Tag Archives: Holidays

Get Bundled With Restaurant.com’s Holiday Gift Guide And Giveaway

Christmas is just a couple of weeks away.  Can you believe it? We are putting our Christmas tree up today then I will be hard at work figuring out who we need to get gifts for and what to get them. I am so glad I learned about Restaurant.com’s Gift Guide because they share some fabulous gift ideas that everyone on my list will appreciate.  Everyone loves food.  Not just the taste, but the experiences and the memories that come with it.  Why not give your friends and family the gift of those experiences and memories?

Restaurant.com, the nation’s largest dining deals site, loves surprising diners with fun ways to save.  This holiday season, they’ve handpicked delicious dining experiences and gift ideas for every budget and compiled them into an exclusive Restaurant.com Holiday Gift Guide.  Simply pair any Restaurant.com Gift Card with one of these gift bundle ideas below for the ultimate dining experience and holiday treat.

Here are some great gift ideas from Restaurant.com

Restaurant.com Gift Guide

1. The Movie Buff:
For the movie-quoting, obsessed friend, surprise them with two tickets to a movie on their must-see “Oscar” list and a $25 Restaurant.com Gift Card.

2. The Workaholic:
To help someone on your list find much needed tranquility, pair a $50 Restaurant.com Gift Card with soothing bath salts, lavender mist, and a face mask to create an affordable, at-home spa treatment.

3. The Wine Fanatic:
Bring Napa Valley to every wine lover on your list! Pair their favorite wine with decadent cheeses, crackers, and of course chocolate. Then, cleanse their palate with some late night dessert and a $25 Restaurant.com Gift Card.

4. The Romantic:
Add some romance into your holiday with a $50 Restaurant.com Gift Card, bouquet of roses, some irresistible chocolate covered strawberries, and a candlelit dinner for two.

5. The Theatre Lover:
Add some dramatic flair to the holidays with two tickets to their must-see show and end the evening with our $100 Restaurant.com Gift Card – perfect for dinner and dessert.

Be sure to check out Specials by Restaurant.com for more shopping ideas!

Restaurant.com helps you discover the perfect dining experience and boasts nearly 50,000 dining deals available every day to use anytime hunger strikes, even on the weekends! And, the deals are easy to use – present your certificate to the server on your mobile phone, or bring a printed copy, and voilà – the savings will appear on your final bill.

Restaurant.com is having a giveaway on their Facebook page!  Five (5) lucky Facebook fans will have a chance to win one of the gifts featured in their gift guide every Wednesday until December 18, 2013. Head on over for your chance to win! Good luck!

Connect with Restaurant.com

Not A Wine Connoisseur? Join The California Wine Club And Impress Your Holiday Visitors! | @CAWineClub

The California Wine ClubMy father is still in the dark when it comes to my recent acquisition of wine knowledge.  He may event think that I have been studying on the subject of wine.  I have the most fabulous partner in crime, The California Wine Company who through their Premier Monthly Wine Club, sends me two bottles of wine along with a newsletter that educates me about different vineyards and the wines they sent so I appear be a wine connoisseur, every month.  You too can be a wine Connoisseur!  It’s easy and affordable through The California Wine Club.  With the holidays coming up, I’m sure you will have a lot of visitors at your home so why not make it easy on yourself and join the club and have wine delivered to your door?

Through the Premier Wine Club’s monthly newsletter and The California Wine Club’s website, I learn something new about wine and wineries every time I receive a monthly wine shipment.  The California Wine Club has been in business for 20 years and travels the California wine country to find the best wines before they make it to local stores.  The small vineyards that The California Wine Club gets their wine from produces the best wine California has to offer.

Since 1990, club owners Bruce and Pam Boring have traveled California’s wine country searching for limited-production wines from small, family-owned wineries dedicated to the art of making fine wine. Whether for yourself or a gift, CWC membership is an adventure in wine tasting that will not be experienced anywhere else.

The California Wine Club ReviewLast Month’s Wine Shipment

Last month, our shipment included two wines from the Robledo Family Winery.  We opened the award winning 2008 “Seven Brothers” Lake Country Sauvignon Blanc first as we had planned a light fish dinner that evening and I understand that this wine would go well with our dinner.   The mango and honeysuckle aromas blended with the taste of green tea citrus and lemongrass make this wine a rich wine that pairs well with fish and light salads.

The second wine we opened, a few days later, (we’re not lushes) is a 2009 “Seven Brothers” Napa Valley Tempranillo.  I enjoy the look of a red wine more than white.  There is something more festive and romantic about a red wine.  This Tempranillo has a rich cranberry, blackberry, cinnamon, spice, and toasted oak aroma.  The flavors of dried black fruit, toasted cedar, product a rich finish.

I prefer the sweet taste and aroma of the Sauvignon Blanc while my husband preferred the Tempranillo.

You can really impress friends and family this holiday season by offering them award-winning wine while being knowledgeable.

The California Wine Club newsletter is a great tool for a wine novice like myself.  For example, in this month’s newsletter a reader asked the owners “which wines have you featured in the past and how can I reorder them?”. Through the readers questions, I learned that each newsletter features a page of wines that have been featured in the past which can be reordered AND comes with a 100% guarantee.

Not sure what to order?

The California Wine Company encourages mixed case orders in increments of 6 or 12.  Creating and mixed case order will allow you to order at least 6 wines that your friends and family (over 21 of course) are sure to find a suitable wine for themselves to enjoy.

A membership for The California Wine Club’s Premier Monthly Wine Club makes a great gift!

Connect with California Wine Club:

Enter to win prizes from The California Wine Club!

At the end of November CWC will draw 52 winners and then at the end of December they will draw another 52 winners.Prizes include:
1) One of four, Three Month Wine Club memberships (A $150 value you can give as a gift, or keep for yourself)
2) One of 50 handy Two Bottle Wine Totes ($25 value)
3) One of 50 Red Tulip Music wine country CD’s ($15 value)Enter to win this California Wine Club page

This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. All thoughts are my own.  I received a 2 month Membership to the California Wine Club for the purpose of this review.

Join me at the @Kmart @KmartFashion Holiday Fashion Twitter Party Wednesday 11/30 8-9:30 ET #KmartChat

Kmart Fashion Twitter Party

Join us on Twitter this Wednesday for a special holiday fashion edition #KmartChat – our experts want to help you look your best at every holiday party this season! This week, we’re talking Christmas accessories, holiday party outfits, and ugly sweaters!

We want to hear your holiday fashion tips and tricks to make this season sizzle!

Here’s a deal you won’t want to miss!

When you purchase $50 or more this week, you get a $5 reward card to spend next week!

WHO

@Kmart AND @KmartFashion

and co-hosts

@StacieinAtlanta @crissy @jollymom @mommyinsider (that’s me)

WHERE

Twitter with the hashtag #KmartChat

WHEN

Wednesday, November 30th from 7-8:30 CT  /  8-9:30 EST

WIN THESE PRIZES

  • One $125 Kmart Gift Card
  • Three $25 Kmart Gift Cards

HOW TO JOIN THE FUN

Leave a comment on the Official Party post on the Kmart website (not on this blog post) with a link to your blog post or Tweet and let us know you are coming.

To enter the sweepstakes you must:

  • Have an active Twitter account
  • Follow the official @Kmart and @KmartFashion Twitter accounts
  • Send the following Tweet: “Join me and @Kmart for #KmartChat – Wed 11/30 from 7-8:30 pm CT talking about Holiday Fashion – How to Enter & Prizes: http://bit.ly/rLHGnj”
  • Post an appropriate, non-duplicative, family-friendly comment on this blog post that also includes a link to your Tweet above.

As always, please read the Official Rules on the party post where you comment.

Disclosure: Sears & Kmart have engaged me to help promote and host this party.

Piper Hurricane Set from Kirkland’s – Review and Giveaway {Ends 10/20} #Giveaway

Kirkland's Hurricane Candle Set

We are lucky enough to have five Kirkland’s stores within 25 miles of us.  My husband and I both enjoy shopping at Kirkland’s because they offer such a variety of home decor items that are appealing to men and women.  He appreciates that the store is not overly feminine.  My husband loves the Piper Hurricane candle holders just as much as I do and we’ve come up with several ways we can use them every day and around holidays.  This Halloween, we are going to fill the small hurricane with fake eye balls (husband’s idea), the large one with pinecones (my idea), and the medium size one with wrapped Halloween candy (the kid’s idea).  Yum!   At Christmas time, we will tie holiday ribbon around the hurricanes and put candles in them.  Imagine how beautiful that will be!  Now, the hurricanes are on our dining room table, making a beautiful center piece.

Busy moms (and dads) will appreciate that the Piper Hurricanes are easy to clean.  Just use a damp cloth or glass spray and wipe any fingerprints right off.  The Piper Hurricanes’ openings are wide enough to put your entire hand into so cleaning them is not a problem.  I’m sure my kids will find a way to make these into scientific beakers or something.. anything that will make a mess!  I wouldn’t be surprised if I find a frog in one of them, one of these days.  That’s the way my kids roll.

Kirkland’s Piper Hurricanes can change the atmosphere of a room instantly!
Put candles or flowers in the hurricanes to set the mood for date night and for a more fun, vibrant look, you can get creative and fill the hurricanes with crayons, candy, or cookies.

About the Piper Hurricanes, Set of 3

  • Set includes a 7 inch, 10.5 inch, and 14 inch high hurricane
  • Crafted of glass
  • Metal inserts in a bronze finish sit inside clear, glass hurricanes
  • Unique, “floating” design
  • Accommodates 3” pillar or sphere candles; candles sold separately

Priced at just $22-$29, Piper Hurricanes will make a great gift – so order a set for yourself and for a friend.

Connect with Kirkland’s

Giveaway!

To enter to win a set of 3 Piper Hurricanes (candles not included) from Kirkland’s fill out the Rafflecopter form below.

Official contest rules on Kirkland’s website
Continue reading Piper Hurricane Set from Kirkland’s – Review and Giveaway {Ends 10/20} #Giveaway

EcoMaids of Marietta house cleaning – just in time for the holidays

EcoMaids of MariettaOK, moms.. I know your stressing about Thanksgiving and the holidays.  What exactly is causing your stress?  Here’s my list:

  • Finding and buying gifts for everyone
  • Planning travel
  • Decorating the house
  • Making, buying, mailing holiday cards
  • Cleaning – that’s a doozy!

I am going to go out on a limb and guess that your list is similar to mine.   If it’s not, leave your list in the comments below.. I’d love to know what I’m forgetting to stress about!

I recently crossed one item off of my stress-list – cleaning. The lovely folks at Eco Maids of Marietta deep cleaned my house and made it look like we don’t have an 11 and 4 year old inhabiting our place.  The poor cleaners even witnessed my husband catch a huge spider in the den.  I felt terrible that they had to see that and it was right after they arrived too.

Getting ready for EcoMaids was quite a task.
Here’s a snippet of a conversation I had with my  husband and two kids the night before EcoMaids was coming:

Me: Alright guys, we have to clean the house.  The cleaners are coming tomorrow.

My 11 year old son: Oh, Mom!

Me: No really.. get up to your room and pick everything up!

My 11 year old son: But Mom.. that’s what they do, right?

Me: Come on.. just do it!  I am going to tell them to throw away whatever they find on your floor, dresser, under your bed, and on your nightstand.  They are coming to CLEAN, not straighten up after you!

My husband: (with a surprised look on his face) Alright, let’s go clean up.  We have to get ready for the cleaners.

The EcoMaids cleaners were at our house for about 5 hours.  That’s how detailed they are.  It was so nice to see shiny baseboards, clean appliances, dust-free ceiling fans, and made beds.  The relief my husband and I felt when we looked around the house for the first time after the cleaners left, was immense.  I am so thankful for EcoMaids and know you will be too!

EcoMaids of Marietta

EcoMaids of Marietta services the majority of Cobb County and the immediate surrounding areas and has been green cleaning in Cobb County since August of 2009.  EcoMaids’ products and services are safe for kids, pets and our planet. They use Green Seal Certified solutions and methods, multi-level HEPA-filter vacuums, and microfiber tools and cloths.  All of EcoMaids of Marietta’s employees are screened, bonded, and insured, as well as trained in the most progressive green cleaning techniques.

EcoMaids attention to detail is unmatched. Superior service, Competetively Priced, & We’re Green! You cannot go wrong.

Leave the cleaning to EcoMaids and spend more time with the people you cherish most.

Get a free estimate online or call us today at (770) 427-0066.

EcoMaids of Marietta websiteEcoMaids website

EcoMaids of Marietta Twitter page EcoMaids of Marietta Twitter