Explore Places and Activities with Vimbly (Sverve)

This post is sponsored by Vimbly via Sverve.

Vimbly is a website, which displays activities, classes, and ideas from local businesses. The site also lets people book directly. The site operates in 18 major cities and wants establish a national presence in 2015. 

My mother and I are always looking for the next great family activity. For example, she wants a road trip in 2015 and another family cruise in 2016. I am trying to plan out a trip to Morgan's Wonderland, a special needs park, in San Antonio, Texas. 

When I look for activities and events, I have to view the activity from a special needs perspective. Both my boys are special needs. I have to consider the type of activity; the weather; crowds; price; food expenses; travel time, etc. Some places are automatically off limits, such as places like SkyZone (I will have a hard time getting Brad off the trampolines) and Chuckie Cheeses (Brad was an exhibitionist at 4 years old). 

I went to the website and typed in my city (Houston) to see what activities, I would be interested in. 9 activities popped up. You can view activities by date, time, price, and part of. Unfortunately, the activities was for New York City, instead of Houston. So my next step was to create an account, using Facebook, and see what cities are part of the 18. 

The cities include:

1. New York City, New York

2. Miami, Florida

3. Orlando, Florida

4. Anaheim, California

5. Los Angeles, California

6. Phoenix, Arizona

7. Seattle, Washington

8. Boston, Massachusettes

9. Portland (Could be Oregon or Maine)

10. Washington, DC

11. Chicago, Illinois

12. San Diego, California

13. Las Vegas, Nevada

14. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

15. San Francisco, California

16. NYC Kids

17. New Orleans, Louisiana

18. Maui, Hawaii

The cities closest to me are Phoenix, Arizona and New Orleans, Louisiana. If we consider the family cruise, I can include Miami and Orlando. New Orleans also has a cruise port. 

There is a menu bar under the Vimbly logo, which displays activities by city. Learn, Explore, Eat, Drink, Fight, Watch, and date. 

I liked the French Quarter Food and History Tour (free). You explore historic sites in the city, such as Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral (never heard of either and never been).  You also will learn the difference between Cajun and Creole food. The tour is 2 hours long. I marked the tour as a favorite with the heart icon. The final stop allows you to sample food. The food is not free and you can choose what you want or don't want to eat. The maximum for a group tour is 5 people. The tour will not work for our family of 9,but will work for me and my kids.

I also liked the Chocolate and Praline Tour. This tour is $50 dollars, which means I am dropping my kids off somewhere. Next, I liked the Oak Street Food Walking Tour. The activity, which stood out the most, and pricey was the plane ride with wine and cheese. You get a tour of the city, while sipping on Champagne and eating chocolates or cheese. The flight requires a minimum of two people and a maximum of three. Guests must be 21 years or older. 

Finally, I love the Steam Boat Natchez Dinner Cruise. The trip is $44. I have been on a dinner cruise before in Galveston, Texas with the ex husband. It was very nice. You will experience a live jazz band and luxurious dinner. 

Of course, Phoenix has a great activity for my niece and nephew, who are fans of The Walking Dead on AMC. They have a trapped in a room with a zombie activity. 12 people using their wits to escape a room before the zombie eats their brains. 

Vimbly has a lot of great activities and places to explore. Check out the website. Leave a comment, letting me know which city and event, you want to partake in.

#SouthernCharm review (Sverve)

This post was sponsored by Sverve. I was chosen to.watch the season premiere of Southern Charm on Bravo Tv. I never had seen the show before. The show is set in Charleston, South Carolina. The show follows a group of friends, no frenemies. Last Monday's episode focused on double standards. A woman was dating Thomas Ravenel. Ravenel threw a dinner party and someone,a male said the woman had slept with two other men within a short period of time. Drama ensued. Woman left and couldn't locate her car. She came back in and Thomas apologized for not standing up for her. Ravenel stood out to me because he said men can have sex with as many women as they want and it's ok, while women are called sluts and other bad names. Ravenel also said one of the males had slept with two other women at the table and no one said a word. I also liked the discussion about now Southern men are more discreet about their sexual encounters compared to Northern men. Funny.

That was the basic premise of the show. Double standard still are prevalent in today's society. I am going to go back and watch the first season of the show to get the names of the characters. Check out the show on Bravo, Xfinity Tv, etc. Tune in.Monday to see what happens next.

Social Media

Facebook Fan Page
Southern Charm's Page on Bravo
Pinterest

Dresses First Prom Dresses (Sverve)

Disclaimer: This post is a sponsored post, courtesy of Dress First and Sverve. I am being compensated for this post. All opinions are my own.

Dress First: Prom Dresses

 My Prom Story:

I graduated high school in 1998, almost 16 years ago. I never thought about attending prom until the last minute. Each senior received a prom ticket, if they paid their senior fees. I had no intentions of going. I also did not want to take a date, if I did, unless he was a senior, because I did not want my family to pay for a ticket, if he could not afford it.

When I was in 10^th grade, I signed up for a new class, AFJROTC. I was happy to be a part of the introductory unit. Every year, the unit hosted a military ball. The ball was worth 2, 100’s. I was going because it was an easy A. Put on a formal dress. Go eat. Get an A. Simple. I had no intentions on bringing a date. I did not date in high school and had no interest in starting.

My annoying relatives, primarily my grandma and aunt, thought I needed a date, whether I wanted to or not. My aunt had a friend, who lived near her, who had a grandson, 9^th grader. Tall, scrawny, black boy. They paid for his tuxedo and his tickets. My grandma also paid for me, a very hideous dress. I was a big girl: 225 lbs and my grandma loved Lane Bryant. I thought the dress was ugly. This was the time when big girls had to settle for whatever fashion they can find. It was a black and gold shiny mess.

I took the heathen with me to the ball. He ran into an ex with her new boyfriend. He wanted to fight the new dude over the girl. I walked away. He won’t be messing with my grades.

When prom time, came years later. I wore the same dress, I wore to the 12^th grade military ball. A white and black formal dress, at least I think it was, I barely remember. I only wanted to go because I was hungry. My family barely cooked, not to mention we was broke. My belly was rumbling and I remembered I had a prom ticket. I got dressed. Someone did my hair. My mama drove me to the venue. I got out the car. Went straight for the food, and then took photos, until I got bored and called home (from a Payphone. Ahhh the 90s).

Dress First

Dress First offers a wide selection of prom dresses. You don’t have to wait until the last minute, like I did to decide to go, or buy a dress. You don't have to wear a winter dress to a spring formal. :-) The site offers over 700 prom dresses. Strapless. Formal. Floorlength. Cut outs. Cleavage. Spaghetti straps. Dresses for plus size girls. Halters.  One-strap.

The dresses come in pretty colors and reasonable prices. The site also has a free shipping sale, if a dress is ordered by the 15th. 

Some of my favorite dresses included:

The A-Line/Princess Halter Watteau Train Halter Dress. The dress comes in my size. It also comes in purple. I also like how the dress is versatile. I can wear it for other events, besides the prom. 

A-Line/Princess Halter Watteau Train Halter Dress. 

The dress is cute, fancy, and under $200.

Sheath, Sweetheart, Asymmetrical, Taffeta Prom Dress with Ruffle. 

 

A-Line/Princess Sweetheart Sweep Train Chiffon Prom Dress With Ruffle Lace Beading Flower(s)

A-Line/Princess Halter Floor-Length Chiffon Prom Dress With Ruffle Beading

A few things I love about the site: You can choose which dresses you want by price, style, embellishment, color, hem line, fabric, back style, season, neckline, and silhouette. You also can select from general and plus sizes. 

Fortune Girls Sponsored Post (Sverve)

This is a sponsored campaign from Sverve for Fortune Girls.

About Fortune Girls:

Check out the video below to see what Fortune Girls is all about.



Fortune Girls is about girl empowerment. The site was developed by a tween and her mother to help teen girls. The tween created a collection of Fortune Girls, such as Cinderlita and Wow Girl Pink, which teaches teens about saying I'm Sorry and I miss you. The website is teen-friendly with bright, vibrant colors and user-friendly features. The site reminds me of a phone with touch-screen. Kids can take a quiz to see which Fortune Girl they are similar too. I was similar to Taj. I am creative, giving and resourceful. Teens can also play games.

Next, the site has a place where kids are provided questions for them to answer. Finally, the site has a parents lounge, which provides more information about Fortune Girls.

 Fortune Girls also developed a KickStarter campaign to raise funds to create an animated short.

Other Videos:

Social Media:

Facebook

Twitter

Pinterest

Youtube

PowerMyLearning Review (Sverve)

I reviewed PowerMyLearning, in exchange for honest review from Sverve. This is a sponsored post. I wanted to work with PowerMyLearning because my oldest child learns better via the computer and visual aides. Even though Brad is home-schooled, he still needs additional help learning. I have to find different methods to help him learn new things. I also signed Kalen up for an account. Kalen is starting to show an interest in the computer, other than trying to break the keyboard, mouse, and the printer. I bought him a little laptop, to teach him 6 things: A, B, C, 1, 2, and 3. Kalen starts school next year. He will be in Head Start and a Pre-school for kids with intellectual disabilities.

PowerMyLearning is an educational website for educators, parents, and children. The website provides games and activities for children. The parents can monitor the children's progress through the parent account.

You do have to create a separate account for each child, as well as the parent. The children's account needs to be created first. Then, create the parent and add each child's user name. The website then sends a request to the child to connect parent to child.

Also, the kids accounts don't require an e-mail to sign up. They will need their username, password, city, state, and birthday, in addition to school name.

I did it backwards. I created my account first, thinking I can add my children through the parent account, similar to a few other websites. Then, to add your child, it asks for a user name. Can't have a user name if your child does not have account. So, I went to create Brad and Kalen an account. Logged back into mine and added his user name. The website then said it will send a request to Brad to add me as his parent (which is a good thing and a bad thing. What if the child does not want you to track his progress? I definitely recommend the parents setting up all the accounts. ). The process will take a minute for parents with multiple kids.

Then, you log into each child's account, click on their name towards the top, and go to account. There are two options. Link the accounts or select, not my parent. (Another reason, I recommend the parents set up the account).

The website has over 2000 activities in subjects, which include:

1. Math
2. Science
3. Language Arts
4. Art and Music
5. World Languages
6. Social Studies
7. Your Life
8. Technology

I played with the games at first to see how easy or hard they are? Do the games require a lot of clicking? Do the games require a lot of comprehension? You can select games based on subject or grade level. I started at Kindergarten because both kids need to learn the basics. Kalen starts pre-k next year and Brad is in the 6th grade, but still needs the lower grade basics, such as counting, learning numbers, and ABCs. For Brad, I may mix it up a bit, letting him work on activities ranging from K to 6th to see what he can and can't do. For Kalen, I am going to help him prepare for school next year. Kalen will be attending two schools: head start and the school for developmental disabilities.

One game I liked, is Energy City, created by the Jason Project. The game is more for advanced learners. It is a partial city builder game and part strategy. You complete missions, while also keeping the city from running out of money and energy. It teaches kids how to conserve energy.

Truth in Aging Giveaway (Sverve Campaign)

Perfect Chaos is helping host the Truth in Aging Giveaway, courtesy of Sverve. The giveaway ends October 11, 2013. Two winners will win clear skin for life. The prizes include a Quasar Baby Blue and a Quasar Clear Rayz. I will receive a gift card for participation.

The Quasar Baby Blue uses a blue LED light to treat acne using blue light wavelengths, which travels deep within the skin to destroy acne-causing bacteria.

Quasar Clear Rayz uses red and blue lights to treat acne. The technology is similar to what is used in a dermatologist's office. The product is easy to use. You use the product directly on the skin. The red light is used for 7.5 minutes on each section of the face, while the blue light is used for 5 minutes. The machine will make a noise when it is time to change areas. You will use the product 3 to 5 times weekly.

Enter to win here using Punchtab. Each entry also gets a subscription to the Truth in Aging newsletter.

Kite Readers Campaign (Sverve) Free E=Book and Giveaway

I am participating in the Kite Readers Campaign on Sverve. The copy and giveaway codes was provided to me. This is a sponsored post.

About KiteReaders: (from e-mail. direct quotes are italicized.)

KiteReaders is a multi-award winning digital publisher of children’s books. With over 100 titles and 30 best sellers across Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and iBooks, KiteReaders aims to provide quality content for children and their families and increase literacy around the world. 

Website

Facebook:

Giveaway:

The giveaway is live. It will send on October 6, 2013. The prizes include tablet accessories for children. All subscribers to KiteReaders gets a free e-book when entering.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Take Lessons Campaign Sponsored Post Sverve

This post is a sponsored post from Take Lessons (Sverve Campaign). I am being compensated for this post. The post also contains referral links. I liked the company because my child is currently enrolled in home school. His live classes are in virtual conference rooms or over Skype. He also received in-home speech therapy around April, 2013.

About Take Lessons:

Take Lessons connects students and families with private music, art, and academic tutors and instructors. The company was founded in 2006 and has worked with over 30,000 students. The school's top priorities include safety and quality. Each instructor goes through an extensive interview, training, and annual criminal background check. The website helps with scheduling, initial coordination with instructors, and billings. The online account also has scheduling and billing tools.

TakeLessons provides in-home, studio, and online lessons. Parents (and students) will need a computer, webcam, Skype, and a good internet connection 

The website also offers gift certificates. 

About course offerings

• Over 30 available lessons, such as guitar, singing, piano, drums, violin, dance, acting, and academics.
• Lessons are home, online (Skype) or studio. Prices vary on location and length of class.
• The most popular lesson package is quarterly (book 12 lessons, get one 1). Other options include month-to-month and Flex (schedule lesson times with instructor).
• 100% money back guarantee. If you are not satisfied with the first lesson, the website will find you another teacher or refund your original purchase price, including the first lesson.
• No long-term commitments. Switch schedule, teacher, or instrument type at any time.
• Teachers are available to teach all types and experience levels
• To learn more and begin searching for an instructor go to Take Lessons
• Lessons are paid in advance, which guarantees your space and teacher. Billing date depends on program selected. Payment is usually requested 7 days before the first class starts
• You can search for a teacher by location and by class. For example, I searched for songwriting in the 77014 zip code. 8 instructors was available. The teachers have a brief info below their names which includes levels taught, ages, willingness to travel, has a teaching location, and verified background check. Not to mention, each teacher has a picture, so you can see what they look like. Next, each teacher has a profile with reviews, photos, videos, availability, subjects taught, educational background, a bio, specialities, and equipment. 
• Once you see a class you like, you can book the class online or call in person. The process was easy. You enter your name and address; the location of where you want to take the lessons (online, home, studio), length of lesson, day, time, start date, and you will see pricing as well. On the right side of the screen, you will see the teacher availability schedule so you can choose wisely. 
• The school does not provide instruments. 

The website is offering 20% off all lessons packages with promo code "SUMMERMUSIC21). You can book online or call 619-618-7943 to discuss options and pricings. Use promo code when online or over the phone. 

Videos:

TakeLessons Tutorials:

How to buy your first Guitar – Guitar Instructor Nick F. leads you through the

Shebusa Bracelet Information and Giveaway

I am reviewing Shebusa for a Sverve Campaign. Shebusa specializes in customized clothing and accessories, especially leather bracelets. I went to the website before signing up for the campaign to see how the customization works. The items are not cheap, but they are very beautiful.

On the site (for shirts, for example), you can customize color, size, fabric, type of collars, pockets, cuffs, and wrists. You also can do a contrast collar and cuff (collar and cuff a different fabric from the rest of the shirt, if you chose a shirt). Next, you can choose button color, in addition to if they are hidden or visible. Third, you can choose bending. As you customize, you can see a picture of updated look to the left.

For bracelets, you can customize the color and type of animal skin. You also can customize by price and type of bracelet (metal and leather). You can have gold, money, or copper plating. Next, you can add your initials to the bracelet.

Note: You can change the currency and country at the top of the screen. There is a mini map of the United States, if you click on that box, you can change the country to France (or the United States). If you want to change the currency, there is a monetary symbol next to the map symbol. You can change the currency to the dollar, pound, or euro.

Delivery times on products vary. The website provided a guideline of delivery times:
Jacket, trousers, skirts, dresses: 4 to 6 weeks
Fur coats: 3 to 6 weeks
Shirts: 3 to 5 weeks
Leather goods, bags: 6 to 14 weeks
Small leather goods: 3 to 6 weeks
Bracelets: 3 to 6 weeks
Hats: 5 to 12 weeks


Use the code SDWPER is save 15% off the total sale. The bracelets price from $130 to $170 (British Money), and from $180 to $235. American Prices is around $170 The code lasts until August 31, 2013

About Shebusa:


Paraphrased from Shebusa

Shebusa is a Japanese term, which references simple, aesthetically pleasing, subtle, and discreet form of beauty.
Customers can order luxury and custom-made products (bracelets, shirts, suits, dresses, and other accessories, such as belts, hats, shawls, coats, and other leather goods). You can customize items to your own measurements and personal tastes.
The company works with the best European Master Craftsmen, who have worked for decades for luxury brands. The fabrics are from the best weavers and the skins come from the best tanners.
Every product purchased is delivered with the customer's initials. Each item is also labeled and numbered.


All About Leather:

Paraphrased from Shebusa

Leather is a natural product, derived from processing animal skin. A younger animal has a higher chance of having higher quality leather. Using various technical, manual, and chemical means, the tanner will create leathers with different characteristics to make each hide unique.
Shebusa choses their tanners carefully. The company only works with the best ones, who provide the greatest World Luxury Houses, which include Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Celine, or Salvatore Ferragamo.
Some types of leather include calf, sheep, goat, snake, pig, ostrich, crocodile, and sting ray.

Entry-Form

LeTote Challenge

I am promoting LeTote (Sverve Campaign).

Limited Time Offer! LE TOTE is an invite-only fashion rental company offering an unlimited closet for $49 a month. To bypass the waitlist, sign-up with the code TRENDSETTER10 before July 1st. You will also receive a free tote bag ($25 value) when you sign-up! Email: hi@letote.com, after you sign up.   Say Stacie Wyatt referred you (wyattstacie@gmail.com). Then, you can create a style profile. Le Tote's stylists will then create a look for you.

• Each tote includes 3 pieces of clothing and 2 accessories .
• Members may keep the tote for as long as they want and send it back when they are ready for the next 5 items. 
• FREE SHIPPING both ways!