Our family loves Chic-fil-a food, and appreciate their awesome customer service. But rumor has it – their new Grilled Chicken entrees are even upping the standard! In April, Chic-fil-A introduced three new entrees – the Chick-fil-A® Grilled Chicken Sandwich, Chick-fil-A® Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich and Chick-fil-A® Grilled Nuggets. The new delicious marinade recipe will give you that “summer feeling” reminiscent of a backyard bbq grill.

Convenient, healthy, and delicious – what more could a mom ask for!

We’ll be adding our review of the new entrees very soon – but in the meantime, wanted to give you a chance to check them out for yourself! We’re giving away six sets of Grilled Chicken gift cards from Chick-fil-A! Each card will be good for one sandwich per month in May, June and July. In May you’ll try the Grilled Chicken Sandwich, in June the Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich, and in July, you’ll have your choice of either!

Enter using the rafflecopter below. This quick giveaway will end May 20th to ensure you get your cards in time for May’s redemption!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What’s so special about this unique gift is that it’s printed to include you’re kids’ names and the names  of the people important to them – creating a personalized experience made especially for your little ones.  From I See Me! books, we selected the title “Who Loves Me?” and added all the required details into their simple order form. 

ISeeMe.com describes this title saying:
” It is often said that there is no better gift that you can give children than love. Who Loves Me? features the names of family members and friends who love the twins. This beautifully illustrated book reassures the twins that they are loved “so much” by each person, with melodious rhymes describing the depth of each individual’s love.”

We added our children’s names, and added the names of grandparents, parents and aunt’s and uncles.  We were able to customize which names went on which pages and in what order.   Personally, we chose to pair each beautiful illustration with the person connected to that page.

I really loved being able to create a dedication page for them – with their birth date, their photograph, and a special inscription from us.  While books are always great to receive, personalized gifts of this caliber are truly a treasure. 

As a mother of multiples, it can be so frustrating to find that your pair doesn’t always fit in the typical categories of personalization and it’s so nice that I See Me! has considered this and found a way to accommodate our families.  If you’re considering a gift of personalized books for twins, we think these books are a great match.  We would definitely recommend ordering two though – as it would be so tough to decide who would receive this keepsake when the bookshelf gets split up along the course of life.

Brayden and Julie really enjoyed sharing this story together!  We’re excited to check out more of the personalized gifts offered by I See Me! including  Lunchboxes, Puzzles, Coloring Books, Placemats, Stickers  and Growth Charts!   To stay up to date on all the I See Me! offerings, follow them on the social media links below!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ISeeMeBooks
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/ISeeMe_Maia
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/iseemebooks/ 
Instagram: http://instagram.com/iseeme_maia
Google+ : https://plus.google.com/+ISMBooks/about
Email promos/discounts and updates: http://www.iseeme.com/preference-center.html

Lets start with a little recap of what makes Matilda Jane special!

Matilda Jane Clothing was started in 2005 by designer Denise DeMarchis, and since its inception, the line has gained a cult following.  The vision behind the clothing line is to offer high quality, unique pieces, that bring whimsy and youthfulness to a girls wardrobe.  Matilda Jane clothes are full of bright colors, fun patterns, playful ruffles and detailed embellishments. 

Matilda Jane is a little different because in order to offer optimum customer service, they present their lines through “Trunk Keepers” – Matilda Jane experts who present their clothing line in home parties throughout the country.  It’s a great opportunity to see the cuts, colors and fabrics up close to choose your favorite pieces. 

Finally, one last little thing I have to mention, is that I LOVE that Matilda Jane clothes are “mix and match” from each line – with the colors all complimenting one another so that the pieces are all interchangeable.  It makes it so easy to pair things together and give our girlies choices when getting dressed in the morning! 

So  – on to our review and some pictures from our little photo session! 

I can’t say enough good things about these gorgeous clothes.  After being introduced to the line with the opportunity to review them, I have since become a loyal customer myself.  Julie’s collection continues to expand and I can honestly say we receive more compliments from strangers when wearing our “MJ’s” than anything else.

Julie had the opportunity to try three pieces from the Wonderful Parade collection – the Love Bug Knot Top, over the Cloudy Puffer Tee, paired with the Sweetheart Ruffled Leggings.

The Love Bug Knot Top combines adorably sweet prints (like summer strawberries) and happy colors, with soft details like the ruffle edge shoulder strap and the little lace ruffle trim along the skirt.  The straps pull through the front of the top and are knotted to create a secure (but flexible) sizing. All the interesting patterns are brought together with the ribbons and sash for a finished look. 

The Cloudy Puffer Tee is the perfect lightweight stretchy base shirt, but the the fun shape of the belled sleeve makes this really add personality to whatever you’re layering.  The bell shaped wrist is actually two layers of fabric, so it doesn’t hang awkwardly but instead, fits perfectly to her wrist.  As we’ve mentioned before, Julie has some sensory issues from time to time, and can get upset when things don’t hang “right.”  She had absolutely no problem with this top, and the super soft fabric of this blouse really keeps her comfy.  I especially loved the way it looked as she twirled in circles.

Our Sweetheart Ruffled Leggings were the perfect finish for an outfit full of sweetness.  It doesn’t get much girlier, than pink heart print, but Matilda Jane somehow manages to bring cute to a new level with the soft ruffles along the ankle of these leggings. As always, super soft and stretchy, these leggings are definitely of a more premium quality than most may be used to.  They match the strawberry print in the top perfectly, and would look great with so many of the pieces in the Matilda Jane Wonderful Parade collection.

I know I’m biased, but isn’t she just gorgeous?  Julie is so full of spunk and personality that Matilda Jane clothes just look like they were made for her.   Do you have a little Matilda Jane girl of your own?  We’re excited to be offering a $50 Gift Card for you to buy some of your favorite pieces for the favorite girl in your life!  Enter using the Rafflecopter below! 

Stay connected with Matilda Jane through facebook and twitter for updates on new releases and special promotions.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The weekend started by hanging out at the Eggstravaganza at Victory Family Church where we’ve been attending the past few months. I really love this church for the powerful presence of God that I feel every time I visit. I end up literally dizzy from the intensity of worship. Those things are what bring me there – but – the amenities are so nice too. Victory seems to truly want to give visitors and members such a positive experience in every element of their church visit that every detail is in place – from visitor parking, to coffee bars, to extraordinary children’s programming. So just because of how things are at Victory on a weekly basis, I knew their Easter event would be great – but I couldn’t even imagine!

We started by hanging out in the Fire Engine which both babes thought was pretty awesome. From there, we moved on to the giant egg hunt. Brayden and Julie were a little too slow to collect many eggs, but it was awesome that the organizers had it all planned out to make sure no one was empty handed and handed out extra eggs after the hunt.

Next we went to visit the hall of princesses. It was totally worth the wait for Julie to meet about ten beautiful princesses from her favorite movies. It didn’t take her long to realize the routine was hug – turn – smile – “cheese” for me to get a picture. She really enjoyed it and it makes me so look forward to our fall trip to Disney. She’s going to love it!

Friday night, we had our annual egg dying with my aunt, uncle and cousin. The babes were so much more into it this year than years past. We stated out with two dozen eggs – but ended up with five after sending Dan out for more. The kids kept re-dying eggs they were having so much fun that I figured we could afford a few more.

Saturday night we headed back to church for an awesome Spirit filled service. While I do understand the origins of “Easter,” with it’s bunny’s and eggs is most likely Pagan, and that it’s important for Christians to celebrate the joy of resurrection at all times of the year – there is just something so meaningful to me about this time of year. I try to be more prayerful, and more intentional about my focus on God’s amazing sacrifice.

Sunday morning, we found our Easter Baskets and eggs (which the kids of course loved) and spent much of the day just enjoying our time together as a family. We even enjoyed the beautiful weather by blowing up our Bouncy House and jumping around in the yard.

Finally, we closed out Easter with a lovely dinner at my parents’ house. Traditional ham and potatoes, made extra special because of the people with which we’re blessed to share it.

Hope your Easter was full of joy and remembrance, and full of as much fun as ours was!

I was excited then, when I had the opportunity to partner with Cate and Chloe to check out their jewelry subscription boxes. Read on to see our swag and win a one month subscription for yourself!

A little about Cate & Chloe from their website:
The visionaries of Cate & Chloe began the company with one simple, clear concept in mind: to create stylish yet affordable jewelry women could wear every day. Inspired by their favorite designers, the creators of Cate & Chloe wanted simple, versatile, elegant pieces that would complete every woman’s personal collection. They wanted to create an easy place for young professionals to find classic, timeless accessories that would add a little glamour to an everyday look.

My first shipment from Cate & Chloe totally made my day. It was packaged up so nicely that it made me feel like I was opening up a lovely gift – and who does’t love that! Inside, was a gift box holding my treasure – the Diana “Divine” Necklace.

The pear shaped pendant was inspired by the sophisticated style of the late Princess Diana. With it’s beautiful Cubic Zirconia stone and an 18″ Sterling Silver chain, it’s gorgeous in it’s simplicity.

With their VIP Membership Program, subscribers receive two high quality jewelry pieces each month, selected by their expert stylists. These pieces are valued at $200 – a great deal when the membership fee is only $39.99 a month, which includes free shipping.
Other member benefits include:
– 20% off additional items from the Cate & Chloe site
– Referral Benefits
– A free gift for new subscriptions
– Exchange any product you don’t love
– Dedicated customer service line and email

Cate & Chloe has graciously offered a great deal for our readers! Get 20% off your new month-to-month subscription using the code MyTalesWithTwo20.

An even better treat – enter to win your very own VIP Jewelry piece from Cate & Chloe (a value of over $100). What girl doesn’t love free jewelry! It would be the perfect to keep for yourself, or to give as a special sparkle for a friend.

Enter to win using the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

While I was pregnant, I would run through the children’s songs I knew, and always cringed when it came to Rock-a-Bye Baby. I know it’s only a song, but I hated the thought of serenading my babes with these terrifying images of a cradle crashing down from a tree. So I made my own alternate version of Rock-a-bye Baby, and it’s what we’ve sung since the babes were born.

Since Brayden’s been having a tough time sleeping recently, it’s been sung more frequently as of late. Feel free to sing it to your little ones for a comforting change on an old classic.

Rock-a-Bye Baby (Without the Tree)
Rock-a-bye baby, here in your bed
Go now to sleep, and rest your sweet head.
When you wake up, we all will be here.
So sleep now, my baby, sleep now, my dear.

Rock-a-bye baby, here in your room
Go now to sleep, and you’ll wake up soon.
Then in the day, we’ll all sing and play.
So sleep now, my baby, sleep now, I say.

Lyrics by Heather Coleman (2014)

]]> https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/rock-a-bye-baby-alternate-lyrics.html/feed 0 https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/buildasign-review.html https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/buildasign-review.html#respond Thu, 10 Apr 2014 06:22:01 +0000 http://mytaleswithtwo.com/?p=4681 [...] ]]> As a small business owner here in Pittsburgh, I am always working hard to find every opportunity to get the word out about our hair bow company – GiggleBuzz!

We were so excited to have the opportunity then, to partner with BuildaSign.com to create custom car bumper magnets with our logo and website! The ordering process with BuildaSign.com was very simple and I loved the ease of using their design interface to upload my graphics. It literally took five minutes to get my order placed. In just a few weeks, my magnets arrived at my door and I was totally thrilled with the results.

Our stack of magnets are just like bumper stickers – but instead of a sticky backing, are held to the car with the magnetic backing. They are 3×10 inches in size, and depending on quantity ordered, can be priced as low as $1.95 each. The ink process is interesting with these magnets as it looks as if they use a ink dot printing process. When you look very closely, you can see the multi-layer dots taking shape as images and text in your specified shades. It’s pretty neat to see, but when you’re at the distance of the average car stopped at a red light behind you – all they’ll see is your crisp clear message (or in my case – website).

You better believe I’m sticking these on just about every car I see. Okay, not without consent, but at the very least there will be one on every car that rolls into my driveway.

I did notice that a few of the cars we tried the magnets on just don’t have a metal hatch for a good stick – but we solve that problem by placing the magnet along the side.

We Loved:
– Easy design process
– Fast processing and shipping
– Printing just as requested
– High quality product for brand visibility

We’re looking forward to ordering from BuildaSign again very soon as they have a wide variety of products available – yard signs, custom banners, business cards, decals and more. It’s the perfect partner for enterprising small business owners like us.

And keep an eye out for more about GiggleBuzz next week when we do our customer appreciation giveaway! Maybe if you’re our lucky winner we’ll even tuck a bumper magnet in your package so you too can sport your GiggleBuzz pride!

Disclosure: Thank you to BuildaSign.com for providing free product for our review. All opinions remain authentically our own.

]]> https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/buildasign-review.html/feed 0 https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/my-greatest-fear.html https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/my-greatest-fear.html#comments Sun, 06 Apr 2014 05:20:10 +0000 http://mytaleswithtwo.com/?p=4668 [...] ]]> Each night, I let myself relax, and seek God in prayer. I’m not fancy, and I don’t use any special words. One thing I always seem to pray for, is that I’ll have the blessing of someday, becoming a Great Grand Mother. I feel like being a great grandparent is the epitome of joy for me – it means I lived long enough, my kids lived long enough, found partners and had a family, and their children found partners and had a family.

After having my babies, I realized that all the terrifying things in the world became real. You feel the intense pain of the parents who loose children in terribly tragedy. Your prayers become more fervent for the children you know with serious conditions – realizing that this could so easily be your own sweet child. Your heart breaks for the wives who lose spouses due to illness or unexpected accident. And most of all, I felt my own mortality. It changes a person, knowing that two little people depend on you completely, and that you not being there would drastically change the course of their lives. I don’t take risks any more – I don’t speed, I don’t text while driving, I reconsider travel plans. No one tells you that so suddenly upon becoming a mother, your heart is raw to the world.

So I had to consider, had my greatest fear become dying? I knew that couldn’t be it… While it’s not something I look forward to (of course) I have always had a strange peace with the inevitable, and my faith gives me absolute confidence in where I’ll be heading. So if that wasn’t it – what was I so fearful about?

And it finally hit me. My greatest fear is wasting time. I am terrified to lose the time I’m blessed with my kids, my parents, my husband and my friends. I’m so afraid of not filling absolutely every day with love and memory.

But I’ve started to realize, it’s not only that I fear wasting time in a greater sense, but also in the mundane. I switch between five or six browser tabs at a time so I don’t waste time as pages load. I multi-task to the fullest – listening to NPR as I drive, listening to audio books while I clean, and almost always take “work” with me on car trips making simple bows along the route. I hate to waste a second. But it worries me, are my days filled to the brim with busy, truly making me WASTE my TIME with my family. I don’t want to leave an empty second, but yet, am I unreachable for all the important memories I should be making?

And so I pray about it… and the verse that comes to my heart is Psalm 46:10 – “He says ‘Be still, and know that I am God.” And I begin to think, when have I left time to be still? When have I left time to listen?

And as I’ve come to these realizations, it’s still a struggle. I have been thinking and praying about this for about two weeks now, and still haven’t settled on how to sort it all out. I had even considered writing about it earlier, but let the impulse go.

Brayden’s been extremely needy lately, and I spend almost an hour – twice a day – settling him into nap and to sleep each night. Daddy won’t suffice nor will Grammy. He begs, pleads and cries. And it’s been killing me – laying there “wasting” these two hours.

Tonight I was so busy looking for something that I insisted that he needed to go to bed alone. After an hour of him crying, (and my search unproductive), I went up and held him in my arms. I sang to him and let him nestle his little head into the crook of my body. I inhaled his essence and just breathed in every bit of him. And I realized, this time is not wasted. I fight to give it freely, but there is nothing more rewarding than being enough for him, for living in those moments. I see God in these every day moments of realizing all with which I’ve been so abundantly blessed. So I will be still, and I will hold this dear boy, and be prayerful in thanks for every amazing moment I’ve been granted.

]]> https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/my-greatest-fear.html/feed 2 https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/goosewaddle-review.html https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/goosewaddle-review.html#comments Thu, 03 Apr 2014 03:44:11 +0000 http://mytaleswithtwo.com/?p=4621 [...] ]]> Other than my arms wrapped around them, there’s nothing more comforting to my babes than being wrapped up all cozy in a fuzzy blanket.  We have a new favorite in our house though – their new GooseWaddle blanket, and it is unbelievably soft, thick and luxurious.  I love everything about GooseWaddle – from their sweet name and adorable mascot goose, to the thick pile of their premium blankets and little blankies.

From the moment we opened the gift box, we knew we were in for something special. With Brayden hoovering over my shoulder, we unrolled our carefully packaged blanket. Wouldn’t this be awesome to receive in the mail as a baby shower gift from a far away friend?

Spreading it out, we were instantly in love with the deep pile that just is irresistible – you HAVE to run your hand across it. With high quality satin edging, every detail is special. It is obvious that our friends at GooseWaddle went to the extremes to offer the highest quality product available, with every stitch carefully in place, and every material in top quality.

The blanket gift set includes a full size premium baby blanket, as well as a miniaturized “blankie” for holding in tiny hands. How comforting for a sweet little one to bring that soft comfort along with them wherever they go? For our family, we went with white so that either kiddo might enjoy it. This would be the perfect choice also for any family-to-be waiting to find out a baby’s gender. Blankets also come in your choice of pink or blue for the perfect match for nursery decor.

GooseWaddle is doing their part to make the world a better place with their “Buy 1, Give 1” campaign. For every blanket purchased, a blanket is donated to a child in need. What an awesome way to celebrate your special little one, while giving little one in need that special feeling too. Kuddos GooseWaddle for your mission to share the warmth of GooseWaddle world wide!

As you can see, Julie has no complaints, wrapped up all cozy and warm in her blanket. We might just have to order a second, because no one is willing to take turns for this one at our house!

Connect with GooseWaddle!
GooseWaddle.com
GooseWaddle on Facebook
GooseWaddle on Twitter

You’re in luck, as GooseWaddle is offering one very special reader their own GooseWaddle Gift Set in their choice of colors! It’s the perfect gift for all the little ones in your life! Enter using the rafflecopter form below, and we’ll cross our fingers that you’re our lucky winner!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLOSURE: We received a complimentary GooseWaddle Blanket for review purposes. All opinions are genuine and remain our own.

]]> https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/goosewaddle-review.html/feed 8 https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/spring-has-sprung.html https://mytaleswithtwo.com/2014/04/spring-has-sprung.html#comments Thu, 03 Apr 2014 02:26:19 +0000 http://mytaleswithtwo.com/?p=4606 [...] ]]> I’ve never been one to appreciate the essence of spring – until this year that is.  I wasn’t into pastels, didn’t appreciate flowers as much as my mother did, and wasn’t wrapped up in the prettiness of it all.

As a child, spring was a time to reignite neighborhood friendships that had gone dark over the winter months.  It was baskets full of candy, and gardening with my grandparents.

As a teenager, spring was a means to an end – the “almost there” in the final stretch of the school year.  It was the spring musical. It was getting excited for the seniors who would soon be moving on to bigger and better – decorating their lockers as a last hurrah.

I have memories of college springtime at IUP, with the fresh scent of the blooming oak grove, fruit smoothies from the bookstore coffee shop, and sorority formals.

So many fond memories, but I’ve never longed for the warmth of the sun like I have here as a stay-at-home mom.  With toddlers sick of the same toys, the hundredth sheet of finger-painted paper, and the  thousandth viewing of Disney movies, we are ready to run into the the sunshine.

I’m ready for coffee on the deck.
I’m ready for afternoons on the driveway drawing with chalk.
I’m ready for long walks in the park.
I’m ready for the grill – and the grass – and fresh veggies – and sunglasses.

We went to the park yesterday, and I was amazed how quickly hands and feet climbed, swung and slid – never forgetting the fun they’d had before the winter.  Their instincts reignited, their excitement unable to be contained, their faces bathing in the warm rays of the sun.

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