My Kid was the Red Robin Denver Broncos Kickoff Kid

Have you ever had an experience that you know, without a doubt, will be something you and your family will remember for the rest of their lives? Something so unbelievably cool that the sounds and smells resonate in your body for days afterward?

I have and so has my family. Monday night football will never be the same for us. This Monday my son, Henry, was the Red Robin Kickoff Kid for the Broncos season opener against the Raiders. Forget that we lost the game. Forget that the screw-ups and penalties were numerous. Henry and I were the only non-staff members on the field, running back and forth with our “body guard” to be close to the action. A member of the Broncos staff was assigned to be Henry’s coach/assistant and his job literally was to make sure Henry was safe and to pull him out of the way if the ball or gigantic players  were in danger of taking him out. I did not have a bodyguard, I had to fend for myself and I was ok with that! This was the best game ever!

Henry’s job for the entire game was to retrieve the tee any time the Broncos had a kickoff. There are some big boys on that field but they are as graceful and disciplined as can be. I created this video because there are no words to describe how incredible it was to be right in the middle of it all.

How on earth was this possible?

You can enter your child (ages 6-12) for a chance to be a Red Robin Kickoff Kid at a Broncos home game. There will be 6 prize packs given away to Colorado residents! If chosen, your child will get to retrieve the tee after each Broncos kickoff and enjoy the game from the sideline. In addition, you’ll receive:

• Two sideline passes with access to the field 1 hour prior to game time.
• Two Broncos jerseys
• Two stadium seats
• One year Broncos Bunch Kids Club membership

Over the past few years, my involvement with social media has brought some incredible opportunities for myself as well as for my family. One of the best brand relationships I’ve had to date has been with Red Robin Gourmet Burgers. When they asked me to be a judge for the Kids Cookoff last spring, I was instantly impressed by how much they believed in their brand, but more importantly how much they truly cared about kids. This is a company I feel good about and I’m proud to have been able to participate in another opportunity with them. Thanks Red Robin!

My Kid was the Red Robin Denver Broncos Kickoff Kid

Have you ever had an experience that you know, without a doubt, will be something you and your family will remember for the rest of their lives? Something so unbelievably cool that the sounds and smells resonate in your body for days afterward?

I have and so has my family. Monday night football will never be the same for us. This Monday my son, Henry, was the Red Robin Kickoff Kid for the Broncos season opener against the Raiders. Forget that we lost the game. Forget that the screw-ups and penalties were numerous. Henry and I were the only non-staff members on the field, running back and forth with our “body guard” to be close to the action. A member of the Broncos staff was assigned to be Henry’s coach/assistant and his job literally was to make sure Henry was safe and to pull him out of the way if the ball or gigantic players  were in danger of taking him out. I did not have a bodyguard, I had to fend for myself and I was ok with that! This was the best game ever!

Henry’s job for the entire game was to retrieve the tee any time the Broncos had a kickoff. There are some big boys on that field but they are as graceful and disciplined as can be. I created this video because there are no words to describe how incredible it was to be right in the middle of it all.

How on earth was this possible?

You can enter your child (ages 6-12) for a chance to be a Red Robin Kickoff Kid at a Broncos home game. There will be 6 prize packs given away to Colorado residents! If chosen, your child will get to retrieve the tee after each Broncos kickoff and enjoy the game from the sideline. In addition, you’ll receive:

• Two sideline passes with access to the field 1 hour prior to game time.
• Two Broncos jerseys
• Two stadium seats
• One year Broncos Bunch Kids Club membership

Over the past few years, my involvement with social media has brought some incredible opportunities for myself as well as for my family. One of the best brand relationships I’ve had to date has been with Red Robin Gourmet Burgers. When they asked me to be a judge for the Kids Cookoff last spring, I was instantly impressed by how much they believed in their brand, but more importantly how much they truly cared about kids. This is a company I feel good about and I’m proud to have been able to participate in another opportunity with them. Thanks Red Robin!

Weiner Horny Tweet Scandal Not A Shocker

Weiner. Weiner. Weiner.

I don’t know about you but I’m not shocked by anything anyone does anymore. I have to hope there are some faithful men out there (and the one snoring next to me better be included), but even the faithful ones are horny. All men are horny and juvenile when it comes to sex and boobies and Weiners. Not all of them are stupid enough to take a picture of their snausage, tweet it to the world, and then lie about it but let’s be real here, it could have happened to anyone.

Right?

How many times have you DM’d something to your TBFF (Twitter BFF), only to realize that, in fact, the announcement of your most recent yeast infection somehow slipped out to all of your 5,108 followers!! Ah, delete, delete, delete. Uh, ya…. not quite the same thing as taking a picture and trust me, no gal I know would ever take a picture of her yeast infection, so you’re safe.

Friends. Men. Women (women get horny too, I’m sure). There are no “take backs” with Twitter. In fact, there are no “take backs” with pretty much any digital footprint-or Weiner. So, take your horny hormones and lock yourself in a private bug/video-free room ’cause I’m tired of Nancy Pelosi launching ethics investigations on yer asses.  If you’d all just keep your horny hormones private maybe the yokels in Washington might actually get a chance to do something of value.

Can we all just agree that there are no ethics, that horny politicians are stupid, and that illicit affairs, phone sex or whatever else that isn’t illegal or harmful to another human being, are all just a perk of the slimy job. Perks for Pervs. Hmm, that bill just might pass.

Come one, Come all! Join me in Pre-Apocalypse Confessional!

Since the world is supposed to come to an end tomorrow night at 6pm I thought it would be fun to encourage folks to purge themselves in a confessional of sorts here on BB. I’ll get the ball rolling and reveal 5 of my dirty little secrets….

1. I am a 38 year-old Gleek and not only do I watch Glee regularly, I have dreams at least once a week that I am the girl that turns Blaine straight.
2. I am addicted to Skittles.
3. While I traded my Diet Coke addiction for a Skittle addiction, I still order Diet Coke at restaurants.
4. I got a teeny bit of Botox yesterday for the 11 between my eyes.
5. The training schedule called for a 40 min tempo run this morning, but the world is ending so I decided to sleep in.

Confess, my friends! Tell us all your dirty little secrets!

From the Archive of Never Posted Blog Posts: Rob Lowe on the Cover of Architectural Digest!

Do you ever sift through your blog “drafts”? You really should because you never know what gems of fabulous-ness you may find. I was digging through the archives of my own insanity this morning and came across this funny, yet random, bit of drivel that I obviously wrote last year on my way to BlogWorld Expo 2010. I wonder why I never published it? Why didn’t this silly bantering make the cut… or at least warrant editing? And why did I feel an exclamation point was necessary in the title? Hmm, you tell me. Enjoy…..

Here I sit in the most fabtastic airport, DIA, where the girls are pretty and the WiFi is free. I’m headed to Las Vegas for Blogworld Expo 2010 … Vegas Baby!  Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, my flight is delayed by a few hours.  Like any responsible blonde mommy blogger, I headed to the nearest wall outlet and am now gadget charging and diligently writing….

Sadly, DIA is a Pepsi-sphere and there isn’t a Diet Coke to be seen so I made my usual stop at the news shop for the most important travel necessities-skittles and water. I usually like to grab a magazine like Runner’s World but today I was stopped short as I perused the rack.  There, right in front of me, was the most beautiful picture of Rob Lowe! I snatched up the magazine and actually giggled when I realized that it was a copy of Architectural Digest. What? I’m not exactly a regular reader of this particular genre of magazine. I’d love to be someone who could dress a room and match colors but I was not blessed with an ounce of decorator talent.

I’m a total dork when it comes to digging deep for more information on anything that strikes me as curious or interesting. So, of course, I Googled around and found out that this People & Places edition of Architectural Digest, will serve as the last under the direction of the magazine’s editor in chief since 1971, Paige Rense Noland. What a gift she has given her successor by transitioning with Rob Lowe! Out with a BANG!

I’m sure celebrities are not a rarity on the cover of this particular publication, but to choose Rob Lowe as your final cover gift is brilliant! I’m almost 40, I’m aging, my children are old enough to wipe their own bottoms (although, Lord knows when they’ll be coordinated enough to aim accurately and remember to flush) – the timing for this cover is perfect! I picked up the magazine because I wanted to touch Rob Lowe but I’ll actually read it because I’m interested in turning my house into a home.  This mag is filled with pictures of home libraries decorated with couches that just scream “Come on in, put your feet up and read a good book.” Of course, it also look like nobody has set foot in any of the rooms. Nobody has dropped a granola bar wrapper on the floor, there’s no science book with yesterday’s math homework crammed into it-propped open by a lone sock ….

It’s OK though, because we’re finally past the stage of family-hood where safety gates grace every doorway and 4-ply bumper pads protect every possible exposed corner of death. I’m free! We’re free! Free to have glass tables and WHITE furniture… well, maybe I’m a little premature with the white….

Head to Architectural Digest to see more photos of Rob’s home and read the article. There’s also a tour of director Oliver Stone’s Manhattan apartment, Las Vegas mogul Steve Wynn’s new duplex villa, Yankee pitcher C.C. Sabathia’s New Jersey residence, oil legend T. Boone Pickens’s Texas ranch, hotelier Jason Pomeranc’s renovated midcentury LA home, and more.

There’s An App For That! Is paying for Starbucks with your phone REALLY all that cool?

There’s an app for that! It’s become a phrase silly tech freaks toss around like a prized trophy. For good reason, too. Apps make life easier, more fun, and just so darn geekiliscious!

How about a wallet app? You got it!  Starting today, at any of the 6,800 Starbucks and 1,000 Target stores across the country, you can pay for your caffeine kick with your phone, using the Starbucks Card mobile app.

Let’s all calm down though. Can we truly call this a wallet app?

All the excitement about phones replacing wallets is fun and very buzz-worthy but let’s be clear about how the app works. It is not a direct line of payment from your credit card or bank, you must have a Starbucks card (or get one) and connect it to the app, which then displays a barcode for Timothy the barista to scan for payment. The app isn’t a magic money drip of caffeine happiness but it does replace the need to carry around yet another plastic card. Customers can reload their cards using PayPal or Credit/Debit card, check balances, find nearby stores and earn starts for purchases to trade in for free drinks. That’s pretty cool. Although, the app is only compatible with iPhone, iPad, and Blackberry phones. Sorry Droid-er peeps, you’ll have to use the real stuff-no virtual pay for you.

The app is extremely cool and if I drank coffee or frequented Starbucks I’d be geeking out and buying all of my friends a coffee just because it would be fun. In fact, I have a meeting at Starbucks in about 45 minutes and have downloaded the app and will buy an over-priced tea just to see it in action.

Is this the start of something huge? Is it really all that cool?

Starbucks can afford the scanning technology and since they don’t have to pay credit card fees for using their own debit card it’s likely a very smart investment. If every other large corporate chain follows suit you’ll no longer have a million plastic cards in your wallet, you’ll just have to flip through pages of apps to find the one you need and make sure you load it before you go to pay. MAKE SURE you have it loaded!  Have you ever been at the front of the grocery line, watching your groceries scan and suddenly realized that you left your wallet and checkbook at home? The embarrassing feeling as the cashier sights and the people in the line behind you stare suspiciously are NOTHING compared to the riot of cranky customers waiting for their morning jolt and the crushed expression of the barista who has just made your art, I mean drink, as he realizes that the liquid creation of bliss he just created will be cast aside and stamped “WASTE”. So, friends, just be sure you keep your phone loaded with money.

The app is cool but mobile payment is not a new concept. Companies like Paypal and others like them have given it a crack and none of them have become a mainstream method of mobile payment. So, unless someone can make it mainstream and accessible we’ll all be stuck with mobile gift cards. I have about .50 cents on a Starbucks card, $40 on a grocery card, and probably four gift cards from Barnes and Noble with anywhere from $1 to who knows how much on them and I always forget to use them. Will mobile gift cards be any different?

Am I alone? Have you tried the app yet? Tell me what you think!

Do You Have A Bucket List?

Hey, look at that! I’m 2 for 2 in my very own new year blogging fest! I don’t have the balls to actually commit to a “Project 365″ -way too much room for failure-but I have resolved to embrace my fear and just write. Every day… maybe.  So, there it is. And here it is.

Do you have a bucket list? My “bucket list”, which I have self title my 40 Before 40, is overflowing with the things I would like to do before I turn 40. I’ve probably talked about it a million times and some of you know about the most important things on the list. For example, I will bravely travel on a zip line before I turn 40. This is the single MOST important item on my list and it must be completed or I shall forever live in shame.

Why? Why, I’m glad you asked! It’s a really good story but I’ll tell you later because it’s just humiliating enough to qualify for it’s own post…

Have you read my list? Of course you haven’t and neither have I!

Talking and committing to paper/weblog are two very different things. This list exists in my head, in my heart, and smack dab in the middle of my mind like a billion pound brick of elephant poop with a big smiley face that just laughs at me.

“Haha,” says the billion pound brick of elephant poop, “hows that list workin’ for ya? When we gonna see this list you speak of so frequently” {I swear I’m not drunk, I gave up Diet Coke two days ago (again) and I think the cleansing process must be releasing toxins into my bloodstream, hence the elephant poop hallucinations.}

It’s an important list, this 40 Before 40, and I don’t know why I agonize over publishing it. Well, yes I do know exactly why I agonize.

What if? What if I put it out there and then can’t or don’t do something?

I’m beginning to see the value in the whole writing every day thang… LAWD, will you look at that? Who gives a hoot if I do or don’t check off all those things on my bucket list? What does it mean if I turn 40 and haven’t completed everything on that list?

Here’s the thing friends, there is courage in dreaming big and making big fat lofty bucket lists. So what if I don’t get to check off “win power ball and save the world” before August 18, 2012? Yesterday I wrote about the difference between intention and action. This list needs to exist so that I can turn my intentions into action.

Stay tuned, you may or may not see a list from me soon.

Do you have a bucket list? What are the most important things on your list and what actions are you taking to complete them?

Hope and Humanity ~ One Year Annivesary of Haiti Earthquake

Some News Is So Big It Deserves Its Own Page – That is the caption on the Huffington Post Haiti Earthquake page. Click on the link. Read the headlines and look at the images.

I have to be honest, there are times that I catch myself looking at images like the ones we see from Haiti and not quite believing that conditions such as these could possibly exist. I’ve never seen anything like this first hand. Most of us would never imagine sights like these.

We read about celebrities, politicians and church groups that visit places where the daily reality is nothing short of a nightmare. They go to “help”, to bring attention to causes, and to raise funds. The prospect of heading to Haiti right now when nearly 95% of the rubble from last January’s earthquake is still to be removed, almost 6000 people have died from a cholera epidemic, and political unrest sparks daily violence, is a little frightening.

Yet, it is something I have contemplated. It’s an opportunity that could possibly present itself…. possibly. Maybe. The Heart of Haiti campaign will be sending one of the program ambassadors (of which I am one), to Haiti in January over the one year anniversary of the Haiti earthquake.

I’ve lived an incredibly blessed life. I grew up in a loving family, had the best education, married a loving man, made beautiful babies….. no matter what difficulties I’ve had to face somehow I’ve always landed in a good spot. Sometimes this feels weird, like I’m not sure I deserve to be quite as lucky as I am.  I know that much of this is due to my attitude and the perspective with which I choose to look on things, but my reality is a very good one. I am grateful and I try to be generous. I’ve been generous in my community with my time but mostly I’ve been generous financially. My “giving back” has always been quite comfortable. I’ve never looked into the eyes of a man or woman who faces challenges very few Americans could ever fathom. There is not a doubt in my mind that traveling to Haiti would be a life changing experience, one that would extend beyond myself, to my community, my family and my readers, but…

Am I worthy of such an experience as traveling to Haiti?

Does that sound stupid? It feels like it sounds stupid but that is the question that has weighed on my mind lately. Do I want to go to Haiti? Yes. Why? … Why? Well-and here is where I fall flat….  My eyes fill with tears and I feel that tightness of anxiety in my chest. I should be able to say something of great significance that would set you all in awe of my fabulous-ness. Instead, I make up words like “fabulous-ness” and wipe the snotty tears from my nose.

Personally, my own community has struggled with more tragic events over the past three years than statistics say should be possible-so much for statistics. More than once I have uttered the question, “how does one go on after this?”.  When I look at the images of the Heart of Haiti artisans on the Macy’s website I feel gratitude. EXTREME gratitude for the hope and humanity they represent. If after all these men and women have endured (even before the earthquake), they can create and live and love and smile … well, it just proves how resilient and determined we all are as a human race. These people inspire me and they give me hope.

Just being an ambassador for this program has been incredibly fulfilling. Last spring I set a goal for myself-to live with purpose and to hold all of my work up to the MomActive mission statement, “To motivate and empower women to be positive role models for their families”. My involvement with the Heart of Haiti initiative is the cherry on top of all of the amazing work that has come my way in the past 8 or 9 months.

These are my fellow Heart of Haiti Ambassadors, visit them all and read about their experiences with this project. Read about the women they have chosen as The Heart of Social Good and learn how trade for aid initiatives touch the lives of so many people in so many ways. And stay tuned because I will be following the blogging, vlogging, fabulous-ness of the ambassador that does travel to Haiti because I know that the experience is likely to change all of our lives.

One Brown Girl: Tracey Friley @OneBrownGirl
Ananda Leeke: @anandaleeke
Green Your Decor: Jennae Petersen @greenyourdecor
Mommy Niri: Nirasha Jaganath @mommyniri
The Broke Socialite: Shameeka Ayers @brokesocialite
Madre Minutes: Barbara Collins @madreminutes
Real Life Sarah: Sarah Pinnix @RealLifeSarah
Peas for Prosperity: Christy Annis @Peas4Luck
My Brown Baby: Denene Millner @mybrownbaby
The Fabulous Do-Gooder: Bessie Winn-Afeku @fabdogooder | @sheismeprogram

I Am The 11th Wheel

I was brought up to be very cognizant of others and to use proper manners at all costs. My kids are complimented all the time on their manners. It may be the only area of parenting that I have had some success in.

Sometimes being polite can include putting your own feelings and desires aside. This isn’t easy but it builds character… or something like that.

Have you ever just known you were meant to have something? To be part of something? Maybe there was a really cool project that someone was talking about and you felt like you should be a part of it. So you steamroll over every thread of self-restraint you have and become a part of it?

Maybe you would normally feel embarrassed by you own audacity, but you really don’t because you know that your heart and soul love this project and the people involved?

I have. I did. Recently. I’m the 11th wheel and it was meant to be.