Featured Reader: Let me introduce you to....

Happy Monday friends. I hope everyone had a great Easter. We went to a Easter Brunch at one of our favorite restaurants and Will hid under the table when the Easter Bunny made his rounds. I will share pictures later in the week. Please be sure to visit my site tomorrow for details for a fun Mother's Day giveaway, I am teaming up with Jen from Cheaper Than Therapy!

Monday's are always fun since I have the pleasure of introducing you to one of my fabulous friends. Joelle and I have a lot in common and we watch a lot of the same TV shows. I also love all of the CSI's and love Lost, but now Lost has me LOST these days! Joelle has me really curious and I really want to know what "Not my tarp, not my problem" means so please be sure to visit Joelle's blog and leave her a comment asking what it means and then she will blog about it.


Name

Joelle from The A-Priori Mommy

Family:

I’m the only female in the house! There’s the husband, the boy, and the two male heavy weight contenders some might refer to as cats!

How did you start blogging?

I started back in 2004 when it seemed like everyone was departing in different directions. A group of friends decided it would be a good way to keep track of our happenings since we weren’t going to be around each other on a regular basis anymore. Then my family found it to be a nice way to keep tabs on my life and so the habit began. To be fair I’ve always been chatty and I always loved to write – so wha-la what better outlet than blogging. Granted I only became a “serious” blogger back in December, because I set my 2009 goal to become a bona fide blogger…and I feel I’m well on my way!

If you are a parent do you have a parenting philosophy?

I truly believe in raising my child up with a Christian attitude and heart; making God the number one priority in his life, to give him a true foundation to live his life on. I also believe in teaching him to understand the why in what I tell him, not just the “no means no” (trust me I KNOW that I will say it, but I hope to make that the exception rather than the rule.) Aiden is still young and so for these early phases in his life, I believe co-sleeping to be beneficial and slinging for comfort.

You will never find me without......

My cell phone

Day job:

I used to be a practicing attorney with a crafty side that never got to be utilized.

Now I am a SAHM that is able to craft and quilt while the boy is busy or sleeping. I am always up for a new challenge and with that I decided to create an Etsy shop to showcase my latest projects: Ace Quilting named after my pride and joy.

Favorite Stuff:

Music: I have eclectic taste… my husband would tell you bad taste in music. I love country, I love some pop, some rap,

Food: McDonald’s for sure! Then Italian

Tv/ Movies: Reality TV!!, Lost, Heroes, ER, CSI, CSI:NY… there’s so much more. Movies: I’m a Disney nut, but mostly the classic stuff. I love Drop Dead Gorgeous, it’s just too random.

Reading: I love to read! I had goals in 2008 and 2007 and I have a book club I started in 2007 that I enjoy reading different books for from that. I love Chick Lit, John Grisham, even Classics. My absolute FAVORITE book of all time is Les Miserables, with Wicked as close second. I know very broad in taste.

If you had to wear a T-shirt with your favorite saying on it what would it be?

“Not my tarp, not my problem.” If you’re really curious come to my blog and comment requesting the background story… if I get three comments I’ll blog about it!

Favorite stores to shop at:

Target , JCPenny, Babies R Us & Old Navy

Misc stuff:

I am still a Girl Scout. I went to law school knowing that I wanted to be a licensed non-practicing attorney that was a SAHM. I want a dog so bad, but I think my cats would really disown me after I bought that baby into the house. I want a library like the one in Beauty & The Beast! I am addicting to blogging and read about 30-40 blogs on a regular basis… and the number just keeps growing!! There’s so many great people out there with great things to say.

Please be sure to leave Joelle some comment love below and also at her blog HERE.

If you would like to be a featured reader please send me a link of your blog to klacustomcreations@comcast.net by participating you have a chance to win a piece of hand stamped jewelry from my shop Kristen's Custom Creations.

P.S. The winner of the lip balm from Soap Rehab is Michelle of This Crazy Life, congratulations Michelle!

Happy Easter!

Wishing everyone a very Happy Easter!

Product Junkie Approved: Balance and Brighten

I don't know if you are like me but many days I just do not feel like wearing foundation, yet still need some coverage. I have blotchy skin so I need something to balance out my complexion. The Balance and Brighten by Laura Gellar does just that, it evens out your skin tone and gives you a nice healthy glow. You can use this in place of your foundation. I have eliminated my powder and just use this as my base before applying the rest of my make up. When I would like more coverage I use a bit of foundation underneath my Balance and Brighten. I especially like that it isn't heavy and really has no scent, my skin feels clean all day. You can purchase Laura Gellar make-up at Sephora and Qvc. The Balance and Brighten is priced at $29.50 and comes in Fair and Medium, and can be purchased HERE.

Do you have a favorite product that you can not live with out?

Fashion Friday: Ditch Those Mommmy Jeans Please!!

Ditch Those Mommy Jeans by klacustomcreations featuring GAP jeans


Finding a pair of jeans that fits is very challenging and so important since they are a staple in many wardrobes. I love jeans since you can dress them up and down. I just counted how many pairs of jeans I have in my closet that I don't wear, for various reasons and counted 28 pairs!!! I don't even want to add up the cost. I do want to help you find your perfect pair! You can read my entire article at TwitterMoms where I am a weekly featured contributor. Please click HERE and tell me if it was helpful.

What is your favorite brand of jeans???

New for Mothers Day Handstamped Mom, Grandma or Sister necklace

Just a few new items for Mother's Day, any of these pieces can be customized if you have a special name you call Mom or Grandma. Available in my shop Kristen's Custom Creations.

Thousand Words Thursday: Why I love sleep pictures

One word really describes why I am obsessed with pictures of Will sleeping, COLIC! Will had colic for 5 months and I thought he would never ever sleep. I remember being a walking zombie and trying everything to get him to sleep, we even purchased a CD of a vacuum cleaner sound (yes it exists and no it isn't the same thing as a real vacuum) To this day when he does sleep it is just magical to me and I always feel compelled to take a picture. The days of naps are long gone but he does sleep through the night.

So tell me have you ever dealt with Colic and lived to tell about it?

To view more Thousand Words Thursday please visit my friend Jen at Cheaper Than Therapy Jen.

Wordless Wednesday: My Grey is getting GREY!

Kane at Starbucks, and boy oh boy is he getting grey!

Featured Reader Winner Announced

I am pleased to announce that Lolli of Life is Sweet is the winner of my Featured Reader contest! The "Key to my heart" is the piece Lolli said she wanted to win. Lolli was randomly selected by Random Org. Congratulations Lolli!

Please be sure to visit Lolli and wish her congrats! If you would like to be a featured reader please send me a email at klacustomcreations@comcast.net with a link to your site.

Pucker Up Teddy!

Over the weekend I was working on some new designs and was taking some pictures, when Will asked me if Teddy could wear a few of the pieces I couldn't resist and then when he kissed Teddy on the cheek well it made my heart melt, that moment reminded me why I love this kid more than all the stars in the sky.

The real credit for the hand stamped "I Love You More Than All The Stars In The Sky" necklace was inspired by a very special bloggy friend and I sure hope she likes how it turned out, it is one of my new favorites. I will be adding several new pieces to the shop this week but the "I Love you More Than All The Stars In the Sky" is available HERE and is perfect for Mother's Day.

Featured Reader: Let me introduce you to...

Hello friends! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I always love Mondays since it means I have the pleasure of introducing you to one of my lovely readers. I have the great pleasure of introducing you to Natalie of The Bobby Pin. Natalie is just a doll and I am sure you will love her blog as much as I do. Please grab your beverage of choice and get to know my friend Natalie.

Name:

Natalie, my blog is The Bobby Pin

Family:

My immediate family consists of me, my husband and my dog. We were married in July 2007 and I’m still calling us newlyweds.

How did you start blogging?

I started blogging the day we returned from our honeymoon. I’m a writer by trade and at first it started as just documenting our lives and our move to San Diego. It later evolved into a way to connect with a community bigger than myself. Blogging allows you to find friends to meet at the park who live close to you, find people with your same interests far away from you to talk to, it’s awesome!

If you are a parent do you have a parenting philosophy? If not a parent what is your blogging philosophy?

I am a puppy mama and I’m a softie – always up for treats and cuddles. Unless Dahlia chews on something she’s not supposed to. Then I hold a grudge until she comes up and cuddles with me! I also believe in second chances. We got our dog from the San Diego Pug Rescue.

You will never find me without......my purse stuffed to the brim. A sweater because I’m always cold. A pen because I want to write my thoughts. My calendar because I’m worried I’m going to forget something. So basically my hands are always full.

Day job:

I’m a marketing coordinator by day. I write press releases, plan and coordinate press conferences, work on my company’s Web site and social media accounts and all in all give my best to a company that is struggling during this recession! I believe that the most powerful form of advertising is to be exceptional (Ranjit Mathoda) – so I truly believe in bringing my best self everyday while we work to become an exceptional company. I also freelance write and consult in marketing – but that’s at night after work. It all blends in to pay the bills!

Favorites:

Music: Country all the way

Food: Cheap sushi

Tv/ Movies: lame reality TV like the Bachelor. I get sucked into it every time.

Reading: I’ll read almost anything. I love Jodi Piccoult right now, I just finished Mercy.

If you had to wear a T-shirt with your favorite saying on it what would it be?

"Words are sacred. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you can nudge the world a little." —Tom Stoppard, playwright

I just liked it. If that saying is too big – I would just have them write “Communicate.” It’s so important in marriage, work and wherever life takes you. If anything, it will at least get you the right tasting drink at Starbucks.

Favorite stores to shop at:

The Ann Taylor and Loft clearance rack. I love the $9 shirts I’ve scored there. If I had more money, it would be Anthropologie, but I can’t justify it. I still like to go in there and touch everything though – I’m a very tactile person. (apologies to the people who buy the clothes!)

Other good stuff from Natalie:

I love trying new things. I call it hobby ADD – I tried knitting this year and have a 10-inch scarf thus far, last year it was cake decorating. So far my true loves are traveling, writing and figuring out computer stuff. But I never know what will bite me next.

Please do not forget to enter my current giveaway for a lip balm from Soap Rehab enter HERE.

If you would like to be a featured reader please send me a message with your name and a link of your blog to klacustomcreations@comcast.net. Featured Readers have an opportunity to win a custom piece from my shop, Kristen's Custom Creations.

Upcoming Featured Readers:

Joelle The A-Priori Mommy 4/13

Melissa of Proud Mommy's Daily Deals and Drama 4/20

Anne The Tea Journal 4/27

Jo of Life's Perfect Pictures 5/4

Feel Good Sunday: Follow Your Heart

Follow Your Heart has so many different meanings and means different things to many. To me it means to do what you believe is right in your heart. We can't always base our decisions and choices only on our heart, but mixed with a bit of logic we can achieve close to perfect outcomes!

What does Follow Your Heart mean to you?

The "Follow Your Heart" handstamped necklace is new can be found at Kristen's Custom Creations.

***Don't forget to enter for your chance to win a tube of lip balm from Soap Rehab HERE your lips will thank you!

CLOSED Giveaway! Product Junkie Approved Rehab for your lips!

Contest Closed: The winner of the Lip Balm from Soap Rehab is Michelle of This Crazy Life.

The Grapefruit Lip Smoothie by Soap Rehab truly is rehab for your lips. Winter in Michigan has been really gruelling and this is just what my lips needed. The Grapefruit Lip Smoothie is just $3.50 and handcrafted by a fellow Michigander. This lip balm glides on your lips and has a very mild taste, a touch of grapefruit mixed with vanilla, delicious! It is a lip balm that you just want to keep putting on even when not necessary.

Complete ingredients: Castor Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, Avocado Oil, Coconut Oil, Aloe Leaf Extract, Carnauba Wax, Candelilla Wax, grapefruit essential oil, flavor (lip safe, of course!)

You can find a variety of flavors over at Soap Rehab HERE.

If you would like to win a tube of lip balm from Soap Rehab here is how you can win:

1. Please visit Soap Rehab HERE and tell me which flavor you would like to try.

Extra entries: (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

****Follow my blog
****Follow me on Twitter HERE
****Add my button to your site
****Tweet about this contest
****Stumble this post

The contest is open to US citizens only and will close on Saturday April 11th. Please make sure you leave some way for me to contact you if you are the winner.

Good Luck!

Friday Fashion: Twitter Style

For the Twitteraholic by klacustomcreations featuring Old Navy sweaters

Twitter, Twitter, Twitter, it is all you hear about lately! Are you a Twitter addict? Do you Tweet? I love Twitter and also love birds so I couldn't resist putting together these select pieces.

If you aren't already following me on Twitter you can here twitter.com/klacustom
I follow back!

You can read the entire article at TwitterMoms HERE where I am a weekly featured contributor.

Happy Tweeting friends!

Who wants to win some Easter candy?

The Candy Dish Blog, The Official Candy Blog of the National Confectioners Association, is hosting a giveaway for some of your favorite Easter candy, all you need to do is head over to their site HERE and share your favorite Easter candy memory.

I have been selected as one of the guest judges for the contest along with Brian Pipa of Candy Addict and Cybele May of Candy Blog. Being a candy lover I am truly honored to be on the panel and hope you will enter!!!

The contest runs until April 6th and 5 winners will be selected, so hop on over there right away and enter!!!

Good Luck!

Kristen Andrews of La Dolce Vita

P.S. This opportunity came to me via TwitterMoms, TwitterMoms rocks if you aren't a member yet!!!

Thousand Words Thursday: OMG I can't believe I let my child do that

We had lunch with my dear friend Renee and her sweet twins! These are Will's girls.

We discovered this amazing park but can you believe I let Will go grass sledding??? I was holding my breath the entire time.

The face says it all!

Up and down, up and down that is what he did until his little heart was content!

Besides having an amazing lunch out I also did something twice that I am very proud of, I parallel parked and that is something I just don't do. I have to say I am proud of myself! It sometimes is the little stuff!

What have you been up to? Have you had a "OMG I can't believe I am letting my child do that!? moment too?

If you would like to view other Thousand Words Thursday please visit Cheaper Than Therapy Jen HERE.

Holy Cow!!! We have some Winners!!!

This is the Cow costume Will said he wanted to wear for Halloween but refused, the other day he decided to wear it. You win some you lose some. But tonight we have some winners to announce!!!

The winner of the $50 gift certificate to my shop is Nikki of Blah, Blah, Blah. Congratulations Nikki. I can't wait to see what you pick!

The two winners of the Cornielle CD are:

KimboSue of Life and Times of KimboSue and LeNesha of My Business Adventures.

Congratulations to the winners!!!

Wordless Wednesday: April Fools Day on them!!!

The joke is on them!!!

You can see the orange hat is pretty popular in our house, for some reason many are compelled to put it on. Last year on April Fool's Day hubby put a picture of him with the legendary orange hat as a screen saver on my lap top, he doesn't read my blog so I can get away with posting it. As you can see there are no pictures with me in the orange hat!

Happy April Fool's Day! Did you pull any pranks today?

P.S. Here is something that isn't a prank FREE SHIPPING in my shop today only. Just enter code April Fools and you will receive a credit via pay pal. Shop HERE

When we need a break....

When we need a break we head to our usual spot, Starbucks! I love the expressions on Will's face. Do you think he is enjoying his Chocolate milk?

Things have been crazy busy, a good crazy busy!!! It is so easy to lose sight of what is important so I cherish these dates with my little man.

So please give me some tips, tell me what you do when you just need a break.

Mixed Metal....

I wanted to share a sneak peek at a few of my NEW Mixed Metal pieces. They are a mix of Sterling Silver and Copper. One of the hottest trends is mixing your metals, no longer is it a no no to mix metals, so mix away! I will slowly be adding them into the shop.

The second picture the Mixed Metal Custom Personalized necklace is available here for $34.90.

Featured Reader: Let me introduce you to...

Happy Monday friends! We had a weekend filled with friends, family, sunshine and some SNOW???? Yes we had a bit of snow so I guess we can't put away the snow boots. The snow didn't really stick so we will forgive Mother Nature.

I always love Monday's since not only do I get to know my featured better but so do you. I always learn a bit more when doing these features, so I guess even if you follow someones blog there is always more to discover.

I am pleased to introduce you to Kati of Country Girl, City Life . Kati and I have so much in common the girl loves Starbucks and the color pink, she had me at loving the color pink! Without further ado please grab your beverage of choice and get to know my friend Kati.

P.S. Just one more day to enter my contest to win a $50 gift certificate to my shop enter Here also I have a contest running for a Corneille CD HERE. Good luck!

Name:

My real name is Kati. No, it is not short for anything and is a totally unoriginal 80's name. My blog name is Country Girl, City Life.

Family:

I am married to the greatest man in the world, Heath. Kind of cliche, I know. We have 2 beautiful children together, Serenity (2.5 years), and Caeden (3 months).

How did you start blogging?

Boredom. Really, I was tired of myspace and the lack of real creativity. I love meeting new people without all the fake profiles and naked women. Blogging has turned into an obsession that I plan to have for as long as blogger exists.

What is your parenting philosophy?

My parenting philosophy? Hmm. Well, I was raised by my grandmother.. and well, I spent more time caring for her than being a kid. I pretty much wanted kids. My mom was a deadbeat who took off to England to avoid child support, and my dad was never around. I really believe in being there for your children. You MUST be an example to them. They depend on you to teach them what is right and what is wrong. I want to teach my children the value of giving and hard work, as well as the appropriate time to have a good time!

You will never find me without......

My purse. I carry everything in there. It is an endless pit of books, clothes, makeup, bottles, toys, diapers.. and crushed food!

Day job:

I am a SAHM, for the present time. I am currently a full time nursing student in the evenings. I graduate this summer and will be eligable to sit for my LPN test. In January 2010, I will begin the LPN to BSN program and begin working toward my RN. I MAY in the future go for my Masters degree, but that is still undecided. Don't get me wrong, I love being a SAHM.. but at the same time I feel it very important to keep a part of myself for me.. and my life.

Favorite Stuff:

Music: Country.

Food: I love carbs. It's bad, I know.

Tv/ Movies: Have at least one show per night on the DVR. Right now, I am obsessed with "The Big Bang Theory". Totally funny.

Reading: I don't really have a lot of time to read things other than my school books, but I did receive a Twilight book from a blog swap and I look forward to reading it.

If you had to wear a T-shirt with your favorite saying on it what would it be?

"I'm the Mommy That's Why".. I say it a million times a day!

Favorite stores to shop at:

I LOVE Old Navy. I buy most of the kids clothes from there. I buy my jeans at American Eagle (P.S. They now carry extra long).

Other good stuff from Kati:

I love to work out. I have a pink yoga mat, pink boxing gloves, pink shoes, a pink Ipod, pink work out pants, pink weights. Did I mention I like pink? I love Ebay and shopping. I believe in hard work and dedication to your cause. I am the sports junky in our house, NASCAR and Steelers football all the way! I have no fashion sense which is one reason I am going in to nursing.. scrubs! I play too many video games. I am constantly trying to eat healthy. I am all about self improvement... I have a long way to go! I am a Starbucks addict. I didn't get my drivers license until I was 19. My life is a little unconventional, but I LOVE it! I love meeting new people and being the center of attention!

If you would like to be a featured reader please send me an email at klacustomcreations@comcast.net for details. Now please leave some comment love.

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