Mommin' It Up!

April 11, 2014

Can I have Spring without Spring Cleaning?

CVS provided my with Total Home products to facilitate my review. And I was like, SO EXCITED about it, because, you guys – it’s CVS! But all opinions and dumb jokes are totally my own.

After suffering through this terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad freaking eternal winter, I am happy to report that I have emerged alive and kickin’. The kids and I are finally enjoying getting outside and not wincing in pain from sub-zero winds every time we exit the house. WHEE! So we are pretty darn happy about SPRING!!! See?

Unfortunately, along with spring comes the dreaded spring cleaning. For someone like me, aka the Worst Housekeeper Ever, any kind of cleaning is a pain, but a large undertaking like spring cleaning can be a nightmare. Because you see when you’re not all that, um….consistent at cleaning in general, things tend to build up! With three kids, one of them being a very busy three-year-old tornado mess-maker, cleaning can often be very defeating. As soon as I clean, it’s messy again. I’m like the “Time to Make the Donuts” guy. I clean in the morning while Jonah’s at school, and by the time my husband gets home from work, you can’t even tell I did a thing. And it’s time to start all over again. Grr.

CVSClean4 — Exhibit A: The floor under Jonah’s chair after lunch. Every. Day.

With this constant dirt-y-fying, I often need real motivation to get started cleaning. Last week I got a really good one – a big box of Total Home cleaning products from CVS! Yay! Since as you all know, I L-O-V-E CVS, I actually did get a little excited!

CVSClean5 — I’m so excited! And I just can’t hide it!

Earlier this week when Jonah was at school, I put Pharrell Williams'”Happy” on repeat and got to cleaning. I started with Total Home Disinfecting Wipes on my dining room table, (they did a fabulous job of getting rid of all the sticky residue that Jonah manages to leave behind) and then I swept and mopped my hardwood floors.

The cleaning challenge I have with my hardwood floors is two-fold: 1) they are 97 years old and so there’s a lot of dirt in there, despite the fact that they are in good shape and 2) We have three giant pine trees in our yard (probably also 97 years old!) and there are constantly pine needles EVERYWHERE in the house. They come in on our shoes and there’s not much we can do about it except sweep them up.

CVSClean6 — Exhibit B. To add insult to injury, my house doesn’t even smell like pine!

Something that really helps with this plethora of pine needles is my Swiffer Sweeper. It’s the vacuum cleaner-kind, and when I am done sweeping and mopping it helps me get the rest of the dirt and hidden pine needles. This cleaning session, I tried out the CVS Total Home Dry Sweeping Cloths to go on my sweeper and they worked GREAT! Every bit as well as the name brand, if not better. I was super, super impressed with the quality and performance!

CVSClean1 — Exhibit C. See all those pine needles? And um, DIRT!?!?

Ok, this is after I swept and mopped. AFTER. So this photo makes three things official: We are the dirtiest family on the planet, pine needles are the herpes of plant life, and CVS Total Home Dry Sweeping Cloths RULE!

Next on my cleaning journey (doesn’t that sound Oprah-like? I am sure if Oprah ever had to clean, she would say she was on a cleaning journey. So.) I moved to the kitchen. One thing I am not good about is wiping down my beautiful kitchen cabinets, which often fall victim to independent children who can get their own snacks and drinks. While this is a good thing, it sometimes results in chocolate syrup on my cabinets.

To tackle this particular mess, I used Total Home Extra Strength Cleaning Eraser. I got it wet and went to work on those sticky stains on my cabinets which had been there for who-knows-how-long! Check out their performance:

Total Home Cleaning Eraser = winner!

I tested out a few more products and loved them – including a long-time favorite of mine, Total Home Kitchen Trash Bags, I have loved those for years. One of my favorite CVS brand products! Don’t worry, I am not going to show you a video of me changing my trash can. But I DO want to share these CVS Spring Cleaning tips with you!

In all honesty, these products did make a couple hours of cleaning much easier for me. I wish they made a Total Home product that would purge the kids’ closets! I’d buy ’em out!

I really recommend these products, and of course you guys know I am a huge fan and user of the CVS ExtraCare program, so when you head in to get supplies for spring cleaning (or the allergies that come with it, heh.) make sure use your ExtraCare card to get great savings! (AND check your ad or myWeeklyAd online to see what ExtraCare Bucks deals you can pick up. You guys know I love my ECBs!) Pick one up for free if you -gasp!- don’t have one (really if that’s the case I am shaking my head at you) and always stop at the coupon scanner, i.e. the Magic Coupon Machine before you shop to get sweet coupons. In short, make me proud (I’m looking at you, Emily)!

Well, I am totes worn out from that cleaning spree so I am going to pop a Mountain Dew open and reward myself, natch. While I’m vegging, I’d like to know – what’s your least favorite part of spring cleaning? (If you love it, I do NOT want to hear about it, ha!)

April 8, 2014April 18, 2014

Do you Chromecast? {+ a giveaway!!}

The product for this review was supplied to me by Staples. All opinions are my own.

Normally I am not too into “gadgets” – I leave the technological toys to my husband. But when I heard about Google Chromecast, I was intrigued. Streaming media from my phone to my TV? Not having to search for the remote when I want to turn on Netflix or Pandora? Wee-hoo! I mean, I always have my phone on me, so that’s pretty convenient. Still, I am generally not very adept at using anything gadget-y, so I was worried I’d have a hard time figuring the Chromecast out. However, it is SUPER easy to use. You just plug it into the HDMI port on your TV, like so:

And then open up any of your apps that stream media – Netflix, Hulu Plus, Pandora, YouTube, etc. and look for the Chromecast symbol.

Then ya tap on the little Chromecast symbol and your smartphone or tablet asks you want to play the show or music you’ve selected on your device or on your TV (which will be named whatever you choose to name your Chromecast. My husband chose to name ours “rapson2000”.) Choose your Chromecast and VOILA – your show is playing on the big screen! It’s toooo cool! Thanks to the magic of wi-fi, this easy-to-use, convenient technology communicates with your phone/tablet and your TV. Craaazy!

I am totally loving this thing. I was skeptical because I really didn’t fully understand what it did, or how easy it would be to use. Now, if Jonah wants to watch one of his favorite YouTube videos (I do let him watch short music videos or home videos of our family), all I have to do is send it from my phone to the TV instead of getting out my computer or letting him hold my phone. It’s so nice!

Want to try a Chromecast for yourself? Well, they are very reasonably priced at Staples…and Staples is also letting me give one away to one of you lucky readers! All you need to do to enter is leave a comment telling me what your favorite Chromecast feature is, or what you would use it for the most.

One winner will be chosen a week from today, Tuesday April 15th at 6 pm. Good luck and happy Chromecasting!

April 7, 2014April 7, 2014

The Best (and Worst) Drugstore Lipstick #doyourmakeup PART 1

Because I care so much about humanity, I am continuing in my quest to test ALL THE DRUGSTORE MAKEUP THINGS so I can tell you which ones are hot and which ones are not! If you’ve missed my previous reviews, you might want to check out my best and worst drugstore mascaras part 1 and part 2, and my best and worst drugstore eye shadows, too! Those were great fun, but today, today, I conquer LIPSTICK. It’s either a girl’s best friend or a girl’s biggest pain! I’ve tried about 50 bajillion types, so read on to find out which drugstore lipsticks are worth your hard-earned money and which are a waste of cash. Once again, I will use my grading scale of A to F, but I also want to let you know that with lipsticks, I am definitely factoring PRICE into the grading criteria. There seems to be a much bigger price spectrum for lipsticks than for other cosmetics. Also, because I have tried so very many lipsticks, I am going to break this up in to a two-parter to make it possible to read it in one sitting. Are you ready? Here we go! I’m going to start with the cheapies because I am sure many of you have wondered how good these bargain-basement lipsticks are.

Wet ‘n Wild Fergie Centerstage Collection Perfect Pout Lip Color

I made all kinds of Ferga-licious jokes when I bought this, but the truth is: Big Girls Don’t Cry about Fergie lipstick because it’s pretty great! At only $3.49, it gives a nice long-lasting matte color without being too dry. I give it a B+, it’s definitely worth trying if you like matte and you are searching for a new lipstick (and especially if there’s a SALE).

Wet ‘n Wild MegaShield™ Lipstick SPF 15

I really like this lipstick, so much so that I bought it in three colors, and I may buy more! They all seem to be shimmer instead of matte, which I prefer overall (though it’s good to have options). I love the colors, the shine, and they aren’t the longest-wearing lipstick but they’re really good for $2.99, especially if you wear lip liner on your entire lips underneath (which you should be doing anyway). I would definitely recommend these, Wet ‘n Wild goes on BOGO 50% off at the drugstores often, so pick a couple up when they do! These also get a B+.

Wet ‘n Wild Silk Finish® Lipstick

This is otherwise known as the 99 cent lipstick. I must admit I was skeptical of this baby, buuut…once again I was impressed. I also have three of these. At 99 cents you need a couple of neutral shades of these to keep in your purse to have handy at the very least. They really stay on quite well, have a nice shine, and I honestly couldn’t ask for more in a 99-cent lipstick. They get a B+ as well.

Wet ‘n Wild MegaLast® Liquid Lip Color

Now, lest you think the folks at Wet ‘n Wild have me on their payroll (seriously, though, call me Wet ‘n Wild!), I totally hate this lipstick. I mean, maybe I just got a lemon, but when I put it on, my lips instantly froze as if encased in cement. It was dry, hard, and gross. I could barely crack a smile. I couldn’t get it off my face fast enough! I feel like maybe I should buy another one just to make sure I didn’t get one that was freakishly messed up, but I can’t bring myself to spend $2.99 on it again. So, I must give it an F.

Wet ‘n Wild MegaLast® Lip Color (not liquid, don’t get confused)

This lipstick is much more tolerable that it’s liquid counterpart. It really stays on really well, but it’s a bit too dry for me, so I am always compelled to add some gloss to help it feel tolerable. It goes the distance for a long-wearing lipstick at a $2.99 price, and I like it better than most of the more expensive lipsticks that are marketed as long-wearing. So, I give it a solid B.

Ok, now on to some lipsticks in a more traditional drugstore price range.

CoverGirl LipPerfection™ Lip Color

Weeellll, I like this lipstick ok, I but I don’t know about “perfection”. It’s in the $5-$6 range, and I do like the way it feels so smooth on. And the color is great. But whatever makes it so moisturizing also apparently makes it not stay on too terribly long and not exactly stay where it’s supposed to be. It’s not the worst lipstick ever, but since CoverGirl makes the best mascaras, I expect more from them. I give it a B-.

Maybelline ColorSensational® Lip Color

Depending on where you buy this, it can be anywhere from $6-$9. And I really think it’s worth every penny. I’ve tried many, and this wins the coveted title of my Favorite Drugstore Lipstick. It stays on wonderfully without being try, it feels smooth and has plenty of moisture, and the color is fabulous, PLUS there are a million color choices. I only have two of these which is a darn shame, I need to get more as soon as possible! This lipstick gets an A+ from me!

Neutrogena MoistureSmooth Color Stick

I really like this lipstick a lot, and I want to like it even more than I do. It’s shiny, smooth, feels amazing on, I like the pencil-without-sharpening form it comes in, and it even smells good (although I am not sure that’s on purpose.) The only problem with it is it is not especially ling-wearing and at $8-$9 a pop, I want it to stay on longer. But if you like moisturizing lipsticks and don’t mind reapplying often, you might really love this. I give it a B.

Revlon ColorBurst Lacquer Balm

I only recently discovered these “lacquer balms” and I looooove them. I love the pencil design, it makes it quite easy to apply. The color is vivid and fabulous, and it really does have a fabulous shine – no gloss needed. Plus, it stays on really well. I gotta give it an A. I have two of these and I’d like a few more! They can be pricey, though, depending on where you buy them.

Well, that’s all I’ve got in me for now…but stay tuned to drugstore lipsticks part 2, coming soon! And leave me a comment if there are any you think I should check out! (Or if you have opinions about the ones I’ve reviewed here.)

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