• Review,  Travels

    Top Five: The Chevy Tahoe Edition

    My family returned Sunday night from a great weekend in the Sandusky, Ohio area on Lake Erie. I’ll be writing about that over the next couple of days but one thing I totally have my thoughts together on NOW is our sweet ride. The lovely folks at Chevrolet were kind enough to loan us a 2012 Tahoe Hybrid so that our trip would be more comfortable, and boy was it! I reviewed the 2011 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid last May when we drove one down south to pick up books from my publisher and you can read that post by clicking here. As I recall, there were no major changes to…

  • Review

    House Party With The Glade® Home Style Studio!

    It was a busy weekend! You already know that I absolutely adore spending time in the city. You also already know that I am usually pretty outgoing, so talking to people isn’t a problem. Working with the folks on the Glade® Expressions™ Happiair Tour this weekend meant combining two of my favorite things: the city and talking. (Seriously!) I was part of the Street Team (not the official name but it really makes me sound cool so I’m going with it), tweeting and Facebooking while passersby (and their noses) checked out the products that make up the new Glade® Expressions™ Collection. (The Collection features a Fragrance Mist and Oil Diffuser,…

  • Blessings,  Childhood Memories,  Family Fun,  Favorite Things,  Food,  I've Got Mad Skillz,  My Kid Has Mad Skillz,  My Mom Has Mad Skillz,  Review

    Birthday Traditions: Make A Cake And Eat It, Too.

    A couple of weeks ago we celebrated J’s 17th birthday. SEVENTEEN. As in, “My younger–and last born–son is seventeen.” It would be really hard for me to believe if there weren’t a trail of rainbow-colored crumbs all over our family photo albums*. You see, around here birthdays mean one thing: beautifully decorated rainbow cakes (the insides are tinted in various colors). It’s a tradition my mom started, and what I love about it is the thought that goes into it, resulting in the birthday honoree feeling extra special. I remember how creative my mom was with birthday cakes when we were kids. Over the years, she made me a Holly…

  • Family Fun,  Review

    Five Reasons To Visit Chicago’s John Hancock Observatory, Now!

    I love the John Hancock building. I love its location at the north end of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile (that’s the famous shopping area on Michigan Avenue). I love its structural expressionist style and the architects’ use of X-bracing on the exterior so that the building could be taller with wide open floor plans. I love the restaurants and shopping at the base. The Signature Room on the 95th floor is where my family has celebrated some of our most special occasions. And of course, I love the Observatory. Located on the 94th floor, the John Hancock Observatory (JHO) provides Chicago’s best lake view and on a clear day you can…

  • Fun in Chicago,  Pretty Pictures,  Review

    Sporty, Luxurious, Electric, Family Time at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show!

    I venture to say that a day spent around (and in) shiny, colorful, beautiful new cars is enough to put a smile on most people’s faces. I know that I had a great time last last week when I was invited by General Motors to attend the Chicago Auto Show as a part of Social Media Day (Kudos to the organizers of the Chicago Auto Show, by the way, for recognizing the power of social media!). I had some great experiences and learned some interesting things there, starting with what I heard during our breakfast. The room was full of us social media types as well as Chevy Volt owners,…

  • Review

    Presents For Everyone At Walgreens…Including Myself!

    Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.walgreens.com/beauty. True story: Last night I ran out of sour cream just as I was making Ambrosia Fruit Salad. Luckily, I have a Walgreens only a few minutes from my house (I’m there ALL THE TIME. Seriously.) and they just happen to carry sour cream. Upon entering the store, I decided that there was no time like the present to purposefully check out what Walgreens currently has to offer in the way of beauty products (rather than just going in and making a beeline for…

  • Review

    Social RevUp And Cadillac: How We Roll.

    Back in September, I shared the exciting news that I was partnering with MJ Tam and Dwana De LaCerna to create Social RevUp, a company committed to connecting brands and bloggers through customized events as well as the Brands and Bloggers Summit, a conference that will be held on July 21, 2012 at the Hard Rock Hotel in Chicago. We had a Social RevUp launch party in late October that was really fun, and a great way to step “into the scene” together. Then things got quiet for the month of November as we worked behind the scenes on the BBSummit and a few other things we have coming down…

  • Review

    Suburban Scrawl Drives A Chevy Suburban

    NOW we’re talking, people. Now we’re talking. After all of the Chevrolet vehicles I have test-driven and reviewed in the past year (ahem, the Traverse, the Cruze, the Tahoe, the Volt, and the Sonic), I discovered that the one I drove over Thanksgiving weekend, the 2011 Chevy SUBURBAN, is the one I like the best. That’s saying a lot, too, because I really liked every single one of the other vehicles. But this one? Love. I even love the name: there’s something pretty spectacular about it…Suburban. Get it? Suburban? Suburban Scrawl? No worries. It was pointed out to me, too. Anyway, the lovely folks at Chevy were kind enough to…

  • Review

    Chicago’s National Hellenic Museum Officially Opens!

    I’m not Greek (but what a funny reveal that would be, after having blogged for more than four years, don’t you think?), but I have been an avid fan of Greek Mythology (did you know THAT?) since I picked up D’Aulaires Book of Greek Myths in fifth grade and–unrelated–when my family moved to Knoxville, Tennessee for a few years, I became very good friends with an eighth-grade classmate who was (and is) Greek. After I met him, my family attended his church’s annual Greek Festival. I adored this event. It was full of food, dancing, and music. My friend occasionally did some of the Greek dance performances, and I thought…

  • Review

    The Brits Are Coming! Very.com Hits The U.S.

    If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times: I have a foreign fetish, especially when it comes to two countries in particular. England is one of them. My fascination started with the royals back in the Charles and Di days but gradually spread to other areas as well, like Duran Duran and the others who were a part of the ’80s British Invasion. As an adult, I finally got to England for my first time in 2006 and would love to go back NOW. British fashion? Never thought much about it. HOWEVER, that was before I had heard of Very.com. Very.com, a British company now accessible to…