Was getting organized and rid of clutter a part of your new years resolutions?

Well it was definitely one of mine!  Part of getting organized is getting rid of all of that paperwork that you don't need.  I have a counter full of paperwork that I need to go through and get rid of.  The part that made me nervous was knowing that I didn't need the paperwork, but that it had personal information that others didn't need to see.  Well I have found a solution to this specific problem.  Check out the Fellows P-12C Shredder!

The Fellowes P-12C paper shredder is a durable, innovative and affordable machine. With Fellowes’ industry-leading technologies, the P-12C provides high-security and is safe for family environments. 

* To ensure high-security against identity thieves, the P-12C features Cross-Cut technology, which destroys a single sheet of paper into nearly 399 particles.

* The P-12C also includes Fellowes’ patented SafeSense technology, which disables the shredder when it senses hands or large pets come too close to the paper opening.

* The P-12C can also shred staples, credit cards and paper clips to help speed up your spring cleaning process.

* Its slim profile design allows the P-12C to fit in any office environment, including under desks or in kitchens and other rooms.

The P-12C has a suggested retail price of $89.99 and is available at Target Stores nationwide.

So if you are looking for a safe way to dispose of important information....give this shredder a try.  It is really a neat product!

I am working with One2One Network and Fellowes on this campaign and all of the opinions expressed in this post are my own. 

Sammie is growing up! Crib out, toddler bed here we come...

My princess has just started crawling out of her crib.  She is two and a half now, and I realize that most kids have crawled out before this time, but it means that my baby is growing up.  I am looking at her right now and she just makes me smile.  I found a little Step 2 car, similar to the Little Tikes Cozy Coupe 30th Anniversary Car and she is in love with it.  She watches Sesame Street from it as if it was a drive-in theater.  She has her "baby girl", her blanket and her sippy cup in the back.  She is just her own little person full of opinions and personality.  I just feel so blessed to have such a loving little girl.  I laugh because I was such a tomboy growing up and she is all about dolls, purses and lipstick (well actually chapstick but that is ok.)  So it looks like today after our playdate we will be going to get that crib converted.  I am kinda sad about it....is that normal?

Purex Complete Crystals Softener Review & Giveaway

As a Purex Insider, I am given an opportunity to find out about their new products as or just before they hit the shelves.  I am super excited about their newest fabric softener.  They are crystals rather than a liquid which is amazing!  Did you know that most traditional liquid fabric softeners are oil based?  I didn't know that!  And what these liquid softeners are doing are coating your fabrics in oil.  Over time this residue builds up and allows dirt to stick to your clothes.  I had never heard of any of this but I will be making the switch immediately!

Purex Complete Crystals are 92% natural rather than oil based.  They work by penetrating the fabric and infusing fibers with freshness so that they last for weeks rather than days.  Wouldn't it be nice to have your sheets smell like they just came out of the dryer for longer than just those first few nights?

Here is how they work:

The oil in traditional fabric softeners will also cause your towels to absorb less water.  The oils interfere with the absorbency of fabrics.  Using Purex Complete Crystals will keep your towels nice and absorbent.

I received a sample to try out and I am hooked.  I was excited to hear that I could use this in my high efficiency washer because that was my first concern when I had gotten the sample.  The scent was just heavenly and it really did last.  I can't wait to use it with my comforter because that will just make my whole room smell wonderfully!

Now that you have heard all about this amazing product, how about getting to try it out for free?  Purex is willing to provide a free product coupon to a few readers on my blog.  How do you enter?   Well here it is:

Mandatory Entry:

"Like' Purex on Facebook and publicly follow my blog on Google Friend Connect.

Extra Entries

• Follow me on twitter  
• Follow me on Networked Blogs
• "Like"  Homemaker in Progress on Facebook
• Share this giveaway on your Facebook Page  (attach the link in your comment post)
• Blog about this giveaway and post the link on your blog  (attach the link in your comment post)
• Tweet about this giveaway and post the permalink in your post.  Feel free to use the twitter link below this post.

Disclosure Statement

Purex did not compensate me to write this blog or to say particular things in it other than providing me with the product to review. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are purely mine.

One winner  will be randomly selected from all valid entries using random.org, and that winner will have 48 hours to respond to their prize winner email notification.  If winner fails to respond, within that time period, a new winner will be selected.  Contest ends March 3, 2011 at 11:59 pm CT.  Open to US residents, age 18+.

Good luck!

little ways I share happiness with those around me

Sometimes I think that we tend to kind of get wrapped up in our own lives to where we tend to isolate ourselves from everyone else.  When I start feeling this way, I try to share a little happiness with friends and family.  Since moving to Texas with my husband, most of the ways that I communicate with my friends is through Social Networking sites like Facebook.

You would be surprised how much a kind note or just a compliment on someone's wall telling them that you just wanted to say 'hi" could really change some one's day.  I watch people's update posts as they get laid off or deal with different financial issues or sometimes they a just changing their status to single (and it wasn't their idea).   It makes me thankful that I am really in a fortunate spot.   When I see those post that make things hard, I might post a link to a free coupon online that might help with the grocery budget, or maybe a picture of a friend and I that we had taken in the past.  I like to let people know that they are thought of and I think these little things that I do really do help spread a little happiness. 

Given the state of the economy it shows that happiness is so closely tied to our bank accounts.  But it really doesn't have to be that way.  Focusing on the little pieces of enjoyment have truly helped my happiness.  I take my daughter to the park as often as I can because it reminds me that true happiness is free.  I take the kids bowling with a buy one game get one game free coupon so that they enjoy a day out but it doesn't force me to sacrifice my pocket book.  These little things invest in my children's happiness as well. 

On occasion my friends might tease me because I am posting yet another coupon on my Facebook page or tweeting out another good deal that I have found.  That is ok, because for those people that are teasing me, there are others thanking me for the amazing deal that they had just gotten on formula or diapers.   There is someone out there who is enjoying a two for one dinner that they had printed up from one of my links, that they wouldn't normally be able to do because they just didn't have the liquid funds to take themselves out.  I don't do it for the gratitude though.  I do it because I enjoy sharing my goodies with my friend and family.  I love showing them how to shop for free at CVS or letting them know that Amazon.com has groceries and that they can buy them with money they earned from surveys online. 

So if you have a moment, take some time out of your day and let people know that you are thinking of them...it may just be a quick moment to you, but it may just make their day.  Also be creative because as you are sharing happiness with your family and friends, you are in part also increasing your own sense of happiness as well.


I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Hershey's blogging program, for a gift card worth $25 and some product. For more information on how you can participate, Click here

Happy Valentine's Day!

Just a moment to wish everyone a Happy Valentines Day! 


I hope that everyone is as blessed as I feel today.  I have a wonderful family, a large assortment of adoring rescues and a Valentines cake in the oven!  Today is good!

My Princess's first trip to the "Theater"

So I stumbled onto the fact that Sesame Street Live was showing in our city.  My daughter just loves Elmo.  She has Elmo books, PJ's, shirts, toys and well anything you can think of.  Her second birthday had an Elmo theme.  So when I happen to find out that Sesame Street Live was here, well getting tickets was a no brainer!  I was so excited that we had ordered the tickets and was dying to tell her about them.  Well of course a two year old wouldn't exactly understand what tickets to a show was.

Finally yesterday was the day!  I was so excited to see her reaction to seeing all of her favorite character come to life in front of her.  Well first Burt and Ernie come out on stage, and you can see the slight confusion then one by one more and more characters came out.  She was mesmerized with the sheer look of excitement, disbelief and happiness on her face.  I started crying.  I know...lame right?  But I could only imagine what she must have been feeling.  She was captivated by the song and the dances and all of her friends on stage.  In my head, I am thinking that this is only the first of many show moments that I will be able to share with her.  It was wonderful.  She made it all the way through the 90 minute show with only a little bit of wiggling.  Hey!  Ninety minutes is a long time for a two year old.  I could really tell she enjoyed it.  She even said that she wanted to go again!

The sad part was that due to the lighting it was impossible to get a picture of her watching the show so I will just have to keep it in my head.  It was a wonderful moment in our relationship.  I am sure it probably meant more to me as the sappy mom, but well...I am who I am....


Thank you Sesame Street Live!  What a great moment!

HTC HD7 Phone Review - Courtesy of BzzAgent

Hey there everyone!  So I wanted to take a minute to tell you all about the great campaign that I had gotten from BzzAgent.  BzzAgent is a word-of-mouth marketing company that I have been a member of since 2007.  Wow!  2007?  I can't believe it has been that long.  Well sent me a message if you would like to become one of their agents and I will give you the low down! 

So back to the phone.  They sent me one to try out and let me tell you that this phone is really neat.  I am a true Blackberry Bold lover.  I never thought that I would like using a phone that didn't have a key pad on it and it was all touch screen.  Let me tell you that I was wrong.  The phone has a big screen which is really nice and makes typing on the touch key pad much easier.  I can use it as an MP3 player, has Slacker Radio already installed and has some really neat apps that I couldn't get on my Blackberry.  One of the apps called "Podcasts" allows me to search and find my favorite pod casts and listen to them right on my phone!  I love it.

When I lived in Orlando I had this amazing talk radio show that I listened to religiously.  Well since I moved from Orlando to Houston, I have missed this show.  I even considered getting satellite radio just so I could listen to this show!  Well since I have my new HTC HD7, I can listen to all of the podcasts as soon as they are uploaded online.  It ending up saving my so much money since I didn't have to buy the subscription to satellite radio and the radio itself.  The best part was that the app itself was actually free.  There are lots of free apps and games to download and since it is a Windows phone, you know that Microsoft has all kinds of amazing apps coming out every day!

If you are looking for a new phone and a great price (way cheaper than the IPhone), then check this one out.  It retails around 199.99 which is what half the price of the other one?  You can check it out on the HTC website.  Click here!