The Sewing Mom

This post brought to you by éclos Skin Care. All opinions are 100% mine.

I am one of the fortunate ones that has never really had too much trouble with my skin.  I've cleaned and moisturized daily since I was in high school and I've always tried to use products that made my skin feel clean and soft without feeling heavy or greasy and with very little fragrance.  I am now in middle age and it's even more important to me to take good care of my skin, especially on my face and I've been using anti-aging products for the last several years.  Don't know if they actually work, but I feel pretty good about the way I my skin looks.

Recently, I was given the opportunity to try out éclos Skin Care.  I was given the éclos Anti-Aging Skin Care Starter Kit, valued and $19.99, and asked to try out the included products and then give my opinion on those products.  The kit contains a sample size of each of the products in the line of skin care plus a handy stretch terry headband to keep your hair out of your face when you're washing or applying the mask.  I like to keep things simple, so I was a little put off by the number of different products I was being asked to use on a daily basis, but then, once I really thought about it, it's no more than I'm all ready using with the exception of the face serum which is lightly applied after washing your face and before applying the regenerative cream and it works to nourish the skin cells and helps actively promote callogen production.  This is what helps skin look fresh and, hopefully, younger.

Products included in the kit:

• Facial Cleanser Skin Prep
• Cellular Activator Face Serum
• Moisture Therapy Regenerative Cream
• Restorative Eye Cream
• Instant Radiance Facial Scrub
• Skin Renewal Clay Mask
• éclos Terry Cloth Head Band

So, this is me before I started using éclos Skin Care.  I know it's not the best photo, but I don't photograph well and I definitely am not good at taking photos of myself!

My skin is overall fairly healthy and I'm told I look young for my age.  Although, over the last year I've probably had more acne than I've had my entire life, guess that comes with hormone changes and it sucks!  Anyway, wash my face daily in the shower with a light facial wash and once in a while will do a mask to get rid of dead, dry skin.  I don't wear a lot of make up, but like the feeling of a clean face and the look of young skin!

Since receiving my éclos Skin Care kit, I have made every attempt to follow the recommended regimen of washing twice daily with the facial cleanser skin prep and following up each cleansing with the face serum, then the Anti-Aging Moisture Therapy Regenerative Cream and then the Anti-Agin Restorative Eye Cream.  I also used the Anti-Aging Instant Radiance Facial Scrub every other day and I did use the Anti-Aging Skin Renewal Clay Mask once.  I have been following this routine over the last week and a half and I have to say, I am enjoying the products and the way my skin feels.

This is what I look like today, perhaps a little better photo, but I think my skin looks healthier and it has a nice glow to it.

The éclos Skin Care line utilizes apple stem cells extracted from a rare Swiss apple.  These apple stem cells have been shown to stimulate skin stem cells to help skin have a younger appearance.  These same products also include vitamins, plant extracts and anti-oxidants to help minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

I really like the product and plan to purchase more since I found it's available at my local Target store.  I do wish it had more of the apple scent or was completely fragrance free.  It smells a bit medicinal to me, but I do like the results.

CONTEST:

I received an identical éclos Skin Care kit, valued at $19.99, to give away to one lucky reader.  To enter, please leave a comment telling me which of the products included in the kit you are most excited to try.  You must leave a valid email address and sorry, but this contest is only open to those living in the continental United States.

Entries will be accepted until midnight May 29, 2012.  Winning entry will be drawn on May 30,2012.

It’s back! That’s right, softball season got underway this weekend for travel teams and we spent the entire weekend out at the fields. 6 games in 2 days, what a great weekend!

Most of the girls on the team also play ball for their respective high schools, but this was the first time they’d played together as a team since November. It was great seeing everybody back, even if it took a couple of games to shake off the cobwebs. We were missing a couple due to injury or illness, but all in all, they looked fabulous.

I’m looking forward to a great season! How was your weekend?

This post brought to you by Lenovo. All opinions are 100% mine.

I am so addicted to watching the Chicago White Sox play baseball!  I watch them every chance I get, and, I think we are going to try to get tickets to see them when they come to town to play the Texas Rangers this coming July.  I have purchased a premium subscription to MLB.TV just so I can watch all of the games, including the non-televised games on my computer,  my tablet or even my smartphone.  That subscription will come in really handy now that softball season is about to swing in to full gear and we will be on the road just about every weekend taking our daughter to tournaments.  I don't want to miss watching my White Sox play!

The biggest down side of watching the games on my phone is listening to the game through those tiny earbuds.  My ears get soar after a while of having my earbuds in just so I can hear the announcers.   I really like the idea of the Lenovo speaker  M0520 which is a small enough speaker to be portable, yet big enough to provide 4 watts of power which produces high quality sound.  This speaker is easy to transport too since the speaker wire spools for easy and tidy storage. The speaker comes with a built in amplifier and sub-speaker as well. Besides connecting to my smartphone, I can also use the Lenovo speaker with my computer or my daughter can use it with her netbook.  My daughter watches movies on all of the above, so it would be nice to have better quality sound to go along with the picture.  The speaker connects easily through a USB connection and includes an energy saving function. 

To make the Lenovo speaker even more enticing, between 5/15-5/21, these speakers are on sale for only $11.99, a savings of $18!  That is a huge savings!  You should definitely check it out for yourself!  Leave a comment if you have used the Lenovo speaker, let me know what you think.

Woke up this morning to no hot water. The water heater shut down over night and refused to turn back on. Mind you, this water heater is only 2 1/2 years old. Also, we spent extra money on this one because we wanted to be more energy efficient. To say I was disappointed is putting it mildly.

The plumber who originally installed this water heater came out this afternoon to discover the unit was dead. That’s right, absolutely no sign of life. He called the manufacturer and they insisted the plumber send in pictures of the inside of the unit so they could verify it was a manufacturing defect and not something else. In the end, they replaced the entire unit.

In fact, they not only replaced the unit, but they upgraded it to the latest and greatest model. It’s one step below a total tankless water heater, very small, and, hopefully very energy efficient.

We are back to having hot water and my husband promptly got into the shower! Since I wasn’t sure if we’d have hot water to clean the kitchen with, I sent my daughter off to pick up some take out. Dinner should be arriving shortly.

Oh the joys of home ownership!

This post brought to you by Triad Retail Media. All opinions are 100% mine.

If you have read my blog for any length of time, then you know that I am a softball mom.  Besides spending hours and weekends at the softball fields, I can also spend hours, sometimes in the middle of the night, putting softball uniforms through the laundry process.  I don't have time to wash and rewash or I will never get any sleep on tournament weekends.  These uniforms are worn game after game and, if you've ever had a kid slide in the dirt, you know that dirt is ground in!

My best friend in the laundry?  Shout® Trigger.  Seriously, I can spray Shout® Trigger on any uniform part, including white pants and socks, throw it in the washer, add my detergent and know that I'm going to have clean coming out when the washer is finished.  On seriously ground in dirt, like in the seams of the pants after my daughter has completed several slides into various bases, I might use the Shout® Trigger, add my detergent as usual, set my washer to delay start by 1 hour and let it go.  No worries, my daughter will once again have clean pants to start the next time she hits the field.  By the way, you can purchase Shout® Trigger at many places, including Walmart.

Shout® Trigger is so much easier to use than other stain removers.  I simply spray and I'm done.  No rubbing, so brushing, no soaking.  And, I've found it safe to use on colors, not just whites.   Just ask my husband who has a knack for getting chocolate down the front of his shirt on a pretty regular basis!  In fact, I also like to keep the Shout® Wipes handy for when we're out on the road.  The sooner I get the stain treated the better!

Take a look at this picture of my daughter, do you really think I could get this clean without Shout® Trigger?