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Cobb Hill shoes by New Balance: Reader Discount and Giveaway!

Ending in just a few hours! Win your choice of boots or shoes from Cobb Hill Shoes!

Win it –  One winner will get a pair ( ANY PAIR) of shoes of their own from Cobb Hill Shoes! 

You’ll love the rich quality of their shoes and boots. They are the makers of the New Balance sneakers also! So make sure you hurry on over to Cocktails with Mom and get your entries in! Ends today!

Activision Family Game Summit

Today is the day!! At 1:00 p.m. EST join Activision and Amazon Mom’s for the Game Summit!!

It’s Christmas Bakers Edition Giveaway – Coming soon!

It’s Christmas Baker’s Edition Event

Organized by: Mom Powered Media

Grand Prize: KitchenAid Tilt-head Stand Mixer + accessories

Event dates: 11/18 – 12/9

Open to US + Canada

Referral prize: $25 Amazon E-Code or Paypal Cash

Bloggers: Sign Up HERE

http://bit.ly/16DgOBa

Happy Halloween!

Here’s some tips that for both parents and kids, to help keep you safe on Halloween night! Remember above all to have fun and be safe!

Help your young child pick out or make a costume that will be safe. Make sure that it’s fire proof or treated with fire retardant. If they are wearing a mask of any kind,  make sure that the eye holes are large enough for good peripheral vision.

Serve your kids a filling meal before trick or treating and they won’t be as tempted to eat any candy before they bring it home for you to check. Check your local grocery store or craft store for Halloween cook books full of tasty treats on a horror theme for both kids and adults.

Never, ever go into a stranger’s house or even ring their door for treats unless your parents are with you and say that it’s okay. There are some people in life that aren’t very nice to kids and you have to be careful. Always make sure that your mom or dad is within sight when you go out trick-or-treating.

Know the route your kids will be taking if you aren’t going with them. Let them know that they are to check in with you every hour, by phone or by stopping back at home. Make sure that they know not to deviate from the planned route so that you always know where they will be.

Be careful when you cross a street. Make sure to look in both directions and make sure that there are no cars coming. If you have a little brother or sister with you, take their hand and help them get across the street, too. If the street has a stop light, wait until the cross walk light tells you that it’s okay to cross now, but still check before you cross, look both ways.

 If you can drive and are taking a bunch of friends to a party, make sure that you have enough gas to get there. You don’t want to run out on a dark street, all alone, like a bad horror movie!

If you parents give you a curfew, be home when they say. It builds trust between you and them and they are doing it for your own safety. If you are going to be late, call them and let them know.

Have a Happy Halloween!!

ACTIVISION FAMILY GAME SUMMIT

Everyone get your game on!! The Activision Family Game Summit is coming on November 7th and I am SO SO excited! This is the the greatest gaming event of the year, where all the best new games are introduced and you get to play the hottest games of the year!

The event is sponsored in part by Amazon Mom – Join Amazon Mom and enjoy 20% off diapers and wipes, 20% off other family essentials, and FREE Two-Day Shipping with Prime. Visit http://amzn.to/19xBCas to learn more.

Make sure you visit Activision Game Summit on Twitter https://twitter.com/ATVI_Family (@ATVI_Family) to get all the info and you can sign up to attend via web or in person at https://www.familygamesummit.com/index.php.

Welcome to my new store!

I’m so excited to announce that I have opened my own store online, and you can be one of the first to visit and get great deals on one of the hottest products of the year…the JEWELRY CANDLE! This is such a great and fun item. Your friends and family will love,  and if you buy for yourself you are in for a huge treat!

Jewelry candles contains a hidden surprise sealed inside a foil that is unnoticeable until after the first lighting. After a short time burning you can easily remove your treasure and be surprised. Candles with Jewelry, a quality product, unique aroma, and the keepsake jewelry is my gift to you! These jewelry candles are among the best in the market–so good you can almost taste them! You won’t find these scented jewelry candles sold within your local department store. After a long stressful day, these jewelry candles will be exactly what you need!

My store boasts dozens of jewelry candles, each with a jewelry piece or other bonus prizes inside. Candles With Jewelry in them is your opportunity to discover your surprise gift of a ring, necklace or pair of earrings! Instead of finding random jewelry that doesn’t fit you will be surprised with our luxury accessories! When selecting your favorite jewelry candle scent, you also get to choose your ring size or type of jewelry (ring, necklace or earrings) and never be disappointed by surprise candles with jewelry that does not fit you! Our jewelry candle surprises make great memories for you, your family and friends.

The jewelry found in our candles will range from $10 to several thousand dollars. You will discover jewelry ranging from silver plated or gold plated jewelry some with stones made from cubic zirconia or other materials. As the value of the jewelry you discover increases you will find titanium jewelry, solid sterling silver, solid yellow gold and solid white gold and may include real diamonds, rubies or other precious jewels.

So get going over to my new store!!! I am located at:

https://www.jewelryincandles.com/store/nanashouse

October is Spina Bifida Awareness month

Most people have heard of Spina Bifida but aren’t really sure what it is or what it means for the people who do have it. Over 166,000 Americans live with Spina Bifida, and my granddaughter is one of them. She was born on July 18, just a few months ago. We knew from the time my daughter in law was 4 or 5 months pregnant that the baby would have this birth defect. We also knew that we would love and cherish her no matter what.

In each person the effects of the “defect” are different. Depending where on the spine it is located determines how mild or severe the medical issues the child will have. Higher up on the spine involves the brain. Lower down involves bowel and bladder. Lower still can affect the legs and feet. It can be devastating, but again it depends on so many factors.

I will be posting more about this in the coming weeks and months because there is so much I’d like to share and hope that other families with children that have Spina Bifida will visit and share with me as well. For now, please know that this month (October) is Spina Bifida Awareness month. Please take a moment to share this with your friends and family.

God Bless!

Elle Magazine Covers Up Beautiful Women

There’s been a hot story in the news since yesterday regarding Elle magazine and their pictorial which featured (among other actresses) Melissa McCarthy. The difference being debated, is the fact that Melissa was completely covered by her hair and clothing while the other women were reportedly dressed in much different attire and showing lots more skin.

I personally love Melissa McCarthy. I think she is one of the funniest women I’ve seen in movies and on TV in just about forever. She’s gutsy (sink scene in Bridesmaids!!) insightful, articulate, beautiful and  of course, hysterically funny. Why anyone would want to cover her up in any form or fashion is beyond me.

So what does Elle say about this? Well not much apparently. Their only response so far has been a short statement from Hearst magazines:  “On all of our shoots, our stylists work with the stars to choose pieces they feel good in, and this is no different: Melissa loved this look, and is gorgeous on our cover. We are thrilled to honor her as one of our Women in Hollywood this year.”

So how do you feel about this cover and the industry’s history of hiding/not using celebrities who happen to also be plus sized? Do you think we should have long ago moved past such stereotypical behavior and attitudes or do you think Elle and others like them should be allowed to photograph and publish how they want?

Sound off!

Russian Potato Soup!

Tonight’s dinner is potato soup! If you’d like to try it also the link is below. I’m making some modifications to the recipe, based on my family’s tastes. No mushrooms (ever!) and I’m adding some diced ham and bacon. We all know that bacon makes EVERYTHING better. So enjoy!