WOW, it's been a long time!

Holy moly, I haven't updated my blog in a while.  I know, no excuses, however, I am back to working full-time now AND *BIG NEWS* we started our own business!!!

My amazing husband has created the coolest, most ingenious, amazing LEGO desk ever!  In fact, it is so amazing, that we have decided to make them into a business.  We are proud owners of Flippytan Furniture.  Here is a picture of the InI (pronounced eenie) LEGO Desk:

InI LEGO Desk

We have also made a few custom pieces, including this gorgeous coffee/LEGO display table for our friend / kids' former teacher. She wanted something that her kids could play with and display LEGO on, but something that could also be cleared off if it needed to be a coffee table for guests.

Custom coffee/LEGO table

We build everything by hand, everything is super high quality.  So, needless to say, we've been extremely busy!

I'll be back to blogging regularly once things are more settled with our new adventure! :)

Dessange VoxBox - Influenster

I was chosen by Influenster to participate in the Dessange Paris VoxBox.  Check out this great full-size VoxBox they sent to me!  

The VoxBox included a full size of each of the Oleo Miracle Replenishing Shampoo, the Oleo Miracle Replenishing Conditioner, and the Oleo Miracle Replenishing Oil.

I love all of the products.  The shampoo and conditioner go a long way, so you don't need to use/waste a lot when you're using it in the shower.  The oil is great, it feels so soft and smooth and doesn't make my hair feel greasy at all.  One huge difference I noticed is that if I skip a day washing my hair while using these products, my hair doesn't feel gross and greasy the 2nd day as it used to with my previous products.

My personal opinion, the scent is a tad too strong, but it's at least a nice scent.  Since my kids use our shower, my daughter has taken it upon herself to try the products as well.  She LOVES the scent and the way it makes her hair feel.  Look at how gorgeous it looks!!

I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes. #JadoreDessange

The Most Amazing LEGO Desk Ever

Due to high interest, we now have desks (a much better, updated version) available for purchase. 

Click here! 

Let me start by saying that my son is a LEGO freak.  He has more LEGO sets than most kids (or adults) I know.  We've been struggling with a way to organize his collections for several years.  It started with just some plastic bins, then to this Sterilite 3-Drawer Cart.  That was great for a while, but whenever he'd build things, we'd call him the "LEGO monster" because all we'd hear are these huge scraping sounds in those loud plastic drawers.  It. Was. Insane.  

It also got to the point where he didn't really have anywhere to build and his "LEGO cave" was just a huge mess and LEGOs would always make it out of his cave and all over the entire playroom.  The picture below is pretty clean compared to what it looked like 99% of the time.

My husband is a pretty amazing handy man & builder, so I asked him if we could build him a desk or some kind of organization system, because, honestly, his LEGO collection isn't getting any smaller.

I searched Pinterest, the Google and all over the internets for a good, relatively simple organization system, sorting system, or desk.  I found this super cool desk on Pinterest, so I showed my husband and he agreed.

So, it gets closer to Christmas and I'm asking him what the status is on the plans for the desk, he said that he was having a hard time coming up with plans.  Um.  Hello?  I sent you the link...  Anyways, long story short, the next day he spent drawing up plans in SketchUp.  It ended up looking nothing like the original desk I showed him, but it turned out AMAZING!!!

My husband said he'll paint/finish it when the weather warms up.  I'd love to keep it the original wood color, maybe just a varnish on it.

We used the plastic shoe box sized bins from Dollar Tree, the other side of the desk looks exactly the same as this side.  There are 16 bins total.  My husband wanted to make sure he had to walk around the desk when he's building. :)

 We re-organized these labels a bit to make a little more sense.  The holes drop down into their respective bins, so it makes clean up super easy, just swipe them into their spot.

I'm planning on using some regular Avery address labels to make more permanent labels for both the holes and the bins.  Just need to make sure these placements are what he wants.

I think it's pretty amazing, and my son LOVES his new desk.  It's great because he can easily find pieces he needs and I don't have to hear (as much of) the "LEGO monster" as we were hearing before.  He also has a nice big area to build on, so the LEGOs aren't all over the floor now.

It took us a while to decide how to organize and sort his LEGO collection.  I searched a ton of websites as to the best way to organize and sort.  Eventually, he just came up with his own system.  We decided to sort and organize by function/size instead of by color.  I think eventually, sorting by function and then color would be ideal.  For now, this system is working great for him.

It took forever for us me to sort and organize his LEGOs, but it was totally worth it.  I even got a wild hair and organized his instruction booklets into sheet protectors and a very large 3-ring binder.  He pretty much never uses the original instruction booklets anymore, but it'll be nice to have just in case.

Kleenex Brand Believers Mission - Crowdtap

I was chosen by Crowdtap to participate in the Kleenex Brand Believers Mission.  Check out this great sample kit they sent to me!  

The kit included Kleenex Brand Anti-Viral Tissues and Kleenex Brand Tissues with Lotion.

It was perfect timing as, of course, it's the middle of cold & flu season.  Plus, my parents AND my husband's parents came into town for Christmas.  It was great to have these extra boxes of tissues around for everyone to try out and use.  I am personally a huge fan of the Kleenex Brand Tissues with Lotion.  I hadn't tried the Kleenex Brand Anti-Viral Tissues before, but I really liked them and will definitely be buying more in the future. Both boxes were so soft on our cold noses, it never felt uncomfortable like the cheap brands of tissue.

I’m a member of the Crowdtap Kleenex Brand® rewards program, and Kleenex® Brand sent me this product to review.

Zep Cleansters Sample & Share - Crowdtap

I was chosen to participate in the Zep Cleansters Sample & Share from Crowdtap.  Check out this great sample kit!

The kit included three (3) bottles of the Zep Quick Clean Disinfectant and two (2) bottles of the Zep All Around Oxy Cleaner & Degreaser from Zep Commercial.

After it arrived, I was anxious to use it.  After I took out the garbage, I cleaned the trash can, it smelled and looked MUCH better once I was finished using the product.  I wish I got a before and after picture, but I forgot... :(

I took a few of the bottles to work and gave them to a few co-workers, one of which is the office "janitor".  I told them about the Zep Cleansters Sample & Share from Crowdtap.  Both of them tried the samples and really liked how well they worked for them!  

Italian Beef & Polenta Casserole

A friend of mine posted this recipe from a magazine on Facebook.  I noticed it had zucchini in it, so I had to try it since we have an overabundance of zucchini each summer.  I was kind of hesitant because I haven't ever tried polenta before, but I was pleasantly surprised.  My husband and daughter liked it, my son wouldn't even try it, but that's nothing new.

Italian Beef & Polenta Casserole

2 medium zucchini

1 (17 oz) tube of basil & garlic polenta (I used plain because that's all I could find)

1 lb ground sirloin (I used ground beef, you could also use Italian sausage)

1 (24 oz) jar of pasta sauce

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 cup shredded Italian blend cheese

Preheat oven to 375*.

Cut zucchini in half lengthwise; cut crosswise into 1/4 inch slices.

Cut polenta crosswise into 8 slices; coat each slice with cooking spray.

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.

Add polenta slices; cook 3 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned.

Arrange polenta slices in an 11" x 7" baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Reheat pan over medium-high heat.

Brown ground beef, remove from pan and drain if necessary.

Add zucchini to pan, saute 3-4 minutes, or until tender.

Add beef, pasta sauce and pepper to pan with zucchini.  Cook 1-2 minutes, or until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally.

Spoon mixture over polenta, sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 375* for 18-20 minutes, or until cheese melts and is bubbly.

Yield 6-8 servings.

Smoopa: Favorite Shopping Comparison/Cash Back App

I have been using Smoopa for a little over a year now and have earned over $150 cash back from my purchases.  It seems like a tiny amount: $0.20 here and $0.05 there, but it really adds up.

The developers are pretty awesome too, they actually take your feedback into consideration and reply to your requests.  

If you haven't tried it yet, you need to.  Seriously, it's amazing how fast your cash back adds up.  The number one thing I like about Smoopa the most compared to other shopping/cash back apps is that you just scan what you purchased and you can get cash back (obviously not on EVERYTHING, but on most things).  Whereas other apps have a "list" of things you can buy to get cash back.

I also like that you don't have to link your app/account to your Facebook account.

Check it out, and if you use promo code a283086d8b, we'll both get a $2 bonus with your first approved claim.  

Smoopa in Google Play

Smoopa in the Amazon App Store

Smoopa in iTunes