Monday, December 20, 2010

week 4 (out of 4) $100 Olay Visa Gift Card Give Away

This is sponsored content from BlogHer and Olay.

The contest is now over. Thank you so much to all who entered. A rep from BlogHer will select a winner randomly and contact via email.
Have a fantastic New Year!


Good Morning! It's the week before Christmas, and all through the house:

eh. I'm too tired to rhyme.

Today is the first day of Winter Break, and I'm so happy to have the kids home with me. I hate how much time they're away during a typical school day. Today we're staying in pajamas, watching a Santa Claus(e) movie marathon, and doing puzzles. It'll be lovely.



Right around 2:15 everyone will start shouting and I'll threaten to cancel Christmas.

because we're completely normal.

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It's the 4th week in a row I'm giving out a $100 Visa gift card thanks to the generosity of Olay. I've been using the Total Effects for over a month now, and I'm actually surprised that the bottle hasn't run out. It's not even sneezing yet!

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I recently shared on the Totally Together site my daily morning routine. I cram a lot into my mornings, because I seem to have the most energy before 11 am, and like to accomplish a bunch before slacking off the rest of the day.

On a typical weekday, my mornings look something like this:

somewhere between 4 and 5, I’m up with the baby. I always always always have a mental battle about getting up for the day or climbing back into bed. 96% of the time I climb back in bed.

6am alarm goes off for Adam; I usually get up about 6:15 and make the bed quickly so I don’t get back in. :-) I do a quick master bathroom wipedown and gather laundry to start.

6:25 baby usually up by now, so I change and feed her. Big kids usually get up around now, too

6:30 Adam starts coffee and empties dishwasher. Big kids get breakfast—usually yogurt and fruit, rice cake with PB or cream cheese, or cereal

6:45 big kids get dressed, make beds, tidy rooms. I help if need-be, or stick to baby-wrangling

7:00 I put baby in highchair, feed her something and usually have a ricecake with peanut butter or something similar with my coffee

7:15 sometimes I get dressed now, or I start on big kid lunches

7:30 my grandma arrives to help with the baby. I use this time to finish getting dressed, clean the kitchen dishes, finish kid lunches. I’ll flip the laundry if it’s done with the wash cycle

the halfhour between 7:30 and 8 are a blur—the kids let the guinea pigs out (they have an outdoor run) and feed them, the baby poops around now and needs changing, I feed her again. If I’m waiting for an important email I’ll quickly scan the subject lines, otherwise I try hard to not succumb to the temptation to get online.

Grandma listens to the kids read outloud, play instruments, or something along those lines. I’m not really “in charge” right now, Grandma is.

8:00 leave to take big kids to school; Grandma stays with the baby

8:25 I’m back, feed baby, change her and get her ready for a nap. I have coffee with Grandma

9:00 Baby goes down for AM nap, and Grandma leaves. I start work.

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In 2008, when I did my yearlong crockpot challenge, I was working full time from home. I ran the calendar section for Bay Area Parent, and worked 4-5 hours a day for BlogHerads.com. In order to get my professional work done, and still juggle the demands of cooking and posting daily on the crockpot site, along with keeping the kids and Adam happy, I got up every day at 4am. It was nutty, but I found I treasured the alone time I had in a quiet house. It was me and the coffee pot from 4-6am, and I got into a fun little rhythm each day.

Sometimes I did what I called a “split-shift” and went to bed at 8pm, then got up to work from midnight to 4am. I found this middle of the night work really exhilarating---my brain was buzzed and I had a heightened state of awareness.

I am not sure how I made it.

I find it fascinating how your body responds when it’s pushed to it’s limit. Although I know I was tired during this time, I physically felt great, and even trained and completed a half-marathon. I’m sure I LOOKED tired though. I wish Olay Total Effects had been invented!

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stuff I have to include:

Feel like your moisturizer’s fresh feeling can’t last all day? New Olay Total Effects Cooling Hydration instantly cools and leaves skin with a moisturized fresh feeling that lasts from morning to night. The lightweight formula also fights 7 signs of aging for younger looking skin. For more information visit https://www.olay.com

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So there you go. I try really hard to cram a lot in during those wee morning hours. What’s your morning look like? Are you more active in the early morning, or late at night?

Write your answer below and I’ll enter you in a $100 Visa Gift Card giveaway (pretty much the same as CASH! woo hoo!)

Leave a valid email address so I can contact you. I’m not farming your email addresses, nor am I sharing them with BlogHer or Olay. When the contest ends, I’ll delete them all. I promise.

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) Read the official rules for an alternate form of entry.

This contest will end on Monday, December 27 at 5pm pacific. Good luck to all and have a very Merry Christmas!

Monday, December 13, 2010

Week 3! of reading about my skin! and about Olay! and a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift Card! (3 out of 4)

This is sponsored content from BlogHer and Olay.






(public domain clipart image)

The contest has now ended. Thank you to all who entered! The winner will be notified via email from a BlogHer representative.

This is the third week that I’ve been using the Olay Total Effects 7 in 1 Anti Aging Moisturizer.

I feel pretty good! I’m happy with the way my skin looks and my friend Georgia, NO LIE, said I looked really healthy yesterday.

she then swore at me, but that’s okay. That’s what good friends do.

I just had my birthday, right before Thanksgiving. I turned 34 this year. My children have decided that I am now officially : Medium.

Which is better than Old.? Right?

I’ll take it.

According to the kids, MEDIUM extends all the way until 60.

I’m sorry mom.

The one thing I’m definitely noticing about having a baby in my almost-mid-thirties instead of my twenties, is that I’m SO MUCH MORE TIRED. As I wrote in my first post, I don’t really have an excuse for this. The baby sleeps fine, I just seem to jerk awake willy-nilly throughout the night.

I exercise (pretty much. 3 out of 5 days? 2 1/2 out of 6 days?) daily, I’ve cut out excess alcohol and sugar (except for this past weekend because it's Christmas party season, and it wouldn't be polite to just sit there. and I'm an awfully polite person), and for the LOVE OF MOTHER NATURE I will not give up caffeine, so I’m just going to have to suck it up.

The good thing is my skin looks pretty gosh darn good, if I do say so myself.

And I do!

(public domain clipart image)

stuff I have to include:

Feel like your moisturizer’s fresh feeling can’t last all day? New Olay Total Effects Cooling Hydration instantly cools and leaves skin with a moisturized fresh feeling that lasts from morning to night. The lightweight formula also fights 7 signs of aging for younger looking skin. For more information visit https://www.olay.com

What about you? On a normal day do you wake up feeling refreshed? Do you need caffeine to get started in your day? Have you tried cutting out sugar or alcohol? Are you ready to take drastic measures and eat only raw foods?

Write your answer below and I’ll enter you in a $100 Visa Gift Card giveaway (pretty much the same as CASH! woo hoo!)

Leave a valid email address so I can contact you. I’m not farming your email addresses, nor am I sharing them with BlogHer or Olay. When the contest ends, I’ll delete them all. I promise.

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) Read the official rules for alternate form of entry.

This contest will end Monday, December 20 at 5pm Pacific.


good luck! oxox

Monday, December 6, 2010

Olay 7 in 1 Anti-Aging Moisturizer and Visa Gift Card giveaway (post 2 of 4)

This is sponsored content from BlogHer and Olay.




This contest is now over. Thank you to all who entered. The winner will be contacted via email from BlogHer. Happy Holidays! xoox

I am not a very girly girl. I really wish I was sometimes, just so I could bond with my friends when they begin talking about the newest and greatest product, or where to get the best facial or massage in town.

I get haircuts about twice a year. I do like manicures and pedicures, but usually only get them if I’m doing a big event—so less than six times a year.

I do most of my clothes shopping online, or at the mall at a store that rhymes with Darget.

I usually don’t try clothes on first. I just bring them home.

I’m not very picky—I figure if things fit okay and I’m somewhat presentable, I’m good to go.

I seem to have pretty normal skin. Before having kids I’d get breakouts here and there, but nothing to be terribly upset about. I did order that sort-of-famous skin stuff off the TV when it was popular to do so, but found it dried my skin terribly and I canceled the subscription (and the subscription thing seemed like a big scam).

I do wear a bit of daily makeup. I rarely leave the house without a touch of concealer under my eyes, some mascara, and a bit of lip gloss. And while I promise I brush my hair daily, I only blow-dry it about once a month (if that).

I don’t really have a reason for the way I am. I’m definitely frugal, but I think it really stems from an overall lack of interest. I’m just not interested (right now) in taking the time to indulge in a beauty routine. I like the way I look. Adam seems happy, the kids don’t appear embarrassed, and I stopped biting my nails (mostly. I still spread DNA throughout the house when I’m on a tight deadline and feel nervous) so now my mom is happy.

So when Olay sent me their new 7 in 1 Anti-Aging Moisturizer, it was kind of neat. I think (scratch that. I KNOW) I wouldn’t have taken the time to go to a store, or even order it online unless they sent me it to try.

But I’m glad it’s here. I like it. I think I’m going to continue to use it, and I’m thrilled that I can just order it through Amazon, because to me shopping in my jammies is the ultimate in luxury.

I really liked reading your comments last week about what you do to keep your skin looking fresh. Most (practically all!) of you credit younger looking skin to drinking water (I need to up that, most definitely), exercise, proper diet, and sleep.

That's fantastic. I can do that! WE can do that!

stuff I have to include:

Feel like your moisturizer’s fresh feeling can’t last all day? New Olay Total Effects Cooling Hydration instantly cools and leaves skin with a moisturized fresh feeling that lasts from morning to night. The lightweight formula also fights 7 signs of aging for younger looking skin. For more information visit olay.com


What about you? What’s your daily beauty routine like? Are you a girly girl? Answer in the comment section for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card (pretty much the same as CASH, woo hoo!).

Leave a valid email address so I can contact you. I’m not farming your email addresses, nor am I sharing them with BlogHer or Olay. When the contest ends, I’ll delete them all. I promise.

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) Please see BlogHer.com for a complete list of rules


You have 1 week to win this particular gift card, but I have 2 more in the weeks to come. Please visit BlogHer.com for the complete list of bloggers giving away giftcards---there are so many chances to win! Lots of Visa $$ for everyone!

This contest ends on Monday, December 13 at 5pm pacific

good luck!