The Lotsa Style Mini Wastebasket is perfect for vanities!

We could use a little extra room in our bedroom, with how everything is set up there isn't really any extra room to put a trash can next to the bed, but now I don't have to worry about it. Lotsa Style sells a really cute mini wastebasket trash can (or you could use it as a makeup brush holder) that fits perfectly on your desk, vanity or bedside table.

The mini wastebasket comes in two pieces an inner piece that holds the trash and a  decorative outside that holds the mini trash bags in place. It came with three rolls of trash bags so you don't have to worry about getting any for a while, but when you do run out the dollar store sells mini wastebasket bags that would work perfectly. I decided to place my mini wastebasket on my bedside table. I keep a pack of face wipes in my bedside drawer and every night before bed (and in the morning) I use one of the face wipes to feel refreshed and help remove any oil build up from the day. Instead of needing to go into the bathroom to throw out my face wipes I can just put them in this little wastebasket.

The miniwaste basket actually holds a pretty decent amount, I've had it on my desk for about a week now and have thrown out dryer sheets from when I do the laundry, face wipes, and more and the can is only about half full. This wastebasket would be perfect on a vanity or even an office desk.

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Lotsa Style for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Keep your skin smooth with Ceramedx!

Arizona summers can normally get pretty hot and dry, but this year we've been having more excessive heat warnings than normal, which can leave your skin feeling dry, flaky and even itchy. I always drink plenty of water to stay hydrated, but I also try to remind myself to put on lotion daily. I am a bit picky about the lotion I used, I don't like lotions that leave your hands and skin feeling greasy, or lotions that don't absorb into the skin properly. I was recently sent a bottle of Restoring Body Lotion from Ceramedx to test out and I've been enjoying it quite a bit.

The Ceramedx restoring body lotion is fragrance-free it is also paraben-free,cruelty-free,gluten-free, has Non GMO and it's Vegan! Plus it is PH balanced, made from Ceramedx's riceramide 3 blend of plant based ceramides. It comes in a 12oz bottle which sells for $14.99.

This lotion comes out of the bottle feeling a little thick, which normally I try to avoid because it doesn't spread or absorb well, however I was quite surprised at how well it spread out across the skin and vanished. My skin and hands weren't left feeling greasy or oily and I instantly felt the relief it gave my skin. I like that you don't need a ton of lotion in order to cover the area you are applying it to. My skin felt cooler, moisturized and it helped add more towards how soft my skin normally is. Along with the restoring body lotion Ceramedx also sells extra gentle cleanser and ultra moisturizing cream all of which have been clinically tested and are dermatologist recommended. If you want to test out their products without having to fully commit to buying full sized bottles they offer a sample pack that comes with samples of all three products for $1.99. (next month's Beauty & the book giveaway will include one of these sample packs).

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Ceramedx for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Decorate goodies with Gramma In A Box!

Some of my favorite memories with my great-grandmother are of us in the kitchen baking and cooking. Every winter during the holidays her kitchen turned into a bakery filled with tins and tins of cookies that we baked for family members and friends, it always smelled so good in her house during the holidays. I am very thankful that we live close to my mother so that my children can create their own memories with their grandmother. However not everyone is fortunate to live as close to their families so their children might not get to spend as much time with their grandparents as they'd like. One grandmother named Terry came up with a way to still spend quality time with her grandchildren even though they moved away.

What was her solution? She still wanted to be able to create these memories with her grandchildren so she would come up with fun cookie/treat ideas she could do with them. She would pack up a box filled with plain sugar cookies, frosting, decorations and more to send her her grandchildren then she would chat with them via Skype while they worked on their cookies. After telling some friends about it, it has now become a full time business called Gramma In A Box!

I recently received their August box which featured Beach party treats, each box comes with three fun projects to do with your children or grandchildren and all of the supplies you need are included in the box. There are enough supplies in the box for several children and an adult to participate with easy to follow instructions. Our box included projects to do Goldfish Bowls, Seashell Pretzels and Sea Life cookies. I like how everything was packaged and made to be as easy to do as possible.

The first project we worked on was the Goldfish bowls shown above. This project required; Melting chocolate, goldfish, marshmallows and graham cracker dust. The melting chocolate does require an adult to melt in the microwave otherwise everything is ready to go, you dip the marshmallow in the chocolate to make it look like the water in the bowl, then roll it in the graham cracker crust to look like the sand, add a goldfish and let set. After the chocolate has set you can eat your fishbowls.

The second project used the second half of the melting chocolate to create chocolate dipped seashell pretzels. After dipping each pretzel into the chocolate, you get to add a chocolate seashell and some pearl sprinkles that look like bubbles. Both of these projects were fun to create, however we didn't quite like the taste of the melting chocolate itself but that is due to the company who makes the chocolate not Gramma in a box. Otherwise we enjoyed both of these projects, and thought they turned out pretty cute. You can do all three projects at once or you can space them out a bit to make the fun of the box last a bit longer. My children had a blast with this box, they love baking and cooking so this box was right up their alley, after we were finished they asked if we were going to get another box like this.

Last but not least was the Sea Life Cookies which we all had a blast with. The box included three colors frostings plus several decorating supplies that the kids really enjoyed using. I like that the decorating frosting was already in easy to use decorating bags, you just needed to cut a bit of the tip off before using it. The box came with eight sugar cookies to decorate, four of them were fish, two were seashells and two were starfish. I decided to decorate one with the kids as well and decorated the fish with the heart shaped eye above for my husband to eat. The sugar cookies were so good, and the decorations were not overly full of sugar which was nice.

You can purchase a singular box to try out or you can purchase a 3,6,or 12 month subscription and automatically at the start of each month your box will be shipped out. In total there are enough goodies in the box to create 15 to 20 finished items (each cookie counts as a finished item). A single box is $20 or if you buy a subscription the price lowers a bit depending on which subscription you purchase. If you are a new subscriber you need to place an order before the 3rd of each month in order to receive that month's box. This subscription service is only available in the US. During the holidays there are holiday themed items in the box which adds to the fun of the box.

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Gramma In A Box for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Three new adventures with Candlewick Press.

We are a family of book lovers, I am always picking up new books for the kids and myself, and we also visit the library once every other week. Any time we get the chance to review new books with Candlewick Press we always jump on it and wait patiently for our box of books to arrive. This time around I have three great new books to share with you!

What Does an Anteater Eat? - (Hardcover. Retail Value $16.99)

This is a fun and silly book to read with your children, the book follows along with an Anteater who is trying to figure out what he eats. On his journey he asks several different animals if they know what an Anteater eats, several of them suggest he eats what they do and it doesn't really work out. Towards the end of the book the last group of animals he asks this question to is a colony of ants that take off running as soon as they see him. While I do think this was a cute read and it had strong illustrations with vibrant coloring, I was left wondering why he didn't know what he ate in the first place, and if he ever found out what he really eats.

How to Be on the Moon - (Hardcover. Retail Value $16.99)

This book follows two best friends on their quest to reach the moon. Anna and her best friend Crocodile worth together to practice the skills they need in order to reach the moon. Patience is a needed skill for a long trip, so they practice having patience since they know it will be a long trip, they also work on other helpful skills together which is sweet to see. After building a rocket ship themselves they embark on a trip to the moon. I enjoyed that quite a few of the illustrations had grey tones for the background image and bright colors for the characters themselves which I enjoyed.

Firefly Home -  (Hardcover. Retail Value $14.99)

Florence the firefly is lost and looking for her home. In order to find her home she follows the bright lights that she sees thinking they are her family, but she finds that they aren't what she thought.My kids both enjoyed reading this book and loved Florence! I enjoyed the book itself as a whole because it was a cute adventure but I also enjoyed it because it reminded me of when I was really young and lived back east, because I used to catch fireflies all the time.

Which of these three books looks the most interesting to you? Do you have a bookworm who would love these books?

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Candlewick Press for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Two Great Giveaways for Arizona Residents!

Are you one of my Arizona readers? I have two wonderful giveaways currently running that you might be interested in. Both are being cross promoted on my Instagram & Facebook so you can earn extra entries by entering in both places.

The first giveaway is for two passes to the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Arts. Ends August 23rd,2019.

You can enter it on Facebook or Instagram. 

The second giveaway is for a Arizona Diamondbacks prize pack! Prize pack includes a ball cap,wine bottle holder,wine glass,fan towel & FOUR tickets to the Diamondbacks VS Dodgers game on Saturday August 31st,2019. Giveaway ends August 27th,2019.

You can enter it on Facebook or Instagram.

Come explore the Children's Museum of Phoenix.

If you live in or around the Phoenix,Arizona area and have small children I highly suggest heading to downtown Phoenix to spend a day at the Children's Museum of Phoenix for a day of fun and adventure. The museum is located inside of the historic Monroe School building found on the south east corner of 7th street and Van Buren, parking is free and found on property so there is no need to park in one of the downtown parking garages. I've always thought this school building was gorgeous so I am glad it wasn't torn down and instead turned into something new, so I think it adds to why I love visiting the museum so much. The museum is filled with three floors of fun for you and your children, their goal is to engage your child's imagination during their visit. Several of the locations allow the parents to interact with their children as well which is nice for parents who want a hands on experience with their kids at the museum.

I was recently invited to join the PLAYfluencer program at the museum, so over the course of the next several month's I will be sharing highlights of the different areas of the museum along with special events and activities they offer for your children. The museum is geared towards children ages 1-10 however I think that you could go a year or two past that as well with a few of their offered programs, any older than that and I don't think they would be able to do much, as most of the museum is geared more towards the younger children. There is a ton of museum to cover so for my first feature I am going to discuss just the first floor with you/entry area with you.

When you first walk through the museum doors you are greeting by the front desk area and the gift shop, taking a left takes you into the start of the museum. You are instantly greeted by a play area and a giant play structure that children (and adults) are allowed to explore, they even have a small gated off area located near the bottom designed for babies who aren't able to fully explore on their own yet. You can also find one of my favorite features of the museum when you first walk in which is a giant wall decorated with dozens of old CD's/DVD's which look quite pretty with the light reflecting off of them.

The whole play structure is quite imaginative, in one spot you'll feel like you are in the sea when you are near all the sea creature decorations, and in another spot you're in a winged bathtub! Where else are you able to hang out in a "flying" bathtub? The structure is also quite large it reaches all the way up to the top floor, so when you are at the top you can say hi to everyone on the way up. Around the base of the climbing structure you'll find several piles of building blocks ranging in size along with some other hands on activities.

For the parents who don't want to play on the structure there are several places to sit while keeping an eye on your children. This front entry area has a long hall way that offers lockers for your belongings, a restroom area and a eating area for kids visiting on school trips. You'll also find an elevator, a large stair case that takes you up to the next floor and a photobooth for anyone wanting to snap a few photos. (this costs extra, it is the type you typically find in the mall). The museum is open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am-4pm, Admission is $14.95 per person or you can purchase a membership and visit as often as you'd like for free. (They do offer senior discounts and babies 1 and under are free).

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Children's Museum of Phoenix for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others.My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

August Beauty & The Book Giveaway!

Summer is slowly drawing to an end, soon the weather will finally start to cool down and all the fall decorations and smells will begin to fill the supermarkets. However we aren't there just yet! So many of us are still practically living in the water to stay cool during the summer heat, which is what inspired most of the products in this month's "Beauty & The Book" Giveaway. Many of the products in this month's giveaway are inspired by the theme Mermaids! Some are directly related to Mermaids and others are just inspired by the colors you typically think of when you think about Mermaids.

The book in this months giveaway is called "Indigo Awakening", while it isn't related to Mermaids it is a Fantasy book that is filled with magic of it's own. Also included in this fun prize pack are the following items: Ecotools Mini Maskmate kit, A Seashell shaped lip balm, Mermaid Bath Dust, lotion, A Mermaid tail bath bomb, A Mermaid facemask, A Mermaid tail pen, Cat Mermaid socks,A Mermaid candle, Starfish shaped earrings, sunscreen (so you aren't a burnt mermaid!) and an assortment of five makeup products.

Want to win all of the goodies mentioned? Fill out the Rafflecopter below for your chance to win!

 This is open World Wide! Please remember if you DO NOT leave a comment on this blog post as your mandatory entry into the giveaway then all of your entries will be void. Doing the Daily entries will increase your chance of winning. Winners have 72 hours to respond to the notification email! This giveaway is hosted by ME and is not associated with any of the brands mentioned above.

This giveaway ends on 09/03/2019

Giveaway entry question: What is your favorite magical creature? 

a Rafflecopter giveaway


*This giveaway is being hosted by Me.