Olay Total Effects Tone Correcting UV Moisturizer Review and a $50 Visa Gift Card Giveaway

I jump at the chance to try Olay products because they never seem to disappoint. I have tried other brands of facial moisturizers in the past but I always end up coming back to my Olay. So when I was offered the chance to try the new Olay® Total Effects Tone Correcting UV Moisturizer, I said sign me up!

I was so surprised when this product arrived -- it really looks so cool. Granted, I don't generally purchase a product based on appearance, but this presentation really caught my eye. It looks like swirled moisturizer and foundation all in one. I couldn't wait to try this, so after my morning shower I gave it a whirl. My skin has been a little all over the place since the birth of my son, Caspian Finn. And with these chilly Chicago winters, staying moisturized is super important. I thought the moisturization factor was great and I didn't feel like I needed to put anything else on.

Sometimes when I'm racing out the door to get Savannah to preschool, all I have time for is moisturizer. But what I thought was really great was that this product offered so much more than moisturization -- it moisturized my skin and gave me an even, smooth-colored skin tone. Definite bonus! Not to mention the fact that the feel of my skin was awesome. Mr. Caspian is still waking up during the night. And while I haven't had many issues in the past with circles under my eyes or eye-puffiness, I think baby number three is catching up with me. Many mornings I feel compelled to use concealer under my eyes but, again, I felt like this product took care of eye puffiness too.

One of my favorite components of Total Effects Tone Correcting UV Moisturizer is that it contains SPF 15, which definitely helps prevent damage to my skin. With a history of skin cancer in my family, I try to wear sunscreen on my face every day. For a busy mom on the go, I think this product is pretty near genius. I was trying to think of negative factors, but I couldn't come up with a single one and, trust me, I'd tell you if I had. If all you have time for in the morning is sweeping some moisturizer on your face give Total Effects Tone Correcting UV Moisturizer a try -- you'll get seven benefits in the time it takes you to use just one product!

So tell me, what are some of the ways you take care of your skin? 
Do you save time by using double-duty types of products? 

Leave a comment below and you'll be entered for a chance to win a $50 Visa gift card.

Rules:

No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by email. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 4/9 - 5/16

Be sure to visit the Olay TE page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers' reviews and find more chances to win! While we're on the subject of looking good, you might want to check out the "Looking Your Best" posts in the Life Well Lived section of BlogHer.com. There are some great tips and expert posts!

I was compensated and provided free product for this post. The opinions expressed herein are my own.

Broom Love

You may think I have totally lost my mind with this post.  A post about a broom, Lindsay, really?  Well, that's what my mom thought when I called her and said, "I'm so excited for my new broom to arrive!"  And as I just wrote that, I realized, that it does sound pretty strange........what has my life come to?  I'm excited about a broom?  Someone over here may need to get a life........

Enough about my craziness, though, and let me tell you about my new broom.  I have really been trying to live according to this William Morris quote since we entered 2012.......

"Have nothing in our homes that we do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."

I have done a pretty good job clearing out a bunch of clutter that we no longer need and the house is starting to feel more organized.  However, when I posted this quote over on The Cottage Mama Facebook page one of my international readers chimed in and said, 'how about.... do not have anything we do not know to be useful AND believe to be beautiful?  And I thought, yes, that's even better!

So I needed a new broom for our home and I took this Facebook conversation to heart and thought, "if I'm going to buy a new broom, it's going to be one I love and get excited to use."  And I'm a firm believer that you can buy just about anything on Etsy.com, so I headed there to begin my search and this is what I ended up with:

I ordered this handmade broom from the Broomchick on Etsy.  I had never heard of her shop, but she had great reviews and I just loved the natural style of this one, not to mention the fact that it fits in perfectly with our cottage.

I can't just name one part of this broom that is my favorite.  I love that it is handmade ~ that's a big thing for me, it's always great when I can buy handmade and support local, US small business.  I love the multi-colored broomcorn and I love the natural wood stick handle.  The Broomchick has many different brooms to choose from, but this is a multi-colored standard kitchen broom.

I am currently keeping this broom hanging on a hook in the kitchen next to our kitchen hutch.  It's too pretty to put away and hide.  My sister-in-law thought it was just for decoration when she saw it in our kitchen and my mother-in-law said she wants one for her birthday.

So sweeping is not the most exciting task, but why not get excited about it by using a tool you truly love?  Again, you still might think I'm nuts, but I'll tell you one thing.......I've never been more excited to sweep in my life than I am with this broom!

Bounce Dryer Bar Review and $50.00 Visa Gift Card Giveaway

This is a sponsored review from BlogHer and Bounce. All opinions are 100% mine.

Laundry, laundry, laundry - does it ever end? Well, with three kids under the age of four, the answer is..........no. I was recently asked if I would like to try out the new Bounce Dryer Bar and I jumped at the opportunity. Have you heard of this product? Well, it's the newest in the line of products from Bounce and it is fabulous! It has all the benefits of dryer sheets, but brings it to you in a more convenient form. I know I have reviewed products here and there on the blog, but trust me when I tell you that I would not recommend a product unless I truly thought it was great!

The Bounce Dryer Bar was so simple to install that I actually installed it in the dark. I'm not kidding. Our laundry is in the basement (otherwise known as the dungeon) and when I went down there to start using this product the light was burned out. I didn't realize my husband had installed a light elsewhere, but that's beside the point. The point is that this product could not be any easier to use. If I can easily install it in the dark, you know that you will have no problem at all installing it in the light!

Here's how the Bounce Dryer Bar works......... You remove the bar from the packaging and peel off the paper on the back side of the bar to reveal the sticky adhesive. You open your dryer and place the bar (sticky side down) on the side wall of the dryer. All you have to do is hold it down for 15 seconds and you are good to go.

How many times have you forgotten to put a dryer sheet in with a load of laundry? Or have you ever been doing laundry and ran out of dryer sheets? Well, that can be a total bummer and with the new Bounce Dryer Bar you do not even have to think about it. You just toss in your laundry and forget about it. You end up with months of great smelling laundry as well as softness and static control.

Granted, a dryer sheet may not seem like a very big deal, but in the life of this busy mom, it's just one less thing to have to worry about. I think we all want to find ways to make our lives a little bit easier and the new Bounce Dryer Bar does just that! The bar lasts for three months and after it runs out, you can simply buy a refill pack. The holder stays in the dryer and you just replace the bar. So you only have to think about it four times a year, instead of thinking about dryer sheets for every load of laundry.

The Bounce Dryer Bar comes in the scented and unscented varieties depending on your taste. I tried out the scented version and it smells great! I love the way fresh laundry smells and this has the perfect scent. Some people are very sensitive to scented products, so in that case I would recommend going with the unscented bar.

The bottom line is that the Bounce Dryer Bar is great. Like I said before, it's all the benefits of a dryer sheet, but it a more convenient form..........now that makes life easier and I'm all about that!

To find out more about the Bounce Dryer Bar, please visit the Bounce Facebook page for videos and additional information.

Do you want to win a Bounce Dryer Bar and a $50 Visa gift card from Bounce and BlogHer? To enter the giveaway, please tell me how the Bounce Dryer Bar would make your life easier?

Follow the rules below to enter.

Rules:

No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods

a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post

b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post

c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post

d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.

Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.

You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

Giveaway open through 12/6/2011.

For more opportunities to win, visit the Bounce round-up page on BlogHer.com to read other bloggers' reviews!

Green Mountain Coffee and Keurig Coffee Maker Giveaway

My husband and I are huge coffee drinkers.  I’m not quite sure how people, especially mom’s of young children, are able to function without it.  But what I am even a bigger fan of is when an item or product that I love and consume daily is socially and environmentally conscious. 

I also love my new Keurig Coffee maker and today we are giving away a brand new Keurig Coffee Machine and Green Mountain Coffee to go with it.  To read more about the benefits of Green Mountain Coffee and enter to win these wonderful prizes, please click HERE.

OnStar FMV Product Review

Have you heard of OnStar?  You might be most familiar with this product on GM vehicals; however,  I had the opportunity to test out the new OnStar FMV mirror on my Toyota Sienna mini-van and I'm telling you all about my experience on my review blog today.

Click HERE to read more!