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Three Steps for Mom to get Perfect Summer Legs!

June 23, 2014 by amushro

#SummerizeYourLegs #CollectiveBias

Summer, summer, summertime. Time to sit back and unwind. Wait, sit back and unwind? Clearly they don’t have kids because as every mom knows, summer sunshine means your kids are on the go from sun up until that late summer sun sets. And that means you are on the move too! In this house summer is splashing in the pool, riding waves and building sand castles at the beach, and spending every last minute outside taking in every bit of this glorious season. With Fourth of July right around the corner, I need to get my summer prep started early and I’m not just talking about breaking out the bathing suits (Yikes!). No friends, it’s time to get those legs out of hiding. It’s not winter anymore and you can’t hide behind yoga pants this time of year. But don’t fret, because I’m sharing my three steps for mom to get perfect summer legs!

Believe me, I get that the days of long, luxurious showers are gone. GONE! However, you don’t need a long shower (without small children knocking on the door) to get great summer legs. You just need the right tools. OK, maybe you need some level of privacy, but I can’t help you with that. But I can help you find what you need to get those legs ready for summer fun.

Just like a chef needs great tools in the kitchen, you need great tools in the shower! Before I started to shake off that winter blahh from my skin, I popped over to the shaving aisle at Walmart and got everything that I needed for my three steps to perfect summer legs: Prepare, Shave and Protect. I grabbed Skintimate Skin Therapy Sensitive Skin shave gel, Schick Hydro Silk Sensitive Care razor, and Hawaiian Tropic Sheer Touch Ultra Radiance SPF 30. I love having new shower products and I was ready to put these three to good use!

Now, let’s talk about those three steps, I know you have to be fast because as soon as you turn that hot water on, someone in the house will come looking for you so here is what you need to know:

1. Prepare- It was a long winter and skipping regular shaving, forgetting to put lotion on and the winter chill probably did a number of your legs. I know you are in a hurry but don’t skip this step! Start with an exfoliating shower gel to wash away dry and dead skin. Then apply a moisturizing shave gel like Skintimate Skin Therapy Sensitive Skin to protect and prepare your legs.

2. Shave- Any old razor just won’t do! You need something that is designed to be gentle on your legs but grab even the tiniest of hairs. You are less likely to have irritation in your bikini area if you are using a razor like Schick Hydro Silk Sensitive Care razor because the water activated moisture serum in the razor gets the job done and keeps your skin feeling super smooth.

3. Protect- We all know how important protecting our skin from the sun’s harmful rays is, and we would never send our kids out in the sun without protecting their skin. So don’t forget about your precious skin, Mamma! Not only does Hawaiian Tropic Sheer Touch Ultra Radiance SPF 30 smell amazing, but the SPF keeps you save, the moisturizer keeps your legs feeling soft.

Now you are ready for anything that summer throws your way! Bring on the Fourth of July and everything we have on our schedule.

Like a little sidewalk art…

A stroll on the beach…

And being on lifeguard duty…

You can win your own Summerize Your Legs Prize Pack From Walmart to get everything I used plus a few more summer goodies! And check out the “All You” ad for Prep, Shave, Protect because it includes money-saving coupons on Schick and Skintimate products.

A Little Blue Pixie Dust for the Pirate Fairy DVD Playdate

April 3, 2014 by amushro

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser #ProtectPixieHollow #CollectiveBias.

I’m a firm believer in “more is more.” Forget “less is more” when it comes to all of the good stuff like more kids giggling and playing, more blowing off steam with Mommy friends, more yummy snack, and always more snuggling during movie time. “More is more” can lead to lots of juice boxes being spilled on my couch, popcorn squished in my carpet, and the organized chaos that we call playdates, but it also leads to gems like this:

When these playdates started, the oldest kids were just babies that fit into one small room, and they only needed a few toys with flashing lights to entertain them. A few years later, and a whole bunch of siblings later, our playdates grew into preschoolers, toddlers, and babies that easily overtake your house, voices that echo through your hallways, and kiddos that have interests as varied as their little faces. But when you catch them (well most of them) all lined up on the couch, munching on popcorn, watching a new movie, I just want to SQUEEZE them all! So it did take a little magic, maybe a little a little fairy magic, to get them all to stop in their tracks and watch a movie. It was Disney’s The Pirate Fairy DVD that was released on April 1 (no April Fools here!).

Want a sneak peek of Tinkerbell and her fairy friends?

Trailer – The Pirate Fairy on Disney Video

SinceI was hosting the next playdate, mykids and I be-bopped over to Walmart to pick up The Pirate Fairy DVD and supplies for the playdate that would make it a little magical but also make it really easy on me. As an added bonus, Walmart is the only place you can find the combo pack with the Blue Ray/DVD and a special extra DVD of The Pixie Hollow Bake Off that includes ten animated shorts with Tinkerbell and her friends. Since we love Tinkerbell in this house, we will take all the extras we can get!

In the movie, Tinkerbell and the other fairies talk a lot about the magic behind blue pixie dust; it only seemed fitting that the the popcorn and fruit tray I picked up at Walmart had the same magical blue pixie dust (also knows as blue sugar sprinkles). “Be careful, kids,” I told the movie watchers, “if you eat too much, you might fly away!”

What party would be complete without cupcakes? Now while I make fantastic cupcakes (OK, no…no I don’t), Walmart’s bakery section helped me out again, and I just popped in pirate decorations to personalize the sweet treats for a Pirate Fairy Party. Since the bonus pack included the DVD Pixie Hollow Bake Off, I told the kids that Tinkerbell and baking fairy Gelata (voiced by Giada de Laurentiis) were the ones behind their yummy cupcakes.

With so many kids at different ages and stages, I was a little nervous that just one movie wouldn’t be a crowd pleaser, but it was clear that every superhero and princess loved watching Tinkerbell and her fairy friends use teamwork to save Pixie Hollow.

OK, kids, the snacks are gone and the movie is over. Your moms have gathered up your socks and shoes. What was your favorite part of today? Being with friends, of course!

Amazing Deals on Student Mobile Plans From The Best Buy Mobile Specialty Store

December 9, 2013 by amushro

If you are lucky enough to be in earshot of me from Thanksgiving to New Years, you will be wildly entertained by my nonstop singing of Christmas carols. While some may liken my voice to Adele (OK, really no one would say that), it’s the two kiddos that have joined in on my festive holiday singing that are the crowd pleasers. While they are huge Jingle Bells fans, my favorite is still Home for the Holidays, because this time of year, I am missing my family tremendously and counting down the days until we can all be together to celebrate the holidays. So until I can get home to “Pennsylvania for some homemade pumpkin pie” my kids and I will be counting on modern technology to keep our family connected. In this house, cool new gadgets mean we stay connected to my parents and my brother’s family. It’s not uncommon to find one kid Skyping with my parents and the other chatting on the phone with my nephew. The best electronics might mean games, pictures, or fast internet service to some, but to us it means family time.

Maybe it’s overuse, the constant drops on the floor, or maybe it’s just the holiday stress, but my cellphone has not been pulling its weight around here. Time for an upgrade! I decided to try the Best Buy Mobile Specialty Store that’s located inside the mall near our house. While Best Buy is sort of a heaven for my husband (must be all of the flashing lights, TVs, and gadgets), Best Buy Mobile Specialty store is exactly what I needed: close to home, just the mobile devices and accessories that I need, and super helpful associates for those of us that ask A LOT of questions. Added bonus: Santa was located right outside the store! I told the kids the “Big Man in Red” could see if they were naughty or nice while Mommy shopped for a new phone.

While my kids ran around the store grabbing every phone off of the shelves (is that why there is a rope attached to the phones? Smart!), Luis, who I will now refer to as my new best friend, was the lucky sales associate to help show me everything Best Buy Mobile Specialty Stores have to offer. He showed me the different phones, all of the different pricing plans, and the trade in value of my current phone. In addition to showing me a few tips and tricks on his own phone, he thought it was hilarious when my two year old knocked down a rack of phone cases. My best buddy Luis has a two year old of his own at home and knows the drill.

After we helped clean up the cellphone cover disaster, I had to pull out the big guns and “call” Santa.

Since this family relies on my cellphone to stay connected with our family that lives far away, one particular plan that Luis told me about is an amazing deal, is the perfect way to keep families connected over the holidays, and it helps students save money on pricey mobile plans. The Sprint My Way Promotion is a way for students to purchase a phone flat-out (some of the phones are pricey but some are really reasonable), but the best part– talk, text, and data are free! Are you thinking about your own mobile pricing plans right now? If you are a student or you have a student on your shopping list, think about how much this could save you (plus they would have to call you because you got this great deal for them)

Here is how it’s works:

If there was ever a doubt in my mind that our fancy electronics are the key to helping us stay connected to our family (especially over the holidays), I watched my son “call” his cousin while we in the store.

Want to know more about this great deal? Click right here or check them out on Twitter.

Moms’ Night in with NickMom is #MotherFunny

October 28, 2013 by amushro

It’s Sunday night, the kids are snoring softly in their beds, your husband has ditched you to watch some football game you couldn’t care less about, and you find yourself mindlessly staring at the TV. It’s a good 15 minutes before you realize you’re watching Bubble Guppies…alone…and you’re singing all the songs. Enough is enough, Mamma! You need a little NickMom in your life! Better yet, grab a few of your favorite Mommy friends, your comfiest yoga pants, and a few cocktails because at 10:00 EST, Nick Jr switches over to NickMom and it is #MotherFunny.

I called up my gal pals to invite them over and told them to come in comfy pants (because let’s be honest, pants with buttons and zippers are really going against my “brand”), and be ready to relax and laugh because I would take care of everything. That is a bit of a lie, NickMom was actually helping me.

They even gave me this handy tote to use while I shopped with two kids at the liquor store–Don’t you judge me!

At first I just planned on throwing some of the kids’ Halloween candy at my friends and pouring a few glasses of red from the opened bottle on my counter, but my gal pals deserve something a little more fancy than that, and it would be nice to dust off some of the snazzy party wear I got as wedding shower gifts a million moons ago, right?

The drink recipes that NickMom gave me were AMAZING, easy to make, and looked pretty—much like me.

1 oz Pomegranate Liqueur 2 oz Vodka 1 oz Pink Grapefruit Juice Lemon Wedge Coarse Sugar for Rimming — The Marker-On-The-Wall Eraser
1 oz Pomegranate Liqueur
2 oz Vodka
1 oz Pink Grapefruit Juice
Lemon Wedge
Coarse Sugar for Rimming

Playdate Punch 6 oz Pineapple Run 6 oz Coconut Run 1 cup Fruit Punch 1 cup Crushed Ice 6 oz Orange Rum — Playdate Punch
6 oz Pineapple Run
6 oz Coconut Run
1 cup Fruit Punch
1 cup Crushed Ice
6 oz Orange Rum

Now it’s a party and we are ready to get our laugh on. Perfect timing for Instant Mom! One of NickMom’s newest shows stars the adorable Tia Mowry-Hardrict. She plays former party girl Stephanie who recently married an older man with three kids, and BOOM she becomes an Instant Mom! She struggles to find the balance between being friends with the kids and being a responsible parent; however, she makes it all #MotherFunny! Check your local listings because you can catch reruns of this funny show every night!

What #MotherFunny night would be complete without a few games? No we aren’t playing Candy Land for the 394 time that day. We are sharing those dirty little secrets that you only tell your mom friends (and I guess all of my readers too).

Now it’s your turn! Give me your best answers, and be sure to come back and read the other #MotherFunny answers!

Oh wait, I do have one more question. Who do I speak to at NickMom about doing the dishes from last night and taking care of my kids because Mamma had a little too much to drink last night.? No, for real, who is coming over?