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Oct 7, 2010

Rar! Monster T-shirt Giveaway from GirlzLyfe.com

The air is getting cool, the leaves have changed colors, and it's so close to Halloween! It's my favorite time of year, and to celebrate, I've partnered with Girlz Lyfe to give away a fantastic Rar! Monster T-shirt to one lucky winner. If you don't know about Girlz Lyfe, you have to visit and check out their line of completely awesome accessories.

They have everything, from things for the pets...
...to the best jewelry on earth...


...fashionable clothing...


...and novelty items.


Girlz Lyfe is the perfect place to go when you want to get some Christmas or holiday shopping done, or you want to reward yourself with a treat or two! Veronica from Girlz Lyfe has generously offered one of my lucky readers the chance to win the Rar! Monster Tee in your size.
How to Enter: You must be following this blog to enter. Simply 'like' Girlz Lyfe on FB, and leave a comment that 2 Lil Muffins sent you.

Extra Entries:

  • E-mail subscribe to this blog. - 2 Extra Entries
  • Make a Girlz Lyfe purchase and leave a comment telling me what you purchased. - 10 Extra Entries
  • Comment on any other post in this blog (leave a comment detailing which ones). - 1 Extra Entry for Each comment, 1 comment per post.
The giveaway will end October 19, 2010 at 8PM EST and the winner will be chosen by random.org. Good luck all! Remember to make sure your e-mail address is visible in your profile, or that you leave it in the comment. Also, leave 1 comment for EACH entry so they will all be counted.

Oct 6, 2010

Top 10 Feel Good Songs

Feeling a little low? Never fear - music is here! For centuries, music has been a great way of fighting off the blues...or at least documenting them in a melodic way. When you need a quick pick-me-up, check out the top 10 feel good songs below.

10. Queen - We Are the Champions



Corny? Em...absolutely not!

9. Fleetwood Mac - Don't Stop Thinking about Tomorrow



Who is more beautiful than Stevie Nicks? No one.

8. Johnny Nash - I Can See Clearly Now



If this one doesn't make you feel good, you need a hospital!

7. My Girl - The Temptations



"He needs his glasses. He can't see without his glasses!" - Oh...the point was to feel GOOD. Nevermind.

6. Survivor - Eye of the Tiger



For the record, I absolutely KILL this song on Guitar Hero. ;-)

5. Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl



Try not to sing along. Go ahead.

4. Natasha Bedingfield - Pocket Full of Sunshine



Great melody...toe tapper.

3. Mista - Blackberry Molasses



Sigh - Brings back memories!

2. Jackson 5 - I Want You Back



Spirit-lifting!

Drumroll, please...

And my choice for #1 Feel Good Song of all time...

1. Joan Jett - I Love Rock and Roll



By the way, have you seen her lately? She hasn't aged a day!

It was super hard to choose only 10, considering I am a music fanatic...leave a comment and tell me your favorite 'feel good' song of all time.

Oct 1, 2010

New Etsy Shop Items

I've added some new items to my Etsy shop...have a look!






There's a lot more, too! If you want to check out the other hair clips and paintings, click here. I hope you like them!

Sep 27, 2010

Review of Kidzsack: The Eco-Friendly Backpack You Can Color!

Art is super important to me, whether it's painting, drawing, coloring, sculpting, writing - any kind of art.

I honestly believe that children benefit when they're exposed to many different kinds of art, and when they're given the freedom to be creative and to try many different kinds of art. When I was given the opportunity to try Kidzsack, I was so excited!

What is Kidzsack?

Kidzsack is a backpack created from 100% eco-friendly materials, including recycled plastic bottles. The outside of the backpack has a printed picture for your child to color. You can pop it in the wash and your child can color it over and over again.
There are several different designs you can choose from, including a sports theme, a jungle scene, a beach picture, and more. We received the ballerina kitties scene to try out. (Total WIN for my daughter, who snapped it up immediately!)

How'd We Like It?

The Kidzsack comes with 8 non-toxic markers that your child can use to color the picture, which I thought was super-neat. Sure, it's just markers, but the fact that they're included is a mini bonus for this product.The kiddies went right to coloring (with made-up rules that my son was only allowed to color the leaves and surrounding pictures while my daughter colored the cats. Yep, they made up this rule because a.) my son thought he was too macho to color cats in skirts and b.) my daughter wanted the privilege of doing that!)

I loved the fact that they had so much fun coloring the bag. They worked together until they had the picture filled in and colorful. In fact, my son was already asking me to buy a boy-themed bag for him. I had reservations, though. See, one Christmas, my daughter got one of those bears you can write on and then wash...except when you put it in the wash, all of the marker didn't come out.

I figured the Kidzsack would be the same way, but I was wrong. It looked brand new when I took it out of the washer. (Lazy Mom Confession: I didn't look for washing and drying instructions so I was hesitant to place it in the dryer. I just let it dry flat on the counter rather than risk the dryer.) The kids loved it, which is what I really look for in any product that is designed for kids. It's not enough for the moms to think it's a great idea - the kids must love it too!

The one thing we did notice is that the bag is quite small. If your kids are in pre-school or kindergarten, it would be perfect but for bigger kids that have to carry folders and books - it's probably not going to be large enough. That didn't matter here, because my daughter used it as an overnight bag when she went to stay the night with her grandparents. After that, she shoved little girl make-up and various other things in it and has been carrying it around ever since.

We give Kidzsack a big thumbs up, and couldn't have been happier with it. My partner, Yona, also reviewed a Kidzsack with her adorable nephew, so jump over and check out her Kidzsack review. This is a PERFECT Christmas gift, so if you're shopping for little ones, keep it in mind. Stop by the Kidzsack website to check it out further and pick up one for your little ones today.

Note: I was not monetarily compensated or compensated in any way for this review. Kidzsack sent me a free product to review and provide my opinions on. All of the opinions in this post are 100% mine and uninfluenced by the company that created Kidzsack.

Aug 27, 2010

Funny Friday #2: "Tell Them I'm the Gardener!"


When I was in 5th grade, I tried out for cheerleading. We had to stay after school, and our parents were supposed to pick us up a few hours later. I should first tell you that the school I went to was filled with kids who came from upper-class families. Everyone drove the newest shiny cars, all the kids had the nicest clothes, etc.

So, the day before the tryouts, our car breaks down and has to be taken to the shop. "What are we going to do?" I asked, over and over. "Oh, we'll figure something out," my parents answered. I should also tell you that our neighbor, and one of my dad's good friends, drove this truck - if you want to call it that.

Let's just say that if it had been a horse, it would have had to be shot. It was several different colors, slathered in Bondo, had broken mirrors and the sound...it was what I imagine the apocalypse might sound like.
After the tryouts, my friends and I walked toward the front of the school, where the car-riders got picked up at.

We were sitting there chatting, laughing and carefree, when I heard it. It came from around the corner..."PUTT-PUTT-PUTT-PUTT." The ground practically shook with the noise. Immediately, I knew...this sound was somehow for me. Son of a horse, I thought. I looked around quickly, calculating my chances of escape.

It was too late. That *truck* pulled around the corner, looking like absolute death warmed over - like the evil ghost of something that used to resemble a vehicle. My eyes automatically went wide and I looked to either side of me. This is where everything turned slow-motion. I could see one of my friends' eyes get wide too, and sloooooowly, she mouthed, "OH MY GOD."

I wanted to die. I didn't move for a few minutes, but there was my dad in the driver's seat, waiting for me. Shit. I thought about running, but looking at his face, I changed my mind and stood up with all the courage of someone going to face their horrendous, torturous death. Now, if it was bad until this point, it gets even worse. Why, you ask? Because the passenger side door on this monster did not open.

This meant that right there, in front of my friends, my father had to get OUT of this thing, and let me climb through the driver's side, before he got back in and pulled away. While I was dying a thousand deaths of embarrassment, my father got out of the vehicle. Obviously, something showed on my face...

...because my dad looked over at the kids, and then back at me. He whispered encouragingly, "Just tell them I'm the gardener." Thanks, Dad. I'm sure that'll work. To this day, he believes it was a character-building experience...I believe it's the cause for deep-rooted fears involving Bondo and gardeners.

Little Handfuls: Can You Handle the Cute?

Recently, I won a giveaway hosted by a woman named Liza Adams. The giveaway was for a beautiful little bear named Peaches. I was instantly in love...

I should tell you that I have a bit of a thing for bears. Before Hurricane Katrina, I collected tiny bear figurines - little bears wearing Halloween costumes, daddy and mommy bears, Valentine's bears...I had a ton of them. After the collection was demolished, I never really picked it back up again, but after discovering Little Handfuls, I think I may have to start all over again.

About the Artist:

Liza Adams is a mommy of 3 from New Zealand, and began needle felting about 6 years ago when she purchased a kit from a local craft show. I think it's safe to say she found her calling, because her bears are absolutely precious!

Now, I won't even pretend to know how needle felting works, but I think these bears have a distinct look that makes them so much cuter than the majority of 'teddy bears.' In addition to that, Liza manages to give every single one of her bears a different personality...

This is Cinnamon. Doesn't she look like she's waiting patiently for you to join her tea party? I love those eyes, with so much personality and sweetness.

Meet Bella and Buddy. I absolutely adore that little hat and those big feet! Buddy is probably one of my favorites...he's just so darn cute. He definitely demands an "awwww!"

This is Pippin. What beautiful colors! And I love that nose.

This is Abner. Look at the expression on his beautiful face! Am I the only one turning all mushy and gushy from the absolute cute-ness of these bears? Well, if you want to see more, you can visit Little Handfuls on Flickr, and you really should because you have no idea how hard it was to choose which bears to post here - they're all so darn adorable.

Also, if you want to start your own collection of these sweet and charming babies, visit Little Handfuls on Etsy.

Question: Do any of you collect anything, and if so, what?

Aug 24, 2010

$25 Gift Certificate Winner - Girlz Lyfe - New Winner

Unfortunately, I've had to pick a new winner because I haven't heard back from our original one :( So, the new number is...

The winning comment is:

Ava said... 4

yummy tote bag!

Congrats Ava! I've sent you an e-mail and you'll have 48 hours to respond!