivery system. Delivra
delivers LivRelief’s active ingredients deep beneath the
skin, addressing pain at its source.
A New Approach To Pain:
LivRelief is the first over-the-counter pain-relief product
that addresses and blocks five pain pathways.
The Best Of The Best:
All ingredients in LivRelief products are certified, selected
for their purity and quality, and sourced primarily from
Nordic and European countries, which maintain some of
the world’s highest standards for consumer safety and
environmental protection.
No Tingle, No Smell:
Unlike other pain-relief products that burn or tingle when
applied, or smell like menthol or worse, LivRelief doesn’t
produce any unpleasant sensations (sensations that really
only serve to distract you from the pain). And it has a
pleasant, faint fragrance.
Backed By The Medical Community:
LivRelief was developed by a respected molecular
pharmacologist, and it’s been tested and approved by
established members of the medical community.
As some of you may know, my husband Jason was injured in the Army, and he has a lot of residual pain. He has used numerous topical pain creams and ointments, and none really have helped. He has tried LivRelief and he is very pleased with the results. He says he can get through the day now, and sleep better at night. To see him able to function on a daily basis and be happy is a huge improvement and makes for one happy wife!
“This post is sponsored by LivRelief”
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