I have always been a fan of the American Girl brand of books and dolls. I grew up reading the books and when I had my own daughter who is now 19, I bought her the books and doll as well. We are a family of readers. When Madison was born she also received her very first doll (the Bitty Baby) for her very first Christmas and the tradition continued. Just this past Christmas we were able to visit American Girl and Madison had her own mini adventure there where she got her very first BeForever doll, Addy the only African American BeForever girl at this time. Well I have some exciting news for you. February is Black History Month and in honor of Black History Month and there is going to be a new BeForever character, Melody Ellison, an African American girl growing up during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Melody’s full product line will debut later this summer, but the first book in her series, No Ordinary Sound, is currently available.

It's February, the month of love and the day February 14th known as the day for lovers. The day that most restaurants are usually filled to capacity with couples celebrating their love. It's also the one day that most men actually go out shopping. It can be tough for men to go shopping for women, after all we find it hard to make our mind up about what we want. Take me for example, I still don't know what I want for Christmas and that was over a month ago. Well when it comes to flowers Teleflora has you covered and they have also introduced the "Love Note Concierge" which is a totally free service. I'll explain how it all works but first let me tell you a little about Teleflora. They have been in the business for more than 80 years and the thing I love about them is that my flowers come fresh to me from a local florist. The money stays right here in my community, no outsourcing.


It was amazing to hear my doorbell ring and open my door to beautifully arranged flowers. I'm no good when it comes to taking care of flowers, but there were instructions attached giving me pointers so that they could stay fresh as long as possible. I received a beautiful Teleflora’s Wrapped with Passion Bouquet and all I can say is WOW! While I love roses, and who woman doesn't? I personally am tired of receiving roses for Valentine's Day, Mothers Day, Birthday and whatever just because day it is. The lilies in this bouquet just made the bouquet extra gorgeous and the the vase with the sparkling glass ribbons swirling around says "I Love You" more than any dozen roses could.  The photo above is of my bouquet on the day they arrived while the photo below is of my bouquet in full bloom.


Now let's get into Teleflora's "Love Note Concierge" (1-844-IT-IS-LOVE). Have you ever had a difficult time trying to think of something to write on that card when you send your flowers? I know I sometimes struggle with writing anything in a card. Well from February 3 - 12, Teleflora's "Love Note Concierge" team will help you express just what you want to say to your loved one. They will coach you and help you perfect that sentiment that you're just dying to say, and best of all it is totally FREE. There's absolutely no strings attached, you don't have to make a purchase, just words of love!


To celebrate Valentine's Day Teleflora also offers a variety of bouquets to choose from. All that will delight the senses and show your special someone just how much you love them. Here are a few of their selection.

Teleflora’s Pair of Hearts Bouquet
I am in love with vase on this one. The two connecting hearts wrapped around the vase shows two hearts connecting as one. Filled with red carnations, roses and white alstroemeria, this is the perfect bouquet to show how much your significant other is loved and appreciated.
This is not your typical bouquet since it doesn't come in the traditional vase. This is perfect for your your daughter, mother, friend or anyone in your life that you want to say "I love you and you're amazing". The pink, red and peach roses combined in oversized mug with hand-painted water color hearts is sure to delight for years to come.


Teleflora’s Best Friends Forever Bouquet
As the name implies, this is the perfect bouquet to give to your bestie or you new found friend. This bouquet comes with stunning red and white roses, miniature carnations, and cushion spray chrysanthemums. It also comes in a glazed ceramic collectible vase with an intricate hand-applied heart detail. I can see so many uses for that vase besides just holding flowers and the memories that you'll invoke will be sure to bring a smile to the recipient face.

When it comes to bouquets no delivers like Teleflora does and this Valentine's Day, share in the love by giving your loved one a much desired bouquet of flowers from Teleflora, and don't forget to use their Love Notes Concierge, because sometimes the words speaks a lot more than the bouquet does.




Teleflora wants you to experience the joy of giving this Valentine Day, so they're offering one of my reader the chance to give a bouquet of their choice to the one they love. How awesome is that? Giveaway is sponsored and will be delivered with Teleflora. Winner will have 48hrs to respond to winning email or prize will be forfeited and a new winner will be announced. Good luck!

Being a New York transplant living in Colorado, this is one of my most frequent question. "What is there to do in New York City if I visit?". Over the Christmas holidays a few of my Facebook friends finally made it to the city and before we saw the pictures of them in my beloved city, it was also the one question that was asked. "What should I do, where should I go?". Well while I can tell you to go to the Empire State Building, take a ride on the Staten Island Ferry, go and visit the Statue of Liberty, I also have to tell you that you need to experience The Ride. What is The Ride you ask? Well it's more than a tour, it's an interactive experience that will not only stimulate your senses but give you a taste and view of New York City (NYC) that you've never seen before.


On the day that I Madison and I decided to experience The Ride, it was 29° in the city. Although I've lived in NYC for more than 1/2 of my life, I think living in Colorado has spoiled me. It was frigid and felt more like 2° that day. The Ride can be boarded on 42nd Street and 8th Ave, and we waited across the street at Señor Frog's Restaurant and Bar, which has a partnership with The Ride so that we could stay out of the cold. It's also a great way to get a few drinks or a quick snack on before boarding since it's recommended to be there 15 minutes before your bus arrives. They also leave on time. It's a NYC thing! Madison was bundled from head to toe but it didn't stop the party, and what a party it was when we finally got on board the "Ride Tour Bus". From the moment you board the bus it's non stop. The 2 "tour guides" were amazingly fun and kept us entertained for the 90 minutes or more that we were on board.


The Ride is definitely quite unlike any tour bus that you're going to experience in the city. You're talking floor to ceiling windows so no view is obstructed, Plasma TV screens with surround sound and a talking bus. Remember when we thought KITT from the Knight Rider was cool? Well KITT has nothing on The Ride! Our Ride Bus was a walking encyclopedia of everything NY and was told in such a way that not only teaches but entertains as well. While they do give the general "tour", showing you well known landmarks, there is also so much more to learn and it's all done theatre style. Where else can you see a businessman tap dancing in the street or meeting up with a ballet dancer at Columbus Circle and giving us front row seats to their amazing dance? Or even a street performer who happens to meet up with an amazing singer to sing a few show tunes?




All of your experience is timed perfectly so you don't miss a thing. It truly is an experience and one that you just have to do. The guides were hilarious and had us laughing non-stop and so did the bus. There truly engaged the riders by asking questions and then the bus gave us his expertise, which also had us rolling in our seats from laughter. You get front row seats to the Broadway District, Columbus Circle, Lincoln Center, Central Park, 5th Avenue, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall, Empire State Building, 42nd Street, Bryant Park, New York Public Library and SO MUCH MORE!





It ended with us karaoke singing the New York song made famous by Frank Sinatra.

Start spreading the news, I'm leaving today.
I want to be a part of it, New York, New York.
These vagabond shoes, are longing to stray
Right through the very heart of it, New York, New York. 

I wanna wake up, In a city that doesn't sleep.
And find I'm king of the hill, top of the heap.
These little town blues, are melting away.
I'll make a brand new start of it, in old New York. 

If I can make it there,
I'll make it anywhere.
It's up to you, New York, New York.
New York, New York. 

I want to wake up, in a city that never sleeps.
And find I'm A-number-one, top of the list, king of the hill, A-number-1...  

These little town blues, are melting away.
I'm gonna make a brand new start of it,
In old New York, and...
If I can make it there, I'm gonna make it anywhere.
It's up to you, New York, New York!

The Ride is a one of a kind experience and totally something that I would encourage any visitor or even native New Yorker to experience. I'm happy that I was able to experience the Ride with Madison and she got to see the city that never sleeps like no other. So if you're in New York City, experience the Ride. It's a definite NYC must do!

One of the surprises that awaited us on our return trip from New York City this past weekend was a care package from the Kohl's Cares team. And boy what a surprise it was. I just love the Kohls Cares program and the Spring 2016 collection doesn't disappoint. Not only do they make amazing gifts or even collectibles  for those who collect these sort of things, but they also help out a cause that is dear to my heart. Each purchase that you make either online at Kohls.com or in store, 100%, not 50, or 10, or even 90, 100% of that purchase goes towards supporting health and education for children nationwide. I truly believe that each child deserve a good education and healthcare, the two most important thing, after food, clothing and shelter of course. The great thing about the Kohls Cares collection is that it doesn't even break your pocket. For the cost of 1 cup of venti designer frapp you can help with a child's education and get something in return that you can in turn give to a child of your choice. I call that a win-win!

Growing up in the Caribbean I got to experience life differently. Back in those days, my days were spent playing outdoors, climbing trees and we didn't come inside until the sun went down or your parent called you, which was almost never. It was a LOT of fun, nothing like what the kids are into these days. There was no internet, no smart phones and while there were video games (Nintendo, Atari) we didn't spend our entire days in front of a TV screen playing. There was no such thing as Google and if we wanted to learn something new, we either looked it up in an Encyclopedia or we went to the library. While I miss those days, I do appreciate the advancement of technology but it does seem that it has taken the fun out of living for most kids. For example, we would go out to dinner and every one's cell phone would be out texting, on Facebook or just browsing their favorite site YouTube. Nothing like the good old days where we would go to dinner and actually have dinner and a real conversation. Now my mind is racing (my ADHD is kicking in) and I'm thinking this is turning into an entire different post, so lets get back on track. One of the things I really loved about the Caribbean are the different fruits that we could get to eat fresh. One of them which is in our recipe today, our Tamarind Mocktail Mule, is one that we got fresh from the tamarind tree. One of the delicacies that we make in St. Vincent is called tamarind Balls, where they roll the tamarinds around in sugar and make them into balls. Sometimes they are sour, sometimes sweet but no matter the taste, they are absolutely delicious!

So you may know that mommy and I recently visited New York City and I'm still sharing my adventures. It was my first time visiting a city where mommy has lived most of her life and also meeting family and friends. However I also got to visit some amazing spots while visiting and one of them was the Madame Tussauds NY Wax Museum. Oh how fun and while you may think that the Wax Museum is only for adults, no kids can get in on the action too. There was so much to see and touch, yes you can touch and I even got to enjoy some photo ops. After all when will I ever get to walk the red carpet and meet these stars up close and personal besides at Madame Tussauds? Well maybe one I day I can but for now this way is just as good. So where is Madame Tussauds New York? Well they are located right in the heart of Times Square on 234 West 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. Times Square, the one place that most tourists visit whenever they visit New York City and where the ball drops on New Years.


The day that mommy and I decided to visit Madame Tussauds New York we also met up with one of mommy's blogger friend who lives in the city. Shirley and her daughter Gabby who blogs at New Mommy Bliss. Mommy got to hang out with her big friend and I got to hang out with my little one and what a blast we had. It was a very cold day in New York but it was nice and warm inside Madame Tussaud. I got to see blasts from the past and also current stars. It was all amazing!




From the outside Madame Tussauds looks pretty small but as they say, looks can be deceiving. It is 5 floors of fun and you get to see over 200 life like wax figures. The great thing about this is that I got to touch every single one of them. Mommy even got to take some shots with some of her favorite celebs as well. This is a museum quite unlike any other and a "museum" that kids would enjoy. You know that we just HAVE TO touch everything that we come in contact with. We even got to learn the history of Madame Tussauds and how wax figures are created. For example did you know that it takes approximately 800 hours to sculpt a figure? Also that they take over 250 measurements and 180 photos are taken of a celebrity during a 2hr sitting? That was just some of the tidbit that I learned while walking around.







We got to meet great musicians of the past, hip-hop legends and a few of our current music stars. While I don't know much about music besides Old McDonald, mommy sure knew a lot of them. Madame Tussauds NY is quite a learning experience because you also get to know a bit of your history.







Musicians and movie stars aren't the only people highlighted in Madame Tussauds NY. There are also sport figures. I got to be on the Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Show and even got to see Kelly from the Kelly and Michael Show. As if that wasn't enough, I got to hang out at Central Park and go to the top of the Statue of Liberty and hang out with astronauts.



I got to meet World Leaders and influential figures of the past including Mahatma Gandhi, The Dalai Lama and even a Pope. As if that wasn't enough. I even got to sit at the desk in the White House, while being looked on by the current President of the United States, Mr & Mrs Obama.






I think however my favorite experience was the Marvel Super Heroes 4D interactive film experience. It was like I was right there in the action. I even felt the water being sprayed in my face. It was an amazing 15 minutes of non-stop action and a must see if you ever decide to visit. I even got to meet my Avengers superheroes and saw the Incredible Hulk who is the largest wax figure in the world.


There is so much to see and do and don't worry about refreshments. There is a snack bar where you can purchase your candy, drinks and even popcorn before going to see your 4D film. With so much to see and do at the Madame Tussauds NY Wax Museum, this is a must do on your list of things to do while visiting New York City. I had even more photos to share with you but think I've done a good job of sharing a lot with you today. I can't wait to go back and visit the next time I'm in New York City.



Now if you're ever in the New York City are there are the hours:

Sunday - Thursday (10am - 8pm)
Friday & Saturday (10am - 10pm)

Purchasing your tickets online will give you a 40% savings and children under the age of 3 is free.

Let's discuss: Have you ever visited a Madame Tussauds Wax Museum before?