Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Official Member of the USFamilyGuide blog network!

I am proud to announce that I am an "Official" Member of the USFamilyGuide blog network.

I will be working with them to bring you reviews on upcoming events and attractions on Long Island.

I look forward to bringing you honest reviews in the future:)

Have a happy and safe 4th of July.

Please visit USFamilyGuide.com America's Family Network.

A Few More Worst Travel Fears...

So, I realized in follow up to my previous post about my "5 Worst Travel Fears" that I have some more and they may not be necessarily for me but fears of others.

As I said before Growing up we traveled a lot. My Dad always taught us to get Travel Insurance because you never knew. Most trips are booked so far in advance, things come up, illness, job, etc. and it is good to be prepared.

I can't say enough how important Insurance is either for Business Trips, School Trips, Family Vacations, or a little bit of all vacations/trips.

More of Worst Travel Fears:

1. Business Meeting Cancelled

2. Summer School - What if you plan a trip for the summer and you find out your child has to go to mandatory summer school?

3. Traffic - It happened to us, we almost missed our cruise because our flight was cancelled the morning that the cruise was to leave. So we took a flight to the closest place we could get to then rented a car. My Dad drove all day to get us to the port but there was so much traffic we almost missed the ship. As we were pulling up to the port, the warning horn blew that it was about to leave. After that, my parents never booked a flight the morning a cruise was to leave.


Every Trip Should Be Insured! For your Travel Insurance Needs Visit TravelInsure.com

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Advance Presale for Disney On Ice presents Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 3!

Advance Presale for Disney On Ice presents Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 3!

New Patriotic Pillow Pet Gives Back...


If you have a child and that child has watched television you know that they’ve seen the commercial for Pillow Pets! My own daughter has begged me for months for one. The wonderful people at Pillow Pets have designed a Patriotic Pup just for a limited time over the Independence Day holiday. This special pup is not only adorable but the purchase of this pet sends $5 into the Military Scholarship Fund for Children charity! Here is more info!

Your heart beats true for the red, white and blue and your child’s heart pumps for My Pillow Pets® plush folding stuffed animals. This Fourth of July, honor those who serve your country and your child with the purchase of a special, limited edition My Pillow Pets® plush folding stuffed animal with $5.00 of the cost donated to Scholarships for Military Children, an organization that provides scholarships to the children of military personnel.

The Scholarships for Military Children Program is primarily funded through the generosity of manufacturers and suppliers whose products are sold at military commissaries, worldwide. Military families are encouraged to take advantage of their commissary benefits that not only provide a savings of more than 30 percent on the products purchased, but also support the military community through programs such as this scholarship. My Pillow Pets® is proud to be a supporter of Scholarships for Military Children.




Buy It: A unique website has been created for these special, patriotic My Pillow Pets®- www.MyPillowPetsGives.com. Only 3,000 of the limited edition My Pillow Pets® plush folding stuffed dogs are available at a price of $24.95 plus $6.95 shipping & handling. Remember for every purchase you make, $5.00 will get donated to the Military Scholarship Fund for Children!

Sunday, June 27, 2010

My 5 Worst Travel Fears...

So, I was reading about a company called Travel Insurance Services and would like to share my 5 Worst Travel Fears.

Growing up we traveled a lot. My Dad always taught us to get Travel Insurance because you never knew. Most trips are booked so far in advance, things come up, illness, job, etc. and it is good to be prepared.

We are going on a family cruise next year and with so many different people going plus the cruise being expensive, my dad knew right away Travel Insurance was a given.

So here are my 5 Worst Travel Fears:

1. Flying!- I hate to fly but I do it.

2. Weather - That we will have a major snow storm or Hurricane when we are leaving for our trip

3. Job Projects - A project at work that would prevent one of us from going on vacation.

4. Illness - Someone getting sick right before we are about to travel preventing us from going on our trip

5. Delays - Whether it be because our own lateness or travel snap foos.


Every Trip Should Be Insured! For your Travel Insurance Needs Visit TravelInsure.com

Monday, June 14, 2010

My Review of L'oreal Touch-On Highlights...

I always have had blonde highlights in the past during the summer months done by a salon. Things have changed since the 2 kids and I have been trying to dye my own hair but had yet to find a good product for highlights. I have dark brown hair and the highlight products were just not strong enough for my hair coloring.

Out comes L'oreal Touch-On Highlights and a $3 off coupon I figure what the heck, it's just hair, let's have some fun And for $9.99 perfect!

It is very simple directions and very simple to mix. It is blue dye so it helps you see where you are putting it. It comes with a little blue fingertip comb that you dip into the dye. Seems simple, no. It doesn't really get a lot of dye on it so you really have to dip it in more like a spoon and spoon it out. It got a little tricky when I had to do the right side with my right hand (because I am right-handed) and it was getting a little tangled but I was getting the dye on and that was my goal at the moment

I did chunkier patches because that is what I prefer. Do with it what you will.

I checked after the recommended 15 mins and it was not light enough. My hair is dark so I guessed it would take longer then the min time. I then checked back in at the maximum amount of time of 30 mins. Looked ok.

Washed it out, used Step 3 Conditioner the kit comes with and blew my hair dry.

It came out better then expected but nothing compared to a salon. It is very brassy and in the directions it states that they sell a product to take the brassy out but I think I will just see what happens in the next few days.

School is out and I am going to be home this week so not many people will see me

All and all I would try this product again but I would do thinner pieces of hair and really make sure that I get the dye on the entire strip of hair. I might also try a step down in color.

Here are some pictures from along the way:





Saturday, June 12, 2010

Carnival Miracle 2008

So as we have just begun to plan our Cruise in 2011, I have come across all the documents ie: Carnival Capers, Maps of Ports, and have decided to start scanning them all and sharing them with other cruisers.

Since most of the people that probably read this blog are from NY, this cruise sails out of NY and these documents may be helpful with your planning.

Here is a link to the album where I will be adding all the scans.

Carnival Capers, etc

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Today's Funny because I need it:)

Catholic Definitions:

AMEN: The only part of a prayer that everyone knows.

BULLETIN: Your receipt for attending Mass.

CHOIR: A group of people whose singing allows the rest of the Parish to lip-sync.

HOLY WATER: A liquid whose chemical formula is H2OLY.

HYMN: A song of praise usually sung in a key three octaves higher than that of the congregation's range.

RECESSIONAL HYMN: The last song at Mass often sung a little more quietly, since most of the people have already left.

INCENSE: Holy Smoke!

JESUITS: An order of priests known for their ability to find colleges with good basketball teams.

JONAH: The original 'Jaws' story.

JUSTICE: When kids have kids of their own.

KYRIE ELEISON: The only Greek words that most Catholics can recognize besides gyros and baklava. (for you non-Catholics it means Lord have mercy)

MAGI: The most famous trio to attend a baby shower.

MANGER: Where Mary gave birth to Jesus because Joseph wasn't covered by an HMO. (The Bible's way of showing us that holiday travel has always been rough.)

PEW: A medieval torture device still found in Catholic churches.

PROCESSION: The ceremonial formation at the beginning of Mass consisting of altar servers, the celebrant, and late parishioners looking for seats.

RECESSIONAL: The ceremonial procession at the conclusion of Mass led by parishioners trying to beat the crowd to the parking lot.

RELICS: People who have been going to Mass for so long, they actually know when to sit, kneel, and stand.

TEN COMMANDMENTS: The most important Top Ten list not given by David Letterman...

USHERS: The only people in the parish who don't know the seating capacity of a pew.

Little known facts about the Catholic Church in Las Vegas :
There are more churches in Las Vegas than casinos. During Sunday services at the offertory, some worshipers contribute casino chips as opposed to cash.. Some are sharing their winnings - some are hoping to win. Since they get chips from so many different casinos, and they are worth money, the Catholic churches are required to send all the chips into the diocese for sorting. Once sorted into the respective casino chips, one junior priest takes the chips and makes the rounds to the casinos turning chips into cash. And he, of course, is known as 'The Chip Monk'.

Courtesy of lifamilies.com

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Some FAQ's about the 3rd Annual Worldwide Photo Walk...

Q. What is a Photo Walk?
A. It’s a social photography event where photographers get together (usually in a downtown area or trendy section of town) to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers.

Q. When is the 3rd Annual Worldwide Photo Walk™?
A. This year’s Photo Walk event will be held on Saturday, July 24, 2010.

Q. Is there a fee to participate this year?
A. Once again it’s free—there is no fee to join this year’s Photo Walk—just come and have a ball!

Q. How many cities participated last year, and how many photographers did the Photo Walk that day?
A. We had over 900 Photo Walks and over 32,000 people who participated around the world last year! That’s a HUGE leap from the 236 locations and 8,324 people we had the first year.

Q. What happens when a city fills up?
A. It’s full.

Q. How many is full?
A. PhotoWalks are limited to 50 photographers. If that doesn’t sound like a lot, you haven’t seen 50 photographers coming down the sidewalk at the same time, and later all converging at once on a restaurant or pub. It’s more like a scary bike gang (except without the bikes, or gang, or scariness).

Q. Is there a Grand Prize?
A. You betcha!! Details of the prize packages can be found in our Prizes page (Top prize is awarded by Scott to the single best overall photo taken that day, from all the Photo Walk locations around the world).

Q. Are there other prizes?
A. Scott will also pick photos for 10 Honorable Mention prizes, and there will be one People’s Choice award that will be voted on by you! Whatever photo you all vote as your favorite will get a great prize!

Q. Do I have to enter the prize competition?
A. Absolutely not. This is a totally separate part of the experience, and if you don’t want to enter your images, you absolutely don’t have to (it’s just to make the experience more fun). Some people freaked out last year thinking they were required to enter, but just know—you absolutely don’t have to enter your image—you can go and shoot for the day, and never let anyone see your photos. Ever. They can be your private “secret” photos.

Q. Did anyone complain last year about how the winners were chosen?
A. Absolutely. People get pretty cranked if they think their image deserved to be the winner and wasn’t chosen, but Scott’s been one of the Photoshop World Guru Awards judges for 10 years, along with judging other competitions over the years, so he’s kind of used to that response. Surprisingly, he didn’t get one single complaint about the picks from any of the winners.

Q. Where can I share more of my photos from the walk?
A. While you can only submit one image for the contest, you can upload up to five images per day at the Official Flickr Group for the Worldwide Photo Walk right here.

Q. So are you going to try and work some angle so that Orphanage in Kenya gets something out of this?
A. Ahh, you know us too well. Last year Scott was trying to come up with a good tie-in, but luckily one of his blog readers, Rob from Towner Jones Photography, came up with a great idea—we created an official Worldwide PhotoWalk T-shirt. We’re doing it again this year, and 100% of the profits from the sale of any of these t-shirts will go to feeding the kids at the Springs of Hope, Kenya Orphanage. We think it’s a great idea, and we’re so grateful that Rob came up with it! You can buy a shirt right here.

Q. What has been best thing that came out of this whole Worldwide Photo Walk thing?
A. I think it was the fact that so many photographers have not only made new friends, but have gone on to form their own photo walks during the year. This is totally a social event, and that’s why makes it so much fun. Most of the people on my walk had never done a Photo Walk before, but everybody had so much fun, they all wanted to do one again right away. Photo Walks are infectious, because when you get that many creative people together, who all have the love of photography in common, you can’t help but have a great time.


FAQ's written by Worldwide Photo Walk.com

Friday, June 4, 2010

National Doughnut Day Facts from Mahalo.com

National Doughnut Day Facts

Date celebrated: First Friday in June, although some reatilers also promote the day on the following Saturday
Where: Mainly United States; as well as Salvation Army members in other areas
When it began: 1938
Proposed by: The Salvation Army, Chicago

Officially recognized?: Not officially recognized by U.S. Government
Donuts became far more popular after the return of troops from World War I.

Krispy Kreme and Dunkin' Donuts are known to offer giveaways, freebies, and special offers on Donut Day.

Krispy Kreme Donuts creates a special Featured Donut idea regularly.
2008 National Doughnut Day: June 6
2009 National Doughnut Day: June 5
2010 National Doughnut Day: June 4

National Donut Day is an American food holiday celebrating donuts or doughnuts. It falls on the first Friday in June, although some reputable sources write that the first Saturday in June is also considered part of the celebration.

Donuts are a snack made from a sweetened dough, usually consisting of flour, sugar, milk, and some sort of fat or shortening ingredient. Some donuts are raised using yeast, while others are made from a yeast-free dough.


The origin of National Donut Day lies with the Salvation Army and its volunteer work during World War I. It dates back to 1938 when the organization proposed the day in commemoration of this volunteer work, and to raise funds. National Donut Day is generally only popular in the United States, but may be known or publicized by some retailers or food writers outside of the U.S. It is a holiday with a known source, but it is not recognized or endorsed as a national holiday by government.


It seems that donuts existed in the United States prior to the events of World War I, but they were far less ubiquitous and well-known. The explosion in popularity of the doughnut in the United States occurred after World War I, when the huge number of American troops who had come to enjoy the snack staple returned home. The troops even became known as “doughboys”, and the demand for the snack from these returning Americans fueled the mass production of donuts. The relatively low cost of production also assisted the growth in popularity of the snack from the 1920s onward.

National Doughnut Day History
National Donut Day originated in 1938, when the day was established by the Salvation Army as a way to raise operating funds, as well as to honor the work of World War I volunteers. The day was originally observed by the Chicago branch of the Salvation Army, but soon spread throughout the organization, and further.

In August of 1917, with U.S. troops plagued by 36 consecutive days of rain near the front lines, female Salvation Army volunteers wished do something to help the hungry, weary soldiers and raise morale. The female volunteers or “lassies” made the donuts with ingredients on hand, and fried them seven at a time in a soldier’s steel helmet over a stove. The tent providing these donuts became the first 24-hour donut outlet.

Only 100 donuts were made the first day, but they were so popular and well-received that the activity spread out among the volunteers over a much wider area. Soon 9,000 donuts were being made for the troops each day. In many locations the holes for the donuts were made using shells. Reportedly, some pilots even dropped notes requesting that donuts be provided for their troops.

National Doughnut Day Celebration
It’s easy to celebrate National Donut Day. Many retailers hold giveaways, special events, or special offers on donuts in honor of the day, so look out for online or printable coupons, or deals being offered by bakeries, patisseries, or donut retailers. In some cases the promotions are associated with charity donations to the Salvation Army when donuts are purchased. Among many, though, the historical origins of Donut Day are not well-known.


Even without a special offer or freebies, a trip to a bakery or donut outlet to choose one of the many varieties of filled, glazed, or sprinkled donuts is an appealing prospect to many. Others are more partial to one of the more traditional varieties sprinkled with sugar, cinnamon, or both.


Some food holiday observers enjoy using a food holiday as a reason to create a homemade version of the food involved, and share it with friends and family.


Due to its connection with the Salvation Army and charitable work, some may enjoy making charitable donations or volunteering as part of National Donut Day.


Celebrities, politicians and public figures give recognition and support to the activities of the Salvation Army, even though Donut Day is not officially endorsed by a presidential proclamation or official government pronouncement.


Article from Mahalo.com

Happy Free Donut Day!! June 4th, 2010




To RSVP on Facebook, click HERE!

Thank you My *MOM* ents for the find:)

Have a donut of a day:)
Allison