 | Thanks for visiting La Vie de Laurie! I am participating in the COACH Poppy Project, and am currently ranked #5 among all sites. I would appreciate it if you could click on the colorful blooming poppy images in the left sidebar and send out a tweet with #CoachPoppy and #laurie. That will help me win a $2,500 shopping spree, and you can play the Instant Win Game for a chance to win a COACH gift card. See my post and their site for full details. Thanks so much for your help! xoxo ~ Laurie |
Safeway Box Tops for Education Giveaway
By Laurie | August 20, 2010
In only a few short days children in our neighborhood will be heading back to the bus stop. That means more traffic on my commute to work, but more importantly young minds will once again be learning and applying their newly found knowledge. Wouldn’t you like to do something to give back to your local schools?
 |
All you have to do is look for the 10% Goes Back to Schools yellow school bus tags on over 2,000 of your favorite items throughout the Safeway family of stores (which includes Dominick´s, Tom Thumb, Randalls, Vons, and Genuardi´s) from August 11th – September 14th. When you purchase participating products with your Club Card, Safeway will give 10% of the purchase price to the local school of your choice. |
I recently went shopping at my local Tom Thumb for Box Tops for Education products thanks to a $25 gift card provided by Safeway and MyBlogSpark. I was also given 50 Bonus Box Tops to submit to a participating K-8 school. Box Tops for Education has already given away over $320 million to help the more than 69 thousand schools participating. If that wasn’t enough, earning Box Tops is even easier this year with four new brands participating in the program: Progresso Soup, Totino´s Pizza, Betty Crocker Cake Mixes and Gold Medal Flour.
Here´s how it works:
* Check your receipt from August 11 – September 14. The total will be updated each time you shop.
* Beginning on September 18, a redemption code will be printed at the bottom of your receipt.
* Visit backtoschools.escrip.com before October 13 to choose your favorite participating local school, then simply enter your redemption code to make your donation. While there, you can also enter the Safeway Bonus Box Tops Sweepstakes for a chance to win 1,000 Bonus Box Tops for the participating school of your choice.
 |
Would you like to win a Safeway Box Tops for Education prize back that includes a $25 gift card and 50 Bonus Box Tops? |
Simply browse their site and let me know which of the participating Box Tops for Education products is your family’s favorite (mandatory). To receive extra entries:
1) Follow me, @laurie_pooh, and @Safeway on Twitter and send the following message:
I entered to win a Box Tops for Education prize pack from @Safeway and @laurie_pooh: http://tinyurl.com/SafewayBoxTops #myblogspark
2) Follow my blog using the Google Connect in my sidebar to the right.
3) Subscribe to my blog in a reader.
U.S and Canada only, please. The winner will be selected randomly from all valid entries on or around September 4. You must leave a comment letting me know your favorite Box Tops for Education product, as well as additional comments letting me know what else you have done to earn extra entries. Please also use your real first name and leave a valid way for me to contact you should you be selected as the winner. You will have 48 hours to respond to my e-mail before another winner is selected. Good Luck!
Disclosure: This giveaway is sponsored by Safeway and General Mills through MyBlogSpark. They provided me with information included in this post, a gift card, Bonus Box Tops certificate, and the same items for one winner. In no way did this influence the opinions within my post.
Topics: Giveaways, Tid-Bits | 61 Comments »
Direction, or lack thereof
By Laurie | August 19, 2010
I haven’t been writing lately because I just don’t feel like I have anything to say. I wish I could count myself among the bloggers who bare their souls for the whole world to see. You know, the ones who always have something poignant and deep to share. The ones who seem to triumph over personal tragedies and come out on the other side of dark times with inspiring and witty prose. Me? I’ve got nothing.
I used to talk about more personal things, but believe it or not that only got me in trouble. I lost friendships over misunderstandings and jealousy, and other tidbits of my life were misconstrued and used against me in arguments. It became just not worth it anymore. I’m pretty private, and there is no way I could really write some of the things I think and feel anyway. I just don’t have it in me to expose my dirty laundry, even if it is probably a lot cleaner than most of yours.
I want to have an I-don’t-care-what-you-think-about-me mentality, but the truth is I do care. I don’t want to hurt feelings, embarrass, or disappoint others. I don’t want to make anyone worry. So I sit silent and thoughts go unwritten. Sometimes I wish I had the luxury of anonymity, but that is not going to happen here. Ever. This is La Vie de Laurie. From the look of it, that life is at a standstill. I am waiting for something extraordinary to happen. Something, anything that is going to bring me out of this funk.
I remember when I was 18 and I just couldn’t wait to be 21. I was dying for the freedom and excitement of the unknown. The time between those years moved so s l o w l y, but it finally came. Now, in my 30s, I’m not sure what to do with myself. I’m not sure what there is to look forward to. Time is moving 100 miles per hour. There never seems to be enough time or money. There are things I want to do and experience, but I feel selfish and sad for wanting them when other people are suffering and struggling around me.
I’m on autopilot. Alarm at 5:00 AM. Snooze until 5:30 AM. Get up. Wash face. Brush teeth. Shower. Dry hair. Do makeup. Get dressed. Walk dog. Take meds. Hug/kiss husband goodbye. Drive to work. Sit at work. Have breakfast. Nap at lunch in car or storage closet (yes, really). Have lunch at desk. Drive to gym. Work out. Drive home. Walk dog. Greet husband. Eat dinner. Compute. Watch TV. Walk dog. Brush teeth. Wash face. Go to bed. Lather. Rise. Repeat.
Am I alone? Does anyone else out there feel like something is missing? Like you should be doing something else? And if you are doing something else, how did you go about doing it? I’m feeling kind of lost and could use some direction.
I have to go. It’s time for my nap in the storage closet, which could actually double as a metaphor for my life right now.
Topics: Daily Ramble | 2 Comments »
Wisk: Then and Now
By Laurie | August 8, 2010
My daddy had to wear crisp white shirts and ties to work. You know, back in the days when people had to worry about (gasp) ring-around-the-collar. I saw my mom pour detergent on many collars, and I definitely remember the Wisk commercials from when I was growing up. I am more familiar with the versions from the 80s, but just to refresh your memory, here is the retro commercial from the 70s:
Stains seem to have gotten a lot tougher to get out as I have gotten older, but maybe that’s just because my mom isn’t doing the washing anymore. If I wear white? It’s pretty much a guarantee that I’m going to spill on it. Oh, you too? I thought so. It only makes sense that stain-fighting technology has had to evolve as well.
 |
New Wisk® with Stain Spectrum™ Technology is coming out this month. This new formula is engineered to target the three major stain groups: carbohydrates (chocolate), proteins (grass), and oils (peanut butter), while also tackling the stain groups that contain blood, coffee (one my biggest offenders), dirt and ink. They have a nifty chart on the Wisk website that explains all the different groups and examples of the stains they contain. It sounds like the new formula is up to the challenge of eliminating any and all stains you might encounter.
As you’ll see from this teaser ad, this will definitely not be like our mom’s Wisk. It will available this month at major retailers nationwide such as Walmart, Target, and Kroger for a Suggested Retail Price of $5.99 for 50 fl oz. bottles that clean 32 loads. |
I have to admit it has been many years since I have used their product, so I look forward to giving it a try and letting you know about my experience.
Disclosure: This is the first in a series of sponsored posts I will be writing as part of a campaign on behalf of Wisk and One2One Network. All opinions expressed are completely my own.
Topics: Tid-Bits | 1 Comment »
COACH Poppy Project
By Laurie | August 3, 2010
Maggie, Audrey, Chelsea, and Julia are some of my best friends. Most recently I discovered Poppy, and she’s fabulous too! I am talking of course about my favorite handbags from COACH. If you know me, you know I don’t carry anything else. Ever. I am a true fan.
 |
When COACH contacted me last week and asked if I’d like to participate in the Poppy Project, I didn’t even have to think about it. It was a no-brainer. Plus YOU can join the project too! See the pretty poppies blooming in my sidebar to the left? They are generated when other fans on Twitter and Facebook participate by checking “like” or by clicking the graphic to send a tweet. When you tweet with the hashtags #CoachPoppy and #Laurie, my pattern starts growing. |
Even better? You can instantly win prizes ($100 gift card, anyone?), and when you win — I win too! Look for a COACH bag to appear amongst the flowers, click on it, and follow the directions to claim your prize. Every girl needs a little sequin in her life, and I’ve got the gorgeous Poppy Sequins Spotlight on my radar. Be creative with your tweets, and watch my pattern grow! Here is an example of a tweet you can send to help me get started:
Roses are Red. Violets are Blue. I love #CoachPoppy, and you will too. #laurie http://coach.com/poppyproject
Here’s hoping we all will have a little Poppy in our future! Also, I think it would be amazing if there was a Laurie handbag at COACH someday. Hey, a girl can dream!
Disclosure: I was not monetarily compensated for writing this post or adding the Poppy Project widget to my blog. I truly love COACH that much. There is a possibility that I may receive a prize if one of my readers wins the Instant Win game on my site, or if my blog is ranked first at the end of the promotional period. I won’t hold my breath for that one.
Topics: Daily Ramble | 2 Comments »
CardsDirect Review and Giveaway
By Laurie | August 2, 2010
Don’t you just love receiving cute Birth Announcements from your friends? Everyone has baby fever in my life. I know at least 6 women who are going to give birth by the end of the year. That’s a lot of cuteness to come. Wouldn’t your heart just melt if you opened up your mail to see this precious little card?
CardsDirect offers over 2,000 personalized greeting card designs for just about any occasion you can think of for both business or personal use. They have Christmas Cards, Holiday Cards and Photo Cards in addition to birthday cards, thank you cards, baby shower invitations, and much more!
Their site is easy to navigate, and it is easy and fun to create your own personalized creations. I think they have a large selection of cute and functional designs (I spent a long time going through lots of them), and their prices are definitely competitive with other similar sites I have used in the past. I haven’t had the chance to complete an order yet, but I plan to in the near future. I am having a hard time deciding which design to choose! There are so many great ones.
 |
Would you like to win a promotional code good for $50 worth of products from CardDirect? |
Simply browse their site and let me know what card or other product is your favorite and paste a copy of the link to that product in the comments (mandatory). To receive extra entries:
1) Follow me, @laurie_pooh, and @CardsDirect on Twitter and send the following message:
I entered to win a gift code for $50 in products from @CardDirect and @laurie_pooh: http://tinyurl.com/CardsDirectGiveaway
2) Follow my blog using the Google Connect in my sidebar to the right.
3) Subscribe to my blog in a reader.
U.S and Canada only, please. The winner will be selected randomly from all valid entries on or around August 22. You must leave a comment letting me know your favorite Tiny Prints greeting card, as well as additional comments letting me know what else you have done to earn extra entries. Please also use your real first name and leave a valid way for me to contact you should you be selected as the winner. You will have 48 hours to respond to my e-mail before another winner is selected. Good Luck!
Disclosure: This giveaway is sponsored by CardsDirect via Global Influence, however I was not monetarily paid for this post. I did receive a code worth $50 for myself and one winner as a thank-you for participating, but that in no way influenced the opinions within my post.
Topics: Giveaways | 34 Comments »
