Everyone Should Sleep On A Satin Pillowcase

The 411: 

We LOVE our hairy fairy. Come on...look at that picture at the top. Isn't she the cutest little thing with her purple hair?

I have heard of the benefits of satin pillowcases for years. I have heard they are good for your hair and for your skin. That you tend to have less knots and less wrinkles. This is something I should have investigated a lot sooner because I can't begin to tell you the tears we deal with every morning and every evening when we comb Goddess' hair.

She isn't very good about putting her hair in a braid or ponytail end usually ends up with wavy, messy hair every single day since she run, hides, plays and the rest with her long hair trailing behind her.

We have started using the satin pillowcase two weeks ago since Goddess tends to sleep walk during the night she would ended up in my bed the first week. This week she said she made a conscious effort to stay on the pillow. It has made all the difference. No more wetting, combing, crying, wetting, combing and crying for the past week. Amazing! Who knew?!  Well, actually a lot of folks knew because I have been hearing this for years. 

If you spend the morning or evening dealing with a crying little one, invest in a beautiful pillowcase that you will have to force yourself not to claim as your own.

Someone Wanted To Interview Me? Little Old Me?

Hey I just received notice that I am the Spotlight Blogger at SheSpeaks this month! Woot Woot http://www.shespeaks.com/Spotlight-on-SheSpeaks-Blogger-Maria-Gagliano-of-Maria-s-Space

Maria Gagliano is the founder and writer at Maria’s Space. She has been blogging for nine years and claims to have the gift of gab, featuring content about parenting, reviews, giveaways and more. 

We recently caught up with her to find out more about her life and here is what we found out, in her own words.

Where you can find me on social media: Facebook - Twitter - YouTube - Google + - Pinterest 

I live in….The Hudson Valley of New York.

My niche is…Friendly Face for All/Find Happiness Everyday.

$PullQuote$I write when…..I want to remember something about my kids or life but also when I need to get things off my chest. Sometimes writing equals breathing for me.

How has blogging changed my life: Blogging has enabled me to connect with so many people. Whether a company who wants to send me products for review or another mom who is touched by something I wrote or feels connected by how similar we are. Blogging has opened up my social circle and has made me feel very connected to so many people who I would never have met.

A brand I have loved working with: 20th Century Fox is a favorite and Chicken Soup for The Soul and Purex are awesome companies to work with.

When did I start blogging: My first post was written June 21, 2005. My son’s Godmother sent me her blog link and I thought you had to blog in order to comment.

How I see the future of blogging/social media: I believe social media is where it is at. Whether Twitter, Facebook, blogging or whatever new media comes out. Everyone should be interested in it. It has made the world that much smaller.

Where I work: I am lucky enough to work in my children’s school as a lunch aid/recess monitor. I love my job talking to kids all day and seeing my kids during my day makes me so happy. If I have to be apart from them, at least I get to see them in the midst of our busy day.

I am connected….At various times of the day and try to pre-post a lot of things. My biggest connection is to Facebook. It is where I get all my news and keep up with friends and family.

When I’m stressed, I…..Listen to music or call a girlfriend. However the more stressed I am, the more I turn toward music. Sometimes hearing opinions even if they are agreeing with me makes me feel more stress. Shutting down with some tunes is the way to go for me.

My favorite gadget is….Probably my Kindle. It is by far my favorite. I love flipping through my rows and rows of books all neatly showcased on my Kindle bookshelf. Makes me very happy.

My favorite travel destination is….As someone who has not traveled much I would say so far my favorite is Disney. I love that there is so much to see and do. I am dying to take my kids there and wish money wasn’t an factor.

My favorite clothing brand is…Maybe I am the only one but I don’t have a favorite. As long as it withstands many washing, doesn’t come apart and fits right, it’s my favorite.

I do all my shopping….Well, these days food shopping is taken care of by my husband which means I hardly do any shopping. However when I do we head to Walmart first.

My favorite TV shows: Walking Dead! For the past 6 years I have watched very little TV but would never dream of missing this show.

My favorite movie: This is so hard. I have so many favorites. There is no movie beside Twilight that I have watched more than 3 times. I do love Mamma Mia, The Notebook and anything I can get my kids to watch with me. My daughter and I love Coraline, The Nightmare Before Christmas and Beetlejuice. My son and I watch all the Home Alone movies over and over again.

Coffee or tea: Both! Coffee in the morning and tea at night.

I love….Being with my kids, taking pictures, reading, drawing, and laughing.

I dream about….One day having enough money to take my kids to Disney. They deserve it.

Where you can find my writing: At Maria’s Space.

What else I do: Sing. It is something I do with my kids but won’t be getting on stage anytime soon. I love doing duets with my daughter. We sing everything including chores and randomness. There is nothing that can’t be put to song and if it makes them laugh even better.

Causes I've worked with and made a difference via blogging about: I used to run a small website for my hometown when we lost the newspaper but now I only moderate a Facebook page for folks who live or lived in my town. I love reading and seeing photos from days gone by from my town.

Happiness Is: Goofing Around With My Daughter

Any long time reader will know that I lost my mom when I was 12 and longed to have a daughter to experience the lost Mother/Daughter relationship. I have a sweet boy and a spirited girl (sometimes vice versa) and couldn't be happier.

I would say I spend more time with Goddess then any other person on the planet. We sing, laugh, chat, play, read, and just chill out. We also love taking selfies.

Here are some from two days ago.

Some Holiday Decorations

Goddess and I love pretend shopping. We don't spend and money we just walk and check out the things we love. It really is a great time and something my daughter and I love because we are together. We laugh, sing, and take pictures and video. I hope she always wants to do this.

We love happy Santas!

Goddess is never afraid to pose!

He is so ugly he is cute!

Look at those twinkling eyes!

The Bluest Tablescape

While this is not my tablescape, I so wish it were.

    

The Babadook Is A Masterpiece of Writing And Acting

IFC Midnight 

presents

THE BABADOOK
Written and Directed by Jennifer Kent

The 411 by Maria:

Last night I watched the Babadook a dark, moody, smart, horror movie about a woman who hasn't dealt with her grief after her husband's passing. At first it seems like any other generic horror movie about a little boy scared of a story his mother reads to him one night where the character of the book comes to life scaring them both out of their minds.

NO! It is NOT that. It is so much more and I was completely blown away by how good this movie was and I am still unsure if the Babadook is a manifestation of the characters minds or if he was real. Whatever! It doesn't matter.  We are so conditioned to feel a certain way by so many movies out there today and I have watched a ton of the horror genre. This is one of the greats!

Amelia is a single mom or mum as Samuel calls her, this is an Australian film after all whose husband died in a car accident as he was getting her to the hospital to have Samuel. Samuel is a precocious, adorable 6 year old who has some obvious behavioral problems due to his wild imagination or is it imagination? Anyway I digress....

While Amelia tries to handle Samuel being kicked out of school and his wild, vivid imagination she begins to see the things that Samuel is seeing.

While it plays out like a horror movie, dark, foreboding house, creepy dark corners, bumps in the night, spooked pet, scary basement, frightening visions, horrifying sounds I believe the story has so many layers you will think about it for days. I need to watch it again to see what I missed. There were times I actually had the chills all over my body and felt very tense mostly during the quietest moments of the movie which I contribute to the brilliant acting by both main characters.  Essie Davies (Amelia) is a wildly impressive. She is a loving mom, a frightening force, a grieving wife, a tormented killer, she is everything and then some. Noah Wiseman (Samuel) is a loveable, devilish, little one who I wanted to hold and comfort one second and slap his bottom the next.

Not scary, I didn't loose any sleep but very very spooky and thought provoking. Who do you think the babadook is?

Christmas Dolls Can Be Scary. Who KNEW!???

The doll's name is Madison and she looks innocent enough but Goddess swears her name is Annabelle and she is very afraid of her.

We were laughing and joking when she said, "Mommy she looks like me, her eye lashes are very long, she freaks me out."

I hugged the doll and Goddess pretended to faint. I said, "She is beautiful. My Daddy your Grandpa gave her to me."

She was like "Mommy I am going to have nightmares, please please put her away."

Soooooo like the good joking, fun mom I am I said, "I am not going to put her away, I am going to have her pop up in various places like all your friend's Elf on a Shelves."

Her face completely changed from a smile to complete fear, "nooooo mommy, I am afraid of her. Stop saying that."

So....like a good mom I reboxed her and put her away. She has been around for over 15 years and maybe one day will be able to come out again but this year she will return to the attic. Which I of course won't mention to Goddess because that is just creepy to me.

Give The Gift Of Family Time With These New Hasbro Games

Holidays are right around the corner and this means so hectic days are up ahead as we shop shop and shop to make sure we get everyone on our list something amazing for Christmas.  So while you are sipping your eggnog in front of the fireplace, making your list and checking it twice I thought I would give you some food for thought.

Kids these days love their electronics! They do. They love their computer games, their video games, their smartphone games but if you really want to spend some time together as a family, there is nothing like good old board games especially on days when the electronics aren't available like this past Thanksgiving when my whole town ended up without electricity for nearly 20 hours. Yeah it was an interesting Thanksgiving but more on that some other time. 

Thankfully, the week before we received a shipment from Hasbro that kept my family sane on a really different Thanksgiving.

The book contained Simon Swipe, Monopoly Junionr and Playdoh Launch.

Handsome got right to the Simon Swipe which is a great new Simon game. I loved playing Simon as a kid with my sisters and love how they have altered the game to contain some swipes of the keys. It was so much fun and out of all of them this is the one I see them playing most often.

The Monopoly Junior is really a great game and at the moment I am so upset because we lost a whole 5 minute video on the game. It was really a fun video with Goddess and I explaining how you play it. I am not sure where it is and have searched all my folders. UGH. If I find it, I will post it but I believe it is lost forever. 

It is definitely a game that can be played with kids as young as 4 and isn't as long as the original. You land on the property, you buy the property. You place your card and everyone who lands on it pays you. The best part is that the prices are all in the ones place so there is no big counting for the little ones involved. We love the game pieces which consist of a car, cat, dog and boat.

  Here we are playing it on Thanksgiving on a very cold morning.

The board is so colorful and the cards make for easy buying of property if you get the right one

Lastly, we love our Playdoh and I can't imagine a time where we will not have a Playdoh can in this house.  We were thrilled to try out Playdoh Launch.

In Playdoh Launch you create balls with Playdoh and launch it into the Playdoh canister as it spins around opening and closing it's mouth! We love this type of game.

What a great way to spend time with your kids to laugh and play. Unplug your kids and make memories that will last a lifetime.

Our Jingle All The Way 2 Party Was A Hit #FHInsiders ##JingleInsiders

We are back from our most fun Holiday Party ever thanks to Fox Home Entertainment. As a Fox Insider I was shipped a box containing all the makings for a party that the kids won't soon forget and neither will I.

 
We were all thoroughly impressed with the swag. There is so much to say....we waited patiently for our friends and it was hard to keep my kids away from the hot cocoa and cookies. Can't say I blame them.

Our Jingle All The Way 2 package had cookie cutters shaped like stars, crafts, activity sheets, hot cocoa, Santa hats, straws with a Santa mustache AND truly the coolest mugs ever.

The kids were ready to party and party they did. It was a very very loud, few hours except during the movie which they mostly laughed at.

Holiday music had them showing us their moves.

Our crowd consisted of 3 - 12 year olds and they all got along so great. They are so cute in their hats.

The activity sheets definitely got a few laughs especially for the parents who thought they would get gift ideas on the Santa letters. Two including one of mine wrote "You already know what I want." Ummmmm...no help there.
 

These wood ornament crafts were a hit! Wish there was an extra for me. I need to pick up some of these.

Handsome colored his so patiently.

 

Laughing, eating and a movie. Is there a better idea for a party or get together? We don't think so.

My non art lover was loving this craft. Who knew?

 

After much drinking, laughing, eating and ribbing, we headed downstairs to watch Jingle All The Way 2 starring Larry the Cable Guy. The kids had a great time and the moms loved that there was a new holiday movie that they hadn't seen before. We had a great time!!!

Disclaimer: No monetary compensation was sent! We received this package as a Fox Home Insider.

Creekside Farms Wreaths Brings The Festive Into My Home REVIEW

The 411 by Maria:

The day after Thanksgiving I received a box that filled my home with the most amazing smells. We quickly opened the box which told us that this was a fresh floral product.

The wreath was beautiful filled with one of my favorite scents; eucalyptus. I love it so much I even had it in my bridal bouquet.

We love how it is packaged and there were also two or three ties that kept it from shifting and crushing in the box. It was a quick snip and we got it out.

So beautiful! Love the babys breath and the red bow too!

It looks beautiful above my desk and is the only decoration up but it looks stunning! Hopefully we will continue decorating tomorrow. It can hang on a door, a wall, a mirror, wherever you want.

Creekside Farms doesn't just have seasonal wreaths, they also have decorative wreaths for weddings, decor, corporate gifts, Fall, herb filled, or all occasion like their beautiful Ocean Breeze wreath with sand dollars and shells. Lovely!

When Calls The Heart: Rules Of Engagement - Lifetime's First Scripted Show Gets Greenlight For Season 2

The 411: 

I have been watching What Calls The Heart on Lifetime and love it. What I love most is how sweet, quiet and lovely this series is. It reminds me of my childhood and the shows that were on TV while I was a child.

This is a show you can watch with your whole family without fear that a curse or slang word will be dropped. There will be no uncomfortable, sexy scenes that you hope are over your kids head while you squirm in your seat waiting for the scene to end. No my friend! This is a lovely show where girls are modest and men are gentlemen. 

In this episode Rosemary, Jack's ex-fiancé is looking to make him hers again and will do what she has to in order to get her man back.  While Elizabeth meets a young man whose educational abilities surprise her so much that pays a visit to his mothers home to tell her how gifted he is (as if a mother wouldn't know). Elizabeth also has a decision to make on her future.  Abagail has her hands full as she and Mr. Avery work on making the mine accountable for the loss of the men of the town. 

There is so much going on with this episode that I don't even know where to start so I will leave you with this: 

• Jack proves he is a wonderful man with a huge heart.
• Elizabeth knows where she needs to be
• Abagail is stronger than many woman on TV 
• Mr. Avery used to be on General Hospital. Hello Frisco.
• and Rosemary needs to get her butt out of dodge! 

Thanks Michael Landon Jr and Hallmark for continuing to make family friendly movies and shows that you can watch even if your kids are awake! 
 

Finally! Dreft Debuts Stain Removers For The Clothes We Put On The Most Sensitive Skin

The 411:

It's true, I truly trust Dreft. My son is now 11 but I have been using Dreft on his clothes since the first week he was born. Yes, like most babies he had sensitive skin but he had an extra reason I trust his laundry to Dreft. It is the only one that I can use that doesn't flare up his eczema without spending more than I have to.

I remember tossing out so many onesies back in the day because I couldn't find a pretreater that could be used on his puree food stains and even now some of his clothes end up as a rag because even if there is a tiny stain he will not wear it anymore.   

We have trusted Dreft for my son's laundry for 11 years and I don't see that changing!

NOW...there is a new reason for me to love them even more.

There's the Dreft Laundry Stain Remover which I now keep right next to my other stain remover above my washing machine so I can treat the stain before tossing his laundry into the wash. His laundry is always washed alone to keep it away from any other detergent. 

There's also the little portable stain remover that you can leave outside the laundry room and pre-treat that stain before you even toss it into the dirty bin.

AND...there's the ON TO GO PEN Instant Stain Remover!

LOVE IT! I can toss it in my purse, diaper bag or backpack.  YOU can take it with you anywhere. AWESOME. It's easy to use, and there is no chance of it opening up and spilling in your purse because you have to push down to get it to work.  It is perfect for Moms/Dads and Caregivers On The Go.

Popular Program Becomes Our Favorite Kids Reading Program For Ages 3-7

Rosetta Stone has launched a new Kids Reading program for children ages 3-7 although my daughter is 9 and she loved it as well. It's research-proven to be effective and will help kids master core literacy skills--from learning shapes and sounds, to sentence structure--in a fun, game-like environment. They can use Rosetta Stone Kids Reading at home on the computer or on-the-go on their tablets (great for car rides!).

Starting school has taken a turn and is nothing like when my kids started out just a few short years ago. I know they would not have been ready based on what they knew going into Kindergarten these days. Rosetta Stone Kids Reading Program is a great tool to help your kids prep for when they are ready to enter school OR for kids who are already in school like mine, it's a great program to help continue and support what they're learning in the classroom, at home. 

I started with my 9 year old Goddess two weeks ago and the very first thing I will point out is that my very reluctant reader really wanted to "play" well, that is what she called it anyway but I can tell you what she was doing was "learning".  The morning after she tried it she woke up earlier than usual asking "mommy, I don't want to wait until after school. Can I go on now for a little while?" I was completely shocked. My daughter loves computer games and is completely Minecraft obsessed but couldn't wait to go back to the Rosetta Stone Reading Program! I remember telling my husband, I am so adding this to my post! That says it all for me!

Why do kids love it? I think it may be the colorful, non cluttered screens, the encouragement they get from the characters and the ability to select levels they are confident with that you can build on as they learn more that will keep them focused, interested and wanting to go back to "play" even though we all know they are actually "learning." Shhhhh they don't need to know right now. Let it go!