A Fabulously Flawed Life

There are a few perks to my day job and one of them is that on occasion I get invited to blogger outreach events from brands.  I had the coolest opportunity to fly out to Scottsdale, Arizona to attend Bosch Kitchen Re-Engineered event. This isn't the Arizona I lived in as a kid. Holy Smokes!  The hotel was an oasis in the dessert and I felt like I was at a tropical destination the entire weekend.  What I learned at Bosch University {Video} To be honest, I didn't know much about Bosch before I attended the event.  The first time I heard the brand name was at my friend Diana's house.  So you can imagine how blown away I was at the technology and attention to detail in each of their products.   Convection Cooking With convection cooking ~ you can cook salmon, asparagus, and cookies in 12 minutes at the same time! Those of you who know me well, know that I hate to cook.  However, when I do rest assured that it's the most efficient way possibl...

Have you guys heard of Let's Art Party ? Holy smokes it is so much fun.  Tiffany invited several of us out to join in the fun and honestly I had a blast. You can bring in food and drinks so it's more like a party than a class.  The instructor stands at the top and gives you step-by-step instructions on how to paint the canvas. It's so easy a kid could do it!  I'll admit it's a little intimidating at first but the instructor really encourages each person to put their own personality into the painting and really make it your own. I went for a more muted look, while several of the women tried to copy the instructions exactly, while others took it to a new level and went wild.  {snicker}  When I showed the horse I painted to my boys there were SO impressed and really made me feel like I did a good job.  It surprised me how much they liked it.  They even asked where I was going to hang it up.  {Ahhh it's that cute!}  { image credit ...

Can you tell that I still really miss summer?  I know that I shouldn't be so obvious about it but I really do.  We created several wonderful memories as a family but hands down the best ones were at Universal Orlando Resort . If you're planning a trip, I blogged about all my travel tips over on Tip Junkie:   Harry Potter World ~ Avoid Lines and Insider Tips  24 Universal Studios Ride and Insiders Secrets    23 Best Insiders Tips to Universal Islands of Adventure!   Universal Studios Vacation Count Down Calendar 5 Perks to a Hotel Key {perks of staying on-site} I created a vacation count down calendar with my new Silhouette machine so that we could all anticipate the trip together.   In each roller coaster is a piece of paper with information on a ride or attraction that we'll get to experience.  I wanted the boys to really get a feel for how amazing this trip would be, know what to expect, as well as bond our famil...

Talk about some serious shaving cream, sun, and sprinkler fun!  To celebrate Dylan going into Middle school we threw all the 5th graders an outdoor bash.  Just like we did for our oldest kiddos . Dylan immediately got into it and joined in the fun as soon as we arrived. This year we didn't do as many organized games because it just wasn't needed.  Each kiddo was armed with a can of shaving cream and the festivities began! Ahhh... to be a kid again. Thank goodness Megan had the slip and slide ~ it ended up being the shower to wash off all the shaving cream. {snicker} I just adore this little man.  Out of all my boys, he is the most like me.  He handles life the same way that I do and has many of my personality traits.  It just makes it easier to understand him and be in his life.  He's truly a joy and blessing in our family.

This year for Mother's Day Jason did the laundry and the boys folded all the socks.  Dude. Now that's some serious love.

Visiting Sea World San Antonio of Texas this summer?  Then  you're going to need these insider secrets To Plan Your Trip!  Sure you can just show up to Sea World San Antonio in Texa s and wait in an hour line for a hamburger... or you can be armed with an easy game plan and really enjoy your trip to Sea World.  {wink} Tip #1 ~ Plan Your Day Before You Arrive at the Park Did you know that SeaWorld San Antonio has an iPhone and Droid app ?  Yep, first things first and download the app to your phone.  You'll love it!  It has the show schedule {which changes frequently}, a map to the park, and you can even take pictures of your day ad upload them.  It's seriously cool.  You'll be able to find a restroom and pick a place to eat right at your finger tips. Create a Food, Show, and Ride plan.   So use the rest of these insider tips to really plan out what you are going to be doing every hour of the day to maximize your experience, mon...

  Lately the boys have had way too much time on their hands, so we headed over to Hobby Lobby and got some models. Ahhh... busy boys + bonding time with dad = quiet time.

Rub a Dub Dub ~ Faux Hawks in the Tub!  Tub time with Drakie.

I had the coolest experience at CHA {The Craft and Hobby Association Expo} and even though it was months ago, I just couldn't resist telling you all about it. It's so beautiful and there are craft supplies everywhere you look.  It's a crafters dream! * I must apologize for my terrible pictures.  I just got a new camera so I am so excited to learn how to use it and take amazing photos for you fab gals. {wink} I flew directly from Blissdom {a blogging conference} to CHA in LA with Jen, Marie , Beckie , and Kami.   It was awesome to get to know these amazing women so much better. I'm always amazed when I find other women who have the same passions and insterests that I do.  {snicker}   Cindy – Jen – Kami – Heather – Marie – Me – Beckie – Amy We weren't the only bloggers there!  We met up with so many others who also share our addiction to paper,  products, and things that glitter. CHA is an expo where stores buy their products direct ...