2011 February | Theta Mom®

02.18.11

Featured TMC Blogger: Daily Dose of Sugar Mama

TMC welcomes Sugar Mama, author of the blog Daily Dose of Sugar Mama. She is one of those bloggers that you will want to immediately add to your reader. She has a gorgeous, clean and functional blog design and excellent content. Like many of us, she writes about this gig called motherhood but she infuses her own story into her blog with authenticity – something we all gravitate toward when finding a new blog to read. I hope you take the time to get to know her! Here is how she describes her blog in her own words:

“When I was coming up with names for my blog I knew very little about SEO in blogging so I didn’t consider the ridiculous keyword searches that would bring people to my blog. That is not the kind of Sugar Mama I represent, and I can imagine it’s a disappointment to some when they reach my blog and find it’s mostly about motherhood. My nickname came about one day several years ago while I was baking and my three kids were watching “The Proud Family.” On the cartoon the kids call their grandmother “Sugar Mama.” My oldest son looked at me in the kitchen and said that name would fit me since I’m always baking. The nickname stuck and now it’s everywhere; embroidered on my aprons, printed on my recipe cards, even written on my kitchen chalkboard…So it only seemed fitting that I include my nickname in my blog.

My blog offers a daily dose of unpredictable slices of my life in hopes that it will somehow benefit yours. I’m a mom like most of you, and I struggle every day with all that means. As well as being a mom to a 14, 12, and 8 year old I also run a busy home daycare for teachers. That means I still experience the colicky crying, terrible twos, potty training, and heartbreak on the first day of school. It also means I get the summer off– bonus! While I experience all that comes with babies and toddlers I’m also weaving the windy road of raising school age kids, including a tween and teen.

Lastly, but by no means least, I’m married to Sugar Daddy. It’s been a balancing act managing both of our very stubborn personalities, but I couldn’t be married to anyone else. He keeps me on my toes, doesn’t let me get wrapped up in the petty things, and is easy on the eyes. In fact, I’ve had a blog follower request that I post more pictures of him! But of all of his strengths, I love most watching him father our three children– it’s more of a turn-on than jewelry or flowers any day!

It’s an honor being featured here. I hope to represent all that being a Theta Mom stands for. My blog is authentically me. I write about my teen pregnancy, attempts at being crafty, simple but delicious recipes, life in my 30′s, the joys and stresses of motherhood, and other random bits. Daily Dose of Sugar Mama is always honest and never perfect.”

Be sure to check out the blog and follow her on Twitter! New to TMC? Join us! We LOVE new members!

*To be considered as a Featured TMC Blogger, be sure to comment on this week’s feature! Have a great weekend ladies!

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02.17.11

A Few Birthday Wishes: What I Really Want

Dear Hubby,

It’s my birthday today. But I know you already knew that.

I also know that you are wracking your brain at the moment thinking about what to get me so I thought I would give you a couple of hints. Here are few fabulous ideas (in no particular order) that would make me the happiest wife and Theta Mom on the planet for my special day.

Ready?

Forget making dinner reservations. Instead, cook me a meal and give me the week off. #amen

Let me sleep in at least ONCE beyond 6:30 am. #justonce

Wipe your child’s butt for the entire day so the only butt I have to wipe is my own. #thankyou

Don’t worry about buying me chocolate. Instead, tell me something totally sweet that I want to hear. #prettyplease

Be sure to have a bottle of red wine on hand. #youknowthedrill

Clean the kitchen, fold the laundry, vacuum and mop the floors. #thatwouldbesoawesome

Call the pediatrician, make all future appointments, pack the lunches and be sure to communicate with the teacher. #fabulousness

Let me talk on the phone and carry on a conversation for more than two seconds without being interrupted by a little person. #seriously

And watch the kids some more so I can actually pee in peace. #bymyself

Don’t let me change one diaper, wash one sippy cup or clean one piece of clothing for the entire day. #notonce

Entertain the kids long enough to give me some uninterrupted time to blog and tweet. #whatdreamsaremadeof

And whatever you do, be sure to tell me how pretty I am, how happy you are that you met me and that you wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but right here. #nodoubt

Yes honey, that would be one hell of an awesome thirty-something birthday!

Love,

Your Beautiful Wife

xoxoxo

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02.16.11

Cutie Pa Tutus: What Little Girls Dream of

Cutie Pa Tutus is the home of custom Pompom Tutus and Super Hero Capes. The business is and owned and operated by Amanda Duke, a mother of two who wanted to find a way to build a successful business and also be able to raise her two small children at the same time. In 2008, Amanda started Cutie Pa Tutus which is based in Charleston, South Carolina after an overwhelming response of making her daughter’s first tutu for a princess party. Just as luck would have it, ever since that one tutu was made, the rest is history! Amanda takes so much care and pride in her work and client satisfaction is her top priority. I can certainly attest to this because I have worked with Amanda through this blog and my daughter actually owns a PomPom Tutu outfit.

Whether your little one is in need of a tutu or dress for a special event, gift or any occasion, Cutie PaTutus is the perfect one stop shop! She carries everything from superhero capes to birthday outfits. Amanda even offers infant sizes and onesies to accommodate that cute little baby as well as matching a perfect fit for your active toddler. Another important feature that Amanda prides herself on is the fact that her tutus are sewn NOT knotted which means they will last! My daughter began wearing her tutu last June and she has at least one more year (if not more) that she’ll fit into it. The great thing about the waist band is that it is adjustable so your child will get many uses (and years) out of each and every piece!

Seriously Theta Moms, does a Tutu get ANY cuter than this?

Not only does Amanda offer tutus sold separately but she also makes custom designed shirts to coordinate with specific tutus (usually with a matching theme) to give your little girl an entire look! The tutu alone is a splash of color and the shirt contains tons of sparkle to make your little one shine! There are tons of ideas and themes to choose from. Check out one of my absolute favorites, the Birthday Melon Pa Tutu Outfit:

And I am LOVING the Cutie PaTutu Tee Tu which begins at size 12 months. It’s a cross between a fun tee with the design and dazzle of something special with a short tutu incorporated along the bottom of the shirt. Is this also not the cutest thing EVER?

And if that isn’t enough to get you excited about this brand, then have a look at Amanda’s full line of specialty products fit to meet the needs of any child or special occasion like the Cutie Fair Dress. This product contains pink tulle with a white leotard and matching marabou trim. The wings, halo and streamers can also be purchased to complete this set. This is the kind of thing your daughter will love to wear as she plays “dress up” or as she prances around the house. Perfect fit for any princess!

You can also find all products relating to masks and capes in the Superhero Stuff that your son would go crazy over as well as tons of New Products which Amanda updates frequently. She’s always adding new creative designs that are functional AND adorable!

Now is the perfect time to purchase because Amanda is giving a special discount to Theta Mom readers: 20% off your entire order with the use of the following coupon code entered at checkout: THETAMOM2011 To stay updated on the latest designs and future discounts, be sure to follow Cutie Pa Tutus on Twitter and “like” Cutie Pa Tutus on Facebook.

Theta Mom® abides by word of mouth marketing standards and believes in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. Cutie Pa Tutus is a proud sponsor of Theta Mom and I was compensated for this post. However, all opinions expressed are purely my own and the content of this post was not influenced in any way.

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02.15.11

5 Reasons Why You Should Utilize Twitter

My guest post today is Natalie from Mommy of a Monster. On her blog she writes about all things motherhood but today at TMC, she is sharing some fabulous reasons why bloggers should be utilizing Twitter to help grow their blog. {And if you leave a comment on this post, be sure to add your Twitter handle so we can follow you}!

Are you a tweep? Do you tweet? Retweet? Use hashtags? Use the @ sign to get in touch with someone? Can you say something clever using only 140 characters?

If you have NO idea what I’m talking about, chances are, you either aren’t using Twitter to help grow your blog or you are on Twitter, but have no idea what you’re doing.

If you aren’t using Twitter to get people to go to your blog, you are missing out on a huge opportunity to both drive traffic to your blog and gain readers. For bloggers, Twitter can be an amazing tool. Much like you would spend time visiting other blogs and social media outlets (i.e. Blog Frog or Facebook) to meet other bloggers, Twitter can help do the same thing.

Before I started tweeting, I thought: Why do I care who is going to the grocery store or what somebody had for lunch? And why would people care what I had for lunch? And I’ll be honest, sometimes people do send out tweets like that (myself included) but most people use Twitter to have fun conversations, ask questions and get immediate answers, share information about blogging, parenting, cooking, or anything else, and to drive traffic to their blogs/sites. In fact, Gigi from KludgyMom wrote a free eBook titled Getting Over Your Fears of Twitter which you can easily download that will help you get started!

Here are five reasons why every blogger should use Twitter:

1. You can drive traffic to your blog. Use Twitter to market yourself. Some people get on Twitter and the only thing they do is tweet about their current posts. Those people probably don’t get much traffic because they aren’t engaging or communicating with others. Twitter is about engaging your audience and building relationships. As a rule of thumb, for every ten tweets that you send out, only one of them should be asking people to visit your blog…the rest should be “talking” with other people. Twitter is all about marketing yourself, and your blog. People want to know you and the only way we get to know each other is through engagement.

2. It’s a way to microblog. There’s a 140 character limit on Twitter, and it is liberating! You don’t have to labor over a post or search for the right words. Some of the tweets that have gotten the most attention are as simple as “Tater just sat down at the table to eat lunch naked. Wonder where his clothes went” because parents relate to it, it’s funny, and people like to know that their kids aren’t the only ones that do crazy things.

3. Networking. Twitter makes it super easy to meet new people and bring people together. You can easily and casually introduce people via light hearted Twitter banter. It’s like meeting someone at a backyard barbeque as instead of a formal business meeting. Informality is a great ice breaker, and it encourages people to let their guard down a little.

4. Quick answers. You can ask all sorts of questions to the Twitter universe, from what is the capital of California to what people think of a particular brand of baby food. And the more followers you have the more detailed answers you will receive.

5. It’s fun and addicting. Once you get the hang of it, Twitter is fun and very addicting! It’s a great way to get to know other bloggers because it is so informal…it’s like talking to a friend throughout the day without ever having to pick up the phone. I tweet with my friends and we only email back and forth if we are having long or detailed conversation.

If you haven’t tried Twitter yet, you really should! It’s a fantastic way to get yourself out there and you’ll be surprised not only by how many great people you’ll meet, but if you use it correctly, how much more traffic will show up on your blog!

Please send me an email if you are interested in guest posting at Theta Mom® for TMC Network. Full details can be found on the Network page.

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02.13.11

Making a Memory in Rockefeller Center

Over the weekend I totally earned the title of Cool Aunt of the Year Award. In fact, my sister-in-law earned Cool Mom of the Year Award because together (along with my other sister-in-law) we took my thirteen year-old niece and seven of her BFF’s to NYC.

We took them ice-skating in Rockefeller Center, shopped in total NYC style, ate at a fantastic Italian restaurant and topped it off with a trip to NBC’s candy store. Does it get more awesome than that?

Cool Mom and Aunts of the Year:

I recently read somewhere that the average material gift someone gives you has a shelf life of about 6-9 months. Basically, within a year of receiving that gift we thought was so special upon opening actually begins to fade away over time. However, the gift of sharing an experience with a loved one lasts much longer than a year. In fact, THAT is the kind of gift that memories are truly made of.

When I turned twelve, my parents took me to see my very first Broadway show. We saw Cats and did the whole dinner and theater thing together. To this day, it is one of the most memorable birthdays I’ve ever had. It was an experience that I shared with people I love and that’s exactly what my sister-in-laws and I were hoping to accomplish as we ventured into the city with these eight young teenagers.

As I wrote about before, Rockefeller Center is very special to me. It’s now confirmed that this experience will be added to the Rockefeller Center memory bank. I can’t tell you how excited these girls were to actually be in NYC and skate in that infamous rink. They were in awe of the buildings, lights, people and the energy. For some of the girls it was their first time on ice skates and for others, it was their very first time in the city.

Yes, sporting those adorable UGG boots and skinny jeans, this is the kind of birthday that my niece will remember for years to come and it’s a wonderful memory she made with some close friends that will last a lifetime.

And really, it just doesn’t get better than that.

Wishing you and yours a wonderful Valentine’s Day! So this year ditch the chocolates and the flowers. Instead, make a memory - share an experience with someone you love and I bet you’ll remember it long after those roses start to wilt.

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