The Bunny Trail

Posted on March 28, 2013 by vanderbiltwife

It’s amazing how much chocolate you can accumulate without actually leaving the house.

‘Cause you see, this year, we have our own little Hershey kiss.

So we haven’t been out and about much. But one trip to school, one short Easter egg hunt at church, and one birthday party in the past two weeks were enough to supply Libbie with three month’s worth of treats. (What can I say? I’m the mean mom who limits candy in a major way.)

And then there’s this SWEET basket I got in the mail from Hershey’s!

This year I chose a giant Cadbury chocolate bunny, a Reese’s egg, mini Reese’s bunnies, and mini Cadbury eggs. Um, yeah. Chocolate, chocolate, and chocolate. And peanut butter. Apparently I was having some cravings when I “put in my order” for this!

So thank you, Hershey’s, for filling this nursing mama’s Easter basket with chocolate to help me get through these first few weeks of newborn madness. I will not be sharing.

Happy Easter! Hope you get your fill of Cadbury cream eggs!

Seventh Generation Free and Clear Wipes: Review and Giveaway

Posted on March 5, 2013 by vanderbiltwife

Someone makes a lot of messes …

There are honestly very few items that I am brand-loyal to. I tend to be a generic kind of gal, unless I’ve had a really bad experience in the past – or the brand name is on sale for cheaper than the generic.

But wipes are the one product where I almost always buy the same name brand. I’ve found they are simply the best.

Recently, I didn’t have a coupon and I couldn’t make myself pay a few extra bucks for the name brand I usually get. We ended up with a store- brand generic … and I’ve regretted it greatly. These wipes somehow managed to smell worse than the poopy diapers. I often felt like my hands smelled like they were BURNING after using them (??). Too weird.

So I was hesitant to review Seventh Generation’s new free and clear wipes, even though I love their company. I do cloth diaper, at least most of the time with David, and one of the big reasons is that I don’t want my kids sitting in chlorine. And yet, I’ve used wipes with chlorine for years. I can’t deal with cloth wipes … especially with my darling son, who poops more and worse than any child I’ve ever met.

I needn’t have worried! The Seventh Generation wipes are just as thick as my normal brand. They are actually unscented, unlike many “unscented” baby items I’ve come across. (The first thing my husband said about these wipes was, “Well, they don’t smell worse than what’s in the diaper.” High praise from him.) They are soft, clean well, and I don’t have to use 10 of them, even on a big mess.

The price isn’t too bad (those linked above have a $4 coupon on Amazon, too, right now!) especially considering they don’t have any yucky chemicals, dyes, etc. The wipes really mimic cloth; even if you use cloth wipes at home, these might be worth a try for when you’re out and about.

The best part is that I am giving away a package of these new Free and Clear wipes! Open to U.S. residents age 18 and older. Use Rafflecopter to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This is a sponsored giveaway from Seventh Generation and theMotherhood. All opinions are my own.

Plus-Size Maternity Style with SimplyBe (GIVEAWAY!)

Posted on January 30, 2013 by vanderbiltwife

You know the best part of being a blogger? Having a company you truly love already contact you out of the blue and ask to give you free stuff.

That’s what happened with me and SimplyBe! I’ve been obsessed with their adorable, British, plus-size clothes for well over a year (introduced to them by my college roomie and friend Erin). Here I am in a Joe Browns dress last year at Easter.

Easter family

I’m not sure I even knew SimplyBe had maternity clothes, though. The selection isn’t huge, but they do have some great basics. From their maternity line, I ordered cotton-linen blend black pants. They are very comfortable and versatile. Here I’m wearing them with a sweater from Motherhood, some ancient Nine West shoes, and earrings my best friend got at a local shop, I think.

Jessie in SimplyBe maternity pants

(Please forgive my expressions. BOTH of my children were screaming bloody murder.)

I think the best part about being plus-size and pregnant is that a lot of normal plus-size clothes can pass for maternity, depending on their cut. I veer away from empire-waist styles when I’m not pregnant, mostly so people won’t ask me if I am. But with good length, a cute shirt can work all the way until 9 months!

This Joe Browns shirt had me at first glance. Because it’s long, I can wear it now and probably after the baby’s born, although I would probably style it with a jean jacket or cardigan for non-maternity to streamline some of the volume.

Here I’m wearing it with my favorite straight-leg maternity jeans and the PERFECT maternity shoes, Teva Makena ballet flats. They have the support of a tennis shoe and I don’t have to wear socks.

Joe Browns blouse

Here’s another outfit I’ve worn a few times and really liked. The Joe Browns tunic is lightweight and comfy.

Maternity Easy Style by vanderbiltwife featuring ballet flats

Ooh, I almost forgot the icing on the cake! I ordered these fantastic Viva La Diva slippers to wear in the hospital and at home. I pretty much live in my slippers post-partum, and these are SO cozy and cute.

Viva La Diva Suede Moccasins

That pretty much sums up my maternity style: easy, comfortable, versatile. I’m a stay-at-home mom with two young kids already, so I need to be able to get around. My “style” when I was pregnant with Libbie and working was completely different!

And now, for the giveaway!! SimplyBe has oodles of clothes, all in sizes 10-28, but they also have great shoes, accessories, and jewelry. They are always having awesome deals via e-mail – often 40-50% off. You may need to be careful about sizing – Joe Browns, for instance, definitely runs at least one size big.

One winner can choose up to $50 of in-stock merchandise from SimplyBe.com. Use Rafflecopter below to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

$50 Walmart Gift Card Giveaway from #flatoutpizza

Posted on October 26, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

Remember my Flatout Pizza Party from last week? Want to make some flatbread pizzas of your own?

Today I’m giving away a $50 gift card to Wal-Mart and a great Flatout gift package, all wrapped up in a nice, zippered, reusable bag.

To enter, leave a comment with your favorite pizza toppings. For an extra entry, subscribe to Vanderbilt Wife via e-mail or RSS feed and leave me a comment telling me you did.

Thank you to theMotherhood, Wal-Mart, and Flatout Bread for sponsoring this giveaway. US mailing addresses only, please. Winner will be chosen on Thursday, November 1, 2012.

Pizza Party and Pumpkin Painting with #flatoutpizza

Posted on October 18, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

Earlier this week I was excited to throw a pizza party on our back patio. We live in a dorm on a high-school campus; but right behind our apartment is this lovely brick patio. And check out the view!

So we gathered a bunch of our on-campus friends and tried out the new Flatout Bread Thin Crust Flatbreads. They come in three yummy varieties: Spicy Italian, Rustic White, and Heritage Wheat.

Apparently the Spicy Italian is no joke. I was warned it really was quite spicy. I stayed far away from it, but my friends gobbled it up!

To make pizzas, you prebake the flatbreads for 3-4 minutes. Then add toppings and bake for another 4-5 minutes or so.

So as party prep, I prebaked. Even with it being an hour until they went in the oven, the flatbreads were still just right when they came out! Nice and crispy. I provided a whole bunch of cheeses, sauces, and toppings and let everyone go to town. (That’s my homemade pizza sauce. And that pesto, while not quite as good as homemade, was really excellent!)

I thought those were jalapenos. They weren’t. I think they were serrano chiles. I about killed my husband with them. Oops.

Everyone agreed that while the flatbreads made for a different pizza experience, you could really taste the flavor of the toppings. Everything I set out was devoured, so I think that makes for a good party! Here are our creations.

Mother and daughter! Daughter had just cheese. Mom had mozzarella, herb feta, olives, tomatoes, and mushrooms. The kind of thing we never get to eat at home because of the kids!

My husband’s on top: mozzarella, feta, pepperoni, tomatoes, chili peppers. Friend’s on bottom: fresh mozzarella, mushrooms, and pineapple. An exotic combo!

I thought this was cute. A husband and wife picked almost exactly the same things without knowing. Pesto, fresh and shredded mozzarella, pepperoni, and tomatoes. His just had mushrooms.

My beautiful creation: pesto with fresh mozzarella, herb feta, and a little bit of olives on Harvest Wheat. Perfect!

I was too busy eating to take pictures of Round 2, but I think the boys went to town on the BBQ sauce and everything else. Almost everything was gone by clean-up time!

My theme was Halloween Party, so I added a few seasonal touches.

We also let the kids do pumpkin painting. I had intended for them to make really adorable Tiger pumpkins with felt ears and pipe-cleaner whiskers. But once they got ahold of the paintbrushes they just went to town. Oh well.

(Libbie did start by TRYING to paint stripes on her pumpkin!)

We really had a blast and everyone loved the pizza. Stay tuned – next week you’ll have a chance to win your own #flatoutpizza prize pack and a $50 gift card to Wal-Mart so you can have your own party!

Thank you to theMotherhood, Flatout, and Wal-Mart for sponsoring our party. While this is a sponsored post, all opinions are my own.

How to Save Big Bucks on Printer Ink Cartridges

Posted on May 3, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

A few years ago, my husband and I found a great deal on a wireless Brother printer/fax/scanner combo (similar to this one). We’ve been pretty happy with it. I love the wireless, although it occasionally has some connectivity issues, and it’s so nice to have my own scanner for old pictures and contracts.

But when it came time that the issued ink ran out and we needed to buy new … my heart sunk. I worked at the college bookstore for 4 years and I remembered the steep prices of those tiny boxes of ink that hung behind the counter.

The whole reason we had basically stopped using a printer for years was the high cost of ink cartridges.

Well, I decided I might as well see if the prices were any lower on Amazon. And was stopped in my tracks when I saw a pack of four cartridges—all three colors and a black—for about $4.

Was it too good to be true? Well, over the past three or four years, I’ve NEVER paid more than $6 for this 4-pack of cartridges and NEVER had any problem with the ones I’ve purchased. At $4, it was worth it to me to take the risk that they wouldn’t work at all. And I’ve not been disappointed.

Now, I don’t think I would go printing pictures with these refurbished pieces. But for printing your basic forms, coupons, contracts, and whatnots, it works just fine for me.

Let’s do some cost comparison, shall we?

If I bought the four catridges for my printer [Brother MFC-490CW] at BestBuy.com, it would cost me $54.98. At the current Amazon prices, it would be $29.44. Or I could buy the compatible cartridges for $1.46 and $1.99 shipping for a grant total of $3.45. That’s a 94% savings off the Best Buy price!
Now, not ALL printer ink is as cheap as mine. Let’s say I have an Epson Workforce 545. I could pay $66.48 from Epson.com for the three colors and black or slightly less from Amazon. Or we could get the compatible cartridges for $21.97, a 67% savings.

How do you find these little gems? Just do an Amazon search for your printer model and the term “non-OEM.” OEM means “original equipment manufacturer.” So you are telling Amazon you want ones that are compatible, not from the printer company. (If you are anti-Amazon, you can just do a Google search and see other online ink suppliers as well.)

So … that is my most sought-after secret. No one wants to know about my old boyfriends, if I partied like a wild child in college, or the time a really cute EMT hauled me out of the Y on a stretcher only half-dressed. They just want to know how on earth I get my printer ink so very cheap.

Do you have an amazing money-saving secret?

Added to Works for Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family.

Disclaimer: I am NOT promising that your non-OEM cartridges will work. Please don’t come after me if they don’t. But I am saying mine have always been fine.

A Tisket, a Tasket, Cadburys in My Basket

Posted on April 6, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

When I was young ~~and maybe when I was in college~~, we always did the whole Easter egg hunt hoopla. My sister and I would scurry around the house, searching behind curtains, eventually going to a game of “hot and cold” so no eggs would be left behind. Then, hyped up on jelly beans, we were off to church in new dresses. (Although not frilly ones – my dad was anti-frills.)

With my own kids, I am trying to separate Resurrection Day and the Bunny/Chick/Egg Easter a little more. The kids have done their Easter egg hunting, candy devouring, etc. But this past week we’ve tried to focus on Jesus and the Resurrection.

But I also have a little secret hiding in my closet. A very lovely and very FULL Easter basket from Hershey’s. The people from Hershey’s were at Blissdom, and of course I had to go meet them since my dad works there. We had a fun talk about the town and about their Bunny Hop, where bloggers are talking Easter traditions and tips. If you’re still looking for ideas for Springtime treats, Hershey’s has some fun ones on their site.

I think Libbie will be pretty excited when I pull out that big old basket Sunday afternoon and we can all taste Cadbury’s mini-creme eggs, Cadbury mini-eggs (MY FAVORITE), a Reese’s chocolate bunny, Reese’s pieces carrot, and Jolly Rancher jelly beans.

[In full disclosure, we're trying to cut out food coloring from our kids' diets, so my husband and I may be eating much of it ourselves or giving it to his dorm boys. After I eat most of the mini-eggs.]

You can’t tell we have a total weakness for Reese’s and Cadbury, can you?

What’s your favorite Easter candy?

Weight Watchers Cheese Review and Giveaway: I Like to Snack.

Posted on July 26, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

Congratulations to the winner, #31, Nanette!

I’m nearly 19 weeks pregnant, which means I am well into the second trimester. And what comes with the second trimester? HUNGER.

I still maintain I was hungrier when I was nursing than I ever was pregnant; but still, the second trimester is when I find myself gnawing away at my arm if I don’t make good use of protein and fats during the day.

When Weight Watchers^® contacted me to see if I wanted to review their new cheese items, at first I was a little skeptical; obviously, Weight Watchers and pregnancy don’t mesh!

Their campaign, however, is about snacking. And I DO like to snack! So I said yes and got to try WW’s new gourmet cheese wedges and reduced-fat cream cheese.

Here’s some info on the two products.

The new Weight Watchers Gourmet Cheese Wedges come in four mouth-watering varieties – Original Swiss, Garlic & Herb, Parmesan Peppercorn and Jalapeño Pepper – and are perfect for spreading onto crackers, apple slices, celery sticks and more for a deliciously fun and easy snack. Each rich and creamy wedge has only 30 calories, packs more fiber than the leading competitor and comes with a POINTS® value of 1. The wedges have a suggested retail price of $2.99-$3.99.

The new eight-ounce variety of Weight Watchers Reduced Fat Cream Cheese Spread is ideal for baking and snacking alike with pre-measured servings and the same easy-to-spread goodness that has made Weight Watchers cream cheese products a hit. And in addition to its flavor props, the spread boasts 40 percent less fat than regular cream cheese and a POINTS® value of 1 per serving. The cream cheese spread has a suggested retail price of $1.69-$1.99.

Look for both products at national retailers such as Wal-Mart and Kroger.

Weight Watchers sent me a great snack basket! I got this Picnic Time collapsible picnic basket, Kashi TLC crackers, Back to Nature nut mix, Emerald dried fruit mix, a Frisbee, a cheese spreader, all 4 kinds of cheese wedges, and one block of the reduced-fat cream cheese.

The original Swiss cheese wedge was definitely my favorite. It makes a great snack on the Kashi crackers. (And occasionally breakfast … I do have a toddler!) My Bible study group and I tried the other kinds and all were given a thumbs up, although I thought the Parmesan Peppercorn was a little strong for my tastes. I don’t love peppercorn-flavored anything, but if you do, you might like them.

With the cream cheese, I made Kate’s Cream Cheese Noodles. I sauteed some garlic in about 2 tablespoons of butter and mixed in 4 oz. of cream cheese and a little salt and pepper. I then mixed in 1/2 a pound of cooked thin spaghetti. YUM! I couldn’t tell at all that the cream cheese was reduced fat; usually I am not a big fan of reduced-fat dairy so that is a good thing.

Would you like to win the exact package I got from Weight Watchers? Leave me a comment with which flavor of the cheese wedges you think would be your favorite. A winner will be drawn Sunday, August 1st at 3pm EST.

If you do not leave your email address in your comment or have it linked to your Blogger account (check “show my email address” under “Edit Profile” at blogger.com) I WILL DELETE YOUR COMMENT. I have had too many issues with this in the past. Please just change your Blogger profile. Then I can respond to all your comments by email.

For an additional entry, Tweet the following and leave me another comment letting me know you did:

Win some delicious #WeightWatchersCheese and other snacks over at @vanderbiltwife until 8/1! http://bit.ly/azzWCe

And since I REALLY like snacking and talking about snacking, here are my top ten favorite snacks ever.

Top Ten Favorite Snacks

{I talk extensively about my relationship with some of these foods in this post.}

1. Bagels with cream cheese, or egg, or cheese. I just love bagels. A lot.

2. FiberOne bars. These actually fill up my hungry baby belly!

3. Tortilla chips or crackers with cheese melted on top. Melted until it’s crispy. Yummm!

4. Granny Smith apples with havarti. I think Michelle introduced me to this fine delicacy. The creamy Havarti and bite of the green apple really balance each other out. It’s DELISH!

5. Hard sausages and cheese with crackers. I like salt. So kill me! Not something I have a lot, but I will devour it if it’s out at parties.

6. Raw veggies, pretzels, and dip. If we were in a musical, I might start singing, “Any dip will do!” I like dips. Speaking of …

7. Spinach and artichoke dip with chips. We’re talking fantasy snacks, right? Cause I’ve made this homemade maybe once, but I LOVE it. The frozen kind will work if needed.

8. Cherries. While I don’t splurge for Raniers, I love my Bing cherries and will happily eat a bowlful for a delicious and fresh snack.

9. Candy. Straight up sugar is my pregnancy weapon of choice. I am not proud of it, but it’s true.

10. Ice cream. Lemony, chocolatey, peanut buttery–I’m sort of indifferent. Just bring me a bowl: not melted, and no marshmallows please.

Added to Top Ten Tuesday at OhAmanda and Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

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Ten Things I Really Love

Posted on July 12, 2010 by vanderbiltwife

Because it’s Tuesday … and I have nothing much to say … and it’s too late to start a grammar post.

1. Robin Jones Gunn’s books

Sisterchicks Do the Hula (Sisterchicks Series #2)

Amanda and I were chatting today about our shared love for Robin Jones Gunn. I’ve read several of her books this year – as well as the entire Glenbrooke and Sisterchicks series. The Glenbrooke books are some of my favorites, ever. She writes good stuff!

2. Pushing Daisies

Pushing Daisies: The Complete First Season

I didn’t watch this short-lived show when it was on TV, but I’ve recently watched both seasons. And man, it was a good show! Why on earth did they cancel it? If you have Netflix, you can watch all episodes online/on Wii/whatever right now! (We <3 Netflix in our house, too.)

3. This picture

Libbie at her first live baseball game Saturday.

4. Summer peaches. Mmmm.

5. Writing grammar/writing posts. I’ve always wanted to teach creative writing. This fulfills some need for me!

6. Doing Bible study with a group of girls. Ain’t nothing like it. It’s almost therapy! We recently did Beth Moore’s Esther study and now we’re working through Jennifer Rothschild’s Me, Myself, and Lies. GREAT studies!

Me, Myself, & Lies: A Thought-Closet Makeover (Bible Study Workbook)

7. Weelicious.com. Great site with recipes for toddlers! I am trying to be a little more creative with my picky eater. The child will still not put a vegetable near her precious little mouth (unless it’s tomato sauce … and tomatoes have that fruit/veggie thing going on).

8. Tomatoes from the garden. OK, I don’t eat them, technically. At least not raw. But that other adult member of my family does, and I have been making some into salsa and pico de gallo, which I will eat. (Despite the fact the tomatoes are still raw. Yeah, I’m weird.)

Sadly, the intense heat has killed a lot of our garden and our zucchini and yellow squash had some sort of blight. My basil’s still producing, green peppers are working on it, and I have lots of jalapenos … but that’s about it.

9. Harry Potter.

Harry Potter Paperback Box Set (Books 1-7)

The weekend ABC Family marathon, the new movie coming out in November, Sporcle quizzes … we’ve been feeling very Potter in the house lately. So, who’s going to babysit on November 19? I don’t care that I’ll be 8 months pregnant, I’m GOING to see that movie!

10. Ellipses, apparently. This post is full of them. Perhaps I’m just feeling the “pregnant” pause right now. Heh.

Want to read some more interesting top ten lists? Go visit OhAmanda.com!

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A Few Happy Things

Posted on September 28, 2008 by vanderbiltwife

Recycling this old post from a year ago–when I was VERY pregnant–for Things I Love Thursday. I don’t think I even knew there were other carnivals besides Menu Plan Monday and Works for Me Wednesday when I wrote this. Please visit my home page for more recent posts. It has been a BUSY weekend for me. Yesterday we went to the church consignment sale, I got a pedicure and hung out with my two wonderful girlfriends for a few hours, and I had supper club. Today we had Sunday School, church, and went to a 4-year-old birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese. Normally this probably wouldn’t phase me but since I’m not sleeping well anymore and I am 4 weeks away from this baby emerging, I am beat!! I am finally on the couch resting for the night, probably. I threw some chicken in the crockpot this morning so we have an easy dinner already prepared.

I thought since I’ve been so whiny lately I’d share some things that have been making me happy!

1. Washing baby clothes. Laundry is one of those chores I really don’t mind, and washing itsy bitsy clothes is fun. Many people have asked me if I am using baby detergent and I confess that I am not. I’ve always used Arm and Hammer, which has a dye-and-scent-free formula that I love. And it’s inexpensive. Seems silly to me to buy the popular scent-loaded baby detergent when I can buy this for about a quarter of the price.

Once upon a time, St. Ives made the best-smelling body wash in existence. It was pink and some kind of berry scent. I was tearful when it was discontinued. Well, this has ranked up there with me as one of the yummiest-smelling products ever, right with St. Ives. It is Softsoap moisturizing body wash in Pomegranate and Mango scent. Just heavenly. It feels good. It makes me forget all those nasty stretch marks I am washing.

3. Veet hair remover. Cause when you can’t reach your legs to shave them, this is the next best thing. It doesn’t smell good, but it works.

Suave Skin Therapy Cocoa Butter with Shea Moisturizer. Yeah, it hasn’t kept me from getting stretch marks (although mine really aren’t too bad…yet. Can you tell it’s just really driving me crazy though?) but it smells divine and feels good on my big old belly. I am sure the baby likes the massage as well.

I am no beauty product connoisseur. I like cheap. And some stuff is nasty when you buy it cheap. But I do love these products right now. They make me a feel a little more human and a little less like I am just a host planet to an alien life form.