Holiday Gift Guide: Littlest Pet Shop Magic Motion Treehouse

Audrey Grace loves Littlest Pet Shop, so we were so excited that Hasboro sent us the Littlest Pet Shop Magic Motion Treehouse Playset for review this Christmas.  If you’re looking for a gift for the little girl in your life (I’d say ages 4-8) this is it!  It’s the perfect price point (under $40 on Amazon) and will definitely provide hours and hours of creative play!

Holiday Guide 2011: American Girl Bitty Twins

Thanks for checking out my 2011 Holiday Gift Guide!  Be sure to check out Our Ordinary Life and Mommy Mandy for more great gift ideas!

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When I was a little girl I was obsessed with American Girl.  A voracious reader, I read all of the books before carefully requesting that Santa Claus bring me a Samantha doll for Christmas.  It was the number one thing that I wanted more than anything – and when I found Samantha smiling back at me on Christmas morning with her glossy brown hair with the perfect bouncy curl – I squealed in delight.  I brushed her hair, I changed her clothes – Samantha came everywhere with me that year.  She was perfect, coveted, and mine.

Samantha still sits in my childhood room, prominently displayed on a shelf.  I never outgrew my love for her.

Twenty years later, I’m delighted to begin introducing my daughter to the world of American Girl.  She is a bit young for the full-sized American Girl dolls so when I discovered the American Girl Bitty Twins, I knew we had to have them.  You can customize your Bitty Twins with all different skin tones and hair colors – so that your child will have a set of dolls that looks like her.

Generally speaking I have a bit of a bias against all of the blonde-haired, blue-eyed dolls in the world – so  I was torn when ordering our Bitty Twins because part of me wanted to order a dark-haired duo.  However, I have a sweet little blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl and I wanted the twins to look like her – so I gritted my teeth and ordered blonde twins – a girl and a boy.

They twins come in the cutest argyle outfits and have 15″ soft bodies, and they also come with a book – The Bitty Twins Learn To Share.  The two twins, in outfits, plus the book is $100.  You can also order the 18 piece Bitty Twins Starter Kit, which runs $180 but in addition to above includes toys for each doll, a doll carrier, training diapers, and an additional outfit for the twins (and saves you $20).

Order by December 21st for Christmas delivery (rush charges may apply).

*Disclosure:  American Girl sent Audrey Grace a set of Bitty Twins to facilitate this review, however all opinions are 100% my own.

 

Holiday Gift Guide: Hello Kitty Nail Tin {Giveaway}

Thanks for checking out my 2011 Holiday Gift Guide!  Be sure to check out Our Ordinary Life and Mommy Mandy for more great gift ideas!

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I’m sure you’ve noticed from my site that I’m a bit of a beauty and fashion nut.  I have an obsession with all things girly, including nail polish.  Naturally, when a girly girl has a daughter, the odds of her also being a girly girl are pretty high.  I can officially say that Audrey Grace is about as girly as they come – which is totally fun for mom!

Even though I generally think Audrey Grace is a little young for even pretend makeup and nail polish, I saw the Hello Kitty Nail Tin by TownleyGirl and thought I would make an exception. (As in, she can only wear it and play with it at home, not out in public.) The nail tin comes with fun polish, nail art, and of course can be used as a lunch box or a place to store treasures long after the products are used!

If you the Hello Kitty Nail Tin set right now at Toys R Us you’ll get free 2 day shipping and also get a free Hello Kitty Bowler Bag with purchases of $30 or more.

Lucky for you, I have an awesome Hello Kitty Cosmetic Tin to giveaway to one of my lucky readers!

Mandatory Entry Method:

• Leave a comment here telling me why you’d love to win this – is there a special little girl in your life who just adores Hello Kitty? Maybe she is a makeup fanatic?

Extra Entry Methods (leave a separate comment for each):

• Visit Mommy Mandy and enter one of her Holiday Giveaways. Come back here and let me know you did it. (1 entry)
• Visit Our Ordinary Life and enter one of her Holiday Giveaways.  Come back here and let me know you did it. (1 entry)
• BLOG ABOUT IT!!! 5 entries.
• Tweet this contest.  (1 entry)
• Like Chic Shopper Chick on Facebook. (1 entry)
• Follow me on Twitter. (1 entry)
• Like Design Public on Facebook. (1 entry)
• List this giveaway on any contest site for 3 entries.
• You can always leave a comment on any non-giveaway post. (1 extra entry per post commented on. just go to “home” posts are up front, please comment on all new posts and leave your extra entry comment)

No purchase necessary to win.  Contest only valid for residents of the US.  Winner to be chosen by random.org on or after December 2nd. Winner has 48 hours to respond to notification email or another winner will be chosen.

Disclosure:  Townley Girl sent us a nail tin to review, however these opinions are 100% mine and I’m thrilled to share them with you.  

Holiday Gift Guide: Record a Story

 

(Don’t forget to check out Mommy Mandy and Our Ordinary Life for more amazing Holiday Gift ideas!)

We have had quite a year around here – last New Years Eve the man of my dreams got down on one knee and asked me to be his forever.  I was moved to tears.  And then, I was moved.  Literally.  This past September, my daughter and I moved from the only home and state we had ever known, Louisiana, out to Southern California to join my fiance’ and his son as we worked to become a family.

Of course, I had been visiting lovely southern California every other weekend for over a year at that point, so I knew what I was getting myself into, but I sure do miss my family.  My parents happen to be visiting as I write this, but as my grandparents, my daughter’s great-grandparents, get older it gets harder for them to travel.  They have always been a huge part of my life – they went on vacations with us, I spent weekends at their house, spent every holiday and birthday together, not to mention the Sunday dinners – my grandparents were basically at every major event in my life, and my grandmother and I even traveled to Paris, France for 10 days together when I was 19.  I can hardly believe that was 10 years ago now – how time flies.

Unfortunately, I know time isn’t going to slow down in the least, and now that I live far from home, the keepsakes and memories mean even more to me.  So, when I received the latest “Frosty the Snowman” Record a Story from the folks at Publications International I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it.  So, this week when my parents return home to Louisiana, they’ll be taking along our copy of “Frosty the Snowman” with a request to GG and Grandpa – record the story and song in your voice, please!

I have fond memories of both of my grandparents singing, and I want to create that lifelong memory for my kids as well.  Record A Story is an amazing gift to all of us, and I can’t wait to receive the finished product in the mail so that the kids can listen to it over and over again.  (Ok, and me, too.)

As a matter of fact, I know exactly what I’ll be getting all of the grandparents this holiday season – the awesome “My Grandma is Special” and “My Grandpa is Special” books for the kids to record for them – my only complaint is that they don’t come in multiple versions – like “My Nana is Special”.  Either way, these will make incredible gifts, and ones that everyone in your life will treasure for years to come!

Disclosure:  Record A Story sent my family a book to review (photos above are my own).  However, my opinions are, and always have been my own.  Thanks so much for reading.

Holiday Gift Guide: Yankee Candle {Giveaway!}

Thanks for checking out my 2011 Holiday Gift Guide!  Be sure to check out Our Ordinary Life and Mommy Mandy for more great gift ideas!

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I have very strong emotional associations with my sense of smell.  As a child, I could tell you what pillow belonged to what family member just by taking my nose to it – everyone had a different distinct scent, and they were familiar and comforting.  When I was sick, I loved sleeping on one of my parent’s pillows – it was comforting to me, like being able to snuggle with them in my sleep.  As I’ve gotten older, this association has only grown.  I associate the scent of baby powder with the city of Paris – I was wearing a body lotion that was faintly scented with it when I was first visiting there, and now every time I smell powder, I think of Paris.

Sometimes it works the opposite way – I can’t even walk near anyone wearing Sarah Jessica Parker’s “Lovely” because I wore it during the first 3 months of my pregnancy with Audrey Grace – and I was so sick during those months that just smelling it in the slightest turns my stomach.

One of my all time favorite scents has got to be that of anything to do with winter.  I love the feel of the cold air, the smell of the fireplace, the scent of the freshly-cut Christmas tree.  When I was in college I discovered Yankee Candles and I fell in love.  Burning a highly-scented Yankee Candle was like walking right back into a winter memory.  My favorites revolved around Pine, or Cedar – anything that reminded me of the smell of our Christmas tree.  I started buying these candles once every 2 months – I would save up while I was in college and “treat” myself to one.  They have always been my ultimate favorite candle.

When I started blogging, there were a few products that I was already a die-hard ambassador for, without ever needing to have a relationship with that company.  Yankee Candle has always been one of those.  You can see I even included them back in my 2008 Holiday Gift Guide – I have had a long-standing obsession with the candles and it continues to this day.

This year Yankee Candle sent me a few of their holiday scents to try out for myself – and the day that box came I was flat out giddy.   I even tweeted this:

Inside of this gorgeous box I discovered a trio of Yankee Candle’s Newest Holiday Fragrances - Cherries on Snow, Mountain Berry and Christmas Rose.  I love all three of them, but Mountain Berry has to be my ultimate favorite.  Our kiddos loved playing “guess the scent” and wanted to smell them over and over again.  We also received a small tumbler of Warm Woolen Mittens, which has been burning all weekend and smells heavenly.  Lastly, we received a large jar of the Balsam & Cedar wrapped in an adorable gift package, which would be just perfect for gift-giving (ahem, if anyone needs to get me anything else…)!

Have you tried out Yankee Candle yet?  I am not a betting woman, but in this case I would bet money on the fact that you will love them.  I am so excited to announce that I have a set of 3 mini candles in the newest Holiday scents (as seen above) to giveaway to one of my lucky readers!

To enter:

• Visit Yankee Candle and come back here to tell me what your favorite candle scent is!

Extra Entry Methods (leave a separate comment for each):

• Visit Mommy Mandy and enter one of her Holiday Giveaways. Come back here and let me know you did it. (1 entry)
• Visit Our Ordinary Life and enter one of her Holiday Giveaways.  Come back here and let me know you did it. (1 entry)
• Like Yankee Candle on Facebook!  (1 extra entry)
• Follow Yankee Candle on Twitter! (1 extra entry)
• BLOG ABOUT IT!!! 5 entries.
• Tweet this contest.  (1 entry)
• Like Chic Shopper Chick on Facebook. (1 entry)
• List this giveaway on any contest site for 3 entries.
• You can always leave a comment on any non-giveaway post. (1 extra entry per post commented on. just go to “home” posts are up front, please comment on all new posts and leave your extra entry comment)

No purchase necessary to win.  Contest only valid for residents of the US.  Winner to be chosen by random.org on or after November 30th. Winner has 48 hours to respond to notification email or another winner will be chosen.

Disclosure:  Yankee Candle sent me these candles for review.  I already loved them, I knew I would, so I jumped at the opportunity.  These opinions are 100% mine and I’m thrilled to share them with you.  

 

 

2011 Holiday Gift Guide

I’ve scoured the stores, the shelves, and the internet for the hottest gifts for the 2011 Holiday Season.  Together with Kristin of Our Ordinary Life and Amanda of Mommy Mandy, I’m set to bring you the best gifts for everyone on your list for 2011.  So, what are you waiting for — dive in!

2009 Holiday Guide: Keurig Platinum Brewing System {Giveaway CLOSED}

Yesterday I published a guide that included some of my favorite Holiday picks for mom – and it included the amazing, awesome, fabulously incredible (see how many of those I need to express my love?) Keurig Platinum Single Serve Brewing System.

The Single Serve Brewing System really makes my life so much easier because I can make one cup and not waste a whole pot of coffee, and I can also decide if I want coffee, tea, flavored coffee, etc. on a whim.

If you haven’t already read my gushing review you should definitely check it out in the 2009 Holiday Guide – but let’s get down to the nitty gritty of why you’re here — you’re dying to win one of these babies, and I don’t blame you ONE. BIT.

To enter, go check out the Keurig Platinum Single Serve Brewing System and come back here to let me know what your favorite feature is.   For bonus entries you may follow me on Twitter, Tweet about this giveaway (use the little button at the top of the page), subscribe to this site by email (box at the top right hand side of the page),  or you can come to my house and help me with my Christmas baking.  Ok, not the last one.  Just checking to see if you were paying attention.

Fine Print:  Giveaway ends December 26th, 2009 at 11:59pm CST.  Winner to be chosen at random.  Please leave a vaild email address in the appropriate box so that we may contact you should you win.

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Don’t forget to check our the Technology section of the guide for some suggestions for the tech-loving people in your life as well as some of our newest giveaways, like the LogMeIn iPhone App Giveaway, our Mophie Juice Pack Air Giveaway, and our iH15 Color Changing iPod/iPhone dock Giveaway as well!

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Disclosure:  These products have been submitted to me for review.  I don’t love every product on the market, by FAR, but I write about the ones that I do love here on my site.  The deal is that I will only recommend things to you that I like, believe in, and would buy myself or tell my friends and family to buy.  My opinions are 100% my own.  It’s how I roll.  For more information, check out my Disclosure Policy.