"5 Minutes for Mom's" 4th Annual Ultimate Blog Party plus GIVEAWAY!

TIME TO PARTY!!!
Did you know 5 Minutes for Mom really helped push me to get my blogs out there to everyone?

My Blogs: The first 2 are my main ones besides my personal family blog.
"Business" Blog: Scrappy Gifts
Craft Blog: Crafty Mommy Diva
Recipes: Ward Recipes
Food Storage: Be Prepared

Getting to Know Me
I love to scrapbook, blog and be with my little family! I have a 16 mo. old son and married to my high school sweetheart (although I wasn't his =D).
I love reading, movies, catching up on TV shows, dancing and singing (although I'm not very good), trying to be fashionable (especially as a mom), learning new crafts, trying new foods, and getting to know you!

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love to host parties. My latest bigger party was from Valentine's Day! If you like to host parties, you should totally check into HouseParty.com; I've hosted 2 parties through them to promote various products. Super fun, plus you and your guests get free products!

GIVEAWAY
Anyone who knows me, also knows that I love to give prizes at my parties! So if you'd like a prize then see ways to enter below.....
The Prize: $30 certificate to Scrappy Gifts

To Be Eligible to win (You don't have to have a blog to participate!) Leave a comment here or e-mail me your entry!

MANDATORY ENTRY: Leave me a comment telling me about your favorite party.
(If you don't have a blog, you can e-mail me about your favorite party. ScrappyDiva2129 at yahoo dot com)

EXTRA ENTRIES: Leave a separate comment for each. You MUST leave a separate comment for each!!!!! I use random.org integer generator. It gives me a number...say 5, so the 5th comment is the winner!
So to get 3 entries for Facebook Fan - leave 3 comments.
EXAMPLE:
Comment: #1 Facebook Fan

Comment: #2 Facebook Fan

Comment: #3 Facebook Fan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*become a follower of Scrappy Gifts or let me know you are one (right sidebar)

*become a follower of Scrappy Gifts - FOR SALE or let me know you are one (right sidebar)

*become a follower of THIS blog, my crafty blog, Crafty Mommy Diva (right sidebar)

*2 entries-add my Crafty Mommy Diva button to your sidebar or let me know you already have it

<center><a href="http://craftymommydiva.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" alt="Crafty Mommy Diva" src="http://i851.photobucket.com/albums/ab75/ablogtobragabout/Maryanne%20N/Button.png" /></a></center>

*3 entries - add my Scrappy Gifts button to your sidebar or let me know you already have it

<a href="http://myscrappygifts.blogspot.com/"><img alt="BWS tips button" width="155" src="http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj26/ScrappyDiva2129/ScrappyGiftsheadersmall.jpg" height="125" /></a>


*3 entries - Follow me on Twitter or let me know that you already do.

*Tweet about giveaway! Once a day limit. Leave a link to your tweet.

*3 entries - become a Facebook Fan or let me know you are one (see right sidebar)

*10 entries - make a post on your blog sharing about the giveaway and sharing your favorite products.
(If you don't have a blog, you can e-mail 10 friends about this giveaway. Include me in the e-mail: ScrappyDiva2129 at yahoo dot com)

*10 entires - place an order at Scrappy Gifts by Friday, April 16th. I'm offering 10% off any Custom Made orders. E-mail your order to ScrappyDiva2129(at)yahoo(dot)com


GIVEAWAY ENDS Saturday, April 17th at midnight. Winners will be announced Monday, April 19th.


Totally Ultimate - Now I love when everyone is a winner, so I'll give anyone who becomes a follower of Scrappy Gifts or Crafty Mommy Diva via Blogger, Twitter OR Facebook a Mini Scrappy Notebook or $5 Certificate to Scrappy Gifts. Just leave a comment here, FB fan page or on Twitter letting me know that you're from the 5 Minutes for Mom Ultimate Blog Party.


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Now I love to win prizes too so here's the Prizes I'd love to win at 5 Minutes for Mom's Ultimate Blog Party!
Prizes I'd love - my top 3!
#39 Hilton Garden Inn stay (our family could totally use a little getaway)
#71 $50 Bear Bucks Card to Build a Bear (I've been wanting to have a little bear for my son)
#69 Itty Bitty Bookworm Curriculum for 18mo-36mo

If my top choices are chosen already, I'd love any of these too:
#18 - Goodie Basket for Mom
#27 - Collected Recipes Organizer
#56 - 12x24 Canvas
*Any Gift Card for Target, Barnes & Noble, Pay-Pal, Shutterfly or Amazon

Fashionable Fridays #4

I'm linking up to One Crafty Mommy's Fashionable Fridays! Check it out! One Crafty Mommy and Fashionista on a Dime are working together to share affordable fashion! You can link up posts of your fashion, questions about fashion, etc.!

Here's an outfit I wore for a day to myself (my husband watched our son for 8 hours- thank you honey!). Mainly I wore a skirt because I was going to the temple (Latter-Day Saint). Then after the temple I went to the spa and tried a massage for the first time (it was only $30 for 30 minutes). I had a nice lunch out at a new place called G's Dairy: soup, roll, drink and ice cream cone for $5!! It was so delicious and I think I discovered my new favorite ice cream: German Chocolate. Then I went out to get my hair cut. Then grocery shopping and finally home. Oh at the spa, I changed out of my skirt into jeans.
Let me know what you think of my outfit.

Green cardigan you've seen before (from Old Navy)
Purple Lace Tank (from Old Navy) - $5
Black pencil skirt (from Kohls)-$25  ....I've been needing a black pencil skirt for a while- so glad I finally found one
Pointy shoes - I think my mom gave them to me.

What do you think of the tucked in look?- I've been doing it more lately. I hated the look on me before, but I think I'm getting used to it. (excuse the mess on the floor!)

Just a close-up so you can see my headband - I love it!

When do you blog?

So I read some posts a while ago that really made me think about when do I blog. I'm afraid some of my friends may think I'm on the computer too much keeping up with several blogs at once: personal family blog, this blog, and Scrappy Gifts are my main ones, but I also do some here and there on some others. It's something I enjoy and that relaxes me. I blog when my son is asleep. Currently he takes one nap for 2-3 hours. Then he goes to bed at 8:30 at night where I do more blogging, check e-mails, edit/upload family photos, work on my Scrappy Gifts or catch up on TV shows.
If I get behind, sometimes then my husband will watch our son, spend some quality time with him, so I can catch up on a blog post. For me I don't really have set days where I post except on my Scrappy Gifts where I have Friday Favorites and Scrappy Saturdays. These posts I usually set up ahead of time and schedule them to post on the date I want. (If you don't know how to do that, leave a comment and I can go over that.) Since I have a lot of blogs, I don't want to have set days when I blog because then it will feel more like a job and could interfere with my family life. This way I have all the flexibility I want.
Being a mom, we need time for ourselves or we can go crazy. I know I'm less effective as a mom and a wife when I don't get me time once in a while. I try to have a me day once every month to three months where for about 4-8 hours, I get to get out of the house. Thanks to my husband for letting me do that! Then daily I think we need at least 30 minutes to ourselves whether it's to get ready, blog, read, take a shower/bath, talk to a friend etc.

So here are excerpts from the blogs posts that made me think: I really like Courtney's points about how it's journaling and that's exactly what my personal family blog is. Then my other blogs, I feel I can share certain things that I can share with anyone and they'd be able to relate. Plus I like sharing ideas with people.
Mandi's post shares about how to schedule time to blog as well as some other great points. I really like her fifth point. I'm so glad I discovered how to schedule posts.




Courtney from Make Me a Blessing was asked this question: How can you be a mommy and a blogger? I don't understand how you can 'be' a mom full time, but spend all of your time blogging about being a mom full time. You can't be both. You are either or.
Her answer: To read her whole answer click HERE:
Personally, I don't understand how blogging is any different than keeping a journal...other than the fact that you publish it online. And that's a decision that is solely and completely up to the author and no one else. I started blogging when I was pregnant with Little Man. We had just moved to Florida, away from all of our family and I was alone. I had no where to turn to talk about my pregnancy {except for my poor husband, who didn't understand the constant shift in hormones I was experiencing.} and no way to keep family updated on what was going on. So I turned to the internet. Found blogger and got started. And I've never turned back. Through blogging I have made some wonderful friends who, though we've never really met, have been there for me during times when even the people close to me weren't. There is a common thread that runs through us mommy bloggers...we understand. And we're there to offer support.
Now. To the question at hand. How can you be a full time mom and a blogger? I say it's no different than being a working mom. Or being a mom and a wife. Or being a mom to multiple children. It's about finding a sense of balance. Knowing what time you have, what you have to do and using it. My friend Mandi posted a really great blog the other day about setting up a schedule for your blog that I would encourage you to read. As my blog has grown, I have learned that there becomes more that goes into it than just writing a post. There are comments to respond to, emails to send, other blogs to read, and-if you get into it-advertising and reviews to do. It's work. But it's something that I love and enjoy and never do I allow it to take priority over my husband, our marriage or my son.





Mandi- From Tales of a Recovering Perfectionist : click on her site to read the rest of her post
If you find yourself slacking on other areas of your life because blogging is taking up too much of your time then I would suggest a few things:
•Schedule out your day. What do you have to do? What chores need to get done?


•Plan what time you will spend on your blog and stick to it! Set the oven timer if you have to!


•Write your posts when you are less distracted. Before the kids get up or after they go to bed.


•Make sure you have time for that husband of yours! Trust me, this helps! ;)


•If you find some extra time write more than one post and save them for crazy times.


•Don't neglect your kids to be on the computer. It will affect (effect?) your writing.


•Make sure your major chores are done before writing. It can relieve the stress.


•Be realistic. It may not be possible for you to post everyday. Maybe 3-4 days is all you can do. That's fine!

Simplicity Road Blogiversary Giveaway

Simplicity Road, also Lucky Girl Design Studio, celebrated her 1st Blogiversary yesterday so she's having a giveaway for some super adorable ice cream bowls and a custom blog header!

These are too cute!

Aren't her designs adorable!

Giveaway ends Monday, April 5, 2010 at 9:00 pm CST

Blog Designs Giveaway

At April Showers Blog Design, there is a giveaway for blog designs for 3 winners!:

• $50 Drop Down Menu Bar from A Blog to Brag About: She made my blog design and did my drop down menu bars here and on my Scrappy Gifts!
• $100 Fabulous Blog Design Package from Lucky Girl Design Studio Here is what the package includes:
  •2 or 3 column layout
  •header
  •backgrounds to match
  •sidebar titles {up to 10}
  •navigation bar
  •favicon
  •signature
  •personal button
  •installation
  •1 major overhaul
• $100 Super Amazing Package O'Fire from April Showers herself!

 
So head over to April Showers to enter! Lots of ways to enter and not tons of entries so far. Ends tomorrow, April 2nd at Noon!