New Memories-New Friends #Brandcation #GulfCoast

Over the last 3 weeks since returning from Brandcation held in Pensacola- Florida, I have had some time to think about how much fun I truly had over a period of 3 days. Where else can you go on a Dolphin Cruise, Zip-Line, go tubing, win 1st place in Blogger Olympics, eat at fun fabulous places (like Surf burger), see Saturn on the beach, and of course make some amazing connections with other bloggers & brands in the process. Yes…we did all that in 3 short days!

1st Prize in the Sandcastle White House Replica- Go Snark Attacks!

Going to Brandcation felt like camp in a small way. We learned in a relaxing environment. shared ideas & thoughts as well as blogging & life experiences. We learned about teamwork & the challenges that we all face as bloggers. But we were also able to find something within ourselves, whether it was a fear or an expectation that some may have on us.

We have the same common goal-We want our voices to be heard.

A HUGE Thank You so much to all of our Brandcation Sponsors. We would not have been able to attend if it were not for the collaboration of the following brands. Many are big national companies, but some are small businesses like ourselves trying to reach others through their own craft.

Also a big thank you to the staff at MomDot.com for all your hard work putting the event together!! Y’all rock!!

Can’t wait until Brandcation 4- Blog Cabin being held in Gatlinburg, Tenn this October!!

Event Sponsors:
Adventures Unlimited
Portofino Island Resort
Dunkin Donuts
Jambu (blogger Olympics)
Hotel Coupons (BIG sponsor)
Circle PR (dolphin sponsor)
Dole
Stargazing
UPrinting

Swag Sponsors:

Mogo Charm
Tervis Water Bottle
Capsul Cases
The Village company (mr bubble)
Hasbro
Kidz Bop
Carex (neck pillow, pediatric sets)
Lush Gourmet Foods
Nivea
Lady Fortunes
Pami Pocket
Island Def Jam Records
Ayala’s Herbal Water
Wikki Stix
Phone Fetcher
Page Stationery
Cereusart (Wine Charms)
Annemarie Gianni Skin Care
Veri Peri Sauces
Twin Cottage Industries (Beaded Bungee Bookmarks)
Kids Gear
Smart Mouth
Sacs of Life (brown diaper bags)
Bright Star Kids
KleenSlate
EAD Designs (blogging geek stickers)
Wahmies Eats (bowl covers)
Blue Orange Games
DVO Enterprises (Cooking software)
Wordlock
Frangelico

Giveaway Sponsors:

Rubbermaid
Etching Expressions
Belkin
Velvet Pepper
Tiny Love
Atlantic Luggage
Drama Queen Bows

Brandcation 2012 – Bloggers Gone Coastal

Since starting my blog over 3 years ago, going to a blogger conference is something I have wanted to do and has been on the top of my list of must do’s. This morning, I am finally able to attend my first Blogger Conference.

Brandcation is a blogger event in an intimate setting where 35-40 bloggers establish long lasting relationships with other bloggers as well as the sponsors responsible for the event.

Brandcation 2012- Bloggers Gone Coastal will be held at the Portofino Island Beach Resort in the beautiful Gulf Coast of Pensacola, Florida. Since I have been to Pensacola several times, I know the area fairly well. Beautiful beaches, great restaurants, mixed with 35-40 bloggers equals a fantastic time.

During this event, we will have a Blogger Beach Olympics, Pajama Swag Party, Zip-lining & Tubing Courtesy of Adventures Unlimited, and a Dolphin Cruise provided by Circle P.R.

Next week I will give you a full recap of this weekend’s fun-filled events!! Don’t forget to enjoy the beautiful Gulf Coast this summer!

Brandcation-Bloggers Gone Coastal Sponsors:
Portofino Resorts
Adventure Unlimited
Dunkin’ Donuts
Subway
Jambu Footwear
HotelCoupons.com
Circle P.R
EAD Designs
Mr. bubbles
and many more to be revealed!!

Special Thank You to www.momdot.com & all those responsible for working so hard on this event!!

$10 off $10 Office Depot (copying and printing) Exp. 2/14/2012

Great Office Depot coupon!!

Print a coupon for $10 off any copy or print purchase of $10 or more at Office Depot. This coupon is good through February 14, 2012.

5 Things to Consider When Wanting To Leave Your Current Job

Let’s face it…having a job is a blessing. But what do you do if you are unhappy with your job? With the economy being unstable, does an employee have the luxury anymore to move on?

Recently, I have had some difficulties managing my work-life with my home life. Since I work in the Healthcare Industry, I don’t have a set schedule. I work on of 3 shifts. Only one shift is a perfect shift for my family life which is a 9-5pm. But I have to rotate between that, a early morning shift, and and evening shift. The other 2 have a downside, but nothing is worse for my family than working weekend…especially almost every weekend.

I decided the best thing to do is leave my job for another job perfectly suited for my family life. Finding that job in this economy is like finding a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I gave my notice, went on several interviews, and prayed that I would get one of those desired jobs. My husband & I discussed it and we agreed, job or no job, it was time to make a change.

During the 2 weeks that I gave my notice, I started to get worried about not finding another job in time. The last day of my 2 week notice, I had a meeting with my boss. I laid my cards on the table & let it all out. I left the meeting and was happy with the arrangement my boss & I made. I was fortunate that things worked out for me. I may not have found that pot of gold, but my rainbow sure looks bright!

5 Things to Consider When Wanting To Leave Your Current Job:

1. Be Prepared To Leave Your Job & Find Yourself Without a New Job.
Even if you find new employment, will you be happy with it once you have fully quit your previous employment.

2. Can You Afford Be Jobless? Discuss with Your Family.
Gas costs money. Clothes cost money. Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches anyone?!?!

3. Make a list of the Pros & Cons of your Current Employment.
What are the changes you want? More Money? Better Hours? More benefits? Make a list then discuss it with your boss. Maybe everyone can work together like my situation.

4. Look For Another Job While Still Employed.
Be respectful, but keep your eyes peeled for a new employer. You can go on a few interviews, but once you get to a 2nd or 3rd interview, you may want to let your current employer know your looking and go from there.

5. Leave on a Positive Note.
You still need that referral. Leave your current employment with no work left behind. Let your Boss know how much you appreciate your time there. Who knows, you may need your current boss to give you another job one day.

Whatever you decide, be POSITIVE!! Times are tough, so remember that for every job someone wants to quit, there are 5 people wanting that single position.

Veterans & Active Duty Military: Free Signature Entree at Applebee’s11-11-11

Veteran’s Day: Friday, November 11th, 2011, Applebee’s Restaurants will be giving away their Signature Entree’s to all Active Duty Military or Veterans for free.

*Must Select from a Special Menu (Menu is on their Facebook Page)
*Must show Proof of Military

Proof of military service includes:

* U.S. Uniform Services Identification Card
* U.S. Uniform Services Retired Identification Card
* DD214
* LES
* Citation or Commendation
* Photograph in uniform
* Veterans Organization Card

Applebee’s has been doing this for a few years! Enjoy & Thank you for all your years of Service for our Country!!

$1/1 BIC Stationery Coupon (Free in most stores)

Hurry on over, “like” BIC on Facebook, then click the “Coupon” tab toe score a BIC Stationery coupon for $1 off ANY BIC Stationery product for first 100,000 only. At most stores, like Walmart and Target, this usually means FREE pens after coupon.

I just printed mine so I’m sure they still have plenty left before the coupon gets maxed out. don’t forget to backspace to print 2x’s.

FREE Sample of Avery See-Through Sticky Notes

Sign up to win one of 20,000 free Avery See-Through Sticky Note samples on the Avery Facebook Page. 20,000 winners will be randomly chosen from the entrants.

The site is running a little slow so if it is not working well, just refresh a few times.

Good Luck!

FREE Barista Prima Coffeehouse® K-Cup®portion packs for your Keurig® Brewer

Love coffee? Want to try all new four varieties from Barista Prima Coffeehouse for free? Fill out the form to request your FREE Barista Prima Coffeehouse® K-Cup®portion packs for your Keurig® Brewer. One sample per customer. You should receive your FREE sampler of
Barista Prima Coffeehouse® K-Cup® portion
packs in 2 – 4 weeks. “

Meet the New Kindle Family from Amazon

Meet the new Kindle Family: Four new Kindles, four amazing price points.
The all-new Kindle – $79 – www.amazon.com/kindle
Kindle Touch – $99 – www.amazon.com/kindletouch
Kindle Touch 3G – $149 – www.amazon.com/kindletouch3G
Kindle Fire – $199 – www.amazon.com/kindlefire

The New Kindle Fire has movies, TV shows, music, books, magazines, apps, games, and web browsing with all the content, free storage in the Amazon Cloud, Whispersync, Amazon’s new revolutionary cloud-accelerated web browser, vibrant color touch screen, and powerful dual-core processor – all for only $199

Make sure to browse through the actual Press Release for more info of all the new Kindle Family. I can’t wait!!

From Amazon’s Press Release:

New Class of Kindle–”Kindle Fire”–Only $199

All The Content–Over 18 Million Movies, TV Shows, Songs, Apps, Games, Books, and Magazines

Kindle Fire puts Amazon’s incredible selection of digital content at your fingertips:

Over 100,000 movies and TV shows from Amazon Instant Video, including thousands of new releases and popular TV shows, available to stream or download, purchase or rent – all just one tap away. Amazon Prime Members enjoy instant, unlimited, commercial-free streaming of over 11,000 movies and TV shows at no additional cost. Kindle Fire comes with one free month of Amazon Prime.
Over 17,000,000 songs from Amazon MP3, including new and bestselling albums from just $7.99 and individual songs from $0.69.
Over 1,000,000 Kindle books, including thousands of bestsellers, children’s books, comic books and cookbooks in rich color.
100 exclusive graphic novels, including Watchmen, the bestselling – and considered by many to be the greatest – graphic novel of all time, which has never before been available in digital format, as well as Batman: Arkham City, Superman: Earth OneGreen Lantern: Secret Origin and 96 others from DC Entertainment.
Hundreds of magazines and newspapers – including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Wired, Elle, The New Yorker, Cosmopolitan and Martha Stewart Living – with full-color layouts, photographs, illustrations, built-in video, audio and other interactive features are available from the new Kindle Fire “Newsstand.” Kindle Fire customers will enjoy an exclusive free three-month trial to 17 Condé Nast magazines, including Vanity Fair, GQ and Glamour.
All the most popular Android apps and games, such as Angry Birds, Plants vs. Zombies, Cut the Rope and more. All apps are Amazon-tested on Kindle Fire to ensure quality and Amazon offers a new free paid app every day.

Kohl’s Cares Thermal Cups $2.00 plus Free Shipping

Right now you can get the Kohl’s Cares Thermal Cups plus free shipping for $2.00 reg. $5.00. These are great small Christmas Gifts for Teachers, Bus Drivers,Mail Carriers etc. You can add items within the mug or leave it as is for your favorite coffee drinker.

::Add the Food Network Thermal Cup to your shopping cart and go to checkout.

::Then use coupon code USHIPFREE to get free shipping.

There is a 10% coupon code but I couldn’t get that to apply to that item.

This Food Network thermal cup is an on-the-go essential. Creative design is made to look like a coffee shop to-go cup. You’ll love carrying this reusable cup knowing you helped support Breast Cancer Awareness.
100% of the net profit from the sale of this item will support the fight against breast cancer. Visit our Kohl’s Cares® site to learn more. Twist-on lid with a coated flip tab prevents spills.Pink silicone grip provides a comfortable, secure hold.Thick plastic construction ensures long-lasting use.
Details:
Exclusively at Kohl’s!
16-oz. capacity
Plastic/silicone
Dishwasher & microwave safe
Kohl’s Cares® cause merchandise is not eligible for discounts or other promotional incentives.