Today I’d like to introduce you to a new feature on Dine & Dish…Simplify Saturday! On Simplify Saturday, I will feature something that is simplifying my life… it could be a product, an app, a book, a website…anything that I come across that is helping me to live my 2013 focus word of “Simplify”.

Today, I’d like to introduce you to the SimpleHuman brand. If there is a brand out there that is focused on simplifying life at home, SimpleHuman is that brand.

When I was approached by SimpleHuman to partner with them on some of the work they are doing as a brand, I jumped on the chance. We’ve had SimpleHuman products in our house for several years now, so this relationship fit in seamlessly with our family.

SimpleHuman is a company who believes that everyday life has room for improvement. Tools like their sensor and step trashcans, their senor soap pumps, and other various products for the kitchen and bath, were all created out of a need for a more efficient product.

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I know, I know… this is a food blog (with family stuff thrown in), so why are you seeing a vacuum being featured in this post? Because, my friends, this vacuum has become a sanity saver to me. As someone who has hardwood floors throughout most of her house, I have struggled and struggled with keeping them clean. My Hoover Twin Tank Steam Mop has become my all time favorite tool for mopping, but I have had the darndest time finding something for the everyday cleaning that sweeping with a broom just couldn’t seem to handle (yes – I have 4 very messy kids!). Now, the Panasonic Jetforce Vacuum has entered my arsenal of tools I am using to keep my hardwood floors, and carpets, clean.

I can’t tell you how long (years and years) I’ve been searching for something that worked for me, and now I finally found it. Let me tell you what I love about The Panasonic Jetforce Vacuum .

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It just dawned on me that we have 13 days until Christmas. 13 days!

Guess who hasn’t stepped foot inside a mall and who still has just about everyone on the list to still shop for? That’d be me! Can you believe it? Things aren’t going to be pretty if I don’t quickly get my act together. (more…)

I’ve always bragged about how Leah has been my kitchen helper since almost day one. Each of my kids enjoy helping out in the kitchen, but Leah is the one who is always there, no matter what. At 2 she could crack eggs perfectly, could whisk and scrape a bowl quite well, and was continuously under my feet or by my side the second she’d hear my KitchenAid mixer turn on. That passion for being in the kitchen hasn’t changed… she still loves to help me do whatever I’m doing. (more…)

As many of you are aware, the opening ceremonies for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games airs tonight. We are a big Olympic family and always look forward to gathering around the TV each day to watch our favorite Olympians compete for the gold.

The issue with the 2012 Olympics is it falls right, smack dab in the middle of our summer  family vacation. We’ll be either on the road or in the mountains without television access most of the time. We’ve all been wondering how we were going to keep up with the Olympics without television coverage?

Luckily, I did some exploring on my new Nokia Lumina 900 Windows Phone and quickly found several apps that will keep us up to date, even without TV coverage. And thanks to the genius design of the Windows Phone I was able to pin my favorite 2012 Olympic apps right to the front for easy access. (more…)

Nick and I are in Park City, Utah for our first kids free vacation in more years than I care to admit. We have had a very nice, relaxing time beginning with a 4 hour nap the first day! We’re obviously making up for lost time.

When we haven’t been napping, we’ve been exploring the beautiful outdoors. Park City is one of my favorite towns. Quaint shops, great restaurants and amazing landscape, we’ve talked time and time again about how much we would love to live here. At the very least, if moving isn’t going to happen, we know it is one of the places we want to return to for vacations in the future.

Today we had the opportunity to go to Olympic Village and just so happened to be there in time to see some future olympic hopefuls training. It was a pretty amazing thing to watch!

Our goal for this vacation was to rest, relax and reconnect. We didn’t go into it with much of a plan – it’s kind of how we roll, and one of the things I love most about my husband. When it comes to traveling, we like to take things as they come and let our mood direct our days.

This afternoon was about as perfect as it could get for exploring the mountains during a hike. Thank goodness I had my new Nokia Lumina 900 Windows Phone. Without a plan in place, Nick and I were able to download an app called Outdoor Navigation, find a great trail for hiking, and keep track of our elevation, distance, direction and speed. It was honestly the easiest app I’ve ever used for outdoor navigation! My Windows phone also worked like a dream in the mountains, never losing signal and keeping us on track perfectly. Make sure to check out the Windows Phone Home Page for your own demo of the power of this great phone.

I’ll be sharing more about our vacation as well as more about my experience with the Windows Nokia Lumina 900 phone over the next couple weeks. Oh, and stay tuned as I’ll be sharing a giveaway for one of the phones as well! I hope you enjoy following along!

Disclosure: Microsoft gave me the the new Nokia Lumia 900 Windows Phone to test drive.  I am being compensated for this review, however all opinions are all my own.

This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Nancy, Chelsea , Crystal and Wendy Dunn! Thanks for entering.

I can’t believe I am opening this post with a picture of my bare feet. You see, I have had serious foot confidence issues for most of my life. When I was in 3rd grade, I was at my Grandma’s when a large, very heavy clay pot fell off a window sill and landed on my left foot. My big toe was smashed pretty badly and it wasn’t a pretty sight.

I don’t remember anyone every commenting on my feet, but as a kid I was very self conscious of them. Not only did I have the smashed toe thing going on, I also had big feet for a girl. In addition to that, I came from a family of not pretty feet. It was just a fact I had to deal with.

For my entire childhood, after the clay pot incident, I never, ever wore any type of shoe that would show my toes. If I had to go barefoot, like at the pool or something, I would make sure to cover my feet with a towel or jump in the pool really fast. More often than not, I was wearing out socks all the time because I’d wear socks without shoes outside in the yard, around our house, etc.

Luckily, in college, I discovered the joy of a professional pedicure. Oh, you can bet I was a self conscious mess during the first several pedicures… making excuses and what not for how ugly I felt my feet were. But, I never felt so pretty in my life than I did after my first pedicures. I discovered the joy of open toed sandals and walking barefoot in the sand. I enjoyed laying out and not getting a sock tan line. I enjoyed a lovely thing called foot confidence! (OK – I just made that up but I bet there is such a thing as foot confidence).

With four kids, a budget, and busy schedules, making it to the spa to get a pedicure doesn’t happen nearly as often as I’d like. That’s why, when I discovered Sandal Essence I knew I wanted to share this foot magic with you all! Sandal Essence isn’t for ugly toes, but it is for dry, cracked, flip flop ruined heels. Exactly the kind of heels you do NOT want sticking out of your sandals this summer. I’ve been using Sandal Essence for a few weeks now and can tell you it is the best product I’ve tried for keeping my heels moisturized. I absolutely love it. I apply a small amount once a day and it has kept my feet in tip top shape in between pedicures.

I’m happy to let you know my friends at Sandal Essence have offered to give 3 lucky Dine & Dish readers a container of Sandal Essence! You want pretty feet this summer, right? Well, this is the product to help you with that!

Giveaway Details:

To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post letting me know where you plan on showing off your gorgeous feet this summer! For up to three additional entries do any or all of the following:

• Become a fan of Sandal Essence on Facebook. Leave a separate comment on this post letting me know you’ve done this.
• Tweet the following: “I want to keep my feet beautiful this summer by winning the Sandal Essence #Giveaway on @DineandDish http://bit.ly/IwmstM ” Leave a separate comment on this post letting me know you’ve done this.
• Share a picture on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Flickr, wherever… of your feet! Tag the picture with @dineanddish and #SandalEssence Leave a comment with the photo link on this post letting me know you’ve done this.

The three (3) winners will be chosen via random.org and notified via valid email address. All comments must be received by midnight, CST on Tuesday, April 17th when the giveaway will close.

As a fan of Sandal Essence, I was sent product for my use. They are graciously providing the giveaway items to the winners. All opinions expressed are my own.

This giveaway is now closed. The winner, chosen by Random.org was Lacey Hemphill (Twitter @Laceylouwho02). Thanks to all who participated and to Kelly Moore for offering such a great giveaway!

Since I began Project 365 (where I challenge myself to take a photo each day for 365 days) last year, you will most often find me with my Nikon DSLR close by. I love photography and enjoy having my camera along with me, as you never know what might pop up that you want to capture through a photo.

Although I have always enjoyed photography, I became more of an avid enthusiast with the purchase of my first DSLR in 2007. Since then, photography – of food, life moments, travel, people…basically everything – has become a definite passion. As much as I enjoy having my camera with me when I’m out and about, over time I found it very frustrating that there weren’t a lot of options aside from manly looking backpacks for camera bags. I wanted something beautiful and stylish with room to hold my big camera and a lens or two, accessories plus the things I need on an everyday basis – car keys, phone, wallet, lipstick, etc. (more…)

It’s been roughly 30 days since I started using the Meaningful Beauty Anti-Aging Skin Care System. As promised, I’m back to let you know what I thought of the system as a whole.

If you’ll remember, I haven’t been very diligent when it comes to taking care of my skin. I wash my face and use an SPF moisturizer, but have put off the routine of taking care of my skin with a specific system for too long. The signs of aging are slowly but surely creeping up on me.

After using Meaningful Beauty for 30 days have I seen a significant difference in the look and age of my skin? The changes have been subtle, but I have noticed that my skin looks healthier and more radiant than it did before. I liked the Meaningful Beauty Anti-Aging Skin Care System enough to order some more. I don’t think only trying it for 30 days would give me the longer term results I desire.

Below are the products I tried and my thoughts about each of them.

Skin Softening Cleanser: I used this product both morning and night. I’ll be honest and say it did a great job of cleaning off my makeup and cleansing my skin, but I felt like it’s lack of lather bothered me. I’m used to cleansers soaping up, at least, and this didn’t do that at all.

Glycolic Treatment Pads: This was my favorite product out of the entire system. I used these pads twice a week in the evening and really loved the fresh, tingling feeling they gave my skin. This is an optional element of the skin care system, but I definitely recommend them.

Antioxidant Day Creme SPF 20: I used this product once each day. I appreciate the lightness of this day creme.. a thin layer provides great SPF coverage and doesn’t make your skin feel greasy.

Creme de Serum: The Creme de Serum is something I used both day and night. It is key in helping to prevent the visible signs of premature aging (aka fine lines and wrinkles). The Creme de Serum is another very lightweight, moisturizer (with a very slight tint to it).

Lifting Eye Creme – Advanced Formula: The eye creme was part of both my morning and evening routine. A little bit of eye creme went a long way!

Skin Brightening Decollete and Neck Treatment: This product is used in the morning as a final touch before makeup. It helps to prevent that “Ally McBeal Waddle” (remember that episode?). I’m all for anything lightweight and quick to apply that will keep my neck and “waddle” firm!

It may seem like I’ve added a lot of products to my skin care routine, but it honestly only added about 5 minutes of additional time to do all of this each day.

If you have any specific questions for me about the Meaningful Beauty Anti-Aging Skin Care System, be sure to leave them in the comments or send me an email!

Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a test drive campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Meaningful Beauty and received a 5-step treatment kit to facilitate my review, a second 5-step treatment kit to giveaway, and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Lately, I’ve been really noticing the effects of my teenage years on my skin. It wasn’t uncommon for my friends and I to lay outside, in the hot summer sun, on tin foil and slathered in baby oil. If we came in without color on our bodies (who cares if it was red or tan) we weren’t satisfied. All through high school I spent plenty of time in the tanning booth as well. It was my “relax” time and I’d go as often as I could.

As a teenager my skin was never bad. I had clear skin through most of my teenage years and didn’t have the same skin problems a lot of teenagers complain about. As a 38 year old woman, that has all changed. I get random breakouts, have bags under my eyes, my skin tone is uneven and ruddy and the signs of aging and too much time under harmful rays is starting to make an appearance.

I’ve honestly never paid a whole lot of attention to the care of my skin. I wash my face, use SPF moisturizer and take care of things that way, but it’s been a long time since I’ve had an official skin care regimen. When the folks at Mom Central contacted me about doing a 30 day test drive of Cindy Crawford’s Meaningful Beauty Anit-Aging Skin Care System I was excited to try it.  I’ve been working really hard on taking care of my body… losing weight, exercising, eating right… but my skin needs attention too.

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Over the next 30 days my Instagram friend, Paola, and I will be trying out the Meaningful Beauty collection and will let you know how it’s working for us. Most of the women who have tried this skin care system have raved about having healthier, younger looking skin, as well as smoother, more radiant skin. That sounds good to me! I’ll let you know our results soon!

Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a test drive campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf Meaningful Beauty and received a 5-step treatment kit to facilitate my review, a second 5-step treatment kit to giveaway, and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.