The Queen of Dollhouses!!!

First, I must apologize for my temporary leave of absence.  I left for vacation in November to Florida for a couple of weeks and visited Disney.  Then I was busy with Thanksgiving and Black Friday shopping.  Then I spent December playing catch up with finances to pay for our vacation and buy Christmas gifts.  Now I am back and ready to BLOG AWAY!!!

Anyhow, I have to tell you about my quest for a dollhouse.  I needed a dollhouse for all the Disney princess dolls that I bought in Florida.  I was out on Black Friday looking for a great deal and a great house.  I found Barbie’s Dream house and a Princess doll house at Walmart for around $149 - $179.  Although the girls would love either one of those, I knew they would only last a month (if that) because they were constructed with cheap plastic.  I then came across this dollhouse that was wooden and furnished with wooden furniture.  It stood four and half feet tall and four feet wide.  It had 8 rooms, an elevator, and the garage had working swinging doors.  I thought to myself “Do I really want to spend $200 on a dollhouse?”.  After the hour and a half of assembling the dollhouse (by daddy), I was then thinking to myself “I AM THE AWESOMEST MOM IN THE WORLD!!!” 

This dollhouse is AMAZING!!!  I know I played with Barbie dolls until I was 8 years old or so, and the fact that I am going to get the 3-4 more years of play from this house makes the expense worth it.  The best part is the strong construction that will allow me to resell it once the girls are tired of it.  The funny thing is….I could’ve stopped at the dollhouse….they didn’t even care about the other gifts.

Beautifully Handcrafted

There is a local TV repair shop here in Columbus where the owner makes these GORGEOUS wood items in his spare time. He is the type of person that strives for perfection in every piece. Not only are the items well-made, but they are created from the best woods including exotic woods such as yellowheart, purpleheart, and bloodwood. The corner of this chess board shows the beautiful color in yellowheart.

He recently created a Facebook page to promote his crafts, which can be seen here. A person with this talent should get more recognition, so please check out his page and 'like' it.

 I am absolutely in love with these vases and bowls.

 

Top 5 Gifts for Women & GIVEAWAY!!

With Sweetest Day right around the corner, I thought I would provide men with a little help on picking that perfect gift for any occasion by creating a top five gift guide.  I am also giving away a Victoria’s Secret PINK Perfume and lotion gift set.  Ladies….you are encouraged to enter this giveaway and win it for yourself as well; please see details below.

#5 FLOWERS – Different flowers have different meanings, and if you research this, you’ll impress her even more!  Flowers are beautiful and will brighten up her day; however, if she is anything like me then she will prefer a potted flower.  Although I love to receive roses from my husband, I feel a bit sad when they wither and die a week later.  He bought me an Orchid a few years back for Valentine’s Day; it is still alive and well, and I get to enjoy its blooms every so often.  It’s like a gift that keeps on giving!!  Flowers are the best gift when they are given as a “just because” gift and not on a specific holiday.

#4 ELECTRONIC GADGETS – You are probably wondering “what’s so romantic about electronic gadgets”?  Well, with a little thought and personalization, they can be the gift to bring tears to her eyes. 

A Digital Photo Frame already loaded with pictures of the kids or pets shows that you’re tech-savvy with a sentimental side.  Another great choice would be an IPod loaded with songs that remind you of her.  Back in the day we used to make each other mixed cassette tapes; however, an IPod will win you some extra brownie points.

#3 PERFUME – Now this gift is tricky.  Does she already have a favorite perfume?  If she doesn’t, you shouldn’t just go out and buy a random perfume without some sneaky preparation.  Every woman’s chemistry is different and the same perfume can smell differently on different women.  Perhaps one day at the mall, she can try on a couple to see which one she likes the best.  Then later you can buy her the bottle of perfume when she isn’t around. 

If she does have a favorite perfume, and unless you do not like the aroma of your lady, I wouldn’t recommend straying away from her favorite brand.  DO NOT buy her a “knock-off” brand of her perfume.  Although they may smell similar, you are giving her the message that she is not worth the real thing.

#2 PAMPERING –Treat your special lady to a day at the spa by providing her with a gift certificate.  What woman would not love a relaxing massage, manicure, pedicure, and facial?  This would be a wonderful gift especially for those mothers who need some alone time.  Let her relax and unwind while others take care of her for a change!

Sharing the Love for Redbox!

Awesome contest going on with an awesome prize package!!!
Sharing the Love for Redbox!

Avon Giveaway

I’ve bought Avon for years!!  I love the fact that I can shop in the middle of the night, get my items delivered to my door within days, and I pay NO shipping costs!  Here’s how that works…first you register and click "shop my store" online through an AVON representative.  You have to go through a representative in order to get the free shipping offer.  Don’t have a representative?  Here….borrow mine...  http://rmartinelli.avonrepresentative.com/  Make sure you check out the Outlet brochure because it has a lot of discontinued items at very low prices!  Secondly, add your items to your cart until your order is $30 or more (to get free shipping).  At checkout, if the code does not already come up, type in FS30REP in the promo code to get free shipping.  Finally, pay through a credit card or Paypal and sit back and wait for your Avon to arrive at your door via UPS.  I LOVE shopping this way because I do not have to deal with a pushy sales person, and I can shop all hours of the night.

So…What’s So Good about AVON? 

Top Websites for Children

The World Wide Web can be a dangerous place, but it also can provide a wonderful learning experience for your children.  I was amazed when my four-year-old started reading and spelling words she learned from an online game.  I decided to create a list of great websites for young children.

http://pbskids.org/
A website full of games and videos from your child’s favorite TV shows on PBS kids.  There are a wide range of games appropriate for many different ages.  They are educational and focus on spelling, phonics, literacy, vocabulary, reading, social skills, and much more.  My four-year-old absolutely loves SuperWhy and walks around singing “I really love to spell S-P-E-L-L”.  She also knows the primary colors and how to make mixed colors.

http://www.nickjr.com/kids-games/
Nickjr.com is another website full of games and videos from your child’s favorite TV shows such as Bubble Guppies, Dora the Explorer, and Team Umizoomi.  There is also a ‘create’ link that allows your child to draw, color, play with virtual stickers, and create spin art.   

http://www.coloringbookfun.com/
Coloring Book Fun is full of printable pages for your child to color.  I love this site because it offers a huge variety of coloring pages.  It has coloring pages for every holiday imaginable!  I used this site a lot when I ran daycare out of my house.  The popups are annoying, but I guess it’s a small price to pay for an extensive coloring book.

http://www.funwithspot.com/us/
Spot the dog has his own website!!  Here is where your child can color, play games, and create a story!

http://www.sesamestreet.org/games

Sesame Street also has many educational games.  There are even games about potty time, brushing teeth, and cleaning up!