Pedicures and Pain - Yeah, they don't belong together!

I sat there wincing afraid to look down at my toes again.  The first three times I peeked at my toes - I saw blood.  She was dabbing the blood hoping it would stop bleeding before I noticed, I think.  The first two times she had cut my big toe nails too short and that was caused the bleeding.  Honest mistake.  But by the third and fourth time, honestly I was speechless.  I was paralyzed with disbelief that again (on different parts of my toes) that she had caused me to bleed again.

I know that my crazy pain tolerance played a part in my delayed reaction.  I've had a collapsed lung and walked around explaining it was just a "funny" feeling I had in my shoulder blade.  I've walked around with a cracked finger bone until my finger was so swollen that I could no longer wear my wedding ring before going to the doctor - declining any pain medication.

It wasn't until I saw the blood and felt the stinging from the alcohol they use that the gravity of the situation had sunken in.  This has never happened before and I've had many, many pedicures.

I was so caught off guard by it that I never said anything about the stinging or discomfort, even as I paid and tipped her.  But what burns me now is neither did she.  She knows as she was constantly dabbing the blood.  That's the part that really bugs me.

I'm savvy enough to understand that this was one person who was obviously inexperienced or just plain having a bad day, but I gotta tell you I'm going to be really skittish for awhile when it comes to pedicures...

What would you have done?  My reaction frankly shocks me.  I'm normally the first person to call someone on something like that...

And for the curious... yes - those are my actual toes post pedicure.  :)

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Cloud Watching - Wordless Wednesday

Okay, I admit it, I'm a sucker for gorgeous clouds.  The above is a picture I took recently of the sky. 

It's Wednesday and that means the week is half over!  Have a great day!

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Happy Mother's Day and Gift Card Giveaway for Mimi's Cafe

Happy Mother's Day!

As Moms it seems like our job is never done, just as soon as you finish one task it seems fifty others pop up!!! 

At Mimi's Cafe, they are celebrating the "Mimi's Month of Mom" and offering special menu options (full menu can be seen here) including Le Parisian Omelet, Cinnamon Brioche French Toast, Chicken Madeira Crepes, Parisian Shrimp Salad along with Cafe Classics including Mimi’s Slow Roasted Turkey Dinner and Oven Fresh Pot Roast and more. Moms can also add a Sparkling Wine Flight or a variety of delectable desserts, including Red Velvet Cheesecake.  These will be available all May long.

Starting on May 14th Mimi's Facbook Fans and Twitter Fans can download a $5 off coupon on Family Meals to go here.  There are 10 separate dishes that feed up to five people and all for under $25!  You can order them online here or through their new app.  Talk about making nutritious meals more convenient!

And what's the best part?  I have three $25 Mimi's gift cards to giveaway to three lucky readers so you too can take the night off from cooking or treat yourself to a breakfast!

Here's how to enter:

Mandatory first entry - Take a look at the Mimi's Menu here and tell us what you would order in a comment below.

Additional entries (please make a separate comment for each additional entry).

• Become (or state you already are) a fan of OCMomActivities on Facebook
• Become (or state you already are) a fan of Mimi's Cafe on Facebook
• Follow OCMomActivities on Twitter (or let us know you already are)
• Follow Mimi's Cafe on Twitter (or let us know you already are)

Giveaway will end Sunday May 27th, 2012 at 11:59pm pacific time. A winner will be drawn using random.org and I reserve the right to draw another winner if I am not able to get mailing address information in a timely manner. Giveaway is only open to residents of the contiguous US. Please ensure I have a way to contact you to notify you if you have won.  I highly recommend you become a fan of OCMomActivities on Facebook as that is where is winner will be announced first.

Note: A gift card was received to facilitate the creation of this post.

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$1 Blended Coffees at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf TODAY!

I don't deny it - I'm a HUGE coffee fan.  If you're at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf fan, you'll want to head down today from 2-6 pm for a $1 blended Mocha Mudslide or Cookies & Cream (12 ounce).

For more information you can head to their Facebook page here or just head down to your local store!

Enjoy!

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Sunflowers for Teacher Appreciation Week - Wordless Wednesday!

It's Teacher Appreciation Week at my son's school.  Monday was bring a flower day and my boys chose to bring giant sunflowers! (the above picture is the actual flowers!)

Have a great rest of the week!

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Skinnygirl Daily Vitamin Power Packets - Perfect for After a Workout!

I've been working really hard at losing weight (ok that might be an understatement - I've been working my tail off!).  I've been counting calories, hitting the gym five days a week for a good 1-2 hour workout.  It's paying off big time, but I still have a long way to go.  I'm down about 30 pounds (yay!) in the last couple months.

Since I have been getting in such intense workouts in (lately I'm doing 4-6 mile runs on the treadmill in addition to weight training), by the time I get home I am needing to rehydrate big time.  And it seems to feel like I spend the rest of the day guzzling water.  I love water, but it definitely gets boring! 

I'm totally a fan of Bethenny Frankel (Skinnygirldaily.com) and had see that she had created a line of powdered drink packets, so I jumped at the chance to try them out!

What I absolutely love about them is they are so unique and different than all the other drink mixes I have seen.  There is Strawberry Lemonade (for energy and alertness), Wild Berry (for hair, skin and nails), Tangerine for Immunity and my personal favorite is the Blueberry Lemonade (for stress relief and calm).  Each packet contains multi-vitamins and electrolytes so they are perfect for re-hydration after a workout!

Readers of OCMomActivities get a special $5 and purchase of $14 or more through their website through May 20th when you enter the promo code MOTHERSDAY at SkinnygirlDaily.com.  Note this is the only place you can purchase these and the other fabulous items in the Skinnygirl Daily line.

Another bonus?  Orders of the multi-vitamin packets now through May 15th will also receive a free t-shirt!

Note:  I received several packets to facilitate my review but the opinions as always are 1000% my own!

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Surviving Those First Haircuts & A Coupon from Cool Cuts 4 Kids

I'll never forget my oldests' first haircut.  The stylist chased my son around the salon getting a snip in here and there as he could.  We couldn't stop laughing at how comical it was.  I think it took almost an hour to get a full haircut in, but we all agreed it was worth the entertainment.  He was my regular stylist and father to 4, so he was laughing as hard as the rest of us.

It was at that point I knew there had to be a reason there were kid specific places for haircuts!  A neighbor with kids mentioned to me that there was this perfect place to take kids for haircuts - called Cool Cuts 4 Kids.  From the moment I walked in - I knew it was perfect for kids!  There were totally cool booster seats at each station, video games and movies for each station.   They have learned that it's easiest to get the haircuts done when the kids are distracted and we all know they love watching movies and playing video games!

Cool Cuts 4 Kids has locations across the country (you can go here to find the one closest to you) and print out the below coupon for $5 off your spring haircut (you can also download the coupon here)!  Post your pic on the OCMomActivities fan page.

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Happy Birthday to My Mom

The silence and sadness my mother and I felt as we got ready for her birthday lunch so many years ago is one that brings me so many mixed emotions looking back.  I treasure that one last lunch with her that we could pretend everything was okay.  One last time that we could shut the real world out and forget what was looming. 

My world had crashed down around me. Twice.  First with her initial terminal diagnosis and second with the knowing the cancer was back and going to win.

After that day we couldn't ignore the signs that her cancer was back with a vengeance and that the time had come to say our final goodbye, her battle was coming to an end.  The battle with cancer she had been so fiercely fighting for months had taken its toll on her physically and emotionally. She was ready to stop fighting and it broke my heart but I understood. 

She had been given 3 days to live at her initial diagnosis.  3 days.  The 11 months we had after that initial diagnosis were a gift.  Taking care of her 24/7 as her body deteriorated is something I wouldn't trade for anything.  As a teenager it was something even then I saw as a way to give back to her for all the years she had taken to raise me.  As a thank you for everything she had given up for me.

Her birthday every year brings me such mixed emotion.  I'm glad she is in a better place - free of worry and sickness, but I miss her more than I can put in to words.  Losing her left a hole in my life - one that exists even today over a decade later.

I'm only left with beautiful memories and the peace of knowing that nothing was left unsaid. I miss her so incredibly much and choose to be the best mother I can be each and every day because of her.

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Organic Garden Solution for Bugs

I was organic gardening before it was popular, but I had no idea.  Growing up, my mom was constantly tending to her multiple compost piles and elaborate garden.  I'll never forget the one day we got a panicked call from the neighbors saying the compost pile was smoking and appeared to be about to catch fire!  It wasn't, but it was working so well that smoke was coming up from it!

Needless to say with my my mother's constant supply of fresh compost and tender loving care - the garden flourished.  I learned at a very early age that a healthy garden was not one full of pesticides.  Turning to pesticides was a last resort.  Setting up a garden (veggie or fruit in particular) needs to have the right balance. 

My mom and I had planted an elaborate rose garden one year and I remember there was an infestation of bugs.  My mom didn't make a made dash for pesticides, instead we stocked up on lady bugs!  Lady bugs eat smaller bugs and are an inexpensive and non toxic way to eliminate bugs FAST. 

So when my newly planted lime tree was infested with black bugs I made a mad dash to the local nursery to buy a canister of live lady bugs!  At a cost of about $8 (for 1500 live lady bugs!) it was a great solution and talk about an organic approach!  And not to mention the endless fun my boys had as lady bugs filled the yard and needed rescuing from puddles, etc.

Within 24 hours (literally) the massively infested lime tree was completely clean of the black bugs!

What tips and tricks do you have for finding the natural balance in your garden without turning to chemicals?

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A Children's Book Must Have

Raising our children to grow up to become happy, healthy, well adjusted and responsible adults is what all parents should aspire too.  I'm always a fan of finding great stories to read to young children to inspire them to BE the change they want to see in the world and to be able to look back at their childhood with fond memories of just being a kid is such an important gift to a child.

There is a wonderful book that does just that - it inspires kids to be the change they want to be.  It's a story about a young boy inspired to run for President called Roger Nix, President at Six by Nick Daze.  But he is self publishing the book and needs help with pledges to meet his goal so he can get it to print! 

So take a minute and head here to pledge a donation (each level of donation gets you different thank you.  A $30 donation gets you a hardcover copy of the book!).  He is over 2/3 of the way to his publishing goal on Friday so any donation helps (no matter how small)!

Happy reading!

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