As a mom, there are so many moments of joy in my day.

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Today is Black Friday, which means a lot of people (maybe even you? perhaps checking the interwebs while standing in a looooong line?) are out right now fighting through crazy crowds hoping to save some money on their holiday gifts. Budgets are always tight this time of year and getting a good deal could be the difference between the naughty list and the nice list.

How would you like to make your kid’s Christmas or Hanukkah (or Kwanza or Festivus or December birthday) totally fantastic without the crowds and lines? Do you have a kid that likes princesses? Or princes? How about music? Cars? All of the above? My kids definitely fall into the “all of the above” category, so I’m a little disappointed I can’t win this prize myself but SO HAPPY one of you will.

I am tickled pink that I get to share some of the fantastic Tollytots toys my kids enjoyed so much with one lucky reader (and their lucky kids/grandkids/nieces/nephews/neighbor’s kids/whoever would love these toys) just in time for the holidays.

• My First Disney Prince — Flynn Rider
• Safety 1st CUBIKALS — Wiggler Car
• Safety 1st CUBIKALS — Stack-n-Play 3-piece block set
• Baby Genius — one of the following: Vinko’s March-Along Trumpet, Rex’s Rockin’ Keyboard or Tempo’s Superstar Guitar
• Rubik’s — My First Rubik’s Cube
• My First Disney Princess Birthday Party Set
• My First Disney Princess Lights and Lullaby  Baby

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tollytots is providing the above prize package to one winner. No compensation was received in exchange for this post, unless you count lots of very nice emails from their amazing PR rep.

I’m not a food blogger, but I play one on the internet. I love reading blogs about food, pinning recipes on Pinterest (my Food and Drink and Dessert boards are my fullest by far), reading articles about food photography and – every once in a while – try my own hand at creating recipes.

I’m not an expert by any means, but when BlogHer told me about two new programs from ConAgra I knew they could feed my love of food blogging.

Before I tell you about ConAgra’s site, I wanted to say when I first read the email I was a little doubtful about working with them. But once I realized how many of their brands I had in my kitchen right at this exact moment (Alexia fries, Gulden’s mustard, Egg Beaters, Hebrew National hot dogs, Hunt’s tomato sauce, Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, and Reddi-wip) it seemed silly to pass it up. If this isn’t your thing, that’s totally cool too and feel free to skip it.

The Dish is an online resource center for all bloggers who post food content or who WANT to post food content.

In their Seasonal Spotlight section you can find tips for keeping your blog content fresh and seasonally relevant.

Under Ask Our Team, they have put together an expert panel that includes Phil Lempert, savings expert; Dan Skinner, editor-in-chief; Abby Penich, ReadySetEat Community Manager; and several bloggers.

The Recipe Resources section is just what it sounds like – a round up of some of the best recipes from ConAgra’s recipe site ReadySetEat. Free tip: do NOT go look at the recipes when it’s 5:43 pm and you’re starving. Seriously, how much do I want this corn on the cob now? SO MUCH.

But in my opinion, the best part of their site is . Through the site you can sign up to receive coupons, samples and other exclusive content – and all you need is a blog URL. It would a great way for someone looking to expand into food blogging to find new ingredients to include and for seasoned food bloggers to get expert advice and tips to share with their readers.

There’s some great content on The Dish already, but I’m hoping they plan to expand in the coming months. I’d love to see even more focus on fresh, local ingredients that can be used in conjunction with their products to make easy family meals.

ReadySetEat has tons of great, fast, easy recipes that can be sorted by very useful categories (vegetarian, healthy, etc) but I’d like to see The Dish feature more of them, especially grouped by type – for example, Mexican recipes featuring a veggie option, a beef option and a chicken option.

Or even one recipe that can be used all three ways. Hey, that’s actually a great idea for a recipe series – see, The Dish has already started inspiring me to blog better!

Does The Dish/First Look, First Taste sound like something you’d be interested in? You can visit The Dish here, sign up for and follow them on Twitter at @ConAgraDish.

Want to be entered for a chance to win a $50 Visa gift card from BlogHer and ConAgra Foods? Just leave a comment below telling me which section of The Dish sounds the most interesting to you!

Rules:

No duplicate comments. You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods: a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post b) Tweet about this promotion with hash tag #sweepstakes and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry. This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here. This sweepstakes runs from 8/22/2012-9/8/2012.

Be sure to visit ConAgra Foods’ brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

LET THE CRAZY WEEK BEGIN!

The winner of the Blographer Event ticket is…

Melissa from Bargain Shopper Mama!

The winner of the Moringa Oil giveaway is…

Katie!

Ladies, check your emails! Thank you to everyone who entered – I know my posting schedule has been crazy lately (not even my mom is commenting anymore) but I appreciate you being here. Always.

And just a reminder, #bh12photoaday starts Wednesday. I’ll see you on Instagram, then here on the blog after I get back (which is eeeeeearly Sunday morning for those of you wondering when I’m going finally SHADDAP about BlogHer already).

I’ll be saving that photo to my phone for easy access to the list, so feel free to ask me what you’re supposed to be taking photos of if you see me!

We are a snack-loving family. At any given moment my purse contains at least three granola bars, string cheese, baby squeeze pouches, three sippy cups, fruit snacks, and apple and two snack traps. Snacks are great for keeping the kids busy while I focus on my workout at Stroller Strides. Carrying around extra snacks mean we don’t have to rush home in time for lunch if we’re having fun at the playground or want to make an impromptu trip to the aquarium. Snacks work well for both kids’ eating styles – Caroline eats TONS OF FOOD and needs snacks between meals while Evan is meh about eating his meals but is much more likely to snack. And bringing my own snacks for all of us means I am much less likely to swing through a drive-thru for “just a snack” and end up with an entire double cheeseburger meal and a milkshake (how does that happen?!)

So when my friend Alena asked if I’d be interested in trying out a PackIt lunch bag I said yes immediately. PackIt is a freezable personal cooler that keeps your food colder, fresher and safer for up to ten hours – no ice or bulky toxic ice packs needed. You just store the folded PackIt bag in your freezer until you’re ready to fill it and go!

I tried out a Personal Cooler and a Shop Cooler last week and loved them both. The Shop Cooler was perfect for keeping my ice cream, chicken nuggets and Cool Whip cold on the way home from the grocery store – even though I stopped to pick up a couple dozen bottles of wine on the way. Plus my Stop & Shop gives a 5 cent discount for every reusable bag you bring. Score!

The Personal Cooler was perfect for carrying the daily snacks that are better kept cool – cheese, yogurt, juice boxes, fruit, veggies, and milk. You know, the healthy stuff.

The yogurt is for me. And don't judge the disgusting American cheese slices or Caroline will come scream in YOUR face.

Still plenty of room for a sippy cup.

It fits in my bag! OK, so my bag is on the hugemongous side but it's still super handy.

My snacks stayed refrigerator-cold all morning, which was definitely more pleasant than eating soft, warm cheese that got squished in the bottom of my bag. And when we got home I just stuck the PackIt back in the freezer so it would be ready for the next day!

PackIt Coolers are PVC-free, BPA-free, lead-free, non-toxic, earth-safe and reusable. They fold compactly in the freezer for storage and keeps food cold at USDA-safe temperatures. They come in six sizes and tons of cute colors and patterns. PackIt even has a size for wine bottles – it’s like the KNOW ME. Check out all their products and get more information on their website.

How would you like to win a free PackIt Social Cooler? It’s perfect for picnics, a day at the beach, ball games, day trips and all the summer fun that’s quickly approaching.

To enter, just like PackIt on Facebook then come back and leave a comment telling me you did. So easy! I’ll leave the comments open until Friday April 6th at 5 pm and choose a winner using Random.org. Make sure you use a real email when you comment so I can notify you if you win. Good luck!