Reviews — Page 12

Love it: Blue Sky Scrubs!

Check out a new FAVORITE: Blue Sky Scrubs!

So, I’m not a nurse, so why am I exciting about a company that makes scrubs? Well, there are a few reasons:

1. I have many friends who are nurses, who will LOVE this stuff. It’s so hard to find anything stylish and modern to wear in the nursing field, and this stuff rocks.
2. They have the most adorable little baby scrub sets I’ve ever seen… This would be SUCH a cute baby shower gift! Baby Layette Scrub Sets.
3. I would totally rock these as super comfy lounge clothes! I do a lot of painting, so I’d love to get one of these: Poppy Hats that they show on their Facebook page. Love ’em. I’d also wear these: Urban Scrub Pants, with the new low rise. Comfy looking, right?

Head over and check out the rest of the Nursing Scrub Uniforms for women choices {I can’t believe how trendy they make scrubs look in this photo!} or search by category on their main page, http://www.blueskyscrubs.com/categories/Scrubs/

What do you think?

Would you wear these outside of a medical office? Am I weird that I LOVE these as lounge clothes?? Do you want to rush over like I did, and sign up for their Email Newsletter Updates, to get sales and discount info? Share you opinions in the comments…

Posted by Meagan Paullin on August 9, 2011 Filed Under: Shopping, Reviews | No Comments

Take the -No More Frump Mom- Challenge!

Who Wants to Join Me in the “No More Frump Mom Challenge” from Rita Reviews?

You don’t have to be a blogger to be facing this problem… Any woman that works from home probably has faced this dilemma at some point. Heck, any mom that does ANYTHING from home, whether it be blogging, running her business, or just taking care of the kiddo’s {which in itself is a darn full time job!} has probably struggled not to fall into the “Frump Mom” category!

From “Fashion Merchandising” to “Fashion Missing”!

In a former life, I worked in Retail Management and Fashion Merchandising. That means that every single day, I got up, got dressed in trendy outfits, with accessories, and stylish shoes. I used eye liner, mascara, lip gloss, and blush. I regularly polished my fingers and toes, and used a curling iron on a daily basis. I even {it’s hard to imagine…} switched handbags regularly to always have a matching purse. Oh, how times have changed.

Working at home as a blogger means that no one {except the kids} see me during the day. Well, the UPS and FedEx guys visit quite often, but although their visits are always appreciated, I feel no need to wear mascara to sign for my packages. Plus, it’s hard enough to find time to take a full-uninterrupted shower on most days, when would I make time for make-up and curls??

BUT…. It’s time for a change!

After reading Rita’s commitment to herself and her family…

I will get up everyday and get dressed and comb my hair. My family will no longer be ashamed when we go out into public. I will treat my blogging as though it is a regular job and attempt to set normal hours. I will take breaks, get up and move around more and generally spend more time engaging with my family.

…I have decided it is about time I get my booty in gear too!

Here are my goals:

My first task upon awaking will continue to be the bleary-eyed trek to the kitchen to brew my coffee. BUT, while that columbian-dark-roasted-life-changing-goodness is dripping into the pot, I will spend 5 minutes to do some basic make-up, and another 5 to talk my hair into acting slightly less wild.
I will get dressed! No, I do not spend the day in my pj’s. {Ok, sometimes in the winter…} But most mornings, I throw on some cut-off sweat-style shorts, a basic tank, and flippy flops. This is a far cry from the old me who would NEVER start the day without being fully accessorized. So, I will start wearing some of the cute tops that I have. I will layer them with a coordinating tank and maybe even a cardigan. And each day, I will accessorize. Oh yes, jewelry box, how I have missed thee…
I will, like Rita, set some “business hours”, and attempt to stick to them. My goal is one block early in the morning, from 6-10am, and another while the baby naps, from 12-2. And maybe one short evening check in. But no more spending the whole day at the computer. I mean, if I’m going to actually start getting dressed, then I need to {at the VERY least} start taking the kids on a neighborhood walk or something, right? SOMEONE needs to appreciate my accessories.

Who else wants {and, admit it!} NEEDS to join us for the “No More Frump Mom” Challenge??

If so, read Rita’s post here, Rita Reviews Challenge, and grab the button code to show people that YOU are going to snap out of your rut too!

The Big-Butt Fairy

I am one of the oldest first-time moms that I know {I had my baby girl last year, at 31}. I don’t FEEL that old, but so many of my friends had their first babies in their early 20’s. That means, A.) they’re skinnier than me. You lose baby weight much easier at 20 than you do at 30. It’s, like, physics, or geometry or something like that. All I know is that it’s a true fact that while you’re a child, you get frequent visits from the tooth fairy. But after 30, you start getting much-too-frequent {and quite unwanted!} visits from the Big-Butt fairy. And B.) when my little girl starts kindergarten, the odds are high that I will be the oldest mom in her class. So, I need to do what I can, and that includes make-up and accessories. Because sometimes, those are the only weapons that you have.

How about you?

If you relate to the challenge ideas, I’d LOVE to have you share YOUR goals and thoughts in the comments!!

{Also, if you understand where I’m coming from here, you’ll also LOVE this book: My Formerly Hot Life: Dispatches from Just the Other Side of Young I’m halfway through, and I SO relate! This is one of those, laugh-out-loud-while-reading, so-your-kids-think-you’re-crazy kind of books! Love it.}

Posted by Meagan Paullin on August 8, 2011 Filed Under: Reviews, Fun Stuff | 1 Comment

Is Cash 4 Gold a Scam?

Scam or Legit?

I’ve been seeing commercials and other ad’s for this Cash 4 Gold deal for awhile now, and finally requested a packet to be sent to me. I have some old gold jewelry that I don’t wear, that’s super 80’s style, and it wasn’t worth much of anything at our local pawn shop or jewelry buyer. So, I thought maybe I’d send it in, see what I get, right? It’s pretty much worthless right now anyway, so no big loss if I’m unhappy with their service.

RipoffReport.com

I checked them out on one of my favorite research sites, Ripoff Report, and they gave the company really great ratings, and said that while people have reported problems and complaints about Cash4Gold on their site, that the Cash4Gold company has been great at addressing them and offering solutions.

My Experience with Ripoff Report

I used to work for a company called HouseValues, and loved it. I sold services and products, via cold calling, to Real Estate professionals across the country. I KNEW that I was providing quality services, since I had so many clients who, 3-4 months after using our products, would call me and tell me how I literally changed their life. Their business had grown so much, they were meeting so many goals… It’s a really great feeling to know that you’re truly helping people!

But… There were always those clients who signed up with unrealistic goals, or were the type to be unhappy about everything, and would say that we were a “scam”. That’s how I found Ripoff Report for the first time, because a client told me that my company was on there! After reading the complaints listed, I was so shocked… Much of it was totally off base, and not at all what we do.

Grain of Salt…

So, I learned that you have to take those types of complaints with a bit of skepticism. Especially when we later found out that some complaints, once investigated, were not even real customers, but competitors.

Even so, I’ve used Ripoff Report for years now, to research new companies that I might want to use or promote. You can learn a lot by reading the “complaints”, and can usually tell pretty quickly if they are legitimate problems, or just “sour grapes” type of people. It seems like Cash4Gold is an honest company, but that some people expect their jewelry to be worth big bucks, and are very mad when it’s not.

But…..

I’d love to hear your feedback! Since I’m known as the Freebie Girl, everyone asks me for advice on things, and this is one that I get asked about a TON!

I’m using them partly so I can be able to offer an honest assessment of their service, but I’d like to hear some additional REAL stories from my readers. I trust your stories.

Thanks {in advance!} for sharing…

Posted by Meagan Paullin on August 4, 2011 Filed Under: Freebies, Reviews | 1 Comment

{Rafflecopter Giveaway} Fall in Love with Seneca Farms NEW Product!

My Story: The Quick Version.

So… Two years ago, I lived in a big 4 bedroom house, just the cat and I. I was working in Retail Management and Fashion Merchandising- Long, hectic, and unpredictable hours, with high stress; but lots of creativity and a great paycheck. I had a huge social life, little sleep, but loved it all. I was in my late 20’s, but had NO desire to change anything… I LOVED being an Auntie Meagan, no tickin’ clock urging me towards kiddo’s.

Fast Forward to Now…

Now, due to a lot of unplanned life changes for everyone, I’m living in a new house, with my mother and 4 dogs, my brother and his two sons {5 and 7}, a new baby, her father, and our new puppy. Wow, right? {Are you wondering where the cat went? Well, she didn’t dig the new roommates, and went to live with the other cat-folk at my old neighbors house. We’re friends, but she wasn’t a fan of all of the commotion!}

I am a B-U-S-Y Momma!

My mother, brother, and boyfriend all work, so I stay home with the kids all day. I buy the food, cook the food, and clean up after the food is eaten. {Some days I can hear that song from Cinderella… “Cinderell-y, Cinderell-y, Night and Day it’s Cinderell-y”, remember?} I’m always on the look out for healthy snacks I can feel good about serving, but are super quick and easy. It was a big change to go from single lady to house-momma of 2 kids and a baby… Plus taking care of laundry and house work for such a large new household!

A healthy pre-packaged snack? Yep, it’s true!

These amazing new Seneca Farms New Oatmeal & Fruit are meant for breakfast, and they are a super yummy choice for a morning meal. But we’ve been eating them as our afternoon snack! They’re so quick and easy, and the fruit and whole grains keeps the kiddo’s {and ME!} full until dinner time.

Some Quick Facts:

Did you know that*…

Nearly 60% of U.S. parents of children ages 3-17 admit that their child skips breakfast, with more than half of U.S. Moms wishing their child ate a more nutritious breakfast.
58% of U.S. Moms say they skip breakfast regularly. 46% of Moms who skip breakfast say they do so because they do not have enough time to prepare or eat it.
57% of single adults say the number one reason they skip breakfast is that they don’t have enough time to prepare it.
While 71% of U.S. adults agree that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, 67% of those admit to skipping breakfast.

{*Results of 2011 Children’s Nutrition Survey, conducted by Harris Interactive for Seneca Farms.}

Perfect for busy back-to-school mornings!

We’ll probably eat these way more often as a breakfast item once the weather gets colder, and when the mornings get hectic again, at school time {can you believe it’s going to be here soon?}. This is an easy snack to send them off to the bus stop with on an especially busy morning!

Here are a few of my favorite things about them:

The first 4 ingredients are Water, Fruit, Thick Cut Oats, and Juice. Love that, right? It’s so hard to find packaged products that aren’t filled with weird ingredients.
Their easy to find! Most grocery stores {Store Locator Tool} should carry them, including almost all Walmarts.
They taste SUPER DUPER yummy. There is no processed or artificial taste to these, like you get with a lot of other instant oatmeal’s. Probably because, these actually have REAL ingredients!

Want to try them yourself?

Win the same set of Seneca Farms Oatmeal & Fruit cups that I got to test out in my home: One lucky winner will receive one full-size package of the Vanilla Peach {my favorite!} and another full-size package of the Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal {the kiddo’s favorite!}. You’ll love ’em… Even the baby is a big fan! And check out their Facebook page to get a coupon too!

{This review was made possible by the amazing Mom Spark Media! I was provided a free sample set of products to review, but as always, this is my own opinion, and 100% honest! You know I only speak the truth… :)}

Rafflecopter Giveaway:

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Posted by Meagan Paullin on August 1, 2011 Filed Under: Reviews, Contests | 4 Comments

FREE Norton 360 Antivirus Download- Keep your family safe online

Are YOU protected?

I had always used free antivirus downloads on my computer, since I thought that they were enough to protect me. I don’t download songs or movies, and felt like I wasn’t doing anything very risky, so I had nothing to really worry about.

I was wrong!

I didn’t know that you can get a virus just by visiting a website that has been compromised, or a million other things I would have thought were totally “safe”. I had a few big problems, but luckily, nothing that was too complicated to fix.

Free Product Trial

As a Vocalpoint.com member, I got the opportunity last year to try the Norton Antivirus program for free… And it was pretty amazing. Super easy to set up, and it’s always super easy to use. It lets me know, {via a little warning box in the bottom corner} if I’m doing something that could put my computer at risk.

FREE Download!

Take advantage of this free Norton 360 Antivirus Download today… I’m not sure if this will be really quick freebie offer or if it’ll be around for awhile. But it is awesome, and I don’t want you guys to miss it! This is better than the version I have now, so I plan to upgrade mine with this freebie too!

Are you using Norton?

If so, share your stories of how it’s helped you too!

Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 26, 2011 Filed Under: Freebies, Reviews | No Comments

{Giveaway} Win a Black & Decker Steam Mop!

Your housekeeping routine is about to get a little bit hot and steamy…

I’m a Cheating Housewife.

I hate mopping. HATE it. Always have. But I am a bit obsessed with cleanliness. Ok, maybe a lot of obsessed. So, when the Swiffer first came out, I was in heaven. FINALLY, I thought, a new way to keep my floors clean without the mess and frustration of a mop and bucket. And yes, the Swiffer worked good… But it didn’t work great.

Things are getting steamy…

Then, I was contacted by Black & Decker, to see if I’d be interested in trying out their new Steam Mop, and sharing my opinions of it with you guys. I’d been eyeing these for awhile, but after having such high hopes for the Swiffer, and being a bit let down, I was a little hesitant.

Then the steam mop arrived. And I thought, well, I’ll just give it a try- and the cheating began. It was just going to be a casual fling, I thought I might go back to the Swiffer if this didn’t work out… But my oh my, I fell in love. Yes, my affair with the steam mop has turned into a long-term commited relationship. This is one of the greatest cleaing tools that has ever come into my life. Seriously.

See it in Action:

Steam Mop, How do I Love Thee? Let me Count the Ways…

Economical: Unlike a Swiffer, you don’t need to spend big bucks on cleaning fluid refills or cloths and pads. The Black & Decker Steam Mop uses just water, and comes with 3 reusable pads. When they get dirty, you simply throw them in the wash! Easy peasy.
Good with Kids: This is EXTREMELY important for me. I have a baby who crawls around on the floor all day. If a product is toxic enough that it needs to be locked in a cabinet, then why would I want to use it on the floor that she is playing on? I love that the Steam Mop gets rid of 99.9% of germs with just water!
It’s got sweet moves: I can’t even tell you how awesome the swivel action is on this Steam Mop! It tilts all the way down flat to reach under furniture, swivels around cabinets without any work at all, can sneak right around corners and into tight spaces…. Very impressive.
It gets the job done: Not only does it have all of these cool features… It has serious cleaning power too! Our floors get super dirty, super quick. The kitchen is our most used room, and has two doors that lead to the deck outside. There are 5 dogs, 2 boys, a baby, and 3 adults in this house…. You can imagine how messy it gets in here! But this Steam Mop cleaned the floors so easily… It honestly is so simple to use, and does an uh-MAY-zing job.

Win one of your own!

This is my very first Rafflecopter giveaway! If you have ANY problems at all, please let me know right away!!

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Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 26, 2011 Filed Under: Reviews, Contests | 33 Comments

Your music, heard round the house, wirelessly.

Remember when top quality speakers were the size of a wing chair and about as portable? Not to mention they required an explosion of wires to connect with your stereo? Well, since most of us play or stream our music digitally nowadays, those systems seem downright Flintstone-ian.

Sonos

The perfect solution?

The Sonos S5 (a.k.a. the Play:5), part of Sonos’ wireless music system. This all-in-one player (speakers and receiver in one cute box) pumps out unbelievably high quality sound and can be controlled by your iPhone, Android or computer. To take your tunes wherever you want, just add The Bridge, which plugs directly into your router so your S5 is free to roam anywhere in range (including out in the backyard). And, if you buy additional units, you can listen to your music in one place while your kids listen to theirs in another— a key feature as far as we’re concerned considering what passes for music nowadays.

Check out this week’s twirl and join the party! Plus we have a suggestion on how to repurpose all those CD’s you have stacked somewhere.

The best of everything..

I’ll tell you what I think… I think I’m going to have to put this on my “save for” list!! The Sonos Play:5 is a little spendy, and I’m not usually one to fork out that type of money for technology stuff. But I LOVE music. I have some type of music playing all day… I use Pandora at the computer, the radio in the kitchen, and a Party Cube out on the patio by the pool.

I LOVE Pandora, because I love the not having commercials, and that it’s my favorite music picks. I love the radio, only because it plays on a really great sound system. And the Party Cube is awesome: it charges when it’s plugged in, so then you can unplug it to set it outside, and easily hook up an iPhone or iPod to listen to your music.

BUT… This Sonos gadget kind of combines all of my favorite elements from the others into ONE simply uh-MAY-zing little box! How cool that it can be controlled with your phone, and works wirelessly to pull music from all of the places where you’ve got it! Super cool, right? It’s a bit on the pricey side, but with the great speakers, portablility, and amazing access to your whole music collection, this bad boy is SO worth it!

What do YOU think?

Do any of you ladies have one of these super cool music masters?? Do you looove it? I’d love to hear from you!

Carley's Byline Pic

Digitwirl is the weekly web show that offers simple solutions to modern day problems. In 3 minutes, Digitwirl brings busy women the very best time, money, and sanity-saving technology, and then teaches them how to use it, step-by-step. Digitwirl was created by technology lifestyle expert Carley Knobloch, who uses lots of technology to manage her busy life as mom of two and entrepreneur. Become a subscriber to get weekly show alerts and exclusive deals at Digitwirl.com, or follow Digitwirl on Twitter at @digitwirl.

{Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with the Sonos S5. I’m a Digitwirl Syndicate Partner, and share my own personal opinions on their weekly twirl!}