The Sox Box ***GIVEAWAY***

I had to return from my hiatus, however briefly, to share this AWESOME shop with you! When we left off, I was educating you ladies on gym equipment. The Sox Box has the perfect accessories for your deadlift day! (For me, they are an absolute necessity as I don't enjoy bloody shins no matter how badass they look.) Obviously, you can wear them whenever the heck you'd like, though. ;)

Here are my socks, which I ordered about a month ago. These are so my style on two levels. 1. I honestly still have trouble remembering left and right. (Laugh if you like.) 2. They're orange and blue. GO GATORS!

The Sox Box has an awesome variety of socks (one would hope, right?) including a few of my favorites: Zombie Killa, Beauty/Beast, Tough Tatas, and Thick Chick.

One of my favorite things about this shop is that they donate 20% of all profits to the Independence Fund, which is a non-profit organization which seeks to provide tools and services for wounded military veterans. Being married to an active duty soldier and raised in a family full of veterans, this cause is dear to my heart.

Athena from The Sox Box has agreed to let me give away a pair of her awesome socks, so without further ado:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

It's here! Yankee Candle giveaway!

 

Welcome to the Yankee Candle Fall Festival Giveaway! 

     Real Mom Reviews has teamed with an awesome group of bloggers to bring one super lucky reader three large Yankee Candle Jars in fall scents. The traditional design of Yankee Candle signature jar candles reflect a warm, relaxed sense of style that's always at home. Convenient and easy to use, the large Housewarmer Jar Candles provides 110 to 150 hours of true fragrance enjoyment! The seasonal candles one reader will win help celebrate the best of fall with fragrances inspired by the beauty of nature and the bounty of harvest.  

• Apple Cider is a welcoming aroma of hot cider spiced with cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg! 
• Spiced Pumpkin will quickly fill your home with the smell of fresh pumpkins baked in simmering spices of clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and sweetened with brown sugar. 
• Autumn Leaves provides a vibrant scent medley of birch and maple leaves with pomegranate, juniper berry, and orange blossom that will leave your whole house smelling like fall! 

One lucky reader will win them all! Giveaway is open to US and Canada. Entering is simple, simply read over the giveaway rules and then enter using the Rafflecopter form below!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Yankee Candle Giveaway!

I am participating in the FREE Yankee Candle giveaway event hosted by Real Mom Reviews.

One super lucky reader will win three large jar fall fragrance Yankee Candles!

Cost: Free with announcement post or 3.00 with out.  

Giveaway Open to: US and Canada.  

The event dates: September 28th-October 19th.  

Free Link Option: Facebook  

Optional Paid Link Options: $2.00 for Twitter or Pinterest

To sign up for this event click here!


     ***You guys know I am working hard to find sponsors for the Merry Fluffy Christmas giveaway, and I'm in the process of reviewing Make It Paleo, but in the meantime, I'm participating in this giveaway, so MARK YOUR CALENDARS! (If you are trying to declutter like I am, this would be an awesome gift. Just in time for the holidays!)***

An Open Letter to Those Who Love My Child

Dear Loved Ones,

     I am almost hesitant to pen this out of fear of seeming ungrateful. Please be assured that is not the case, and I also do not wish to offend or alienate anyone. This is just how I feel about the childhood I want my daughter to enjoy.
     I know baby toys are cute, and baby clothes are immeasurably cuter, but these things in general are fleeting. Babies outgrow clothes every week, and toys are only good until they are no longer developmentally appropriate. I know my little monkey is only four months old, but soon she will be old enough to enjoy experiences. And ask your children how many of their toys were important enough to remember. There are very few in my memory.
     What I remember are trips to Skate Mania, Uncle Donald's Farm and Silver Springs. I remember sleepless nights before going to Disney World and getting to see NSYNC live. Some of my favorite memories don't involve things at all, but spending time with people I love. Even if we weren't doing anything special. Even if we sat around the dinner table long after it had been cleared and just talked (but especially if we were also playing Scrabble or Checkers or War.)
     That is the childhood I want for my daughter. I want her life to be full of experiences, not objects. If you love her, please spend time with her. In our home, money and objects do not equal love and they do not come for free. They must be earned. I'll spare you my "that's what's wrong with the world today" speech and give you the Cliff Notes: I do not want my child to ever anticipate, expect, or even worse, be led to believe that she is entitled to a gift. Instead, shower her with experiences that will become wonderful memories.
     If you are unable to spend time with us, and you'd like to show your love in some other way, books and learning toys are always welcome as are cards and phone calls just to say hi. Thank you for respecting my wishes, and most of all, thank you for loving my child.

Sincerely,
Mama

Saying Goodbye to Good Makeup

I have been such a lazy blogger lately. Last night, my poor baby was waking up constantly until she finally conked out for a few hours at 8am. I am completely exhausted. I won't rant about the Army (not just yet) but it is really hard to take care of an unhappy baby at night when you are the only one who can get up with her. It's nights like last night that make me miss my tag team partner. :(

When I have these lazy days in which I barely make it out of my room, let alone the house, it makes every little bit of clutter that much more obvious. It's easy to see the pile of clothing or the stack of boxes, but the hidden clutter needs attention too. (Kind of an oxymoron, no? Hidden clutter?) When you attack the clutter you can't see, you make space for things you actually need.
My biggest weakness is my makeup trunk. Yeah, trunk. Once upon a time, I LOVED dressing up and wearing bright red lipstick with crazy eye shadow. Then I got a real job where I had to dress more conservatively. (It's sort of frowned upon to show up as a high school teacher looking like a student.) Then I had a kid and had absolutely no time for putting on a face. Now I have two gorgeous eye shadow palettes and three cosmetic cases full of designer product.
The Kiersten that put her big girl pants on today says, "You don't use it. You don't need it. Get rid of it." The louder, more emotional side says, "BUT! It's so pretty! And it was so expensive! And it doesn't really take up that much room." That last sentence is total denial on my part. My train case full of makeup takes up 40-50% of my counter space, depending on how much time I've had to put things away. I hate to see it go to waste, which is another reason I've held onto it for so long. Instead of just tossing it in the trash, I am going to put it up for adoption. I know a couple people who would love to give my Alice in Wonderland and Naked palettes a home (*cries*).

When you have an item you know you should get rid of, but don't want to throw it away (and you probably couldn't sell...) consider giving it to someone who could get better use out of it. My loss is my future sister-in-law's gain. :-D