Hi Ho Hi Ho...*Updated with Winner!*

Congrats to Sugarbritches - she's the lucky winner of this giveaway!

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Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Diamond Edition Blu-ray and DVD combo pack has been released!  For the first time in 7 years, Disney has opened the vault for this childhood classic. 

Did you know that this was the first full-length animated film ever made?  Yep, in 1937.

And what exactly is the Diamond Edition?  Does it sparkle?  Heh.

Well, the Diamond Edition includes both a blu-ray disc AND a dvd in one package. So you can use the blu-ray at home, and then toss the dvd in the minivan for those excruciating roadtrips! 

Anyway, I got all excited when I was selected by One2One Network to participate in this campaign.  I loved Snow White as a child, so I couldn't wait to introduce the boyz to this story.

Ummm...notsomuch.  They are BOYZ.  Boyz who like SpongeBob, iCarly and Scooby Doo.  With an occasional viewing of Monsters Inc., Cars or Nemo thrown in.

Needless to say, the showing of Snow White didn't go over so well.  They weren't interested, as much as I cajoled, begged and pleaded for them to SIT STILL AND WATCH THIS GOOD MOVIE DAMMIT!

So...I'm giving my Snow White Diamond Edition away.  To you!

Just leave a comment below to win.  (Make sure you leave a valid e-mail address if you don't have a blog.)  Winner will be picked on Wednesday, October 28th.

Aged and Confused *Updated with Winner!*

Yay to my pal Michelle - she wins this CD - how could I NOT give it to her?

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Bill Engvall, star of the TBS show "The Bill Engvall Show" and the WB's "Blue Collar TV" has released his new comedy CD, Aged and Confused.

I first heard Bill Engvall back in 1998.  My friend Michelle and I were road-tripping to Florida from Charlotte, NC to mooch a free place to stay vacation with my parents.  We listed to his CD "Here's Your Sign" and just about peed our pants.  Ever since then, Bill Engvall has totally cracked me up!

And my all-time favorite comedy sketch? Is from the Blue Collar Comedy Tour with Bill Engvall!

Thanks to Special Ops Media, I have a copy of Aged and Confused to give away!  Want to win one for that special redneck in your life?  Simply leave a comment below!  (And if you don't have a blog, make sure you leave a valid e-mail address.)

Winner will be chose on Wednesday, October 28th.

WAT-AAH!

When Christine contacted me about the WAT-AAH! Back to School Challenge, I was strangely intrigued.  WAT-AAH!s goal is to test the assumption that children are addicted to sugar and think that water is boring...which actually is NOT the case in my Trenches.  Soda is a rarity for my boyz (actually NEVER if it's up to me - Hubby is way more lenient), and I always try to hydrate them with water first.  (My mantra is "Little boys DON'T DRINK SODA.")

I loved the creative slogan promises of Feel Bettaah! Grow Strongaah! Think Smartaah! and Run Fastaah! (which is how people talk here in Massachusetts anyway!) so we decided to give it a shot.

Roll the tape:

WAT-AAH! from Sarah Viz on Vimeo.


All in all, my boyz (ages 8, 5 and 4) loved the colorful packaging, loved deciding whether they wanted to drink it for their Body, Brain, Bones or Energy, and chose to take their WAT-AAH! to school instead of a juice box when I gave them the choice.  I tried it as well, and guess what?  It tastes like water.  (So it's basically a savvy way to get your children to drink more water, if you feel you need to.)

The WAT-AAH! bottles all ready for school the next morning.  Please disregard Momma's bottle of red "water" in the background.

You can buy a 12-pack at Amazon for $12, and it's also available in select states. Check their website for locations.

WAHOO! FOR WAT-AAH! with no sug-aah!

Fisher Price TRIO Blocks Giveaway! *Updated With Winner!*

*The lucky winner is Chaotic Joy!  Congrats!*

When I was invited by MomSelect (through BSM Media) to review the new Fisher Price TRIO Building Set, (there is a $5.00 off coupon on the website!), I jumped at the chance because hello??? I have little boyz who LOVE that kind of stuff!

So on a quiet night when Eldest and Hubby were at football, I turned off the TV, shut off my computer, and presented the boyz (ages 4 and 5) with their new block set.  And lemme tell you...it was love at first sight!

The 3 of us sat on the sunroom floor and surrounded ourselves with the 100-piece set.  It comes with an instruction booklet with step-by-step instructions that my 5-year old could follow (with some assistance from Momma).  We built a monster.  Then we built a ship.  Then I let the boys create their own masterpieces: 

We had company last night, and again, the TRIO blocks were a big hit:

Guess what?  I get to give a TRIO set away!  Just leave a comment below to win!  (And as always, if you don't have a blog, please leave an e-mail address where I can contact you!)  Winner will be picked on Friday, September 18th.

(And aren't you glad that all you have to do is LEAVE A COMMENT???  I read blogs all the time, and those 20 different steps you can take for more entries: click on the site, pick your favorite item, answer a question, then click here, then click HERE, tweet about the giveaway, subscribe to my blog, add me to your Favorites, post my button, promise me your firstborn child, etc....drive me CUH-RAZY.  So, you're welcome.)

Four Eyes

When I was asked by GlassesUSA to try out a pair of their eyeglasses (for free), I jumped at the chance!  Hello...I'm the nerd who wore BIFOCALS in the THIRD GRADE!  I'm well-acquainted with glasses. 

For many years, my prescription glasses looked like Coke bottles.  Sadly, I'm not even kidding.  I have horrendous vision.  But technology has come a long way since...gulp...the early 80's.

So I was eager to check out the site and pick out a brand new pair of eyeglass frames for myself!  They have a plethora of choices, and their prices are unbelieveably cheap.

I chose these Hilarie Red frames, which look almost exactly like my current pair that I paid ALMOST $200 for at my optometrist's office.  Grrr.

So what do you think?

From now on, GlassesUSA most definitely has my business!

*Use coupon code Mommy5 and receive 5% off your final order at GlassesUSA.  This coupon code NEVER expires!*

Grandparents.com

Did you know that National Grandparents Day is September 13th?  Yeah, me neither.

Until I was invited to check out the grandparents.com website.  I love that their tag line is "It's great to be grand"!  (My mom always wanted her grandchildren to refer to her as "GrandEllen".  Yeah, that never really caught on...)

And you all know how I feel about my mom, a/k/a Granny-911.  She stays with us every summer and I couldn't imagine those months without her!  My boyz miss her when she leaves in August.  And I know she misses them like crazy.

The Grandparents website has a great feature on it entitled YourVoice.  It's technology that enables the grandparent (or the grandchild, in my case) to record a message via phone line and then send it to their recipient via e-mail!

So on my first Thursday off, Baby and I sat down and I let him sing into the phone to Gramma and Poppa.  "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" was the song of choice.  (Which actually shocked me because he usually goes around singing "I kiss da gurl and I wiked it...")

So now GrandEllen Granny-911 will be able to hear her youngest grandchild's voice whenever she needs her Baby fix!

Check it out!  Send a message to your (or your child's) grandparents this Sunday!

Pop's Authentic

As a blogger, I receive a fair number of pitches from PR firms asking me to link to, try, write about, test, sample, promote, and/or WHORE MYSELF OUT for their various products, services and websites.

Safe to say, I ignore probably 85% of these e-mails.  Oftentimes my name is spelled wrong; the name of my website is incorrect; they want me to test out a new website marketed to teen girls, or infants, or SOMETHING ELSE HAVING NOTHING TO DO WITH ME OR MY BLOG.  And they want me to pitch, link to, or market their "fabulous!" and "new and exciting!" product FOR FREE.  Out of the kindness of my heart.  Because I have nothing better to do as a "mommyblogger".  Gah.

So when I received this pitch from Tara with the subject line titled "Add this to your stroller..maybe lighter than pasta?", I couldn't help but be impressed. 

(I'm paraphrasing her here because her e-mail was quite lengthy--but not in a bad way.  And I added the links to the posts that she referenced.)

"My name is Tara and I'm contacting you on behalf of Pop's Authentic.  I have to tell you that I was laughing out loud at your "Cross-Training with Rugrats" and "More Adventures in Strollering" posts...

..I also thought that instead of pasta on the next trek, you might be interested in something else that is easy and filling (and no need for cooking or ziplocks)?...

[INSERT HER ARTICULATE PITCH HERE]

...They may not go so well with the pre-made pomegranite martini, but I'm guessing that if you've gone through a couple of bottles, you need some sustenance! (I can also speak from opinion they go great with a beer!)

...I'm sure you're looking forward to your first Thursday off next week!"

How's that for a clear, concise pitch DIRECTLY TO ME?  How could I refuse??

Even Danny-911 tried a Pop's Habanero!

And enjoyed it immensely.

Pop's Authentic Handmade Artisan Meat Snacks are locally sourced and crafted with the highest standards of quality by a family-owned company in Missouri.  Made from a family recipe passed down from Pop Jennings, the patriarch of the fam, the snack sticks (think Slim Jims on steroids) are a perfect addition to your backpack...or stroller, in my case.

Eldest, my picky one, wouldn't touch them (except to pose for the above picture).  But Middle and Baby each snarfed down an Original Flavor. 

*Wanna try for yourself?  By entering "SNACK" when you go to popsauthentic.com, you will receive 25% off your order!*

And a special thank you to Tara.  For (1) taking the time to read my blog.  For (2) pitching to me in a such a personalized manner that you immediately caught my attention.  And for (3) being clear, concise and direct in what you wanted me to review.  Kudos!