We Love Our Shamzee!

So a few weeks ago, we received this Shamzee pillow cover and let me just say...my 3 year old was immediately IN LOVE! She actually said "Mommy, I LOVE THIS! I LOVE THIS SO MUCH!" There are 6 unique Shamzees and we happened to get the Lady Bug (it's PINK of course). The Shamzee "gobbles up a pillow to make a super cozy comfy friend." That's not all it gobbles up in my house. One morning I woke up to find my daughter's Shamzee had eaten 3 books, a doll, play jewelry, some polly pockets and Strawberry Shortcakes and about 3 other of her toys. AND she SLEPT on it! Ow! I don't know how she did it, but she slept all night on all that and didn't miss a wink! It's machine washable and fits any standard pillow. We've had it for a month now and she still loves it! Now Princess6 wants one...

To order YOUR OWN go to the Shamzee website: www.shamzee.com

Shamzee is also on Facebook and Twitter.

*Disclaimer: I received this product as compensation for a review but all opinions are my own [and my kids':) ]

My Favs: Gardening Gloves

Okay so I have to post about these gloves. Gardening is one of my hobbies (which I am still learning at) so I have purchased quite a few pairs of work gloves over the past few years. Well, ones I have gotten never seem to live up to my expectations. If I go cheap they are too thin and water goes right through them. I have had the thicker kind but I had difficulty feeling smaller items like weeds and maneuvering my fingers correctly. I also don't want to spend a fortune because they're work gloves and get beat up. Well my DH works in construction and is always using these gloves for work. They're great for moving wood or furniture etc...So I borrowed them once and LOVED them. They have a rubber coating on the bottom part of the hand and the top of the hand is a breathable material. You can feel your fingers well enough to weed but they are tough enough where you wouldn't feel thorns from a pruned rose bush. I use them for cleaning up branches or picking up leaves and a ton of other things.They aren't the most glamorous but for 3.99 at Lowes or The Home Depot you really can't beat them! And if you lose them they are cheap to replace! What do you use? Do you use these?

Books that Changed Me: Personality Plus

Okay, so I have been thinking...(as my dad would say...'careful...don't hurt yourself'...'get it?' lol) but as I was saying...I have been thinking...if any of  you have read my bio in Meet the Princess you'll have noticed that I said I went through a few years of personal growth before coming to understand WHO I am as well as WHOSE I am (Daughter of (God) the King of Kings aka a Princess ;-) ) So, what I decided to do is to start a series of posts with great books that have changed me in some way. Let me tell ya, there are a lot of them. So drum roll please......here is the first book....

Taken from the Barnes and Noble website:
"Each of the following statements relates to one of the four basic personality types:
Melancholy, Phlegmatic, Sanguine, and Choleric.

Which of these statements do you relate to most?
- Whether at home or work, I am well organized and keep everything in its proper place.
- It's difficult for me to express excitement, even about something that's really important to me.
- When shopping at the mall, it's not unusual for me to forget where I parked the car.
- I get annoyed when my employees don't follow my instructions to the letter.

In Personality Plus, Florence Littauer gives you valuable insight for appreciating your one-of-a-kind, God-given personality. She includes a Personality Profile test that reveals how your unique blend of traits affects your emotions, work performance, and relationships. Through humorous anecdotes and straightforward counsel, Personality Plus guides you to improve upon your strengths and correct your weaknesses.

This engaging book also provides keys to understanding those around you. You'll learn how to accept-and even enjoy-the traits that make each of us so different. Personality Plus is the tool you need to change your life, and the lives of those you care about, for the better."

Concerning WHO I am, I must say that there is one particular book that was a life changer for me and DH. One that started it all for us.... SO I thought I would share. This amazing book is called
Personality Plus written by Florence Littauer. It's a book that I would definitely recommend to EVERYONE to read! Littauer categorizes everyone in the world into to four basic personalities. However, keep in mind that everyone is not made from a cookie cutter so many people have a mixture of personalities. I cannot stress enough, though, how much this book influences/has influenced my life...on a day to day basis! It helps me to understand my children's personalities and not be annoyed. It helps me to be understanding and more patient. With other relationships it has given me understanding and patience as well. I am sure y'all all know first hand how people can DRIVE YOU CRAZY be frustrating. Sometimes understanding what makes a person tick can be really enlightening. Let me just say that if I could pick a book that was required reading for every high school this would be it. Seriously. So what am I saying? READ THE DAG ON BOOK!Just sayin...Just check the comments on the Barnes and Noble website and you'll see that I'm not the only one to agree. Please tell me if you've read it or if you do read it after reading my post. Love to hear from you!

CLICK HERE FOR TO PURCHASE THE BOOK THROUGH BN.COM http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/personality-plus-florence-littauer/1100190556

My love: My record player...oh, and Frank too!

Okay, okay so I know...I'm a big dork. BUT I don't care! "Why?" you say?... well, let me explain. I am now a thirty something female who after I first got married discovered the amazing voice of Frank Sinatra. (It's a shame because he died the month before I graduated high school and I didn't even know who he was other than he was Harry's favorite singer from the sitcom Night Court.) Anyway...I became, for awhile, obsessed with Frank's music and movies, and yes...his blue eyes. Isn't he gorgeous!? (Sometimes he and DH remind me of each other...but DH has softer features than Frank... ) LOL....SEE...Dork! C'mon! How could you not just love his music? It's so romantic and his voice just makes everything seem better.

Me and Frank! Move over Debbie Reynolds! ha ha! I love Faceinhole.com

My DH tells me that I was born in the wrong era. I love to watch TCM and love vintage things. Well, years ago when I discovered ebay I won a lot of 13 Sinatra records which I then had to find a record player to play them on. [When I was a kid, I used to have a Winnie the Pooh one that had Read-A-Long books. Well, of course, I had that no longer] So somehow I came across an old record player like the ones we used in schools. No, I'm not that old, but I was an eighties kids so it was right on the cusp of cassette tapes and CDs. But to me there is just something about the nostalgia of old school type items. So anyway,  I enjoyed these records on my small record player for years until, God bless Craigslist, someone gave this beauty away...for FREE! What were they thinking? I just had to convince DH to pick it up for me which, mind you, was not an easy task...it's still a thorn in his side whenever we move because he hates to lift it, but that's another story.

I however, LOVE this thing!

When the record player is closed up it looks just like a plain piece of furniture. Then, the doors open up to ugly orange speakers and the greatest sound protrudes from it with all it's crackles and pops (no, I'm not eating Rice Krispies). If you've ever listened to a record player, you know what I mean. Now, it could use some work, the radio needle is no longer connected, so to change the tuner I have to go in behind it and manually move it from underneath. Oh, and it came with an 8 track player and a couple 8 track tapes (which doesn't work). But the best thing is, the record player is great! One of the speakers goes in and out occasionally yet, I just don't care. I have collected quite a few records over the years from my multitude of Frank to Dean, Aretha, Alvin and the Chipmunk, Stevie Wonder, Grease...etc. Ever since Princess8 was a little thing, I'd put on some Frank and we'd just jam...well, as much as you can to a crooner..ha! But we do get down to some Aretha. My Princesses just love it! We dance and sing and twirl and they have a blast making memories with Mommy (and Daddy sometimes). Here's a pic of them a couple weeks ago using the coffee table as a stage. We have so much fun and they get a piece of history at the same time! Win win! So, I hope you enjoyed getting a glimpse into my dorkiness. I am just glad the my girls are gonna grow up appreciating when music was good before there was bumping and grinding..LOL...I crack myself up! Anyway...if you have never listened to Frank, I encourage you to go ahead and try something new. You'll then realize how much you really have heard him, because he is in everything, from movies to tv to commercials...his songs are everywhere! Add a little cultrue to your life and Enjoy!

Do you love Frank as much as I do??

My New Love: Once Upon A Time

Okay, so last Sunday I discovered my new favorite show! Maybe you are already watching this, but I must share it! Especially for girls who love new twists on fairy tales. Apparently, the show started this past October and has ten episodes thus far, but I didn't notice until now. Once Upon a Time is a new series on ABC on Sunday nights at 8 pm. The show is centered around Snow White and her Prince Charming, but all the story book characters we know make appearances. Basically, the Evil Queen (her step-mother, you all know the story) cast a spell on the enchanted forest (which includes every storybook character) to send them all to our world, frozen in time, without knowing it, they live in Storybrooke, Maine where there are no happy endings for anyone except the Queen. After getting sucked into the episode last week, I decided I had to go back to the beginning. SO, I got a hulu account so I could catch up. (You can get a free 2 week trial if you google hulu promo code, or something like that.) Without gushing too much, let's just say that I LOVE this show! :) I love fantasy type shows like this and since my fav, Smallville, is no longer around, this will be a great replacement. SOO, do YOU watch Once Upon a Time? If not, I'd definitely recommend it!

 To watch the Pilot Episode CLICK HERE

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

Snow White and Prince Charming

*The opinions expressed above are my own. I was not contacted by ABC or any other entity to promote this program. I just wanted to share its awesomeness so more people watch and it gets picked up for season 2...purely selfish motives on my part ;-) *

SKYPE is Awesome!

Okay, so today is Thanksgiving and unfortunately I wasn't able to spend it with my parents, grandparents or aunts and uncles and cousins. Well, thanks to technology I was able to SEE them all in the same conversation! We had Philly, St. Pete & Dover Florida, and Michigan all in one screen :) It was a little noisy...but so nice to see everyone together even if it was on a screen. Here's a pic of our family conference call using FREE Skype! I remember the days when I was younger and we only talked to them on special occasions because it was long distance. It was "hurry up honey, that's long distance" so we wouldn't be charged. Now, the world is a much smaller place with things like Skype. My parents got to watch their granddaughter play and show off AND hear her...sooo amazing! What a blessing when you live 18 1/2 hours from your folk....Thankful today for not only my amazing family and friends but for technology which I LOVE to HATE...

Happy Thanksgiving, Ya'll!

This Vacuum Sucks

I mean in a GOOD way..what'd you think I meant?

So this is my first plug for a product. I wasn't contacted by hoover or offered any incentives. They don't even know I'm writing this. But it's so hard to find a good product so sometimes it's nice to hear what other moms think.

Okay, so for the first few years of our marriage, DH and I had purchased a Eureka bagless upright. With *cyclone technology* oooohhh...ahhhh...lol..I believe it was new technology back then. WELL, we went through two in about 7 or 8 years. Not bad right? ...Eh, I don't think so. I hated those vacuums. BUT they were cheap...SO we got them. They were bulky and heavy and when you dumped them in the trash if felt like dust went everywhere. Gross.  And stairs? Forget about it. Using that was so frustrating and let me tell ya, I got knocked in the head a few times with it. Well, the spinning brush broke on the first one we had and so I ordered a new one and fixed it myself. BUT, I still hated it. It had that kick back where crap flew at you after you vacuumed over it and it didn't clean bare floors well,even though it had that option. So after some "gentle pressing" (HA) I convinced DH to buy a good vacuum. I researched on the web the different prices and options and this is what I ended up with.

The Hoover Platinum edition bagged upright. Purchased from Best Buy.

It's awesome!! There's no kickback, I can use it on any floor because it automatically adjusts. The bags are not overpriced and they are thick and there is never any dust residue on the bag, trash or in the air. It's very lightweight and you can even use it on the stairs. There's no detachable hose, but it's so light you don't really need it. PLUS it comes with a separate canister vacuum which is AWESOME in itself! I use that for the corners of the stairs and for vacuuming out my van. It has really great suction and is super lightweight and even has a strap for carrying it as well as 3 different attachments. I have had this for about two years and LOVE both.

SO if I didn't convince you, here's a video on it. (I'm a sucker for infomercials..it's probably how they got me;-) ...that's good marketing there for ya! )

What vacuum do you use? Do you love it or hate it?