My Five Favorite Pins This Week

Hi, I'm Danielle and I'm addicted to Pinterest.  Haven't been there yet?  It's a brilliant site where you can "pin" pictures onto virtual boards, kind of like you would on a real life inspiration or bulletin board.  The boards are a simple and visually appealing way to keep ideas, projects, inspiration, etc. all saved in one handy dandy place.  Here's a peek at what my Easter Goodies one looks like.

Plus, you can browse other people's boards to find more ideas, projects, inspiration, etc.  So as you can probably imagine, Pinterest is a cornucopia of eye candy and other such goodness which is exactly why I just can't get enough of it!

Since I find so many wonderful things on Pinterest, I've decided to share some of my favorite pins each week here on AFOMFT.  I'm going to try to limit it to five at a time but man, oh man, is it hard to pick!  Here we go:

#1: Laundry is never going to be fun so it might as well be pretty!  Decorate your washer and dryer with vinyl decals to brighten up your laundry room. {Pin via Kendra Halterman from Belle Maison}

#2: These Watermelon Cupcakes are just right for a summertime get together. {Pin via Chrissa King from My Bakingdom}

#3:  I love this idea for displaying your children's artwork - on the stair treads!  {My pin from Family Fun}

#4:  Looking for a meaningful piece of art for the nursery or playroom?  Why not create a footprint timeline like this one? {Pin via Christina Kober from First Home}

#5:  Wishful thinking. {Pin via Sami Cronin from Someecards.com}

So there you have my Five Favorite Pins this week.  If you'd like to check out my boards on Pinterest, you can find them HERE.  If you're already on Pinterest, I'd love to follow you so post a comment here with a link to your boards so I can check them out.  And if you're not already a member and need an invite, post your e-mail address and I'll send you one.

Happy Pinning!

Images: Belle Maison, My Bakingdom, Family Fun, First Home & Someecards.com

AND THE WINNERS ARE.... {DISCOUNT}

Congratulations ROBYNL!  You've won a City Saky Bag in Mod Floral from Saky Sacks!

Congratulations DOROTHY!  You've won a set of Tweetie Bird Wall Decals from Pop & Lolli!

Congratulations CATHERINE!  You've won the Shabby Apple Dress of Your Choice!

If you were one of the lucky ones listed above, please e-mail me at afomft@gmail.com by end of day Saturday, April 2nd to claim your prize. If I do not hear from you by then, a new winner will be chosen.

If you didn't win but still want a Saky Sacks bag or a Shabby Apple frock, you're in luck because we've got two exclusive discounts just for you!

Take 25% off all purchases at Saky Sacks with code AFOMFT and get 10% off at Shabby Apple with code MYFAVORITETHINGS10OFF (through April 24th).  Happy shopping!

Skipping a Beat {GIVEAWAY}

I admit it.  In the first few months after having Gabrielle and Alaina, I didn't pick up a single book.  Okay, who are we kidding?  It was more like the first 24 months!  Yes, I went two years without reading anything longer than an article in Us Weekly, and for someone who adores reading like I do, it was a tough pill to swallow.  But I didn't have the time to dedicate to following a story from beginning to end so I anxiously awaited the day I'd be able to curl up with a good book and when I finally got the chance, I picked up The Other Side of Me by Sarah Pekkanen.

It's the story of adult twin sisters who've grown apart but who come together again at a pivotal point in their lives, and I couldn't put it down.  I was so sad to leave the characters of Lindsey and Alex when the novel ended that I immediately headed to Amazon to look for any other books written by the same author that I could get my hands on.  No luck - The Opposite of Me was her debut but through friends who had recommended Sarah's book, I found her Facebook fan page and "liked" it, figuring someone would share when her next one would come out.  I was so surprised to find that Sarah regularly posts and interacts with readers on her page.  It was there that I learned about a reading she was having in NYC to promote the release of her second book, Skipping a Beat, and I was shocked when I e-mailed her about it that not only did she e-mail me back, but went out of her way to make sure I was on the guest list.  So so sweet.

At the reading, I found Sarah to be as genuine in person as she is on Facebook.  She read an excerpt from Skipping a Beat and answered questions from the attendees, and her energy was infectious. 

It was so inspiring to hear her talk about how she got her first book published (she visited bookstores, made a list of the people who edited her favorite books and then sent them copies of her manuscript!), how she manages life as a mom and an author (she actually writes in her car while waiting to pick up her kids from school) and what she's working on next (here's a scoop - it may be the story of three couples whose lives are intertwined).  I headed home with a new copy of Skipping a Beat inscribed just for me:

And I couldn't wait to start reading it.  When I did, Skipping a Beat was all I expected it to be.  It's the story of Michael and Julia, two high school sweethearts who manage to achieve all of their dreams but whose lives change dramatically when Michael has a near-death experience.  I won't give too much away, but prepare to become totally emotionally invested in the marriage of two people you never met.  Sarah's writing vividly depicts what happens to a couple after being together for years and how they start to drift apart despite having everything they could ever want, and as a reader, you'll start to question how you would handle a similar situation.  I finished Skipping a Beat on a plane ride this weekend and was mortified to find myself sobbing through the final chapters.  The guy in the next seat looked at me like I was nuts but I couldn't bear to put it down until I knew what happened so I pulled out some tissues and just kept reading.  It's a book makes you think, make you cry and makes you wish it wouldn't end.  But alas, it did.  Now there's nothing for me to do but stalk Sarah's Facebook page, hoping for some news on when her next one will be out!

If you're a fan of authors like Jennifer Weiner, Emily Giffin or Jodi Picoult, I think you'll enjoy The Opposite of Me and Skipping a Beat.  Now the next time you're looking for a good read, you know where to look!

Sarah has graciously offered to give away one copy of Skipping a Beat to a lucky AFOMFT reader!  To enter, post a comment here telling me what your favorite book is (this is mandatory). For additional entries:

• "Like" AFOMFT on Facebook
• "Like" Sarah Pekkanen's Fan Page on Facebook and leave a comment that A Few of My Favorite Things sent you.
• Follow AFOMFT on Twitter (@AFOMFT or click the birdie icon on the sidebar) and tweet this post by clicking the graphic above or this giveaway: #Win a copy of Sarah Pekkanen's book "Skipping a Beat" at @AFOMFT http://tinyurl.com/AFOMFT
• Click here - - to vote for AFOMFT on Top Baby Blogs and post a comment here that you did. You can vote once per day per computer so if you vote every day or on different computers, be sure to post one comment for each one.
• Blog or post on Facebook about this giveaway with a link to this post (worth 2 entries so please post two comments) and make sure your comments include a link to your status or blog post.
• Donate $10 to the Red Cross to help the relief efforts in Japan by texting REDCROSS to 90999 (the donation will be billed to your cell phone bill).  (This is worth 5 entries so please post five separate comments saying that you made a donation)

Please leave a separate comment for each entry (two if you've blogged about the giveaway) and make sure to include a link to your tweet, blog post, etc. All entries must be posted on AFOMFT as a direct comment to this post. Comments on Facebook will not count as entries. This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada and ends April 5th at 11:59 pm EST. The winner will be selected by random.org and announced on AFOMFT on April 6th. If the winner does not contact AFOMFT within 48 hours, a new drawing will be held so be sure to check back to see if you've won!

AND THE WINNERS ARE....

Congratulations MELANIE!  You've won a $50 gift card to iTunes from our Valentine's Day Giveaway!

Congratulations DOUBLY BLESSED!  You've won a $50 gift card to Ann Taylor Loft from our Valentine's Day Giveaway!

Congratulations ELIE!  You've won a $50 gift card to Old Navy from our Valentine's Day Giveaway!

Congratulations TAMIV!  You've won the It's Timmy Time! DVD and plush doll!

Congratulations SARA!  You've won three DVDs from Nickelodeon!

Congratulations KAREN PROPES!  You've won a copy of our new favorite book, Who Said Coo?

That's a whole lot of winners!  If you were one of the lucky ones listed above, please e-mail me at afomft@gmail.com by end of day Wednesday, March 23rd to claim your prize. If I do not hear from you by then, a new winner will be chosen.

And don't forget to enter the three great giveaways we've got going on right now!

City Saky Tote from Saky Sacks (ends 3/22)

One set of Pop & Lolli Tweetie Bird Wall Decals (ends 3/23)

The Shabby Apple Dress of Your Choice (ends 3/25)

And stay tuned for lots more to come this week!

For Japan With Love

 Tomorrow, AFOMFT will be participating in the FOR JAPAN WITH LOVE BLOGGERS DAY OF SILENCE to acknowledge and help raise funds and awareness for the devastation going on in Japan.  You will not see a post here tomorrow; instead, I hope that you'll take the few minutes you usually spend here to stop by the For Japan With Love site and contribute if you are able to do so.

All of the donations made on the For Japan With Love site will go to ShelterBox, which provides emergency shelter and lifesaving supplies for families around the world who are affected by disasters at the time when they need it the most. Each large, green ShelterBox is tailored to the situation at hand but typically contains a disaster relief tent for an extended family, blankets, water storage and purification equipment, cooking utensils, a stove, a basic tool kit, a children’s activity pack and other vital items. 

In less than a week, this effort has raised more than $15,000 and every little bit helps so we're hoping this will encourage you to open your wallet - every AFOMFT reader who makes a donation will be eligible for 5 additional entries into all giveaways through March 31st.  That means if you donate to the Red Cross and to For Japan With Love, you'll earn 10 extra entries.  So please, visit For Japan With Love and do some good.  Hopefully you'll win something fabulous in the process!

A None Too Shabby Apple {GIVEAWAY & DISCOUNT}

Spring is in the air here in NYC today and you know what that means, right?  It's time to bust out all of my beloved dresses.  There's nothing I love more than putting on a fun frock, some stylin' shoes and sweet sunglasses.  It just makes me feel so.... I don't know.  Girly.  And Audrey Hepburn-esque, you know?

And one of my favorite places to get chic but well-priced dresses is Shabby Apple.  Why do I love them?  Well besides having fabulous designs, they make sure that all of their pieces are what dresses were meant to be - one-piece outfits.  You won't have to add a tank top or belt - if they're meant to have one, it's built in.  Like the Nine to Five dress, which I own.

All you need to add is a cute pair of shoes and you're good to go.  Their simple and stylish clothes make it that much easier to get out the door in the morning!

All of the Shabby Apple Women's Dresses are grouped by collections named after what inspired the designs.  The Oh La La dresses are influenced by the romance of Paris, like the fun L'Amour:

The earthiness of the Berkshires brings you the Cider:

The elegant Moon River dress comes from the All That Jazz collection:

The South Pacific dresses include the stunning North Shore:

Baja is where you'll find the pretty San Gabriel.

And the Marseilles dress comes from my hometown's Central Park collection.

Aren't they all gorgeous?  I would love to own each and every one.  But I'm not the only one who can dress up in Shabby Apple!  They also carry maternity dresses and kid's clothing.  Their little girls collection starts at size 6-12 months and runs to size 8 and they have pre-teen sizes available as well.  I know Gabrielle and Alaina would look adorable in the 45 Words Per Minute dress:

And the adorable Creamsicle wrap!

Too sweet!

In addition to designing fabulous dresses, Shabby Apple is also giving back. They're partnered with Unitus, a non-profit organization that uses micro-finance to help women overcome poverty and provide a better life for their children.  Shabby Apple donates 5% of its net sales to support women in India and each customer has the opportunity to donate an extra five dollars to Unitus every time she buys a dress.  Every $100 donation from provides at least 20 women with access to financial services to build their dream - and the chance to live a life without poverty. Clearly, buying a dress isn't just buying a dress.

If you're ready to kick-start your wardrobe, head on over to Shabby Apple and get to browsing.  I'm sure you'll find the perfect dress to put a spring in your step!

And one lucky AFOMFT reader is going to win one of her very own!  That's right - Shabby Apple has generously offered to give away any of the dresses I showed above.  You can choose from the women's or kid's designs.  How fabulous is that?

To enter, post a comment here telling me which Shabby Apple dress you'll choose if you win (this is mandatory). For additional entries:

• "Like" AFOMFT on Facebook
• "Like" Shabby Apple on Facebook and leave a comment that A Few of My Favorite Things sent you.
• Follow AFOMFT on Twitter (@AFOMFT or click the birdie icon on the sidebar) and tweet this post by clicking the graphic above or this giveaway: #Win the dress of choice from Shabby Apple at @AFOMFT - so prefect for springtime! http://tinyurl.com/AFOMFT
• Click here - - to vote for AFOMFT on Top Baby Blogs and post a comment here that you did. You can vote once per day per computer so if you vote every day or on different computers, be sure to post one comment for each one.
• Blog or post on Facebook about this giveaway with a link to this post (worth 2 entries so please post two comments) and make sure your comments include a link to your status or blog post.
• Donate $10 to the Red Cross to help the relief efforts in Japan by texting REDCROSS to 90999 (the donation will be billed to your cell phone bill).  (This is worth 5 entries so please post five separate comments saying that you made a donation)

Please leave a separate comment for each entry (two if you've blogged about the giveaway) and make sure to include a link to your tweet, blog post, etc. All entries must be posted on AFOMFT as a direct comment to this post. Comments on Facebook will not count as entries. This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. only and ends March 24th at 11:59 pm EST. The winner will be selected by random.org and announced on AFOMFT on March 25th. If the winner does not contact AFOMFT within 48 hours, a new drawing will be held so be sure to check back to see if you've won!

And that's not all!  Readers of AFOMFT can get 10% off all purchases by entering code MYFAVORITETHINGS10OFF at Shabby Apple through April 24th.  Happy shopping!

Images: Shabby Apple

Pop-Tastic Wall Decals! {GIVEAWAY}

Gabrielle and Alaina just turned two and a half and visions of their big girl room have been dancing in my head.  I know it will be a bright and vibrant space - they're just not pastel-y kind of girls - and I've been bookmarking ideas and pinning them on my boards on Pinterest like crazy.  (Side note: if you haven't checked out Pinterest yet, get yourself over there!  It's a wonderland of eye candy you'll never want to leave.)  So when I found Pop & Lolli, I knew I'd hit pay dirt.  Just look at these fabulous fabric wall decals!

Are they amazing or what?

Like so many of my favorite shops and sites, Pop & Lolli was started by a mom who was frustrated when she couldn't find exactly what she was looking for.  In this case, the mom was Mia, a South African ex-pat who put her masters in Architecture to use working as an Imagineer for Walt Disney.  Um, can you say cool job???  But with a munchkin on the way, Mia was disappointed by the nursery decor choices she found and decided to leave her job to design her own products to fill up the blank walls she found staring at her.  The result?  Playful, funky and flexible wall decals that create an interactive and immersive environment for kiddos of all ages.  Mia likes to call it PICTURE POETRY - design as an opportunity for expression and exploration – and I couldn't have said it better myself.

What I love about Pop & Lolli is how many designs there are to choose from!  These ABC and 123 trees would be perfect for a playroom.

And I adore the whimsical animal sets.  There's the African Circus.

The Jiving Jungle Pals.

The Fantasy Forrest Critters.

And my personal favorites - the Fashion Farm Gang.

The argyle sheep slay me!

Pop & Lolli decals are made from fabric, and they're 100% safe for kids, completely non-toxic and made in the U.S.A.  They're also completely re-usable.  That's right, your little ones can pull 'em off the wall and stick them back up as many times as they want, so the sky is truly the limit in terms of what they can create!  Don't believe me?  Then check out the Cutesy Characters.

Adorable. But get this - munchkins can re-dress each one whenever and however they want.

They can even add thought bubbles!

And not to worry - there are Cutesy Characters for little dudes too.

You're probably already adding Pop & Lolli decals to your cart but just in case you need some more convincing, you have to see the accessory kits.  Your kids can throw their characters or animals a birthday party!

Or take them on a road trip.

They can even decorate for Christmas!

I mean, really, could you just die?

Unlike the regular vinyl decals, Pop & Lolli fabric decals have a semi-gloss UV protective coating which gives them a lifespan of 7-10 years indoors and 5-7 years outdoors so they can really grow with your kids. These decals have made such an impression, Pop & Lolli was nominated for a Cribsie Award the Nursery category!  Super impressive for a new company.

And while you're buying, you can also do some good.  Mia has started (it's) chic 2 change, a charity to help benefit children in her home country, so for every set of decals purchased, Pop & Lolli donates educational materials and resources to positively influence a South African child in need. You can't argue with that.

I've purchased my share of vinyl wall decals for the girls' nursery and while they were less expensive than Pop & Lolli's, they can't be re-used and aren't interactive, so if we move or the girls pull them off the wall, we're out of luck.  For their big girl room, I know where I'll be shopping!  

And I've got a nice treat for a lucky AFOMFT reader - Mia has offered to give away one set of the Pop & Lolli Tweetie Birdie decals!

The set includes 16 spunky character stickers and is valued at $67!  Just look at these sassy birds in action.

To enter, please visit Pop & Lolli and post a comment here telling me which of their wall decal sets is your favorite (this is mandatory). For additional entries:

• "Like" AFOMFT on Facebook
• "Like" Pop & Lolli on Facebook and leave a comment that A Few of My Favorite Things sent you.
• Vote for Pop & Lolli in the Cribsie Awards HERE
• Follow AFOMFT on Twitter (@AFOMFT or click the birdie icon on the sidebar) and tweet this post by clicking the graphic above or this giveaway: #Win a set of adorable re-usable fabric wall decals from Pop & Lolli @AFOMFT http://tinyurl.com/AFOMFT
• Click here - - to vote for AFOMFT on Top Baby Blogs and post a comment here that you did. You can vote once per day per computer so if you vote every day or on different computers, be sure to post one comment for each one.
• Blog or post on Facebook about this giveaway with a link to this post (worth 2 entries so please post two comments) and make sure your comments include a link to your status or blog post.
• Donate $10 to the Red Cross to help the relief efforts in Japan by texting REDCROSS to 90999 (the donation will be billed to your cell phone bill).  (This is worth 5 entries so please post five separate comments saying that you made a donation)

Please leave a separate comment for each entry (two if you've blogged about the giveaway or five if you made a donation) and make sure to include a link to your tweet, blog post, etc. All entries must be posted on AFOMFT as a direct comment to this post. Comments on Facebook will not count as entries. This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. only and ends March 23rd at 11:59 pm EST. The winner will be selected by random.org and announced on AFOMFT on March 24th. If the winner does not contact AFOMFT within 48 hours, a new drawing will be held so be sure to check back to see if you've won!

Images: Pop & Lolli