We were watching the Oscars last night,  my husband and I hoping that the last joke Seth McFarlane said flew right over our dear daughter’s heads, when all of our phones started ringing at the same time.

 This usually means only one thing: there will be no school the next day or the schools will be opening late due to inclement weather.

 These messages are met with glee on the part of the kids and since I’m a work at home Mom, I am able to roll with it much easier than my working Mom friends. 

What startled us was the reason behind this closing: a manhunt was happening right then for a man who worked at one of the counties schools and had access to said schools.  According to the news, this man was involved in a domestic violence issue.

I applaud the district for putting safety first. In light of all that has happened in and around public schools of late, I say it was an excellent call, but it raised a deeper question for us as parents. 

What type of background checks are being done for employees in supporting positions such as this man who was a maintenance worker?  Is this another area our public schools need to improve upon?

 I honestly do not know what criteria are in place. But I mean to find out. I am a bit embarrassed that I don’t know.  I just assumed that these workers were asked to go through the same screening process as teachers, staff and even volunteers.

 For example, I am a tier 3 volunteer in our school district which means I have been finger printed and had a background check completed; therefore I am able to go on field trips and volunteer for activities that put me in direct contact with children.

I hope in my search I do find out that all workers entering our schools have had to pass this same level of security, if not more.

We spoke with our girls at length about safety at schools and let them know we felt comfortable sending them to school because our district did go the extra mile to ensure our schools were as safe as possible. 

Thankfully this dialog ran long ( much like the Oscars) and we had stopped watching the show to talk. This saved our kids from hearing any of the song Seth McFarlane entertained the audience with next. You know the one about female body parts? So not kid friendly. 

 By the end of the Oscars, when my kids had been fast asleep for some time, our local news reported that the manhunt had ended. The man safely in custody and that schools would remain closed.

Good.  I am very thankful that this story has a happy ending.

 So has your school ever been shut down for something like this? Do you know what your school districts security policies are?

Please share your thoughts on this. 

I know you are a Mega- Super Star and all Barbie, but at my house you are losing your status big time. 

 You have been an elite member of our home for over 12 years, reigning supreme over playrooms, play dates and wish lists for so long that it surprised me when you did not make the all-important Christmas wish list for my youngest daughter this year.

She always and I mean always asks for either the collectible Barbie or a new Barbie set and accessories.  Again, you were strangely absent from the same said daughter’s birthday wish list a month later.  

The love affair of all things Barbie started early with both daughters:

As your popularity started to wane yearly, the collection was downsized and moved to a corner of each daughter’s room. 

Then just the youngest daughters room, until now Barbie; you have been downsized until you live in two bins in the back on my ten year old's closet. 

The cars are parked on the opposite side of the closet with purses and backpacks on top. Clearly not ready to roll at a moment’s notice like in your hay-day.

This realization caused a moment of reflection for me as I tried to remember at what age my oldest daughter gave all her Barbie’s to my youngest.

 It’s a hazy memory, not one that is seared in my mind like the first lost tooth or first day of kindergarten, but I do think she was around ten.

Yep, your days are truly numbered Barbie. 

When I asked Melissa about it, she said she still liked Barbie’s okay and might play with them more if she still had the big Barbie house (which she said was okay for me to get rid of last summer) and if Barbie would just stick to the classic look and not launch a new doll for every new book and movie character that comes out.  Hmm… stick to the classics - Smart girl.

I’m turning pages quickly in the books of life with my daughters, reaching milestones in their teen and tween worlds. Some make me happy, some are bittersweet. This Barbie thing is the latter.  I can’t count the hours I’ve spent playing Barbie’s with my girls.

So yes, I’m putting you on notice Barbie, you seem to have shelf life of about 10 years and then you are relegated to a corner in the closet and then… who knows?

But before I let go completely, I am going to ask my daughters to play Barbie’s this weekend. I bet I get at least one taker.

Is there a special toy languishing in the bottom of a toy box or closet at your house too? What is it? 

Do you think you should invite your kids for one more play date with that toy? 

Beauty balms are very trendy right now and every major beauty brand has one vying for your attention.

Pick up any magazine geared towards women and you will find a review or top pick beauty balm. It can be confusing sifting through all the expert picks. 

That is why I am happy to share with you my review for Loreal Paris Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream.

Loreal Says: 

This is an all-in-one beauty solution that does it all. It’s formulated to prime, perfect, hydrate and correct. To apply, simply dot on and blend with your fingertips. Self-adjusting beads will instantly transform to your skin tone.

After reading that, I couldn’t wait to try this product and have been using it for over a week now. I wanted to love this product, especially since I know Loreal products won’t irritate my face or cause breakouts.  But for me to love a product, it must Wow me and pass my scent, feel, use test.

My Review:

There is no scent to this product, which is a plus because there is also no sunscreen in it so you will have to apply sunscreen first. That is a negative for me on time crunched mornings when I really do need an all-in-one beauty solution. I used it alone on mornings I ran my daughter to choir and felt bad for not protecting my face from the sun. 

 To be fair, I will say that this beauty cream gets along well with other products including sunscreen and concealer, so it is a good primer and an excellent moisturizer.

Plus, you really don’t need a lot of product, just a pea size dot for each part of your face. It starts out opaque but instantly turns color upon contact with your skin. 

I really like the lightweight feel of this product. You can’t really tell you have it on, except for the color. I am using the light tone and it turned a little too tannish on the parts of my face that don’t get as much sun exposure, like the jaw line. But it matched well to my forehead as shown in these photos.

Blending was easy though and I found I could correct the off color by dabbing a little foundation on and blending again. This beauty balm lasts all day without turning my face into an oil slick or changing color; which are huge plus’ for me.

The Take Away:

 I would give this product a solid B. Loreal should add sunscreen to this for it to be a true all-in-one beauty solution. 

I would recommend this product for minimal makeup wears who don’t use a lot of makeup or for those who have good skin and don’t require makeup because this product alone isn’t going to cover blemishes, sun spots etc. It also serves as good primer.

I liked this product well enough to try it in a lighter shade and to keep it in mind for when my teen daughter starts wearing makeup. (If your are reading this dear Tera, no, not yet)!

You can learn more about this and other Loreal products by visiting their website and following them on Twitter.

I hope you found my review helpful.

Disclosure: I received a full size tube of this product courtesy of Loreal as part of the SheSpeaks blogger program. I received no monetary compensation and all opinions are 100% my own.

It all happened innocently enough. The kids were out of school for Martin Luther King Junior Day, so I offered to take my 13 year old and just turned 10 year old daughter and a friend each to Dunkin Donuts. They were very happy and started running down the list of their friends, bemoaning how hard it was going to be to pick just one. But they muddled through. 

Ms. T texted and received a speedy quick affirmative reply. Ms. M’s invitation was done the old fashioned way. A text invitation was sent from my phone, because GASP! I have not caved and bought Ms. M her own phone yet. But that is for another post.

So, did the invite make me cool? In a word, no. 

Nice Mom maybe, but not cool. As any Mom of a teen or tween daughter will attest, coolness is hard won. We Moms are watched and judged quickly by this billion dollar industry group. I have two under my roof, so I know what uncool looks and sounds like. The girls teach me constantly.

As fate would have it, Ms’ M’s friend had to cancel at the last minute due to a stomach bug. Even though Ms. M was sad to not have a decaf latte and donut with her friend, she rose above and happily announced that I could be her friend.  Okay, that is a mini-cool isn’t it? 

We went and picked up Ms. T’s friend and set off for Dunkin Donuts, chatting all the way there.  We were all in high spirits as we set down with our donuts, iced coffees and lattes and the conversation from the car naturally flowed to our table chatter, which was, of course about clothes! That’s when I innocently asked if Ms. T had shared Polyvore with her friend Ms. P.

That is when I became cool!

 Armed with tablets and smart phones, these charming girls started raving about how cool Polyvore was and how cool I was to have shared it with them and how did I even know about it anyway Mrs. Kinsman?

Since Ms. P asked, I shared that I had been asked to write a post on my blog for No Nonsense leggings or tights and part of the requirements for this paid opportunity was to make a Polyvore board.

Double coolness washed over me as these girls gave me, yes me! all manner of attention and asked me tons of questions about blogging and even my opinion on fashion. 

When was the last time you got to talk about your job to the under 14 crowd and keep their attention for more than a second?

Pause for a moment Moms and share my coolness moment… yeah, it felt good!

Ms. T and Ms. P shared their boards and pins with me. Ms. P even shared a site I hadn’t ever heard of, it’s that cool and so totally non-Mom! 

I have it bookmarked for later. 

And I had to give Ms. M. permission to design on my Polyvore account as well.

 I really like their collections so far.

Will this coolness last? I don’t know. I will be happy with just nice Mom status. But I do know of this place called Beso  I’ve been eyeing that has awesome home décor, fashion and beauty I might have to share soon. 

Stay tuned.

If you are hooked on Pinterest and you like fashion and beauty, you will quickly become hooked on Polyvore too. Feel free to follow me at either place and don’t forget to let you teen and tween know where you are pinning. You might just be a Cool Mom for it.

You're welcome. 

Leave a comment with your user name at either place so I can follow you back!

Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link to Beso. If you click on certain links, I may receive compensation. Not enough to buy a donut though. :-)

I’m all about sharing love this week and what better way to say I love you than a perfect gift for your sweetie on Valentine’s Day? 

Here is another helpful way for you to decide on the perfect gift. Join us for a Valentine’s Day Gifting Twitter chat tonight 8pm to 9pm.

FTD Flowers Director of Floral Design, Michael Skaff, will be available to answer all your Valentine's Day and floral questions.  Also, there will be a date night prize pack given to one participant in the Twitter Chat. 

We’d love for you to participate in the chat – we’re using #VDayGifts as the hashtag to track the conversation, and will be tweeting from the @FTDFlowers handle.  Sounds like a fun way to spend an hour!

And FTD Flowers has a great Facebook contest for you to enter: 

Go share your worst HERE; you just might be glad you did if you win. Good luck on both FTD Flowers contests!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post, but I may be eligible for a gift for sharing this with my readers. All opinions are my own.

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Did you know that Emmy Rossum, who plays Fiona Gallagher on Showtime’s Shameless, was also a singer? I sure didn’t. 
But I was pleasantly surprised by her voice recently when I got the opportunity to listen to her new CD, Sentimental Journey.

About Sentimental Journey: Release Date: January 29, 2013 
Label: Warner Bros. Records

Sentimental Journey is a collection of covers of classic songs that span the '20s to the '60s. The album's highlights include its title track, which was a No. 1 hit for Les Brown and His Band of Renown with Doris Day as the vocalist in 1945; "These Foolish Things," a '30s standard that has been recorded by everyone from Nat King Cole and Bing Crosby to Rod Stewart and Michael Buble; "Summer Wind," which was popularized by Frank Sinatra in 1966; and "I'll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time," which was a Top 5 hit for the Andrews Sisters in 1941.

Emmy’s Vision for the CD: Emmy's 12-song 'passion project' is an emotional musical journey, with each song representing a month in the year. 

 "Each song needed to either lyrically or emotionally reflect the corresponding month," Emmy explained. "Some songs were obvious fits, like Summer Wind for June, and Pretty Paper for December. Others songs were less literal fits. I chose Nobody Knows You (When you’re Down and Out) for September because, to me, the plaintive melody and lyric emotionally reflect the cold weather creeping in and the sense of melancholy we can get in the fall months."

My Review:

Having never heard Emmy sing, I was unsure what to expect, but once I understood where she was coming from stylistically, I really enjoyed the CD, with each song reminding me of different places and times in my childhood with my parents and grandparents. 

My personal favorite was her rendition of Frank Sinatra’s 1966 hit Summer Wind. 

Want to hear Emmy sing? Enjoy this video:

"These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)" Vignette


Beautiful isn’t it?

You can learn more about Emmy by following her on Twitter. 

You can purchase Sentimental Journey on iTunes and Amazon.  

I recommend Emmy’s Sentimental Journey to anybody who loves romance, show tunes and going back down memory lane with music. 

I hope you found this review helpful.



Disclosure: I participated in this campaign for One2One Network. I received a free copy of the CD to facilitate my review. By posting, I am eligible for incentives. All opinions stated are my own.