Growing up and purchasing with plastic, I believed credit cards were simply fake money. No matter how many times I was instructed to double-check the price of my purchase and recognize that I would have to pay my credit card bill in cash, I always swiped my card with the childhood excitement of Monopoly money. Even more so, today, e-commerce popularity is skyrocketing and the economy is slowly recovering, we all need to learn how to effectively spend, save, and give, the money we worked hard to earn. Tykoon has tapped into this essential need, and provides an online social platform that empowers parents to teach their children strong financial values in an engaging and fun way.
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Star-studded movies typically garner much attention not for the plot of the movie but for the caliber of celebrity throughout the film. However, some come along that draw you in to each character’s storyline and leave you feeling each one’s emotions.
In What to Expect When You’re Expecting, based on the book by Heidi Murkoff, I found myself relating to each character’s struggles or finding the humor in each situation from the woman who hardly gained any extra baby weight besides her belly to the woman who feels uncomfortable throughout her entire pregnancy, no matter how much she wants to feel the “glow.” I rooted for each woman as she experienced her journey to motherhood and especially liked that one storyline included Jennifer Lopez’s character who could not have children but decided to adopt.
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Kmart and the March of Dimes recently celebrated Kmart’s immense achievement of raising over $100 million in support of March of Dimes towards improving the health of babies. This is Kmart’s 29th consecutive year partnering with March of Dimes, and it was inspiring to see how two corporate and organizational giants could band together to gain truly effective results.
As you may know, the March of Dimes supports research to help prevent birth defects, premature births, and infant mortality. So far they have helped reduce the premature birth rate in the US by 6%, and according to both organizations there is no end to what they can achieve together.
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 photo credit: Lands' End
I tend to avoid planning out my winter wardrobe ahead of time. By the time summer comes around, all I can think about is airing out my dusty swimsuit from the cobwebbed drawer. But, it was a special treat to get a look forward in time at Lands’ End’s new clothing lines at their Fall/Winter 2012 fashion showcase and Canvas fall preview event.
What’s great about Lands’ End is the effort they put into giving you a complete and practical look for all occasions. From the stylish leather boots to fur-trimmed coats, I was really impressed with the bold colors that were used to create great staples for their women’s line. The style struck a pleasant balance between dressy and casual, so that you could easily wear the clothes to formal events or in more relaxed settings. I was also a huge fan of many of the children’s clothes that were displayed, and thought the iron-knee reinforcement pants and cardigans for little girls were especially cute.
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The unpredictable East Coast weather can mean simultaneously experiencing spring and winter in one month—a fact that makes those of us who suffer from allergies not so happy. While steamy showers or at-home remedies may provide temporary relief, we all want something that will deliver proven results.
LAVI Dead Sea Sinus Solutions provide clinically proven products for sinus relief from moisturizers, washes, and sprays. Convenient and ready-to-use, the LAVI Sea Salt products are pre-mixed and are sold individually as well as in pre-assembled multipacks. What makes LAVI especially appealing is the fact it is made from all-natural ingredients, making it non-addictive and safe for pregnant mothers.
For more information about sinus health and LAVI, visit http://lavimed.com/ and http://www.nowyounose.com/.
Disclosure: Mom Central received LAVI samples and a gift bag as a thank-you for attending this event.
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Anonymous
Spring is here, which for a Mom means its time to face editing your kids clothes. I keep a ‘giveaway bag’ going in a corner of the kids’ room so if I put something on one of them that doesn’t fit, it goes straight in to the bag. I’m always sad to see a sweet little dress or pair of jeans go into the bag, but I console myself by thinking about the next cute thing I’m going to buy them! I don’t find buying kids clothes a chore so much, but I do find that it’s hard to find cute boys and girls clothes at one retailer.
When I checked out OshKosh B'gosh's new Spring Collection, I was really excited about the options for my 3-year-old boy and 1-year-old girl. I also shopped for adorable pull-on shorts (best for potty training) at $9 each! The affordable prices work for buying multiples since we are experiencing a lot of accidents these days (yikes!).
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Anonymous
This week, Julie Andrews of Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, and Princess Diaries fame, partners with Target and The Walt Disney Company to celebrate and declare National Princess Week. With much media attention surrounding Princess Kate Middleton and the timeless characters of Disney Princesses remaining a favorite in families, little girls now more than ever have great role models to look up to.
In meeting Julie Andrews at a recent event, she proclaims, “Why not dress up as a princess?!” Princesses often get a bad rap but they contribute so much time and charitable resources—it can’t always be easy, to her point. Her granddaughter Hope, helped reiterate this point, when asked why she likes princesses so much she answered “because they’re kind”.
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Anonymous
Some of my favorite restaurant meals include steak. It’s one of those meals I usually reserve for the times I go out to dinner, but with two little ones going out to dinner just isn’t as fun as it used to be. We do try and teach them restaurant-style manners, but it’s just more enjoyable to cook at home or have friends with kids over where toys and spontaneous games of chase can happen between bites of food and sips of wine.
Suzy Sirloin’s line of lean gourmet beef, lamb and veal has ‘restaurant quality’ selections plus a ‘healthy’ profile that makes me comfortable eating and serving it to my family. Suzy Sirloin is also an all American brand with local New York distributers, so it felt good to be able to support American farmers and ranchers who work hard to nurture and raise quality meat. I loved the idea that the meat is 90% lean and 100% hormone-free and they don’t use pink slime (I had to ask!).
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The dreadfully quick approach of beach season usually means the same old story: dropping your fatty pleasure foods cold turkey, stocking up on frozen diet packages, and making that elliptical your new best friend. However if you’re really serious about losing weight and being healthy, you may need a boost to the classic get-thin-quick attitude.
Creating a lifestyle that promotes healthy and maintainable behavior proves the only way to ensure long-term results, so that come next year’s beach season you won’t have to resort to any extreme weight loss methods. According to LIVESTRONG.COM’s nutrition expert Jennifer Iserloh (also a trained chef, author, and nationally recognized expert in healthy cooking) the ticket for a good bikini bod and healthy lifestyle starts in the kitchen. Modifying your eating habits doesn’t have to equate to an unsatisfying and difficult diet. Read some of Jennifer’s nutrition tips below:
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