Great Giveaways!

• Simply Stacie is hosting a giveaway for Beautiful Silver and it's a good one!  Hop on over!  Ends 2/23/10!

• Gathering My Roses  is teaming up with Eden Home for a $35 Gift Certificate!  Ends 2/24/10!

• Win a Price Pfister faucet of your choice at Penny Pinching Mama!  Ends 2/25/10!

• A Pocket Full of Buttons  is hosting a giveaway for Poppin Prints.  Win a $35 gift certificate!  Ends 2/27/10!

Great Giveaways!

• Happily Southern is hosting CSN's AllBarStools.com and they are giving away a step stool!  Ends 2/27/10!

• His Little Mrs.  is hosting CSN's Le Creuset Pinch bowls giveaway!  Ends 3/1/10!

• To win a boatload of yummie brownies, go to Cake Mom and see what is going on!  Ends 2/21/10!

• Win a Supermarket Smarty shopping pack at Cake Mom! Ends 2/21/10!

• Two of A Kind, Working On A Full House  is helping Eden Home give away a Latur All Natural Casserole Dish!  Ends 2/22/10!

A Sad But True Story! (With A Happy Ending!)

A few years ago, my husband and I were not in very good financial condition.  We had both been through horrendous divorces that had left each of us penniless.  We just happened to be nice people who got suckered because we truly didn't believe that people we had been married to for years would turn around and do every underhanded thing, both legal and illegal, to leave us in such a horrible position.  We have since recovered and have moved on with our lives, but at the time it was so hard, not only financially, but emotionally, mentally and spiritually as well.  I found that because of the additional stress that had been piled on us, our lives were even more taxed and we didn't always make the best decisions that might help us more speedily recover from our financial woes.

I left my husband in charge of our auto insurance and basically all of our car needs.  We drove my old Toyota Camry and his Ford Explorer.  Well, one day I found that the insurance had lapsed.  I told myself that he would soon pay it and that things would be fine.  I kept driving.  One day I was driving, my mind elsewhere, and I ended up speeding in a school zone.  The cop pulled me over and ticketed me for speeding and for no insurance. Yikes!  I had no choice but to pay it. I was a little late with my payments because I had no extra money for tickets. 


I had the typical Mom responsibilities for my son, who was with us. He was doing after school activities like football, scouts, etc. etc. and I was the chauffeur!  One day, I was going back home after dropping my son off at football practice.  I stopped at a red light.  The light changed to green.  The car in front of me pulled ahead and I, again my mind elsewhere, started out at a brisk pace!  Well, the driver of the car in front of me was a new driver learning to drive a stick shift!  His car totally stalled out without warning and I plowed into his back bumper!  Our big Explorer was totally fine. But I can't say the same for their car.  Someone called a cop, and I called my dear husband.  I told him what had happened and he proceeded to tell me that there was still no insurance on the car!  I just remember telling him that he might want to check the county jail if he didn't hear from me soon.


The ride to the jail was surreal.  My hands were handcuffed behind me and I was looking at the back of the police officer through a barred metal barrier.  This is not how I see myself.  A convict being hauled to jail?  (OK, maybe sometimes) And now I personally know how it feels and it ain't fun!  Luckily, I was soon bailed out and several years later, there is no sign at all of this traumatic experience on my driving record, just on my psyche.

So what have I learned from all of this?  It is this: You may never ever be stopped or ticketed in this life. But the day you go without insurance is the day all hell will break loose!  So to avoid that, I've got one great suggestion!  Always have insurance, if only for liabilities!  


The first and most important aspect of finding auto insurance is to become educated in the different kinds of auto insurance one can purchase.  Do you know the differences between liability, collision, comprehensive, theft policies, or no fault?  Auto Insurance.Me gives quick, concise explanations of each of these terms so that you can make the best possible decision for the kind of insurance you want and need.  Go check it out and become educated so you can get and keep great automobile insurance for the rest of your life!

Photo Credit

Great Giveaways!

• Mommy's Memorandum is having a Felt Creations Giveaway!  Win this cute button! Ends 2/18/10!

• Go to Silver Savings for a great giveaway of Grateful Body Custom Cleanser of your choice!  Ends 2/19/10.

• Another great giveaway I became aware of at Mommy's Memorandum is the Delightful Daisy Monogrammed Picture Frame Giveaway!  Ends 2/20/10.

A Big Thank You!

Today I received a bottle of Skin MD Lotion in the mail. I had entered several of these giveaways hoping to win some. I ended up winning 2, yes 2, contests and so I think I will just acknowledge both of these great bloggers and say Thank You so much!  I won from Happily Southern Reviews and Giveaways and I also won from Mad Hatter Mom.  Both of these sites are excellent! 

I was interested in trying out the Skin MD because I use a lotion that I feel is the very best in the industry.  It is called Renew and it is from the Medicine Cabinet line at Melaleuca.  Both lotions have amazing success stories about curing crazy cases of excema, psoriasis, and extremely dry skin.  I don't dispute either.  And they are obviously both amazing lotions.

There are a few differences, however.  The feel of the Skin MD Lotion is much lighter, yet doesn't absorb as quickly into my skin as the Renew Lotion.  My skin feels smooth with the Skin MD lotion, but doesn't seem to stay hydrated as long as with the Renew Lotion. There is absolutely no scent with the Skin MD lotion, while there is a very light scent with the Renew Lotion.  I feel that the Renew Lotion goes way down into the  deepest layers of my skin, plumping it up with moisture, while the Skin MD stays more toward the upper layer of skin, giving it a superficial smoothness. And last but not least, the price.  $18.00 for 4 oz. of Skin MD and $14.50 Retail for 8 oz. of the Renew. (I get it for a discounted price of $9.99 because I'm a preferred customer!)

So while I think that the Skin MD Lotion is a very good lotion, I don't think it has enticed me to make the switch from my Renew lotion.  As a matter of fact, I think that I will be having a giveaway very soon for my followers.  It will be for an 8 oz. bottle of  Renew Lotion! Watch for that one coming soon!

If you would like to try Renew, please drop me an e-mail at daisydoo200 at yahoo dot com.  I will arrange for you to get some at my price, or you can contact Melaleuca directly at 1-800-282-3000.  Please let them know that I sent you and give them my id# 8014717669.

Great Giveaways!

•  Win a Le Creuset Set of Prep Bowls, right here!  Ends 2/26/10!

•  Win a set of SPF15 Sun Shades Lip Balms, right here!  Ends 2/26/10!

• Win a Blush Topless Undershirt at Paul & Natalie's Blog!  Ends 3/8/10

• Win a Charm Factory bracelet of your choice at The Ahotaeiloa Family Blog!  Ends 2/20/10!

• Tweet for a pair of Dockers Pants!  Details at Savvy Mom Finds!  Ends 2/19/10!

• Sugar Pop Ribbons  is hosting a Blush Topless Undershirt Giveaway!  Ends 2/21/10!

Great Giveaways!

• The Penny Pinching Mama and Nelle and Lizzy are doing a giveaway for jewelry of your choice!  Ends 2/16/10.

• I'm trying to win 6 pieces of Rosa's Fudge at Single Mama Review Corner!  Ends 2/16/10.

• Go to Simply Stacie to enter a great bling teeshirt giveaway at Sassy Sparkle.  Ends 2/19/10.

• Win a Casio Camera at My Silly Monkeys!  Ends  2/20/10

Set of Le Creuset Prep Bowls Giveaway!

The great people at CSN have done it again!  The stores that have everything from baby supplies to bar stools want me to help them throw up another great giveaway!  And I am more than happy to oblige.You know, giveaways really do introduce people to companies and websites that they otherwise might never know about.  I know this to be true as I have been introduced to CSN during the relatively short time that I have been interested in the giveaway market. What a fantastic group of stores!  When I say group, I mean 200 online stores! As I perused the list of all their stores I was amazed at the categorization and the variety of shops.  It's like a huge online mall!  A Diaper Bag Boutique is just waiting for you to pick out your favorite, and all things for a tailgate party are right there at Tailgating Party Supply.com. I am in the market right now for a rice cooker and CSN has the best rice cookers at the best prices.  So I will probably be paying them a visit in the near future!


And so today, I've got the opportunity to introduce you to one store of theirs in particular and that would be (drumroll, please) Cookware.com!.   This is a virtual utopia for both the cooking novice and the cooking  snob (you know, the ones who only want the very best in cooking brands and quality).  The prices are great and they work to be the most competitive out there.


The LeCreuset Prep Bowls are an "excellent set to use for both dry and liquid prep. The silicone construction makes pouring liquids a breeze."  -Customer Review


Now For the Giveaway!


To win these gorgeous bowls,

• Visit Cookware.com and tell me what you like and leave me a link!  (This is the mandatory entry before any others are counted!)
• Follow me on Twitter (or on my sidebar) and leave me your Twitter id/name
• Follow me on Networked Blogs (on my sidebar)
• Friend me on Facebook 
• Follow me on Google Friend (on my sidebar)
• Tweet this giveaway (please include @Melahelen in your tweet)  You can tweet once per day! Leave me the status link!
• Blog about this giveaway and provide a link back to here! (3 extra entries if blogged before 2/22/10)

This giveaway is open to US and Canada and will end at 10:59 PM MST on 2/26/10.  Winner will be chosen with a random number generator and will be notified by e-mail (so make sure I have access to your e-mail in your entry comment or in your profile).  You will have 48 hours to respond!  Good luck and thank you!  

Winner - #238 - Owen's Mom!

Great Giveaway!

• Go to J Leigh Designs for a great giveaway on Crocs boots!  Ends 2/15/10