I was interviewed at Breitbart.tv yesterday.
Did they say all PR is good PR...?
Um, you tell me.
Even the best of us don't come out that great when put in to a spotlight.

Monday was a crazy day .. I had no idea my YouTube video Motrin Makes Moms Mad would get such a response and the "Motrin Moms" story would be all over. Over 37,000 people have seen the video. Talk about going viral.

Just between you and me, this all freaks me out.

I didn't know the video would make so many people mad. I don't get it. Moms simply said their opinions, voiced their feelings, and saying someone's feelings are wrong is as smart as saying it's wrong to like tuna fish or wearing blue clothes is stupid.

People have also raised a question, why Motrin ad? Why moms collectively raised their voices over an ad, isn't that irrelevant? That there are much more important issues that we could join our forces with.

I agree 100%, there are so many issues that should be talked about.

And most of us write about important issues all the time, like fighting against poverty, reminding people to vote, raising awareness of autism.. just to name a few.


What sort of boils me is that the same people who question if this is the "right" issue to raise a voice and say a collective opinion of are using their own voices to bash babywearing moms or (fellow) mommy bloggers or even me personally, not raising awareness to the issues that they think are important.



Some people's small issues are other people's big issues. If we can't get small things accomplished, how we can expect to get bigger ones to get accomplished? I could go on.


Amy at Crunchy Domestic Goddess put it in to words so well, so I really wish you will go to read her blog post. One of the things she says:
"there are power in numbers and that it’s important to stand up for the things you believe in, no matter how small they may seem", and I agree. However much this may be ridiculed by media, moms' voices were heard and responded.

Another blogger, who wrote a great blog post yesterday is Erin, Queen of Spain - there might be little chewing to do to understand fully what she means, but I agree with her too. "Right or wrong, the rest of the web is now rolling its eyes, again at our community. Words like ‘mob’ and ‘rookies’ and ‘divas’ are flying around and we’re not being taken seriously." We should fix that, right?


I would also like to say a word about Motrin.

They issued an apology and took the ad down. It took them less than 24 hours after moms started asking them to drop the ad. It was Sunday. The company is not using social media. I know we want instant gratification, but 24 hour response time and listening moms' opinions is pretty impressive in corporate America in fact.

They cared enough to take the ad down. There were still a lot of moms who said there is nothing wrong with the ad - but Motrin still valued those moms who it offended.



THANK YOU MOTRIN FOR LISTENING.


You know, I read some bad things written about me yesterday, some people even blamed I started the whole uproar (I didn't, I just documented it), or I was a mom with too much time in her hands or a nanny. I felt like I wanted to go under covers and sulk. I had my moments... I was even wishing I hadn't done the video. I may be wrong, but the people at Motrin may feel the same way. They might want to sulk too.

But I also got thank you notes from moms and even from the Babywearing International for making the video and helping moms to get their voices out. It felt really good. Now I can't wait to do something else good - will you join me?

Maybe we should all thank Motrin for listening to us - they did a mistake, they are trying to fix it. It was only an ad, yes it hurt many people, but still - it was only an ad. I'm just thinking that what if we now say "Thank you Motrin for listening" - who knows, maybe they will be in with us to do something truly good? Any ideas what that could be?

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New Twitter Fail Picture, meet the Fail Cone

Just now:

Twitter is currently down for database maintenance.
We expect to be back in about an hour. Thanks for your patience.

And no fail whale??? I'm gonna miss you fail whale.

Speaking of whales... I found this bag at Etsy and I have some great news coming soon for Etsy designers, Indie designers and designers of all handmade.. Stay tuned!

Whale Tote Bag- Kelly Green and Navy ($25)

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Did you notice this fancy Seal widget on the right side bar yet?

I hope you have been enjoying the music, even though I have been posting a lot of videos lately too. If you still haven't listened the tunes from Seal's Soul, give it a click & enjoy. I've been listening A Change Is Gonna Come over and over, and I like Seal's take on this and the other soul classics in the CD.

I know I have been posting a lot of giveaways lately, but I like giving cool stuff for people, what can I say? So yes, you have a chance to win Seal's new CD!

EXTRA EXTRA!

With Seal's CD you can also win a cool iPod Retro Mini Speaker ($19.74) in addition to the Seal's CD Soul. The speaker is sponsored by Delight.com. Delight.com stocks great gifts for everyone on your list. Delight features eco-friendly tote bags, gadgets for guys, kitchen gear that is smart and saves time, travel essentials, one-of-a-kind baby gifts, stocking stuffers for holiday gift shopping and unique jewelry and décor accessories and the best part: most under $50.



ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

1. Comment here with your link or email - just a way for me to find you in case you win.

2. Ends November 21st mid night EST.

Double your chances to win and visit To Think is to Create - Arianne has the Seal CD giveaway and she is giving you even more chances to win!

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A while ago I hosted a Tubby Bundle giveaway and asked you guys to write a Haiku or poem about the bath time with your baby. Me and Kristen from Tubby Bundle were absolutely thrilled & amazed of the poems, and Kristen wanted to send you a little note. There are a few surprises for you in the video!





$10 off Coupon Code: TUBBYBUNDLE.COM

Check out Tubby Bundle and the Tubby Bundle Blog for the double whammy :)

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You can view Motrin's Mom-alogue ad in their website and tell me what do you think.

It is referring babywearing to be "in fashion" and "a good idea in theory", and that moms who wear their babies "cry more" and suggested Motrin for the pain from babywearing. Most babywearing mamas found this ad very offensive and the mommy blogging and tweeting community is pretty upset with Motrin.

I collected (a long!) list of responses what the mom community at Twitter.com thought of the ad. If you feel like spreading the opinions of these moms, you are free to use the video (If you use the video, I would really appreciate a link to my original post, but do what you feel is the right thing to do).


Want to read more about moms getting mad at Motrin?

Visit these fine bloggers:

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Take those Holiday Photos of the kids now and order the personalized photo cards on time!

Here are my top seven holiday card companies - order yours today! Most of these holiday cards can be personalized with or without your photo. I like personalized cards, and these cards are actually less expensive than the cards your find at Hallmark stores. Notice: the card prices depend on the quantities and styles you order.

TINY PRINTS

Tiny Prints offers a wide variety of both photo cards and personalized cards without a photo. I also like their variety of Hanukkah cards. Tiny Prints cards are modern, fresh and very well priced, many cards are under two dollars per card! They also offer invitations and announcements for your special occasions.

DEAL: Use code HOLIDAYSHOP for free shipping on orders 99$ and more.

COOL PHOTO IDEAS

Cool Photo Ideas offers variety of products you can customize with your photos, and their Holiday Photo Card selection has some great styles, including trifold and the round style pictured here. I love the designs of the Cool Photo Ideas holiday cards, and the creative photo layouts and card sizing - just to give your holiday cards that special touch. Around $3.75 per card, depends on the quantity ordered.

POSH PEACOCK

Posh Peacock offers a modern variety of cards, stationery and even gift tags and personalized bookmarks. The modern illustrations are simply stylish and everything is customizable with your own text. The cards are up to 2 dollars per card.

VISTAPRINT

If you are on a budget this Holiday season, but still would like to have customized photo cards, VistaPrint is your top place to go. VistaPrint has several ready to create photo card templates or if you are handy with PhotoShop - you can create your own card and just have them print it for you. The quality isn't superbly excellent, but it isn't bad either, and absolutely the best deal you can find. The time I was writing this, the cards were on sale for $3.99 for ten or $5.99 for TWENTY cards - that's less than 40 cents per card.

PEAR TREE GREETINGS

I am probably not actually making this choice any easier for you by posting all these amazing companies offering holiday cards... but a few more to go that I couldn't have missed mentioning. Pear Tree Greetings is another great source for customizable Holiday Cards with or without your photos. But I found a treat from Pear Tree Greetings, that will tickle any green soul - 100% Recycled Holiday Cards. Great selection of green card styles, including the Green Wishes Recycled Holiday Card
pictured here. These eco-friendly Christmas cards are up to $0.94 per card.

SHUTTERFLY

If you have already been using Shutterfly to upload your digital photos and order them as prints, that's the obvious ad easy place for you to create also your Photo Holiday Cards. Did you know that you can pick your Shutterfly prints and photo cards from your local Target? Shutterfly also lets you share your photos with your friends and family and it's like Flickr but offering you the service to print your photos too - or turn them into variety of photo products - like Holiday Cards. Shutterfly's holiday card prices are 1.19-1.99$ each.

POSE PRINTS

Pose Prints makes a cartoon character of you and your family for fun and funky holiday cards. You can fully customize the text, so card designs work also for invitations and announcements. If you like the style, but don't feel like designing the character, they also offer pre-designed versions of most popular cards. Pose Prints cards are 2$ each.




Happy Holiday Card Shopping!

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As a multitasking mom I admit - sometimes I do conference calls when picking up kids from school and sometimes, gasp, I ever talk on phone without my headset while driving. I try not to do this, but well, life happens, and I don't have bluetooth for my iPhone, and cordless headset just happens to get tangled a few times a day....

But I hear there is a solution even better than getting a bluetooth... so you don't actually need your hands at all for things like taking phone calls or adjusting music while you're driving.

How about a car that you can talk to?

That is my plain English explanation of SYNC, an in-car technology that is completely voice activated. You can do things like make a phone call, control your MP3 player, listen to text messages, all while focusing on driving safe, and keeping your eyes on the road. The geek in me appreciates the technology part, but the mom in me loves how the SYNC system makes driving safer.

I like this video of Ford SYNC in Plain English by Common Craft and it makes me want to take a better look at this new technology. Do you already have a car equipped with SYNC technology? If so, I would love to hear your experiences, it really intrigues me.

You can also learn more about the Microsoft developed SYNC at SyncMyRide.com, or go and check out the latest cars with SYNC at your local Ford, Licoln & Mercury dealers.

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I want to meet you in New York!

WHAT: TweetUp - meet up for people who have met each others at Twitter

WHO: @katjapresnal, ReelInvitations, @jerseymomma, GillianK, @davidavdavid - please comment to this post or at Twitter so I can add YOU on the list!

WHY: For fun, networking, cup of coffee or lunch

WHEN: 12 o'clock Saturday, November 15th, 2008

WHERE: Le Pain Quotidien, 922 7th Ave at 58th St, New York City

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I know.. my Halloween pictures come pretty late and I am missing 2/3 of my kids here, but just wanted to share a few photos of Gaby in her Snow White costume and the beautiful fall colors of New York behind her.

Snow White costume from Princess Time Toys

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Just a quick note to all those nice people who subscribe my blog to their email boxes.

My Holiday Gift Guide will publish within the next week so don't be alarmed with an increased number of emails - my Holiday Gift Guide comes out only once a year, so the huge peak in the emails is not permanent and will not last long.

Thank you for being a loyal reader, and I hope you like my Gift Guide!



Not yet subscriber? Sign up below.

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

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My best friend called me over a month ago, and all I could hear was invisible belt this and invisible belt that, and I was totally lost.

Invisible belt?

This miracle product is called isABelt, and yes, it is almost invisible. It fixes the plumber's butt, peeking thong disaster, and bulging belt buckle problems - keeps your pants up without the normal belt's buckle bulging and your tees and sweaters look better on the top of your jeans. And yes, it is clear thin plastic belt, almost invisible.

The belt is easy to adjust, keeps my jeans up and is much more comfortable in use than normal belt. The belts are available in several stores across the nation and online at isABelt for $16.95.

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The Holiday season is approaching us.

Is it just me or do you feel that the Holiday season starts "approaching" us earlier and earlier each year..?

This year many families can feel the economic situation of our country, including my family, and one of my best tips to "survive" this Holiday season is to start preparing early. And with early, I mean right now. Keep your eyes open for sale items and special event sales, make some budget and gift planning and consider making some of the gifts yourself.

I have already started hosting much more giveaways than I have before, and will continue to do so until mid December to spread some Holiday cheer to as many families as I can. Walmart has been an amazing company to work with in the Eleven Moms campaign and they have been making it possible for me to host several giveaways this fall and winter.

Now Walmart is offering one lucky reader a $50 Gift Certificate for your Holiday shopping. The Holiday items are arriving to your local Walmart as we speak, and Walmart is inviting you to go and check out their new looking stores (in some locations, I know my local Walmart already has a new look with new graphics, layout that makes more sense and wider aisles).

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY:

1. Comment here with your best money saving tips for the Holidays. How you save money while preparing for the Holiday season?

2. Leave your link, email address or Twitter id - a way for me to contact you.

3. Deadline November 17th midnight EST.

Check out another giveaway: Mommy Brain Reports

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I know many of you have been waiting this for a while... The winners of all my bloggy giveaways!
Congrats for all winners and stay tuned, I will have another giveaway week coming up around Thanksgiving, will share some great products you can win for the Holidays!



The fun & fabulous earphones chicBuds go to Alanajo.








Hoping FLIP Video Ultra Series Camcorder will make DJane a vlogger (we will want to see your videos!), her tweet won her the Flip!
PS. Get the Flip for $124.98 at Amazon






Pacific Girl Gourmet Cupcake Maker will go to RebekahC, who commented "My 5 year old saw this or something like it (though I'm pretty sure it was this one) at the store the other day, and was really wanting mommy to buy it for her. Wouldn't she just be thrilled to bits to find it wrapped underneath the Christmas tree this year if I were to win?! Please enter us. :D"





I'm sending A Cowboy's Wife coffee mugs for Denise, whose daughter is dating a cowboy ;)
Don't forget to vote for a cowboy's wife, Lori/ My Wooden Spoon at the Velveeta Challenge - she also writes My Wooden Spoon.




The Bath Time Gift Box from Tubby Bundle winner is TBeckett with this entry:
In the sudsy pond
Mama's arms, warm bath towel
Come, my little frog

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I'm re-posting an article I wrote a while ago for a forum, I thought you might enjoy it!

No, this is not a get rich quick blog post. If you are looking for something like that, you will not find it here.

However, I would like to share a conversation I had with someone very dear to me a while ago. She is single, highly educated professional woman, and she has been obsessed with Porsches ever since she was a kid. I told her one day that she should buy the Porsche she has always been dreaming of. She said "are you crazy, I can't afford it."

"Anything in life is possible, if you have the guts to pursue it. The things money can buy are the easiest ones to achieve - all you really need is more money" I told her "it's easier for you to buy the Porsche than finding a husband-candidate!"

And I explained my theory how.

She could move to a smaller apartment, and give up her car, and use a bus as long as it takes. She lives in a city with great public transportation. She could stop eating out. Forget about vacations, going to movies and the latest trendy clothes. Get rid of the cable TV. Take a second job for evenings and weekends; something fun like as a coffee shop barista - great public place for meeting those husband candidates too. She'd be busy working and saving money - she wouldn't even have time to spend money. It's all about prioritizing.

Of course, there are more important things and goals in life than buying a Porche, but the ways to achieve your goal reminds the same.

Give it a try - part of this theory might just work on other things in life too, not just on buying things.

Personally for me my family, happiness and my relationship with my husband are the most important, and it has taken a lot of giving up on things, passion and staying focused to make my marriage and life the best I can. Things don't come easy, not even in Cinderella stories.


THINK WHAT YOU CAN GIVE UP
Think what you are willing to give up in order to reach your goal. Take drastic measures if needed. Think what you really need, and what is just a luxury to you.


ACCEPT THAT YOU CAN'T HAVE IT ALL BUT YOU CAN HAVE WHAT YOU WANT
Only a few people can say they have all what they want, whether it's personal happiness, wealth, relationship, health, dream house or career. But often you can have what is the most important thing for you if you focus your thoughts and actions to achieve it. Can't help you find love nor get your health back, but when it comes to money, this is easy to achieve by prioritizing on the things that really have a meaning to you.


BE PASSIONATE
If you are truly passionate about it - you can achieve it. The passion will keep you focused on your goal, and make it easier to achieve it.


DON'T THINK WHAT YOU ARE MISSING OUT - STAY FOCUSED
Put a picture of your goal on your fridge door, or think of another way to have a daily reminder why you are giving up on things while you are working towards your goal. Drop the fashion magazine subscriptions temping you to buy new shoes, go to grocery store with a full tummy. You get the picture.


CHANGES ARE YOU'LL GET UNEXPECTED BONUSES
Also, find a way to enjoy the things you had to change in your life. Giving up TV might help you find out how much fun it is to go and kick ball with your son. Getting a second job might let you to get to know great people. Driving your car less might not just help you save money but help you loose weight. Things that you think now would be unpleasant, might actually become a blessing in your life. You never know what change brings - until you have made the change.

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My kids are already older, and I can't but wish I had known about the Munchkin Snack Catcher ($4.97) when they were toddlers! See the picture: Cheerios in the container, little hand in and the Cheerios are not all over the floor - I know, magic!


Yup, Snack Catcher really means Snack Catcher. The cup has soft flaps on the top making it easy for a kid to get the little snacks out but the flaps keep the snacks in. And added bonus - non grip handles and bottom to keep it from sliding in the stroller tray. I like the price too - on sale for only $4.97.







Munchkin Mighty Grip Cup ($4.97) is another great snack time pal. I like the shape, how it narrows in the middle making it easier for those little hands to get a good grip on the cup. The soft silicone straw is safe in more ways than one - doesn't hurt mouth if accidentally bumped into and it has a special valve keeping the drink in. Munckin makes a lot of other great products too for babies, toddlers and kids.

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