*CLOSED* "Let's Hear it for The Laurie Berkner Band" DVD GIVEAWAY!! -Congrats to Heather S.!!

Get ready to jump, dance and sing along to the Laurie Berkner Band! This DVD compilation is packed with some of Laurie's most popular tunes, including music videos from her regular appearances on Jack's Big Music Show. Lyrical themes, interactive music and movement will promote creativity and help foster an appreciation for music. Plus, you have Moose and Zee as your hosts and showing you some of their videos as well!

We must've played our DVD at least 20 times already and we just got it yesterday! The girls thought it was so cool to see the videos of their favorite songs.

Who doesn't love The Laurie Berkner Band? People Magazine called her "The Queen of children's music."

Let's Hear It for The Laurie Berkner Band! includes:
"Who's That?"
"Victor Vito"
"Five Days Old"
"My Energy"
"I'm A Mess"
"In The Clouds"
"Pig On Her Head"
"The Cat Came Back"
"Farm Song (That's What I Did On The Farm)"
"I Really Love To Dance"
"I'm Me And You're You"
"Sneaks"
"I'm Not Perfect"
"Rocketship Run"
"Magic Box"
"Fast And Slow (The Rabbit And The Turtle)"

In honor of the DVD release TODAY (September 28th), The Laurie Berkner Band team and I are giving one random my *MOM*ents reader a free copy of "Let's Hear it for The Laurie Berkner Band"!!

Here's how to enter:

(Mandatory Entry) -Leave a comment below on your favorite LBB video (make sure to include your name & e-mail address)

(Additional Individual Entries)

-Like The Laurie Berkner Band on Facebook

-Like my *MOM*ents on Facebook

-Follow The Laurie Berkner Band on Twitter

-Follow myMoMentss on Twitter

-Follow my blog through Google Friends Connect

-Share this post on Facebook and make sure to tag with my *MOM*ents

-Share this post on Twitter and make sure to tag with @myMoMentss

This giveaway will end on Monday, October 18th at 11:59pm (est). A winner will be selected through random.org and announced on Tuesday, October 19th. Winner must respond within 48 hours of the e-mail.

For more information you can visit the official site for The Laurie Berkner Band!

Good Luck!

#1 Gift for Christmas this year is....?

Oh why, oh why can't I buy this in stores, online, catalogs, etc.?

It's HIGHLY needed for many people.

It should be a LIFE requirement.

It's the one gift that just keeps on giving...

COMMON SENSE!!

Seriously, if I could.. I would! This would be the one gift that everyone would just receive from me this year.

Note to People: GET IT! JUST GET IT!!!

Have I told you..lately..that I........

hate mornings! (By the way, did you read that title like the Rod Stewart song Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?) Cause that's how you were supposed to read it...

Anywho, I'm not typically a morning person. The hubby will let you know about that. I'm useless before 8am. At times when I go to bed late such as 2am and have to wake up at 6am, I feel great! But I don't know what it is about mornings that we just can't get along. I do like the fact that I can't sleep in any more either though. I feel like I can get a lot more done when I'm up early.

But I'm totally straying away from the whole point of this post. It's really to tell you that I did not have a great start to my day. To make a long story short, I was about to change Lyla's morning diaper and put her panties on (our normal morning routine). I realized that there was a lot more than what I bargain for in that diaper. She really wanted to continue to play instead of letting me change her. Once I laid her down I found out why....

As soon as I laid her down she put her index finger in her mouth and began to gag. I thought she was doing this to make herself throw up and show me how pissed off she was that I interrupted her play time. She began to throw up as I quickly stood her up. Throw up was ALL over the rug. It smelled sooo bad. I'll deal with poop any day, but I hate cleaning up vomit!! So now not only am I dealing with a poopy diaper but throw up on my floor! But that wasn't even the shocking part of it all. In the middle of her chewed up breakfast on the floor was a very shiny... can you guess??

A PENNY!! At first I thought she had swallowed it at some point in her lifetime and just now it decided to come out, but I realized that when I laid her down and she put her finger in her mouth and started choking, it was because she had a penny in her mouth!!! Ew! Here she was going about her morning sucking on a disgusting, dirty penny! I don't even know where she found it because we make sure to keep all loose change away from their reach.

So I threw her in the tub (not really threw but you know). She smelled so bad I couldn't just wipe her down. A few scrub-a-dub-dub later, she was shiny & clean, just like that penny.

It wasn't even 10am yet and that's what I had to deal with. BUT on a lighter note, Lyla has been awesome on the potty today! She went all day on the potty all by herself. She even took a nap in her panties and woke up dry! As soon as she got up she walked up to her potty and went! Proud moment!

Ok, enough ramblings! Off to run some errands!!

Insert Clever Title Here

I sat here for about 5 minutes thinking of a clever title to call this post. I even googled a funny, tired title. Yup, just totally did that. But as tired as I am right now, my sense of humor just isn't sensing right now. The pic above is totally me right now, except I'm cuter. ;o)

I'm literally laying on my phone right now because it has not stopped ringing or me calling/texting ALL DAY! I think my phone wants to quit right now. I def. worked it overtime today. All thanks to the much planning for Kalina's 1st birthday party next weekend. From everyone RSVP-ing to me ordering stuff after stuff and cancelling stuff after stuff. All for a party she won't even remember lol. But it's all worth it!

Aside from all the party stuff, I also cleaned out the girls' closets. All clothes, toys, gadgets, books etc. that they no longer use or wear came flying down the steps.

This is what my couch looked like earlier today. That wasn't even all of it. That was only 3 bags of clothes lol. I have donated sooo much that this is what was left of the unwanted clothes. I actually had a couple people stop by today and bought some! I'm still going through toys, high chair, strollers, car seats, etc. So if you need/want any baby stuff, let me know! I want it ALL gone. Especially how Kalina's birthday is next week and I know we're going to be getting some presents that I need to make room for!

So that was that. I actually just cleaned up and straightened the living room up. The hubs working late tonight, so I was on mommy & daddy duty today. No break for me. I had to make dinner, feed, bathe and clean, so yeah I'm tired. I even decided to be a good student and sit in front of the computer and get some homework out of the way! I totally deserve a star for that one.

Ok, kids are asleep and the hubby just walked in with some Wawa! Hell yeah!! I told him to surprise me... I wonder what he got me...

Hope everyone has a good night!

Getting my net out and ready to catch some ZzZz's...right after Wawa of course!

A Mother's Touch

I could never understand what a mother's touch or a mother's instinct could really do, until I became a mother. It truly is a miracle what it can do. My first experience as a mom was right after Lyla was born. We haven't slept in 4 days because I was having contractions for that long. We were so tired that our last night at the hospital, John suggested that the nurses take her into the nursery and only bring her in for feeding, so we can have some kind of sleep. I really didn't want to do this because I would miss her too much. Plus, as a new mom I felt like I was trading my baby in for a few hours of sleep. But I knew we both needed some rest before heading home to do it all on our own. So I let them take her away into the nursery. Now I know they say a baby can only see a blurry 6 inches away but I swear as they rolled her out, she turned her head and looked right at me! I just broke down to tears as I saw her looking at me and wondering why I wasn't going with her. I just kept crying to the point John just said, let's bring her back in here if it will make you feel better. At that point, only 20 minutes went by and I got a phone call from the nurses asking if they could bring her back into the room. I asked them if there was something wrong and they simply replied that since she left the room she has not stopped crying. I told them ME TOO! Bring her back! As soon as she came back into the room, she fell asleep. Aw, she just missed her mama and I sure missed her...

Well, I came across this video and my little story is far from a miracle then this mother's. Kate Ogg gave birth to premature (27 weeks) twins. Emily made it just fine. But Jamie was pronounced dead after 20 minutes of the doctor's trying to revive him. The doctor's handed the lifeless little boy to his parents to say goodbye. Kate immediately took her shirt off and was skin to skin with her baby for 2 hours!! After 5 minutes of her holding him and caressing him and talking to him, he started moving. Doctors still did not give them hope because he claimed it was just a reflex. The baby's movements got stronger and stronger and eventually he even opened his eyes! Kate put a little bit of breastmilk on her finger and he began to suck. Doctors could not believe their eyes. This baby was not breathing nor he had a heartbeat but with his mother's touch and embrace, she brought him back to life.

That doesn't say much about science, huh? After a measly 20 minutes, the doctor's gave up! Seriously? Is that our cut off time to try to revive someone these days? Of course, a mother was patient enough to hold her son for 2 hours!! What if they cut her time off after a few minutes? This baby would've just sat there dead with no one paying attention to it while the parents mourned him and planned his funeral. Unreal. It goes to show that God is above all Science.

Take a moment and think about it. Kate did what was intended for all of us to do before science began to take over. And a miracle was born...

Here is the video for the full coverage. Please watch it, grab a tissue because if this doesn't bring a tear to your eyes I don't know what will....

A Mother's Touch

Clothes Swap Party: Yay or Nay?

Ever heard of "One's girl's trash is another girl's treasure?"

We're all guilty in having clothes and other accessories in our closets that we haven't worn in months, some even years! There is always that one piece or pieces that you just can't bring yourself to get rid of. You always make an excuse such as, "Well, I was looking for that! or So what it's not in style any more, I can wear it around the house!" Let's be honest, we NEVER do!

I made a rule around here. If we haven't touched it, seen it, used it, missed it or worn it in a year, then we don't need it! This is where clutter comes from! Is your closet FULL but yet you stare at it for hours and still say, "I have nothing to wear!" ?? Well, then it's time for a change. This is exactly how I feel. I can't buy anything new because I have no room and I feel like my closet is full. But it's full of nothing I wear any more!! So another rule we have is, in order to buy a new one you get rid of an old one. This mainly applies to the hubby who has so many t-shirts, hoodies, and sneakers!! So if he sees one that he likes and wants, he can buy it as long as when we get home he donates an old one!

We've gotten rid of so much already. We donated bags FULL of clothes, shoes, and other accessories. But now that Fall/Winter is right around the corner, it's always a good time to go through your Spring/Summer stuff and get rid of it instead of storing it again for yet another season.

SOOO I'm thinking about having a Clothes Swap Party. I've heard about other people doing this and I thought, why not? It's a great way to get rid of something that one of your friends might like and instead of shopping and spend money, you swap! Not only will you feel good about putting your under utilized clothes and such to good use, but you will be recycling them as well! It's also a great way to hang out with your friends!

I would love to hear feedback on this and see if anyone has ever had one or been to one? Did you like or not? I know the goal is to have several people with different sizes. So what do you think?

Yay or Nay?

-Natalie

Fight Cancer...With ZUMBA!!

Everyone please come out to this event to help out! We all know that ZUMBA is so hot right now. So why not take a Zumba class for only $7 and still participate in a great cause!!

Veronica Bocchicchio (Zumba Instructor, mother of

Riley-7, Reagan -2) has been battling Melanoma

since ‘08. July 2010, the melanoma spread to her brain

and on August 4th Veronica had the tumor removed.

She is still having headaches, blurred vision, and needs

help with the medical bills that are now piling up.

Please help us to fight with her!

Everyone is welcome!!

Only a $7 minimum donation for 1.5 hours of Zumba Fun For A Cause!!!

When: Sunday, Sept. 19th

10:30am - 12:00pm

Where: Northeast Racquet Club

9379 Krewstown Road

Spread the word to all your friends and family! Together we can make a change and help Veronica!

**If you can not make it to the event, you can still make a donation!**

Here's how:

-Make checks payable to Cielo Butler

-Mail them to:

The Abinton Club

ATTN: Heather Ellis

300 Meetinghouse Road

Jenkintown, PA 19046

Thank you!!

L'il Angels Semi-Annual Kids Consignment & Community Event

It's that time again!! This weekend is Lower Bucks biggest Kids Community Event!! It's a 2 day community event that only happens twice a year, so you don't want to miss it!!

In addition to the HUGE consignment sale, a FREE Kids Community Event will be held on Saturday AM. Special appearances with "Mr. & Mrs. Mouse" (9-11 AM), the Reptile Show, Bensalem Police (Child IDs), local EMS/Fire Dept (Blood Pressure Screens), Caricature Artist, Balloon Twisting, Martial Arts Demo, & much more!!! Fun for the whole family! Refer to website for more information:www.lilangelsconsignment.com Come see why we were voted Philadelphia's Best Consignment Sale by ConsignmentMommies.com!

Where: Saint Ephrem's Marian Parish Center
5400 Hulmeville Road, Bensalem, PA 19020

When: Saturday,September 18th 7 AM-1 PM
Sunday, September 19th 8 AM-12 PM (50% off sale on most items)

So if you're looking for like new or gently used quality, name brand children's clothing or related items at a fraction of the original retail cost, come out to L'il Angels Consignment Event!

There are so much children's and maternity clothing, toys, furniture, baby equipment, and much more!!!

Not only that, but they offer FREE children's activities!! Make a family trip out of it! It's great for everyone!

This will be the second time I will be attending and the first time that I signed up to volunteer! I'm so excited and it's for a great cause!

Please don't hesitate to visit their website for more information!!

L'il Angels Consignment

Hope to see you all there! If you spot me, come say hi!! ;o)

-Natalie

My Perfect Day

Ever had one of those days where EVERYTHING goes the way you planned or wanted to? That was my day yesterday! And it doesn't happen too often when you're a stay at home mom/student/wife/keep inserting titles here...

If you didn't know, yesterday was Grandparent's Day! My parents offered if they could take our girls to the mall and hang out with them. Now, normally John and I go along with them because wherever our girls are, we are too! No matter who's with them we're always there because we like to hang out as a family. But due to the clutter that has been swallowing our house in whole, we decided to let them go with my parents and meet up with them once we were done.

It broke my heart to have them say goodbye to me and drive away. Ok, I know I know. I'm so dramatic. They were only going to the mall with my parents for a few hours!! But they are never without me, unless I really need to run an errand or go to an appointment without them.

Anyway, so we got A LOT done in the house. We got to spend some time together just laying around, watching t.v. and then we got ready to go out. It's amazing how quickly we can get ready without interruptions and without having to worry about diaper bag, outfits, bottles, etc.

For the first time in a long time, we took the hubby's car. We're always in my SUV with the girls because of the carseats, so it was nice to be just the 2 of us in his convertible. It felt like those pre-mama days. We decided to stop and grab something to eat since my parents ate with the girls. Hubby decided for sushi.

We went to OOKA! OH-EM-GEE! At first I was hesitant to even go to eat because it had been 3 hours already without my babies and we were supposed to meet them at the mall but the thought of eating at a restaurant just the hubs and I and I would get to eat my food right when it came out, while it was still hot and just sit there and have an adult conversation, sold me in!

Can I just tell you how AMAAAZING OOKA is?? We had a little trouble ordering at first because it's not everyday we go to a sushi restaurant ya know? But we ordered an appetizer, an entree and some sushi! It was sooo delicious. I don't know if it was the fact that we were starving or how excited we were to be just us, but everything was sooo good. My mouth is watering just thinking about that sushi.

Here's what we ordered:

Appetizer: Gyoza- Pan fried pork dumpling (so yummy)

Entree: Teriyaki Chicken which comes with rice, mizo soup and garden salad. (awesome, hubby loves that dressing!)

Lobster Dynamite Roll- fresh lobster, avocado and mango covered with spicy tuna and sweet chili sauce. (this was the best everrrrr!)

Everything came out fresh and fast and it was the perfect portion amount. It was reasonable and so cute inside. Even the mints they give you with your bill was good! Our bill was only $50 with tip! Can't beat that!

By now, the mall was closed and the girls were getting tired so we just decided to meet them back at the house. On our way home, we stopped at Sprinkles Ice Cream Parlor for some amazing ice cream! It was sooo good!

Loved getting back to reality and to our girls. They had an amazing fun-filled day and got spoiled rotten with my parents! They went to bed right away, leaving the rest of the night for the hubby and I to relax.

I couldn't ask for a better day. Although we missed our girls terribly and were talking about them all day, it was nice to have a date again with my love.

Kourtney Kardashian picked ME!

LOOK AT WHAT I WON!!

Not the baby of course, but that would be Kourtney Kardashian's adorable little man Mason! But that cute playmat! She hosted a giveaway on her blog for a Skip Hop playspot and bedding set and I entered it. I soooo did not think I would win because she received over 900 entries and there was only going to be 3 winners!!

I'm a huge fan of the Kardashian shows so every now and then I stop by their blogs. I happened to see that she was giving this super chic playmat away and didn't hesitate to enter it. All you had to do was to leave a comment about your favorite childhood toy. So I did, not thinking for a chance I would be selected. Did I mention she received over 900 entries and I was picked along with 2 other winners? So cool! Look how cute they are and they come in different colors too! Plus, I won a bedding set as well. I researched them and the playmat alone is $79! The bedding sets are about $300! Talk about a nice win!

You can click HERE to read more about it through Kourtney's blog!

-Natalie