Pillsbury Bake-Off Giveaway!

Cooking is one of my favorite hobbies. Consequently, I get pretty excited about the Pillsbury Bake-Off each year. I have bought the magazine containing the winning recipes in the past; I also have looked them up online... and the million dollar winners' recipes are always some of my family's favorites.

This year, the contest´s entry period ended in mid-April 2009, but for the first time in the contest´s 60-year history, you can help determine 10 recipes among the final 100 that will compete for the $1 million grand prize!

Judges will select 20 recipes to be placed online at www.bakeoff.com in pairs for a period of two weeks for each pair. You can vote for their favorite recipe in each pair. The recipe from each pair that wins the most votes will earn a spot in the final competition, April 11-13, 2010, in Orlando, Florida.

Voting is limited to one vote per person per each pair of recipes. Voters must be registered members of www.pillsbury.com and 18 years of age or older as of May 1, 2009, to participate.

The first pair of recipes was posted on May 14, 2009 and a new pair of recipes is posted every two weeks (namely, May 28, June 11, June 25, July 9, July 23, August 6, August 20, September 3 and September 17, 2009). The voting period for the tenth and final pair of recipes will close at 11:59AM CDT on October 1, 2009. Visit www.bakeoff.com for the official rules.

And to help promote the Bake-Off, I get to give away this Pillsbury giggle doll and this magazine featuring past winning Bake-Off recipes to two lucky readers.


Just leave a comment on this post that includes your e-mail address. Entrants must live in the US. This contest runs through Wednesday, June 3rd at 11:59pm, CST.

MyBlogSpark also provided me with a prize pack of my own for hosting this giveaway. Yes, I did it for the recipes. I'm shameless that way.

Father's Day Gift Ideas From Snapfish and Me

As I'm sure you know, Father's Day is right around the corner. This is what I got my husband last year...

A 12-month wall calendar, with a special picture for each month. He's always complaining about not having enough family pictures at work, so I thought this would be a perfect way to solve that problem. And I was right. He says it's one of his favorite presents he's ever received- and he's already asked for another one for this Father's Day. So I'm working on it right now.

As if by magic, Snapfish contacted me recently and offered me a free gift from the site of my choosing, so that's exactly what I'll be getting. But even if your own husband or father doesn't need a calendar, there are so many other options to choose from at Snapfish. And seriously, whenever I've given a family member something with family photos on it, they've absolutely LOVED it. So here are a few of my favorite ideas....

For the man who spends a lot of time at the computer, there's this cool collage mousepad.
For your husband's next poker night, there is a pack of picture-perfect playing cards.

We all know about the photo mugs, which are cool, but did you know you can also upload your child's art to Snapfish and put it on a product? This is such a great idea for a gift from the kids.

And if your husband or dad is "Mr. Personality," well this photo tie would be perfect for him.

To help get you started, Snapfish is giving me a $30 gift card to give to one lucky Suburban Turmoil reader. Just leave a comment with your own best Father's Day present idea- it can be one you're planning on buying this year, or one that really worked in the past.

Be sure your comment includes your e-mail address and is in between now and Wednesday, June 3rd at 11:59pm, CST. I will choose a winner at random on Thursday.

Good luck!!

Dora the Explorer: Super Babies Dream Adventure

It was a joyous day in this house when Dora the Explorer: Super Babies Dream Adventure arrived on my doorstep.

Dora is my son's absolute favorite show and it's also one my five-year-old daughter still enjoys watching with her little brother. They had pretty much worn out Dora Saves the Snow Princess, so Super Babies was a welcome distraction, for them as well as for me.

The DVD is 95 minutes long and to be honest, I love the Super Babies episode. Dora's baby twin brother and sister are totally cute! There's also a sweet little super babies song that my children both sing and dance to. Other than that, you have standard Dora fare on this DVD. If your kids love Dora, they'll love Super Babies Dream Adventure. 'Nuff said.

Dora the Explorer: Super Babies Dream Adventure is out now on DVD.

Jif Natural and Jif to Go

With two small children, a vast repertoire of child-friendly recipes (many of which use peanut butter as a sweetener), and an entire family of Thai food lovers, I use a lot of peanut butter. So when the folks from Jif asked me to try two new Jif products, I was totally down with it.

First, we have the all-new Natural Jif. This is the product I was most excited about trying. I have been working hard to improve the quality of every single thing my children put in their mouths. They both are finicky eaters, so I want to make every bite count.

I had tried a few natural peanut butters, including the Smuckers and Kroger brands, and really wasn't happy with the oil that forms at the top of the jar. For one thing, it was inconvenient to stir that oil into the peanut butter simply because generally when a peanut butter sandwich or peanut butter crackers are called for, the kids want them NOW. For another, at least with the Smuckers, the taste and consistency weren't anywhere near the same as regular peanut butter.

As far as the natural options go at the supermarket, I'd say Jif is hands down the best I've found so far. It looks and tastes like regular peanut butter and has no oil at the top. You will tell a difference in the consistency (enough to know it's not the same as regular peanut butter), but your kids will be clueless.

What makes this peanut butter "natural?" Well, take a look at the ingredients:

MADE FROM ROASTED PEANUTS, SUGAR, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF PALM OIL, SALT, MOLASSES.

And now here are the ingredients from regular Jif:

MADE FROM ROASTED PEANUTS AND SUGAR. CONTAINS 2 PERCENT OR LESS OF: MOLASSES, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OIL (SOYBEAN), FULLY HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OILS (RAPESEED AND SOYBEAN), MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES AND SALT.

Um, yeah. I think I'll be choosing the Natural from now on.

The second product I tried was the new Reduced Fat Jif to Go. This is a great idea, is it not? The possibilities for this product are endless- Pair a cup with a sandwich bag full of celery in your kid's lunch bag. Keep them at work for snacking. Take them on a picnic. Bring them along to field trips- There are so many reasons that you might want to take a single serving of peanut butter along with you as opposed to an entire jar.

The servings are generously portioned- There's more than enough for a sandwich, and plenty for an adult to enjoy with crackers or other dippers as a snack. As for the "reduced fat,"this product contains 25% less fat than regular peanut butter. So there you go. And taste wise, you won't notice a significant difference. It's slightly less sweet than the regular peanut butter, but I actually like it that way. I don't think your kids will be able to tell unless they're tasting them side by side.

So there you have it.

Save Your Diet with Skinny Cow

Many of us are on diets, which is good. Many of us on diets have a certain near-constant craving for ice cream, which is bad.

But it doesn't have to be.

If you haven't heard of Skinny Cow ice cream, you must be living under a rock. I've heard people rave about Skinny Cow ice cream for years now as a low-cal way to satisfy your sweet tooth. I was asked to review two different Skinny Cow products and now I know what all the fuss was about.

I tried the Skinny Dippers in mint and vanilla. Each "Dipper" has just 80 calories, no trans fats or artificial sweeteners, and best of all, it tastes like REAL ICE CREAM, with REAL CHOCOLATE drizzled over the top. Yum. I was very, very happy with the taste of these bars.

The downside is that you only get one skinny little bar for your 80 calories. Two are always pictured, so I guess I thought I'd get two stuck together. But no. Let's be realistic. The Skinny Cow is not a miracle worker. I have to say, too, that once I'd finished my one bar, I had had enough. Fortunately, the ice cream and chocolate are pretty rich, so you probably won't be left wishing for more when it's gone.

Even more scrumptious were the cookies and cream Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches. These are almost twice the calories of the Skinny Dippers, coming in at 150 calories each, but seriously, they taste great. Sometimes, nothing will do but an ice cream sandwich, you know?

All in all, these ice cream options can help you have a good time this summer without absolutely destroying your diet. We all need to treat ourselves once in a while, right?

Skinny Cow products are available in most groceries and come in all kinds of varieties and flavors. Read more about them (including easy-to-find nutritional and caloric information) here.

Participants of this blog tour received an Amazon gift certificate from Skinny Cow and Mom Central.

Wonder Bumpers. Why Didn't I Think of That?

This is seriously, seriously one of the coolest, most-needed products I've ever reviewed.

I have long had issues over whether or not to use crib bumpers. The experts advise against them now, but the thought of my babies hitting the hard wooden sides of their crib while they slept made me opt to use them anyway.

Once Bruiser got a little older, I took his bumpers out because I was afraid he would use them to climb up and over the side of his crib. But he seemed so uncomfortable without them; I could literally hear him bump up against the slats of his crib at night and I hated that.

Enter the Wonder Bumpers.

These super soft, padded bumpers from Go Mama Go Designs individually zip onto each of your crib's slats. The zipper is on the inside, so your baby won't pull at them. They come in all kinds of colors and designs and are two-sided, so you can choose one side, the other, or mix and match in between slats.

I put my Wonder Bumpers on in less than ten minutes. When Bruiser saw his crib that night, he was so excited, and he has slept better than ever since having the bumpers on his crib. I no longer hear him bumping around at night and he sleeps through the night 100% of the time, whereas without the Wonder Bumpers, it was around 70%. I am not even kidding.


Wonder Bumpers and a Cars baseball cap- My son couldn't be any happier...

Wonder Bumpers aren't cheap- They range between $99 and $220 to cover a crib. But this is the kind of thing I'd register for, or ask my parents or in-laws to help cover. Every single person who has come over to my house has commented on them and marveled at the design. I only wish I'd had them around when Punky was a baby.

I give Wonder Bumpers my absolute highest recommendation. Check them out for yourself here.

Coffee Bean Direct Gets My Thumbs Up

I was asked to review a few bags of coffee from Coffee Bean Direct recently, and I jumped at the opportunity, because I'm pretty sure my family is directly responsible for keeping the coffee bean industry afloat.

We drink so much coffee, in fact, that while I once only bought name brand coffee, I'm now reduced to purchasing the gigantic Kroger tins. Otherwise, we would face financial ruin over the sheer volume of coffee we imbibe.

So let's just say Coffee Bean Direct's beans were a welcome change around here.

We tried three varieties of flavored coffee: French Vanilla, Hazelnut, and Jamaican Me Crazy. I really enjoyed them all- Not only did they taste great, but the aroma around here was heavenly. Surprisingly, my favorite one was Hazelnut. I'm not typically a huge hazelnut fan, but I found this coffee to smell and taste the best.

I also loved that Coffee Bean Direct ground my beans for me. I hate grinding around here because of the mess.

Coffee Bean Direct's prices and selection are excellent. A one-pound bag averages around $5. Their Fair Trade and Organic coffee beans are a little higher, at around $8 per bag. There are dozens of flavors and variations of coffee beans to choose from. If you like it, chances are they've got it.

You can check out Coffee Bean Direct for yourself at their website. Give them a try!

In addition to the coffee, Coffee Bean Direct also sent me two mugs and a t-shirt, which in no way influenced this review. They were cute, though.

Taken

Well, this is the movie everyone's talking about around here, so I was pretty psyched to get a chance to review it.

Taken is the story of a former spy relies on his special skills and killer instinct as he hunts down the men who kidnapped his daughter. It has been released as a two-disc DVD, featuring an extended cut of the film with Digital Copy for portable media players. Additional bonus features include audio commentaries by the director, writer and cinematographers, an exclusive behind-the-scenes “making of” featurette and action packed side-by-side comparisons.

That's the lowdown. What did I think? I agree with so many reviewers of this film who've said that Liam Neeson's incredible acting ability really took Taken to another level. He is realistic and easily believable both as a former spy trained in fighting and weaponry, and as a father to a teenage girl. The movie is action packed and really will keep you on the edge of your seat. It's the kind of movie that both you and your man can enjoy together.

Taken is out now on DVD. Check it out!

Speed Racer the Next Generation: Comet Run the Movie

Genius move, Speed Racer The Next Generation creators, adding a toy Speed Racer car to the packaging.

As a result, my two-year-old son is completely enthralled by this new movie, Comet Run, and is actually sleeping with the car right now in his crib.

This movie is part of the Speed Racer The Next Generation series that airs on Nickelodeon. The star, Speed, is actually the son of the original Speed Racer, and you know, he looks a lot like him. In Comet Run, "Speed and his friends take on an extraordinary Eco-Car in a pulse-pounding 3-day race to win the deeds to a trillion dollar company."

I enjoyed watching Comet Run with my son; the series has a bit of a Scooby Doo feel to it, and I love that it's environmentally friendly. It made me giggle that the villain in the movie was a car manufacturer who'd just debuted an enormous, gasoline sucking SUV. Heh.

If your son loves cars as much as mine, chances are he will be thrilled with this DVD, not to mention the toy car that's included. The whole package is just $10.99 on Amazon right now. Check it out.

Valkyrie

I don't care how weird Tom Cruise gets with his personal life- He is one of those rare actors who's good in every single movie he makes. I know that if he's in it, I'll enjoy it. It's as simple as that. And Valkyrie was no exception.

In fact, I can only guess that this movie didn't do better at the theaters specifically because of Tom Cruise's media antics, because it is a very well-done film. Depicting a failed plot to kill Hitler that's devised and carried out by his own friends, Valkyrie kept us riveted, even though we knew thanks to history what the outcome had to be.

History buffs will appreciate this film for its content, but the rest of you will enjoy watching it, too. The acting is excellent including Academy Award nominees Kenneth Branagh, Tom Wilkinson, and Terence Stamp , as well as Bill Nighy and Eddie Izzard.

I encourage you to give Valkyrie a watch. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Valkyrie is available both on standard DVD and Blu-Ray, which includes more than three hours of special features from commentary by director Bryan Singer and Tom Cruise to behind-the-scenes featurettes and more.

Benjamin Button Comes to DVD

Here's one of the most hotly-anticipated DVD releases, out now for your viewing enjoyment: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Nominated for 13 Academy Awards and winner for Best Visual Effects, Art Direction and Makeup, it is the story of a man (Brad Pitt) who ages backward, starting life as an elderly man and progressing on until he ends life as an infant. Somewhere along the way, he meets and falls in love with his soul mate (Cate Blanchett), but obviously, things can't go well, given their situation!

The two-disc special edition of the film contains a four-part documentary of the film that includes commentary from the director, a look at the incredible visual effects of the movie, and thoughts from cast members.

This is a movie worth watching, for the special effects and the wonderful acting alone. It will draw you in and move you to tears. But be prepared to stick around for a while when you pop it into your DVD player.... It is almost 3 hours long!

The 2-disc Special Edition version of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is available on Amazon right now for $22.99.

Seriously Cool Swim Trunks, Dude

One of my favorite looks for Bruiser is a little unusual and totally cool. Sometimes, I dress him in his crazy-patterned swim trunks and top it off with a solid colored Polo. I did it last year one day when I ran out of shorts and he looked so wonderful and got so many compliments that I've been doing it ever since.

So when I got a chance to review a pair of swim trunks from the Haiden Surf line for boys, I was totally psyched. This line has some of the most awesome patterns for boys' swim shorts that I've ever seen, and I'm now coveting more.

Bruiser's had his shorts for a couple of weeks now and I can tell you the color does not fade and the fabric doesn't pill in the wash (and I don't give these shorts any special treatment). I'm in love. At $40 per pair, they are unfortunately out of my price range for boys' shorts, but if you're looking for the perfect pair of swim trunks that will last your child a long time and you have two sawbucks to invest in the search, these are they.

You can check out the Haiden Surf line here, and find out where to score a pair of swim trunks here.

Ni Hao, Kai-lan is Back for a Second Season!

Ni Hao, Kai-lan is back for a second season, kicking off with a week of brand-new episodes, Monday, May 11 – Friday, May 15, at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT).

The second season contains 20 new half-hour episodes, and will take preschoolers on interactive adventures with Kai-lan and her friends as they learn new Chinese words and phrases. This season will also focus on more complex social emotional issues like hitting and separation anxiety, providing lessons to preschoolers on how to better express and deal with their feelings.

We received a screener DVD of the first episode of the second season and as usual, my kids were riveted. I love Ni Hao, Kai-lan as well, and I especially love that both my two and five-year-old children can count to three in Chinese, thanks to the series! Ha!

Be sure and tune in this upcoming week for the preview!

The All-New Illustrated Guide to Gardening

As a prospective gardener, I was excited to check out Reader's Digest's best-selling gardening book, The All-New Illustrated Guide to Gardening, which recently was revised and updated to include hundreds of new plant varieties and illustrations, plus ideas and projects for organic and eco-friendly gardening.

I was not disappointed! This guide made me, a novice gardener, feel like I could be an expert. It contains full-color pictorials, helpful hints, tips and tricks on everything from organic fertilizing and composting to rotating a vegetable garden, as well as diagrams on beneficial bugs, weeds, and plant disorders, sections on bulb care for both outdoor and indoor planting, proper sowing of annuals, and properly planting perennials help make your garden beautiful, every year.

This guide book is great both as a reference book for gardeners of all skill levels, or a beautiful gift book for friends or family members. It is heavy and full of ideas and inspiration. I totally recommend it.

The All-New Illustrated Guide to Gardening retails for $35.00 but it's only $23.10 right now at Amazon, which is a great price for what you get.

Color Me House- Best Toy Ever

Problem: Your children are clamoring for a playhouse, but you don't have a few thousand bucks lying around to buy one for them.

Solution: The Color Me House, which sells for just $39.95, assembles in minutes, and folds back up in seconds when they're done playing with it!

Seriously, I received a Color Me House and it is one of the best toys my kids have ever had. Not only did I have it set up and ready to go in under five minutes, but the surface is white cardboard, which your children can decorate any way they want.

Both my 5-year-old and 2-year-old spent the rest of the day decorating this house and playing inside it. I think my 2-year-old actually likes it best of all. I put some blankets inside and he spends quite a bit of time in there each day.

It is really a wonderful idea, and makes a great gift from parents or grandparents.

One note- After using it for a few weeks now, my son has successfully taken it apart more than once. If you have a particularly rambunctious small child who likes to tear things apart, *ahem*
you might want to wait until they're a little older for this one. It is as sturdy as a cardboard box, so think of it that way. If left solely to my daughter, it would probably last forever.

You can choose between a playhouse or, for $10 more, a rocket! The Color Me House is available here and I can't recommend it highly enough.

Stroller Bags: A Fabulous Solution for Your Stroller Storage Issues

Falling into the "Why didn't I think of that?!" category are stroller bags from Andromeda's Attic.

If you're like me, you love the ease and convenience of umbrella strollers, but you hate the fact that they provide nowhere for you to put your stuff.

Or you are like I used to be, and can't get to the storage area beneath your stroller because you're currently locking your baby's carseat over it.

Stroller bags to the rescue!

Laura, the owner of Andromeda's Attic, makes these bags to fit easily over your stroller handles and hold your baby's things as well as yours. The large main pocket is big enough to hold snacks, sippy's/bottles and diapers. There are also 2 pockets for easy access to smaller items such as keys and cell phones. The bag collapses with your stroller so there's no need to take it on and off -- it's always there when you need it! The lining of the bag is made from soft micro suede with an outer layer of decorative cotton poly-blend. It snaps easily on and off with 4 snaps.

There are even stroller bags available for double strollers.

Our stroller bag is now a staple on my son's umbrella stroller. If someone can now invent a cupholder that attaches to it, I will be SET!

Stroller bags start at just $20. Check out Laura's site and order your own here.

Macaroni Grill Giveaway!

By now, you've probably seen the new line of Romano's Macaroni Grill dinner kits at the grocery. They come in four different varieties and I can now say I've tried all four. For a quick, easy dinner option that tastes made-from-scratch and not the slightest bit made-from-a-box, I think you'll be pleased with the results. They're all good, but the Marsala is hands down our favorite, and my husband says it's even better than his mother's recipe- high praise since she is a noted cook.

All you need for dinner is a pound of sliced chicken (or shrimp or Italian sausage- whatever you've got on hand) and in some cases, butter, oil and/or milk. Your dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes. No muss, no fuss. That's what I like best about these meal kits. Everything's in the box. No extra ingredients spread all over my tiny kitchen!

Another thing I like about these meal kits is that you can use a pound of leftover, shredded chicken (I'm all about roasting a chicken one night and shredding what's left for a chicken recipe the next night, for example) and save yourself some time and effort.

And don't worry about crappy meal-in-a-box ingredients- Each meal kit contains premium ingredients such as such as vine-ripened tomatoes, select cooking wines, specialty herbs and 100% semolina pasta. I could taste the difference. You will, too. In fact, if you don't tell, your family will never know you made this dinner from a meal kit.

Varieties of Romano's Macaroni Grill Restaurant Favorites dinner kits include Garlic & Herb Chicken Penne, Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken & Pasta, Chicken Alfredo with Linguine and Chicken Marsala with Linguine.

Here's the best part of the deal- THREE of you can win this awesome Macaroni Grill gift basket, which includes a sample of the Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken Pasta variety, THREE coupons for you to try the other varieties the next time you visit your local grocer (and they're going for $7.99 per box at my grocery, so this is nothing to sniff at!), a colander, serving spoon and cheese grater! Y'all, this is FOUR nights of dinner ideas and provisions, plus some great kitchen accessories.

Just leave a comment on this post (yeah, you've got to work a little bit for the good stuff, but on the other hand, you'll have a GREAT shot at winning!) with your e-mail address by Wednesday, May 13th, at 11:59 CST.

In the meantime, if you'd like more information about the product or to download a $1 off coupon for the product visit www.restaurantfavoritesathome.com.

Good luck!

I received a gift set in exchange for hosting this giveaway.

I Can't Believe It Myself

My current refrigerator is a... well, it's an embarrassment. The ice maker stopped working about a year and a half ago and it's so old that we've just been letting it wheeze along ever since, figuring we'd just buy another one when something else on it broke.

However, with college coming up this fall for my oldest and my younger stepdaughter turning 16 in a week and needing a car for school, a refrigerator is the last thing we want to buy.

So you can imagine the squealing over here when I got an e-mail asking me to test drive a refrigerator from Frigidaire's new collection of 250 kitchen and laundry appliances! The whole line has been designed to give moms more free time away from the kitchen and laundry room. Take a look at what will soon be gracing my kitchen...

Awwwwwwwwwwwwww, YEAH!

In fact, Frigidaire recently conducted a survey to get an idea of how moms spend their time. The Frigidaire Motherload Index revealed that Moms log more overtime than most Americans. They found that moms spend most of their waking lives – 200 hours each month, in fact – doing the activities they least enjoy rather than the things they love. And yet the majority of moms say they “rarely” or “never” feel caught up on their household tasks.

Can I get an amen?

Frigidaire kept all of this in mind when designing the new appliances. With new features such as a six-minute PowerPlus™ preheat time on their ovens, a Quick Clean dishwashing cycle that cuts IN HALF the time it takes to clean our dishes, the Fits-More™ Dryer that allows us to dry the whole family’s clothes at once, and TimeWise™ technology to make the dryer and washing cycle equal, we can have enough time to do the things we love... LIKE BLOG.

Frigidaire has so much confidence in the efficiency of these products that they are offering a “More Me-Time” Guarantee: Moms will reduce the amount of time they typically spend on housework by at least 8 hours a month using a combination of three or more select Frigidaire appliances or they can return the appliances to their place of purchase within 30 days and get their money back!

Frigidaire also wants to know what you would do if you had an extra hour of blissful “me-time”. Starting today, moms can go to Frigidaire.com to report the five things they would do with an extra hour each day. You can also check Frigidaire out on Facebook right here.

Here's my list:

1. Read more books.
2. Call a friend or my mom to chat.
3. Work on a home decorating project.
4. Shop for myself for a change. I REALLY need a new pair of jeans.
5. Work on a long term writing project, as opposed to something that's due within the next 24 hours!

All participants will be entered for a chance to win an entire suite of NEW Frigidaire appliances. Plus, check out other prizes you can win – like an amazing new Frigidaire Affinity washer/dryer.

I will be getting my own Frigidaire refrigerator later this month and can't wait to tell you all about it. I don't think I'll even believe it myself until the day it arrives!


But this button makes it official.... Right????

The Uninvited

Out now on DVD is the ultimate wicked stepmother movie: The Uninvited.

This is the perfect movie when you're in the mood for a girl-oriented horror flick. It's in the same vein as "Scream" and "I Know What You Did Last Summer," featuring teenage girls who try to save their own necks.

What sets this film apart is that it has a nice shocker of an ending that you definitely won't see coming.

This film is especially enjoyable for the teen crowd.

Here's a brief synopsis:

"The Uninvited stars Emily Browning (Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events) as Anna, a girl who is driven by her mother’s ghost to investigate her untimely death. When her father (David Strathairn, The Spiderwick Chronicles) becomes engaged to Rachel (Elizabeth Banks, Role Models), her mother’s former nurse, Anna and her sister (Arielle Kebbel, The Grudge 2) look into Rachel’s past and begin to suspect that she is not what she seems. As horrifying truths are revealed, Anna becomes locked in a deadly battle with a shocking conclusion."

The Uninvited is out now on DVD.

Disney: The Inside Scoop

I know I don't seem like the Disney Magic type, but I'll let you in on a secret. I LOVE Disney World, and always have. Having grown up in Atlanta, I went to the Magic Kingdom almost every summer, sometimes more than once. It was a popular destination for school and family trips.

So I didn't hesitate to say yes when invited to go for the weekend with a group of mom bloggers, courtesy of Disney and BSM Media. You can read more about the red carpet experience they gave us here. But on this blog, I'm going to tell you some of the amazing insider tips I learned. Trust me, there were plenty, and they were enough to convince my husband and I that we absolutely have to go next September or January, when Punky is 6 and Bruiser is 3.

• And that brings me to my first tip. Why September or January, you may be asking? Those months are Disney's least-crowded, and I am all about short lines and half-empty restaurants and gift shops. Not only will you find fewer people, you'll also get major off-season rates and special offers. November and the first week of December also are recommended. The park is decorated for Christmas, the weather is great, and it's not too crowded.
  

• The special off-season offer right now (and I hope, hope hope this carries over into next year) is a free dining plan for every member of the family if you stay 5 nights and six days in the off-season. That means a free casual lunch, free nicer dinner, and even a free snack in the park! If the whole family eats free, that saves hundreds of dollars, which I am hoping to use to book an even nicer hotel in the Disney resort than we would if we were paying for lots of food.

• Speaking of staying in the Disney resort, until I visited this past weekend, I had always assumed it was best to stay outside Disney grounds, thus saving money. I have totally changed my mind on that now. Staying in one of the 22 Disney hotels on site means you don't have to rent a car because transportation is provided to and from the airport. You don't have to park far away from the park and ride a shuttle in- Most of the hotels are easy walking distance from at least one park, (Epcot was a five-minute walk from the Beach Club, where I stayed) and resort buses run regularly to take you to the rest. Disney hotel rooms run the full gamut from super affordable ($89/night) to super swank (my hotel room starts at $335 a night in the off-season!) and there are all kinds of options, from rooms to suites for larger families like mine, to cabins for the largest families.

• From a personal perspective, while visiting the Contemporary Hotel over the weekend, I had a flashback of staying there when I was six years old and visiting Disney for the first time. It was pure magic. I watched Disney movies at the Kids Club every night (this was before VHS, so it was a BIG DEAL), watched the electric light parade each night from our hotel balcony, and watched the monorail go by as we had breakfast each morning. I thought I was in heaven. For children, staying in a Disney hotel really makes the experience 24-7.

• Another huge bonus to staying in the parks is Extra Magic Hours. Most days, one of the parks in the resort stays open either 3 hours early or three hours late. In order to ride the rides, you have to show your room key. We did Extra Magic Hours at Epcot the first night and it was really fun riding rides until midnight. One of the Disney Mom Panel moms who joined us on the trip said that some nights, the Magic Kingdom stays open until 3 AM, and she and her kids all stay up late and do it. That's soooo up my family's alley!

• One place that kept getting mentioned during the conversation we had about what moms look for at Disney is Fort Wilderness. It is part RV park, part cabins (which, I was assured, are nice, sleep six, and start at $265 per night) and lots of moms had stayed there and LOVED it. You can watch the fireworks on the water from Fort Wilderness and the electric light parade from the beach, there's a petting zoo, outdoor movies, and Chip & Dale host a sing-a-long by the campfire each night. Fun!

• One mom who has stayed at Fort Wilderness mentioned that she has ordered groceries for their stay at www.gardengrocer.com. They charge $12 for delivery, their food prices are what you'd see in an ordinary supermarket, and they will deliver your groceries right to your hotel room. This is how families avoid having to rent a car for things like cases of bottled water, breakfast food, milk and snacks, and anything else you might want to keep in your suite or cabin kitchenette. GREAT idea.
  

• Here's something I didn't know. You can take food and bottled drinks in the park! This is another tip that would make our park experience way better, since I love packing picnics and it saves a ton of money if you're not on the Disney dining plan.

• My favorite park secret is the parent swap. If you have little ones who are too young for a ride, ask the cast member at the head of the line for a Parent Swap ticket. One parent can go on the ride with the kid or kids who are old enough and once that parent is done, the other parent goes to the front of the line with up to three others. That way, both parents can enjoy a ride with their children. I LOVE THIS and WISH I had known about it at Disneyland. *sigh*

• My second favorite secret is the Baby Care Center. Each park has one. It is a quiet, cool, comfortable place with a private room for nursing, a CLEAN and spacious changing room with padded tables, a feeding room with television, children's tables and chairs, and highchairs, and a store that has absolutely everything you may have forgotten, from bottles, formula, pacifiers, and food to changes of clothing (even training pants!) to all kinds of medicine. It is well worth a walk over even for simply changing a diaper.
  

• One thing I did know about that makes all the difference is the Fast Pass. You can Fast Pass one ride at a time (and occasionally, two). Basically, the way it works is that you go to a popular ride and print out a Fast Pass ticket, which gives you a one-hour period to come back (but you can always come back after that time- just not before). When you come back, you get to go right to the front of the line. Once you've used your Fast Pass, you can get another. This way, you can Fast Pass three or four of the most popular rides in the park within a day. While you're waiting for your Fast Pass time, you can ride on rides with shorter lines, or go see a show.

And now, a few cons, although to be honest, I didn't see many.

• Do not rent strollers in the park. They are very expensive. Either bring your own (which is what we always do because I can't imagine not having a stroller at the airport) or rent one from a place like Orlando Stroller Rentals, which offers strollers for as little as $70 for a week and will deliver it right to your hotel room so that it's there when you arrive.

• The Beach Club was beautiful but I'll be honest, the service left something to be desired. I had to have a "discussion" with a woman at the front desk for 30 minutes before she'd authorize my Internet access, even though I showed her a letter from Disney saying that my Internet was complimentary. Once in my room, the phone wasn't working, I had to unplug the refrigerator because it was humming so loudly, and the coffee water well was filthy dirty and even had a dead bug in it. The morning I was to leave, a man showed up to take away my room service plates (Disney had sent cookies and milk the night before). I hadn't eaten my cookies and ended up having them for breakfast, so I very politely told the man I had no dirty dishes. He was quite belligerent (I guess he had on his list that I HAD A COOKIE PLATE! Horrors!), asked me three times for my dirty dishes, and then when I finally shut the door, I could hear him mutter something angrily under his breath. I was a little shocked by that, frankly. Also, each morning, the housekeeper began knocking on my door at 7:30 and she came back every thirty minutes to see if I was gone yet. Don't forget to put the Privacy sign on your door if you stay at Disney! Also, the wake-up call service was off by up to an hour, and several of us fell victim to it. Finally, Disney hotels are all (I'm guessing) full of families with children who are eager to get to the park. Don't expect to sleep in. From about 7am on, the foot traffic and squealing from excited children was audible. Luckily, I was up too, because sleeping in would have been all but impossible. This all makes me sound very particular. I'm not, trust me. But I have traveled the world and stayed in all kinds of hotels, and I was surprised that there would be so many "issues" at a hotel with rooms that start at $335 per night in the off-season.
  

And those are my tips and warnings. Overall, I would highly recommend staying inside the resort simply for all the amenities and conveniences, especially if you have younger children who are still into the "magic" of Disney. You will have a ball!

I hope you'll leave any advice or warnings you've learned about Walt Disney World in the comments.