Coca-Cola's "Pay it Forward" for 2013 { Giveaway} #spon

Do you know anyone between the ages of 16-21 that is doing amazing things? Maybe they are high achievers in school, doing community service work or trying to start their own business. I know plenty of youth (including my own teenage daughters) doing positive things that I would love to see receive a great reward. I think about the amazing job my oldest daughter did as the chair of a service project she participated in for her school called H.O.P.E. 365. The organization collects food items, coats, money, hygiene items and even donation of blood to give back to the local community.  She spent numerous hours planning, organizing, standing outside in the cold collecting food donations and all of the countless things that went into making it a success.

Here she is with a portion of the food items that were collected. It was over 20,000! 

Right now, Coca-Cola is kicking off 2013 with its second annual Coca-Cola “Pay It Forward” program through My Coke Rewards.  Coca-Cola’s “Pay It Forward” program celebrates and acknowledges the richness of African American heritage and helps parents, relatives, mentors, friends and the community support aspiring young people achieve their dreams by nominating them for unique and exciting apprenticeship experiences. 

Four lucky nominees will be rewarded with the unique and exciting opportunity for an apprenticeship experience with one of the country’s most respected celebrity history makers:  business mogul Magic Johnson; chairman and CEO of BET Networks, Debra Lee; or hip hop artist and philanthropist, Common. I think all three of them are the perfect mentors! 

Parents, relatives, friends and mentors can nominate aspiring youth between the ages of 16-21, now through March 2nd for a chance to win the apprentice experience. You can nominate up to five young people (the young person can also nominate himself/herself) and be entered for a chance to win a $5,000 sweepstakes with each nomination!

I actually nominated my oldest daughter and it took me about 3 minutes to complete. You must sign in with your My Coke Rewards account to start. If you don't have a My Coke Rewards account, you can sign up for one very easily. Once you are logged in, click the "nominate now" button. The first screen asks for the youth's name and email address. Next, you pick the first and second choice for which apprenticeship you think is best for that youth. Last, you answer 3 questions about why you chose the person you are nominating. Each question allows only 50 characters so it goes quickly. It's that easy! At the end of your submission you will receive a confirmation email. So who do you think you would nominate for this amazing opportunity? 

I am thrilled to be able to offer a fantastic prize pack valued at $120 (provided by Coca-Cola) for one lucky Momfiles reader to win! The prize pack will include: 

•  $100 Amex card to help you and your family “Pay It Forward” in the New Year 
• Coca-Cola “Pay It Forward” journal
•  Coca-Cola “Pay It Forward” t-shirt

This giveaway is open to US Residents only and will end on January 18, 2013. One winner will be chosen at random and will be contacted via email. Momfiles is not responsible for any lost or stolen prizes. Good luck! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway The prize was provided by Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola Company is not a sponsor, administrator or connected in any other way with this giveaway. I was compensated for my time to share information about the Pay It Forward campaign.

The artist of the house, Brie

Our daughter Brie is such an outstanding artist. She had to draw a horse's eye for an art assignment and it blew us all away with how realistic it looks! She is in an advanced art class that she was recommended to be in from her teacher last year. She wasn't going to take the class at first, but decided to keep it. I am glad she did! There is no need to waste pure talent like that. Great job Brie!

How times have changed when it comes to undergarments

I was chatting with my friend Krystel from ArmyWife101 the other day and we were discussing bras and undergarments for teens. We had both recently taken our teenage daughters to shop for new undergarments and were astonished by the choices. It seems like the bras of today are made for the bedroom (and I'm not talking pajamas) more than for the function it is intended for. We searched through bra after bra and it seemed like every single one was overstuffed with padding to make your breasts appear two sizes larger. Now my daughters are small just like me, but why on earth do they need a bra to make them look like they are a C? It's as if our daughters are not supposed to feel good about what they have and give the illusion that they are busty. I just don't get it. I was so tiny when I was a teenager that I literally wore a negative size. I didn't really wear push-up bras because there was nothing to push up! Now I understand that girls today are a little curvier than before but why do they need their boobs pushed up to their chin and add two more sizes? I have seem so many teens wearing bras that cause spillage and that is not cute!

I feel like it is a disservice to our daughters to purchase bras like this to make their breasts appear fuller than they are. I think it is the wrong way to go about teaching and encouraging high self-esteem. I do let my daughters have a say what they like when we are shopping for undergarments, but I do also put in my two cents. I used to be one of those very insecure girls growing up and even well into my adult years, thinking my breasts weren't big enough. I have learned to be happy with what I was born with and know that my beauty truly comes from within. Everything else is just a bonus. I really believe moms need to be involved in teaching our daughters about wearing the appropriate undergarments. This goes beyond the training bra years!  Don't even get me started on the underwear showing at the top of the super low jeans. I know I sound old-fashioned (because I am) but maybe we need more old-fashioned today!

What are your thoughts?

Tips on battling boredom from a Veteran Mom

School is officially out for the Summer in our city and I think often to times when my kids would say, "I'm bored!" I have been mommin' it up for almost 18 years so I feel like I have a lot of experience dealing with these situations. I took it upon myself to make up a list of some very good tips on how parents can help their kids fight boredom this Summer. I can almost guarantee these will work!

When your kids tell you they are bored you can respond with:

• How about going outside and pulling some weeds from the garden and alongside the house? Why not increase the fun by mowing the lawn? Um, you mean like out in the sun? Where you sweat? 
• How about we go buy 10 Sunday newspapers and clip all the coupons so we can go out on and extreme couponing shopping adventure! They will quickly run away because they don't want to be humiliated pushing 6 carts through the store. 
• Would you like me to have your dad sit you down for one of his lectures? If your husband is like mine, he can talk 'em to tears!
• Go clean the baseboards, ceiling fans and kitchen cabinets. I think my kids would be rolling their eyes in their mind :)
• How about going to the dentist? You can get a cleaning and see what else they find that can be taken care of! If you told me this I would RUN! 
• Go bathe the dog and then blow dry him. Wet dog smell on a teenage girl? Not happening!
• Go read a book. They get all huffy because they felt like that's all they did when school was in session.
• Wanna help paint some rooms in the house? This starts off as fun and after a few swipes they usually start to whine. 

I have tested these out and they all worked the very first time. You can thank me later! ;-)

Braces update

Brie has been in braces for about a year and 5 months now. Last year in December, she had oral surgery to have a baby tooth removed and to expose the adult tooth that has been growing in the roof of her mouth. It's hard to believe that she still had a baby tooth in the front at the age of 15! Not only that, it would not budge!! She got the tooth extracted at the dentist and went to a specialist for the other part. She had to be asleep for the procedure. It was a rough recovery at first, but luckily she was back to normal within a few days. Now her adult tooth has joined in with the rest of her teeth and is coming along well. We have seen a dramatic change so far and it looks like we will stay on schedule and she will have them on about another year and a half. She recently had some raised fillings put on a couple of her back teeth to help control her chewing. She was devastated and thought she would not be able to eat normally. Well that was short lived.  To say that you are required to watch a video on all the things to avoid with braces apparently meant nothing for Brie! She finds a way to enjoy all of her favorite foods with the exception of crunchy granola.

Thankfully her journey with braces has not been too bad. It has been really neat watching the transformation. The expense is enormous, but well worth every dime we are putting into it :)

Sisters in print | High School memories

It is that time of year again... end of the school year and yearbooks! Both girls got their high school yearbook yesterday and I asked them if they were in it besides the class photo. They told me there was a shot of the two of them together and casually showed it to me.

I screamed out loud like whaaaat??!!! Those are my babies!! I was so thrilled to see that they were a part of a feature they did on students that share the same house and school. They thought I was crazy with how excited I was seeing them together in the yearbook. I think it is neat that they can look back at this many years from now and remember those times. I still glance through my high school yearbooks from time to time.

Just seeing how happy and vibrant they are when they are hanging out warms my mommy heart. It is such a wonderful thing when siblings, especially teenagers get along so well. I tell them all the time that they have a best friend for life! I love my girls so much! I just had to share this with you all.

Have a great weekend! :)

Safeskin Kids Sport Wrap Review

Being the mother of 2 student athletes, you deal with many issues concerning their bodies. Both of my girls play volleyball and it is not unusual to see them or their teammates with wrapped wrists, ankles, fingers, elbows or knees. Safeskin Kids Sport Wraps are a great way to help get through the game when those body parts are not fully cooperating. What better way than to have a fun, colorful wrap instead of the traditional white. These sport wraps come in four bright colors – blue, red, green and yellow – and is ideal for securing bandages and splints and cushioning or supporting wounds. My daughters say that having the colored wrap makes them look "cool".

In addition to these benefits, SAFESKIN* Kids Sport Wrap is:
· Self-adhesive and reusable – with no clips or pins needed to secure the wrap into place.
· Soft, cushiony and comfortable against the skin.
· Water-resistant.
· Latex-free
Safeskin Kids Sport Wrap is currently available at Walmart locations nationwide for a suggested retail price of $3.94. It will be available at other retail locations in early 2012. For more information, visit www.kcdiy.com/safeskin/.

I will be purchasing a pack for each of the girls' gym bag. I wish they came in orange so they can wear their school color! Sadly, my girls would want to wear these even if they don't need to because they love looking cool :-)

I received a product sample for review purposes and all opinion are 100% mine as always.

Orbeez Review

I recently received an Orbeez Light-up Star Lamp to review. This toy came with packets of these itty bitty pellets called Orbeez that come in a variety of colors. When you soak them in water for 3 hours or overnight they grow into cool gel-like balls. With the Orbeez Light-up Lamp you choose 3 colors (must include clear as one) and once you "grow" your Orbeez, you drain them and fill them in the star container.

Once the star is filled you screw on the light-up cap and turn it onto the base (requires 3 AAA batteries not included). Now you just flip the switch and watch the Orbeez light up and change colors. It is such a cute item and I think any girl would like this. Although my daughters are teenagers this still appeals to them. Come to think of it, I am 37 and I want one for my desk!

Orbeez items can be purchased at Amazon.com, Kmart, Walmart, Target and ToysRUs (online and in stores for some major retailers)

Check Orbeez out on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube

A lower food bill in the summer?

One of the first things that was on my mind with the end of the school year was feeding the kids and not wanting to spend a fortune. I was really afraid of what I might encounter. Strangely, it has been costing me LESS with the kids being out of school. I didn't think it was possible but I figured out why... When school is in session I always have to be sure that the kids have a variety of quick options for breakfast since we leave the house at 7. This means no time for home-cooked big breakfasts. I buy things like bagels, cinnamon toast, granola bars etc... Both girls took lunch from home as well as extra snacks. I am one of those moms who goes above and beyond to make sure they have quality things to eat. This is where it costs me a whole lot. Yes, school lunch would be cheaper but my kids don't eat it plus I don't want them to. There would also be the numerous times that they stayed after school for sports, activities and projects so I always made sure they had extra snacks and drinks.

Being home makes it so much easier. I can cook a good breakfast and even make ahead items like pancakes, waffles and bacon. Lucky for me my kids can eat just about anything so they tend to have whatever was leftover from last night's dinner for lunch. They drink water ALL day long (not that they don't ever drink anything else).

I think I am spending about $30-$50 less per week in food. Not bad huh? I really did not think it was possible! Perhaps since they are so busy they are not thinking about eating as much.

Has you food budget changed with school being out?

Doctor's diagnosis "You are not dead"

The other day my 16 year old was complaining that she was having some odd pain in her chest when she left volleyball practice. I asked her a bunch of questions like "Did you spike the ball hard? Do you think you pulled a muscle? Could it be gas?" She said it was not a normal pain. After about 2 hours I felt like we had better get it checked out, just in case. Off to Urgent Care we went. I told Chardie we should go ahead and get her knees checked while we were there since she has been suffering from knee pain for some time now. We were so glad that we were the only ones in there and was able to be seen within 5 minutes. Wouldn't you know that the pain stopped? Yep, no more pain. Classic. Long story short~ the nurse checked her vitals and did an EKG. My daughter has a problem with anyone touching her. She is VERY ticklish. I mean even if I try to give her a simple manicure she will go nuts with laughter.

Flashback- When Chardie was 6 months old she fell off the bed while I had my back turned to grab a diaper and powder. I was frantic and she was on her back laughing heartily. She has never changed. Whenever she falls or runs into something you will see tears streaming down her face. This is not because she is in pain but it is from laughter. Yes folks, my kid laughs when she gets hurt. You can never tell if she is okay or not.

Now back to the doctor... He walks in to let us know of any findings from the EKG. He let us know that her problem had nothing to do with her heart. It was more than likely from her physical activity that she irritated her chest muscle. He said that if a 16 year old was having a heart attack that they would not be able to survive. He then tells us that the good news is that she did not have a heart attack and she did not die. I could not help but giggle. Every time he tried to touch Chardie, she would start laughing. The doctor said maybe it's a good thing she is that way. He said if she is alone with a boy and starts to giggle then we would know that he better back off of our daughter. He then attempts to touch her knees. Of course we all know how that went! He told us that knee pain is the most common problem in teen athletes and recommended she take Ibuprofen. So the end result is that she is fine, just as I suspected. Thank goodness! We keep cracking jokes about her not being dead. That doctor was crazy but we really liked him and will surely go back to him again :)

Yep, I'm the mean mom

Today marks the first official day of Summer break for the girls. Most of the nicer parents let their kids sleep in as late as they would like. Not this mean mom. I expect both teens to be up no later than 9 AM. I remember the days when Dwayne and I were first married (even right before) when his grandmother was still alive. She would start knocking pots and pans around and also turn up the volume on the TV to wake us up. I will never forget how each and every day she would tell us that young people have no business staying in the bed late. That made no sense to me at the time. She would express how important it was for us to do something, be productive. After all, we were young, healthy and energetic. Why waste it sleeping until noon? I think from listening to her tell us these things for 2 years that it somehow got stuck in my brain. I have the same feelings about young people getting up and getting out early. My kids tell me all the time how their friends get up at 1 in the afternoon! No way, not my kids. Thankfully my girls are pretty good at getting up and at 'em. I do have some days that I give them a free pass to stay in bed longer but for the most part they still get up out of habit. Call me old-fashioned~~ That I am!

Random family updates

Is it just me or has time been flying by? I swear it was just January and I look at the calendar and we are about halfway through April. Last week was Spring break and it was wonderful. The girls had an actual break from the usual 4-7 hours of school work they have on a daily basis (weekends included). They had to nerve to complain that they were bored! I told them they had better enjoy that down time since from here until June 3rd there will be no school work break. We sort of lingered around all week and did a little shopping, eating out and getting together with friends. I enjoyed the quality time with the girls that we don't get much of during the busy school week. William was treated like a King while the girls were home. I hate to admit that William is a bit spoiled. The even carried him around like a baby! He loved every minute of it.

Now I am back to my usual getting up at the crack and driving kids everywhere. I would not have it any other way. Chardie has been getting some driving practice in although she will not be getting a car until she graduates high school. There's no need for it if I am available to drive them anywhere they need to go. I don't mind waiting either. I will let her drive herself to school once she gets her license. I'll just have to scoot myself back in the driver's seat and go home.

I have been working with William on his "school" work and he is doing an amazing job! He knows the entire alphabet phonetically and recognizes a lot of words. He has been saying a lot of bigger words as well as speaking in complete sentences. It's amazing how much he adds to his vocabulary daily. We are very proud. We have also been working on potty training. He is getting good at going pee pee and staying dry all day and overnight. Poo poo is a whole other beast. He still hided when he has to go. I don't really know what to do about that one. I guess I have put it in my head that he will get it eventually and thankfully since he is not in daycare/preschool it won't be as big a deal to be fully trained. I'm not stressing.

Dwayne and I have been talking about getting a treadmill. I am willing to buy one that is used but we have not been able to find what we want within our spending limit. I can't believe people think they can sell their USED treadmill for $800! If I was spending money like that I would buy it brand new. We are hoping the right deal will come along.

We have been getting some home improvements done. We are doing a little at a time since we don't use credit cards. Cash goes FAST! I feel like our bank account is a recycling center. All in all everything is going well for the Ismail family. How is everything going with you?

Women- Can't we just be happy with what we have?

I love my kids' beautiful bi-racial hair. Their curls are so fun and versatile. They can do so much with their hair unlike mine. If I try to make it do anything it ends up sliding out of the style. Chardie is the typical 16 year old girl obsessed with her hair and looking in every mirror she walks by. She does not care for her natural curls. She opts to straighten it with the CHI flat iron.

Look at how much hair this girl has!! Now this photo is of her brushed out hair so it's not normally poofy like that. When she puts more moisturizer in it her curls are amazing.

Here's what it looks like with the first few bottom layers straightened.

Here's the finished product.

I always tell my girls how lucky they are that they can go straight or curly and always look pretty. They both feel that straight hair is better. Geez, what I wouldn't give for some curls! I guess no matter what your age is, most women always want the opposite of what they have when it comes to hair.

2011 South Carolina Junior Scholar | Briahnna Ismail

Yesterday evening we attended an awards ceremony in honor of the elite group of the 2011 South Carolina Junior Scholars. The recipients of this award perform at the academic top 2% of the state and also had high scores on the Fall PSAT. We are so proud of Briahnna for achieving this top honor and you would not believe the amount of mail we receive from so many colleges and universities from around the country. Go Brie!!

Brie's braces

Let me tell you something~ Teenage girls are the WORST beings on earth to photograph. No photo is pleasing to them. Then again I feel the same way about myself. Okay, well here is the updated photo of Brie with her braces. She continues to do well and I am so mesmerized by how quickly her teeth are shifting! I'm not sure if this is all in my mind but it seems as if her confidence has boosted a bit since getting the braces. I am also in such disbelief at how mature my baby girl is getting. She goes to high school next year :( I guess at least she will have straight teeth before junior year. She's so excited!

Brie's braces update

It has been almost 2 months since Brie got her braces and I am happy to report that things are going very well. It's going way better than we thought. She adjusted really quickly to them and feels like having them is just normal now. She has figured out what she can and can't eat and methods to make eating certain things a bit easier. The only real issue she has had so far is a bit of pain from the pressure of her teeth moving. It is amazing to see just how much her teeth have moved already! Our schedules have not been coinciding for me to snap a photo but I am sure I can pin her down some time soon and sneak one in. Brie has done really well with the extra teeth brushing and longer flossing time. It takes longer but she knows how important it is throughout this process.

On her last orthodontist visit she asked the technician how many colors she could get for her rubber bands. She was told she can get as many as she wanted. Of course she requested rainbow. My girl loves her colors!!

Thrive Time for Teens Review (family style)

A couple weeks ago we received a board game called Thrive Time for Teens to review. This was perfect since we have 2 teen daughters. Thrive Time for Teens is a game geared toward teaching teens about financial responsibility in a fun way. This game involves real-life scenarios such as going to college, buying a car, giving to charity, paying monthly expenses and even starting a business.We sat down together at the dining table (snacks and all) to play the game for ourselves. Everyone had a financial tracking sheet to document everything along the way.

I will admit that it was a bit confusing at first so we suggest you read the instructions fully to understand the game better. The girls were amazed when they had to use their credit card to pay for things that they did not always have to cash for. I think they were not crazy about having so much debt! You really had to make some tough decisions about things that can impact your finances. My husband and I really enjoyed playing this game with our children. The game truly allowed our girls to learn financial concepts in a fun way instead of the typical parent lecture...believe me, the girls are happy to get out of any of daddy's lectures any way they can!!

Here's what the girls had to say:

Briahnna (age 13): "I really enjoyed this game and how it is so much like real life. I'll definitely play this game again!"

Chardonnay (age 15): "I like the game a lot. It's a great way to teach one to manage money. It's something they don't teach in school so this is a great way to learn and I love it."

Thrive Time for Teens can be purchased online for $29.99. It makes a great gift for birthdays and holidays. You can also donate a game to your favorite organization as a way of giving back to your community. We plan to play again over the long weekend. Our family would recommend this game for sure and we hope you will check it out.

Disclosure: We received a free game for review purposes and no other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% our own.

Brie's new look and my 700th post!

Here is a new photo of Briahnna without her glasses. At first I did not like it. I have been used to seeing her in glasses for over 5 years. It was too much change so fast. It has been over a week now and it has grown on me. I think the fact that she looks so much more grown up makes me a little sad *sniff*. Funny thing is every so often you see her pushing her "glasses" up higher. Of course there are no glasses to push up! It's out of habit. One thing she has been enjoying is wearing her cute new sunglasses when we go out :)

Busy is nothing without consistency

I was having a conversation with the hubby this morning over coffee and we were discussing how so many parents 'throw' their kids into way too many activities at one time. Some kids do multiple sports and also a musical instrument as well as school and parents think it is the right thing to do. They feel that kids should be kept busy at all times. Now what good does busy do a child if there is no real consistency involved in their day to day? When a child lives a sporadic life at such a young age it seems to me that this can lead to disorganization and chaos. Of course I am no expert so I can't say for sure. Dwayne and I just think kids of today do way more than they should and this leaves less time for them to learn the most important life lessons and life skills that should come directly from their parents. We have made it a point to spend more time individually with our children. Don't get me wrong, our children are involved in activities but are limited to how often and how many at any given time. I think it is imperative that our children are taught about things like finances, paying bills, keeping house and even cooking. After all, what sport will teach them these things? What are your thoughts??

Not your average teenagers

Our family went away to Atlanta for the weekend for a little R&R. We packed up the car and the kids and were off on a road trip! We ate out a few times which is rare for us so it was nice to not have too cook and clean. The girls were thrilled to hang out with their cousins and William just wanted to run wild. As long as he was outside, he was happy! Dwayne and his uncle Mike took all the teenagers shopping. Since my kids were the guests they let them pick where they wanted to go. Of course the junior Shellys wanted to go to Kohl's. They were gone for a few hours so this was a good time for Willie to come down from all the physical activity he participated in ALL day. He was fed and bathed and very calm. The kids finally returned and my girls walked up to me (Kohl's bag in hand). I figured they convinced Dwayne to buy them something. Turns out I was completely wrong. They handed me the bag and told me it was for me and to open it up and see what I got. I was really surprised and said that they should not have done it and they insisted that for all I do for them I deserve something nice. I got a shirt that I wanted, black flip-flops and a couple undies. All of the sizes were exact but the part that made proud was that they bought everything on sale or clearance. Also they used their own money. Dwayne offered to pay for it or even reimburse them but they would not take the money. They wanted to do this for me. Words can't express how special that made me feel and how proud I am of how they did something so selfless. What sweet girls and not your average teenagers. I know they will be great wives and mommas some day ...many, many years from now!!) I LOVE MY DAUGHTERS SO VERY MUCH!!!