If you visited our site a little over a week ago, you would have seen that we were changing web hosts. We switched to Host Gator at the recommendation of an internet marketer we met recently. We are extremely happy we made the change.

This new host has everything we need to host one or multiple sites with any type of programming you may need and it has an easy integration with Word Press to host your own blog. I was able to set up a blog on the account in a matter of minutes.

I am also happy with the Control Panel (CPanel) which is where I can access everything from the files to email account setup to the statistics of how many people have visited my site.
The best part is that it is inexpensive. Click on Host Gator or the banner below to view the hosting packages.
Contact me if you have any questions about it.

Sorry for the delay in getting this blog updated. We are back on track to getting the blog and the store site updated with new information and new products.

If you have anything you would like to see on the blog or the site, please let me know!

Thanks!
Vanessa

Today is your chance to make a difference. It’s Election Day to decide the presidency of the United States as well as many regional and local elections.

Our country has been through a lot recently so this election is even more critical than before. I have heard that there will be a large turnout at the polls. During the Primaries, it was mentioned that locally we had around 21% of registered voters come out and vote. That is entirely too low of a number. In our country, we have the privilege of being able to choose the people running our government. Don’t waste it by staying home. Voice your opinion by getting out there sometime today.

Check your local election website if you are unsure of all the races and issues you will be voting on. Be informed before you go, don’t just vote for your party. You may find that a candidate on the other ticket may believe in all the same issues you believe in.

The only way we can make a difference is by expressing our opinions during this election. Good luck and hopefully you won’t have a long wait!

Are you looking for a unique party decoration? Try the Personalized Photo Confetti at The Pink Poodle Boutique.

I ordered a combination of the 2 oz. bags of photo confetti and personalized confetti for my son’s 1st birthday. According to the site, this is over 1,000 pieces of confetti, including over 350 pieces of the photo confetti. It says each bag is enough to generously cover 2 to 4 eight foot tables.

The ordering process was easy. First, you pick out up to 3 different shapes of the non-photo or solid confetti. There is a choice of small and large hearts, small and large circles, Cinderella, doves, classic and elegant butterflies and wedding bells. I picked the large and small circles for my bag.
Then pick out up to 3 colors for the shaped confetti. There is a large selection of colors available which makes it great to be able to match any theme.
After that, for the personalized confetti, you can pick out up to 4 messages to be printed on some of the shaped confetti.
And finally, once that is completed on the website, you email up to 4 photos to be included in the photo confetti. She recommends not cropping the photos so she can crop it optimally for the printing process.
Except for my indecisiveness for what photos and messages to use, the ordering itself took just a few minutes.

I received my order within a week which is quick considering this was a personalized item. I am very happy with the results of the confetti. I had sent over a sampling of photos to choose from because I wasn’t sure what looked best in this process and she picked the best two. I can’t wait until I can decorate with this confetti so I can show off my baby boy. I know everyone will love it.

Whether you are looking for decorations for a birthday, wedding or other special event, definitely consider the photo confetti at The Pink Poodle Boutique. You will be well taken care of!

Sampling of the Photo and Personalized Confetti

I have been doing A LOT of research into cell phones and EMFs emitted off of them (amongst other items we are exposed to). Radio waves coming from these devices trigger responses that lead to
effects ranging from anxiety disorders, learning problems and electrosensitivity to immunological deficiencies and cancer. I have looked into a few different things and found out about a couple of products which are available to disburse EMFs away from ours or our childrens’ heads. Although children really shouldn’t use cell phones unless for emergencies anyway! Their skulls are not quite solid to protect them from these external effects.
According to BioPro Technology, Doctors have told them that the MRET and ERT technologies are a very effective combined intervention because the MRET emits a field that prevents biological tissue from reacting. ERT minimizes the symptoms by restoring intercellular communication. This combined
intervention represents the most efficient means of controlling this radio wave damage available anywhere in the world.
The BioPro cell chips are made with a polymer that contains these technologies. The chip sticks on the phone (preferably close to the antenna) to help intervene with the EMFs.
If you’d like to learn more about these chips, check out this site: BioPro Technology.

Many people already know that produce (especially non-organic produce) can contain pesticides due to treatments done on farms. But all produce is handled by unknown numbers of people before you pick it up to purchase it. Because of this, it is recommended to thoroughly clean every produce, even produce that has skin on it.

Potatoes of course, need to be scrubbed well under water with a potato scrubber with stiff bristles. We like the Mr. Potato Brush shown here. It works well and my daughter loves that it has a face on it.

All other items will depend on how easily they bruise. Don’t use soap with any items you will be cleaning. Produce washes are available, however, clean, cool water is just as effective according to experts. The key is putting the item under the water for at least 20 seconds while scrubbing with an appropriate scrubber or your hand.

Now, when we talk about cleaning produce, this includes cleaning the skin of items like bananas, cantaloupes and other items where you won’t be eating the skin. These items may spread the dirt/toxins to your hands or to the fruit when you cut them.

If you are worried about how you are going to thoroughly clean your broccoli, asparagus, peas or corn, Environmental Working Group found that these items were lower in pesticide residue than other items.
They found that the following items were higher than others in pesticide residue:

You can learn more about how to clean different types of produce items by reading this article by the Environmental Working Group.

Do you have a pool or live in an area where you swim more than just a couple of weeks per year?

If so, here are some tips for water safety. Water safety is extremely important especially since drowning is the leading cause of death among children under age 5 in Florida. That’s a very scary statistic!

Supervision of your children around water is key. Don’t leave your children unattended in a pool, lake or even the bath. I often read newspaper articles about someone having gone inside the house for “just a minute” to answer the phone, get a drink, etc., and tragically, during that short time, the child drowns or nearly drowns in the family pool. No phone call or errand is worth your child’s life.

Also, be sure entrances to your pool area are in no way accessible to children. In Florida, there are laws for new pools that require fencing or some other mechanism to lock children out. All of my mom friends have fencing around the pool that allows for the mom to open for a swim.
Remember to consider the places where you may not be supervising your child personally like a relative’s or friend’s house. We installed plastic Burglar Bars at my mother-in-law’s house to keep our children from opening the doors to the pool.

Finally, have your kids learn how to swim. There are a variety of choices in swim lessons available depending on your area. Many YMCAs and recreation programs have swim classes. There are also private lessons by individuals, sometimes at their homes, sometimes at your home. If you are in a warmer area, you will probably find individual swim schools as well. With any of these, talk with the instructors about how they teach the child to swim. Repetition is an important part of the lessons and you may find you need to do lessons over the summer for a few years.

Personally, we picked a swim school local to us that came recommended by friends. Originally, we took our 3 year old daughter to the city’s recreation program for classes. At the end of the month (3 days a week), she was no better off than we started and she still wouldn’t put her face in the water.

The Seal Swim School located in Tarpon Springs, Florida was our choice. At the end of the first week (also 3 days a week), our daughter was swimming with her face in the water. By the end of the first one month session, she was swimming 5 feet with her face in the water unassisted. After a second consecutive session, she was swimming 8 feet. This year, we started her again and she’s turning into a fish in the water! This school has been a great help and I feel confident that if my daughter fell in a pool, that she could get out without help. We still watch her the entire time she swims but it is no longer necessary to be in the water with her.
If you’d like to learn more information about the Seal Swim School, visit their website at www.SealSwimSchool.com. They have other locations in Lutz and South Tampa. If you decide to attend, mention Vanessa Cox as your referrer and we’ll get a discount when we put our infant in next year.

Be safe!

I don’t know why I do it every season. I watch the Season Finales of shows I like anticipating a good ending. Once again, I was disappointed with a cliffhanger! Actually a couple of cliffhangers!
I make a good effort to watch or at least TIVO Thursday night TV on NBC. I like to watch My Name is Earl, The Office and ER.

This season, The Office left me hanging with no marriage proposal by Jim to Pam. (Note: I am not a soap opera watcher except when I happen to be at my mother-in-law’s house during the Guiding light so these shows are the biggest soap-type dramas I watch!). This particular episode leaves me wondering what they will be doing next season.

ER disappointed me with a major cliffhanger with threat of losing a major character…. AGAIN! They have done this before at least a couple of times. They make you think someone major died then they come back with some miraculous situation where that person escaped the situation alive. This time, they have left us with the potential of 2 major characters having been killed by or in an exploding ambulance. This time they may actually eliminate a character since, from what I understand, this next season is the last for ER. I am sure there are not as many viewers as before, but this is one show I am consistent about watching even though I am alone in my household viewing it.

The production companies do know how to get us viewers watching the next season though as I will be watching the TV guide carefully when the new season is starting. I guess now’s the time to get into some better habits of turning off the TV and getting outside in the evening. Then maybe when the next season comes around, I will be fitter and won’t care when the shows are coming on.

…Sounds like a goal to me!

I realized today in CVS Drugstore as I was holding my 4 month old son and keeping an eye on my 4 year old daughter that being a mother is really a lot of work. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have had my share of difficulties with having one and adjusting to two children, but struggling to care for two at a time really made me aware. I can’t imagine having more than two kids!

My husband has to work and my mother is out of town until evening, so I will have no break. However, I hope you have the opportunity to get a break from working as a mom and enjoy yourself. Take a long bath with the door locked and music loud (otherwise you can hear your kids banging on the door). Take a walk alone. Go out with your husband and kids to a park and tell hubby you will be having fun and not disciplining or chasing kids.

Essentially, ENJOY YOURSELF and savor being a mom.

Have you ever heard the recommendation to “shop the perimeter” of your grocery store?

What this means is that you should be buying items from the outer sections of the store. Every store has produce, dairy, bakery and meats all along the perimeter of the store. All the processed and non-food items are in the middle. If you “shop the perimeter,” you will be avoiding the chemicals, preservatives, dyes and other fake items in the processed foods.

This is a much healthier diet anyway, but recently I read an article about some of the larger corporations using a chemical to reduce the sodium and sugar in the processed foods. This chemical falls into the category of “artificial flavors” which don’t have to be disclosed any further.

You can read this article at Dr. Mercola’s website.

Personally, I do read the labels and find that organic products like soups and other boxed items don’t have artificial preservatives and flavors. More and more grocery stores are carrying organic items so look for these products as alternatives to your favorite processed foods or take the time to search the internet for ways to make the items yourself.