Busy Mom in Iowa -

L’Oreal One Sweep Eye Shadow & Double Extend Eye Illuminator Mascara review

April 11, 2011 by sitedandblogged

Anyone that knows me, knows that I am running down to the last second getting me and my two boys up and running in the morning. I tend to go in streaks on taking the time to put makeup on in the morning. So the time saving is what peaked my interest for the L’Oreal One Sweep Eye Shadow. I love how it puts three colors on your eyes in one sweep. There is a specially designed applicator that is shaped to fit the shape of your eye so it really is really as simple as one sweep!! No matter what color your eyes are, there is a One Sweep Eye Shadow meant just to enhance your eye color. I didn’t really see much difference in Double Extend Eye Illuminator Mascara if I used the little sparkles or not, but otherwise the mascara did its job also! I’m no makeup expert, but I am going to recommend the One Sweep Eye Shadow to all of my friends!

*Please note, I am a BzzAgent and received these products for free in order to provide my feedback.

Filed Under: Busy Mom in Iowa, Double Extend Eye Illuminator, Eye Shadow, L'Oreal, Mascara, One Sweep

Busy is an Understatement

March 20, 2011 by sitedandblogged

Calling my life busy right now just doesn’t cover it….

Started my next class last week. The homework due on Wednesday is INSANE! Plus we have a group project due on the 30th and we haven’t even started and can’t find a time where the whole group can meet. I’m just a little stressed. But the teacher promised us that she loads us up in the beginning so we aren’t so busy in the end (it’s only 5 weeks long…can’t we just spread it out evenly?).

I’m also a new member of a women’s sorority, and we had a meeting on Thursday night, so I wasn’t home two nights in a row.

I couldn’t tell you what I did yesterday, but it wasn’t homework! I did get the living room cleaned and most of the laundry washed. Now I just have to fold it and put it away.

Today my sorority had a family outing at the local bowling alley. It was a great time, first time Caiden has even been bowling in a REAL bowling alley. Before that, he had only been Wii bowling! Bennett was a little tired and ended up going home early with Daddy for a nap while Caiden and I finished our games. Caiden didn’t do too bad either (of course he had the help of the gutter bumpers). Wished I would have brought my camera so I could have recorded him throwing the ball. He sure has a style all his own!

And speaking of the camera, I need to get it out and get a video of Bennett walking. He’s going to be a pro at it before I get his learning steps on camera. I think he is starting to figure out that walking is the way to go!

Filed Under: A Busy Mom in Iowa, bowling, Busy Mom in Iowa, walking

Easily Clean Your Microwave

March 5, 2011 by sitedandblogged

Maybe I’m the last one on earth to figure this out, but did you know there is a natural, non-chemical way to clean your microwave, and you don’t even have to scrub it? Not one little bit!! I was home today doing a major cleaning job for my baby’s first birthday party on Sunday, and the microwave was in dire need of a cleaning. I thought I had read about a natural way to clean your microwave, so I checked google (where else would check?).

This is what you do: Put 1 cup of water and 1/4 cup lemon juice into a glass microwavable measuring cup. Put it in the microwave and cook it on high for 7 minutes. When it is done, let it set without opening the door for another 5 minutes. Then grab your pot holder and remove the measuring cup. Next get a cloth and wipe our your microwave.

It’s as simple as that!! I wonder if it would work on my oven…..

Filed Under: A Busy Mom in Iowa, Busy Mom in Iowa, cleaning microwave, natural cleaner

Week 6 – Not so much

February 7, 2011 by sitedandblogged

Everyday: 5 min walk warm up; 5 min walk cool down

Day 1: Jog 5 mins ~ Walk 3 mins ~ Jog 8 mins ~ Walk 3 mins ~ Jog 5 mins

Day 2: Jog 10 mins ~ Walk 3 mins ~ Jog 10 mins

Day 3: Jog 25 mins

Well, it just wasn’t in the cards for me to complete Week 6 this week. I was able to complete day 1 on Tuesday, without much problem. But because of appointments for the kids, homework, and a day off from work, I wasn’t able to even attempt day 2 until Saturday. I did the first 10 minute jog pretty well, but at about 7 minutes into the second 10 minute jog, I stopped to catch my breath. I tried to start running again after a minute or two, but I was starting to feel light headed. As much as it hurt my ego to throw the towel in and not complete a day for the first time ever….it would have hurt my ego and my body much more to pass out on the treadmill and end up with broken bones and ‘road rash’ down my face!

So, I will start week 6 over again this week. To help in my weight loss, now that my class is over until March, I’m going to add strength training to my schedule on my non-running days. This should help burn off some of the fat. I’m going to be one hurting mama this week I have a feeling!

On the plus side, somehow I managed to lose 2 pounds this week! I have been watching what I eat a little bit better, but I haven’t been perfect.

Filed Under: Busy Mom in Iowa, exercise, fitness tips, Road to Hot Mommy, weight-loss

What?? Can you hear it??

October 11, 2010 by sitedandblogged

Do all men have hearing problems or just the one I live with? I have a rule in my house, the volume does not go above 20…what was the TV just on? 24. I feel like I’m constantly asking hubby to turn down the TV..and I swear he turns it back up when I’m not looking. (Seriously…he JUST did this as I was writing this…he turned the channel I told him it was too loud and looked and it was on 25!!!!)

I know that the commercials are louder than the TV shows, and this is always his excuse (but our Government is working on changing that…thank goodness!) But when the TV is so loud I have to turn up the volume on the baby monitor to make sure I don’t miss my baby crying…that’s too damn loud!!

And while we are on hearing problems and men…of course he also has selective hearing when it comes to me. I can talk to him and when I’m done, he won’t respond. I say his name he gives me a blank stare and a… “what?”

Oh nothing dear, I was just having a conversation with…myself!

Filed Under: Busy Mom in Iowa

Candy Bar Advice

September 28, 2010 by sitedandblogged

I went to my Sister-in-Law’s baby shower yesterday and we played a game I had never heard of. We got a piece of paper that had a list of candy bars and gum names. Using that list we were asked to write our words of advice, using as many names of candy bars or gum that we could. I thought it would be impossible, but after I got a start…I had a great time coming up with more. All of the stories and advice was great, but since I didn’t write them all down, you only get to hear mine…so here it goes….

Being a mommy is not always glamorous. When you clean Goobers, Big Hunks, or Chunky Whoppers of dirty diapers. Get Good and Plenty of sleep when you can to prepare for Marathon sleepless nights. It doesn’t matter if your girl is a Nerd or Smartie, just give her Mounds of Hugs and Kisses. Don’t be a Dum Dum when you Skor with your Sugar Daddy, and be careful, or you might make another Baby Ruth or Junior Mint.

It was such a fun game, and with candy names like Skor, Hot Tamales and Mounds, I’m pretty sure you could come up with a story or advice for a bride to be as well!

Filed Under: Busy Mom in Iowa

Why?

September 9, 2010 by sitedandblogged

Can someone explain to me why women’s sized clothing has to be bright bold patterns or look like it belongs on a 75 year old woman?

Can someone explain to me why you are not able to find hardly any petite length pants or even shirts in women’s sizes? Are there no fat, short people out there in the world other than me? Some of us don’t enjoying having to hem up every pair of pants we own.

I wish I was talented and could be a clothing designer…maybe I could make all my own clothes instead of just having to alter everyone else’s.

Rant over…for now….

Filed Under: Busy Mom in Iowa

Homemade Baby Food

September 6, 2010 by sitedandblogged

Yummy, squash!!

With baby number two, I decided to attempt to make my own baby food. I read all over online and everyone made it sound super simple. My first attempt was green beans. They turned out kinda watery and a little too chunky. I might save them and use them when baby is a little more of a skilled eater.

My second attempt was with butternut squash. This time I do believe I can declare it a total success.

The process really is simple. If I can do it, anyone can. Of course, I did buy a recipe book of sorts…I needed to have the directions in black and white right in front of my face while I was making the food. The book that I used is called The Basic Baby Food Cookbook, which I found on Amazon. It is the absolute basic on how to steam, process and freeze your baby food. Also, it is sorted by the age that your baby should eat certain foods, and lists the different minerals and vitamins your baby is getting when eating each food.

So, how do you do it? Here’s the abbreviated version.

Steam your fruit or veggie until well done….way more soft that you or I would prefer. Do not add any seasonings to the food. You can use either fresh or frozen foods. Don’t get rid of the water in the pan from steaming the food, it has some of the food’s nutrients in it and you will add it to your food when you process it.

Next, let the food cool. When it has cooled, remove skin if needed and then put in your food processor or blender. Add about 2 ozs of the reserved water to begin with and start processing. You may need to add more water, just make sure to do it slowly. I found out the hard way that adding too much water is not very cool.

If you have a baby new to eating baby food, you may want to strain the food before you freeze it. To freeze, just put the processed food into ice cube trays, tap them on the counter to get any air bubbles out and put in the freezer. Once they are frozen, you can put them into a freezer bag, and label them with the food and date you made it. It is good for 3 months!

To serve, put a cube or two into a small bowl, cover it and put it in the fridge overnight. It should be ready for you the next day.

Filed Under: Busy Mom in Iowa

A Child’s Mind

April 2, 2010 by sitedandblogged

It is so funny how a child’s mind works sometimes. We have a friend over tonight that my son likes very much and is always concerned about where is is going if he walks out the door. So the friend decides he’s going to go to the local gas station to get some beer for him and hubby for the night (and also pick me up a Mt. Dew).

So, of course as soon as friend walks out the door, Caiden asks where he is going. I told him he was just going to run to the gas station for a minute, to which I get a series of “whys” from Caiden. After answering as many of the as I can, he goes to the door to check it out for himself. He comes back to me and being 100% serious says “Mom he didn’t run, he took his car.”

Oh, the things kids say….

Filed Under: Blogging, Busy Mom in Iowa

Sleepy Wrap Baby Carrier Review

March 28, 2010 by sitedandblogged

I know that baby carriers have some bad press right now because of the baby sling recall, but not all slings and wraps are bad. In fact, I think most of them are safe as long as you follow the directions of the carrier and wear your baby the way the carrier was intended.

That being said, I wanted to share my experience with the newest baby carrier I have purchased. When I was pregnant, I asked around in my mommy online community to get some recommendations for a baby carrier. I had tried one style with my first son, and it worked ok, but it was difficult for me to use because you had to put the child into the carrier and then finish tying it. I was always afraid I was going to drop my son. Also, my personal preference has always been a wrap type carrier over a sling because I feel that an infant is much safer in a wrap. (This is just my personal feeling, and I felt like this with my first son as well; long before the recall came out.) So after looking into the different types that were recommended to me, I decided to go with the Sleepy Wrap. There were two major reasons I chose this wrap over all of the others:

You tie the wrap completely before you put the child in; and

it is reasonably priced;

It took some practice to tie the Sleepy Wrap correctly. Using the directions provided on Sleepy Wrap’s website, along with a couple of videos I found on YouTube, I finally felt comfortable enough to try putting something in my wrap…but before I put my 2 week old child in it, I started with the Curious George doll that my dog is cuddling with in this post.

Finally, I was ready to actually put Bennett in the wrap. The first time he didn’t like it too much. But about 2 days ago I really had some house work to be done and Bennett was having trouble getting to sleep. So, I got out my Sleepy Wrap, got Bennett all nestled in and started clearing the dishwasher. He was asleep in a matter of minutes and I got all my dishes done!

I absolutely love this wrap. Like I said it takes a little practice to get it tied right, but after you do, it works wonderfully from newborn infant, all the way up to a toddler.

Please note, I was not compensated in any way to write this review. I just wanted let my readers know about this wonderful wrap.

Filed Under: Blogging, Busy Mom in Iowa

L’Oreal One Sweep Eye Shadow & Double Extend Eye Illuminator Mascara review

Busy is an Understatement

Easily Clean Your Microwave

Week 6 – Not so much

What?? Can you hear it??

Candy Bar Advice

Why?

Homemade Baby Food

A Child’s Mind

Sleepy Wrap Baby Carrier Review

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