Mom leans into daughter, kisses her head, and says, “Boys suck.”

Daughter resolutely replies through her tears, “Yes, they do.”

A Mother-Daughter Moment is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Upromise is celebrating its 10th Anniversary by giving away $20,000 to users who share a story that tells how a parent has supported a child’s dream!

As a parent, I have encouraged my children to dream and dream big. Education was always a focal point of those dreams, even if the money was not always there.

Upromise members have received more than $600 million in college savings through their rewards program, and it wants to celebrate all of the ways it has helped to fuel those sparks that made children into the people they are today and the adults they will become tomorrow.

My Story

My dream is for my children to pursue their passion by getting a good educational foundation to prepare them for the rest of their lives. By encouraging them to do well throughout their elementary school years, I have helped build a foundation for them to grow into productive and happy people.

Your Story

What is your dream for your child(ren)? Go to www.upromisetodream.com and share your story and you could be one of 10 lucky winners of $1,000. The story with the most votes on September 29th will win $10,000! Now that’s something to help launch your child’s dream.

Don’t forget to check out the dream wall official rules for more information.

Help UPromise Celebrate Its 10th Anniversary is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Sometimes I think I am a bit crazy for the way I think. See, when I think it is oftentimes in the form of a conversation, with someone else. Perhaps I am not the only one who does this; or maybe I am a few cards short of a full deck. Either way, this is how I think.

Making Mashed Potatoes

Tonight I was reflecting on my mother’s pot roast. It was one of the very few foods I absolutely loved. This was one of those meals I would eat well passed being full, and yet, I would go back for more. To me, it was just that good.

This then led me to another thought. Would I have enjoyed my mother’s pot roast that much more if I had known it was the last time I would ever eat it?

Maybe I would have savored it’s flavors more. I might have chewed a tad more slowly. Or maybe I would have ate to my heart’s content, going back for seconds and thirds.

Live Like There Is No Tomorrow

When I was married to my children’s dad we had but one rule: never leave the house without telling the other you love them.

No matter how mad we were with each other, we always said ‘I love you’ with a kiss. You never know when it will be the last time.

This brings me to what has been bothering me.

Yeah, cause I have these nagging things called feelings and they can sometimes really get in the way.

Last weekend my dad was in town. This is a big deal as he has never been by this way in the nine years I have lived here. I did not see him, though, and that was my fault.

Try as I might to justify my actions, I cannot seem to let go of the fact that I am certain I hurt his feelings. This goes against my careful nature and making sure I do not have those thoughts of ‘I wish I had not done this’ or ‘if only I had done that differently’.

I really hate guilt!

Do I always have to be the good girl? I am only human, after all.

Your Thoughts

Would you say you are more aware of how you are to others or that you just take each moment as it is and let your feelings fall as they may?

image credit

Reflection: Would You Do Things Differently… is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Maybe I’m just bracing myself for the inevitable pretty white jacket and rubber room.

When I was 3 or 4, or something along those lines, I wanted to be a doctor.

Me: Mommy, I want to be a doctor when I grow up because I want to help people.

Mom: Maybe you could be a nurse. Nurses help people.

Me: I don’t want to be a nurse. I want to be a doctor.

It became more specific when my dad said I was going to give him a heart attack one day because I liked to hide then jump out and scare him when he came home from work. But…

________________________________

…as we all know, I did not become a doctor.

Fear is a destructive emotion. It keeps you from going after the things you most want. It can be irrational and illogical. It can be used against you by those who think they are trying to save you from yourself.

Over-thinking is just another way for fear to creep in.

Another way to distract.

It keeps you from doing.

It just keeps you.

Keep It Simple (Stupid)

• Get rid of unnecessary stuff [99% is unnecessary stuff, btw]
• Don’t buy more unnecessary stuff
• Get out of debt [student loans, ugh!]
• Get small-ish travel trailer and live the vagabond life [once kids are done with school, that is]

The funny thing about growing older is you realize you always knew who you were,
you just didn’t accept it.

The white picket fence was never my dream; that belonged to someone else. Same with the big house, the possessions, the fancy degree, and the corner office with a view.  Traveling, that was my dream. Kids, simplicity, and laughter. Cause I’m a big geek like that.

Life: It is about the gift not the package it comes in.  ~Dennis P. Costea, Jr.

Planning For My Midlife Crisis is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Happy Mother’s Day to all the first time, umpteenth time, no longer with us,
soon-to-be, and in-spirit moms world wide!

Happy Mother’s Day is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Hydra Refine^® redefines oily skin care with a line of five products that balance your skin’s pH, controlling the production of oil while maintaining facial moisture.  If you’re wondering how it’s possible to fight oil while keeping skin moisturized, the answer lies in the four main ingredients that define Hydra Refine^®:

Featured Ingredients:

• Laminaria Saccharina Seaweed—This unique seaweed helps reduce sebum production and fights the oil oxidation that contributes to the formation of blackheads.  At the same time, it hydrates the skin never leaving you dry or irritated.
• Lemongrass—With antiseptic and astringent properties, lemongrass is ideal for treating oily skin, and is a known anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agent.
• Farnesol (Lily of the Valley)—This natural ingredient supplies the skin with protection against acne causing bacteria.
• Cucumber—Cucumber is widely known as a soothing, cooling and healing agent, but the essential oil of cucumber has even greater benefits.  With vital fatty acids and anti-oxidants, such as Vitamin E and Zinc, cucumber oil protects the skin and aids in healing.  Proteolytic enzymes refine the skin and help keep pores clean and clear.

My Experience

I was sent Repechage Hydra Refine One-Minute Clarifying Mask to try and give my opinion. Now, with your typical facial mask you would rub a generous amount over your face and neck, being careful to avoid sensitive areas around the eyes and nose. Then you would wait about 10 minutes before washing your face. Repechage is different. After rubbing over your face and neck there is no long wait, no hardening of the face, no feeling trapped by your facial mask. Just hop in the shower, wait about a minute, then wash off.

The scent is not overpowering and perfume-y like your typical facial mask, either; it’s a clean, fresh scent. Not to mention it doesn’t dry out your skin. I absolutely love that!

Price Point ~ $31.00 for a 2 oz. tube.

Now, before you let the cost scare you, think about what you are getting. You are getting natural, spa-quality, professional skin care in the comfort of your home. You are getting the spa treatment any time (every time) you take a shower, if you so desire.

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Find out more about Repechage on twitter and facebook.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas a Minneapolis SEO and Web Design firm. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Spring Skin Renewal with Repechage is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Currently, body care products are not required to comply with the stringent organic food standards maintained by certification bodies such as the BFA and NASAA in Australia and the USDA in America, hence the plethora of so many “organic” body care products now on the market.

Since water is the primary ingredient in many cosmetics, some manufacturers are claiming to use organic hydrosols, or floral water, to green wash their products and make organic label claims while using the same synthetic toxic ingredients that would NEVER be allowed in organic food products. We believe this practice has the potential to destroy the integrity of the organic name.

Miessence® is currently one of a few skin care products on the planet that has submitted to, and complies with, the rigorous processing and labeling requirements for certified organic food products.

There is a lot of talk these days about going natural or organic, but no one really explains what that is let alone what is considered natural, good for you, or organic. To me natural and organic is simple: no man-made chemicals or additives.

When my family grows a garden we don’t use Miracle Grow or anything like that. In fact, one year our chickens ate the Japanese potato beetles, protecting our potato plants, which in turn produced a tremendous crop of organic potatoes.

If I don’t believe in pesticides or chemicals in my food, then why would I believe in them on my skin?

Simply put, I don’t.

I no longer use commercial shampoo/conditioner, which I can get for free all day long by the way. Of course, I don’t pay a ton for my coconut oil conditioner, lemon juice/water shampoo either. Yet money should not be the number one determining factor when it comes to deciding on what you will put on your body, should it?

I was sent a few samples of Miessence® Rejuvenating products. And before you think I am going to say I like the product because I got to try it for free, know that I only received sample packets much like the image to the right. I am going to say I like the product because I actually like the product.

First thing that struck me was the scent; it was just so earthy. Must be all of those natural ingredients.

certified organic aloe barbadensis (aloe vera) leaf juice, aqua, certified organic rosa rubiginosa (rosehip) seed oil, certified organic simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil, certified organic persea gratissima (avocado) fruit oil, certified organic butyrospermum parkii (shea) fruit butter, certified organic ethanol (sugar cane alcohol), non-gmo lecithin, certified organic citrus aurantium amara (bitter orange) fruit extract, certified organic olea europaea (olive) juice extract, olea europaea (olive) leaf extract, sclerotium rolfsii gum, certified organic rosa damascena (rose) essential oil, certified organic chamaemelum nobile (roman chamomile) essential oil, certified organic matricaria recutita (chamomile) flower extract, certified organic centella asiatica (gotu kola) extract, certified organic humulus lupulus (hops) extract, certified organic equisetum arvense (horsetail) extract, certified organic urtica dioica (nettle) extract

The second thing I noticed was the color. Unlike your typical white, white lotions, the Miessence Rejuvenating Moisturizer is a creamy tan-ish color. This means no artificial anything to make it look like something pure.White does not mean natural, natural means natural.

Miessence offers four skin care profiles to suit a variety of needs:

1. BALANCING (Normal/Combination Skin)
2. REJUVENATING (Dry/Mature Skin)
3. PURIFYING (Oily/Problem Skin)
4. SOOTHING (Sensitive Skin)

But mostly, I noticed that I love the way my skin feels after I use Miessence. My skin is dry, but many moisturizers make it oily, couple that with getting older and it’s like throwing darts at a wall to find the right product. Because who really wants to look or feel greasy all day?

Your Skin is the Largest Organ of Your Body

Did you know that the average woman applies more than 200 chemicals to her skin by using her skin care products in one day? Did you know that 60% of these chemicals are further absorbed into your bloodstream? These are two of the main reasons that organic skincare is one of the fastest growing areas of the beauty industry today (Benefits of Organic Personal Skin Care Products, www.organic-fair-trade.com).

Price Point ~ Varies with product. Miessence is not for those looking for cheap skincare; it’s for those looking for an organic and natural alternative to all the chemicals typically used. Free samples with every order. Free shipping worldwide on orders of $100 or more.

Be sure to check out Ely Organics on Facebook to find out more about Miessence and its benefits to you and to the environment.

_________________
Disclaimer: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas a Minneapolis SEO and Web Design firm. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Miessence, Truly Organic Skin Care Products is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

I hate driving.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I appreciate having the ability and freedom to drive; it’s the other drivers I could do without.

Here are a couple things to know when driving in rural Virginia:

1. Stop signs are optional. This is especially true when you have been stopped behind another driver for an undisclosed period of time and feel you’ve already ‘stopped’ for the purposes of this particular stop sign.

2. Yield signs mean speed up and make the oncoming traffic stop so you can merge onto the existing road. The exception to this is when getting on a highway, then a yield sign means stop until there are no cars in sight and you can slowly ease your vehicle onto the road.

3. There is no passing lane. All lanes on the road are for driving the speed by which the driver of a vehicle deems is the comfortable speed for them (within the limits of the law, cause no one is accusing anyone of being unlawful here). This means a driver may drive the exact same speed as the driver in the lane next to him/her thus impeding the forward motion of any other driver who may wish to drive at a faster speed.

4. Left turning vehicles have the right of way over right turning vehicles. This is especially true if the driver has been stuck at a stop sign behind another driver (see #1).

5. Parking lots are the grown up version of bumper cars. When driving through a parking lot one is to maintain a speed of no less than 10 mph while successfully not hitting any cars attempting to exit parking spots. A wee bit more caution is used when it comes to pedestrians, barely.

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In all fairness, the drivers in other areas may be just as bad or even worse. Then again, in other areas there are more people driving on the highways and byways.

Image Credit

How to Drive in Rural Virginia is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

But how does it work?

First: Sign up for a Swagbucks account (it’s super easy and only takes a few minutes).

Second: Earn Swagbucks by

• Searching the Web [via swagbucks.com & the swagbucks toolbar]
• Taking Trusted Surveys (1 point + points offered by survey)
• Shopping in the Shop & Earn Mall
• Voting in the Daily Polls (1 point)
• Sending in Prize Photos & Videos
• Watch Videos
• Inviting Your Friends to Join (up to 1000 swagbucks per friend)
• Completing Special Offers
• Finding Swag Codes
• Trading in Cell Phones & Video Games
• Print & Redeem Coupons (10 points for each one)

Third: Redeem Swagbucks for

• PayPal Cash
• Amazon Gift Cards
• Books & Magazines
• Music Video Games
• Jewelry
• Posters & Prints
• Kitchen Essentials
• and much more…

_________________________

Disclaimer: I am a member of Swagbucks and have used it as one of my search engines for almost 2 years now. I was not compensated for this post nor is this sponsored or affiliated with the Swagbucks site in any way. My referral link is used. This means, if you click through a link on my site and join, then I will earn in accordance with the terms of the referral agreement. my earnings are based on searching an average of 4 – 6 times per week, periodically participating in polls, surveys, code searches, and toolbar awards. Your results will vary based on referrals and usage.

Answer: $75 Since March 2010, With No Referrals is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010

Last summer Suze Orman launched a new online community www.MoneyMindedMoms.com, a site devoted to helping moms make smarter money choices.

MoneyMindedMoms community members have free access to valuable, easy to follow advice about topics such as erasing and managing debt, raising money minded kids and coupons and discounts. Providing moms with sound advice is Suze’s top priority and she takes the time to personally respond to questions from members and has even been known to post a video response in some cases. The site offers useful tools like a debt eliminator and expense tracker, a coupon savings center, as well as forums for sharing stories and insights with like-minded moms.

Plus, every month through May, one lucky member will win 1-on-1 time with Suze through the
“Ask Suze” Sweepstakes.

I don’t know about you, but I am getting tired of constantly hearing about the financially ‘trying times’ we are in or ‘in these tough economic’ blah blah blah. The truth of the matter is if we planned better, saved more, and lived within our means these less than ideal times would not hurt near as much. Then again, if we all did that our economy would not grow and we would have fewer millionaires. The world needs spenders and savers AND those who do both in moderation.

Money Minded Moms (and Dads and Kids and …)

Suze Orman has developed a site based on her books and her philosophies about money, then coupled that with a community so we can learn not only from her, but from one another. Many times we feel like we are the only ones going through a particular situation, this is rarely the case. Get financial advice, find a path, gain some perspective, and plan for your future (whether it’s a month or a decade or more).

Win a copy of Suze Orman’s Book Action Plan

Giveaway Rules:

Mandatory entry:

Tell me one thing you learned from the MoneyMindedMoms website.

Additional entries:

Like MoneyMindedMoms on Facebook.

Follow @MoneyMindedMoms on Twitter

do both for 2 extra entries

Please complete the form below to enter this giveaway.

If you have problems with the form, please send me an email with your information [be sure to include MoneyMindedMoms Giveaway in your email] and I will manually add your information to the form according to the time stamp on the email.

Giveaway will end on March 28, 2011 at Midnight EST and is open to residents of the U.S., 18 years of age or older. Winner will be selected using Random.org. Winner will be notified via email. Additionally, I will post the winner’s name on my site in a separate post on or around March 29, 2011. Winner will have 48 hours from the time the email is sent to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Good Luck!

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Disclosure: All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own. I would not tell you something was wonderful if I did not truly believe it so. Please read my Disclosure Policy for more information. I received a copy of Suze Orman’s book ‘Action Plan ‘ courtesy of MoneyMindedMoms through MyBlogSpark for the purposes of this review.

Money Matters: What’s Your ‘Action Plan’? {closed} is a post from: AnneOnLife where life happens quite regularly. If you liked that, you'll love me on and .
© AnneOnLife 2008-2010