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Sunshine, Dolphins and a Boat Ride #Brandcation #GulfCoast @CirclePRShawn

Posted by html404 on May 20, 2012
in Animals, Blog Stuff, Business, Travel

On Sunday, May 6, our last and final day of Brandcation, we went on a Dolphin Cruise. We arose at 6-ish in the morning and after a quick breakfast of Dole Fruit Cups and Dunkin’ Donuts we went out to meet the boat at 7am at the dock. Yes, all we had to do is walk down to the dock at the beach where we had the Blogger Olympics. Awesome, eh? It was a beautiful, clear day. We truly couldn’t have asked for a better day. I love dolphins so this was definitely one of the highlights of Brandcation. I have seen them before, but always in captivity. To see dolphins in the “wild” was a new experience. One I will never forget.

Photo courtesy of Trisha at Momdot.

The captain and his crew were very nice and so hospitable and accommodating. They truly made the boat ride more pleasant for our group. From making themselves available to take pictures, to the informative tour guide to even allowing a few of the ladies be “captain” for a few minutes each. They got to steer the boat all by themselves! It was great!

Captain: Nicole of www.WriteSpell.com Photo courtesy of Trisha at Momdot.

We thoroughly enjoyed the conversations, the breeze in our faces and the gorgeous view of “The Sound” as we kept our eyes open for dolphins. When that time came, the captain actually gave me for spotting the first dolphin. One person thought they had seen something, then as I scanned the water I spotted a dolphin and the captain and crew member confirmed it. From there on out we just followed their path.

The water was calm and that green/blue that you see in photos in the tropics. Just beautiful. The dolphins were in smaller pods and one pod had a baby. For a while the dolphins were at a distance but the further we went out the closer we got to them. It was totally awesome. I took mostly video because it was too hard to snap a photo and make sure I actually got one of a dolphin before it disappeared beneath the water again.

I am relieving this whole experience now and it is such a fun, relaxing memory. Thank you Circle PR for providing this opportunity!

Enjoy the videos!

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Stargazing #Brandcation #GulfCoast

Posted by html404 on May 19, 2012
in Blog Stuff, Business, Education, Free Stuff, Fun Stuff, Travel

I have to finish telling you all about the rest of my Brandcation trip now that my house is quiet. My last post was about our trip to Adventures Unlimited, which we did during the day on Saturday, May 5. Two weeks ago today actually. Then after a dinner of subs we went stargazing. I don’t know what I expected but it was better than I anticipated and I thoroughly missed having my family with me because they would have loved it. Especially my husband and my second oldest daughter as she studies astronomy for fun and often coaxes us outside to see what she sees, but I don’t always see it that’s the problem!

Dewey and his friends had their telescopes and binoculars all set up in stations for those of us attending, which not only included our group but a few others as well. We were there to see what is known as the Super Moon. At the first station I went to Dewey actually had an accessory that enabled us to attach our iPhones to the telescope and take pictures and video It was so neat. I was able to text video and photos to my husband so they could share in the experience in real time, but of course from home. Dewey even put a screen on the telescope so he could make the moon look red, but I cannot remember why.

I believe the next station was of Venus and the clouds were covering it at the time so while I tried to see it, it was too late. Then at the next one I was able to use these huge binoculars to look at the moon, I believe. See already starting to forget little details like that! Getting to look at Saturn was very cool and I so wished I could have got a picture of that but Amy from Grinning Cheek to Cheek did and offered to share.

The last telescope was huge and it was powered by the man’s truck battery, which I didn’t know they could do but it doesn’t surprise me as much as it struck me funny in an ironic sense that it could be done.

The beach was beautiful that night with a gentle breeze and full moon. I wished my husband was there for a romantic walk on the beach, but alas I enjoyed seeing the Gulf side of Portofino Island with Sheri from Kidsumers, Johanna from Mama Chocolate, Lisa from Between the Kids, Amy and a few others that I am probably forgetting were also on the boardwalk with us. I actually did go down to the water very briefly as it is said sharks feed at night and because of so many stories of sharks being close to shore in Florida and I did not want to be a shark snack. Therefore, I quickly felt the water because I wanted to see how cold it was at that time of night – it was warm! Much different than what I am use to coming from living on the Atlantic side for more than half my life, that’s for sure!

Many thanks goes out to Dewey and Escambia Amateur Astronomers Association for sharing their knowledge and time with us! It was amazing. It has motivated me to find local astronomers here to get help learning how to use a telescope that was given to us – thanks to one of Dewey’s friends for suggesting I do that! Oh and by the way Dewey and his friends do this on their own time and for FREE! How awesome is that?

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Quick Travel Tip

Posted by html404 on May 10, 2012
in Reviews, Safety, Travel

I have vacation on the brain! This is just a quick travel tip because it always annoys me that I never have anything appropriate to carry knives in while traveling. Plastic bags aren’t safe nor to they hold up if the knife goes through the bag. You may wonder why I would even travel with a knife, it is to cut up fruit especially and occasionally veggies. I do have a bread knife that has a cardboard sheath, but I do not usually need a bread knife while traveling unless we take homemade bread. More likely than not we just stop at a grocery store at our destination and pick up bread so it is not squished beyond belief.

Back to knives, there’s a neat little product on the market called the Quick Split that solves the safety issue of traveling with knives.

Benefits:
– portable
– faster
– easier to use
– has a snap on “child proof” cover to keep mess contained while traveling, but a simple rinse with water would make it good as new
– attaches to a key ring holder in diaper bag
– dishwasher safe
– super quality BPA free plastic – bonus!
– stainless steel
– made in the USA

It looks just like a pizza cutter. My daughters used it for lunch the other day when we got it and found it was great for carrots, but the other fruit or veggie they found difficult.

This is a patented gadget and is the first of its kind on the market! Definitely fills a need in our house for traveling!

Feel free to connect with Quick Split on their website or Facebook.

Enter the Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

“I received a Quick Split to review as a part of my participation in a MomPact.com campaign. Quick Split has been invented by moms, for moms.”

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Zip Lining at Adventures Unlimited #Brandcation #GulfCoast @AdventuresUnLtd

Posted by html404 on May 10, 2012
in Blog Stuff, Fun Stuff, Travel

My photo taken from my iPhone.

On Saturday at Brandcation we went to Adventures Unlimited in Milton, Florida. They have been in business for 36 years! They own 88 acres of beautiful land, with even an old school house that was renovated into overnight accommodations. They bought it at an auction, moved it to their property and fixed it up! Would have loved to have seen that! And as their name denotes: they have Adventures Unlimited. A relatively new activity, which they added two years ago, is fast becoming one of their most popular activities – Zip lining!

This was our zip line group. Everyone from my condo, plus Joy from Joyful Musings:

We spent the whole day there with Adventures Unlimited providing us a box lunch – yummy! The morning we spent zip lining. I admit I am not very adventurous and was really hesitant about even going to Brandcation because of zip lining, however, I went on the practice line and nearly took my arms out of their sockets due to panicking Seriously, one of the guides warned me if I did what I did by grabbing the line he’d have to ground me. Not sure if that was said just to discourage me from panicking again or if he was serious. By the way the guides were both great. Courteous, ready to assist with gear etc.

The problem with my zipping is that there is a technique to braking on the line and let’s just say I did not have it down after one trip down the practice line. Even though my legs shook and my tummy churned, I walked to the first big line. Let’s just say it was high…

This was the first zip line “tower”:

Let’s just say that when Sheila made her way back down the spiral stairway, I did too. If I nearly jerked my arm out of joint on the practice run, what would I do on the larger runs? Nah-uh, not for me. If I could do anything again, it would be the practice run because seriously it wasn’t too high and maybe I could eventually learn how to brake with my hand, right? Thankfully, the owner was very understanding, saying it wasn’t for everyone. He offered to take Sheila and I down to the river to see our group when they came in from the nine zip lines they were doing that day. Sheila declined but I went and it was so peaceful. I could hear the lines “zipping” and the surroundings were beautiful. I just loved being out in God’s wonderful creation. I took pictures of the river and got video footage of our whole group zipping on the last line.

This is of Denise, the first one to zip this line.

The majority of ladies thoroughly enjoyed the zip lining, even those who had a fear of heights. They were the ones who felt empowered because they had overcame their fears. The last 900 ft line was the best from what I heard and many wanted to do that one again and again!

The afternoon we spent on the river tubing 4 miles. It was so much fun! I loved chatting with the ladies, laughing at myself as I flopped on and off my tube and racing with Paula and Maryann – they were the “Queens” of the river! We maneuvered stumps, shallow water, an island and rocks – more adventures and sore shoulders! But I loved it because I love nature and the water, which was a refreshing 70 degrees.

My photo taken with my iPhone.

It truly was a wonderful day and it was awesome of Adventures Unlimited to sponsor our day! Feel free to connect with them at their website, Facebook or Twitter.

Other photos courtesy of Brandy Goleman Photography

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Blogger Olympics at #Brandcation #GulfCoast Thanks to @JambuFootwear

Posted by html404 on May 9, 2012
in Blog Stuff, Fun Stuff, Travel

I was one of the last ones to arrive at Brandcation on Friday afternoon. There were about four of us who were latecomers. After we arrived it was basically time to start Blogger Olympics. We were all put on teams in advance according to condos. 4 condos = 4 teams. I was on Lynsey’s team, Beachin’ Bloggers in blue, along with my other condo mates. Then the other three teams were: Trisha’s team was SEO’s in white, Kim’s team Ladybugs in red (they had adorable red wings even!) and Nicole/Blondie’s team Snark Attack in pink. Our four team leaders are also the fabulous women behind this event.

Photos courtesy of Brandfluential and Brandy Goleman Photography, our photographer for the weekend.

We did everything from a digital scavenger hunt to building White House sand castles, water relay, a hula hoop competition (my teammate Denise won that one! Yay! She rocked!) to the Hawaiian relay (had to dress in a grass skirt, necklace and coconut bra thingy!)

Jenn, my teammate, getting read for Hawaii!

We laughed, cheered and I even chased Alison to try and get a photo of her fruity drink for the digital scavenger hunt. Just plain old fun!

In the end, the SEO’s won. Runner ups in order: Snark Attack, Ladybugs and Beachin’ Bloggers. We were last, but hey that didn’t affect our level of fun!

A sheep trophy was awarded to the winning team, the rest of us received a Brandcation medal for our prize.

You are going to be hearing a lot about Brandcation. We had amazing sponsors and all of us really want to show our appreciation to each and everyone of them. Jambu Footwear was the main sponsor of the Blogger Olympics. Check out their snazzy footwear and please consider following them on Twitter and Facebook too.

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Back from #Brandcation & @PortofinoIsland #GulfCoast

Posted by html404 on May 8, 2012
in Blog Stuff, Travel

I had a lovely weekend away at Brandcation in Florida. We stayed at Portofino Island Resort and it was beautiful! The white sand beaches, the clear water and gorgeous views of the “Sound” (kind of like a bay but not, and it’s what is shown in the photos of this post) and the Gulf of Mexico. I had never been to this part of Florida before and would love to go back again….with my family so they can experience all that I did! As it was I was texting my husband, sending photos and videos so they all could see what I was seeing.

The resort not only had beach access, but a outdoor water park right in the water at the beach area and each one of the five towers had their own pools. There was also a spa and cafe/restaurant on site as well.

Portofino Island Resort was spectacular. It was clean, snazzy and the service was excellent. Truly topnotch accommodations. For 32 bloggers we had four rooms with eight women in each. Each room had three bedrooms and each bedroom had its own bathroom, I think, at least ours did! We also had a walk-in closet and the master bedroom had an even larger bathroom and walk-in closet! Then there was the living room/dining room, a kitchen and laundry room. Very spacious.

Even though we did not have time to use all of the amenities offered, it is definitely a place I would visit again.

Check them out on the web, Facebook and Twitter.

All photos are mine, unless otherwise stated. I was too lazy to watermark them! And in the words of my daughter, please do not steal them! If those that steal photos even read blog posts!

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5 Tips for Family Vacation Traveling

Posted by html404 on May 7, 2012
in Diapers and Accessories, Reviews, Travel

We have not taken a family vacation in a number of years. We’ve enjoyed staycations right here at home. However, I am really hoping to surprise my husband with a real vacation this year or next. The last time we took a vacation it was on the fly. Seriously. My mom and her best friend were here visiting. My mom is a huge country music fan and has always wanted to visit Nashville. Mom and her friend were here during my husband’s unemployment so while I was all gung-ho to take my mom to Nashville, my husband was not too sure we could swing it. I think I finally convinced him by telling him that we had our hotel points to use and we would eat if we were at home anyways, so it was just our gas money that would be an expense.

At that time I was house cleaning to earn extra income on top of getting my VA business off the ground and that Friday morning I had to clean a house. When I returned from cleaning my husband decided we were going to Nashville for the weekend! Oy! I was excited, but a bit unprepared to say the least. My husband, children, mom and “Aunt” had done most of the packing but there was food and other items to buy.

This is not the way I usually plan our family vacations. I have been known to make lists, print them off and hand them to children to gather things on the list so my husband or I could pack the items in bags or in the van.

Here are 5 tips for family vacation traveling or planning tips, if you will:

1. Make lists of what you will need in the areas of clothing, personal care products and food. That way you won’t forget anything, unless you forget to put it on the list!

2. Take a crock pot and food items that can be warmed in it so you can save money on eating out. We also take fruit, veggie sticks and other snack items as well because you can never know how expensive food will be at your destination.

3. Choose a lodging that offers you at least a refrigerator so you can store food.

4. Plan your activities for your family vacation before you leave so you can budget time and finances accordingly.

5. Plan on using more convenience items, after all it is your vacation too. One example of this would be in the area of food like a family sized can of chili or baked beans. Another would be the DiaperBud. It is a disposable diaper in a vacuum sealed package that is compact, easy to store in your purse, diaper bag, pocket or glove compartment. It’s really hard to stuff a normal diaper in the pocket of a jacket, even some purses won’t accommodate a diaper nicely. Also, the larger packs of DiaperBuds could save room while traveling. DiaperBuds are available at buybuyBaby, BabiesRUs.com, diapers.com and Amazon.com

Family vacations are a lot of work, but with proper planning it can definitely be enjoyable for all, including mom and dad!

“I received a DiaperBud to review as a part of my participation in a MomPact.com campaign. DiaperBuds have been invented by moms, for moms.”

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Motivation Monday: Brandcation…here I come! #GulfCoast #Brandcation

Posted by html404 on April 30, 2012
in Blog Stuff, Business, Monday Motivation, Travel

This week’s Motivation Monday post is to prepare to head to Brandcation in Pensacola, FL on Friday. I will be gone for the weekend. Looking forward to learning from some professional bloggers. I am especially interested in finding out how they have grown their blogs from part-time income to full-time income, as this is one of my goals for this year. I am also excited to see the ocean again. Having grown up on Atlantic coast I get a hankering for a trip to the ocean every summer, as it’s been 7 years since I saw it. It’s been 11 years since I have been to Florida, but I have never been to Pensacola. Doesn’t the photo of Portofino below look gorgeous? Definitely looking forward to the beautiful views!

I will be leaving my crew in the capable hands of my husband, who will have my girls to help him run the household while I am gone. I’d be lying if I said I don’t have qualms about heading off by myself. The mommy guilt over leaving my 20 month old, who happens to be still nursing as strong as an infant several times a day and thru the night. I look at him and I will miss him, his cuddles and smiles. I comfort myself with the fact that I will be barely gone 48 hours. My husband says he will be armed with chocolate milk to comfort our little guy while I am away. Chocolate milk is something my husband loves and that he will bring home and share (sometimes) with the little ones. More recently it’s been baby to prepare him for when I am gone.

Brandcation has been planned by 3-4 awesome ladies and so many sponsors that it is incredible! HotelCoupons.com is a major sponsor, as is Adventures Unlimited, Circle PR, Jambu Shoes, Stargazing, Portofino Condo, and Dunkin’Donuts. There are many other sponsors who sponsored other bloggers to attend or have provided lots of different samples and products for us to try. I will be mentioning them in upcoming posts. We will be having a PJ party on Friday to talk about all the amazing brands and see all the items that were sent especially to us for this event. A huge thank you goes out to each and every one of them for making this event possible! We are all in awe and so very grateful to be attending Brandcation 2012!

I am sure I will have many new stories to share upon my return, so stay tuned!

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Mommy Vacation, Blog Vacation, Brandcation

Posted by html404 on March 29, 2012
in Blog Stuff, Travel

I will admit I am pretty much a home body. My husband and I are not apt to go on dates or it’s very rare. I have never gone anywhere overnight without my children. I heard some of you *gasp*! The closest I have come to doing so is when I went home to Canada when my dad was sick back in 2002, even then I had a 4-month old with me! However, that is about to change come May 4-6th when I attend the 3rd Annual Brandcation Bloggers Gone Coastal. Call it a mommy vacation, it won’t really be a blogging vacation since I will still be doing some social media stuff, besides the whole event is centered around bloggers and blogging! I have never attended a blogging event either and am very excited and nervous now that I have taken the step of faith bought my ticket, paid for my lodging and booked my airfare! I have never met any of these women except for our online interaction, but I have learned a lot from many of them.

Brandcation

What is Brandcation anyways? It an annual event that is only open to a select few bloggers – only 30 tickets are sold. Once they are gone, they are gone. I got one of the last few, I cut it that close! Only about 5 PR tickets are sold. Incredible brands sponsor this event to keep costs low for the attendees and an amazing group of women organize all the activities! (Thanks Trisha, Lynsey and Kim! And any others behind the scenes!)

There are no classes or workshops, all networking is done in conversation making it personal, enabling attendees and PR to connect face to face real life style.

I have wanted to go the last two years but have been unable to due to being pregnant and having a baby under a year. I still can’t believe I am going this year!

Let the Fun Begin!

P.S. If you happen to be a brand or company reading this and think my blog compliments your product or service, I am seeking sponsors for this event. Please contact me for more details about partnering with me to share your brand with 30 other bloggers. Thanks!

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Factory Tours USA

Posted by Brande on March 29, 2012
in Deals, Education, Family Stuff, Free Stuff, Fun Stuff, News Worthy, Parenting, Saving Money, Thrifty Thursday, Travel

Spring Break and Summer are getting close, what are your plans? With gas prices soaring and admission into places doesn’t seem to be getting any lower, family fun is getting expensive! Try this site Factory Tours USA . I did a spot check and from what I could see, most of the Factory Tours are FREE, granted I’m sure most have a gift store at the end. By going on a tour, you and your family are having fun and don’t even realize they are learning! There are many great places to visit. There are just about 50 categories ranging from candy to racing teams to musical instruments to mines and mining. You can search by state too. Here’s the website! http://www.factorytoursusa.com

Happy & Safe Travels!