Mom Files

Wordless Wednesday

He still holds on to his Carmex no matter what...

I am still trying to decide what to do with William. There is a HUGE part of me that wants to home school him. Then there is a tiny part of me that wants to send him to school. If I do send him to school then I would more than likely need to put him in preschool to get him used to a classroom setting. Oh what to do, what to do... This is one of those things I think about most of the day. I just don't know what to do!

Money Mama & The Three Little Pigs

If you have been reading Momfiles for some time now, you will know how important it is for our family to understand money. Our girls are doing an outstanding job in the money management department and are very smart shoppers. I received this wonderful book called Money Mama & The Three Little Pigs by Lori Mackey. It came with an audio CD that you can listen along to with the book. It's so cute because the narration is in children's voices. William is a little too young to follow along with the CD so I opted to read it to him instead. He was immediately drawn in from the great illustration. Although he does not have an understanding about the teachings of the book, he will get it over time. Money Mama & The Three Little Pigs explains all of the aspects of money management in a child-friendly way. I was thoroughly impressed with this book and I think it would make an excellent addition to any child's book collection. It would make an excellent gift for birthdays, holidays or as a "just because" gift.

In order for a child to learn about money, they must be taught early on. They will have a greater likelihood of making better decisions about finances when they are adults. You can purchase Money Mama & The Three Little Pigs here. Be sure to check out Prosperity4Kids, Inc. on Facebook and Twitter.

I received a copy of the book to review. All opinions are 100 % mine as always.

Father's Day gift idea- Books! {giveaway}

**Contest Closed**
Winner- #39 Joanna~ Congratulations!

It's hard to believe that Father's Day is just around the corner. It is not always easy picking out just the right gift for the important dads in our lives. My husband is a simple man and he is a big lover of books. Not just any books~ Business related books. He has a collection of business books he has acquired and gained a lot of knowledge from over the years. I really think it is the key to what has made him an expert salesperson and speaker. I received the 3 books pictured below. My husband was thrilled and has already cracked open Mind Gym. I know he will enjoy taking some important lessons from all 3 books. Why not give dad the Gift of Eloquence, Entrepreneurship, and Savvy Investment Strategies this Father's Day?!

Banker to the World / William Rhodes: A highly respected global banker who has been a major player in every global financial meltdown for the past 50 years, shares his 8 leadership lessons, demonstrated by compelling stories from the front lines.

What Works on Wall Street / James O'Shaughnessy: One of the bestselling investment books of all time—completely rewritten to provide the newest, most innovative strategies for the market as a whole, as well individual sectors. The fourth edition – completely revised and updated to reflect new statistics and information – will be released this fall 2011! More to come.

Mind Gym / Gary Mack and David Casstevens: Drawing on his work with some of the top teams in professional sports, noted sport psychology consultant Gary Mack shares with you the same techniques and exercises he uses to help elite athletes build mental "muscle." These 40 accessible lessons and inspirational anecdotes will help you gain the "head edge" over the competition.

How would you like to win all 3 books? Just leave a comment letting us know which title looks the most interesting. If you would like additional entries you can also:

Follow Momfiles on Twitter and tweet this giveaway
"like" Momfiles on Facebook
Follow Momfiles via GFC and/or add my button to your blog
~ leave an individual comment per entry method.

Giveaway ends June 10, 2011 at 9:00 PM EST. Please leave your email address if you do not have a Blogger profile. Open to US Residents only. Winner will be chosen via random and will be contacted via email. Good luck!

Hey guys! I wanted to give you one last update on how Milo had been doing with the Pedigree dog food trial. If Milo could speak he might tell you "My mommy needs to give me MORE!" I don't know what it is but ever since he started eating the Pedigree small breed formula it is as if his appetite has grown. He already is a voracious eater but he has gotten downright greedy! He practically stalks the side of the pantry where we keep his food and makes sure we don't forget when it's mealtime. At 8 am and 3 pm you will find him sitting in the same spot waiting patiently to be fed.

When we first began feeding him the Pedigree food he had just had his thick coat shaved down. We do that when the weather warms up (it helps with excess shedding). We have noticed that his fur has grown in really quickly and it is very soft and shiny. His teeth seem to be about the same which is average considering how old he is. Thank goodness he continues to do very well in the digestion department since his "potty time" is very regular. He is in great health and we love the fact that he is spending a lot more time outdoors with his dog friends. He normally is a bit of a couch potato. I really don't know if it has anything to do with his diet but I will take it!

We have decided to continue feeding Milo the Pedigree food and are considering purchasing the weight control variety since we have noticed he is slightly plumper than he should be. Of course when you have a really small dog you must watch their weight closely. After participating in this trial I would absolutely recommend Pedigree dog food to all my friends and family. Be sure to get your coupon to help save a few bucks. Did you know Pedigree was on Facebook and Twitter? Be sure to follow them for great tips and advice for keeping your dogs healthy and happy. Throughout the month of June, dog lovers can help dogs by logging onto Facebook and Twitter (#everydogdeserves) to say why they think “Every Dog Deserves” the very best. For each Like, comment, @reply, re-tweet, photo upload, etc. directed at Pedigree, they’ll donate one pound of food (up to 100,000 pounds total). Every single engagement with Pedigree on Facebook and Twitter helps feed dogs! I know I will certainly participate. We have been so pleased with knowing our furry family member is healthy and happy! #Pedigreerocks

I wrote this review while participating in an Ambassador campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Pedigree and received dog food to facilitate my reviews and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

My Internet is rude

I wanted to let you all know that I have been experiencing some issues with my internet. We are thinking it is our wireless router or maybe one of the cords. Dwayne will try to troubleshoot it tonight. I have had intermittent service so I try to do all I can whether I get on for 5 minutes or an hour. Seems like every time I have attempted to comment on blogs I get the boot. I try to be a consistent commenter so it bothers me to not be able to do so, especially to my regular spots. Just know that I have been reading blogs from my phone. I have at least 7 posts to get up so I better get cracking while I have this little window.

One last thing~ You see the computer William is playing with? It is the most annoying thing! It plays music and makes all kinds of noise. The batteries must be really good in them because he plays on the darn thing ALL day long. Does anyone need a computer?! Of course there goes a Carmex stick within reach. That's my boy :)

Go Brie!

We attended Briahnna's middle school athletic banquet last week to recognize all students that participated in the sports programs. For each sport the coach gave out 3 plaques to the athletes they thought were most deserving for a specific area. Briahnna was given the 'Coach's Award'. Her coach was pleased with Brie's readiness to work hard, perform well and be a team player. We are so proud of Brie and she certainly deserves this great honor. What a nice way to close out her middle school volleyball career. Next stop high school!

WTH Wednesday

I bet you are looking at this picture thinking WTH? My husband asked some random lady who owned a few trees that bare this fruit if he could have a few. She told him to take as many as he wanted. He tells her that he used to eat these "Chinese plums" as a kid growing up in Miami. She then tells him that if you drop a seed in the ground it will grow into a plum tree. Why the hell did she tell him that?

Now we have to keep these horrible looking things for him to plant. I am so annoyed because we already have some American plum trees in our yard that are getting ready to removed and now he wants to go plant more? WTH! I wish there was a way I could trash these things! I suggested he plants a couple in a big pot and go from there. I will kick his backside if we end up with a grove of those things! Has anyone even seen these doggone plums before?

Fun in the kitchen

On the Saturday before Mother's Day I got all my ingredients to bake up some loaves of pound cake for my neighbors. I used a Jacques Pepin recipe so I just knew it would be perfect. William was acting like a donkey that day. I called him into the kitchen and asked him if he wanted to help me bake a cake. He shot around the corner and back with his step stool in hand.

I had all of the ingredients measured out and ready to go. He enjoyed helping to add things and of course to mix them all up. He smiled the whole time. Sometimes during the day I will take the remote control and change the channel from Nick Jr. to the Cooking Channel or Food Network. William loves to watch Aaron McCargo Jr. and Guy Fieri (they are the only manly man chefs my husband approves of). William always yells out "He's cooking yummy food!!"

Although this photo is not all that great, it still warms my heart to know that my kid loves doing things like this with me. Guess what? The cakes came out delicious but sadly you needed a sip of water or milk after each bite. It would make you feel like you were about to choke. I will not be sharing this recipe with anyone! I was so disappointed that it was not what I was expecting. After all the butter and eggs that went into it I surely knew it would be moist. Nope, not this time. I did have fun with my boy and the girls gladly ate the cake. My ingredients and time did not go to waste :)

I am thinking about reusables

William has been potty training for several months now and it has been interesting. He has his good days where he will stay dry all day and even all night. Then he has those days that he just decides he will go in his pants. We have been using Huggies brand Pull-ups training pants. We tried a couple other ones but I like these the best and I find coupons more often for them. I have noticed something odd though. They have the regular ones and the overnight ones. I have found that the overnight ones are a little thicker which makes a lot of sense but they are cut shorter.

The training pants on the left are the regular and the overnight is on the right. If I use the overnight and he has a wet night, he wakes up soaked through to his pajamas. This does not happen when I use the regular ones. That makes no sense at all! I even get a couple less in the overnight pack. I am really thinking about purchasing the reusable trainers since it looks like this little dude will be taking his sweet time. Any suggestions?

Mezzetta Review and Giveaway

**Winner is #107 Lois S**
Congratulations! Those daily Tweets helped!

I am such a fan of savory food and love to have a little extra zing on the side of my meals. I am also a big snacker. Mezzetta food products really do a little of both for me. I recently tried out the Mezzetta Bleu Cheese Stuffed Olives and I am hooked! I was a bit hesitant since bleu cheese tends to be a bit stinky. These olives were so not stinky~ they were a great blend of salty, tart and "meaty" at the same time. I have eaten them with cheese and crackers, on the side of beans and rice and also just by themselves {with wine} as a snack. I really like them a lot and think they would make a nice addition to an appetizer tray along with the Mezzetta Italian Garden Vegetables.

I did not know this but besides olives, peppers and vegetables, Mezzetta has a line of pasta sauces. They are made from all natural ingredients including fresh Imported plum tomatoes, locally grown herbs, onions and garlic as well a variety of other unique ingredients. Something I really love about Mezzetta products is that there are serving ideas on the jar labels in case you are unsure of what to do with that particular food. You can also go here for some great recipes & tips. I have been purchasing the Greek peppers, Banana peppers and Cocktail onions for years now as salad toppers and add-ins for rice dishes, sauces and soups. I am really impressed to see the different varieties that Mezzetta offers. They even offer gift baskets online. The prices are way less that what I would have thought considering the high-end quality of their products.

Speaking of gift baskets, Momfiles is giving away one Napa Valley Bistro gift basket to one lucky reader courtesy of Mezzetta Foods. This basket contains Homemade Style Marinara, Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce, Porcini Mushroom Pasta Sauce and Homemade Style Basil Pesto. The featured olives are Pitted Bistro Blend and Garlic Stuffed olives, as well as a wood pasta spoon and a stainless cheese grater. This is a $25 value. All you need is pasta!

*Mandatory: Enter to win by letting us know what Mezzetta products you would like to try.

For additional entries you can do any of the following:
~ "like" Mezzetta and Momfiles on Facebook
~ Follow Mezzetta and Momfiles on Twitter

~ Tweet this giveaway (once daily):

Enter to win a @Mezzetta_Foods Napa Valley Bistro gift basket @momfiles http://tinyurl.com/3ez7mu8 #food #gifts #giveaway

~ Grab the Momfiles button and place it on your blog
~ Follow Momfiles via GFC

This giveaway is open to US Residents only and will end on May 30, 2011 at 9:00 PM EST. Please leave your email address if you do not have a Blogger profile. One winner will be chosen at random and contacted via email. Good luck!

I received sample products from Mezzetta Foods to review and all opinions are 100% mine as always

The temperatures have been turned up in many states across the US recently. I literally feel my skin baking from the shortest amount of sun exposure. This is a great reminder about how important it is to protect my skin against the harmful rays of the sun. I recently tested out JĀSÖN™ Natural Sunblock in the Family formula with SPF 45. I am always leery of what any sunblock will feel like and even smell like. The scent was really light with a hint of citrus. The feeling was very smooth and light and it absorbed quickly. It did not have that typical heavy feeling of most sunblocks.

JĀSÖN™ Natural Sunblock is made with natural antioxidants from extracts of Açaí, Grape Seed and Green Tea to protect skin from sunburn and reduce harmful free radical damage. It's great for the whole family. I really could use this when I am working out in the yard!
Since it is sweat-proof and water-resistant, it will be a pool side must have for my family. I might need to wear some when I am driving the mom taxi since I sit in the sun waiting for the kids to get out of school and practice. You don't realize how much you are exposed doing general, everyday tasks.

I also tried out the JĀSÖN™ Natural Lip Balm SPF 25. I was surprised to see a lip balm with such a big SPF. I am used to only 10-15. This lip balm was really smooth and creamy with a hint of mint. This again will be good for when we are working out in the yard.

JĀSÖN™ Natural sun protection products can be purchased here as well as some natural foods retailers. You can search for a retail location here.

Disclosure: I received products samples to review and all opinions are 100% mine as always.

It's always the little things that matter

Today was a full day for me. I drove kids all over the place, ran errands, picked kids up, took one to the doctor, potty training and teaching boy, dropped girls to practice and then picked them up~ Well it was something like that. I know I must drive about $10-$12 worth of gas each day. It's worth it though. I love the time I spend in the car with the kids. We talk about serious issues, crack jokes and talk about the most random things! The highlight of my hectic day today was when William thanked me for each meal I gave him. Then he thanked me for teaching him his school lessons. He is so compassionate (all 3 of my kids are). I am a proud momma. **Now back to cleaning up the 50 million toys he left all over the place and the mountain of laundry that is stalking me**

Oooh Goody!!!

I was so very excited when I was offered the opportunity to review some of the new items from Goody. I believe you can't ever have too many hair accessories when you have girls in the house. My daughters love playing around with different hairstyles and they are lifetime users of Goody products. We have tried the off-brand in the past and always regretted it. Goody is the only brand that has been able to hold up well to the girls' thick, biracial locks. It's also the only brand of elastics that will hold my long, heavy hair. Goody has a new Spring Collection called Modern Organica and it is available exclusively at Target. This collection offers all things glamorous, girlie and earthy at the same time. They have your everyday elastics, barrettes, headwraps, headbands, bobby slides and more. We received the following items from the Modern Organica collection as well as a headband that did not make it in the photo but instead on a 14 year old girl's head! I personally loved the "Freshly Picked" bobby slide (pink flower). I have plans to wear it with a sweet little black dress I bought last month for my next date night.

I am loving the Ouchless cushion brush and Detangling comb. The brush has a unique comfort gel grip handle to make brushing more comfortable. I love the retractable cushion pad that makes for an "ouchless" hair brushing experience. The comb will be living in my shower caddy. I love that the teeth are slightly flexible to be more gentle on your hair. I also love me some ponytail holders without the metal. Our hair will break those types on the first wearing!

Lastly, the girls were going nuts for the reversible headbands and the double sided snap clips. I did not even know anyone made reversible clips! These are going to be perfect for the girls during volleyball season to help hold all the stray bits of hair and look cute at the same time :)

I know that Goody hair accessories have been a must-have for me since I was a little girl. I have passed that on to my own girls. I always feel like I get my money's worth when I purchase the Goody brand. Be sure to check them out on Facebook and Twitter.

Question: Are you a Goody girl too?

Disclosure: I received items for review and all opinions are 100% mine as always.

A Father's Love | Book Review & Giveaway (closed)

Contest Closed
Winner is #4 Kristin~ Congratulations!

I had the pleasure of reviewing the book called "A Father's Love" written by David Goldman. A lot of you might have followed the story of David Goldman going on a 5+ year crusade to bring his son home from Brazil. This book started out as a love story from a movie and then into a nightmare. Thankfully there was a happy ending for Mr. Goldman and his son Sean.

I am not a reader at all but I read the entire book in 3 days. It really captured my heart and opened my eyes to so much to things that I did not know about child abduction overseas. Mr. Goldman wrote this book in great detail and with such grace and dignity. The way he handled himself when dealing with the authorities was amazing. As much as his world was shattered he somehow managed to keep it together. I am not so sure I would have been able to handle things like he did if anyone took my child away from me. In this case it was his own wife.

"A Father's Love" was the perfect title for this book because that is what you felt from each page you turned. If you are interested in purchasing this book you can find it here. It is available in hardcover, audio CD/audiobook or Kindle Edition. I really enjoyed reading it and I think you will too. Be sure to have a tissue box next to you just in case! I admit I did shed tears, I was really moved.

I am pleased to be able to host a giveaway for one Momfiles reader to win a copy of A Father's Love. I think this would make a great Father's Day gift!

To enter: Please leave a comment letting us know if you followed the David Goldman story.

For additional entries you can Tweet, mention on Facebook, add the Momfiles button to your blog or follow me on Twitter and/or Facebook. Just leave a separate comment for each entry method to count.

Contest is open to US Residents and will end at 9:00 PM EST on May 24, 2011. Please leave a visible email address if you do not have a Blogger Profile. Winner will be chosen via random.org and will be contacted by email. Good luck!

Disclosure: I received a copy of the book for review purposes and all opinions are 100% mine as always.

Parents are the first teachers

Today I am making these sentence strips and other random tidbits as part of William's daily learning activities. He has shown a lot of maturity with his memory and vocabulary so it is time to step things up. I plan to hang some of these in his room so he can read them out loud every morning when he hops out of bed. We did something similar with the girls and I really think it helped.

One very important thing we feel every child needs is to have self-confidence. Why should a child not feel like he or she is the best? I feel like the old school teaching methods I used for the girls were a success so I am doing the same for William. I am still playing with the idea of home schooling him. We shall see!

Hey there, I wrote a post a couple weeks ago about our dog Milo participating in Pedigree Ambassador dog food trial. I wanted to share a few updates about his progress so far. I am so thankful that we have had a very smooth transition from his old food. He seems to be enjoying his Pedigree small breed formula a whole lot. I even decided to take a handful of his old food and a handful of the Pedigree to see what he would do. He sniffed his old food from one hand and then sniffed his new food in the other. Milo snuck a couple morsels from the Pedigree hand! I was surprised and did not think he would know the difference!

Milo loves to catch some rays!

I haven't noticed any changes thus far regarding his coat or his dental health as yet. Thankfully he has not been sick and has had his usual potty routine. That makes me happy since I was worried about him having digestion issues that sometimes comes along with a change in food. All in all, he is doing very well with the Pedigree small breed and I will be posting again with any new updates. If you are thinking about switching food for your dog I would recommend you give Pedigree a try. Here's a coupon to help save a few bucks. Did you know Pedigree was on Facebook and Twitter? Be sure to follow them for great tips and advice for keeping your dogs healthy and happy.

I wrote this review while participating in an Ambassador campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Pedigree and received dog food to facilitate my reviews and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Playing at the park with the family

We all had a great time at the playground today. Dwayne was trying to take a few photos and William did not want to cooperate. Of course if I was a 3 year old surrounded by slides, monkey bars and swings I would not want to stop for photos either!

I love these kids! :)

I am not one to participate in overly commercialized holidays, Mother's Day included. I still do make it a point to honor mothers on that day since I don't necessarily get to do it all the time. It is just one day to be sure I let those ladies know how much they mean to me and thanking them for their awesomeness.

As for myself, I don't take Mother's Day off. I still do my usual job of being mom. It's my life and it's what I love. I am so lucky because I feel like at least 4-5 times a week my daughters tell me "That's why you are the best mom in the world" or "Bawbi, you're such a beast" and one of my favorites "Is there anything you can't do?". They will often times come up to me while I am lounging in the recliner and rub my feet for no reason. They buy little goodies from school and give them to me as a little surprise. They hug me and tell me they love me several times a day. As big as the girls are, they still fight over who gets to sit next to me and paste themselves all over me. Even little William shows affection to me and loves to snuggle with me when he is looking for a peaceful spot to rest. It's not unusual to see 3 kids glued to me at one time. My husband is wonderful to me as well. He gives all of himself to make me happy and I deeply appreciate it. He can be exhausted but always takes time for me. He listens to me and takes great care of me.

You see, every day of my life is like Mother's Day~ only better. Nobody is forced to make me feel special or loved. I did receive nice gifts for Mother's Day and I am grateful. I still enjoy the daily things I receive from my family that comes straight from the heart and makes me know I am the best mom in the world!

Happy Mother's Day to all my momma friends out there! You rock ♥

Dear Life: Please give me lemons

I finally received my baby Meyer Lemon tree I ordered several weeks back. I was surprised that it actually have leaves on it instead of only being a stick. William helped me plant it and we are hoping for the best. We potted it since citrus can't survive the winter and at that time we will bring it indoors. The tree is only supposed grow to about 4-5 feet at maturity and we should not expect any lemons until the second year. This was all Dwayne's idea (a good one too) and we look forward to seeing what happens! Hopefully my purple thumb won't show itself ;)

Question: Have you ever planted fruit trees in a pot before? If so, was it a success?

Sometimes you must appreciate the mess

Here is an example of everyday life at the Ismail house. Hurricane Willie can destroy any room in as little as 30 seconds. I get so aggravated some days and I yearn to know what a neat and clean home is again. Nothing is ever in place anymore and it is just normal to step on plastic fish, bouncy balls or blocks. I find myself picking up after the little one and sometimes even the big ones all day long. I then say that I will no longer clean throughout the day and I will save it for once he goes to bed. It doesn't go down like that. I wonder when this little boy will finally get it and clean up as I ask him to.

Then I really get to thinking about how much I would not want things any different. I have healthy, happy children. That's all that matters. William will eventually learn to clean up after himself. There will come the day that I will wish I had someone to pick up after and photos like this will make me smile. If I didn't have Hurricane Willie to pick up after I think I would be bored!