I’ve written before of my insecurities surrounding unplanned and unmarried pregnancies. I’ve been though two as a teenager and while people were not rude to my face or may not have thought anything but “Oh her belly is so cute!” I felt like I was always being watched and judged by my appearance.  I still do, but being nearly 23, married, graduated from collage, and much more stable in life I feel more confident in who I am and proud of my growing belly.  Still, I know I look like a teenager to most people in real life due to my small height and a hint of my insecurities still lingers. I feel like I need to wear a wedding ring to “justify” my growing belly and my 3 year old toddler to strangers who are always looking as we pass by.

However, as pregnancy progresses, so does weight gain. Especially in this hot 90-100 degree heat. I held onto my real wedding ring set as long as I could, but during my 6th month of pregnancy I couldn’t tolerate the itchy-too-tight feeling any longer.  So, I went on a search for a fake and reasonably priced ring in a larger size to hold me over the rest of the pregnancy and until my fingers can resume their normal size.  On my search I stumbled on Fantasy Jewelry Box and found just what I was looking for.

They had so many options to choose from for what I needed among their gorgeous wedding sets and engagement rings.  I seriously spent days looking at the pages over and asking options of my friends!  I originally was going to get a wedding set that looks very similar to my real rings, but my thought was, “If I’m getting a new ring for a few months, why not have fun with it?”  I decided to get something that looked different than what I always wear and enjoy something new. I figure this new ring is kinda like my maternity clothes, it’s fun to try something else on but I’m sure it will be nice to be reunited with my real clothes in a few months along with my real rings.  Unlike maternity clothes however, I also thought that if I chose a ring for during pregnancy, I could pick one that I could wear on my left hand later (maybe with a size adjuster though). I am normally a 4.5 size finger (I know, I’m small!) and I ordered a 5 so it’s not a drastically huge difference in size but enough room to accommodate weight gain and heat swelling, and won’t be too big for later on.

My biggest factor in deciding which to pick? The size of the stone. Since I am such a small framed person, my fingers included, I didn’t want the ring to take over my hand.  I aimed for a ring 1 carat or less and thankfully, there is a “Small Carat Ring” selection to help minimize the searching. I found their different categories really helpful in finding what I was looking for. I also loved that they included several pictures of the ring, including one on a model’s hand so that I could visualize the purchase more. We all know that things look different on! Out of all the websites I looked at for lower cost sterling silver rings, theirs was the only one that had that extra picture and it was a huge help in my decision. I liked that the website is very detailed in exactly what you are looking it, from the carat size (both center stone and total), band material, stone cut, etc. And if you aren’t sure what all that means they have a Jewelry Learning Center to help. Therefore, you know exactly what you are getting when you order!

So what did I end up with? I chose the Asa’s Antique Style CZ Engagement Ring. This ring actually has a 1.5 center stone, but I have had a green amethyst ring in the past that was very similar and I knew the style/size would be fitting for me. However, Fantasy Jewelry Box is more than just beautiful wedding style rings, they also carry birthstones, earrings, necklaces, broaches, bracelets, and even some men’s items. So, I also got a long beaded necklace since they are my newest jewelry love. They can spice up any boring outfit (maternity or not)! I decided on the Angelina’s 56 Inch Faux Pearl and Silver Bead Necklace Set. Yes, 56 inches in really long but I love that you can double it over and create several different necklace styles with it. Plus, the pearl and silver goes with just about anything. I love both so much, I wore my new ring and necklace to my maternity photo session last week (look for more photos on the main blog soon!).

As for quality? If you take good care of them as they suggest they should last, just like real white gold and diamonds. I have personally worn my ring, all day every day (taking them off for the pool/beach/heavy cleaning) for almost a month and it still looks brand new. My ring looks real without paying the real price and I have gotten many compliments.

So, if you are like me looking for a “ring filler” while your fingers swell during pregnancy or just looking for quality beautiful jewelry for any reason, I definitely recommend Fantasy Jewelry Box. Not just for the beautiful items, but the super fast shipping, great customer service, cute pink box packaging, and they are always having sales and promotions to bring the cost down even more. Signing up for their newsletter following them on Twitter or Facebook is a great way to get started saving and seeing what is new!

Like what you see? Win a $35 gift from Fantasy Jewelry Box right here!

The Rules: One person will win $35 towards one item from their website.  Simply comment on this post telling me what you would pick out from Fantasy Jewelry Box. For a bonus entry, sign up for their newsletter and make an additional comment telling me you signed up. Comments will close at midnight, Thursday August 26th (that’s one week!) and the winner will be announced on this review blog Friday August 27the as well as emailed.

Note: I contacted Fantasy Jewelry Box for a review/giveaway. In turn for a review and to promote their business, I received the ring and necklace set complimentary and they will be supplying the giveaway as well. However, I only post reviews on items I love and strive to write an honest balanced review if there are any flaws.

A mountain of laundry is one the beasts of daily life, isn’t it?  I know I’m not alone, right?  But, we know it has to be done so we do it. Day after day. It gets done. It might not get put away instantly, but we have clean clothes!

Being a young student Mom, I also value saving money. So, while it is a necessity to get those  baskets of laundry done, I do not like to spend a fortune in the process.  I also have to be aware of my family’s needs to better fit Savannah’s sensitive baby skin, as well as my own sudden allergy to scents.  We’ve used All Free and Clear for the past two years to meet those needs: Save money, no extra “stuff” added (id. perfume, dyes, etc.), and  clean clothes.  It’s hypoallergenic and still promises to fight stains for me (which, we use a little extra help on top as well)

Recently though, I began purchasing the bulk size in hopes of saving even more money (it does! It has lasted well over 2 months for us).  But boy, that jug is heavy and takes up space in our laundry area.  However, now All has a new “small and mighty” container that washes the same amount of loads (96!) but at 3 times the concentrate which entails smaller packaging to save you space, your arm muscles as you tote it home from the store, and less room in your recycle bin when you’re done.

All also has four other detergents at the big 3x level: Stainlifter, Wild & Fresh, Relax, and Fresh Rain HE.  Something for everyone’s laundry needs!

Now for the good part to pass savings onto you: TWO Giveaways!

First Prize: A coupon for any free All Small and Mighty 3x Concentrate and a Hayden Harnett Bag (worth $198!).

The HH bag is a large tote style that has lots of room for women on the go, including lots of pockets and zippers for organization. It also can be folded half it’s size to make a smaller purse. Includes a laundry bag as well.

Second Prize: A coupon for any free All Small and Mighty 3x Concentrate.

The Rules: Comment on this post before Friday July 3rd. Winner will be chosen at random and announced on July 4th!

So, if yall didn’t hear yet…I found out I am pregnant again a few weeks ago!  Which, is why this most recent review (and giveaway for you!) had perfect timing. While I am not due until December, I absolutely will be breastfeeding this baby as well.  My breastfeeding relationship with Savannah was a much treasured time, so much so that I was sad to see it end at 10 months and I just could not make anymore.  See, I started going back to college when Savannah was 6 months old, but in doing so it was hard to maintain my supply. Let me just say, pumping in bath rooms between classes was not fun (but I will be doing it again, I’m sure!) and it often left me forgetting I had my pump in my backpack and it quickly got moldy (I NEVER fed her the milk, don’t worry. It was “pump and dump” to keep my supply going and keep me from busting). Obviously, once our breastfeeding relationship was over I could not keep that pump. I knew it would not be safe for future baby feeding use, so I tossed it.

I knew I would have to buy another one for this baby, and I’m so glad Mom Central provided this opportunity to review the new Evenflo Comfort Select Performance Dual Auto-Cycling Breast Pump. While I obviously can’t try it out just yet, I can tell you how excited I am about this product and my initial impression. Firstly, I was impressed with how compact and light the bag is. I don’t know about you, but when I think about dual electric pumps I think big bulky bags that I’ve seen busy Mom’s carrying around. This? Is about the same size as my purse, and definitely lighter than my purse The dual bag has two openings, one side is insulated to store your breast milk (it even comes with ice packs!) and the other holds all the pumping supplies you need.

Even though I can’t use it yet, I did open my box up to test how easy it is to put together. I’ve never used an electric pump before so I was not quite sure how that would differ from my manual one, but it wasn’t much different. And, even if you don’t have experience with pumps it is still easy!  The directions are very clearly explained and it is not too many parts to put together. The only issue I had was my own fault; I looked over a step about putting the horn piece to the pump unit, and I got it stuck! So, just make sure you read everything carefully (and boil before your first official use, of course) and it’ll be simple.

The pump itself has many features that I love as well. Such as, it comes with a nipple adapter to make it smaller and fit properly if needed, it has several speeds to assure comfort, and you can either plug it in or use batteries. I also love that this is a dual pump. From my experience, it is MUCH easier to have a successful pump from both sides if you pump at the same time because the “let down” happens at the same time.  I’m so excited to have two now!  And an added health bonus?  All the plastic pieces, including the bottles, are BPA free. Which means, a healthier baby and ease of mind for mommy.

You can win it!

I will be giving away a Comfort Select Performance Dual Auto-Cycling Breast Pump (sealed and unopened) as well as two boxs of Disposable Nursing Pads (one with Lanolin).

The Rules

1. You must be pregnant or breastfeeding currently.

2. Sorry, but this is only open to entries in the USA.

3. Simply leave a comment on this post telling me why you need this product ie. you are pregnant, or nursing, and will be going back to work, just need a pump to store milk for babysitters or Daddies to use, whatever! And/or tell me why you love breastfeeding  or why you plan to breastfeed.

4. Comments will close Thursday, April 30th and the winner will be announced Friday, May 1st!

5. For extra bonus tickets: twitter, blog, facebook, myspace, whatever, about this giveaway and comment with the link(s).

Also! There is more than one place to win this item! One place I know of is over at Mom Central where they have three to giveaway, and go double (triple, quadruple) your chances and look out for other blogs participating in this blog tour.

I have a confession: When I was in kindergarten, I so desperately wanted glasses I pretended I couldn’t read those eye chart things so my Mom would take me to get some.  In short: my plan didn’t work and my Mom was sure stumped at how I couldn’t see one day but was fine the next.

I’ve always wanted glasses. I’m sure people who have to wear glasses find this funny that I would want to, but I see glasses as a way to add more personality to a face, to be more distinguished looking, or to just look “cool.”   But, I could never justify buying myself a pair of glasses for those purposes until a review opportunity came along for a free pair of glasses from EyeBuyDirect.com! And, I could get them without a prescription in the lenses!  EyeBuyDirect aims to be a convenient way to buy new glasses that are the same quality as what’s in stores, but saving at least 70% of the cost!

I began searching for my new glasses right away and the website was very easy to navigate. There were tons of choices, both men and women, from simple rimless to crazy bright colored frames, they had it all.  However, like buying most things online, I was a bit hesitant…because wait…I can’t try them on first can I?  Nope. But they do have some extremely helpful tools to help you “try on” glasses virtually. All you need is a picture! They have several angles of each pair of glasses and you can even select ones to compare against each other. They also have a great 100% satisfaction guarantee return/exchange policy if for whatever reason you aren’t satisfied with your choice once it arrives.

The real beauty of this website though are the prices!  The pair I bought (the Donna in brown/copper) was only $49.95. Others are as low as $7.95.   Now, like I said, I’ve never bought glasses before but from what I’ve heard from from my relatives that wear glasses, theirs cost much more than this.  Each pair of glasses also comes with a sturdy clear plastic case and a lens cloth.

So what if you do need prescription lenses?  All you need is your current prescription numbers from your eye doctor to enter at checkout once you pick out the frames you want.   If you don’t? Just click “I use my glasses for fashion only.” The website makes it very easy to check out and has several other enhancing options from thinner lenses to light adjusting to get exactly what you need.

Overall I am very satisfied with my experience with EyeBuyDirect and I love my glasses (I would upload a picture of me with the new glasses but my camera’s batteries are dead).  My only somewhat negative experience was finding a picture of me for the virtual “EyeTry” that wasn’t too big or too small.  I had to hunt through my hundreds of photos and play with the cropping/size to find one suitable.  My suggestion: make it easy on yourself. Just take a picture with you facing straight forward and upload it. It will save time, trust me.  Also, it took nearly 2 weeks for my glasses to arrive which is longer than I expected it to be. But, I understand that each pair of glasses are made especially for one person and that takes time!

And guess what? You can win a giftcode to receive a free pair of glasses up to $100 (excluding designer glasses and sunglasses)! Just comment on this post with the link to your favorite frames by March 13th.  For extra entries (comment separately for each one)  you can also upload a photo with “EyeTry” and leave a comment with the link.  Also, you can twitter about the giveaway, blog about it, and subscribe to my feed. One winner will be chosen randomly and announced on March 14th.

I also have two 5% off codes that two runners up will win.

This review opportunity was provided by The Family Review Network.

Congrats Tangie from Save Your Money Mama!

If you will respond to my email with the necessary information, we’ll get the toothbrush and gift bag sent right away!

Thanks to everyone who entered and don’t forget there is a $1 coupon available for the Crayola Timer Light Toothbrush.  Just enter the code CRAYTL at www.gumbrand.com

I got lucky–my daughter actually likes brushing her teeth. If I want her to get up stairs to start getting ready for bed, or to get out of the bath tub, all I have to ask is, “Do you want to brush your teeth?” She will respond with, “BRUSH!”  and promptly move it.  However, even though she likes brushing doesn’t mean her little 2 year old hands know how to do it correctly, or for how long, or when and how spit.

So, as kids are learning the process the Crayola Light Timer Toothbrush helps at least make one of those tasks easier with…(you guessed it) a light up toothbrush!  The light flashes in the handle for 60 seconds to encourage kids to keep brushing so their teeth should be good and clean.  The bottom also has a suction cup so that it stands up right to keep the toothbrush cleaner.  Also, the fact that the handle is shaped like a colorful Crayola Crayon Savannah fell in love instantly. And of course, kids love anything that flashes.    However, since she is just 2, the overall toothbrush it’s self is a bit big for her size so I would recommend this to an older child (the website says ages 4-11).

This toothbrush is made by the Gum brand of dental hygeine products so you know it’s well made. The company sent me a gift bag full of other Gum products like their adult toothbrushes, Ez-Thru flossers, and their Crayola flossers for the kids.  They have something for the entire family!  And? You can win a Crayola Light Timer Toothbrush and a Gum goody bag for your family. Just comment on this post by Februrary 27th and winners will be announced on Februrary 28th.

And even if you don’t win the giveaway, there is something for you too. A coupon!  Good for $1-off coupon for the Crayola Timer Light Toothbrush using the promo code CRAYTL on the Gum website.

And the winner is…Crystal!

For my perfect valentines day I would fly to North Carolina to see my husband and leave a note in his lunch for the day asking him to join me for a romantic dinner. When he got home I would have the whole apartment decorated with candles and flowers and soft fabrics and have a beautiful dinner cooked and a big cake in the shape of a heart (that’s mostly for me). And well… you know. Just a nice night in.

My favorite invitation (although maybe not for this):
http://www.tinyprints.com/products/ProductView_5742.htm

Congrats!  I have emailed you, please reply to get your gift card sent out

Guess what? We’ve got another Tiny Prints giveaway! One lucky winner will receive a $50 gift card to Tiny Print’s beautiful products.

What do you have to do to enter?  Well, as this love holiday approaches we all could use a good idea in how to celebrate. I want to see what creativity you have in dreaming up the most amazing Valentine’s Day Party. Would you bring in ponies to ride?  Put the kids to bed and invite only your spouse?  Would you bake a million cookies and cupcakes in heart shapes? Rent a train to ride around your yard (like Tori Spelling did for her son’s birthday)? Or fly to the moon? Dream big, or dream simple! Best of all, how would you invite your guests? (The most important step of this contest.) Visit Tiny Print’s Valentine’s Day section, pick out your favorite invitation or card, and comment on this post with the link and why you love it so.

So let’s recap:

1) Comment telling me your party idea (not too crazy, this is a family blog, after all).

2) Visit Tiny Print’s Valentine’s website and post the link to your favorite card and why you like it.

That’s it. Sounds easy, right? Is it. The contest will end January 29th at midnight, with the winner being chosen at random and announced on Friday January 30th.

Best of luck and I cannot wait to read your comments!

Congrats Tricia,you’re the winner of the SmartShopper organizer!  If you will email me your mailing address (leah [at] omommawrites [dot] com), I will get it shipped to as soon as possible.

Thanks everyone for entering!

Who’s a chronic list maker? *raises hand* Like many busy Moms, I survive off of lists. Otherwise, I wouldn’t get anything done, let alone remember what all there is to do.  Now typically, I use the good ol’ fashioned paper and pen for my lists, but when I was offered the opportunity to try the SmartShopper I was eager to test it out.

The SmartShopper is an electronic grocery and errand organizer. And get this, you don’t write a thing. You speak into it!  I have mine hung on our fridge and when I notice we are in need of an item, I just walk by, press “Record,” and speak the name. Usually, it’s in the pre-programed list of a over 2,500 items and it understands my commands easily, however, say you need a specific item like “Fruity Pebbles” and it isn’t in the list? It can be added manually. You can also make several lists at once, say one for groceries and one for errands. When you’re ready to head out the door, you simply hit print on the list you need and it prints out the items like a receipt in categories like “Fresh Produce,” “Snacks,” “Coffee/Tea,” “Errands,” etc. so it makes your shopping easier.

It also has other neat features like a kitchen timer, and once Mark got it to show the temperature but we can’t figure out how to get back to to it!  The magnet is SUPER on this machine as well. We have a stainless steel fridge that won’t even keep regular magnets on it, but these magnets are super strong so that this will not hardly budge. Which is good because it’s not exactly light weight either.

The cons? It is technology that can be confusing to work at first. It’s easy to get started by simply speaking into the machine, but it can be confusing to learn the menus to add new items, add coupons, etc. And like I said, I can’t figure out how to view the temperature again. However, once you read through the manual and play around with it’s features, it not too bad. I would think this would be difficult for an older or technology challenged person though! My MIL refuses to touch it. Also? It’s good to record things when the room is quiet.  It has a sensitive microphone so if you have the TV on or a screaming kid around? It won’t get things right.

As a holiday special SmartShopper has lowered it’s price by $20 until December 31st (it was originally $100)! And, they have given me a code to get an additional $5 off to share with you guys (DH52569), AND all orders between now and December 31st will include FREE shipping!  However, you do have to order by Thursday December 18th to make sure it arrives by Christmas if it is a gift. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me.

But, it gets sweeter!  I have a SmartShopper to giveaway as well!  Want to win it? Just leave a comment on this post (if you have posted on the other giveaway post due to my technical difficulties, I will accept those as well) telling me the importance of making lists in your life. Since the holidays are quickly approaching, comments will close on December 18th at midnight. One winner will be chosen randomly and announced on Friday the 19th. I will then get it shipped to you ASAP in time for the holidays!

Remember this giveaway is only open for 4 days so enter while you can. Good luck and happy shopping!