Make an Easy Fabric Gift Bag for Mother's Day #L2LMom #ad #cbias

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #L2LMom #CollectiveBias

Mother's Day has started early for me this year! Jamie went out Sunday night and bought me two bottles of this deliciously-scented Coty Love2Love fragrance. When we opened them up, we realized the smell reminded us of some scented oils he bought me when we were first married---and we've never found them again. Now I want to get all the scents in this collection to see if they evoke the same memories!

The Coty Love2Love fragrance collection can be found at Walmart in the fragrance aisle. There are five scents to mix and match for a great Mother's Day gift: Bluebell + White Tea, Fresh Rose + Peach, Jasmine + Sparkling Mimosa, Orange Blossom + White Musk, and Freesia + Violet Petals. These are quality scents at a great value with fragrances that awaken the senses to love and joy.

With Mother's Day coming up this weekend, I've got some easy instructions for creating a 9.5" x 7.5" fabric gift bag---the perfect size for gifting two boxes of Love2Love fragrance. You can adjust these measurements to fit any size bag.  

Step one: Cut out a rectangle of fabric that is 22 inches long and 10 inches wide. 

Step two: Fold the fabric over 1/4 inch and then 1/4 inch again, on all sides, stitching down the middle as you go. 

Step three: Now fold each short end over 1/2 inch (wrong side of fabric together) and stitch close to the edge of each fold.

Step four: Lay it down with the printed side facing you and fold one short end toward the other (right side of fabric together). Stitch up the sides of the bag, just until you reach the stitching lines you made in step three.

Step five: Attach a small safety pin to the end of a ribbon and use the safety pin to guide the ribbon through the casings you made at the top of the bag in step three. Then remove the safety pin, tie it off and trim and burn the edges of the ribbon to keep it from fraying. 

Just add a pretty gift tag and you're good to go! Enjoy packing up your gift and blessing someone you love on Mother's Day!

Make sure to look for the Love2Love promotional display at Walmart to find all the fragrances and a .50 gift bag to present them in. Also, check out the new fragrance, Bluebell + White Tea. I love the pretty blue bottle and the petal-shaped cap is adorable.

Which Love2Love fragrance will your Mom love the most? 

A Stress Free Mother's Day with Walmart Family Mobile #MobileMemories #ad #cbias

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and Walmart Family Mobile. All opinions are mine alone. #MobileMemories #CollectiveBias

By the time you read this, I'll be on my way to Tulsa to pick up my mom from the airport. She's coming to visit for two weeks and I'm so excited! This will be the first time we've gotten to spend Mother's Day together in awhile and I'm planning on it being one of the best ever. Special thanks to Walmart Family Mobile for making this trip much smoother on my family.

You may remember me mentioning a couple months ago that, in trying to save for my upcoming England trip, I cancelled our cell phone plans, saving us over $200 each month. However, we were then faced with a dilemma because that left Jamie without a much-needed phone for on-call shifts and commuting. We ended up purchasing a Walmart Family Mobile plan for him---but that's still left me without a phone.

The Walmart Family Mobile plan, has been the perfect solution for him. We've had it for two months now and it's met all the needs we were concerned about. We decided that I need my own phone, as well---especially for trips like today when I'll be traveling out of the state on my own. Eastern Oklahoma isn't the most populated part of the world and I often find myself on that huge expanse of freeway all alone. 

At Walmart, I chose the ZTE Zinger and also grabbed the required $25.00 starter kit that was located in the same display as the phone.

Disclaimer: All prices for phones and plans included in this post are accurate as of the date of posting; however, these prices are subject to change. Please refer to http://cbi.as/8e03 or your local Walmart for current pricing.

It's easy to get started using the phone. Make sure to grab a starter kit for each line of service. Then, either take the phone and starter kit to the counter to activate in-store, or purchase and bring home to activate on-line or by phone. The Walmart Family Mobile service is $29.88/month for the first line (and starts at less than $20 for each additional line). The plan includes unlimited talk, text and data with up to 1G of 4G LTE data.

I'm thankful that I'll have a phone to connect with my family while I'm on the road, as well as make it easier for my mom and I to find one another in the airport. A zero-stress holiday sounds great to me---and it starts today!

What tips do you have for a stress-free Mother's Day?

Making the Switch to Dove Advanced Care Anti-perspirant/Deodorant #LoveAtFirstSwipe #ad #IC

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Dove. I received a product sample and promotional item to thank me for my participation. #LoveAtFirstSwipe #ad #IC

A couple weeks ago, I mentioned that I was getting ready to try out Dove Advanced Care Anti-perspirant/Deodorant. Jamie and I aren't getting any younger and we really want to be healthy and active to enjoy these years with our kids at home. I had been really thinking about making some changes in my activity levels, eating habits, and overall routine, and I mentioned that adding in some new activity might call for a better deodorant than the one I've been using the last couple years. After having the opportunity to dry out Dove Advanced Care these past couple weeks, I'm thinking I might make a permanent switch. 

When I told my Facebook friends about my chance to try it out, there was a really great response. Apparently, many of my friends have been using Dove for awhile and everyone said they were pleased with it. One friend said she had bought a different brand on a whim one time and quickly switched back. I really believe testimonials from friends play a huge part in trying to decide on a good brand. 

I really like how this brand offers 48 hour odor and wetness protection. That's probably more than I need on most days, but you know---there's always those days you get busy and forget your deo! It's good to know I've got a 24 hour back up. Ha! It also has added moisturizers to smooth and soften the skin. That's always nice---especially for my dry skin. Dove Advanced Care is easily available at the stores I shop at, too. Find Dove Advanced Care Anti-perspirant/Deodorant at mass, food, and drug retailers, nationwide, for less than $5.00 msrp. 

Have you tried Dove Advanced Care? Well, now is a perfect time because they're running a promotion called, Dove Love At First Swipe. Try the product* and then visit the site to create a "love note" for Dove. Share it on social media for a chance to win a trip to Paris or one of hundreds of other prizes.* 

*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void where prohibited. The Dove Love at First Swipe Sweepstakes is sponsored by Conopco, Inc., d/b/a Unilever. Open to individual, legal residents of the 50 U.S. & D.C., who are 18 or older. Begins 12:00 p.m. ET on 4/20/15 & ends 11:59 a.m. ET on 6/15/15. For Official Rules, visit Dove.com/LoveAtFirstSwipe.