What The Bleep?! My DWTS Thoughts

I usually don't rant about TV shows on my blog but it is my blog and I feel I need to get some things off my chest after watching tonight's episode of Dancing With The Stars. I am absolutely enraged. If you follow me on Twitter you probably know that already but here's why....

I understand that the show is back down to one night a week and eliminations will now happen the same night as performances BUT why was someone eliminated tonight?? Last week there was performances on Monday and there was an elimination on Tuesday. So why tonight were we eliminating again for last week's performances?? There should have been no elimination tonight and next week there should have been an elimination for this week's performances. Makes sense right?! To add insult to injury one of my favorite contestants this season, Randy Couture was the one to go. He might not have been the best dancer but he was surprisingly a great entertainer and moved well. Not to mention he was really likable. I am hoping they bring him back next week after the backlash over two eliminations on two different nights for the same performance episode. Fingers crossed!

My other beef with the show this season is unfair judging. Everyone seems to be judged on a different scale this year. While Betsey Johnson is amazing for her age she didn't dance better than Alfonso Ribeiro and she got better scores. They are really tough on certain contestants this season and so much easier on others and it's getting downright frustrating.  It just isn't fair.

I am dying to know what you think. Did you think another elimination based off last week's performances was fair? And what do you think of the judging this season?

5 Things I Never Thought I'd Hear My 2 Year Old Say

Isn't she adorable?! Looks all cute and innocent, right?! She may look that way but a lot of the stuff that comes out of her mouth is light years ahead of what a 2 year old should be saying. Here's just a sampling of how this girl cracks me up every single day.

1 - (referring to a burp) "My tongue just farted."
Comedic genius she is!

2 - "I don't wanna watch Mickey! I want to watch Ghosthunters!"
Mind you she has never actually seen Ghost Hunters. Just a commercial.

3 - "Don't worry mom, I'll kill it!"
I am screaming and hiding from a bird size bug and she goes up to it with a shoe and says those brave words. Yeah girl!

4-  (singing) "I'm bring booty baaaack"
Thanks Meghan Trainor. I guess this is my fault though because " All About That Base" is my jam right now.

5- "Mom, it's just pretend. That doll isn't actually a real baby."
She's only 2!! I thought I was doing a good thing trying to play with Liv and her dolls but I was getting more into it than her and I was reminded more than once "it's just pretend."

This is just a snippet of the gems that come out of my daughter's mouth. She certainly keeps life entertaining and I love her oh so much. What words of wisdom have come out of your little one's mouth?! xoxo

Besides sharing these silly little things with you this Monday I also have an amazing giveaway for you to enter, $400 worth of eco-friendly products for mommies and their babies. Read all about the products and enter below. Good luck!!

The Green Scene Mom Awards celebrate niche, eco-friendly products and innovative product designs. We are very excited to announce the 2014 Fall Award Winners! Many of these great companies have also contributed prizes to Green Scene Mom's Fall Awards Giveaway. Enter to win below!

Baby Buddy Tooth TissuesTooth Tissues make cleaning a baby's teeth simple and easy to introduce regular oral care to a young child. Tooth Tissues are the natural first step to brushing a child's teeth after every meal and they're a simple way to ensure a baby isn't negatively affected by oral bacteria. Award Details »

bambu natural utensilsbambu's natural feeding products are an eco-friendly twist on conventional baby utensils. Each product is created to meet a need within the various stages from infancy to childhood and each item is shaped to be easy to use by kids learning to feed themselves. Award Details »

Bumkins Finer Baby ProductsBumkins has a huge selection of eco-friendly products that are available in coordinating prints. Bumkins waterproof bags and cloth diapers are easy to use and clean and help reduce household trash. Award Details »

Buttons Cloth DiapersButtons Cloth Diapers make diapering easy and Eco-friendly. Their new prints are so adorable and feature quality details, sturdy leg gussets, and a simple adjustable snap system that allows the diaper to grow with your baby. Award Details »

Cache Coeur Signature Maternity LingerieCache Coeur offers elegant solutions for pregnancy and nursing to make life more comfortable and stylish. Their lingerie line includes designs that are functional and embellished with feminine details. Award Details »

Cupcake Organic Nursing PadsCupcake Nursing Pads are made from high-quality cotton and are easy to assemble and clean. They offer great coverage in preventing leaks and provide peace of mind while breastfeeding. Award Details »

Cushy CloserCushy Closers are an innovative and streamlined way to keep a door from latching. They are ideal for use on doors to rooms where kids are napping, since the cushion allows the door to be closed but muffles any door closing sounds. Award Details »

Eepples MilkCharmsEepples MilkCharms are designed to help moms easily label, track, and organize their breast milk supply. The MilkCharm is a reusable dial system that lets moms quickly and easily set and read the day and time when breast milk was pumped. Award Details »

Emily Press Write Your Own LabelsEmily Press waterproof labels are an innovative way to create your own personalized labels. Write on the labels with a permanent marker then seal in your writing with the built-in laminate. These dishwasher-safe labels make it easy to personalize or label your items. Award Details »

It's The Balm Pregnancy Pamper KitIt's The Balm Pregnancy Pamper Kit includes belly balm, cooling foot scrub, whipped foot balm, and peppermint lip balm, each created with a combination of natural and essential oils formulated to heal and soothe. Organic raw shea butter, peppermint, eucalyptus, and tea tree oil are among the natural ingredients used in this natural pampering kit. Award Details »

Lotus Everywhere CribThe Lotus Travel Crib by Guava Family is an everywhere crib designed for easy portability and set up. It has mesh breathable sides all the way down to the mattress and a zipper opening in one side for easy access into the crib. The crib can be set up in 15 seconds and it fits into a compact case small enough for a carry-on. Award Details »

Milkies Milk-SaverThe Milkies Milk-Saver collects leaking breast milk as a mom nurses, allowing them to store extra breast milk effortlessly with each feeding. The Milk-Saver collects the milk that is leaked when breast milk lets down. It's slim and portable, minimizes leaks and comes with a durable case. Award Details »

Poncho Baby Roly BlanketsThe Poncho Baby Roly Blanket is a super-soft blanket that rolls into a compact clutch for easy carrying. The blanket is made from a double layer of soft cotton. It rolls up and attaches with a snap fastener. Award Details »

Rubber Ducky & Friends Kids' ShowerheadRubber Duckie & Friends showerheads are a fun way to introduce showering to young children. The character shower heads look like bath toys and help parents transition their kids from bathing in the tub to taking showers on their own. Award Details »

Shaikoo Hands Free TowelThe Shaikoo Towel Wrap was designed to simplify bath time and make baby bathing a fun, safe and relaxing experience. With a simple and durable Velcro-brand fastener around the neck, parents have both their left and right hands available to safely lift, cradle, and dry their wet baby. Award Details »

Strider Sport BikeStrider Bikes are easy to use by toddlers and kids who can't pedal yet. They also allow kids to "skip" the tricycle stage and advance to mastering gliding and balance skills that will help them eventually ride a standard bike. Award Details »

Tubby TableThe Tubby Table is an educational bath play surface for toddlers that suctions in the middle of the tub, giving kids a sturdy and safe surface while keeping water and toys inside the tub. Award Details »

Yummi Gear LunchboxesYummi Gear lunchboxes make it easy to take lunch on the go. They are designed to be easy to open for little fingers and keep lunch organized. Yummi Gear lunchboxes have 3 compartments to keep a sandwich, snacks and fruit separate and ready to enjoy. Award Details »

Zipadee-Zip Wearable BlanketZipadee-Zip helps a baby have the cozy, enclosed, womb-like feel of the swaddle but it allows a baby push up, roll over, and wiggle around safely and freely. It encourages self-soothing and longer, sounder sleep, prevents scratching, and keeps little hands warm all night long. Award Details »

Enter to win this amazing $400 prize package of award winning products!

Baby Buddy Tooth Tissues
Milkies Milk-Saver
CupCake nursing pads + insertable liners
Eepples MilkCharms set of 3
2 Zipadee-Zip wearable blankets
Bumkins 2 Nixi wet bags, 2 reusable snack bags, and 2 Snap-In-One cloth diapers
2 packages Emily Press Write Your Own Classic labels
It's The Balm Vanilla-Sandalwood Spa Kit
Yummi Gear lunchboxes set of 4
Rubber Duckie & Friends Duckie the Duck Bath & Shower Wand
Poncho Baby Roly Blanket
Tubby Table bathtime play table
Buttons Diapers 1 one-size diaper cover and 2 hemp/cotton diaper inserts
bambu Hemp Denim baby bib

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DIY: Halloween Treat Jar

Aren't I the crafty one this week?! Two DIY posts within a few days, go me! Now that I have tooted my own horn, let's get to it. I was in Target the other day and found these AMAAAZING fat mason jars in the dollar spot for $3. I had to pick up two and make something out of them. Here's what I came up with first: a Halloween treat jar.

The supplies: mason jar, paint, Mod Podge Gloss (waterbase sealer, glue and finish), fine glitter and paintbrushes.

Paint the desired design on the front of your jar. My jar had a raised area for a label so that is the area I choose to paint. I used regular acrylic craft paints.

I put a thin layer of the Mod Podge sealer and finish over the paint so it wouldn't scratch off.

Start doing strips of a thin layer of the Mod Podge around the jar. Sprinkle glitter.

Continue doing this all the way around the jar until complete.

There you have it folks. Simple and festive! I definitely plan on heading back to Target to pick up some more of these jars for future projects. xoxo

Humpday Confessions: Guilty TV Pleasures

Happy humpday everyone!! So I decided to confess some of my guilty TV pleasures today. Here we go! Hopefully, I am not the only one who enjoys these shows

1- America's Next Top Model

Yes this show is still on. Cycle 21 baby! I used to be obsessed with every aspect of this show, the photography, the makeup, the models. I missed the past couple seasons but have been watching Cycle 21 religiously and my love for this show came rushing back. I don't know what it is but I cannot get enough.

2- MTV: The Challenge

Yes, I still watch this show. I never really watched the Real World but I love the cast of "characters" in these shows. It's like Survivor with lots of drama and partying. What's not to love?! The physical challenges are insane, the love triangles are intense, it's hard not to become hooked.

3- Fashion Star

So this show is no longer on but I am truly sad about it. I actually really enjoyed it and loved the fact that many of the pieces designed were available in actual retailers the next day. I think it gave a good look at the fashion industry, which I love. I hope it comes back one day. Fingers crossed.

Well, there you have it a few of my guilty pleasures. What TV shows are you embarrassed to say you watch? And do you or did you watch any of these? xoxo

DIY: Black & Glitter Pumpkin

I am finally feeling that fall is in full swing and that means it's time for pumpkin picking and of course decorating pumpkins. I am not the greatest at carving pumpkins so I love non-carve alternatives. I haven't picked out any pumpkins yet but I found a paper mache pumpkin at a local craft store and decided to get my fall on. Here's what I came up with: a Black & Glitter Pumpkin.

Gather your supplies: a pumpkin (real or fake), black paint, glitter (whatever color you desire), glue and paint brushes.

Paint your pumpkin black.

Start painting on some glue in desired glitter pattern.

Place pumpkin in a box to catch glitter and sprinkle glitter on glue. I did this a little at a time so glue didn't dry up.

Keep doing this around entire pumpkin. I used a fine paintbrush to touch up and add glitter where I felt necessary after going around the first time.

Voila!!

Hope you enjoyed this easy tutorial. I cannot wait to try it in different colors. xoxo

Renewed Excitement

Months ago I had talked about opening a brick and mortar bead and craft shop but was quickly deflated when I saw a business adviser and they told me that banks no longer give loans to start up businesses after the economy crashed in 2008.  People either need to use their own savings, take out a personal loan or borrow money from family or friends. Well, needless to say, a savings is almost non existent, refuse to take out a personal loan and I doubt I would get approved for one with today's strict standards and no family or friends are willing to give me a loan. So my dream was pretty much shattered,

Since I have given up on the idea I have been to a few bead shops and have been so underwhelmed. They either don't have much of a selection or are lacking what is trendy now. I have noticed they are mostly owned my older, older people. Not that there is anything wrong with that but I am younger and follow fashion and know what the younger crowd is looking for. My point was that even these stores that are seriously lacking have managed to stay in business for a long time. So why wouldn't I be able to do that?

I have so many ideas for the shop. Plus, I do a lot of business online which can help float my shop in the beginning. I know I can be a success, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind. All I lack is the funds to get things rolling. I have decided I am going for this dream even if it is with half the funds initially intended. I do so much business with my Etsy shops between now and Christmas and I am going to save every penny of that. Along with every penny I get from blog ad sales to help me get things rolling.

I may not have tons of funds to get things going but I do have people who can lend a hand in many aspects of this new venture and hopefully with that help I can cut down majorly on start up costs. I know I can do it and I am not going to give up on this dream. There are successful business people who started with a lot less and I promise you I will be one of those success stories. xoxo

I Think I Have A Problem...

I think I have a problem...I love I mean really love to gamble. No, I do not need you to call gambler's anonymous for me but I jump on any chance to go to Atlantic City or any local casino for that matter. And Vegas...Well, that is my dream vacay! I will get there one day and take that city by storm. I know that's what they all say.

It all started when the hubby and I went on a vacation to Atlantic City for a few days many, many years ago when we first started dating. We were young and careful with our money. We were smarter then than we are now. But the worst possible thing happened...We won!! Nothing huge but enough to give us the gambling bug. I was playing this 5 cent slot and won about $250. Then, I played it the next day and won another $150. I went to the machine before we left and won another $100. Were these incredible amounts of money? No. But considering I never fed more than $20 into the machine it was good enough to get me hooked.

The next few trips we continued to win modest amounts of money. We would always at least break even which meant we basically vacationed for free. Cannot beat that! We always had so much fun that we considered going to Las Vegas for our honeymoon. But then the unthinkable happened, we started losing on our trips. We never lost anything major because we never gambled big but we were so used to winning that the first trip we didn't do so well I was furious. I was cranky the whole trip.

That experience quickly made us change our minds about Vegas as a honeymoon destination. I was afraid that if we didn't win while gambling it would put us both in a sour mood. We decided we didn't want to risk being crank pots on our honeymoon. Although, I still want to go to Vegas one day soon.

We stopped going to AC for a while after having several not so lucrative trips. When we finally started going again I did have an awesome win. We had gotten to our first casino and we wanted some drinks. The hubby told me to sit at a slot while he went to the bar to get me a drink. I put $20 in a 5 cent machine and only bet the minimum bet so the $20 would last me the entire time he was gone. I was only playing for about 5 minutes and all these bells started chiming and my credits kept going up and up. I ended up winning $650. I was ecstatic and the rest of our trip was awesome but the gambler in me was annoyed. I usually bet much more than the minimum and if I was betting what I normally did I would have won a few thousand. But I tried to remember that if I was doing that maybe I wouldn't have won at all.

There's nothing that beats the rush of winning in the casino. And the possibilities are endless. Anyone else feel this passionate about their love of of gambling? xoxo

When I Think Of Leaving

We have seriously been thinking of moving off Long Island, I mean seriously thinking about it. It is too damn expensive. Almost everyone lives paycheck to paycheck except the wealthy. Just to give you an idea I live in the 12th most expensive county in the nation and live on the border line of the 2nd most expensive county of the nation where the median home price is $463,000 and average property taxes is $9,500. Forget about renting. The average 2 bedroom apartment in a complex is just about $2000/month. Now you see why it's so difficult for us to keep our heads above water.

It's a shame because I wouldn't want to leave my family and friends and I live in one of the most awesome places in the United States but is the monetary stress worth it??! Nowadays, I struggle with this question daily. It would be so hard to up and go but if we could live more comfortably without needing to worry about money everyday we would be so much happier. What does one do?

We were pretty much set on leaving but then I have a weekend spent at the places photographed in this post and I think, could I live anywhere else? Could I live without the beach being within walking distance? I don't know, I don't know if I could do it. Feeling a bit lost.

Humpday Confessions: Nursery School Style

Yesterday was Olivia's first day of Nursery School and I am not going to lie, I am feeling upset about how it went down. She is 2-1/2 and started the 2-1/2 year old program at a local nursery school. She was so excited to "go to school." She even wore a dress and let me put a bow in her hair which she never does. Plus, she let me take photos of her looking all cute. Things were looking good.

Her dad and I dropped her off and she actually went right in the classroom and we quickly sneaked away. We ran into one of our friends whose son goes to the same school and she said Liv was playing nice at a table when she walked by her classroom. The hubs and I felt good about things. We returned 45 minutes later (classes are shorter in length until the kiddies get used to it) and the teachers were looking for us. This couldn't be good.

Apparently she was hysterical. We went upstairs and she was crying but I definitely wouldn't say hysterical. They obviously don't know her well, if she was hysterical you would have been able to hear her across the school and she would have been flailing on the floor. The teacher brought her to us and she calmed down. I tried to ask the teacher if she was like this the whole time and she was a bit short with me. Basically it was on and off but they were upset because she wouldn't let anyone console her. I got news for you ladies, she doesn't even let me console her. When she is upset she wants to be left alone.

So the plan of action for Thursday is that they are going to have me sit in a corner of the room and if she seems to be doing well I will sneak out. So we'll see how that goes. When I asked Liv why she was cried while in class she said she wanted to play with mommy and daddy which broke my heart just a little.

But I do have a confession I was really upset that she didn't do too well today. I took it personally and I thought the teachers were giving me attitude when I picked up and didn't really want to discuss it with me. And I was so nice about it. All I asked was "how bad was it?" and "was it the entire time?" Fair questions, right? I wasn't interrogating them like "what happened?" I also felt upset because she was the only in the class who was crying. I know I am being silly but I took today pretty hard, worse than her I am sure.

How were your kids when they first went to nursery school?? Am I the only one whose child had a slight issue? I know I am overreacting especially since it was the first time she was ever left somewhere without someone she knew but I cannot help it. Someone make me feel better! xoxo

Miss Me?! And An Epic Photo Fail

Hey everybody!! I know I disappeared for a week but sh*t has been insane in my neck of the woods. A girl can only do so much. I really missed you all and cannot wait to get caught up on all your blogs today.

So what's going on with me? Well, today is Liv's first day of nursery school and fingers crossed it goes smoothly. She has been super psyched about it for weeks so I am hoping she has that same excitement when it comes time to actually go in the classroom without me. I'll keep you all posted.

We actually took Liv into NYC for the first time on Sunday and she had a blast. First, we walked all the way to the Central Park Zoo. It's not the biggest zoo but still a good time and I am still fascinated by the fact that there are huge buildings surrounding this wildlife habitat.

Such a cool view!

After walking around the zoo for a while we head back to the Time Square area and had some Virgil's BBQ. Who doesn't love BBQ?! Then it was off to Toys R Us Time Square!! We actually rode the ferris wheel inside and it was a blast.

In the elevator down to the ferris wheel entrance in Toys R Us

Me and a minion!!

So after we were done roaming around Toys R Us, we went to check out the photo they took of us when we first walked in. Epic fail on my part! My boobs were practically popping out of my shirt. My shirt had a loose scoop neck and stupid me, squatted down and leaned in to Liv in her stroller, hence my shirt hanging down almost totally revealing my boobs. To make matters worse they pull up your photos on a screen that everyone can see and leave it up until they help the next person. Well, there was no next person and my bosoms were up for all to see for God knows how long. UGH!!!!!

After that we walked around Time Square for a little bit and then it was time to catch a train home. We figured Liv would be passed out after her crazy day but no, she was apparently chocolate wasted of something. She pulled her hood up and kept screaming "Ganstaaaaaa!" at everyone. Don't ask!

Ganstaaaaa!

All in all it was a great day but my feet still hurt from all that walking. Anyways, thanks for stopping by. Talk to you guys again tomorrow!! xoxo