Seattle Mom Blogs

We have a great giveaway from Aileen of Smith Photos! For one lucky Seattle Mom Blog reader, you can win a free family session which includes an hour of time, a full resolution CD with images and printing permissions, and a private, password protected gallery to share with family and friends. (Retail value: $250)

All you have to do is leave a comment below for your chance to win! Contest ends Friday, September 3 at 5PM PST.

Contest is over! Thanks for entering!

For more information and samples of her work, visit Smith Photos!

A super sweet Seattle Mom Blogger Stacey reviews the newest offering from Red Robin. I need to get to a Red Robin, stat! -Mona

I rather dig Red Robin. It’s a family friendly restaurant with tasty food, pleasant staff and whimsical décor. So when my family and I were offered the opportunity to try out their newest gourmet burger, invented by one of Washington’s own Puyallup resident Emily Potts, I wiped the drool from my mouth and quickly agreed.
Little Emma at the ripe old age of 10 has outdone herself with the Spicy Honey Glazed Bacon Burger.

The before (you know you want to lick the screen)

Let me say that again. Spicy. Honey Glazed. BACON.Burger. It was all you’re probably imagining. The burger was nice and juicy and the mix of sweet and savory was downright heavenly. Initially, I was a bit worried about the spice because if you know me you know that I don’t do spicy. But it’s an ever so slight kick that adds that little bit of punch and doesn’t over power the burger. It’s was mild enough spice (how’s that for an oxymoron) that my children were able to tolerate with no problems.

Oh and don’t even get me started on the bottomless fries. Those for me are like a drug. I don’t think there is any way you can prepare a potato that I wouldn’t enjoy but all dressed in that fantastic Red Robin seasoning salt I’m pretty sure my stomach did a happy dance at that parade of flavors.

And here’s the “can it get any better?” part, Red Robin is donating fifty cents of the proceeds from the sale of each burger to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children®.

And I must give props to my local RR. Y’all have got one heck of a team there. I love that your servers ask my children what they’d like and actually listen to what they’re saying and don’t turn to me when they don’t answer fast enough.

The aftermath. Believe me I wanted to keep eating but that wouldn’t have been pretty.

Red Robin, you done good. I’ll be back for more.

Finally, let me not forget to mention if your child age 6 to 12 or a child you know is a gourmet chef just waiting to be discovered encourage them to submit their recipe online (www.RedRobinKidsCookOff.com) from Aug. 3 to Sept 12.

10 semi-finalists will receive a trip to Colorado for the Championship with an accompanying parent or guardian, a $75 Red Robin gift card, a $100 VISA gift card, and an iPod nano. The grand-prize winner’s gourmet burger will be featured in every participating U.S. Red Robin® restaurant and will also receive a family vacation to Universal Orlando® Resort and Red Robin gift cards for a year (12 $30 gift cards).

Stacey is a twin and a mom of twins and that alone makes her a superhero. She blogs at Because I Must Blog.

Editor’s Note: We received a free Red Robin dinner for two in exchange for this review.

We have some busy Seattle Mom Bloggers with awesome giveaways. Click on through for chances to win!

-Over at Jenny on the Spot’s review blog, she’s giving away two produce boxes from the terrific CSA, Full Circle Farms. Contest ends 7/22.

-Stacey is giving away two $35 gift cards to Jiffy Lube. Perfect way to get your car road-trip ready! Contest ends 7/26.

-And on my own , I’m giving away and telling you about killing zombies. It keeps me sane. Contest ends 7/31.

Mona blogs over at where she has a dollar and dream and two kids who are spending and squashing them both.

Here’s another awesome post from Kristin who blogs at Intrepid Murmurings. She took this trip in March, but now that the sun’s *finally* shining in Seattle, you can take the same trip with less bundling up! Do you have a post you’d like to feature here? – Mona

This week, at the constant (but gentle) prodding of my instructor from the parenting class I have been taking, we had our first "family meeting". Apparently having these meetings is one of the single best predictors of happier families (or success with positive discipline? I am forgetting the specific factoid), and one of the main lasting things she hoped we took away from the class.  Her personal account of how family meetings helped her family was REALLY persuasive, so we are giving it a go.  

At the start, she suggests only having everyone give each other compliments, then plan something fun to do together during the coming week. Eventually (once the kids buy into the family meeting concept and associate it as a fun/positive thing), you can start addressing other issues that come up (problems put on an agenda) during the week as well.  Sibling issues, behavior stuff, all that can be addressed, making sure everyone is heard and part of the solution.  As kids get older you can also address meal plans, chores, scheduling for the week, etc. But with kids as little as ours, its mostly about compliments and family time planning right now, ha ha!  And eating delicious treats such as brownies. 

This week, we all easily agreed on our outing — riding the light rail train!  All three girls were excited and so was I!  The light rail is new here in Seattle, and has a stop not too far from us (10 min or so).  I found a really great guide online over at Delicious Baby (here’s part one, and part two) that listed stuff to do with kids at each of the stops, so we chose something and off we went!  

We parked at the Tukwila Station (closest to us and with a big free parking lot) and got off at the Othello Station.  We walked a block or so over to Othello Park, enjoyed snacks and the playground (including a Very Big Slide that I unfortunately didn’t get pictures of) and then went back to the station and hopped aboard the next train back.  The girls LOVED it!  All three were all smiles, and Delia couldn’t sit still until she got her very own seat on the train.  She fell asleep on the way home in our car, but when she woke up she immediately said "train track!".

Here are some pictures of our outing (no pics of me, but I promise I was there too!).  Even the escalators were a hit!  Now that I’ve been able to scope it out, I intend to take the girls myself midweek a lot more.  I want to check out the other stations, and maybe go all the way downtown!  

 

 

 

 

 

We’re highlighting some awesome posts from the Seattle Mom Blog circle. Here’s one from Kristin who blogs at Intrepid Murmurings. She’s a phenomenal mama of three girls including two identical twins! Do you have a post you’d like to feature here? – Mona

Last week in a semi-desperate moment (I had been shut in with sick kids for at least 5 days) we got groceries delivered from .  LOVE them — I ordered before 10am and they were delivered by 5 the same day!  While this was what saved my sanity in the baby twin days,  its more of a treat now.  I try to get things on sale and shop in bulk and discount places mostly (Safeway, Costco, Grocery Outlet) since our food bill with 5 eaters can get HUUUUUUGE. 

The cold things from Amazon always get packaged in insulated bags or coolers with huge chunks of dry ice.  My husband, Lonnie, cannot help but play with it, every time.  Its obviously not something you want the kids to touch, so he had it at the bottom of our deep sink with just a little water, and impressed upon them the importance of not reaching down to touch the water (Elsie’s and Delia’s arms are too short, anyway, I think).  Here’s some of pictures of the fun.   Elsie is in the pink dress, Delia is on the far side, Emma, standing tall in the middle.

 

 

 

I am a daughter walking for my mother.

It’s that time again Seattle – time for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure - when all of downtown Seattle will be enveloped in a sea of pink.

I’ve never walked/ran/wogged an official 5K, but this year I’m a TEAM CAPTAIN!  You know what they say, “If you’re going to do something, be in charge!”  They do say that, don’t they?  Who are they anyway?  Regardless, I’m in charge of 12 people…all of whom are walking for my mom, who was just diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma, Stage 1.   We’ve got pink neckelaces, buttons, bling and leis – oh my!  

From what I’ve heard, it’s going to be an emotional day, and that’s just fine with me.  While I’m busy walking and crying and hooting and hollering, my mom will be fighting her cancer, one positive thought at a time until she begins treatment. 

If you would like to join The Race for the Cure, you can register the morning of the race just by showing up at the Seattle Center (and paying a registration fee, these things aren’t free ya know) OR if you would like to know all there is under the sun regarding women’s health, please come to the Health Expo on Saturday, June 5th – also at the Seattle Center.

 

Carrie Blankenship chronicles her ups and downs of parenting 3 kids, 1 firefighter and 1 Australian Shepherd at Stop Screaming I’m Driving.  She can be bribed to do just about anything with a grande nonfat vanilla latte, extra foam.  This is, after all, Seattle:  The Land of Coffee.

When we first enrolled our son at his daycare last fall, the daycare provider asked that we submit a family photo for the disaster kit and would be comforted in case such an emergency did arise.

This is what he would see, an image of our family (minus the new baby) and hopefully this would comfort him enough until either my husband or I get there and take him home.

Today, I read Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson’s letter to her little one and I am both touched and shattered. I cannot think of what to write my son without starting into big weepy tears about my baby, my first born, a boy who will scamper across the house until he finds me so I can kiss a tiny, mostly likely imagined wound on his finger. It’s like I don’t have enough words to tell him how big my heart grew the day he was born, how I love it that he’s a big boy now and I super atomic love it when he sits on my lap, places his small paws on my cheeks and says, “I like to touch your face, Mommy.”

If your kids are in daycare/preschool, what did you have to include in your disaster kit? A photo, a poem, a video? I’m going to try to write a letter to be included in the kit, but I doubt I could make it through without big weepy mama tears. Dr. Swanson’s title is so true: I hope he never has to read it.

Remember our Seattle Mom Blogs Business highlight Marci? Well now this fearless photographer is holding a phenomenal contest for the special mama in your life! Read on for details.

Do you know an amazing mom? Someone who you admire or someone you aspire to? Now is your chance to brag about them. Tell me about this amazing mom you know and they could win a special photo session from Marci at Shutterpated!

DETAILS
Enter by sending an email to . Tell me about what makes this special woman an amazing mom. Please be sure to include your name, their name, and your contact information for both you and the amazing mom you are telling me about.

The contest is open to those who live in the greater Seattle, WA area.

Contest begins April 12th and ends May 5th at midnight. Winner will be contacted by phone and announced on Mother’s Day, May 9th.

PRIZE
One woman will win a photo session of their choice, CD with all the post processed high resolution digital images, and $100 print credit. Total value is $485.

Contest prize may not be substituted or redeemed for cash. Contest prize must be redeemed by December 31st, 2010

SELECTION of WINNER
The winner will be selected on the compelling nature of the email provided by the nominator and will be selected by a judge of the sponsors choice.

The winner will be notified by phone. If the winner cannot be contacted from the information provided by the entry, then an alternate winner will be chosen from all other eligible entries.

The winner will be listed online at www.shutterpated.com/blog after the winner is notified

TERMS and CONDITIONS
By participating in the contest, the winner agrees to have her name and image used in any advertising material for the contest or Shutterpated.

We’re having a quiet New Year’s Eve tonight. We have one pregnant woman in the house (me), a grown man and a three-year-old. Let’s all hope we can just stay awake until the fireworks go off.

What are you doing to bring in the new year?

This is posted on behalf of JennyOnTheSpot.

Alright ladies. This one is for the children… and the teachers… therefore… the future! As usual, I am keeping things very non-dramatic. Look… the children…

Have I pulled your tender mommy heart-strings?

I was contacted by BlogHer a few weeks back. I was asked to be part of selecting local projects for their DonorsChoose Social Media Challenge…

DonorsChoose is an online charity that makes it easy for everyone to help fund educational projects around the country. During the Social Media Challenge bloggers, Tweeters, Facebookers, (and BlogHers) will come together to raise money that goes straight to the place it’s needed the most – the classroom.

Last year, bloggers raised more than $275,000 and helped fund projects in 65,000 public schools.

Here’s the deal – we need to spread the word! There are 4 Seattle-area projects highlighted in this challenge! All in high- poverty level schools:

• A listening center for first graders
• Books for a third grade classroom library
• Dry erase boards for a fifth grade classroom
• 15 piano keyboards for a high school music class

Friends. Women. Moms… Former students… Would you mind spreading the word? Would you mind making a donation yourself? I know times are tight… but there are several ways to help!

• Share this project on your blogs!
• Tweet it!
• Facebook it!
• Might you put the widget on your own blog?
• Donate!

There are projects from across the country highlighted in BlogHer’s effort. The really neat thing here is projects from our own local schools are included! Let’s make a showing here – for the kids, for Seattle! Go grab a widget for our local Seattle giving page and put it in your side bar or feature it in a post! Pretty please? I’ll make it easy on you – click here for the widget page.

I’ll even spray you with glitter if you need that extra “umph”. On your mark. Get set…. GO!