Ask the Brown's {date Change!}

So, I've been thinking, y'all don't really know a TON about us.  I give you bits and pieces of our life here and there, but for the most part, I don't really share a lot.  That makes me sad.  I want to share our lives with you.  That's the reason that I started this blog.  To share, and connect, and find others like us.  While I have found others like us, I haven't really connected with more then a handful of people.  I want to connect more, I want to build lasting friendships with people around the world.  I want others like us to know that we've been there and come out on the other side.

That being said, after speaking to Nick, we've decided to open ourselves up to you in the form of an "ask the Brown's" type area on the blog.  Now, this isn't just me.  Nick will also be answering questions, so be sure to ask him some, too!  Twice a month we will answer your questions.  You can ask them in each Q&A post, or you can email them to amyblogpr{at}gmail{dot}com, if you have a more private question.

The first installment of Ask the Brown's will be posted on 8July, so get your questions in!

Thrify Love Gift Exchange

How cool is this??  The lovely Hannah over at Happy Days is teaming up with some amazing ladies to bring you the Thrifty Love Gift Exchange.

Go sign up...you know you want to!  I for one can't wait to go thrifting for my exchangee!

Happy Thrifting!

Piggy Paint Review/Giveaway {ends7/10}

 

 Piggy Paint is specially formulated from God’s natural ingredients and dries to a hard, durable finish. There are no toxic chemicals; it’s free of formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, Bisphenol A, ethyl acetate and acetone. Say good-bye to harsh, smelly chemicals and hello to Piggy Paint…it’s as Natural as Mud!   

Review done by Donna's Deals and More

When we found out that we had the opportunity to try out Piggy Paint we were very excited. Kelsey and Lily are very girly and love their nail polish! Our fingers and toes are always painted. Our favorite color was the Glamour Girl. My favorite thing about Piggy Paint is that is as "natural as mud". That's right, both their polish and polish remover are all natural. I don't have to worry about all those ingredients I can't pronounce. It doesn't stink like nail polish either.

Product Details:

• Non-toxic
• Low Odor
• Water-based formula
• Hypoallergenic
• Fun, vibrant colors
• Dries to a hard, durable finish
• Cruelty-free
• Safe for use during Pregnancy!

They love their piggy paint! You can purchase your Piggy Paint HERE and if you enter coupon code DonnasDeals at checkout you'll save 15%

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  One lucky reader will receive a $25 Gift Code to Piggy Paint! All you have to do is enter the rafflecopter below! Good luck!

*Open worldwide, must be 18 years or older

*Disclosure: I received no compensation for this publication. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Live, Laugh, Love...Our Way is not responsible for sponsor prize shipment.*

Finding Our Military Identity

As you may or may not know, we're a "blended" family.  And by blended, I mean we're half military, half civilian.  To most that means that one spouse is active duty and the other is non military.  In our family it means that Nick is Air National Guard. By definition, that means that he's military 1 weekend a month and 2 weeks a year.  In reality, it means he's military whenever Uncle Sam tells him he's military, more on that in a minute   We're also a civilian family, with a twist.  Nick is a civilian fire fighter on a military installation.  So, no matter how you look at it, he's affiliated with the military in some way, shape or form every work day.

Back to the reality of being Guard.  While you hear on TV and the radio that Guard is "1 weekend a month and 2 weeks a year"that's not always the case;  It depends on the job and the unit, and well, it depends on what's going on in the world at the time.  As a guard wife, I giggle to myself when I hear those commercials.  For the last year, at least, Nick has been going in to the guard base 5-6 extra days a month, depending on the month.  There was a time last summer (during the end of my pregnancy) when he was going in on every day off.  Coming up in the next few weeks, he will be doing that again.  The unit is preparing for a huge inspection, and as Non Commissioned Officer (NCO) in charge of training for the unit's fire department, Nick has a lot of responsibilities for this Operational Readiness Inspection (ORI).  The reality of being National Guard is that some units are truly 1 weekend a month and  2 weeks a year, and some aren't;  some are one year, and not the next.  And, yes, contrary to popular belief, guard does deploy.  A lot.  Sometimes more then their active duty counterparts.  It's just how it works.

That brings me to us; the family.  While I love our Air Guard base, Quonset Point, and the air show/open house they hold every year, there's really not a lot of base to speak of.  There is an family readiness group (FRG) (which I've been meaning to get involved in for some time now), a gym, and a tiny little base exchange (BX)...but that's about it.  Being that Quonset is about 45 minutes away from our home, it's not realistic to go to the gym there to take advantage of the free membership.  One of the benefits of Nick working for the Sub Base is that we have access to all of their conveniences.  Just a 20 minute drive from our house, we have access to the pool, bowling alley, movie theater, gyms, Navy Exchange (NEX), and commissary.  They are all luxuries that all National Guard members and their dependents are afforded, but not all National Guard families live close enough to a active duty base to take advantage of them.  Until we bought our house, we were one of those families.  It just didn't make sense to drive 45-60 minutes away to use the gym, or pool.

Before we had Aidan we had not thought much about using anything on base besides the Navy Exchange (NEX) and commissary; now that he's here, I know that we will be utilizing services on base a lot more.  In just 2 weeks we start parent/child swim lessons.  This is the first 'privilege' as they are called, that we will be taking advantage of.  We're also thinking about using the base bowling alley for his first birthday party and he will be baptized in the chapel on base.  Since Aidan has arrived we are realizing just how much the base has to offer kids and their families; bowling leagues, swim lessons and all kinds of stuff.

Thanks to the birth of our first child, we are really starting to find our balance between our military and civilian life, and I couldn't be happier!

*Thank you to Jenn for her help editing this post!*

Keeping Focus on Your Kids

To say that the last few weeks have been hard would be an understatement.  First, on the 10th, we had a pipe let go in our first floor bathroom, causing Lord only knows how much damage.  We had to have the wall torn open to fix the pipe, and then had a water mitigation company come in to dry everything out.  We still currently have a huge hole in the wall that we're waiting on a contractor to come look at. Then, on the 16th,  Nick was in a serious car crash, that injured his back and has more then likely totaled his beloved "Green Monstah".  Trying to deal with the insurance company on 2 claims, get Nick's back taken care of and getting the truck appraised and towed, has been an absolute nightmare.  Things may have been different had these thing happened a few years ago.  But now in the midst of all of this, we have Aidan to look out for.  We have to make sure that the stress we're feeling isn't being passed on to him.  I'm not going to lie, it has been a struggle; things are not easy right now.  I'm having some problems with PPD (post-partum depression), which is making all of this compounded 10 fold. 

I'm here to tell you, that the most important thing that you can do when things go crazy in your life, is focus on your little ones; do EVERYTHING in your power to make sure that their routine stays as close to the same as possible.  Children thrive on routine.  Keeping to their schedule as much as possible will minimize the negative impact on them . 

During this time of turmoil, we've been working really hard to keep things as normal as we have been able to for Aidan.  Even after Daddy's accident on Saturday, we got up and went to church Sunday, while daddy was sleeping.  We've kept his schedule as close to normal as we have been able.  There have been a few times where we've been out alot, or late, or that Aidan and I have been waiting in the car while daddy does this or that; when these things happen, we adapt.  We also keep things with us that are familiar to Aidan.  Aidan loves The Laurie Berkner Band, so I keep the greatest hits CD on my iPhone.  When we were waiting for a couple hours for Nick to take care of things on base the other day, Aidan started to get cranky and tired; I whipped out his cuddle bunny, and my iPhone, and we listened to his music.  I sang to him and held his hand, he was out in no time.  While we were out running errands we brought some of his favorite things from home and made him as comfortable as possible.

I suggest keeping a kit in your diaper bag or car of things that you know comfort your little one; if you find a lovey that works, get a few (Heck, since Grandma makes Aidan's cuddle bunnies, he has 5!), and keep one in the diaper back, and one in an emergency bag in the car, that way, no matter where you are, you have something that is familiar to them.  If you have a smart phone, consider keeping some of their favorite music available on it.  I also like to keep snacks, formula, and juice with us.  I have found the BEST cooler for Aidan's formula.  As some of you may remember, due to allergies, he's on a special formula, which we get from our insurance company, in a premixed state,  therefore, it has to stay cold, which can be a challenge when you're away from home.  The Playtex Fridge-to-go system has been our lifesaver!!  It holds 2 of our Tommie Tippie 9 oz bottles, and will keep them cold for hours!!  We made it all the way from our house in RI to VT without even blinking or worrying about the bottles going bad!

Bottom line, don't loose focus on your kids in times of crisis.  Even if the crisis isn't focused around them, they know that something isn't right.  Do your best to keep them from feeling the stress from whatever is going on.  Love on them, cuddle them, keep their schedule as normal as you can.  If they are old enough, explain what is going on, and that Mommy and Daddy love them very much and that everything will be ok. 

The most important thing in any situation it to make sure that your little ones feel safe and loved.  The world can be falling apart around you, but they should never know.

*Thank you to Jenn for her help proof-reading this post!*

CollageIt Giveaway from My Devotional Thoughts 19 winners {ends 7/15}

I'm bringing you this awesome give away from Ruth over at My Devotional Thoughts

 

I am so excited today to share with you a wonderful resource that is so incredibly versatile and fun!  I love taking pictures, and I always say that I will do something with them later, but very often, later doesn't come!  It just so happens that CollageIt is the perfect program that makes later come a lot sooner.  Let me explain!

PearlMountain Soft has announced immediate availability of CollageIt. It allows you to form inspiring collages for all your favorite photos in seconds. The program creates templates for any number of pictures, requires no additional training and transforms ordinary photo viewing into a much more amusing experience.

Let’s admit it, looking through familiar photos or showing them one by one to friends and relatives over and over again isn’t that exciting. Is there a more vivid way to value your memories? Yes, there is. CollageIt was designed to give everyone an opportunity to brighten up one’s photo collection. In a matter of seconds, it will turn any ordinary set of photos into an impressive array of collages.

With CollageIt, collage creation is effortless and comfortable. Basically, you can just add photos and click the Generate Preview button. Click the button again to see another layout. If you add more images, CollageIt will conveniently form a new fitting layout pattern. After you pick the collage you liked the most, you can save it into a variety of popular image formats. Of course, you can also diversify the collage look yourself.

As simple as the program is, there’s still a lot of room for creativity. The fact that a stunning collage is done in seconds doesn’t mean you can’t have fun playing with different easily available layout options. By changing the background color, distance between pictures, rotation angle and series of other options you can endlessly create collages with new design and each time results will look unique and fresh.

Use CollageIt to turn photo viewing into an entertainment event for the whole family. Create vibrant collages right away or experiment with different layout options and number of photos. It’s time to give your memories the classy look they really deserve! The full version of CollageIt is available at no charge at http://www.collageitfree.com/

About the company:

Pearl Mountain Software, Inc was founded in 2006. Pearl Mountain Soft is a software company specializing in development of powerful software. Customer satisfaction is our first priority and we aim to produce only top quality software .Our goal is to create high quality, powerful software and to provide superior service and support t our customers. 

Well, I got to download and review the full version, and I am pretty impressed.  In moments, I downloaded the program and dropped some random pictures into the program.  I chose a template, and I began inserting the pictures.  In this case, I chose my daughter's baby pictures. Take a look at the result!

 Yes, I created that!  I chose the background, cropped the pictures,chose the color for the frames, and I even saved it to my computer.  I was able to print it out like a regular picture.  And I would even be able to share it on facebook (I will try again soon--facebook blocked up when I did--go figure!). 

So, my dear friends, how would you like to win your very own CollageIt?  I have nineteen codes, and the giveaway is open worldwide!  So just fill in the rafflecopter below, and you will be entered to win!  Be sure to enter by July 15 at 9:00 P.M. Pacific time.  I want to thank my good blogging friends for joining me on this giveaway!  Be sure to check out their blogs when you get a chance.  You may discover some new blogs with some great content!

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Just Naturals Organic Care Giveaway {ends 7/9}

 I'm so excited to be a part of this fantastic giveaway brought to you by Kimberly of Kimberly's Thoughts!!  Make sure to check her out!  And don't miss this AWESOME giveaway!!

I discovered Just Natural Organic Care a couple weeks ago and fell in love with this company. They have so many amazing organic products, I always try to use organic when I can. They have gave me the option to use their hair and skin line, so Bath & Body is covered. Just Natural has agreed to do a giveaway. One winner will receive four of their amazing product to try for free (if you're the winner)!   Moisturizer hair pomade!     Peppermint foot lotion, my favorite!       Facial lotion     Soap is the winners choice :) I have an amazing team of blogger who are helping me promote this giveaway. Thanks to you all!!!! Are you excited yet???????? I would be, I can't enter this one, but you sure can!!!! 

Come one you know you want to, so enter the easy Rafflecopter Form below and GOOD LUCK!

 SO sorry you must be 18+ to enter and open to US only.

  Disclosure: "Kimberly's Thought is not responsible for mailing out the products to the winner. They will be sent by Just Natural" a Rafflecopter giveaway

Uprinting Business Card Giveaway! {Winner Announced!}

Hey everyone.  Sorry for being MIA so much lately.  Things have been crazy, but that's a whole other post that I'll get to soon.

On to this post.  I've partnered with UPrinting to bring you an awesome business card give away!

The winner will win 250 die cut business cards of their choice.  I don't know about you, but I LOVE business cards.  I'm actually in the process of getting some for my new at home business Rhody Mama Designs.    Check out the amazing UPrinting.com business cards!  I personally love the rounded and leaf shaped ones.

The best part of this giveaway is it's quick and easy to enter.  Just follow the Rafflecopter below and you're in!

The giveaway is open to US residents 18 year old or older.  A winner will be chosen on 27June!

Good luck!




You should assume that I will receive free print products in exchange for the post. Any and all reviews posted are based solely on my own experience and may be atypical. Please practice due diligence in making any related purchase decisions. Interested to hold a giveaway like this? Please sign up here.

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