Valentine’s Day is this week and ladies, we all know we love to get flowers! I was recently sent this beautiful Rose & Lily Celebration bouquet from FromYouFlowers. They partner with local florists to bring you beautiful Valentine’s Day flowers delivered right to that special someone. This beautiful arrangement comes complete with roses, lilies, a vase, teddy bear and a free personalized card so you can add a special message. Same day delivery is available as well, so you still have time to order these for Valentine’s Day!

I was really impressed with the quality of the flowers I received. It was a nice size bouquet and the flowers were all very fresh. The colors were very vibrant and perfect for Valentine’s Day – lots of pinks and reds! They were very fragrant as well, and I just love having a great smelling boquet in the house. And I was really surprised at how long these flowers lasted. While I love getting flowers, it always makes me a little sad when they start to wilt… sometimes in just a few days. Not this boquet – check out the picture below. This is when the flowers were a week old, and they don’t look any different than the day they were delivered! When you’re sending someone a special gift (and paying quite a bit for it!), you want those flowers to last! So when you go to order your flowers this year, be sure to check out FromYouFlowers.com.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

I’m obsessed with photos. Of my daughter, husband, family, dog, vacation, birthdays, holidays… you name it and I’m bound to have a picture of it. My husband says I’m crazy, but to me a picture truly is worth a thousand words and I love being able to go back, look at my photos, and remember what was so special about that exact moment. It’s easy to do with pictures from the last decade since digital cameras and smart phones allow us to take pictures virtually whenever and wherever we want. But I’m not so young that I don’t remember having to load a camera with film, hope the pictures turned out good (eeek, how did we survive with no way to preview our pictures?!?!), take the film to the photo lab and wait days to get those precious pictures printed. I have boxes full of printed photos from when I was a kid, in high school, and photos people have given me over the years. Some are old family photos dating back to the early 1900′s… they’re irreplaceable and to be honest, I’ve always wished I had a way to have a digital copy of those priceless snapshots so they can be preserved for generations to come.

That’s why I love ScanDigital.com. They offer all kinds of photo services to help you digitalize all your memories. ScanDigital brings new life back to your old memories. Photos do not last forever and as they sit out of sight in a closet or basement they are deteriorating a bit more each day. There are endless dangers that put your photos at risk and the only way to guarantee the safety of your memories is to preserve them digitally.  ScanDigital is the perfect photo scanning service to help you preserve the memories of your life. They go to tremendous lengths to ensure that you’re 100% satisfied with your order. If you’re not satisfied, they will even reprocess your order for FREE! All photos are scanned and edited by hand, and each image is reviewed by 3 technicians to ensure it’s perfect. They repair the images if necessary and then load your photos to cd, DVD, or external hard drive so you can share them with family and friends. So not only do you have your photos preserved, they are actually in better quality!

Scan Digital can take care of all types of photos including prints, negatives and slides. Color photos, Polaroids, or black & white pictures – they can preserve them all for you digitally. And you don’t even need to worry about your photo dimensions because they can scan prints that were done in a variety of sizes. Any picture that is 8″ x10″ or smaller will be charged the same per photo price for scanning.  If you have a photo that is larger than 8″ x10″, they can also convert it to digital for an additional cost. I’m so excited about this service… now I just need to go dig through all those boxes and send my photos in! I’m shocked at the price too – phots are just $0.48 each! And those of us in PA are lucky – right now you can save 10% when you use code PENNSYLVANIA10.

Bulu Box is a monthly subscription sample box that is a great way to try out various vitamin, supplement and health products. Each box contains 4 to 5 premium vitamin and supplement nutrition samples and is delivered right to your door by USPS. Their goal is to introduce people to the benefits of vitamins and supplements by giving you the opportunity to try products out before you buy a full size.

My box contained:

• C Spray Mega Dose Vitamin C, 2 fl oz
• (3) SafSlim Berry Cream Fusion Belly Fat Supplement Packs, 0.17 oz
• Warrior Blend Raw Protein Plant Based Shake Mix in Vanilla
• Vibrant Cleanse Organic Grade B Maple Syrup Powder w/ Organic Lemon Juice Crystals and Organic Cayenne
• Herbal Papaya Organic Papaya Leaf Capsules and Teas

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers

These days it seems like more and more people are going into business for themselves or starting their own companies, and many of these businesses have a strong online presence. If you’re trying to get setup online or maybe just find a better way to manage your online sales, this may be a good resource for you.

Among their many features, 1ShoppingCart offers online shopping cart software to help you set up products for sale and set up a functional ecommerce system. Set up your shopping cart module to tell potential customers all about your products including shipping fees, tax, and even have them get a personalized thank you page after they check out! I shop online quite often, and many times the ease and experience of the check out process has a great influence on whether or not I order from a website in the future. A bad experience leaves a lasting impression, so you want to be sure that things go smoothly for your customers so they feel confident in purchasing from you. 1ShoppingCart had a great collection of help files and videos to guide you through the process and get you up and running.

They also have powerul email marketing tools to help you grow your business. Manage your client database and search by various fields, import and export your client lists and more. You can also set up emails to be sent out at specified times. You can organize the email list and set up different groups to receive emails. This is a great marketing tool as you can target your audience and provide information that is of most value to them. And if you’re interested in starting an affiliate program for your business, the built-in affiliate program allows you to offer your own affiliate program with affiliate banners, ad copy and promotional links.

If you think it’s something that might help you expand your business but you just aren’t sure, you can try 1ShoppingCart out for  weeks for FREE! This will give you the chance to try it out and see if it works for you before you pay!

California Bank & Trust (CB&T) is one of the leading banks in California and has helped Californians and their business grown and prosper for over 50 years. They offer the hometown feel of a local bank combined with high quaity comprehensive services usually offered only by major financial institutions. The benefit of CB&T is that you get the best of both of worlds all in one location. Their knowledge, attitude and resourcefulness truly set them apart from the competition.

CB&T offers commerical banking, personal banking , and small business banking. In addition to helping you with your own personal needs and helping secure your long-term financial success, CB&T also help your company capitalize on growth opportunities and are a great place for small business owners to find the right financial solutions and guidance they need. CB&T takes pride in exceeding the expectations of their customers and developing strong relationships with their clients. They have been serving California for over 50 years and continue to build and grow realationships with individuals and business in California.

To make your banking a little easier, they also offer a variety of online resources including online banking, remote depositing, financial tools and more. They also have a number of physical locations throughout the state so you can conduct business in person. So if you’re looking for a trusted banking solution in California, be sure to consider California Bank & Trust.

A problem I often face with my 3 year-old is finding pants that fit in the waist yet are long enough so it doesn’t look like she is wearing capris. For length she needs a 3T, but for her waist she needs 18/24 months. I get so frustrated shopping for her – it’s nearly impossible to find pants that work, and we end up wearing dresses and leggings 99% of the time because that’s all that fits (or comes close to it at least!) Until now that it!

Let me introduce you to my new best friend – The Livy Belt, from Olive & Nell. The Livy Belt is a stretchy belt that helps keeps those pants in place and is still comfortable for kids to wear. And not only are they functional, they are super cute as well! They come in a variety of styles and patterns that look more like a fashion statement than a practical piece of clothing. This is probably my favorite thing about them – they hold the pants up and my daughter can still look adorable in her favorite clothes!

The Livy Belt is easy to put on and take off, which is a must for toddlers who need to run to the bathroom every 5 minutes. A traditional belt is just too complicated and takes far too long for their little hands to get undone. The Livy Belt easily slides up or down so the kids can do it themselves.

The traditional LivyBelt™, called the “Lexi” style can be used by both girls and boys. It’s thin enough that you can just place it around the child’s waist and let their shirt fall over the top; no one will even know it is there. For the fashionistas they also have the “Lizzy,” and the “Lila” styles (the Lila style has a very sweet bow that adds some girly flair to any outfit). The Lizzy and Lila styles are meant to be worn over shirts and bottoms, creating a fun fashion statement. Both styles offer the same support as the original Lexi belt but allow the kids a chance to add some color and style to their outfit.

Here’s my daughter modeling the Lila style – she’s smiling so I know it’s comfy (believe me if it wasn’t she would be letting us know!)

I have to say I was very impressed with the quality of these belts as well. The material is very durable, so I know that even with frequent use they will retain their shape and will not stretch out. You will need to hand washed these and lay them flat to dry, but don’t worry they dry very quickly! I also love that they are made in the USA.

If you face similar problem with your kiddos I highly suggest you check out the Olive & Nell website. These truly are a lifesaver for me and I am so happy that now I can buy jeans and other pants that never fit before!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

If you’re a college student. the parent of a college student, or even if you’re taking a college class every now and then you know how expensive text books can be! It’s not all that long ago that I was in school and I remember spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars every semester just on books at the school bookstore. Yikes! I know many of you are in the midst of finals right now, and are looking forward to that winter break. But before you know it, a new semester will be starting and with it will again come the expense of books!

I wish I had known about renting books back when I was in college! By using Campus Book Rentals you can save 40 to 90% off of prices you will find at your school’s bookstore. This is a HUGE savings! Shipping is free both ways, so there isn’t any added expense there. They have flexible rental periods and you are even allowed to highlight in the textbooks. This is a great perk that many rental companies don’t allow and it lets you be very diligent in your studying/reading!

To see just how much money I could have saved, I decided to check out some books I used back in school. My degree is in Chemical Engineering and many of my early courses focussed on the fundamental of engineering and engineering processes. I found Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics (a book I actually used in a class in college) available to rent for just $106.81. If I were to purchase this book now it would be $228! That’s a savings of over $120, about 53%. Can’t beat half off a book, I know it sure would have been nice to have an extra $120 in my pocket back in college – and that’s just for one book.

Another thing I love about Campus Book Rentals is that they donate to Operation Smile with each textbook rented. Operation Smile is a non-profit organization whose medical volunteers provide safe, free, and effective cleft lip and pallet surgery for children all around the globe. Operation Smile is made possible by volunteers and donors like Campus Book Rentals. They are not only helping you save money on your books, they are also helping others. That’s quite a nice perk, especially just for renting a textbook you’d need anyway!