Based on yesterday’s announcement I am hoping that my “regulars” will understand and forgive my “personal” absence this week.  I sat down so many times to post a little piece of our lives through the week, but for some reason none of it ever made it’s way into a full fledged post.  So here I am needing to play a little catch up on the adventures of the week.

Much of my week was spent further twin proofing the house.  This is definitely NOT to be mistaken for Childproofing a house . . . no, no, no!!!  Soooo much different than that!  They are forever finding new ways to climb to the ceiling (no joke)  and break into things and rooms they shouldn’t have a clue how to get to! 

They learned how to open the front door the end of last week which was very scary considering they like to beeline for the road.  We live in the middle of nowhere ladies and have a gynormous back and side yard, but the first thing straight ahead of you as you leave our front door is the road.  People go very fast on this road, there isn’t a lot of traffic, but they go FAST! UGH!!!!  The panic was about to leave me with a heart condition so the only real solution (bolting the door just isn’t that convenient for the bigger boys when they play outside) was to find door knob covers. 

Sir Lion the StrongWilled apparently has decided two things . . . 1. One needn’t change out of their pajamas until they have been asked about 10 times while mom is busy each day and 2. Crying anytime things don’t go your way may be more effective than screaming and stomping our little foot.  Now, truth be told, both of these things annoy me greatly!  Sad, but true!  I’m an “only ask once” kind of mom and don’t consider my requests “optional” (though most of my children do) so when these two things combine he won’t find himself getting a lot of sympathy from me.  In fact, he’ll usually find himself in a “quiet spot” (away from the room I’m in) to “get a grip”.  Lovely!

Then there’s CJ, the 12 year old weed that we call our oldest son.  Yeah that one.  He has suddenly gone moody on us (again, LOVELY! *sigh*).  The biggest issue we are dealing with is actually not all that different than Lion’s . . . he considers requests as either optional or “when I’m ready”.  HUH???  Why is it that they suddenly think it’s ok to try to change the game plan?  It’s different from what Lion is doing only in the sense that he isn’t saying he won’t do it, he just thinks he should be able to get away with the “just one more” attitude.  Enough of that though.

Tater and The Salesman are pretty much par for the course right now which is good for this mama’s nerves!  They have their little issues here and there and will switch places with Lion and CJ anyday now, but until then I’m thankful for the normalcy!

That pretty much sums up the Froggy group update!  Haven’t done one of them in a very long while, so there you have it!

On the Frog Parent front there is only one thing to report, Frog Daddy is starting a new job with a different company next week.  An exciting development for him since it will at last give him the opportunity to finally be in the position he has been working toward for the last 9 years!  We are so very thankful for this and pray that he will be blessed and that those around him will be as well!

Until next time . . . have a wonderful weekend and HAPPY EASTER! 

The Sampler!  I’m thrilled to be working with Janice and Susan at 5 Minutes for Mom to offer a unique and exciting opportunity to feature mom bloggers!  I won’t tell you a lot about it here because you can read all about it by visiting 5 Minutes for Mom today and reading this post. 

There you’ll find the guidelines for submitting your own writing to be “Sampled” in this column.  You’ll also see an interview of your’s truly :).  I hope to see you there and look forward to reading the many great submissions from all of you!!!

This contest has ended . . . thank you so much for your participation!  I still have several contests going on so be sure to click on the contests tab above to see them all  

Today I would like to introduce all of you to Little Ladybug Designs!  This shop offers unique and modern custom photo adoption & birth announcements, baby shower & birthday invitations, thank you cards, return address labels, video montages, and more.  Kim is the work at home mom behind Little Ladybug Designs and she started the business in order to stay home and raise her daughter! 

I love the products Kim offers and I’m sure you will too!

Our photo cards are professionally printed and card stock cards are professionally press printed. Photos can be converted to black and white or sepia at no extra charge. All cards come with coordinating thank you cards and return address labels. You can even get your return address printed on the back of the envelope. Customer satisfaction is our number one priority. We will work with you to make your card perfect. High quality customer service and attention to detail are what we pride ourselves in.

All announcements can be customized. We can adjust the colors, fonts, wording, & photo layout, in order for you to have the perfect announcement. All announcements can be modified for gender and for multiple births. Please specify any special requests in the Additional comments/special requests part of the order form.

I simply love the beauty and simplicity of all the products available at Little Ladybug Designs! Their baby announcments are adorable and are also available for adoptive parents. Recently Kim held a contest where an adoptive mother-to-be could enter to win and be showered with baby gifts from numerous sponsors. Not only is the mother being showered with gifts but all of the guests who attend this Virtual Baby shower get the chance to win these same prizes!

Simply visit www.littleladybugdesigns.com on March 27th-29th, visit the party page, enjoy games, entertainment, baby tips, music and more, then sign the guest book after taking a peek at all the great prizes that are offered. And of course, Little Ladybug Designs is offering a free card set for the adoptive mother to be and free return address labels for a guest, and free shipping (insurance not included) for EVERYONE! What a fun way to congratulate new mommies who just adopted their little one!

I would love to see all of you participate in this fabulous event and will be issuing a formal invitation next week :). In the meantime I encourage you all to visit Little Ladybug Designs and take advantage of the 10% discount Kim has generously offered my readers. Simply enter the site using this link http://www.littleladybugdesigns.com/?code=afroginmysoup to take advantage of that discount. In addition to that discount though any shopper who purchases 4 or more sets of cards gets another 10% off!

But Kim’s generosity doesn’t stop there!!! She has also offered a set of 140 return address labels for one lucky commenter! All you have to do to qualify for this great prize is visit Little Ladybug Designs and take a look around. Then come back here and leave a comment mentioning your favorite design! It’s that simple! This contest will be open for comments until 10pm on April 2nd!

The Ever Silly Resident Salesman - Age 9

This contest has ended!  Thank you so much for your participation.  Be sure to click on the contests link at the top of the left hand sidebar to enter all the current contests! 

Oh how I love introducing all of you to these wonderful mom owned shops!!! Little Piddles is NO exception!!!  I had the opportunity to talk with Jennifer the owner of Little Piddles and ask her a few questions about her shop! Why did you decide to open an online shop?

I always wanted to be a SAHM. When I became pregnant with my 2nd daughter I quit my job. When my youngest was about to turn 3 I started to think of ways I could bring extra income into our home. One day my brother sent me a Power Point Presentation about an online store called Little Piddles. Funny enough the 2 days prior to this I was researching how to create an online children’s boutique, so I knew I had to do it.

What kinds of products do you sell?

My store is a children’s clothing and accessory boutique. We have items from babies on up to moms and dads. Right now it’s mainly geared to babies, but I am adding more things all the time. I want it to be a site where you can find something for the whole family whether it’s a baby shower gift, personalized tee shirt, or jewelry.

You seem to be very passionate about your products and customer service.

There are a lot of children’s stores out there today especially online ones. I like to think my products are unique. I carry a lot of handmade products and most of my items are made by WAHM’s. I also think my customer service is key. I want every customer to feel like they are my only customer.

Little Piddles offers many fun products and I really did have a hard time choosing a “favorite”! I love the handy concept of their Handy Sacks and the coziness of the wonderful selection of blankets they carry, but I simply have to point out the great new Smart Mom line of jewelry that is safe for babies to chew on but still offers mom great style! Also their fabulous selection of tutus are so fun and would be perfect for my neice!!!

Jennifer has very graciously offered all of you the opportunity to shop with her at a discount!! You are welcome to use the coupon code: AFROGINMYSOUP at checkout to receive 15% off through April 30th!

She has also offered my readers the opportunity to win a $25 gift certificate for her shop!!! One lucky commenter will get a chance to go shopping at Little Piddles! All you have to do is visit Little Piddles and take a look around! Come back here and leave a comment mentioning your favorite product to be entered into the contest! This contest will be open for comments until 10pm on March 27th.

Have you ever had one of those days where you wake up feeling a little less than lovely?  I’m sure that I’m a member of a very small and unique group of mothers that struggles in this area ;), but I write this just in case there is one other mother out there who has had a day that seemed doomed before their eyes even opened in the morning.

You don’t know what I’m talking about???  Well, it’s the kind of morning where you wake up to the crashing of dishes in the kitchen because your alarm didn’t go off and your 4 year old decided to try and climb onto the counter to get a cup so that they could sneak some soda.  No??

Ok, well, maybe it is just me, but I’ve learned a  key ingredient along the way when dealing with these frequent extremely rare moments and I thought I might share them with you on the very off chance that you encounter something that makes you want to scream and pull your hair out and maybe even put yourself on a LOOOOOONG time out (maybe to Bermuda :))!

Ready?  It isn’t that shocking or big or seemingly significant ~ the way we act, our mood and attitude is everything.  You already knew that though didn’t you?  Yup, most of us realize at some point that it is our reactions and attitude that make all the difference in the world, but we’re in a bad mood and frankly don’t always want to be the one to change it or shape up!!! 

Yes, moms have bad days too, yes we are still human, but we have to realize that our actions and attitude WILL affect all of those around us and if we’re having a bad day only we can change that (with God’s help of course).  We don’t always want to admit it or know how to turn it around, but you aren’t alone!  One of the most difficult things in the world is to admit we are wrong, ask for forgiveness, pray for God to help us change our attitude and to actually work at creating a better atmosphere.  Yes ladies, we are more powerful than we think and it is at the least lovely times that this fact becomes most apparent.  So today I give you the gift of knowledge, a little piece of information that reminds us all that we will make mistakes, but the best thing in the world is to openly acknowledge those mistakes and MOVE ON!

Our second wonderful contest hosted by dekoposh, Inc. has ended.  Thank you to all of you who entered these two great contests and left such wonderful comments!  This is truly a fun shop with wonderful products!

Please don’t forget that the 20% off discount (enter POSH during checkout) is still available and you are encouraged to use it when you shop at www.dekoposh.com!

#88 ~ Ann!!!  Congratulations Ann and make sure you check your email for more information!

This contest has ended and the winner has been announced.  Thank you so much for your participation and be sure to click on the Contests link at the top of the left sidebar to enter all the latest offers! 

The suspense is over!  The wonderful, fantastic and famous Sweet Pea Cakes, etc. is back!!!!  Dawn of Sweet Pea Cakes was so thrilled at the hundreds of you that entered her last sponsored giveaway here at A Frog In My Soup that she decided to come back for more!  So be sure to stay with us as we look at some of her new products (that you will LOVE by the way!).

You may remember her wonderful Diaper Cakes (did you know that she just added a line of Organic Diaper Cakes???) that are beautiful and perfect for a shower, but today I want to focus on her towel cakes!  She just added a super fun new line of Bathtime Towel Cakes for babies and children!  I know they are super cute because I just purchased one for my nephew’s second birthday :).  I can say first hand that I had absolutely no idea that the actual product would be as wonderful as it was. 

The Bathtime towel cakes are made up of: 1 full size bath towel, 1 hand towel, 1 washcloth, wrapped with gorgeous ribbon and topped with an adorable matching stuffie!  Then the towel is FILLED with bathtoys, shampoo, wash, bubble bath and the YUMMIEST of flannely pea j’s inside.  Oh, and just in case that wasn’t enough, the towels aren’t just any ordinary towels, nope they have a super fun and cute ribbon sewn on them, you can see for yourself HERE!

For fear that I’m beginning to sound like an infomercial I feel that I must move on now . . . but I’m not going to go very far haha!  She also has some very fun bathtime towel cakes for baby that are available in Froggy, Piggy, Ducky and Teddy themes and can even be ordered with a matching pair of slippers. 

Because Dawn couldn’t bear to leave anyone out on all this fun you simply cannot miss the towel cakes for Weddings, Graduation, Any Occasion (golfing, coffee . . .), and the fun line of Spa Towel Cakes.  I would say that the Cupcakes are one of my ALL=TIME favorite products from Sweet Pea Cakes, etc. though, they really are cute and . . . well . . . lead me to the giveaway!  That’s right ladies, this time Dawn has offered a cupcake to one very lucky commenter! 

You will have your choice of her Cup of Joe Towel Cake, Neopolitan Towel Cupcake or her Blue Sprinkes Cupcake (or choose another item from the shop of equal value).  These very cute little towel cakes are made out of a hand towel and matching washcloth, filled with either an 8 piece manicure or 5 piece pedicure set and topped off with a beautiful matching ribbon and fun topping!

In order to qualify to win this prize just follow these simple steps:

1. Visit Sweet Pea Cakes, etc. and take a look around.
2. Come back here and leave a comment on this post mentioning your favorite product (or products! You’ll see it’s very hard to choose just one).

This contest is open to residents of the USA only and will end at 10pm on March 25th.  As a thank you for Dawn’s generosity I strongly encourage those of you who blog to mention Sweet Pea Cakes, etc. and this contest on your own blog (if you aren’t a blogger just tell everyone).

And if you simply cannot resist going shopping right now, be sure to access the site using this link: http://sweetpeacakesetc.com?code=102 to receive 10% off your order!!!

My little twinkies when they were 4 months old!!!  Good luck telling who’s who!

Our first dekoposh, Inc. contest has ended and we have a winner!!!  I would like to invite all of you to continue to enter the latest dekoposh contest offering an adorable Got Text? boy or girl onesie!!  Also be sure to visit my Ultimate Blog Party post to enter to win your choice from a variety of prizes! Oh, and be sure to check back Thursday when we will be starting another wonderful contest that all ladies will LOVE!

The winner of the Posh Mini Purse is

#60 ~ Angela! 

Congratulations Angela, be sure to check your email for details!