Metromint Review and Giveaway!

The other morning I was leaving a work meeting, making my way through the rain to my car.  I misjudged where the curb was on the sidewalk, and lo and behold I took a tumble.  I was wearing heels, so my ankle rolled to the side, then I landed on my arm and lower back.

Of course I was wearing my new blue suit.

No one saw me fall, so I hobbled to the car, then drove myself to Rite-Aid to buy some instant ice packs. My ankle swelled up really well, most likely because I've broken that ankle twice already.  After a couple days of icing, resting and ibuprofen, I'm able to walk okay, but it's still bruised, puffy, and stiff.  I know what a break feels like, so this is most likely a bad sprain.

Of course it happens right when the weather starts getting nice, and I want to be outside running. But it could be worse.


Oh Friday, how I love thee........let's celebrate shall we, with a giveaway?!

I'm a fan of mint flavored goodies.  We have a stash of Thin Mints in the freezer, peppermint patties make me happy, Eliza and I go through mint chocolate chip flavored chewing gum like it's nobody's business.  So we really enjoyed sampling Metromint flavored water.


Metromint is pure water infused with real mint essential oils, it has zero calories, sweeteners and preservatives.  We all know that mint can freshen up stinky breath, mint tea can ease an upset stomach, and just smelling it can ease a stressful moment.  In my opinion, pairing it with bottled water is genius.

We were sent a box with the following flavors, Spearmint, Peppermint, Chocolate Mint, Lemon Mint, Goodberry Mint and Orange Mint.  We put them all in the fridge because everything tastes better when cold, the we started with the Spearmint. When I was a kid we had mint growing in our backyard, I would pick a leaf or two and chew on them just for the heck of it.  When I took a sip of the Spearmint Metromint, it tasted just. like. that.

Seriously.

Eliza chose the Chocolate Mint next.....that was the last I saw of it.

I really liked all the flavors, they taste very clean and fresh, but I think the lemon mint was a close second.  

Want a chance to win a box of all the flavors I mentioned???  Leave me a comment, telling me what you like to drink to stay hydrated.  You can find Metromint on facebook or on Twitter.  If you can't wait to see if you won, you can purchase Metromint through Amazon.com.

I will choose a random winner next Friday May 24th.

Good Luck, and Happy Weekend!


*Note: I was sent samples of the product for the purpose of this review. My opinions are my own. 

Wordless Wednesday: Day Two of Training, I Fall, Now I Have This

I guess I'd call it a hiatus.

Today is extra special to me, because my very first Mother's Day was spent bringing Luke home from the hospital two days after he was born.

Right now it's very chilly and grey outside, but it's the perfect chance to snuggle with my monkeys. I took all these photos with my new Samsung Galaxy phone, but they're pretty lousy looking.

Luke made me a bracelet.

Apparently I have a hairy hand.

I think about blogging every day. Tomorrow it will be six weeks since I started my new job, and I finally feel like I've adjusted to our new life. I've figured out how to get everything done in a day, and now it's time to get back into my blogging groove, as I've sorely missed it.  I read blogs on my phone when I have a minute here and there, but I miss the daily interaction that I had with my blog friends.  So I declare this blogging hiatus of mine officially o-ver.....

Luke turned nine this past week.  Four years ago I wrote a post called "I now have a five year old." Five felt like such a big boy age, but I obviously didn't know what I was talking about.  When we first moved into our home, our neighbor's son was nine.  He just finished up his freshman year of college.  So when you hear people say how quickly children grow, believe it.

I had a hard time figuring out what to buy Luke for his birthday, because he's in that in-between age where toys don't hold the appeal that they used to, and technology is at the forefront of his interests.  He wanted an iPod touch, but I told him Mommy just got one for Christmas, so he's got to wait a while for one of his own.

I saw this, but didn't think it was appropriate:

So we settled on a remote control helicopter.



Have you heard of Bulu Box?

Bulu Box is a vitamin, supplement and general health subscription sample box.  They send you a box each month, full of samples of various products that complement a healthy life style:

As a Bulu Ambassador, I get the opportunity to share my opinion on products that I might not have seen otherwise, like this Vitamin C spray:

I'm not the most dexterous person, so the first time I tried the spray, I managed to spray the side of my face, instead of my mouth.  It is a very sweet, intense orange flavor. I was thinking of putting it in the fridge, so that it would taste more like chilled orange juice.  Mike thought it was a great idea, and thinks there should be one for calcium (he's a bit lactose intolerant).

If you want to check out a Bulu Box of your own, click on the badge above, or on my sidebar, and you can check out their offerings, there are two options, a regular box, and a weight loss box.

To get your first Bulu Box free OR $10 off any subscription (month-to-month, 3, 6, or 12-month subscriptions), use this code: BULUGAN666


Okay, almost time for the Survivor finale......any guesses on the winner?  I'm thinking it might be Erik.  After Dawn gave such a back stabbing to poor Brenda, she better be going next!

Back in the land of pantyhose.

Last week was rough.  

Like everyone else in the world, my heart absolutely broke over what happened in Boston. I have family who live there, and a friend of mine was running the marathon.  They are all thankfully okay, but as a marathon runner, and someone who lived in NYC during 9/11, my emotions were running high.  The explosion in Texas that followed so quickly was too much.  My thoughts and prayers goes out to the injured, and to the families of those who lost their lives in both cities. I can still barely look at the picture of little Martin Richard, who was the same age as my son. 

Tomorrow I start my third week at my new job.  When you go from working at home, to working in an office, you can't help but compare certain things.  For instance:

• I've traded jeans/leggings for my suits (and I'm not talking about the bathing kind).
• My feet are no longer in Birkenstocks or running shoes, but boots and heels.
• My 10:00 coffee break is no longer shared with Kathie Lee and Hoda.
• I'm brown bagging my lunch instead of picking at leftovers in my fridge.
• I still have a window to look out of, but now my view is of a busy street, instead of my quiet road
• Frank is now walked at 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. instead of any time that strikes our fancy.
• I used to be able to steam a head of broccoli any time I felt like it, but if I microwave broccoli at work, I'm sure I'd be really popular with my new colleagues.

The upside to all this?

I get a paycheck. 

Have a great Monday!

In my thoughts and prayers.....

I appreciate every moment, but every now and then you get a reminder.

Our holiday weekend started off on a good note.  Mike came home a a little early, and we went to pick up our "new to us" car:

It had very low mileage, and it was in great condition.  I decided to make a trip to B.J.'s (on a Friday night) in order to take it for a test drive.

Saturday was sunny, and relatively warm.  Frank and I went for a run, and I felt a taste of spring in the air.  I was feeling happy and optimistic about the direction our lives seemed to be going in.  With Easter coming I truly felt a sense of new beginnings and hope.

We colored Easter Eggs, Mike and the kids made their entries for the family "ugly egg contest", and made plans to go out to a local pub to watch the S.U. game with my brothers and sisters in law.  We headed to the outside bar, along with four flat screens, we got there early enough to stake out a spot in the sunshine.  It was sooooo nice to be outside, in March, in Syracuse!  The game was great, and S.U. is in the Final Four Baby!

Easter morning the kiddo's got up extra early, which as every parent knows, should be expected on a holiday/weekend and not on a school day.

They were happy with what the Easter Bunny left: chocolate, a Skylander for Luke, and lip gloss for Miss E.

Monday the kiddo's had play dates they hung out with their friends, Luke then went on a sleepover, Miss E had her BFF over to our house to sleep.  Tuesday I did a double take when I woke up, to see six inches of new snow, although it is technically spring.

We felt a movie day was in order so we headed to the mall to see The Croods (two thumbs up), hit the arcade, then headed home.

Mike came home from work, and realized he forgot to get gas on his way home.  Instead of rushing around in the morning, he decided to go back out with Luke to fill up the tank.

Then, I got a phone call from an unknown cell number, which was a flashback to the call I got when my sister Ali was in a car accident.   Looking back, it was the same exact day, exactly two years ago.

It was from Mike, he and Lukie were involved in an accident, but God was watching over them.

They walked away from the car.

They are both banged up, but nothing too serious.


We always hear, or read the sayings that people post on facebook, how to appreciate each moment and seize the day when it takes hold of you.

I thought that I did, and I realized I still do.

You never know what can happen in an instant.

So appreciate and love every second you have of this thing that we call life.*

I do.


*didn't mean to quote Prince, but I kind of did.

Wordless Wednesday: I was going to bake bread, but someone beat me to the flour