Escape from the City, 1 My 31st Birthday

Labor Day weekend we celebrated my 31st birthday (September 1st).  My wonderful in-laws drove from Columbus, Ohio on Friday, and we prepped to leave early the next day for our road trip to Vermont, Martha's Vineyard and Mystic.  Life has been beyond chaos in the weeks following our trip. so I'm finally getting around to share the pictures from our road trip.  Zion did great the whole time (we made sure to plan our drives with her in mind - having the ipad helped too!)

 

Our first stop, was Starbucks, hehe - I had to capitalize on my "Any drink you want" free birthday drink, and so I grabbed the behemoth venti green tea frap.  Not long after we were on our way to our first destination, little lady had passed out next to me.  Our whole purpose of going to Vermont was so that we could essentially check it off the list of states my Mother & Father-in-law have been (they've been to almost every single one!)  My MIL had her heart set on picking up some authentic Vermont Maple Syrup.  Our first drive was 4 hours (a straight Northern journey from NYC).  We left at 5:30am!  And arrived to Vermont just in time for the Brattleboro Farmer's Market.

^^ Scallion Pancake with Farm Fresh Egg

^^ Maple Birch Soda - best soda I've had in my life - this stuff is incredible!

We spent a few hours in Vermont before hopping back on the road - we aimed to reach Martha's Vineyard by early evening.  (Another 4+ hour drive).  It's tricky getting their with Ferry's only running every 30-45 minutes and the last ferry returning to the mainland around 9/10pm.  We hoped we'd make it there with enough time to see a few sites, visit a BBQ Restaurant my MIL wanted to go to for dinner, and still make it back to our hotel at a reasonable hour so Zion could get a good night's sleep.

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Link & Mingle

The long of it is, the "Link and Mingle: Sisters in Blogging Social Media Linkup". The short is, the "Link & Mingle". Call it what you wish. :)

Meet our weekly hosts!

Shaylee Ann | Mother {at} Heart

Kim | Singledou[b]t
Kendra | Adventures of Brad & Kendra
Courtney | Thoughts From the Birdhouse
Britt | Yellow Umbrella
Courtney | Baxtron{Life}
April | Dimples and Delights

and for this week's co-hosts, we have
Whitney | Sippy Cups and Pearls
Celestia | Tree of Life Mothering

Thank you, ladies!

The "rules" are thus:
visit/follow/like as many links as you can,

link up to as many social media sites that apply to you (please link up only links that apply - blog posts and other links that do not apply will be removed),

share, tweet, and blog about this link party if you so wish,

grab the button {below},

and have fun meeting new people!

Links are connected to each header, to show you just what you should link up. :)

We would love it if you followed all of your hosts and co-hosts, but that's not mandatory. Just have fun! :)

If you would be interested in co-hosting this party periodically, send an email to {shaylee.motheratheart@gmail.com}.

Alright, ladies! Button-up, link-up, and meet-up! :)

Tweet

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<center> <a href="http://www.mother-at-heart.com/search/label/Link%20and%20Mingle" target="_blank"><img alt="Mother {at} Heart" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Bz6_3z-Jrsg/UBsXYDz8iCI/AAAAAAAABcQ/hNRvF3V2RSk/s487/button.png" width="250"/></a></center>

Thank you for linking up!

Come back next Thursday for another round of the Link & Mingle!

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"I Love Armpit Hair!" ... said no one ever!

I am super excited to have been selected as a part of the Tria Beauty Blogger Review Program.  :)  As a part of the program I got to choose between reviewing the Tria Hair Removal Laser or the Tria Skin Perfecting Blue Light.  While, I would have LOVED to try either, the choice for me was simple.  Eliminate the monthly annoyance of a pimple or two - or obliterate the near-daily shaving habit (which I never seem to have time to keep up with!)

Good-bye armpit hair!? And leg & bikini hair too!?  I chose to review the Tria Beauty Hair Removal Laser!  I have to say, I have always wanted to have laser hair removal.  I've had a few consultations, but the need for continuous touch-ups coupled with high-costs always deterred me.  To tell you that I am excited to try this product is a huge understatement.  Let me tell you a little about the product - and what I'll be doing as a part of the review, hopefully you'll be excited to watch me be your personal guinea pig!

The FDA-cleared Tria Hair Removal Laser is the first and only hair removal laser available for at-home use. Easy to use and with 5 comfort settings, the Tria Hair Removal  

Laser delivers the same permanent results you get with

professional treatments. It will free you from the endless 

hassle of shaving, waxing, ingrown hairs and razor burn. 

As a part of my review I will be doing treatments every two weeks in all the areas I want to target.  I will continue this regimen for six months, posting an update once a month with progress and thoughts on the product/results.  At the end of six months, one of my lucky readers will have a chance to WIN a Tria Hair Removal Laser!  Say good-bye to armpit hair forever friends! (I hope!)  One thing you can count on from me is a fair and honest review (with lots of pictures, and maybe a video too.)

Here are a couple of before pictures.  Look away now if body hair grosses you out.  Hehe.

 

Left: Lower Leg Hair, Right: Armpit Hair

Oh, and one last thing - right now Tria is running a contest - where one lucky winner will receive both the Tria Hair Removal Laser and the Tria Skin Perfecting Blue Light, plus $500 Spa Finder Giftcard!  You can enter and see more details here.

I am participating in the Tria Beauty Blogger Review Program.  I received complimentary product to review, however; all opinions in this post are my own.  

Link & Mingle

Since I am out with a cold this week - I'll continue my series on Social Media optimization next week! Have a specific social media you want me to address?  Leave a comment below! <3 <3

The long of it is, the "Link and Mingle: Sisters in Blogging Social Media Linkup". The short is, the "Link & Mingle". Call it what you wish. :)

Meet our weekly hosts!

Shaylee Ann | Mother {at} Heart

Kim | Singledou[b]t
Kendra | Adventures of Brad & Kendra
Courtney | Thoughts From the Birdhouse
Britt | Yellow Umbrella
Courtney | Baxtron{Life}
April | Dimples and Delights

and for this week's co-hosts, we have
Faith | The Life of Faith

Pippa | Shop with Pippa
Kimberly | Making Pinterest My Reality

Thank you, ladies!

Links are connected to each header, to show you just what you should link up. :)

The "rules" are thus:
visit/follow/like as many links as you can,

link up to as many social media sites that apply to you (please link up only links that apply - blog posts and other links that do not apply will be removed),

share, tweet, and blog about this link party if you so wish,

grab the button {below},

and have fun meeting new people!

Links are connected to each header, to show you just what you should link up. :)

We would love it if you followed all of your hosts and co-hosts, but that's not mandatory. Just have fun! :)

If you would be interested in co-hosting this party periodically, send an email to {shaylee.motheratheart@gmail.com}.

Alright, ladies! Button-up, link-up, and meet-up! :)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

<center> <a href="http://www.mother-at-heart.com/search/label/Link%20and%20Mingle" target="_blank"><img alt="Mother {at} Heart" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Bz6_3z-Jrsg/UBsXYDz8iCI/AAAAAAAABcQ/hNRvF3V2RSk/s487/button.png" width="250"/></a></center>

Thank you for linking up!

Come back next Thursday for another round of the Link & Mingle!

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Out Sick I'll Do It ... Tomorrow...

Yep.  This is happening.  I had a fantastic Birthday weekend, so much to share with you all, so many pictures from our road trip to Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut, but unfortunately I picked up a nasty cold - so I'm just trying to survive with my little never-outta-energy 2 year old.

Coming up on BaxtronLife : Road Trip Pictures & Stories, Simply September and MY 1st Blog Anniversary!!

Stay tuned...and pray for quick healing! <3

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I Heart Kendra!! @kendrajd Blog Angels Reveal

Blog Angels has come to a close - which means today is the BIG REVEAL!  So, who did I help out this month?  And does she know it was me?  

I was a Blog Angel for the Lovely:

Kendra!!

What did I do for Kendra this month?  Well - I gave her one of my top ad spots for free.  (That may have given it away completely - but I hope not!!)

Included with the ad space - she received twitter shouts:

pins to pinterest - like this amazing Key Lime Chicken Recipe:

Source: bkdarr.blogspot.com via Courtney on Pinterest

a solo feature with the option to give-away an item - check it out:

Today is the last chance to enter her sweet giveaway!

Enter to win here!

I also was able to connect Kendra to Shaylee Ann just in time for her to become a regular host of the weekly Link & Mingle party:

Still time to link up to this week's partay!

Lastly, I had the chance to chat with Kendra via email and hopefully encourage her with a few tips on how to engage her audience.

From when she started to now - her readership has at least doubled and nearly tripled! I can't take credit for that however; she is proving to be quite the networker and has been building her blog like crazy!

Kendra <3 Hope you felt I helped in some way!  I enjoyed getting to know you - and I'm so happy that you bought ad space on BaxtronLife for next month!  Guess what!  I'm giving you that "Lovely" space for 2 months! <3  Looking forward to getting to know you more!!

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Enter the Giveaway!