Wordless Wednesday - Garlic Explosion

I meant to share these last week! I was in the kitchen cooking. Apparently Elijah decided to cook in his kitchen too... only using garlic salt and dried red peppers...

This Labor Day Remember, Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving

I know I have written about this many times before, but with Labor Day weekend among us I thought it was important to spread the word once again to help stop buzzed driving.

Did you know that in 2008, just over the Labor Day holiday weekend, 194 people were killed in crashes involving an impaired driver? I've heard people say things like "Well they deserve it for being stupid" but what they must remember is it's not always the one who's been drinking that gets hurt. It could be any of us.

This Labor Day, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Ad Council are trying to remind people to plan ahead and designate a sober driver for any Labor Day celebration because "Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving." By helping to spread this message during the Labor Day weekend we can help keep impaired drivers off the road, even if they have had just one drink. Everybody that helps share this message could help save a life!

The NHTSA has some pretty neat tools to help you do just that!

• Post the new Designated Driver badge - a badge you can send to people to thank them for being both a designated driver, and a friend. You can post it on your site, share it through facebook or even twitter! Click the + to get it!
  
  

• Designated Driver Drink List - One of the most important things you can do before you go out is to designate a sober driver. If you're throwing a party, make sure to offer up non-alcoholic drinks for the sober drivers in your group. They have compiled a Facebook tab with 50 non-alcoholic party drink recipes right here.


• Alternative Ride Locator - They have created a new Facebook tab with a nationwide list of alternative ride programs so that you can enjoy yourself and not worry about how you will get home.


• Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving website- You can sign a pledge not to drink and drive, play "Spot the Difference," an interactive game that simulates the effects of buzzed driving , and watch a real-life video about how buzzed driving changed one woman's life.

Visit Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving on Facebook and Twitter (@Buzzeddriving)

Remember: Buzzed Driving IS Drunk Driving.
This Labor Day, let's work together to put an end to buzzed driving. Don't ruin the end of summer with a drunk driving arrest or worse!
Plan ahead and ask your loved ones to do the same.

This post was written and published as part of a Global Influence partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Ad Council. I was NOT compensated for sharing this information.

Boudreaux's Butt Paste

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Boudreaux's Butt Paste. All opinions are 100% mine.

With the summer heat still going strong here in Maryland, I still have to keep a look out for diaper rash. Elijah gets heat rash in his diaper area really easily after only being outside playing for an hour! What isn't exactly easy with Elijah is getting rid of any diaper rashes. He has eczema and really dry skin and it seems to take forever to clear anything up.

A few months ago I switched to Boudreaux's Butt Paste diaper cream on Elijah and have had a very positive experience with it since. I had never used it before, and hadn't really heard other opinions on it, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Boudreaux's Butt Paste is diaper rash ointment and skin protectant. It helps to prevent diaper rash, protects chafed skin, and seals out wetness. Boudreaux's is a white cream, it's a bit more liquid than some of the comparable creams which helps it to spreads on easily and cleans off quickly. The scent is not bad and sort of mild. You can get Boudreaux's Butt Paste in convenient foil packs which are great for traveling or sticking the diaper bag, 1oz, 2oz, 3oz, 4 oz tubes and 16oz jar. It's also nice that the tubes have a flip top cap, not a screw cap you have to fumble to remove. It is available in drug, discount and grocery store chains. While shopping I have seen it at Target, Walmart, Babies & Toys'R'Us and even Wegman's grocery store, so I don't think you will have a hard time finding it.

A few months ago Elijah had a slight bit of rash after running around and playing outside with me on a warm day. When we came in from outside he took a bath and then I applied the creme to the reddened area while re-diapering him. I realized later I probably should have applied it before we went outside and he ran around sweating. By the next diaper change, about 2 hours later, the rash was less red already. By bath time the next night it was very faint, and by bath the next night it was completely gone. I applied a thin coat to the rash at every diaper change and that along with a thorough bath everyday using hypoallergenic soap, it cleared up the fastest I have ever seen.

Another helpful tip I discovered accidentally while using it is that it also takes the itch off of insect bites! I had a small mosquito bite on my hand and had gotten a dab on it, it instantly soothed the itching and helped reduce the redness and swelling! I have been using it on bug bites ever since!

I switched Elijah to Boudreaux's Butt Paste and have already bought another tube! I highly recommend it!

If you want to try it out for yourself, Boudreaux's Butt Paste is currently offering a free sample by following the instructions posted at their website.

Notable Newness Freebies: Free Reusable Lunch Sack and $35 worth of P&G Coupons!

Get $35 in savings on your favorite P&G brands like Cascade, Mr. Clean, Dawn, Febreeze, and Swiffer, plus tips from Home Made Simple TV’s Patrick Brown, our booklet inspires you to make your home beautiful, balanced and – best of all – simple.

www.thepromotionaloffer.com/hmsdrtv

Purchase of any2 Annie’s Homegrown products and get a Free reusable Lunch Sack! UPC's:

• 013562302109
• 013562300846

http://www.annies.com/konserve

Poo Free Summer: Sharing Poo Stories, Win 5 tubs of Wipes!!!

Our Poo Free summer is coming to a close, but that doesn’t mean we won’t continue to live “Poo Free”! When we told other people we were challenged by Huggies to live Poo Free this summer, they asked what that meant. Obviously everybody poops, so it’s not something that can be stopped completely, but there are ways you can stay as poo free as possible. We lived poo free this summer by using Huggies wipes! They are the thickest wipes out there (vs. national brands) to help keep the poo where it belongs, on the wipe, and off of your baby and you! With Elijah starting to potty train we can also be more Poo Free by teaching him to wipe with Huggies Wipes, helping him to be cleaner on his own.

Luckily we managed to make it through the summer without any big poo explosions but Elijah tends to stay pretty regular. I remember when Elijah was born, one of our first conversations about his poo habits just seemed so natural. His godmother laughed that she never thought we would be having a conversation like that. It is true, before you are a parent you wouldn’t dream of discussing bathroom habits, then your first child is born and it seems like that is the most important topic. Did he go? How often is he going? How much? What color was it? Ah, the joys of parenthood.

We praised Elijah at each stage of poo progression and we both thought it was so cute when he pooped ‘a real poop’ the first time. To normal people this may seem odd, but to us as parents it made us proud. It meant he was eating right, was digesting right, and was basically working right all around. How could you not be proud?

Changing poo diapers really has become second nature to me, even in the toughest circumstances. A few weeks ago we were shopping when Elijah decided to go. It was a rather large and smelly one so we couldn’t exactly wait until we were done shopping. Then their changing station was so gross I couldn’t even think about using it. So I did what any mother would do, took him out to the car, laid down a blanket in the trunk and changed him, in the trunk, in the parking lot of the grocery store. It’s times like that, that remind me why it’s always a good idea to keep a bag with 2 or 3 small blankets, 2 or 3 diapers, a box of wipes, and a bottle of antibacterial hand gel in the car at all times. Elijah and I both were able to stay poo free, even minus the proper facilities!

How did you stay Poo Free this summer?

Your answer gives you a chance to win 5 tubs of Huggies Wipes!!!

To Enter: Leave a comment below answering one of the following questions:

• How did you stay Poo Free this summer?
• Share your best Poo story. (Biggest explosion, funniest/most obscure place you’ve had to change a diaper, first time you changed a diaper, etc)
• Share a story about a time you needed wipes the most!

For an extra entry: (leave a separate comment for each entry)

• Answer another of the questions above.
• Follow Huggies on Twitter. Leave your @.
  
• Tweet about this giveaway including a link here and @huggies. Feel free to use this text: “Stay Poo Free! Enter to win 5 tubs of @Huggies Wipes! http://bit.ly/a0RKOf Ends 9/12”
• “Like” Huggies on Facebook.

Good Luck!

Contest open until Midnight EST, September 12, 2010

Winner will be chosen using random.org and contacted through email. Winner will have 72 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. Thank you!

Disclosure: I am being compensated for my participation as a Huggies Spokesperson for the duration of Huggies Poo Free Summer campaign. All opinions are 100% my own and in no way influenced, I am proud fan of Huggies whether or not I am paid. ;)

Let me share your company at a national blogging conference!

The Type-A Mom Conference 2010, September 24th - 27th in Asheville, NC, is about the attendees having a great time, learning, connecting and getting ideas for taking their blog to the next level. It will also give me a chance to network and chat with some of the other most influential women in blogging and social media!

I am currently seeking full or partial sponsorship to attend and would love to do so thanks to YOUR COMPANY!

Having started this blog in 2008, it has come a very long way. From personal rambling to becoming a destination resource for other parents, One Big Pyle of Love continues to grow in popularity and I would love for your company to be a part of that growth. Attending Type A Mom conference would certainly be a great start!

In exchange for full or partial sponsorship I am prepared to offer you exclusive ad space, posts and more! Here are just a few of the options I am open to depending on your level of sponsorship:

• Premium Ad space on my site up to 250x400 for an entire year, a smaller button on my personal blog, as well as an ad on my twitter background.
  
• Mentions in every post about the conference on my blog.
• Dedicated blog posts about your company and products.
• Tweets and facebook status updates featuring your company and products.
  
• I can add a mention of your company to my business cards that you will hand out at the conference.
  
• Wearing of clothing or carrying tote bags branded to the sponsor’s company.
• And More! have a suggestion? I am open to all! I am willing to make this more than worth your contribution!
  
• To make it even more worth your time, Type A Mom will be creating a page on the official site with the list of all personal sponsors (Including YOU!) featuring your logo, a link to your site! Your company will be exposed to thousands of people that aren't even attending the conference! If you offer me a full sponsorship Type A Mom can even provide you information on how to buy in to the swag bags!

It would be an honor to have YOUR company sponsorship to experience Type A Mom Conference! Thank you!

If you are interested in sponsoring me, please email me at my personal email ejsmomej@gmail.com a.s.a.p! Thank you!

Notable Newness: Giveaways

Here are some of the great giveaways I've found going on right now! :)

$35 Jiffy Lube GC - 2 winners, Ends 8/19
Everyday Minerals Blush - Ends 8/26
Milson Road Personalized Daily Portrait - Ends 8/30
Speck ipad case - 3 winners, Ends 9/2
ToiletTree Products Fogless Shower Mirror - Ends 9/7
Trim Treads Sandles - Ends 9/8