Nothing but Love for Spring Fashion

February 10, 2010 by Jennifer  
Filed under Accessories, Fashion & Style, Travel

LoveSpringTrendsIt’s Jennifer from Red Sole Diary, and I am happy to be back here again. Since Valentine’s Day is approaching I thought it only appropriate to write about my current loves and obsessions…for spring. There are so many fun trends for spring that it was hard choosing but I somehow managed!

Brightly Colored Dresses
I am so excited that colors are here for spring. While I do love black and tend to wear a lot of it, I love color. When I saw this Carolina Herrera dress {$1990} it was love at first sight. This dress will get you noticed as soon as you step foot into your party but for all the right reasons. Check out T-bags asymmetrical dress {$275} in the same color. You’ll be sure to create the same buzz for a less bang to your wallet.

Military Inspired
When some of my favorite designers are screaming that military-inspired jackets are the next big thing, I do what any fashion lover does and say “Sir, yes sir…or Ma’am!” Which brings me to my next love…Balmain. I’m obsessed. I would be marching left, right, left to the nearest Balmain boutique to get my hands on their studded military jacket {$6225}. When I say I’m in love I mean, L-O-V-E! If only my wallet would agree. Thankfully the Gap has a military anorak jacket {$79.50} that will easily fit into your current wardrobe. With authentic military details, you will be effortlessly chic this spring.

Bold Prints
Multi-colored, bold prints were all over the S/S 10 runways. These are a must-buy for the spring. Besides being trendsetting, they are great transitional pieces to get one ready for the new spring season. This Miu Miu dress {$265} is two trends in one…bold print and florals. This is a trendsetter piece for sure and perfect for a weekend getaway. Channel Alexander McQueen’s S/S 10 runway look, in Armani Exchange’s graphic snake print {$120} for a lot less. Pair with some flat strappy sandals and you’re all set for brunch with the girls.

Embellished Bags
We’ve been seeing more embellished bags and once again my fashion true love delivered. This Balmain punk suede studded bag {$3925} is so fun and will give you that instant luxe edge to keep everyone on their toes. If you prefer to have more money inside of your handbag, check out Antik Batik’s Lola beaded bag {$190}.

Ruffles
Nothing screams romance more than ruffles, and they were seen everywhere on the S/S 10 runways. From tops, skirts, dresses even shoes, ruffles are big this season. One can easily create an instant feminine look with a bold ruffled top. Oscar de la Renta once again shows us his skills at making women look like ladies with his clothes, especially with this gorgeous ruffled top {$690}. It is the perfect day-to-night item when paired with simple, chic pants. Check out Ellavie Jabot’s ruffle blouse {$41} for the same elegance at a more affordable price.

Shorts
Shorts are the new pants for this spring. When I saw these gold harem lamé shorts from 3.1 Phillip Lim {$350} I was smitten. These are perfect for daytime with a white boyfriend top and strappy flat sandals. Pair with open-toe booties and a fitted black tank, your favorite clutch and you are cocktail party ready. Not ready to embrace harem-style shorts, check out Ann Taylor’s cotton twill walking shorts {$48} for a more classic look.

Camisole
Lingerie was on the minds of many designers when designing their collections for spring. A camisole is a perfect way to embrace this trend. Pair with a fitted blazer and a pair of jeans for a sexy, yet elegant date-night ensemble. I loved how elegant this Carine Gilson silk-satin and lace camisole {$770} looks and it’s the perfect color, as turquoise is a must-have color this season. Check out Vanity Fair’s elegance camisole {$27} for a price-conscious choice without losing the style.

Peep-Toe Booties
Not only are booties still going strong, but we saw a lot of open-toed versions on the runways. Nude is another big trend for spring and when I saw these booties from Maison Martin Margiela {$1045} I knew I needed to figure out how to get them in my closet for spring…still working on it! For an alternative version, check out Biviel’s booties {$139}.

Something Red…
Just because it’s Valentine’s Day I felt I should have something red…so I splurged with my pick, but I love anything Agent Provocateur.

Have a happy heart day!

Girlfriend Getaway with Holiday Inn

January 29, 2010 by Erika  
Filed under Travel

Have you ever stayed at a Holiday Inn?  As a frequent traveler, I have had the opportunity to stay at quite a few of them.  They are typically reasonably priced and they are really in almost every location you could ever want to stay at.  Of course, when I’m booking my own hotel, my qualifiers are typically clean, safe, and comfy.  If it’s pretty, well, then, it’s an added bonus, but generally it’s not my priority.

Holiday Inn has stayed well within my clean, safe, and comfy realm for some time now.  I’ve stayed at at least 15 different Holiday Inns in my lifetime, so it’s a name and brand that I trust.  In the past year, Holiday Inn has been doing a major brand relaunch, and they reached out to me to see if I was interested in doing a girlfriend getaway “state-cation”.  Of course I did!  Some time with my girlfriends in my hometown of New Orleans that would qualify as “work”?  That, my friends, is what we call a no brainer!

I arrived at the Holiday Inn and immediately noticed that the logo looked completely different.  As part of the relaunch, I learned that hotels sporting this spiffy new logo had successfully completed the re-branding process.  When I walked into the lobby I was greeted by soft music and a friendly staff member. He walked behind the desk after introducing himself as the manager and I told him I was there to check in.  When I mentioned my name, he immediately pulled out an envelope with my name on it and said “Yes, Ms. Lehmann – we’ve been waiting for you!”  (Really?  Lil’ ole me?)

We were given a room on the  17th floor and when we walked in I turned around and looked at my friend in disbelief.  I mean, I know I was there to check out the “rebranding” but um, this was INCREDIBLY nice.  Very modern, great colors, upholstered headboard with tons of pillows (heck, I could pick the “type” of pillow I wanted – soft, firm, etc.) and even the artwork on the wall was nice – black and white photographs – not your typical “hotel room” artwork, you know? Très, très cool, et très, très chic!

Picture 26

The first thing I did, because I’m a big kid, was throw my body onto the bed.  My friend T just rolled her eyes at me because well, she was not surprised.  Then I hopped up and threw open the curtains of the room and, well, hello New Orleans!  We had a spectacular view of the city.  We were staying on the westbank at the Holiday Inn in Gretna, so we had a view of the Crescent City Connection and the Mississippi River – with the city of New Orleans behind it.  Picture 18

Not too shabby, right?

Naturally, because Murphy’s Law pretty much exists for me, the power went out shortly after we arrived, leaving us in the dark for about an hour.  Granted, we live in Southern Louisiana.  We have wind, rain, and power that is mostly above ground.  Power goes out on a fairly regular  basis ’round these parts, so we just giggled about our luck and relaxed in the room until it came back on.

The manager called the room and apologized for the inconvenience, which I thought was really sweet, but naturally no one can help the power going out!  The weather started to get rainy and yucky, so after a quick dinner, we curled up in the bed and watched a movie – my favorite – Love Actually.  Ok, we fell asleep halfway through it.  We are both workin’ mamas!  What can I say?!

Don’t laugh, but the best part about a girlfriend getaway?  SLEEPING IN!

The next day we did a little work on our computers (yay for WiFi!), and grabbed lunch in the hotel’s restaurant, the Round House Bar & Grill.  After I was stuffed with sweet potato fries and a yummy wrap, we decided to make the uber-short 10 minute trip across the bridge into the city to have a little fun.  We walked, shopped, checked out the river and had beignets.  (Yes, even locals love beignets and chicory coffee!) We had dinner at one of my favorite restaurants Lüke, and then walked over to have drinks at my favorite cocktail spot – loa.

Holiday Inn Round House Bar and Grill

Holiday Inn Round House Bar and Grill

Overall Holiday Inn provided us with an awesome chance to have a fun girlfriend getaway in my home state.  So often I forget to be a tourist in my own city, so this was a great opportunity for me to do a little something different (and to SLEEP IN!).

Disclosure:  Holiday Inn provided us with a 2-night stay, as well as meal vouchers for the hotel restaurant and gift cards to cover our gas.  However, the opinions I expressed are all mine.  You know, because that’s how I roll.  Feel free to hold me to it.

More Bubbles and Bubbly Fun

January 6, 2010 by Erika  
Filed under Entertainment, Fashion & Style, Featured, Travel

So remember how, back in October, Wisk HE brought me to my second home, New York City, for a little bubbles and bubbly shindig?  I had a blast with some amazing people and learned all about bubbles- when you need them, when you don’t.

So, today I’m on Google, searching for pictures of myself and my friend Katja for this way cool NYC Tweetup that we’re hosting on January 13th at the Roger Smith Hotel, and I come across this photo!

bb1And I’m all … awwww … what a CUTE photo!

But then…then I came across this video.  And I’m giggling like a madwoman because here I am, looking like a total goober throughout the entire thing, and I didn’t even know it existed.

And, because I love you, my readers, I thought I would share my gooberness with you.  I’m especially fond of the 14 second mark, where I make a quick appearance just to drawl “bubbles”.  Tee hee!

By the way – my dress is from one of my favorite online stores – ModCloth, and the shoes are Steve Madden.  The crazy mad scientist lab coat was courtesy of Wisk HE.  I especially love that Nichelle from StyleMom immediately cinched hers up with a belt.  Only someone that fashionable could make a lab coat look good.  I’m just sayin’.

See? I’m not the only one…

October 16, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Entertainment, Fashion & Style, Featured, Travel

I swear, this is the last in my series of ohmygoshihavenoideawhattopacktothisconference posts.  I’m here.  I’ve worn jeans both days of the conference so far, and as Reem and I briefly discuss in this video (this was the 2nd take, my macbook ate the first one) – being comfortable enough to wear jeans?  Well, we kinda feel like we’re cool.  Oh, that and that we get to hang out in the special speaker lounge where we can do goofy things like make video.

Oh yeah, so I moderated this panel today on the Ethics of Mommyblogging with Colleen Padilla, Lindsay Lebresco, and Ted Murphy.  It was really cool, and tons of fun.  We didn’t have cupcakes like Shama – but let’s just say that we’ve learned our lesson for next year!  It went really well, so a huge thank you to all of them!

Speaking of cool – check out these two cool, yet exceedingly silly chicks.  :)

Wakin’ Up In Vegas {Video}

October 13, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Entertainment, Featured, Giveaways, Travel

Don’t forget that you can win an iPod Shuffle for commenting on any posts during the month of October.  See the bottom of this post for details!

Yay!  Thanks to Collective Bias, I’ll be on a plane flying to Las Vegas for Blog World Expo in less than 10 hours!  Why am I not sleeping, you ask?  (By the way, that’s so sweet of you to be so concerned about me!)  Well, because I’m vlogging.  And also, because I’m a procrastinator.  Will I regret this in the morning?  Yes.

Ohh, but look!  I made you a video!

Now you can probably figure out why, after 6 days, I’m still not packed.

PS — Feel the urge to comment yet? How about some motivation? All comments left on my site for the month of October will be entered to win an iPod shuffle! To enter to win, just leave some sort of comment on any post from the month of October. You may enter as many times as there are posts, and get extra entries for tweeting. Comments that had a bit of thought put into them are greatly appreciated. Good luck, contest ends October 31st and 11:59 pm CST.

A Two Suitcase Kinda Trip

October 12, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Fashion & Style, Featured, Giveaways, Travel

Don’t forget that you can win an iPod Shuffle for commenting on any posts during the month of October.  See the bottom of this post for details!

I’m so excited because I’m heading to Blog World Expo in Las Vegas this week – which sort of brings me back full circle to the beginning of my blogging days.  BWE was the first blogging conference I ever attended and is, to date, still my favorite of them all.  I’m excited to be returning, and even more excited to be moderating a panel on the Ethics of Mommyblogging on Friday.  If you’re going to be there, you should most certainly stop by, as I’m sure we’ll be discussing all sorts of hot-button issues (are you sick of hearing about the FTC guidelines yet?!).

Naturally, in order to do something like travel and attend a really cool conference, it is necessary for me to pack all of the vital items in my life into a little box to put under the plane.  Don’t worry, I’m flying Southwest, so it will be well taken care of.  The bigger issue is…UGH.  I have a closet full of nothing to wear.  And packing?  Well, packing ranks up there with sticking toothpicks in my own eyeballs.  Sorry to be so graphic, but it’s true.

I would totally pay someone to pack for me.  Know anyone who would and could handle it?  Make sure all of the outfits match?  Make sure I don’t forget anything?  Make sure it’s all washed and ironed, tucked away in neat little outfits as to avoid any confusion?  Is there a service for that?  There should be.  I’ll be their first customer.

You should see my bed.  It’s full of clothes, hangers, purses, etc.  I’m considering sleeping on the floor tonight, instead actually in the bed itself.  It would make things easier, don’t you think?

In the mood to giggle?  Watch me huff about hating to pack in the video below and feel free to poke fun at me in the comments.

PS — Feel the urge to comment yet? How about some motivation? All comments left on my site for the month of October will be entered to win an iPod shuffle! To enter to win, just leave some sort of comment on any post from the month of October. You may enter as many times as there are posts, and get extra entries for tweeting. Comments that had a bit of thought put into them are greatly appreciated. Good luck, contest ends October 31st and 11:59 pm CST.

Bubbles and Bubbly {Video Recap}

October 9, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Fashion & Style, Featured, Travel

If you’ve been keeping up with my escapades, you know that I returned to NYC for the second time in as many weeks. This time is was not to cover fashion, but to learn more about one of the things that enables me to take care of the clothing that I so thoughtfully invest in. Wisk and LaundryHE invited several of us social-media types to my adopted city to learn a bit about regular versus HE detergent.

Is this the part where I confess to you that I couldn’t even begin to guess the difference before Tuesday night? Now however, well, let’s just say you’re reading the random musings of a chick who is BUBBLE CERTIFIED. Oh yeah, no need to adjust your screen, you read that correctly.  The experts in effervescence gave me a major crash course in suds-ology.  I loved it.

Flip

All joking aside, I actually learned a lot about Wisk’s HE detergent at the event.  I heard the claims about HE creating fewer bubbles, and heard that too many suds can actually trap extra dirt and oils in your clothing and prevent them from getting clean — but it really clicked for the hands-on learner in me when I got to see it first hand.  I actually got to see the difference in the two detergents side by side, and had proof that HE got clothes just as clean with fewer suds, right there in my hands.

Picture 22

It was pretty cool.  I was kinda surprised at how much I learned!  Of course, I also learned all about Champagne from the sommelier who was on-hand.  Did you know that a good champagne should smell like toast or brioche?  Did you know that the better the champagne, the longer the taste will linger in your mouth?  Did you know that more pinhead-sized bubbles in your glass actually indicates a better champagne?  Now you do, and so do I!

Cheers

Check out my video from the event below, and get an inside peek at the event.  You can also check out my Whrrl story for a better timeline.  Also, I wanted to let you know that you can enter to win a HE Washer and Dryer from Maytag and Wisk right now at LaundryHE.   Runners up will get a years supply of Wisk HE — so go check it out and enter!

“Wisk”ed Away to New York

October 5, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Entertainment, Fashion & Style, Featured, Travel

Oh, things are so busy around the House of Chic.  (I just made that up, clearly it’s well past midnight and I’m still drinking coffee when the craziness hits the fan.)  I am so excited to be heading back up to NYC to spend Tuesday evening learning all about Bubbles!  Wisk has invited several bloggers up for a special event to learn about the inner workings of High Efficiency Laundry detergent – and I’ve gotta say that I’m pretty darn excited about it. As much as I’d just like to buy new clothes instead of washing and re-wearing the ones I already own, my limited budget prohibts such activites.  So…at the very least, it is extremely important for me to know the best way to take care of my clothing!

WeberShandwick

Naturally I’m really looking forward to it, as well as meeting some of the other bloggers.  Of course, before any of this can happen, I’ve got to get on a plane from my much beloved hometown of New Orleans to New York City.  And while that may sound like a simple little thing – it requires some form of goverment ID on my behalf.  Of course, as I discovered, there is one teensy, tinsy little problem.

My driver’s license expired a month and a half ago on my 27th birthday.  Oops.

So, first thing tomorrow morning, (oh wait, that would be in 5 hours) yours truly will be standing in line, waiting to get one of those eternally unflattering photos snapped for that little piece of plastic that tells the world that I passed a driving test at the tender age of 15.

Wonder if I should tell them that I drove into a ditch only 3 days later?

The good news is that I’m already packed!  Less than 48 total hours in NYC, and I’ve managed to narrow it down to 4 complete outfits, 5 pairs of shoes, 4 necklaces, 3 pairs of earrings, a blowdryer, curling iron, and flat iron.  Aren’t you proud?

I knew you would be.

TribeCon to rock Voodoo in Nola!

October 1, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Entertainment, Travel

Calling all of my Nolaites!  If you live in or around the New Orleans area, I’ve got a huge treat for ya!  As a part of this year’s Voodoo Experience, the tech/web/interactive/cool kids community here in the city has pulled together an awesome one-day conference called TribeCon.

Picture 45

This is going to be one knock-it-out-of-the park (City Park, to be exact) kind of experience.  Plus, this year’s attendees will have the honor of saying “I attended the very first TribeCon” because you know something this awesome won’t just happen once.

So, if you are a social media lover, a brand enthusiast, a musician, tech geek, media maven, entrepreneur, marketer or just generally an all-around rockin’ person, TribeCon has something for you.  I mean, heck, check out the awesome lineup of speakers if you don’t believe me!

So, here’s what I think.  I think you should go.  It’s gonna be awesome, and heck, I’ll be there, so you’ll at least have someone to hang out with, right?  There’s no excuse.  Hey, even better – I scored you a discount code. When you buy your ticket you can use the code: NOLABLOGGER.  That little code right there will save you 25 bucks.

See?  Now you can use your savings to go out for drinks or dinner with everyone afterwards!  So go ahead, register for TribeCon!

(Don’t live in New Orleans?  That’s ok, you can still come, we’d love to have you!  We have quite the friendly city and we love meeting new people!)

Gone Bloggin’

July 23, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Travel

Hey y’all – I know you may or may not have noticed that I’m a bit MIA.  Well, consider this my sign in the window that there is not as much content as usual because I am officially at BlogHer 2009!   I’m so excited (and a bit nervous about 1,400 women in one place, but I digress) to be here and it hasn’t even started yet.  I’m already having a great time re-connecting with old friends, making new ones, and laughing harder than I have in at least a month (playing checkers, of all things, with Christine – and realizing JUST how bad at it I really am – she even had to make one of my moves for me!).  Not to mention, before my poor roomie Katja had even arrived, I practically destroyed my half of the room – it’s amazing what I can do with a few hours and two outfit changes.

So yeah, I’m having a blast already and nothing has even really happened yet.  I’m so excited to see what the week will bring!  In case I don’t post much over the next few days, I apologize.  In case I post eleventy-thousand times a day, I apologize.  I can tell it will go one of two ways, and I’m not sure which it will be yet.  At the very least, you can click around this post to read a few other awesome blogs to pass the time.

In the meantime, check out this hilarious pre-BlogHer post by @naturalwoman, sent to me by my friend Reem.  I laughed so hard I may have even snorted.  But I’ll never admit to that.  Oh, wait…

BlogHer09

PS – A big thanks to Wal-Mart – who sponsored my trip to BlogHer this year as one of the ElevenMoms.

Disney Family.com Travel Kit {Giveaway CLOSED!}

June 25, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Giveaways, Kids, Travel

It’s summer time, and that means one of my favorite things — TRAVEL!  We travel so often with Little AG that she has gotten used to our travel routine – and she loves it almost as much as we do.  However, most of us know that traveling with a child is nothing if not challenging, so I’m really excited to be giving away a Travel Kit to make your summer travels even easier.disneyfamilylogo

Disney Family.com is offering an “On the Road With Family.com”  kit to one lucky CSC reader! The kit promises to keep children well entertained during car or plane trips this summer and will put an end to the dreaded “Are we there yet?” questions while allowing families to share their favorite family vacation destinations.

Also, make sure to visit Disney Family.com Travel to help with all your vacation planning needs as the site provides a unique resource for parents providing a combination of expert reviews, parent recommendations, and age-appropriate points of interest for family-friendly destinations on any budget.

One of the many great features on the site is a list of “Cities on a Shoestring” where parents can find inexpensive or free activities to do in cities around the country. The site also includes tips for hassle free air travel, videos of popular family destinations, and safety travel tips.

The travel kit includes a plush kid size travel pillow, a copy of Dr. Seuss’s There’s a Map in My Lap, a travel game kit, notepad and pen and adorable tote bag (a $30 value).  To enter, please leave a comment below sharing your favorite family vacation destination spot; a winner will be chosen at random.  This contest will run through July 2nd, 2009 at 5 pm CST.

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A big thank you to the wonderful women over at Mom Generations for offering Chic Shopper Chick readers this awesome giveaway!

Disney Family Travel Kit

Spring Break for Families – Sandestin, FL

March 20, 2009 by Erika  
Filed under Travel

Sandestin

There are several benefits to living in the South.  One is that you can wear flip flops almost all year round.  Another is that convertibles only have a couple of useless months.  Yet another is smelling barbeque in the air around your neighborhood almost every Sunday.  One of the best perks, though, has to be living close to the beach.  Granted, I’m technically only an hour from the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but that water?  It isn’t pretty water.  It’s just pretty gross.  However, a short 4 hour drive away?  A little slice of heaven I like to call the Emerald Coast. Ok, well, other people call it that, too. Either way, it’s awesome.

My family and I were fortunate enough to stay in Sandestin, Florida for 4 days and 3 nights last month.  If you aren’t already familiar with it, Sandestin is a 2,400-acre premier destination resort located in Northwest Florida, between Pensacola and Panama City.  It truly is an incredible place, with

“…seven miles white sand beachs and bayfront property, four golf courses, 15 tennis courts, 19 swimming pools, a 98-slip marina, water sports, children’s programs, a fitness center and spa, and a pedestrian village featuring a host of boutique shops, casual and fine dining restaurants, nightclubs and bars that come alive with strolling musicians, street performers, dancing fountains and lively festivals and events.”

Sandestin Florida

We stayed at the Grand Sandestin – the resort’s answer to hotel-style dwelling.  Hotel?  Ha!  We had a huge 2 bedroom condo that was, in all seriousness, the size of or perhaps a bit bigger than my house.  We had a wrap-around balcony that went from the back balcony, along the entire side of the building, right around to the front balcony.  It. Was. Huge.  And quite spacious.  Heck, if it hadn’t rained the entire time we were there (Murphy’s Law always tackles me hard in Florida) I probably woulda been down at Baytowne Wharf flagging people down for an inpromptu porch-party.  It was that big, and that cool.

Oh, and Baytowne Wharf?  HEAVEN!  Shopping, restaurants, a ZIP LINE (Yes, I wanted to try it, NO, I didn’t get around to it) that zips through the center?  The shopping is fabulous, the food is good, and it’s all pedestrian-only.  There is a park/playground for kiddos, a place to paint your own pottery, and, when we were there, there were stilt-walkers making balloon animals, spacewalks, games, etc.  Lots of fun things to do with kids and families, and Little AG adored the pink poodle that the “tall” guy made for her.  If you do go, don’t forget to eat at Another Broken Egg Cafe – we have the original Broken Egg Cafe here in my hometown, and their Baked Brie is to die for (and can/should be eaten as a meal!).  Oh, and there is a Starbucks in Baytowne Wharf as well — thankfully I didn’t have to live without my Chai Latte!

Baytowne Wharf - Fun, Food, Nightlife

Baytowne Wharf - Fun, Food, Nightlife

So, remember how I tend to obsess over swimming pools?  This resort has a ton of them.  I cursed the weather multiple times for smiting me – because we had a fabulous infinity-edged pool AND awesome toddler pool just an elevator ride away.  Little AG would have been in heaven.  It’s ok though, we went to the indoor pool, where she “kick, kick, kick”ed her little heart out.  We walked on the beach, which, even chilly and overcast, was still a BEACH.  Oh, how I love the beach.   There was, of course, one crazy dude swimming in the waves – you can see his picture in the slideshow below.  Gotta love the crazies, right?

On our last day, I got to take a tour of the entire resort.  The most pleasant surprise was, by far, this little gem of a condo at the Fairways.  When we pulled up to it, from the outside I thought, “eh, this must be the older part of the property.”  I was right.  But I wasn’t prepared for what I saw inside.  It was fun, it was stylish, and it even has it’s own tanning deck on the water outside.  My only complaint was that it wasn’t on the beach, but I MAY even be able to deal with that.  Check out the pictures of the inside of this condo — isn’t it adorable?  It was open, bright, spacious… I loved it! (Sandestin Fairways 279, if you’d like to request it, FYI.)

Sandestin Fairways CondoSandestin Fairways

View SandestinSandestin Fairways 279

I’ve been traveling to Destin for vacation since I was a teenager.  I had my 16th birthday party there, and I am firmly rooted in those sugar-white sands.  But now as an adult with a family, I see a huge draw to do the non-spring break, spring-break thing.  There are watersports, free bicycle rentals, canoes, kayaks, tennis, swimming, trails to explore, playgrounds to play on, the possibilities are endless and truly make for the perfect family vacation.  If you’re still searching for that perfect place to go this Spring with your family, or even this summer, consider heading to Sandestin.  The people there all bent over backwards to accomodate us, with the people at the front desk going as far as to lend us a DVD to watch in our room when the rental machine wouldn’t work (again, Murphy’s Law).  Everyone was courteous and hospitable, and NO, those people didn’t know I’d be writing about them.  Which says a lot, right?  So yeah, check it out, I know you won’t be disappointed.

At the very least, you’ll leave with a tan and a smile.  Oh, and some fantastic memories.

Attention all passengers…

August 25, 2008 by Erika  
Filed under Travel


Remember a while back, I told you about a Flight Restraint System for children who have their own seat? It’s called the CARES harness, and it is a great solution to lugging a car seat on a plane. But what about for children who don’t have their own seat? I know Little AG is still under 2 years old, and the reason we can afford to go to some of the places that we do with her is because we don’t have to purchase a seat for her, because she can ride as a lap child.

But what about restraints in the air? You wouldn’t ride in a car without your child being restrained, so why should it be any different in the air? As a matter of fact, 90 percent of all injuries that happen on commercial flights are sustained while the plane is in the air. But what about your baby, your most precious cargo?

Baby B’Air makes a vest that essentially fits over your child, and then secures them to your lap belt. It isn’t approved for take-off and landing, but it is meant to avoid those injuries that specifically can occur once the plane is airborne. It also helps to keep a wiggling child better restrained and out of the lap of the person next to you. (You may laugh, but Little AG has tried this before.) It is FAA approved too, so no snooty flight attendant can tell you that you aren’t allowed to use it in-flight (my apologies to all of the non-snooty flight attendants out there – I realize it’s not a characteristic of all of you!) Just keep the card that came with the vest with you when you fly, so that you can prove you are allowed to use it!

You can purchase the Baby B’Air online for $34.95. I truly feel that this is a must-have item for anyone who travels by air with their child on their lap. Plus, with the $200 or so that you save on a plane ticket, I really feel that the Baby B’Air is a minimal investment for the safety of your child, don’t you agree?

What do you think? Do you travel frequently? Have you ever traveled with your baby on your lap? Do you think you would use the Baby B’Air?

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