EBATES

If you're going to do your shopping online anyway, why not get rewarded for doing it?!
On top of using your rewards credit cards, you can sign up with ebates.  All you have to do is choose your favorite store (GAP, Victoria's Secret, Sports Authority, Apple store, Toys R Us, Walmart, etc - there are over 1,200) and you will be directed to a page with coupons and links to that store. Click a link and you will be directed to your store where you can shop away like normal! As long as you go to the store through a link from this page, you will be eligible for cash back (and right now is the season for double cash back!) So hurry and join. Click the logo below or this link here.


There are no rebate forms to fill out, no points or miles to redeem, and you get paid in cash.
You get access to over 5,000 online coupons and free shipping offers which are updated daily.
Cash back on clothing & accessories, electronics, travel, books, games & toys, baby supplies, appliances, and more.

Join for free today and you'll get a bonus $10 gift card!

**I've honestly used this site and have received 2 checks already. It's not like winning the lottery, but any money earned by getting my normal purchases is worth the savings!

LOVE TO EAT

Ever since high school, I have loved holidays and reasons to party. My friends and I would plan the party from decorations to entertainment, and most importantly...FOOD.

Celebrating fun times with yummy treats is what I'm all about! My sister-in-law is super fun this way too. We have had gingerbread house making competitions, decorated caramel apples a few weeks ago for Halloween, and green eggs and ham for St. Patrick's day. We don't have to feel bad about our treats because they look cute and are pretty healthy!

I found this cool book called Real Moms Love to Eat. It's written by SocialMom and certified health counselor Beth Aldrich. The book  is written with an easy-to-follow 10-part plan for moms (and cooks alike) to implement to make gradual, life-long changes in their approach to food. I've spoken with so many friends who want to cut their kids from fast food "happy meals" or give healthy snacks instead of candy as treats to their young ones.

Eating healthy isn't just a phase, it should be a lifestyle change. You can learn how the food you eat affects your body. Don't worry...you won't have to start eating cardboard and water! I believe there is no reason to not eat foods you like. It is possible to do that and still look fabulous...and this book offers teaches you how to do that by providing tips, recipes, and 21 days of meal suggestions!  I have to say the recipes look delicious. 


I have looked over the tips and they are simple and useful for both those who have hours to cook or need something fast because they have 1 billion other things to do (like soccer practice, violin, laundry, cleaning, etc etc etc.)  So the Watsons can still have gangs of fun celebrating every holiday and trying out new festive foods and not feel guilty!


For fellow bloggers, Beth has a unique Food Affairiate program. For more information and ways to win prizes go here.


I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Beth Aldrich - Real Moms Love to Eat blogging program, for a chance to get 3,000 My SocialMoms Rewards points. For more information on how you can participate,click here.

POTTY TIME

I'm not sure, but I think they just called me fat.

Seriously. why is the ladies so much bigger?

ZOMBIE LAND

It's been awhile since I've been to a Provo Meetup photo shoot. Lots of dead people at the salt flats just in time for Halloween.

SPELL CHECK

North Orem needs to spell check themselves before they wreck themselves. Yikes.

Interchangeable Beaded Watch GIVEAWAY (ChunkyBling.com) - CLOSED

Remember when I wrote this post about buying a watch while in the Czech Republic because I wanted to exercise my brain? Well, I loved that watch while I was traveling, but now I have found a new place to get a watch that will also allow me to match it to my wardrobe (when I'm not living out of a suitcase and have a few more options to wear).

It's an online shop called ChunkyBling.com. Chunky Bling started out in northern California and recently relocated to Utah (shout out for my local readers). 

What I'm saying is instead of wearing the same boring watch each day, you can shop here for an interchangeable watch and change your style as often as you like.  

Let me explain it a little:

The first step is to choose an interchangeable watch band. You can choose from pretty much any color and 3 styles (casual, funky, or elegant). 

The Second step allows you to choose an interchangeable watch face. Again you have lots of color options and the faces range in size small, medium, or large.

Easy peasy.

They also offer cute Swarovski rings, charm cluster necklaces, and mother's birthstone bracelets (perfect gift just in time for Christmas).

COUPON CODE:

The nice people at ChunkyBling.com have offered to giveaway an interchangeable beaded watch to one of my readers. The winner may choose any combination of band and face!

If you can't wait for the giveaway to end, you can use the coupon code DEANN286 to get any watch set for just $24.95 until November 14, 2011. This is a really good deal!

IDAHOsers

I took a quick little vacation with the parental unit to McCall, Idaho.

Cool finds on the drive

Hanging out with the locals

Took a scenic drive though Hells Canyon

Crossing the last dam in Hells Canyon

Visited Gold Fork hot springs

 4th annual McCall Pumpkin lighting festival

 Shoshone Falls

 Evel Knievel Snake River Gorge jump site

Nearly didn't make the hike...

Creepy friends found on the path (I almost peed my pants trying to get close enough to take this photo.

WallQuotes.com by Belvedere Designs

These are the walls of my dear friend. No, he did not just move in. Boring, isn't it?!

I suggested to add some Vinyl Wall Art or Wall Decals. The only question now is where to find them. I discovered WallQuotes.com by Belvedre Designs.

They have super cute designs that are totally affordable, easy to apply (tool included), and customizable (color/size). They have Vinyl Wall Quotes (for every room of your house) and Wall Art that are pre-designed or you can create your own custom Vinyl Lettering. How cool is that?! 

Here are some examples of my favorites:

I know what you're asking because we had the same thoughts...

Will vinyl wall quotes damage the paint or texture on my walls? No.

Can I put vinyl wall words on textured walls? Yes.

Does the company have a guarantee? Yes.

Does Belvedere Designs ship internationally or to a PO Box? Double yes.

Are these totally fun to have on your walls? Of course!

Side note: They even have the ever-so-popular Custom Vinyl Family Stickers available for your car. Check em out.

If you love these Wall Quotes, you can also check them out on facebook and their blog for special discounts and fun contests. Another bonus: you have a chance to win a $50 gift certificate in their monthly contest by submitting photos of your wall quotes.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

UP House

I recently discovered there is a house in Herriman, Utah, that was built to resemble the house imagined for the Disney Pixar movie Up. So I watched the movie (I'm a little behind) and headed over to see it.

When I say it is just like the house (which plays a key role in the movie), I mean pretty much EVERY detail you can see is recreated.

Not all rooms were shown in the movie and had to be created.

The furniture, handrails, CLOSETS, retro kitchen appliances, home theater room...this place is beautiful on the inside and if you don't mind the pastel colors on the exterior you could live in it. That's right, it's for sale. If you have a spare $400,000 in your pocket, you can own the Up house.

Directions: Going northbound on Bangerter Highway, turn left on 126th South. Travel straight for a few blocks. Turn left at the light at Herriman/Main Street. You'll pass a rec center and school and if you keep an eye out on the left hand side, you'll see the brightly colored house. Turn left and the house is on the right on the corner.

LAUGHING GAS

I have a new dentist who offers laughing gas to patients at no extra charge.
Deanna on gas can get a little funny...and I've been visiting him a lot lately.

1st visit
Dentist to assistant: I need a diamond.
deanna: A diamond?!
Dentist: it's a drill.
deanna: a grill?! Like a black person?!
*The assistant said she would make a note in my file to not give me gas on my next visit.

2nd visit
After leaving the office, I went through a 2 hour series of laughing hysterically and then crying (tears included) because I didn't know why I was laughing. I'm pretty sure that happened 5 times. I might have even walked into a wall or two trying to walk out of the office.
*The dentist told me he gave me 15% more oxygen and turned it on earlier to bring me back to normal faster.

3rd visit
*A new assistant asked if I wanted the gas. My head said no, but my mouth told her yes.
The dentist put some sort of rubber piece over my mouth which I later found out is called a rubber dam.
deanna: Is that a whoopee cushion on my face?
assistant: No, it's just there to help keep things from getting in our work space.
deanna: Ok...so why is there a whoopee cushion on my face?

*The new assistant said she's never seen it affect someone as much as it does when I come in. Lucky me!
I have at least one more visit coming up. I'll let you know how it goes.

EVERY HEAD NEEDS A GOOD PILLOW

I just can't shake this root canal thing so the dentist keeps giving me medicine that makes me sleep. A LOT. I learned that the root of the tooth hangs out near the sinus line so I decided to try bedding for allergies to make my situation a little more bearable. I was told my pillow was a truly allergy free pillow, made with a shell using the certified 100% cotton Allersoft.  Trust me, good sleep comes when you have a good pillow!
Quality benefits of the allergy pillow are:

• With a mean flow pore size diameter of 5 microns, this fabric is one of the most effective barriers against pet dander, dust mites, bed bugs and other harmful allergens.
• A much tighter weave and higher thread count offers the best in durability from laundering.
• 4 oz per square yard with 280 threads stitched per square inch.
• Air permeability reading of 5 which indicates a wonderfully cool fabric.
• All covers are sewn with a "safety" double stitch and at least 12 stitches/inch.
• Latex free
• Hypoallergenic polyfiber fill with no added chemicals
• Machine washable

I received the product mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

LASER HAIR REMOVAL...LAME

I'm pretty sure laser hair removal is a scam (unless, of course you work at a place and can do it to yourself 1,724 times).

Instead of calling it laser hair REMOVAL, it should be called laser hair it will probably just take longer to grow back.

LAME.

CELL PHONES & FREE MP3s

It is NOT ok to cut me off or drive like a dummy while you're talking on your cell phone. I'm a girl, but I must report this has been done to me recently by SEVERAL girl drivers. Quit talking and PAY ATTENTION, please.

Ahem...

It is OK, however,  to listen to sweet tunes while you're driving. So why not go Amazon free MP3 page right now where you can use the code FALLMP3S  to score a FREE $2 credit to download some sweet tunes (which can go straight into your iTunes if you wish).

YELLOWSTONE

I arrived in Utah after 3 flights from Prague, slept a few hours, and then jumped in the car for a road trip to Yellowstone. Why not?!

Who usually always has a camera with her at all times?
THIS GIRL.

Who had this new lens waiting for her at home upon her arrival?
THIS GIRL.

Who got in the car and started driving without her camera?
Sadly...THIS GIRL.

I'll blame it on Mr. Jetlag...even though he didn't have much on me this time around.
So here is my version of Yellowstone via Android camera phone.

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

Petrified National Park monster

Why'd the Buffalo cross the road?

Not all Tetons are Grand...taken in Grand Teton National Park.