Eliminating Bulk with Isabelt

Over the years I have been called many names from string bean, to twig, and I am sure you can think of others. I am tall, thin, and after having my children, have lost any resemblance of my hips that were once very curvy. No, I am not bragging about being tall and thin. I am telling you that finding clothes that fit, especially pants that stay up, is a complete nightmare!

When I was given the opportunity to try isABelt and write a review, I jumped at the opportunity. I hate having my pants fall down and I also hate to have my belt leave a big lump under my shirt. There is nothing more unattractive.

I am sure that you are asking what an isABelt is. Well, to keep it simple, it is a thin stretchy clear (or black) palstic belt, about 1/2 inch wide, that is designed to fit anyone with a waist from 0 to 50 inches. There is even a wider, one inch, version and even options with designs available.

 There is a small round magnetic clasp that keeps the belt closed. To adjust the belt is super simple. It is just like any other item you may need to adjust the length of. Pull a little slack out of the belt at the adjustment and pull the slack through the other side.

The plastic is thin and flexible. That is what keeps it well hidden under those thin T-shirts. This also means lightweight and flexible. The isABelt will pack in a purse or suitcase very easily and not take up any room at all.

I would not tell you that the belt is "slimming." However, I will tell you that it gets rid of that huge buckle mark that shows through your shirt. It eliminates the bulk of a traditional belt, which in turn makes you feel less bulky. There is no harm in eliminating a bump around your waist right?

Enter below for your chance to win a isABelt so you can try one before you buy one. 



I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Shout Out to SOCK It To Me!

The one thing that I do not regularly do, is write a post about a product that I have purchased. Of course that is how I started this blog years ago, but I have found that I have strayed away from that over the last year or so. I have found a brand that I feel deserves a write up especially with the gift buying season upon us. In fact, this would have been a great post for back to school too, but I have been a little backed up with life.

The brand that I have fallen in love with is called SOCK it to me. They are a Portland Oregon based company that was started in 2004. The first time I ran across these socks, I was under a bridge in downtown Portland at an outdoor market called Saturday Market. If you have never been to the Portland area, the Saturday Market is a blend of local Portland artists and the eclectic. (I am trying to be politically correct here.) You can find everything from handmade ceramics to tie dye clothing.

While my family and I were looking through the local vendors "booths," we came across one that had some really wild and crazy socks. My daughter was immediately drawn in. Something about knee high socks, bright colors, and skulls. I very graciously bought her three pairs. Two of them were striped socks with skulls and one that were red socks with monkeys on them.

For months she ranted and raved over her crazy socks and I just could not seem to figure out what the big deal was. After all, I have children, I don't usually wear crazy socks unless it is Halloween. Okay fine, maybe I have a pair of rainbow socks with the sewn in toes, but that is not public knowledge.

Fast forward about 5 years. My oldest daughter still has not outgrown her crazy design phase and she has managed to rub a teeny bit of her style of on me. One day she convinced my husband to buy a pair for me because she knew that I loved frogs and she knew that my "normal" job is working as a nurse. They came home from a local store with the cutest darn socks even. A darker green sock with a big frog on the side,and a pair of grey socks with stethoscopes and needles on them. I was not sure when I would wear them. They did not exactly match my everyday scrubs for work. But I slipped a pair on just for fun and I have been hooked ever since.

Here is why I am hooked. Clearly as a Gen X child, I am not young in years, but I am not old at heart. I am not really physically aging very gracefully either, and standing on my feet for 12 hours a day causes serious issues with my poor legs. I found that SOCK it to me socks are a dream come true for more sore tired legs and add a cute twist to whatever I am wearing. They are thick feeling without the physical bulk of a thick sock and they are great for improving circulation through your legs. I hear some of you saying, "They are just socks." No they are not!! They are fun, crazy, and indescribably soft.  

About a year after getting my first pairs of SOCK it to me socks, I have grown my collection to about 30 pairs. I now have socks that have traveled to Africa with me and others that I covet. I know that I am probably the only person that went to Africa on vacation wearing Giraffe and Zebra socks, but I know that I had cozy feet through my whole trip.

If you need a great gift item for this Holiday Season, or any other time. SOCK it to me socks are a great and possibly crazy gift item. 

Genie Bras Review

Disclaimer: I received items at no charge to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own and have not been influenced in any way.

For the last several years my daughter has struggled with finding a bra that fit and is comfortable. When I was offered a chance to review the Genie Bra, I was actually a little excited. I figured I would have my daughter test one and I would test the other. Boy was I wrong!

I allowed my daughter to pick the color that she wanted. So she grabbed them all. I had to chase her around to ensure that I received one to facilitate my honest review. After a few days, my daughter stopped me and said, "I hope you don't think that you will see any of these bras again." Um, what? She was so in love with the comfort and fit of the bra that I gave to her that she went and took mine too. So in all fairness, all of the opinions in this post are a combination of mine and hers and put into writing by me.

The Fit: The sizes are super easy to choose. The sizes are set to Small, medium, large, etc. Now if  you are a woman, you know that is not how we have shopped for bras....ever. Don't worry. They sizes are broke down in a way that is easy to understand. I ordered the size that I knew would work for me. When the bras arrived, I was a little scared since they appeared too small, but to my surprise, they did fit and fit well.

The Style: There are a couple of different looks to a Genie bra but the color offerings are expansive. The new fall color line has some great choices that will blend well under your fall wardrobe. The cut of the bras that I received has an appearance that is similar to some sports bras, with a pull over feature and wide straps. For my daughter, the wide straps were a plus because if they showed under a shirt, it just appeared like she was wearing a tank top under her shirt. Layering is in, right?

The Benefits: One of my biggest fears with a sports style bra is the lack of any lining. Genie has added a liner to the inside of their bras to ensure complete coverage. They have also managed to design the cut of their bra for full support without under wires that dig in under your arms or anywhere else for that matter. The color line is also a big plus. You can never go wrong with a color to match everything you own, right ladies? Finally, my favorite feature. They are washable! No need to hand wash, and lay flat to dry. That is heaven in itself.

If you need a comfortable bra or know someone that does, Genie has it. They are relatively inexpensive and in my opinion, well worth the cost.

Little Monsters Gear Review & Giveaway

As my family grows, I do my best to keep them looking their best at all times. The hard part of purchasing clothing for my growing family is uniqueness. How can I dress my children and make them look at unique as their individual personalities without making them look like every other child around?
Little Monsters Gear is a way to add a unique touch to you small child's clothes. You can be as simple as you want and purchase a pre-designed shirt T-shirt or onsie or you can get as creative as you want and design your own monster for your child.
The little monster in my house was more than ready to put on the new shirt and test it out. He did his best to hide, but he was captured and I was able to get a quick photo!

 The T-Shirt that I received was very true to size. The printing on the shirt is clean very cute and the monsters are not scary in any way. In fact, Kaiden loved the monsters on his shirt. Since Kaiden loved his shirt so much, it has had to be washed over and over since it arrived. All of the monsters are still on the shirt and they have not faded at all.

Little Monsters Gear is a great way to make your child's clothing unique and fun at the same time.

Now it is your turn! One lucky reader has the chance to win a Little Monsters Gear T-shirt or onsie of their choice.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



Disclaimer: I received the product above free of charge to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own and may vary from your own.  

Lovable Labels

We have had numerous issues at Kaiden's school over the last couple of years with children going home with the wrong coats and back packs. Last winter, another child took Kaiden's coat home and did not return it until the end of Spring. Part of it was my fault for not having a name inside the coat. For the last few weeks I have been using Loveable Labels to label clothing items that go to the daycare with Kaiden. I do not like to write his name inside his clothes because I cannot pass them down to another child with his name written inside.

The labels are great to tuck inside shoes, backpacks, and jackets. I really like the versatility of them. I can add them to a coat and remove it later on when I want to pass the coat on to another child. I also like that I can customize the labels for any person in my family. With the unusual spelling of many of our names it is nice to be able to make something unique.

The labels adhere to most surfaces and have held up to the abuse of a 4 year old boy and my washing machine. I did test the labels to make sure that they would come off of the clothing also. I did not have any issues removing the labels from any item of clothing.

These are a must for any school age child! They will help keep your child's clothes with your child.


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

LivyBelt Review

Being a tall female has always followed me everywhere I went. I cant find pants long enough, I cant find dresses long enough, and all of my shirts are too short. Sure some companies make "tall" sizes but most of them think that tall means a size 8 or above. That is not anyone in my family.


As older kids grew up they always had to wear pants that were too big in order to get them long enough. Now things are getting a little easier for the smaller kids with the adjustable waistbands for little boys and the LivyBelt for little girls.

The LivyBelt by Olive and Nell is a creative way to add a little extra to the waist of your child to ensure the tummy does not show, there is not a gap in the waist of their pants, and their pants do not fall down. They are made with nice bright colored fabrics and are available in three different styles. The material is a nice medium weight fabric that stretches to fit most waists from 14 to 25 inches. 

I really enjoyed the different styles of the LivyBelt. The Lizzy is a little wider and allows for a little more play. If you need to cover more of the waistband of the pants (or bottom of the child's shirt) this is the right style to use. This worked best in my household since we all seem to have long torsos. The Lila is very cute on since it adds a little extra flare to whatever the child is wearing.

I really like the fabric designs, durability, and elasticity. I also like that the LivyBelt works with clothing that does not have belt loops. They are ideal for leggings or yoga style pants. What I did find is that since my youngest daughter tends to wear a lot of colors, that a solid color would work best for her to accent what she wears. 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.