Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Be An Influencer On Influenster!
Sharing your product reviews, answering questions, and recommending to your friends and family is what it's all about. In return, you qualify to receive free fun products to taste, smell, touch, and see. Can't beat it, right?
I was excited to receive another fun box yesterday.
Yay for Palmolive Fresh Infusions! I had been wanting to try this ever since I started seeing commercials for it. I have to be careful about the products we use here in the Bowden household due to Neeley's skins sensitivities. I was hoping something like this would be a product that would be okay to use.
Y'all, you HAVE to go get you some of this stuff. It cleans so well, smells great, and is great for not causing any further damage to the skin.
Come back here and let me know what you think if you try it! :)
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Frozen yogurt pops, anyone?

Frozen yogurt has increased in popularity among the choices for healthy snacks for children. Packed with fat free or low fat yogurt, fresh or frozen fruits, skim milks, sugar free juices, and other nutritional foods, frozen yogurt can be eaten in a variety of ways to satisfy even the pickiest of eaters.
Frozen yogurt pops are a fun, convenient way to introduce new foods to children. Take away the candy, cookies, cakes, and pies, and instead put a frozen yogurt pop in to the hand of a child and sit back with satisfaction.
A quick way to make these yummy treats is to pour the blended yogurt, fruit, milk, juice, and ice mixture in to small disposable cups, add in a popsicle stick, and place them in to the freezer. No kid can ever deny the sheer goodness presented.
For a simple treat, try this recipe:
1) Place 2 cups of your favorite fresh fruits in to a blender.
Add in 2 cups of plain or vanilla yogurt, preferably of the fat free or low fat variety.
Pour in up to a quarter cup of white sugar, depending on the nutritional needs of the child, as well as the natural sweetness of the fruits.
Cover, and blend until smooth.
2)
Fill small paper cups ¾ of the way full with the yogurt mixture. Cover the cups with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Poke a popsicle stick through the cover and allow the stick to stand up in each cup.
3) Place the cups in the freezer for at least 5 hours. To serve, remove foil or plastic wrap and peel off the paper cup.
Depending on the fruits selected, and other ingredients used, the calorie count for each frozen yogurt pop should weigh in between 75 and 100 calories.
These can be made in many varieties, so mix and match and have fun in the kitchen with children!
Find my original post over at http://www.examiner.com/children-s-fitness-in-topeka/frozen-yogurt-pops.

Friday, September 30, 2011
30 Day Fit Challenge

I'm running another Challenge just for Y-O-U!!
30 Day Fit Challenge begins on October 11th and ends on November 10th. For 30 days, you will log your nutritional intake and your exercise to the group, as well as post to encourage and motivate each other and to stay accountable. We will share recipes, workout tips, motivational and inspirational pieces, and help each other to reach our fitness goals.
Before and after measurements will be logged as well and the participant with the most loss will win a very nice prize pack of workout programs, equipment, and nutritional products.
Mark your calendars now! I will ask that you fill out a free online profile so that we can track our progress and benefit ourselves as well as each other on our fitness journeys.
I will also be announcing a 60 day challenge, a 90 day challenge, and various other 10 day challenges along the way, so stay tuned!!
If you're in for the 30 Day Challenge, go ahead and respond to this message and I'll get you on the list. Those who have asked to join the 10 day on FB, please know that we are already halfway through that Challenge but I will go ahead and put you in line for the next one. You just let me know if you prefer the 10, 30, 60, or 90 day and I'll put you on the list.
Thanks so much! I LOVE helping others to realize their physical fitness!!
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Her Social Network
Have you discovered Her Social Network yet?


I am still very new to the site but I am really enjoying another way to connect with so many positive giving people. Head on over and Friend me HERE.
I'll see you there!!
Thursday, September 22, 2011
A-Journalin' We Will Go

It's no secret that I am constantly looking for inspiration and ideas everywhere I look. I LOVE looking for products and designs that fit our family and our lifestyle, no matter if it's a ziploc bag or a piece of furniture. :)
Our newest adventure is journaling. Well....I shouldn't really say newest, maybe it is just one of greater importance to us right now. With this move, I have done everything but stand on my head to make sure we are better organized and can actually smile through the mounds of boxes and chaos. And I have been writing down every.little.bitty.detail. :)
Neeley has taken up this love as well and has been journaling our progress through the move, from the day we found out our next location, to packing up our household goods, to shipping the car, etc. It's very therapeutic for her I think. And for me too. :)
I've noticed that I've taken up journaling and even handwriting more. I've been sending out lots of thank you notes and notes for my businesses and notes to Neeley's teachers and I'm finding great joy in handwriting each and every one of them.
Is it just me? Do you journal? Do you take pride in handwriting when you can? And I don't mean the scribble-scratch of your daily to-do list either!
Stay tuned for some excerpts from past journals to be revealed. Oh my! :)
Monday, September 19, 2011
Got Organization?
I harp on organization and calendars and files and to-do lists all the time. But they WORK for me! And we all have {or should have} our own system that we have found that works for us, so hopefully you have found something that works for you too.
I wrote a fun lil post titled "Got Organization" over on my health & fitness blog today. Check it out!
Thursday, September 1, 2011
I ♥ Cookbooks!!
It's no secret that I LOVE a new cookbook! How 'bout you??
I got in my FREE Thin Kitchen Cookbook from Beachbody the other day and I swear I am using it every single day! I did a post on it over on my health and fitness blog. Here is the link! Head on over and check it out!!
Monday, August 15, 2011
We All Could Use A Lil' Moolah!!
Hi friends & family!
Psst, you HAVE to check this out! There is a great new daily deals site (with awesome content too!) aimed at fun moms, and I have just become an affiliate member. Not only is the site fabulous, but you can earn money as an affiliate too (regardless of where you live and whether your city is supported)! Check it out HERE.
Juice in the City aims to bring moms what they really want: insanely good deals on crazy-fun things to do...and great content. Each day Juice in the City features something fun for local moms to do at an incredible price. Juice in the City started in the SF Bay Area and is rolling out new cities across the country every few weeks.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Join us for a Back2School Health & Fitness Challenge!
Hi friends!
Bear with me, as I cannot remember who asked me to post this video, but still wanted to share it with you all. Ronnie and I are hosting a Back2School Health & Fitness Challenge. If you are interested in joining us and the others, please follow the instructions in the video and we'll get started in a few weeks. We would LOVE to have you join us! ♥
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Shop Squad
Hi friends & family! Have you heard of ShopSquad? I just recently found it and am in L-O-V-E! You can log in to the ShopSquad website and get advice on products. And by products I mean anything and everything...really! People like you and me sign up in various categories to give product advice. For instance, maybe you are shopping for a new coffee pot or a tv but really want some help before doing the shopping. You can log on to the site, type your question in to the advice line, and a live ShopSquad advisor will talk to you about those products.
I used the service quite a few times, and now I like it so much that I just signed up to be an Advisor. As an Advisor, you receive a portion of the price that a person pays for an item that you suggest. Isn't that cool!?!
Yes, folks, I am NUTS! I have so many different businesses and things that I do, no wonder I never have any time for myself. :)
Check it out!!
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Good To The Last Cup
Do you have a fave beverage?

Hot? Cold?
We are LOVING this stuff right now.........

There is rarely a day goes by that I don't enjoy a good cup of it. I'm also trying my hand at my own iced coffee, Pioneer Woman style. Will let you know how it turns out. :)
Friday, July 1, 2011
Add A Lil Flavor To Your H2O
I am a Diet Coke/Diet Dr Pepper addict!!!!!
With my new focus on personal fitness - I really am trying, y'all! - I am experimenting with flavored waters. I recently inherited a ton of different kitchen extracts so Neeley and I have been enjoying iced coconut water, minted lemonade and minted teas and even minted lemonade teas. Yumm-o!!

What are your fave summertime beverages?
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
USDA's MyPlate Program
Have y'all read where the USDA has "revamped" the Food Pyramid?
What? How are those of us who are just trying to get a grasp on personal fitness supposed to take these changes?
This is what they are promoting, and you'll notice the 2010 date on it. Yep, it's been in the works for a while. These are just the basic messages they want to get out.

Hop on over to HERE to the USDA's Choose My Plate program page to learn more.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
P90 What?
Yes, I have decided I really am crazy, for I am on another mission to get this P90X party started here and now!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
To-Do's, Want-To's, Got-To's, Honey-Do's, & Love You's
It's no secret that things around here with The Bowden Brigade have been beyond nutty. I mean worse than a Snickers bar, y'all! :) Between my school, subbing, Neeley's schooling and homework, after school activities, Ronnie's crazy schedule, and just trying to maintain a household in another country, we do good to stay afloat some days.
I began seeking a way to control all of our craziness a while back. I needed something that was a 1 package deal, that held absolutely everything we ever needed in life, in order to help us to better muddle through this life of ours.
Welp, I think I've found our system.........................


Introducing The Bowden Brigade's "Our Life 2011"! LOL This binder truly is our life. This is our "home management binder" as some call it. Google it, look it up, there are several ways to make your very own should you so desire. I am in L-O-V-E already!! My OCD brain really needs everything all in one place, neatly organized, categorized, alphabetized, color coded, etc. And that I have. She's still a work in progress, but isn't everything?
I found the design templates for the documents from another blog, then I just plopped them in to a free PDF editing program I found by Googling something or other, and I was able to tweak them the way I want them.
Behind the front cover is a pocket with recipes I will use soon, a notepad, sticky notes, and some other lists I have yet to file.

I now also have a zipper pouch here in the front with a pair of scissors, pens, more of the colored tabs, a calculator, a highlighter, and a big marker. More on each of those here in a bit....... See that Our Life page? Isn't it cute? The bottom box has our names and my email address should I accidentally leave her somewhere.
Here is her Table Of Contents..................

Once again, she's a work in progress, but for now this is what she holds.
~ The Home Blessings section is simply my daily cleaning guide. Do I expect that I will ALWAYS follow this schedule? No! And do I myself do each of these? No, not if our chore chart works correctly. :) This is an example of a Wednesday cleaning schedule.........

~ The To-Do List is simply that. Yuck! Mine is currently a list of To-Do's that I need to get done, maybe not necessarily today, and maybe it is over time. And sometimes doing one depends on how quickly I finish another, so it is simply a working To-Do List.
~ The Daily Schedule is such a neat motivational document.

Now, I have personalized it a bit but that doesn't mean I am going to keep it this way. See the "Daily Home Blessings" box? Now, isn't that sweet? Simply copied, but I think I kind of like it. It makes my heart happy!
There is also inserts for medical information, pet care instructions, coupons, recipes, our address book, grocery lists, books we want to read and movies we want to see, business cards we collect, websites we hear about and want to visit, and the list goes on and on and on and on and .....well....you get where I'm going with this.
There's even a section for motivation and inspiration. LOVE it!!

I can already notice a lil extra pep in my step and happiness all around. I CRAVE organization and with our busy days, this is something I will carry around with me everywhere, and hopefully forever.
Oh back to those supplies.......... Notice how I said I will carry her around with me everywhere? Yep, she goes grocery shopping with us so the calculator is to help with the budgeting, the scissors are for the extra coupon ads we pick up at the Commissary entrance, and the other supplies are on an as needed basis. Yep, I think I've covered all my bases with this one.
Does your family have a system? Or do you live out of drawers and cupboards and containers and cars and this and that like we used to? We were so scattered here and there and so busy that there were some days we would have to go to the Commissary 3 or 4 times just to be able to fix 1 meal. Now, that's ridiculous!
So tell me....how do you stay sane in this busy world? Do you have a binder? What's the method to your madness? Please DO share!!
Friday, April 15, 2011
A Lil News/Update, A Lil Trip, A Lil Class, & A Lil More This-n-That
This week is Spring Break around here. And I have mixed feelings about this week. Ronnie was out in the field for most of the week and most of Neeley's friends are all gone on trips, so I have accomplished absolutely nothing. And seeing as how I have two classes ending very soon and a ton of other projects as usual, I keep going to bed at night wondering how in the world I can even lay my head on the pillow without a fight. But it's all good. Next week...back to normal!
We started the week off with Neeley in a RAW cooking class. What? Nope, it's not raw meats or anything pertaining to sushi. It's all about eating healthy, including lots of fresh fruits and veggies in your diet and making good use of your blender. She got to make smoothies, homemade peanut butter using PB2, zucchini spaghetti, and RAW tacos using walnuts as the meat. To see more about what Chef V offers to adults and children, you can check out her website http://rawkravings.blogspot.com. Oh so yummy! Neeley and I have had the Spinach & Grape Salad, RAW tacos, and the Peachy Pea Compote in Cucumber Boats this week. Delicious!
I've had the fortunate opportunity to grab up a couple of books to read this week.


It will be nice to not have to read textbooks again. :) Hoping to finish up soon. Yahoo!
Neeley and I were also able to take a pretty neat trip to Insel Mainau through our USO on Wednesday. It was beautiful!

























It's been a great week! Hopefully things are starting to look up! Well...at least for a few more months anyway.
Now I'm off to make a hundred deviled eggs-bleck!!-for a BBQ we are attending later today.
Enjoy your weekend! Ronnie has to start back on nights and shift work for the next month this weekend. Not fun at all! :( And sometimes having him here, even if he is asleep, tends to throw off my daily schedule, even with Neeley at school. Here's hoping to get back on a schedule and back to a "normal" routine this week.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Catch-Up & Some Linky Love
Whew-wee...life is feeling very {full} and {crazy busy} these days....and we're tired, y'all!
We're all FINALLY over the killer sickness of 2011. Oh, PTL!! Walking pneumonia is no fun at all!
Hey Arkansas, what's up with your weird weather and your earthquakes? :(
I've started a lil tutoring of some kiddos on the side and have been approached about possibly teaching some beginner piano lessons to some younguns. Wow!
I've spent more time in Neeley's school this past week than I think I ever have. I've been helping her teacher as I can and volunteering with bake sales and after school programs and trying to stay involved. Maybe too involved? :)
Neeley's last basketball game is tomorrow morning and it's going to be a bit of a bittersweet moment for us. We really miss the seasons once they are over. Well....sort of.
The above means we have about a month long break before the soccer season begins. Yay! ♥LOVE♥ that Neeley is so willing to try new things. And so glad she is back to soccer now, and thankfully this is a spring season. The first time she tried soccer it was a fall season and we were miserable by the end of the season, what with playing in the freezing rain and the mud and all.
Thinking I may make some of THESE tomorrow. Don't those look yummy?
I've finished my class and have 2 more classes beginning on the 12th. Once those are over, I will be only 4 classes away from finishing my MBA. Another PTL moment!!
And speaking of classes, Neeley is THRIVING in school but that girls has a ton of projects!! Oh my word...do any of your kiddos have so many? That girl and her work keeps my head spinning!
We are working on planning many, many, many upcoming Girl Scout events and those are keeping us busy as well. Not sure how I will feel by the end of June once our scout and school year are over. Relieved, perhaps? :)
Next weekend we travel to Ramstein for Neeley to compete in the European Spelling Bee (YIKES!!! and a big ol' gulp.......), and then we head over to Oberhausen for the Taylor Swift concert we tried to surprise her with. I'm not sure who's more excited...me or the girlies going. :)
Neeley's theater group is working on their upcoming production. It is a version of Happy Feet, rewritten by the teacher who sponsors the group. Should be cute!! Now we have to make penguin costumes for all the kiddos. Yikes!!
I have several "heart smart" posts out there this month with our focus on being heart healthy for the month of March. Check this one out about Heart Smart Foods HERE!!
We got to experience a new restaurant last night when we went for an event with Ronnie's unit. The China Palast Restaurant was not our most favorite place to eat but it wasn't terrible either. The food was okay and the prices weren't bad. Neeley's meal tasted like chicken and noodles in Ragu spaghetti sauce which is disappointing since she is such a good eater but, all in all, it was a good time.
More news to come from the homefront soon. We're looking at a possible move in just a few months and that has our stomachs tied in knots. We are looking at one area ever so closely and kind of sort of keeping fingers crossed while at the same time trying not to have a panic attack. More info on that as we find out more. No need to panic our peeps!! :)
Our weekend is full of play practice, basketball games, sleepovers, family fun, kicking off Girl Scout Week, buying groceries, getting caught up on laundry, cleaning house, and trying to bring some semblance of order back to our house. I have felt so disconnected for about 3 or 4 weeks now, thanks to the sickies we all 3 had for so long and then being so stinkin' busy since then with everything. I know the busy part probably never stops, but it seems like we can never get off the crazy bus at times. :)
Wanna know what I do when the going gets tough? Well...the tough get going...but I just add to my schedule... on top of the Girl Scout events, and my classes, and the tutoring and teaching piano lessons, we are looking very closely at starting a Fit Club up here on RB. Call me crazy? Yep....I think so too! ;)
Have you checked out the OpenSky Boutique lately? I've added a few new things but I am going to really be revamping it here very soon, as soon as I can find a blank spot in my calendar. Hhmmm...so far it's looking like N-E-V-E-R!! I always try not to let my business opportunities and other involvements spill over in to our family time, but here lately everything is monopolizing all 3 of us and it's making me consume ludicrous amounts of coffee and Diet Coke. Can't wait for the day when I can say "that's enough, y'all!!"
Ok, time to sign off so I can vaccuum, wash mountains of clothes, make our master weekend shopping list, revise my to-do list, and I'm finishing up the editing of my Administrative Services price list. Yep...adding that to my portfolio too. Need a document proofread or edited? Let me know!
Tonight we're headed over to another post to the high school for some family fun. A lil B-I-N-G-O and chili and all the fixin's and lots of other games and we'll see what other trouble we can get in to. I need a good laugh!! And while we're at it, can we add in maybe a movie, a good book, and a glass of wine? Why, thank you!!
We'll be back at ya soon with another update, some good reading material, a new recipe or two, and pics from our family fun. Have a good weekend!!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Lurvin' The Ipad...
Let me see a show of hands.....

But...................I truly ♥LOVE♥ mine. I can do so much with it, and it is already proving to be a lifesaver for me. There are so many apps that I already love and can't imagine going a day without it.
Do you love to read like we do? I'm really enjoying the iBooks program and I've already read my way through 6 very good books over the past few days. It's super handy to be able to take the Ipad with me wherever I go and still have my books, my pen and paper, my news, internet, and just about anything else I need.
And...........the good part........most of these things are free or inexpensive. I enjoy paying only 9 or 10 dollars for a book with it, versus the usual 25-50 I would pay elsewhere. And that's for new books, y'all!!
What are your favorite apps for either the ipad or the iphone or any other fun electronic gadget? I'm looking for more...
And...while we're at it....please give me your book recommendations.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Why We ♥ This Time Of Year
I think the holiday season brings out the kid in all of us. We really strive to focus on the real reason of Christmas and Thanksgiving and not just the commercial aspect either. So far, so good! :)
But we did help out economy a lil bit the other day when Neeley spotted this board game.

When Neeley first showed it to me, I really wasn't impressed, but I happily obliged when I saw the next to nothing price. :) We brought this thing home and ripped it open and have been laughing ever since. This is THE best game! It really brings back memories and really makes me stretch my memory a bit with some of the songs. And I've discovered that I am a bad mommy in not teaching ALL the carols and songs to Neeley. So now we're seeking the perfect list of ALL of the Christmas songs and carols we can find out there to put on our ipods. :)
What are some of you favorites?