Wordless Wednesday

Los Angeles Bloggers Brunch 2010

Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach
Beautiful outdoor setting!

Insightful Sponsors

Bandai (I think this was the kids favorite!)

We got to put the newest Dyson Products to the test!

Pottery Barn Kids

Temptress Cosmetics gave us beautiful make overs & helpful tips

Toyota was there showing off the Newest Sienna

Cold Stone Creamery was there to introduce their Oreo Filling Cookie Ice Cream..Yummy!

Backyard Safari Outfitters - perfect for spring time & gets kids outside & exploring!

Big shout out to Pajama Jeans too!! Looking forward to wearing my Pajama Jeans to bed and to play in!!

Thank you to Child Play Communications for putting together a great LA Bloggers Brunch!!

Disney's Food & Wine Festival

We love good food and wanted to get this up for you all so you have plenty of time go get on over to California Adventure's Food & Wine Festival. For 46 days, Disney's California Adventure Park and select locations at the Disneyland Resort will host "The Art of Flavor," one of the most anticipated events of spring. Enjoy cooking demonstrations, seminars and recipes that reflect California's regional and culinary diversity.

Signature Events**
Reserve your spot at these extraordinary celebrations

Daily Schedule - Get up-to-date times and locations for all of the exciting activities and events at Disney's California Food & Wine Festival. Celebrity Chefs appearing include Jeffery Saad, Cat Cora, Sunny Anderson, Art Smith and more! (We missed seeing one of our favorites Guy Fieri, so make sure you check out the schedule so you don't miss your favorite!)

Places to Discover
In addition to scheduled events, there's plenty to do and see throughout the festival including special dining opportunities, art exhibits and wine tasting.

"The Art of Flavor"
Fifth Annual Disney's California Food & Wine Festival
April 16 – May 31, 2010

* Admission to Disney's California Adventure Park is required for events held within the Park and is not included in the event price.

** Additional fee and advance reservations are required for Signature Events

Better Oats

If you're like me, I am not a big fan of breakfast. Sure, I'll eat a bowl of yogurt, mix up a smoothie or occasionally have a bowl of oatmeal with my husband - who is big on breakfast. I eat oatmeal for breakfast because I have heard it's good for you, and breakfast is suppose to be the most important meal of the day, right? After I get my bowl of oatmeal together with all the added milk, butter and sugar I add, I wonder....is it Still good for me? lol! Well, now there's a new oatmeal on the market "Better Oats". We were asked to put Better Oats to the test against one of the leading brands on the market today. Knowing how much my husband loves oatmeal and hearing that Better Oats carries 34 different varieties - this was one test we were happy to take! We received the box below - and I was anxious to try it the next morning.

I always am the first one up, so thought I would cook up some oatmeal before my husband would wake up and put Better Oats to the real test. I wanted in on this too, so - on the bottom of the two bowls we were sent I tapped a piece of paper with the name of each brand of oatmeal it had in it. I followed the directions on each of the packets sent. Better Oats comes in individual packages which also substitutes as a measuring cup. You tear off the top of the packet across the dotted line and pour the oats into the bowl. With that same individual packet you fill it up with cold water up to the fill line - then pour into the bowl and microwave. Simple as 1, 2, 3!! I love this method and the individual packets - that makes it extremely easy for on the go, camping, etc... The end result =

Can you tell the difference? The bowl on the left hand side is Better Oats. Just from observing it, it looks more chunky, flavorful and has bigger oats. I have to admit I know how hard it can be to switch brands / tastes after you've been having the same thing for months, maybe even years. The one pictured above is the apples and cinnamon - which I have to admit is not a favorite flavor of mine - but if I did like it, this is something that I would not need to add any extras too. There were a lot of good size apple chunks and the flavor my husband seemed to like. They have so many varieties and flavors I was so anxious to try another so I cooked up the Lavish Dark Chocolate. This one must be one of those tastes that you have to acquire - it just did not set with me & I am a chocolate lover! I took one bite and just could not eat no more. I will give it another try before I throw the box away though since it is made with real chocolate morsels and a good source of fiber. The next morning I also tried the original flavor, adding my milk, butter & sugar. The oatmeal was yummy!! Other flavors include maple & brown sugar, peaches and cream, cinnamon roll, berry blast and so many more - remember there are 34 flavors!!!

• All varieties are made with 100% whole grain oats and are naturally trans-fat and cholesterol free
• All varieties contain ground Flax seeds, which are a natural source of Omega-3 and a good source of fiber
• All varieties are packaged in an innovative built in measuring cup pouch (Love it!!)
  

Take the Better Oats taste test yourself! Visit www.betteroats.com to sign up for the challenge and to learn more about Better Oats.

Hadsten House Inn and Spa

The Hadsten House Inn and Spa is just beautiful!! From the outside you would not even know, it really looks like any other hotel. Solvang was our last stop on our road trip - and what a way to end it! In a quaint little danish town, with pastries, great dinner, miniature horses, and the most comfortable bed to rest in! We arrived in Solvang later than planned, that was partly my fault for rushing through the planning. I had wanted to stop about every two hours and spend each night in a new place - but for some reason - we had a four hour drive to Solvang from Monterey and the coast line was just so beautiful we could not help but take our time. Right after leaving Monterey was the 17 mile drive - there was a $10 entrance fee and we sat there for a moment debating weather to do it or not - we really did not have the time, but Pebble Beach was in there as well as so many other wonderful spots that they have lined out for you. Let me tell you - I am so so happy that we paid the ten dollars, this was the most beautiful, scenic drive - and the sights & history you get to see more than made up for the $10! Then of course for the kids we had to stop along the beaches to see the sea lions - it's mating season, so they are all ashore - which was fun to watch! We finally arrive in Solvang fifteen minutes til six - right on time, but not time to rest! We checked in, made a restroom run and walked to the restaurant. When I walked in I felt like I was in a really fancy place. The lights we're dim (which is why there's no pics), it was small and very intimate, and in the corner were couches & a fireplace - fancy yet comfortable. We were the only ones there with kids - which made me feel a bit uncomfortable, especially since they placed us right in the middle of the room! HA! Most the others were older, retired folks enjoying a weekend getaway - luckily we sat next to a nice older couple who missed their grandkids so loved our kids! Whew! Dinner was superb! Although I don't think I ever waited so long for food - they were soooo slow!! My husband and I both had the bacon wrapped Fillet Mignon - yummy!! For desert we had the flourless chocolate cake - wow, not what I expected at all!! I guess I was expecting a dry, crumbly piece of cake. This tasted more like a rich moose more than anything - just melted in your mouth. By the time we got out of there it was probably closing in on eight - we we're all stuffed and the town was shut down for the night - so went back to our room to get some much needed sleep!

Just from looking at it you can get an idea that the bed was going to be awesome!! This is just what we needed after a week of traveling! The kids slept on the pull out sofa, and come morning I just did not want to get out of bed, and by the end of the day was wishing I would have taken advantage of some extra sleep!! The room was perfect for the four of us, had a gas fireplace, comfortable robes, and cartoons to keep the kids entertained.

We got up early knowing that we had to make the long trip home in the morning and had a couple other stops we wanted to make. The hotel serves a complete all you can eat breakfast in the morning - and I am not just talking toast & cereal. There was muffins, eggs, potatoes, bacon, sausage, coffee, oj, and so much more - again we got stuffed! After breakfast we gathered our stuff together, checked out and walked the town. I had been to Solvang once when I was about 18 and remember their danish pastries - could not leave town without a box!! I wish I would have taken a pic for you all of my pastries - yum yum and so pretty too!

After touring the town by foot - the kids were exhausted from walking!! So we hopped in the car and headed to the Miniature Horse Ranch just five minutes north of town. Quicksilver Ranch is a large-scale miniature horse ranch with daily tours. We walked around looking at the horses - which my daughter loved because they were just "her" size. We were lucky to see the one mama below with her baby - so cute!!

As we headed back to the freeway, just on the other side of Solvang - not even five minutes out was The Ostrich Farm. This one kind of scared me. I have watched TV shows about these animals before and heard that they are not that friendly and can be very mean & dangerous. I was not sure what to expect and if I even wanted my kids to feed them. We walked in and saw that we had to pay to feed them. It was $1.00 for every pound - that way they could keep track of how much the animals ate. So - I bought one pan for each child, we read the rules and off we went! It was actually fun and the kids loved it so much they wanted to do it again! We were told to hold onto the bowls very tightly and make sure you keep your fingers off the bowl. These guys will even try to steal the bowl away from you!

A big thank you to Solvang for hosting us!! We wish we would have had more time to really enjoy it and not be so rushed!! A weekend is definitely the way to go!!

For current rates & more info visit
http://www.hadstenhouse.com/index.html

Want to learn more about Solvang?
Contact the Solvang Visitor Bureau at
www.solvangusa.com

**Disclosure: Solvang provided us with one nights stay at the Hadsten House Inn. No monetary compensation was received.

Wordless Wednesday

We drove the famous "17 mile drive" on our way back down the coast - what a beautiful drive & worth the $10 they charge you! This picture is The Lone Cypress - it has prevailed on this rocky perch for over 250 years!! This has become the symbol of The Pebble Beach Company.

Fisher Price Moments

**Disclosure: I was entered for a chance to win a giftcard in exchange for this post. No monetary exchange took place and all opinions are my own.

As a Mother - there is one thing we all have in common, that we love to share those special moments that our family gives us. With so many social networking sites out there it can be hard to keep track of what you've posted and who you've posted it to. We can easily upload our pictures and video to friends and family on the net, but how about an easy to read digital time line? Fisher Price is a brand most of us grew up with, a brand we trust and a brand we feel comfortable enough with to hand over to our children. Fisher Price is now taking to to the next step, offering a digital time line complete with photos, videos, captions and stories. Even better is that you can create this live on your Facebook page.

" This extremely easy to use application (http://www.fpmoments.com/) allows you to create a personalized timeline by adding a date, location, caption, and even anecdotes to our images. You can upload new photos and videos or even use existing Facebook albums. The result is a scrollable, digital timeline that you can add to as your child grows. Since there are so many people who touch your child's life, you can even allow select friends and family to add to your masterpiece. And because privacy is always a concern among parents, you're able to control exactly who you're sharing your moments with." Now I did try this out on my Facebook page and I have a love / hate relationship with this app. Well...I wouldn't go as far as saying hate, but there are some aspects of it that I just did not like.

What I loved -

• Being able to add all my children & spouse complete with picture and birthdates
• Adding a story, description and date to all entries
• Something that would be appealing to friends and family
• Once set up it's quick and easy to use
• Allowed me to choose who I wanted to share it with
  

What I disliked -

• Took quite a long time to set up - especially if your children are a bit older
• Having to go through all my pics to set up the time line
• I would love to see more options for older children/ adults

If you're a new mom looking for a fun way to share those special memories, then this is the way to go, if you have older children like mine are - I think I would stay with the albums.

Don't just take my word for it - try it yourself
www.fpmoments.com

Blogger Events

I have been thinking lately about all these blogger events that most of us get invited too. While they are fun and socializing - don't you all feel guilty for leaving your family behind, just a little maybe? I mean once in awhile is great, not all events are for products that are geared toward our children and we do all need to get out now and then....but I am not the only one behind my blog. These last few months there have been quite a few blogging events that I have just had to turn down because they did not include my family.

My blog mostly runs reviews - and most of those products are products geared toward children. So who do you think plays with the product, wears the product or watches the product? My children and / or my husband & I are the ones who actually "review" the product. I can only review most products based on my thoughts as a parent, but the product has to also appeal to my child and be able to entertain them or do what ever it is that the product is intended to do. The review cannot be a full review without an opinion of the age bracket the item is intended for.
This is not a post intended to put down the PR companies and to say I am not grateful for being invited to so many wonderful events. All I am saying is that I am not Hula Hooping Mom - my kids, my husband AND myself create this very blog and the reviews you see and read here. This blog would not be the blog it is without them. I think PR companies as well as the companies that hold the events need to keep that in mind. My husband & children often wonder why they can't come along to some of these events - and I have to stop and think to myself the same. If you want to present a product - they are the ones you should be thinking about. They are the real reviewers - I just write the content! Above are the faces behind Hula Hooping Mom and how they feel being "left out"

Alone I am not Hula Hooping Mom - my children, my husband AND myself are

"Hula Hooping Mom"

**I did want to point out that our family has been to some great events sponsored by some great companies - Thank you for including my family!!