When my gift arrived, I couldn’t wait to scan the Secret Santa tag’s QR code on my smart phone. Once I did, I got to hear the lovely voice of Robin from Masshole Mommy wishing me a Merry Christmas. And the gift she choose for me was just perfect – a Liz Clairborne sweater in blue (my favorite color). I can’t wait to wear it!

I was able to thank Robin by replying to her message by text. I didn’t think of this extra part of easy gifting until I used it myself. Not only do you personalize your gift when you give it, the recipient can easily thank the gift giver. JC Penney thought of everything!

A few hours after I thanked Robin, I got a message on my cell phone. It was from Mary at Sweeping Me. She was thanking me for the JC Penney gift that I chose for her. What a special day made possible by Robin, Mary, JC Penney and Mom Central. Thank you so much!

I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of jcpenney and received a jcpenney Secret Santa gift and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

How to Use Digital Folio

It’s easy to get started on Digital Folio:

1. Register
2. Download the app
3. Start your list (or folio)
4. Search for items to fill up your list (Use these popular sites – Amazon, Best Buy, Sears, Target, or Walmart)
5. Drag and drop to add to your folio and/or to compare prices

How to Win Target Gift Cards

Each registered Digital Folio user is eligible to win one $5, $10, AND $25 gift card every day. That’s up to $40 in possible daily winnings! Add that up through the end of the promotion on December 22, and that’s a possible total win of hundreds of dollars in Target Gift Cards! Get the details about how YOU can win in the Digital Folio Holiday Hot List promotion HERE! The first Digital Folio users to claim the limited number of Target Gift Cards each day WIN! The more toys you save into your list, the better your chances.

You can get hints about winning toys by following Digital Folio on Facebook and Twitter. Entry period is 10 AM – 10 PM EST through December 22.

“Digital Folio IS Power Shopping Perfected™!” and is a powerhouse at giving away Target Gift Cards.

This is a sponsored post by Digital Folio through Global Influence. All opinions are my own. I am also a registered user of Digital Folio.

Current Trade Values:

Get GameStop store credit or cash for your old iPod, iPhone or iPad:

• iPod Nano – Up to $70
• iPod – Up to $150
• iPhone – Up to $180
• iPad – Up to $300

GameStop makes your trade in simple – no packing, shipping or hassle – a store associate will tell you the value of your trade items and give you cash or store credit on the spot. Find a store location near you.

My daughter has a lot of video games on her holiday list again this year, so my husband and I are big fans of GameStop. We’re on their email list and do pre-buys from them quite often. They’re always innovative with ways to save.

Grand Prize Mom Spark GameStop Giveaway

If you share a photo of yourself trading your iPods, iPhones and/or iPads at GameStop in the comments of Mom Spark’s post, you’ll be entered to win the grand prize of a $1,000 GameStop gift card.

Giveaway

Use the Rafflecopter form to enter this giveaway

This promotional sponsored post was made possible by Mom Spark Media. Thoughts are my own. I was compensated for my time investment and work on this campaign. Thanks to GameStop for providing me with a gift card to giveaway. All prizing for MSM giveaways is handled by a third party unless otherwise noted. For this reason prize fulfillment can take up to 90 days after the winners information is received.

The Santa Tag is a an extra freebie given to anyone who makes a purchase at a JC Penney store (while supplies list, limit one tag per gift).  It’s a card that contains a peel off tab. Just peel away the front to see the QR code. Then use your smartphone to scan the QR code with a QR reader app. Now you’re ready to record your message:

1.  Enter a phone number (you’ll get the phone number from your tag) to receive a call from JC Penney.
2. You’ll then be prompted to leave a message in your own words.
3. Approve or re-do your message. You know you want it to sound festive!
4. Stick the tag on your wrapped gift.
5. Wait for fun to ensue.

When I was invited to take part in a Secret Santa exchange with other bloggers, I was excited. It’s always fun to get to know someone so you can get the perfect gift for them. I don’t really know the blogger I was given so I read through her posts and information about her. I checked out her Twitter and Facebook page to see if I could get any more gift clues. Then it was on to shopping at JC Penney.

I was able to find a lovely gift from JC Penney that will bring out the holiday spirit in my fellow blogger. I hope my stalking investigating worked out. I can’t wait to find out. I feel like a kid again. And I have to wait to find out who my Secret Santa is now too. When I get my gift, the first thing I’m going to do is listen to the message on the Santa Tag to hear the voice and see if I can guess who my Secret Santa is. Then I’ll tear open my gift.

I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of jcpenney and received a jcpenney Secret Santa gift and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

Local Listings

Zaarly already has over $11 million dollars listed in over 200 cities, so they’re doing something right. Big cities have lots of listings, but I was able to find a few in my small podunk town. You can expand your search easily by changing the area, or keep it close to home by using cross streets.

The holiday season is bringing out people asking for Christmas trees, all types of gifts and even an ugly Christmas sweater! You’ll find some interesting and unique ideas on Zaarly, but be sure to follow the Marketplace Rules for safety and saving yourself from getting scammed. If there’s a listing you see that you want for yourself, for example, hiring someone to organize your closet,  it’s easy to add it once you sign up for Zaarly. There’s even an app for Zaarly to make it easier to list and answer your requests.

Donation for Signing up

Sign up on  Zaarly today, and when you do Zaarly will donate $1 to Feeding America. Just click this specific Zaarly link. Each donation represents a gift to Feeding America’s entire mission. $1= 8 meals secured by Feeding America on behalf of local food banks.

Giveaway

Win a $50 Visa Card! Please use Rafflecopter for your entries.

I wasn’t compensated for this post, but wanted to share about a service that is helpful and a way to raise money for Feeding America.

Dollar General is showing their support of the military on Veteran’s Day, November 11, 2011. All active military members and their families and veterans are eligible for a 10% discount at all Dollar General stores – no coupon needed.

Shop online and get the same Dollar General’s Veteran’s Day discount of 10% by using the code VETERANSDAY at checkout. This discount is available to everyone from November 11 – November 13.

We can help support our troops along with Dollar General by recording and uploading a video with a message of gratitude. Those videos will be featured on the Dollar General Facebook page. And care packages will be available for purchase in stores. They will sell for $20 or $30 and include free shipping to military addresses! The boxes will include items like toothbrushes, shampoo, candy and nuts, which are always welcomed.

Veteran’s Day is a special day set aside to honor our military and our veterans. Without them we wouldn’t have many of the rights we do now. Dollar General recognizes that and is offering them a discount, providing a way to share a video of thanks and an easy and inexpensive way to send a care package.

The Reasons I Collect Sunglasses:

• I live in Florida, the sunshine state. When you see me outdoors, I’m usually wearing sunglasses, well during daylight hours. How can I wear the same pair of sunglasses all the time? It would be like wearing the same pair of earrings every day. I definitely need a few pairs!

• Sunglasses protect my eyes from dangerous UV rays. And because of that I need to wear them all day. Yes, four pair seem like I’m on the road to having enough.

• I have to be fashionable in one area of my life. Wearing them sunglasses me feel stylish. I love a good pair of trendy sunglasses and the trends change often. I can fit it if I ever get to hobnob with celebrities who seem to wear them all the time.

• Since I wear prescription glasses, owning a pair of prescription sunglasses allows me to read, see what I’m eating and use my smart phone outdoors. So add on another pair that I have to own.

I love to shop to add to my collection. There’s the mall, department stores and specialty stores. But shopping online is easy too, especially when there’s a virtual try on. I just upload a photo of myself, choose a pair and click on them too see how they look on my face. Check out www.glasses.com and give it a try.

So what do you think? Is my new passion for collecting sunglasses OK?

This is a sponsored post. All opinions my own.

The children’s Halloween costumes from Chasing Fireflies are simply gorgeous. They are broken down into categories such as Fairy Tales, Witches, Royalty, Flowers, etc. Children’s sizes run from Newborn to 16. The Size Chart is very helpful as it provides information on how to measure your child. You can order online or get a free catalog.

Sammi finally decided on the Harry Potter Gryffindor Robe, Tie and Lantern. She plans on wearing her costume on Halloween and when she visits the Harry Potter Theme Park. When our order arrived, I was surprised that it came in a large box. Each item was sealed in in plastic and those with hangars had them attached, each was gift wrapped and safe from any shipping horrors because of the box and bubble wrap.

Harry Potter Costume

The fit of the costume is perfect and the quality is excellent. There’s no comparison to costumes that you can buy in discount stores. I’d consider this a high end costume, which can be a hand-me-down for a younger child, used as a costume in a play, or use the pieces individually to create another costume. This is the real deal that will last way past Halloween.

About Chasing Fireflies

Chasing Fireflies offers magical children’s products that charm, surprise and delight. The company also provides the Wishcraft catalog which features 500+ costumes in sizes 6 months to 16.

Chasing Fireflies Halloween 2011 Twitter Event

Six lucky participants will win a Chasing Fireflies gift card ranging from $50 to $100.  To enter, our Twitter party guests may answer six trivia questions during the party!   We can’t wait to help your whole family get into the spirit of the season!

TOPIC -  Halloween Costume and Party Ideas

TIME - Wednesday, September 21, 2011 at 9-10 PM Eastern (8-9 PM Central, 7-8 PM Mountain, 6-7 PM Pacific)

HASHTAG - #wishcraft

CUSTOM TWEETGRID - http://bit.ly/nPw9mv

PANELISTS - @MomSpark, @ChasenFireflies, @MomSparkMedia, @MakobiScribe, @StacieinAtlanta, @TheShoppingMama, @MyFourMonkeys, and @HaleyTweetsToo (follow everyone before the party!)

RSVP – http://bit.ly/p7w7bs

This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. The costume was provided by Chasing Fireflies. Thoughts are my own.

Types of Candy

The Blair Candy website brought back memories of my childhood, with Candy Buttons, Dots, Sixlets and Sugar Daddies. I felt like I was in my corner candy store with my eyes glazed over trying to decide on what I wanted more than anything else. There’s current items too, like KoKos Cupcake Lollipops and Lite Up Ring Pops. I particularly liked their concession candy which can be used for fundraisers, sports events or parties.

With Halloween coming up, consider Blair Candy to hand out to children at your door, for your Halloween Party, or for your child’s school parade.  There’s a special section that includes assorted bags of candy, gluten free and sugar free candy and lollipops just for this special day.

Easy Searching

After drooling over this candy site, I went with a 20 oz. bag of Gummi Red Fish and a box of 36 Vanilla Cow Tales. I knew that my daughter would eat a few of these and I would devour them! It’s easy to find just what you want with Blair Candy. You can search for what you want by clicking on the categories on the left side of the page, by using their search feature (which works very well) and by the name or color of the candy too. There’s a live chat function and a phone number to use as well.

About Blair Candy

Blair Candy Company has been a family owned and operated business for over 71 years, passed down from generation to generation. They sell wholesale and retail and own a warehouse in Altoona, PA.  Their website only shows a portion of their stock, so if there’s something you don’t see, give them a call.

Look for candy that you can’t get near you, bulk candy and snack foods at Blair Candy. And remember that candy isn’t just for kids!

This post was written for Family Review Network & Blair Candy who provided the complimentary product in exchange for my honest review.

I can get more than the names and locations of Hispanic businesses on YaSabe. I was able to find specific brand names, the times businesses were open, directions, and links to their websites. YaSabe also offers especials (a special) for free via email or cell phone. And I can request specials from businesses that I frequent regularly or want to try.

There are over 14 million businesses listed on YaSabe, which is available in Spanish and English. I’ve been looking for a new Mexican restaurant in Spring Hill, FL to try out and found 32 within 30 miles of my city. That’s more than I bargained for, but I’m sure that given the time, I’ll try out most of them! And thank goodness, Taco Bell wasn’t one of the restaurants listed. Nothing against them, but I don’t consider them a Mexican restaurant. YaSabe gets it right.

I thought you’d be interested in the what YaSabe means in case you’re not Hispanic like me:

The correct pronunciation of “YaSabe” is “Ya-Sa-Bay” and literally means “he already knows” but is used conversationally as an expression like “you know?” It can be used to say, for example, “now she knows how to find restaurants in Miami” – “Ahora ella Ya Sabe como buscar restaurantes en Miami”.

This is a sponsored post for Yasabe.com through Gigcoin.com. I was paid for my time to try out the service and write about my experience. All opinions are my own.