Ashley, Author at Embracing Beauty

I Applied to be a Ford #FiestaMovement Agent!

April 12, 2013 by Ashley 13 Comments

So a good while ago a blogging friend of mine told me about an amazing upcoming campaign by Ford. This will be the second year of the campaign and it’s going to be BIG! I’ve applied and I’m anxiously waiting to hear if I’ve been chosen. Let me tell you a bit more about the #FiestaMovement.

Ford #FiestaMovement Campaign

The Movement needs 100 agents to introduce the Fiesta. As an agent, you will be the voice of the 2014 Fiesta. You’ll complete missions, have tons of fun, and share the outcomes with your fans and followers. And here’s the twist. We’re going to share the best of the best content with the rest of the world. So if your stuff rises to the top, it could be your photo in prints ads or your face on TV.

How incredible is that? The best part though will be driving a new Ford! Ford will gas up the car that you get to keep for quite some time, insurance included. Those chosen will get to drive around town strutting their stuff, talk about it with friends and family, and make fun videos to share with the world. Plus, to make it even more fun you get to do select missions. I should say, you have the opportunity to participate in these missions because not everyone would enjoy jumping out of a plane, bungee jumping, etc. For each mission you take you’ll bring along 1.) Yourself (duh!) 2.) your stylish Ford Fiesta, 3.) your video camera! If I get selected I hope I can bring along a friend or two to celebrate Ford with me.

What You Need to Apply

A valid drivers license (that’s a given though, right?), a great attitude, and a video camera. You will fill out a form with the required information, name, address, phone, email, etc. The form is simple, they really just want to know who you are, what you do, and what are your “mad” skills (for example I can whip out a video camera in .2 seconds at any given notice!). Then you are going to put those skills to the test and submit a video telling Ford (and the PR company) why YOU should be the next Ford #FiestaMovement Agent.

I’ve sent my video and application in. I was even contacted the next day for a phone interview and they were over-the-top nice! Yay! I got an interview! They asked fun questions about me and my hobbies and interests. I thought it went well but I know they have hundreds and hundreds of submissions to wade though so I hope I stood out. {Ford, if you’re reading this, please pick me!}

Please show me your support and leave a comment. I’m just really excited about this opportunity and can’t wait to see who all will be chosen on April 30th. If you are interested in applying you can do so here: Ford #FiestaMovement Agent Application.

Filed Under: Life Lately Tagged With: Ford

Wordless Wednesday: Dirty Dog

April 10, 2013 by Ashley 7 Comments

Our dog Lucy was caught red handed…or green nosed!

For those wondering and worried if our dog is going to get diabetes, she’s not. She’s fine. She didn’t really eat a cupcake she just enjoyed the sprinkles my little girl left behind on the floor. It still makes for a cute picture though, right?

Filed Under: Life Lately Tagged With: Dogs, Lucy, Wordless Wednesday

Piggy Paint – Non-Toxic Nail Polish & Giveaway Ends 4/9/13

April 8, 2013 by Ashley 45 Comments

I’m so very excited that I don’t really know where to begin. I guess I’ll start at the beginning! Mom Central asked me if I wanted to participate in a campaign they were hosting for Piggy Paint. I jumped at the chance because 1) I love nail polish, 2) I love Piggy Paint nail polish!

If you haven’t heard of Piggy Paint nail polish let me tell you all about it. It’s incredible! It was made by moms for moms. Once upon a time, a mom was painting her daughters nails on a styrofoam plate and she noticed that the nail polish that spilled on the plate actually ate through the plate. It was at that time that she decided to research nail polish and make her own nail polish for her kids. That lady was Melanie Hurley and her nail polish is Piggy Paint.

Piggy Paint is a water-based polish that is specially formulated of natural ingredients. Finally, a kid-friendly, pregnant-mama polish! They say it’s as natural as mud! It is free of formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, biphenyl A, ethyl acetate and acetone…and it’s made in the USA! Check out their cute new spring colors:

(From left to right) Girls Rule, Forever Fancy, Dragon Tears, Tea Party for Two, Sometimes Sweet, Jazz it Up, Ice Cream Dream, & Mac-n-Cheese Please. Aren’t those cute names? Speaking of cute…check out my little girl!

I think she’s cute but I might be more than a bit biased. She loved having her nails painted! I was worried because I’ve never painted them before. We played with the bottles all week and worked on her colors with them. (So far she can say them all except orange!) Then on Saturday I got my hair dryer out and sat in the floor. She sat in her little red rocking chair and held perfectly still while I painted each nail. Then I held her hand and sang the ABC song twice while I blew her nails dry. The song and hair dryer helped keep her distracted and she was happy the whole time. I occasionally blew it in her face and she liked that. Then we painted the other hand and repeated the drying process. Perfect nails without a smudge! The bottle recommends two coats but one coat covered well and I didn’t want to press my luck.

Here’s a picture of my little princess with her Daddy. Her nail polish matched her Easter dress perfectly and everyone at church commented on her nails. I was surprised how well the nail polish stayed on considering it’s a water-based polish. It stayed on for two good days before it began chipping at all which is all I would expect anyway. I think there’s going to be a lot of fingernail painting in our future…and I’m excited about it!

Want to buy?

You can buy Piggy Paint at Walmart and at PiggyPaint.com. To save 15% off your order enter “PiggyFun” at checkout. This code expires April 30, 2013.

Want to win?

I have one “Toe-Tally Fancy” 3 polish set to giveaway to one lucky reader. This is a $24.99 value! Enter via the Rafflecopter code below. Winners must be 18 years or older and from the continental United States. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Piggy Paint. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

Filed Under: Life Lately, Nails, Tips Tagged With: beauty, kids, Nail Art, Nail Polish, Piggy Paint

KidKraft Kitchen Review

April 8, 2013 by Ashley 17 Comments

When my husband and I decided to buy my little girl a kitchen for Christmas last year, I didn’t know it then but, I had my work cut out for me. There are dozens, probably hundreds of models to choose from. There are wooden ones, plastic ones, non-gender ones, girly ones, ones with grills attached, and ones with seating attached. There are kitchens that transition with age. There are some that offer a lot of storage and some that have very little. Some come with electronic sounds and some have old fashion knobs that click when you turn them. The options were overwhelming!!! Don’t get me started on accessories. You know? The play food, plates, blenders, toasters, dish towels, aprons…Ahhh!!!

From the picture above you can tell that I did finally decide on a kitchen. It took weeks of researching and weighing the pros and cons. This was the only big present we got her for Christmas and we only gave a few small other gifts so we shelled out the money for a new, fancy pants, wooden, KidKraft kitchen. We love it! Absolutely love it!

Because I’ve posted pictures with my daughter playing with her kitchen on Instagram and on Facebook I’ve had probably a dozen or so people ask me where I got it. Requests keep coming in so today I decided to write a post and tell everyone about the kitchen we bought and why we love it. For disclosure, I was not paid by any company to write about this product but I have included my affiliate links in this post so I can maybe buy a coffee with the proceeds from people who buy through my link. It won’t cost anyone a penny more!

Now, here’s the kitchen I bought. It’s called the KidKraft Uptown Espresso Kitchen.

Why I like it:

It’s wooden and built well so it will last. Plus, it’s heavy enough that it won’t fall over on her (but it does come with wall brackets just in case!).
It doesn’t take batteries so there’s no need to replace them and no annoying noises.
It’s non-gender so if we have a son later down the road he can play with it too (I know boys play with pink things all the time but I figure why plan for it when it can be avoided?).
It’s attractive enough to have in our living room without looking like an eyesore.
It’s not a primary color and it doesn’t have to have matching accessories to look nice (Things like that bother me. Maybe I’m the only one!).
The sink was removable for cleaning. Nice bonus!
It had a towel rack and pegs for hanging towels or utensils (What can I say? I like details!).
It has a chalk board on the freezer and a water dispenser in the fridge.
The fridge has a shelf inside so you can put two large baskets inside to hold food.
The oven has a slide out cookie sheet that is removable (Two levels of storage inside!).
The dishwasher’s shelf is removable too (Two levels of storage inside!).
There is a detachable phone on the side of the fridge.
There is a small amount of counter space for food prep.
There is space behind the sink for accessory storage (We have a toaster and salt and pepper there).
There is a shelf above the sink for extra storage.
The sink head rotates and the handle moves up and down.
The stove and range knobs click when you turn them but that’s all the noise this kitchen makes.
The oven doors open to the left and the dishwasher to the right so you can play in both at once.
My daughter (who was 18 months when we bought it) can play with the lower parts now and the upper areas when she gets older. This will be a toy she can play with for a long time.

To buy it:

If you’re interested in buying this KidKraft Uptown Espresso Kitchen you can buy it online at Amazon.com. I bought mine from Walmart.com but they’re currently sold out of this kitchen at the moment.

The accessories:

We chose to go with different pots and pans but if you are wanting to hang utensils on the pegs in the back of this kitchen, this KidKraft Cookware Set is the only one with handles wide enough to fit. It’s on sale right now at Walmart.com for $20.34 but keep in mind that those prices could change.

We have the Step2 Cooking Essentials 10-piece Stainless Steal Set. It’s adorable! I love that I she could really cook with them later on and we can throw them in the dishwasher when they’re dirty. Isn’t the little stock pot just adorable? We hung the two pot holders from the pegs in the kitchen and store the other pots and pans in the dishwasher when not being used. Amazon.com currently sells this set for $29.77 + Free Super Saver Shipping.

I bought plastic play food so it would be quieter play than if I had chosen wooden food. It’s much cheaper too! You can read about how I got a great deal on my play food at Aldi here.

I hope to buy these plastic KidKraft play dishes soon for my daughter’s second birthday. Walmart.com has them on sale right now for $15 and Amazon.com for $18.48 but the prices are always fluctuating.

6 Month Update: We still love our kitchen and recently reviewed out KidKraft Baking Set if you want to check that out here.

Well, I think that’s it! I hope I gave you enough information without boring you to tears. If you have any questions at all please feel free to ask!

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: Gifts, Homemaking, Life Lately, toys

Dazzle Dry Nail Polish & Easter Egg Nails

April 7, 2013 by Ashley 8 Comments

If you’ve never tried Dazzle Dry’s 4 steps to dazzling nails then you are missing out! It delivers a glorious shine that lasts and lasts as long as your nail polish does.

Step 1 – Nail Prep gently cleans and conditions your nails.

Step 2 – Top Coat dries in 2 minutes flat and helps your nail color stay put for the long haul.

Step 3 – Nail Polish goes on smoothly in just one coat but the bottle recommends two.

Step 4 – Top Coat goes on and dries in a breeze leaving you with shiny, gorgeous, dazzling nails!

Dazzle Dry Nail Polish

Check out these four new beautiful spring colors Dazzle Dry just came out with. Aren’t they lovely?

Dazzle Dry says that they’ll dry manicures completely in 5 minutes and it’s true! It takes longer than 5 minutes for all the steps and for the painting itself but once painted they dry very fast.

I’ve used Dazzle Dry for years ever since my mom bought be my first set. When I received this set in the mail, compliments of Dazzle Dry, I noticed that the base coat looked different than it usually did. I thought it was just a new formula but as I was reading the small instruction booklet that came with it I found out that my base coat had actually turned to gel in the cold weather. I’m glad I had read about it before trying to apply it like that! The weather should be turning warm soon but I just wanted to post this and warn anyone who may be purchasing these in the future and who may receive a gelled base coat in the mail. It’s a simple fix, all I had to do was soak it in warm water for just a few minutes and it turned back to liquid again.

Check out these Easter egg nails I painted in celebration of spring! For the full step by step tutorial you can visit Shore Savings with Patti.

All in all, I highly recommend this set to anyone who is serious about beautiful nails. It holds the color for a long time and the shine is unsurpassed!

Filed Under: Life Lately, Tips Tagged With: beauty, Easter, Nail Art, Nails

The Rising Popularity of Gowns for Rent

April 6, 2013 by Ashley 2 Comments

Most people like to be elegantly dressed on their wedding day but the cost of wedding gowns are such that many couples opt to get a beautiful gown for rent rather than actually purchasing it. If you are looking for a budget wedding renting a gown can save a lot of extra expenses on your wedding. The cost effectiveness is certainly the reason for the rising popularity of gowns for rent. However one need to look at the pros and cons or leasing a wedding gown.

Without a question, the number one cause to consider leasing a marriage dress is the cost. It will definitely be a more reasonable choice than buying a similar gown. For some brides, the idea of spending additional cash for a dress to be used one time is just too hard to stomach. Renting a gown could furthermore be a good option for a bride who likes to wear two gowns for her marriage instead of just one. This is a very common practice among the couples in Asia, where brides may wear customary attire for their wedding ceremony and then swap to a white American style marriage dress for the greeting or for pictures.

Some brides also like the idea of renting a bridal gown for a destination marriage so they do not have to deal with inconvenience of carrying large number of dresses on a plane. This is particularly popular amidst Vegas brides. All they have to do is load their bridal jewelry sets and grab their fiancé on their way to the plane. In detail, there are even some locations which offer one halt shopping: tuxedo rental, wedding gown rental, and marriage venue all rolled into one.

Although the rising popularity of gowns for rent is a growing phenomenon couples need to look at the other aspect. Rental dress mostly comes in standard sizes so there is much the likelihood that may not fit you well. Some rental services offers modifications but with additional charges. You may have to settle on a dress that is alright, rather than having the experience of wearing your dream wedding gown.

Not every bride will be joyous with that. One of the few other things that a couple considers before renting a gown is the condition of the wedding dress. It will not be emblem new when it comes to you, so there is always the possibility that it may not be flawless. Furthermore there is always a thought in your in brain that you must return the wedding gown in the condition in which you had received it. If somebody spills a glass of red wine on your gown, you will end up paying extra amount.

Don’t overlook the sentimental facets of marriage gowns either. For many brides, their marriage gowns, bridal jewelry sets and veils become cherished mementos from their weddings; would it make you miserable not to have your bridal gown to someday pass down to your female child? The rising popularity of gowns for rent can be a very practical reason for most but, obviously it is not a good idea for every bride.

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: Clothes, Clothing

Letter to My Daughter – About Life

April 4, 2013 by Ashley 16 Comments

My Dearest Daughter,

When I was a little girl, your grandmother and I had a nightly tradition. She would lay with me in bed and just listen as I told her about my day. I’m sure I rambled on and on about nothing but she was always good to listen to me. I would often ask her to share stories from her own childhood, something I could relate to. I can still vividly remember many of her stories. I think I rehearsed them over and over in my mind because they made me feel like I was normal, like I was on the right path. I cherished those times and I hope to share this tradition with you soon. You’re learning many new words everyday so I don’t think it will be too long now before we can start this.

I’m astounded at how fast you’re growing and learning! Here is a small list of the things I want you to always remember:

You are loved, very loved! By everyone in your family and by so many others.
You’ll have lots of friends in life. Some will stay with you for a lifetime but most will come and go. Always be the best friend you can be.
Learn from your mistakes. You’ll make mistakes, everyone does, but it’s important to learn from them and move on. Don’t waste an opportunity to learn.
Love your body. You are beautiful just the way you are. You don’t have to be skinny to be pretty. Beauty is found in all shapes and sizes. Take care of your body by eating healthy and exercising but don’t put too much focus on outward beauty.
Try your very hardest in school but don’t worry too much about what your grades are. Believe in yourself. I believe in you, your Dad believes in you, and so do all of those other people I mentioned before that love you.
Work hard. My grandpa taught me the joy that comes from working hard. I hope you’ll learn this lesson too. Don’t be afraid of hard work. Take a break from time to time but don’t give up, even when you feel like it.
Don’t worry about the cool kids and what they think of you. The less you care about them the happier you’ll be. Don’t ever do anything just because someone else is doing it. Trust your instincts. If you have to think twice about doing something or if you’re worried you’ll get caught doing it, walk away.
Don’t be discouraged by the word “no.” You will hear it many times from your Father and I but there’s always a reason behind it. Remember #1 when you’re tempted to be discouraged. You are loved! There is a reason for the “no.” Trust us.
You can’t change people. You can’t change your friends, your parents, and even men later in life. Always accept people the way they are and if they aren’t someone you want to become then don’t hang around them (except your parents of course, you’re stuck with us!).
When you’re having a down day, find something that makes you happy and do that. I like to listen to music and dance like a crazy person. You might like to run, draw, sing or write a poem. Find something that you like to do that brightens your spirits.
Your attitude is your choice. This is a great lesson to learn early on! You control your thoughts. Always try and see the bright side of a situation and see the good in people. You can’t always change your circumstances but you can always change your attitude.
God loves you. He created you special and He cares about you more than you can comprehend. He wants to be your very best friend. He’s always there to listen, even when Mom and Dad are busy.

I enjoy spending each and every day with you and I look forward to the watching you grow up. You’re a beautiful little girl!

I’ll love you always.

– Mom

A few bloggers and I decided to put together a Letters to our Children blog hop and we hope you’ll enjoy reading these heartfelt letters to our children. There are 9 blogs in total and to hop over to the next blog please visit, Penelope’s Oasis. She’s fabulous, I know you’ll enjoy her!

Filed Under: Letters to My Daughter, Life Lately Tagged With: Life Lately

April Photo A Day Challenge

April 4, 2013 by Ashley 6 Comments

Because each of our Photo a Day Challenges have been more fun than the last I couldn’t help but host another one. Welcome to our April Photo a Day Challenge!

A thousand apologies for those who were waiting on this and waiting patiently for it. I’ve been dreadfully laid up in bed sick this past week and I haven’t been able to get this together until now. Please forgive my tardiness!

Did you play along with us last month? If you’re a regular photo-a-day’er or if this is your first challenge we welcome you to come and join us! This is all for fun so if you skip a day or two you can make them up later or just forget about them. No pressure! This is just a fun way to slow down and focus on the beauty in life. Every day moments in life are beautiful!

It has been a true joy to see all of your fun pictures and to get to know some of you better! More and more people are participating and I’ve been trying my best to make it around and comment or like everyone’s pictures every few days. I can’t wait to get started looking at this month’s pictures.

How to participate:

All it takes to join in is to simply take a photo and post it on a social media site with the hashtag #EmbracingBeauty. I’m using Instagram and sometimes I’ll post them on Twitter and Facebook too. When you tag your photos with the #EmbracingBeauty hashtag they’ll join the list of photos under the #EmbracingBeauty hashtag (on Instagram & Twitter). If you click on the “#EmbracingBeauty” it will pull up everyone’s photos who are playing along. You can see all the fun photo ideas other Embracing Beauty readers are sharing. What fun!!

Who’s ready to join me?

Filed Under: Life Lately, Photo a Day Tagged With: Photo a Day, Photo a Day Challenge

Saving for a Better Future with #MassMutual

April 3, 2013 by Ashley 14 Comments

Ever since I was a little kid I knew how to work hard and save for what I wanted. I can explicitly remember cleaning family members houses to earn money for a new Barbie doll. In elementary school they encouraged us to open a savings account and we could add our money to it each week by bringing it to our teacher. It was fun to see that money add up over time and the more it grew the more I wanted to contribute to it. It was a great feeling of accomplishment for a small child.

When I was in high school I got my first job and I made $6.50 an hour. It was a great job just starting out and there was opportunity to earn more through incentives. I worked hard and earned over $12 an hour. I gave my tithes out of each paycheck and the rest of that money went into a savings account. I didn’t spend even a penny on anything for myself. After I graduated I bought a laptop with the money I had saved and the rest of that money went toward my tuition.

Fast forward a few years and now I’m married and a mom to a beautiful little girl. My husband has a good job that has allowed me to stay at home. We’re so grateful for his job! For several years now I’ve been blogging and that has helped bring in an extra income while staying at home and caring for my family. It’s a win-win! It’s something I love doing and it feels great to be able to contribute to the family’s finances a bit.

A few years after we were married we went through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University together and we absolutely loved it. It has transformed the way we think about money and it has enabled us to make wise financial decisions together. We not only want to have our needs provided for in the here and now but we also want to plan for our future.

A new research study, MassMutual’s State of the American Mom, found that many moms have strong hopes and convictions about providing financially for their families, but given the multiple demands of the life of a mom, many also find it hard to achieve. I think we can all relate to that, right? College savings, saving for retirement, managing day-to-day expenses and educating yourself and children all rank as top priorities, yet some moms shared that they may feel overwhelmed about ways to start thinking about all of them.

My husband and I are doing our best to plan for our future. We’ve agreed to cut back on certain budget areas like clothing, vacations, and entertainment until we get to the financial state we want to be. We have been putting money into retirement regularly now for a good number of years. We have life insurance policies set up for each of us just in case. We don’t have a college savings plan for our kid(s) yet but we’re waiting a while to start that until we get to where we want to be financially.

As busy parents it’s easy to focus on the immediate and put off thinking about the future until it’s too late. It’s far better to be prepared than to be hurting later. MassMutual has created a handy new quiz to help moms start thinking about their financial future and gives them tips on how they can take small steps to plan for their financial futures.

Take the Quiz

I took the quiz and it labeled me as a “successful planner,” and I think that’s a fair assessment. I feel fairly optimistic about our financial situation but it’s always a good idea to revisit our plans every year.

Where are you at financially? What steps are you taking to ensure a financially secure future?

If you are seeking guidance concerning your financial state, MassMutual has a family finances page with some helpful resources for financial planning, ideas for teaching your kids about money, and even how to find a financial professional in your area. You can also like MassMutual on Facebook and follow MassMutual on Twitter.

I wrote this post as participation in in a blog tour for Mom Central on behalf of MassMutual and received compensation in the form of an Amazon gift code to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: MassMutual, Savings, Tips