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  • The love of the big screen and $150 Target gift card giveaway

    When I was little, my Pa-Pa had one of those old-fashioned movie cameras where the big bright light would shine in your face the entire time he was filming you. And one of our favorite activities was to get together with our cousins and watch all those old home movies projected on a big screen in my grandparents’ living room. It didn’t matter that there wasn’t any sound or that we were all constantly squinting, thanks to the big camera light, there wasn’t anything better than watching these little pieces of memories. And that’s why I’ve always taken so many videos of Caroline.

    There are all these moments that you think you’ll remember forever, but they have a way of slipping away with time and the busy-ness of life. I’ve always thought it’s not quite as much fun to gather around the computer or TV to watch our videos. It lacks the special-occasion feel of the big screen that had a way of making me feel like a movie star when I was little. And I’ve secretly always lamented that Caroline hasn’t had the same experience.

    Not that she’s much of a ham or anything.

    Photobucket

    But all that has changed with the new 3Mô Mobile Projector. It’s a small mobile projector that allows big-screen viewing of your content just about anywhere. It projects onto walls, ceilings, anything you can turn into a big screen. You can watch YouTube videos, slideshow photos, TV content and movies via iTunes.

    I can’t wait to use it all summer long for slumber parties and outdoor campouts. The kids can all get in their sleeping bags and I can project a movie right on the side of our house. Or they can make their own home movies and have fun watching themselves. There are so many great uses.The 3M Projector easily connects to your iPhone or iPad or to your PC with an additional cable sold separately. When I got mine in the mail I was able to figure it out without even reading the directions. And if you know me then you know this means that a monkey could do it. It’s super easy.

    It’s sold at Target (click here to learn more and find special offers) and, to celebrate the 3M projector, you’ll have a chance to win a $150 gift card to Target. All you have to do is leave a comment telling me your favorite way to do family movie night.

    Rules:
    No duplicate comments.
    You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
    a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
    b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
    c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
    d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
    This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

    The Official Rules are available here.

    This sweepstakes runs from 5/21/12 ñ 6/29/12.

    Be sure to visit the 3M mobile projector brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggersí reviews and find more chances to win!

  • When you need to get glowing – Epione Skin System Giveaway

    Epione Giveaway

    Okay. This is the last of the health- and fitness-related giveaways. And it’s a good one. Y’all may remember that I mentioned I’d finally broken down and bought a Clarisonic Mia brush for my face. And I adore it. Nothing has ever made my skin feel so clean and smooth. I’ve hardly had any breakouts and I’ve watched dark spots become much less noticeable. Which means I’ll be wearing the biggest sunhat I can find this summer. If you need to find me just come to my neighborhood pool and look for the woman in a lounge chair who looks like your Aunt Maude. So, because of my great love of my Clarisonic, I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the Epione ClearTouch Matrix cleansing system. Although it was a big plus that it came all packaged in a beautiful chocolate brown box.

    Here’s the official word on Epione: Keep your face radiant with this system that cleanses the skin of makeup and daily impurities to reduce the appearance of fine lines.

    WHAT’S INCLUDED: Epione ClearTouch Matrix

    PRODUCT FEATURES: Cleanses skin Removes makeup and daily impurities to keep skin healthy. Massages your face to help reduce the appearance of fine lines and discoloration. Effective on sensitive skin. Can be used in the morning and evening.

    And so here are my thoughts. I tried it on my face and it worked really well. However, I didn’t feel like the brush feature moved as smoothly across my face as the Clarisonic. And I’m also totally spoiled because the Clarisonic automatically cuts off after one minute, and I had to think about how long I’d been scrubbing my face with the Epione. But the thing I love more about the Epione system is that it comes with a bigger brush attachment to use on your body AND a pumice stone attachment that you can use on your feet. And I know I will use the heck out of it this summer when I’m using a lot of self-tanner and making sure my skin is smooth.

    You have a chance to win your very own Epione ClearTouch Matrix cleansing system. All you need to do is leave me a comment telling me about your favorite skin product. And don’t forget to take the fitness pledge:

    Here are the official rules.

    No duplicate comments.

    You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

    a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
    b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
    c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
    d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
    The sweepstakes runs from 2/22 – 2/28.
    This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
    The Official Rules are available here.

    Also be sure to visit the Inspiration to Fitness page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews, get great fitness tips and find more chances to win! You can also click on the Best Buy image at the top of my blog to view a calendar of all the Inspiration to Fitness content. Good luck!

    Best Buy does not sponsor, endorse, approve, or have any responsibility for this promotion.


  • Inspiration to Fitness – Week 7

     

    Welcome to this week’s Inspiration to Fitness post.

    Well, as Boyz II Men once said, we’ve come to the end of the road. This is the last post in my Inspiration to Fitness series and I’m a little sad because I love the accountability. Yet I’m kind of glad because how much more do y’all want to hear about all the push ups and lunges and running? And how much more can I possibly say about it?

    But here’s something that I haven’t told y’all until now. And for me it is the biggest benefit of this whole healthy initiative. I sleep like a baby every single night.

    And if you’ve been reading the blog for any length of time, then you know that I have struggled with all manner of insomnia. I’ve taken melatonin and Tylenol PM and some type of all-natural combination sleep herbs that made me have bad dreams about Steven Tyler’s feet. Although in fairness that dream might have been related to the fact that I’d just watched Oprah’s interview with Steven Tyler and he took off his socks to show her how bad his feet look after all those years of dancing around on stage.

    (It’s a mental image that will stick with me forever.)

    (It was horrifying.)

    (It made me want to hire someone to carry me around at all times so that my feet never look like that.)

    The point is that almost nothing worked. In fact, I feel that my sleep habits of yore are best summed up with this handy pie chart I found on Pinterest. (Probably one night when I couldn’t sleep.)

     

    Source: imgur.com via Katrina on Pinterest

     

    But since I’ve been eating better and working out more, I sleep the sleep of angels almost every single night. I don’t have to take the melatonin or anything else. I just close my eyes and go to sleep. It is the best thing ever.

    And just shows that your body has a way of knowing what you need. I think my diet was off and I was going to bed many nights with my stomach full from late night snacking. Plus, I wasn’t active enough during the day. I had energy to burn.

    But all the lunges and squats and running have helped with that. So not only do I think I look a little more fit, I’m well-rested. And who doesn’t look better without bags under their eyes?

    Thanks so much for following along during this whole thing. I appreciate the encouragement and support. We’ll have one last giveaway tomorrow and it’s going to be a good one.

    In the meantime, don’t forget to enter for a chance to win. Just click over to my review of the FitBit and leave a comment on that post to enter.

     

  • Every breath you take – FitBit giveaway

    Listen. I feel like over the last six weeks or so that I have never paid so much attention to all these aspects of my fitness. I’m watching what I eat, exercising more, taking care of my skin and popping vitamins and fish oil like they’re candy. I am a stranger in my own body.

    The good news is it’s all starting to feel a little more natural and becoming part of my daily routine. I wake up in the morning and know that I need to eat breakfast even though I really don’t enjoy breakfast. I carry around almonds and little bags of granola so I can have a healthy snack and eat every three hours because it’s supposed to help my metabolism. I put on my running shoes so I don’t have time to talk myself out of working out. I weigh myself once a week. I think about portion size. I have a watch that tells me how hard I’m working out. I’ve become a laboratory rat.

    The point is I’m doing a lot of new stuff. All at one time. And sometimes I wonder if any of it’s working and if there are ways I can work harder or do more. The most recent product I received from Best Buy is the FitBit. This Fitbit Ultra FB102P wireless activity and sleep tracker measures steps taken, distance traveled, stairs climbed and calories burned for efficient monitoring of your workout progress.

    It also tells you when you’ve sat on the couch all day watching all the shows you’ve recorded on you DVR. And I don’t like it much on those days. But it makes me aware of how much I’m moving, how well I’m sleeping, and if I need a little more physical activity. In other words, it’s like a conscience you can clip onto your bra or your belt or the waistband of your shorts. And you can create a personal account at Fitbit.com to keep track of all your information and track your progress. The only thing it doesn’t do is pack Caroline’s lunch in the morning. Which is too bad because that would be a revelation.

    You have the chance to win your very own FitBit. All you have to do is leave a comment letting me know if you try to park far away or take the steps or other proactive things to increase your physical activity during the day. Here are the rules.

    Rules:

    No duplicate comments.

    You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

    a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post

    b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post

    c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post

    d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

    This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.

    Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.

    You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

    The Official Rules are available here.

    This sweepstakes runs from 2/15- 2/21.

    Also be sure to visit the Inspiration to Fitness page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews, get great fitness tips and find more chances to win! You can also roll over the Best Buy image at the top of my blog to view a calendar of all the Inspiration to Fitness content. Good luck!

    Best Buy does not sponsor, endorse, approve, or have any responsibility for this promotion.

  • Inspiration to Fitness – Week 6

    Welcome to this week’s Inspiration to Fitness post. I’m so proud of all of you for following along with Ashley and me for the last 6 weeks!

    There’s only one week left in the whole inspiration to fitness program. Which means I’ll have a week to work off all the bites I’ll take out of various Valentine’s Day chocolates trying to find the best ones.

    But I’d also like to think that some of this has stuck with me and I’ll carry on a healthier lifestyle and fitness regimen for the rest of the year.

    One can hope, right?

    Even though the rodeo is in town, and I’m sure I have a few more corn dogs and gorditas in my future.

    But that’s the great thing about committing to a workout plan. I don’t feel as guilty when I eat those things because I know that I’m exercising and somewhere it all balances out. Right? It’s like drinking a diet Coke while eating a Reeses peanut butter cup. They cancel each other out.

    Let’s just believe that’s true.

    I’ve also discovered that I enjoy the strength training portion of my workouts more than the run. Yes, there are moments mid-lunge when I want to cry or yell some type of profanity, but I actually kind of like the feeling of sore muscles the next day because I know I’m doing something.

    The running is fine, but it requires being outside. And some mornings it’s been really cold. And wet. And that doesn’t make me a happy camper. Or runner. Or whatever.

    But I get out there because I know how I am. If I stop now, I’ll end up lying on the couch with a heart-shaped box of chocolates and might not ever get up. Exercise works for me when I really make it a habit. I have to be a little obsessed about it or I’ll give it up completely.

    This explains why I’ve watched entire seasons of television shows in one sitting. I’m an all or nothing kind of girl.

    So here’s hoping that I stick with the all from here on out.

    Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all.

    * Have you checked out my review of the? Polar FT7 Rate Monitor Watch yet? Leave a comment for a chance to win!

  • The heart of the matter – Polar FT7 Heart Rate Monitor Giveaway

    Polar FT7 Heart Rate Monitor Giveaway.

    Right after Christmas my friend Michelle came to visit and we were having a big discussion about all things exercise and diet. And, ironically, we continued to outline our fitness and health objectives through a dinner of chips, queso, and fajitas. But Michelle had a lot of great tips because fitness is kind of her hobby. As opposed to me. Fitness is more like my job that I don’t like but have to go to anyway because I enjoy food. Anyway, I told her that I was going to be reviewing and giving away various fitness and health related items on the blog after the first of the year. And she immediately said, “Oh! Are they sending you a Polar watch?” I said, “What is this Polar watch you speak of?” So she showed me hers because she is disciplined and doesn’t leave home without her running shoes and workout accessories. And she explained that it monitors your heart rate, tracks your workout, tells you how many calories you burn, and, MOST IMPORTANTLY, lets you know when you’re burning fat. I’m all about the burning fat. So I spent the last few days of December desperately hoping for this Polar watch that I’d never even heard of but now felt like my life wouldn’t be complete without it. You can imagine my excitement when the nice UPS man knocked on our door one day in mid-January and delivered my very own Polar FT7 heart rate monitor.

    It comes with a strap that you wear around your chest while you work out and I worried it might annoy me, but it’s actually comfortable and I got used to it without any problems. Of course I was highly motivated by the need to know how many calories I was burning and if my fat was melting away. Sadly, I usually feel like a run should burn at least 1500 calories and that is not the case. And the Polar heart rate monitor confirms this. But I love it anyway because it helps me make the most of my workout and the EnergyPointer feature lets me know when exercise shifts from fat burning to fitness improvement. I can’t recommend it enough. It’s everything I hoped and dreamed it would be. Now if I could just figure out how to burn 1500 calories during my morning run.

    You have a chance to win your very own Polar FT7 Heart Rate Monitor. All you have to do is leave a comment letting me know if you track how many calories you burn when you work out. And don’t forget to take the fitness pledge:

    Here are the official rules.

    No duplicate comments.

    You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods: a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
    b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
    c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
    d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
    The sweepstakes runs from 2/8 – 2/14.
    This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
    The Official Rules are available here.

    Also be sure to visit the Inspiration to Fitness page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews, get great fitness tips and find more chances to win! You can also click on the Best Buy image at the top of my blog to view a calendar of all the Inspiration to Fitness content. Good luck!

    Best Buy does not sponsor, endorse, approve, or have any responsibility for this promotion.