Glitterful Felt Stories

Kernel Season's Caprese Salad Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 07:27:22 PDT

Seasoning is the most important tool to use when cooking. I love exploring different flavors while in the kitchen with my children. We were recently introduced to a new popcorn seasoning line called Kernel Season's. Although we love our popcorn during family movie night, we decided to test the seasonings on something other than popcorn. Our tastebuds exploded with this unique recipe that I created along with the help from my children with the white cheddar flavored seasoning.

My children love helping me in the kitchen, and now that Ella is getting older she enjoys chopping most of our vegetables. Tyler is in charge of taste testing, and Andrew is our recipe developer. Everyone has a job in the kitchen, making it a wonderful bonding experience together.

First we combined 1 cup of cherry tomatoes and 1 cup of mozzarella balls. We blended it with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of basil, and a dash of Kernel Season's white cheddar popcorn seasoning.

We mixed everything together, and enjoyed a delicious appetizer before dinner. It was fresh, flavorful and delicious!

Kernel Season's are made with real all-natural ingredients with no MSG!

We were provided with samples of Kernel Season's popcorn seasonings for review purposes only. All our photos, thoughts and opinions are of our own.

Wordless Wednesday: Love for learning

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Wed, 30 May 2012 11:46:20 PDT

Memorable Memorial Day Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Tue, 29 May 2012 08:49:54 PDT

How much did you love this holiday weekend? We sure did! We did something that we have not done in a long time - relaxed. The whole family is walking away from our weekend relaxed and recharged.

Poor Daisy did not even have the energy to destroy this shoe!

Before the weekend started, we had Daisy get her little "snip-snip" done at the fantastic Vet Loving Pets HB. We figured the relaxing weekend could be good for the dog too - with pain killers to boot!

We kicked off the weekend at our club for an 80's date night. The band was a little creepy, but they did have some good grooves! Regardless, Steve and I loved having a couple of hours alone.

Since we are not used to the whole relaxing business, we had ordered a dumpster to cleanout the garage over the weekend. Little did our "pack ratting" minds realize, we filled the dumpster up with just the old little tikes collection we had stored on our side yard.

After that quick "cleanout," we went back to the club for some time in the sun. (Minus the sun for me - remember that little nonsurgical facelift I had?) The kiddos splished and splashed in the water until they could not splash anymore.

The kids spent a lot of time working in the garden. They ate so many veggies from the garden that only a couple made their way into the kitchen for dinner.

The next night we had a last minute BBQ with some friends. We chilled with some good food, good company and a good water gun fight. The kids rode their bikes into the sunset leaving all the Dad's to collect the Nerf gun darts in the darkness of the night.

After all that fun - our weekend was not over. On Memorial Day, we went back for some swimming fun just to realize that the club was hosting a Memorial Day party. The kids played relay races, cannon ball contests and Ms. Ella even won the limbo contest - woot! The place was packed without a chair in sight, but we got lucky and scored a few! There was even a BBQ, snow cones and more!

We enjoyed a fantastic weekend, however, we did not forget the real meaning of it. Having family members who are currently enlisted, we took time out of our weekend to explain to the children how lucky we are to have the freedom to enjoy the weekend!

Of yeah - did I mention we also saw Fabio? Believe it or not - he was not selling butter. So disappointing!

I hope that you had a great weekend! What fun things did your family do?

Barnes and Noble Summer Reading Program

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Thu, 24 May 2012 16:54:28 PDT

Do your kids love to read? Mine sure do! Sometimes I feel like my older sons room is turning into a library with his book collection. Barnes and Noble loves supporting young readers over the summer by giving them a free book! Free - that's right!

So what's the catch?

Have your child read and 8 books and record the titles in the Reading Journal. Then bring the completed journal into your local Barnes and Noble to select a free book! Happy Summer reading!

Wordless Wednesday: Pool Fun!

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Wed, 23 May 2012 10:45:28 PDT

Did you see the Solar Eclipse?

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:51:54 PDT

Last night the Sun, Moon and Earth all aliened tonight creating what is called "The Ring of Fire." Although I had planned to make a cool paper contraption for my kids to see the eclipse last night - I just did not have time. Instead I found something easier to show it to them - my iPad! When holding the iPad camera up to the eclipse, all the neighborhood kids were able to easily get a good glimpse of it. Here are the pictures we captured last night. Did you see it?

Summer Sun Protection Checklist

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 21 May 2012 01:30:35 PDT

I am proud to be a Coppertone Mom. Living in Orange County we get year-round heat waves, and sunscreen is the most important part of our daily routine. Yesterday we got a taste of what summer is going to be like at the opening weekend of Soak City Water Park. Even though we applied sunscreen I was reminded about how important it is to continually reapply throughout the day.

Before heading out into the sun this summer Coppertone has provided us with a sun protection checklist.

Everyday sun essentials:

Coppertone Water Babies sunscreen
Plenty of water
Portable snacks
Car window shade
Hat
UV-protective sunglasses
Light, loose-fitting clothing

Water play essentials:

Beach umbrella
Goggles
Towel
Dry clothes
Swimming protective gear (life jackets, water wings) if necessary
Rafts and floats for water play
Sand toys

As a member of the Coppertone Water Moms group, I receive product samples and promotional items to share and use as I see fit. No monetary compensation has taken place and any opinions expressed by me are honest and reflect my actual experience.

Where I was last week

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 21 May 2012 01:17:21 PDT

Since I do a lot of freelance writing around Orange County during the week, I wanted to share my articles that were published last week. Enjoy!

OC Family Magazine
National Pizza Party Day
Farm to Table at the Taste of Orange County
Savory Spice Shop Cooking Class
The Meat House Giveaway
Bruxie new store location
Free Ice Cream at Farrell's
UltraLuxe Nascar Fan Festival
Garden Festival at the San Diego Zoo

CBS LA
Hot happenings around OC/LA

Orange County Mom Blog
Wild Summer at Discovery Center
Sapphire Food Fare
Zinc at Shade Hotel Wine Dinner
Give Dad the gift of Burke Williams
Ranger's Reserve 25th Anniversary Events
Orange County Rescue Mission Graduation

Anaheim OC
Guide to the OC Zoo

Giveaway: Totsy

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:06:01 PDT

Saving money is always a priority for me. I recently learned about an online website called Totsy, that offers products for 90% off retail prices. The company also employs sustainable eco-friendly business practices, and plants a tree in honor of your child after making your first purchase. They have already planted over 100,000 trees in Peru!

With Summer just a few weeks away, I purchased an adorable (and foldable) picnic table on the website for a great price. The table was shipped directly to my house within a couple of weeks, and now my children can enjoy spending the summers eating lunch outside. It was so much more easier than going to a retail location to find a table for our backyard.

The site has clothes for children, parents and the home. With deals coming daily to the site, I have been eager to see what the next hot item I will snatch-up will be. Another great way to save at Totsy is to earn referral credits. For every friend invited and makes a purchase, then Totsy will give $15 in credits to your account.

Who would like to win $50 in Totsy credits to purchase something special for their family? We are excited to be able to offer this unique giveaway to our special readers.

To enter to win:

Please just leave a comment below of what you love about summer!

For extra entries: (Please leave a separate comment for each entry)

Sign-up to become a Totsy member
"Like" Totsy on Facebook
"Like" Glitterful Felt on Facebook
Tweet about this giveaway

Giveaway will be open until May 29th at 11:59pm PST. Winner will be chosen via random.org and will be notified via email. We were provided with a gift code by Totsy for review purposes only. All our thoughts and opinions are of our own.

Shrimp Fettuccine with a rosemary lemon sauce recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Tue, 15 May 2012 21:07:21 PDT

Just tell yourself its all about portion control when making this deliciously rich dinner. Rosemary blended with lemon, makes this sauce so divine that you might just find your children fighting over the last bite. (Not like that happened at our house - never..he..he)

Ingredients:

1 Pound of shrimp
2 Tablespoons of butter
1 shallot (chopped)
Juice from 1 large lemon
Zest from a lemon
2 cups of heavy cream
3/4 cup of chicken broth
1 Tablespoon of dried rosemary
1 package of fettuccine

First clean and peel your shrimp.

Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter in a saucepan. Cook the shrimp for about 3 minutes.

Then move the shrimp to a separate plate once 1/2 way cooked.

Melt another tablespoon of butter in the pan, and then add the chopped scallops. Cook for about 2-3 minutes before adding the chicken broth, cream and rosemary.

Bring to a boil and cook until partially reduced. Then return the shrimp to the pan.

Cook with shrimp in the sauce for an additional 5 minutes, and then mix with the pre-cooked fettuccine.

Enjoy!

Pepe finds a forever home

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:08:00 PDT

I just learned about Pet Collective, and their mission to help feature unadoptable pets. Pets that for some reason cannot find a forever family.

I was a ball of tears after watching the very first episode featured Pepe the pug, an adorable little guy who, when just a puppy, had the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time — he was at the bottom of the stairs when his owner's boyfriend accidentally stepped on him, crushing his spine.

Pepe was unable to walk, and the owners could not care for him properly. They sent him to the rescue group Pug Nation, and The Pet Collective featured Pepe's story on "The Unadoptables."

I encourage everyone to watch this video, and help support this important group.

Happy National Chocolate Chip Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Tue, 15 May 2012 08:11:03 PDT

Did someone say chocolate? Chocolate is the one food worth celebrating. Since I am a foodie at heart, I could not resist sharing some of these delicious recipes that can be found on my newest favorite Disney website, Spoonful. Spoonful is loaded with crafts (like the pluto pillows I recently made), games and recipes. This is our favorite selection of chocolate chip recipes to make for National Chocolate Chip Day!
Just click on a picture for the recipe!

Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Loaf

Best ever cowboy cookies

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Zeke's School Day scones

All photos are courtesy of Spoonful (my new favorite website).

Save the Children with Johnson's Baby CARES

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 14 May 2012 00:34:48 PDT

There is nothing I love more than supporting charitable organizations. Johnson's Baby has just launched a new charitable program called Johnson's Baby CARES. The organization has partnered with Save the Children to donate thousands of Johnson's Baby Care Kits to families in times of disaster.

The adorable new mom, Hilary Duff, has helped to assemble these baby care kits to send to Save the Children. We are happy to support this program to help families in time of disaster, and we would love it you would too!

How we can all work together to help support this great cause:

Visit the Johnson's Baby YouTube page and view the “Mom You’re Doing OK” video. The Johnson's Baby Brand will donate an additional $50,000 to Save the Children when they reach 500,000 views.

Visit the Johnson's Baby CARES tab on the Facebook page to make a donation online and learn more about the program.

Time-Saving Tool For Mother's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Sat, 12 May 2012 17:52:23 PDT

I am always looking for the hottest time saving tools. Who isn't?

Simplify your life with the time saving tools from a Windows phone. Using a phone to organize your life is just like having your own personal assistant right in your back pocket. I got a new Windows phone for Mother's Day, and I am already having fun using it to organize my boys baseball schedules.

The Windows phone has a camera button that bypasses the lock screen for superfast photography. Taking pictures with a Windows phone is easy for any mom. Just shoot and share their photos online in just a few seconds. There is also SkyDrive for preserving those precious memories captured on your phone.

There is a People Hub (or Me Tile) on the Windows phone that provides updates from all your social media sites right on the front page of the home screen. This eliminates all the time clicking, on the various social media apps to keep up with your family and friends.

Keep up with your email anywhere around town is easy with the Windows phone. Moms can link all their inboxes to be accessible right from the phone. There is also an easy way to setup group text messages. Group all your friends into one group, and just one text message to the whole group for planning your next play date at the park.

The phone is loaded with tons of apps including Skype, Thumba Photo editor, Hand Crafted, Netflix and more!

Our favorite Windows phone Mother's Day recommendation is the HTC Radar 4G. It has a 3.8" high-resolution touch-screen, 5MP camera with flash, 1 GHz processor, and is preloaded with entertainment apps.

We had a wild time at Disney's Animal Kingdom #DisneySMmoms

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 14 May 2012 23:33:40 PDT

Disney's Animal Kingdom was one of the most magical experiences we had in the Disney World parks. The park far exceeded our expectations of we were expecting to get from our visit. Free roaming animals, cultural diverse environment, and lush tropics surround the park.

There were fascinating sculptures around the park that captivated our children's attention.

We had an opportunity to get closer to wild animals than we had ever been in our lifetime.

During our short stay in Florida, we returned to this park three times. The park is also home to my children's favorite ride at Disney World: Everest! My children loved this ride so much that they rode is 36 times!

Be careful of the Yeti!

The lush landscaping inspired my children's curiosity. After leaving Animal Kingdom they kept talking about their aspirations to travel the world, and learn more about the different types of animals on our Earth.

Our dancing loving daughter learned more about dancing in the few minutes she participated in this cultural presentation than her heart had ever imaged. After taking the year off from her dancing classes, she was ready to start dancing right after our return from Disney World.

The visit to the park would not have been complete without the enjoyment of a delicious ice cream!

And plenty of animal education..

When the sun began to set over Florida, we were sad to leave the park. We have this picture on our kitchen refrigerator to remind us of this special moment we had as a family on a bridge within the Animal Kingdom Park.

We were offered an invitation to attend the Disney Social Media Event, and did pay a fee for the conference and travel expenses. As an attendee of the conference we did receive complimentary items, food, and various park benefits. All of our thoughts and opinions are of our own.

The double digits baby

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Wed, 09 May 2012 22:14:09 PDT

It feels like just yesterday, I was rocking him to sleep in my rocking chair. Now he is 10, and already a decade old. I just sit here and think - where did the time go? As much as I don't want to see him grow-up I have enjoyed watching him become such a special young man. He has a heart as big as the sea, and a smile that can't be lifted. I am so lucky to have been given the honor of being his Mom for the past ten years.

Happy 10th Birthday Andrew!

Wordless Wednesday: Everest #DisneySMmoms

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:33:45 PDT

Fantasmic Dragon Flies Down the Freeway

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:43:30 PDT

Do you remember Maleficent from Disneyland's Fantasmic! nighttime spectacular show? If you happened to be driving on the I-5 at 6am this morning, you might have been one of the lucky spectators to see the dragon being transported.

In preparation for the D23 Presents Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives this summer, D23 transported the Maleficent dragon head from the Disneyland Resort to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum this morning.

The dragon left from the Disneyland Resort at approximately 6am this morning, with an estimated scheduled delivery time of 8:30am.

The D23 Presents Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives Exhibit opens to the public on Friday, July 6, 2012.

Easy Crock Pot Chicken Tacos

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Tue, 08 May 2012 09:25:59 PDT

It was no Cinco de Muncho in my house over the weekend. Andrew celebrated his birthday while we were in Florida last week, but he still wanted a mini celebration with his family. Since I had a little procedure done on Friday, we kept the food simple. I had everyone bring a dish - and we enjoyed a simple taco bar.

We made these tacos on Saturday, and have had enough left-overs to eat for the following three days!

Ingredients:

1 pound of chicken breasts
1 jar of medium salsa
1 package of tortillas

(That is it!)

Directions:

Pour salsa over the chicken.

Cook on high for 4 hours.

Use a spoon to break the chicken apart.

Serve on a corn or flour tortilla.

Enjoy!

Disney Store: A Princess Wish Mother's Day Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 07 May 2012 13:15:24 PDT

The Disney Store would love to wish all Mom's a happy Mother's Day, by offering this fantastic giveaway to our readers. The Disney Store has a lovely collection of gifts that are perfect for any Mom. The Disney Store is happy to announce that they have a new fragrance collection, A Princess Wish, that has a scent of a sparkling bouquet of precious flowers, juicy berries and golden amber. Your Mom will feel just like her favorite Disney Princess after putting on this lovely scent.

A Princess Wish fragrance collection is available at Disney Stores nationwide, and online at Disneystore.com. The collection does not just stop with a fragrance. The collection also includes a shimmer body lotion, body wash, body mist, and two box sets.

We are happy to offer one bottle of A Princess Wish Eau De Toilette ($24.50 value) to one of our readers.

To enter to win:

Please leave a comment below telling us who your favorite Disney Princess is.

For extra entries: (please leave an extra comment for each additional entry)

"Like" The Disney Store on Facebook
"Like" Glitterful Felt Stories on Facebook
Follow The Disney Store on Twitter
Tweet about this giveaway: Mom will feel like a princess w/ this @disneystore giveaway http://ow.ly/aKSPY via @GlitterfulFelt

We were provided with a complimentary bottle of Eau De Toilette for review purposes only. Our love for everything Disney is our opinion, and all thoughts are of our own. Photos are courtesy of Disney.

Giveaway will close on May 11th at 11:59pm PST. Winner will be chosen via random.org. Giveaway is open to winners worldwide.

Good-bye sun damage with a non-surgical facelift

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:03:35 PDT

I have been struggling for the past couple of years with the condition of my skin. My close friends have known how conscious I am about hiding all the scaring, spotting, and sun damage I have accumulated on my face. I can never leave the house without a thick layer of foundation to help even the tone of my skin - even when just going to the pool with the kids.

I have tried every product on the market, and yet nothing ever seems to work. I have spent countless amounts of money on fancy facials, creams, and peels. Instead of seeing an improvement in my skin - I have watched it get worse over the past year.

I watched my Grandma age prematurely over my childhood, and now I see her same thing happening to my beautiful Mother. When I looked in the mirror six months ago and saw my Grandma - I knew it was time for me to do something now.

I have never been the type of person to hide from the sun. I love it. I have memories of sitting by a pool in Palm Springs as a teenager trying to burn my pearl white skin. I am always outside either working in my garden, riding bikes with my children, or just sitting on the patio in the sun

All those sun loving years have contributed to the major damage I have done to my face. I now have massive sun spots, pre-cancer skin cells, and discoloration to my face.

When I learned about AMA Skincare I knew right away that they were the best place for me to go. They have a holistic approach on all their treatments by stimulating your skin cells to do what they have "forgotten" to know how to do. They had various treatments, but after a consultation with the doctor he felt at the Spectra non-surgical face lift was the best thing for my skin. It will take years off the look of my skin, allow me to finally leave the house make-up free, and stimulate my skin to start producing collagen again.

The day that I went in for the treatment I was very nervous. I had heard so many horror stories about laser treatments, and only my close friends and family really understood how much I needed this. I was fearful of the criticism I would get for wanting to do treatments on my face at such a younger age.

When I first walked in the office I was guided to a fancy massage chair, offered some pain medication, and they began to apply medication to numb my face.

I sat there for an hour with two applications of numbing cream. Then it was time to go into the procedure room.

Then it was time for the procedure to start. I am a naturally born chicken, so I was very scared. After about the first five minutes all my fears went away. I hardly felt a thing!

There was a series of lasers that all felt different. Some felt poky, some felt cool, and some tingled. The doctor walked me through the entire process preparing me for everything that would be happening. There were no surprises in the procedure room.

This was right after the treatment. I was relaxed and not in any pain.

Then I went into a hyperbaric chamber to help speed up the healing process by 24 hours. It was a cool experience to go into a chamber. I had a uphoric experience where I felt almost an "outer body feeling."

My mind felt so clear after getting out of the chamber. I started to feel a little pain from the laser, but it was just like I had gotten a bad sunburn. I took a couple of Motrin, and it took away all the uncomfortableness.

When I got home I looked like I had a bad sunburn that will last for 24 hours, then my face will darken, and then begin to peel.

I will update everyone in a couple of days with the progress of my skin.

After doing a lot of personal research I selected AMA Skincare to care for my most precious asset - my skin. I selected them because of their holistic approach of going beyond repairing my skin, and I could not find another company that could compare. I was provided with treatments that will make a huge difference on the way I look and feel. All of my photos, thoughts and opinions are of my own.

Disney 2012 Social Media Moms Inspirational Conference #DisneySMmoms

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Sat, 05 May 2012 12:36:57 PDT

Day two of the Disney Social Media conference started with a welcome message from none other than Katie Couric @katiecouric. She left us with a message of encouragement to reach for our dreams. It was something that nobody expected, and was a magical way to kick-off a full day of motivational speakers.

Laptops surrounded the tables while attendees tweeted, and shared online the hottest things being learned during the conference. Social Media Mastermind Marcy Massura @Marcymassura rounded up the top tweeters during the conference, and out of 175 - we came in #11. Not too bad for @Glitterfulfelt.

Even Mickey Mouse got busy sending out tweets during the conference.

Rayovac was a sponsor of the event, and kindly donated these decorative charging stations to keep everyone "plugged in" during the event.

The lineup of speakers ended up being some of the most inspirational people I would have the pleasure of hearing speak. I walked away from the day with a completely new outlook on life, and my career. They shared their stories of what inspires them, and tips on how to make our dreams come true.

The conference was hosted by the talented comedian Maryellen Hooper @MaryellenHooper, who kept everyone giggling throughout the day.

The speakers at the event were:

Amy Jo Martin, Social Media Strategist for Digital Royalty @AmyJoMartin, who talked about finding our "why." You can start finding your "why" in life, by thinking of your first, favorite childhood memory. She told us to begin by designing our days, by doing more of what makes us happy. When faced in the business world by being told that she could not have all three: work, family, self - she proved everyone wrong. You can have it all, and be happy. She was my kinda girl.

Ramon DeLeon @Ramon_DeLeon is the marketing mastermind behind Domino's Pizza in Chicago. He has changed the way that companies are looking at social media by making his company accountable for their mistakes. He encourages companies to start demolishing "bad social media disease." He believes that nothing should be hidden and has found creative ways to show the public that his company cares for the community. He documents his life with a series of YouTube videos, and even inspired me to make some funny videos with my children that evening. The world needs more people like Ramon DeLeon, as an example of how to live life to its fullest. All he needs to do is figure out a way for Domino's to start making kale pizza, and he will have won me over as a customer for life.

There were also fantastic speakers such as Peter Shankman @PeterShankman (The Geek Factory). Peter Shankman talked a lot about the "haters" in cyberspace, and how sometimes our "haters" can become our biggest fans. He encouraged everyone to look outside of our comfort zones, because nothing awesome will ever happen inside of it. My favorite quote from him, that I wrote on my inspirational board at home was, "Weeds have mastered the ability to do everything but grown in rows like everyone else." The weeds are often hated, but they are always the survivors who can grow anywhere - so stop growing in rows and be a weed!

Lisa Druxman @LisaDruxman is the CEO and Chief Founding Mom of Stroller Strides. When she was faced with a newborn and the possibility of having to go back to an office job, she followed her passion for fitness and created Stroller Strides. She was very inspirational and even got some Women up on the stage to start doing planks!

The last speaker of the day was the talented Chris Brogan @ChrisBrogan (Human Business Works). My favorite message that I took away from his speech was, "Want a great blog? Write about what other people can take away from you." and "Tools are not awesome - you are awesome." I walked away from his speech feeling, well, pretty awesome!

We also had the pleasure of enjoying our guest lunch speaker, Kimberley Blaine @TheGoToMom (Partner of Sony Electronics).

I could not forget some of the highlights of the conference when Darth Vader made a guest appearance, or when the Fairy Godmother flew over to say, "hello."

It was an honor to hear special guest speakers Meg Crofton, President of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Operations for US and France speak, along with Gary Buchanan (Disney Parks Social Media Team), and Amy Foster (Disney Parks Consumer Insights.)

The day was not over with this magical conference, there was more to come that evening. Stay tuned for an update on the evening that followed all these fantastic speakers.

My final inspirational quotes from the conference were, "Let your children learn from you as a role model - not the people on TV." and "We only have 18 summers with our children, so make every summer count!"

Don't miss reading about Day #1: Pirate Party Launch

Disney 2012 Social Media Moms Conference Launches with a festive Pirate Party #disneySMmoms

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Thu, 03 May 2012 21:17:15 PDT

Ahoy Matey! The Disney Social Media Moms 2012 event kicked off with an exciting Pirate Party. Swashbucklers gathered to meet the characters from Jake and the Never Land Pirates. The festive event took place on the beach of the Walt Disney World Yacht Club Resort.

While the sun began to set over the resort, live music played from a real pirate themed band.

Parents and their children got into the pirate spirit by dancing the night away with their favorite characters from Jake and The Never Land Pirates.

There was plenty of food to go around including a special buffet just for the children.

The children kept entertained with fun games including puzzle matches, relay races, and the big finale of digging up a lost treasure.

The dinner celebration was just a start of what would come during the following days of the conference.

Stay tuned for an update tomorrow on day two of the conference...

Tomato Scallops with Mint and CousCous

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Fri, 04 May 2012 23:39:41 PDT

Whenever I think of scallops my mind instantly goes to episodes of Hell's Kitchen. I never understood how someone could go on a cooking show to get their own restaurant, yet not having a clue of how to cook a scallop?? Even I can make them...go figure! Here is a delicious recipe I made tonight, that anyone can easily make.

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 pound of scallops
1 shallot
2 cups of diced cherry tomatoes
1 Tablespoon of fresh mint
1/4 cup of dry white wine

Directions:

First chop the scallops, mint, and cherry tomatoes.

Heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil in a pan, and then add the scallops.

Cook the scallops for 5-10 minutes on each side before transferring to a plate.

Then add the remaining 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to pan. Add shallots, tomatoes, and mint.

Cook for 3-5 minutes before adding wine.

After adding the wine, cook for about 1 minute. Then add the shallots into the pan with the tomatoes, and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes.

Serve over a bed of fresh couscous. Enjoy!

Kmart Outdoor Twitter Party 5/10 #KmartOutdoor

noreply@blogger.com (Shelby Barone) — Fri, 04 May 2012 19:26:35 PDT

Come join us on Thursday evening as we discuss Spring Mother's Day garden makeovers. We will be talking about fun ways to make your garden an outdoor living space with a little help from Kmart.

What: Kmart Outdoor Twitter Party

When: Thursday, May 10th from 9-10pm EST

Where: On Twitter by following the hashtag #KmartOutdoor and using the custom tweet grid http://bit.ly/Jf97D0

Prizes: (2) $25 Kmart gift cards, (2) $50 Kmart gift cards and (1) $100 Kmart gift card.

Who to follow: Shelby @GlitterfulFelt, Monica @MonicaBenavidez, and Liz @LizLongcrier

RSVP:

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. VOID WHERE TAXED, PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. Subject to Official Rules. Open only to residents of the United States.

Enter by RSVPing for the Twitter party on the link above, be actively participating in the party and are using the hashtag #KmartOutdoor. To be eligible, entries must be received by 9:55 p.m. EST on May 10, 2012, except that mail in entries must be mailed separately and postmarked by May 6, 2012. To enter without purchase, hand write your name, completed address, age and telephone number on a 3”x5” card and mail it to Collective Bias, 205 S. Main Street, Ste. 1, Bentonville, AR 72712.

Prizes will be limited to (2) $25 Kmart gift cards, (2) $50 Kmart gift cards, and (1) $100 Kmart gift card, and will be given away every 15 minutes during the 1 hour duration of the party on May 10, 2012. The grand prize of (1) $100 Kmart gift card to 1 winner will be given away at the close of the party. All winners will be chosen using random.org from the RSVP link and winners must be present and participating in the party using the hashtag #KmartOutdoor at the time that they are drawn as a winner. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received. Winner will be notified via Twitter @ message by @MonicaBenavidez during the party on May 10, 2012 and must respond to @MonicaBenavidez within 5 minutes of being selected to claim their prize. All entries will be eligible for any unclaimed prizes after the close of the Twitter party via random drawing held on May 24, 2012.

To obtain a copy of the Official Rules, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Collective Bias, 205 S. Main Street, Ste. 1, Bentonville, AR 72712.

SPONSORS: Collective Bias, 205 S. Main Street, Ste. 1, Bentonville, AR 72712
All winners will be chosen using random.org from the RSVP link and winners must be present and participating in the party at the time that they are drawn as a winner. There is a limit of 1 (one) prize per household during the party.