Awesome Movie Clips from The Help

The Help Movie Clip Skeeter Need’s Aibileen’s Help

 

 

The Help Movie Clip Shinelator

 

 

The Help Movie Clip Put Mama in a Chair

 

 

The Help Movie Clip Minny Comes to Work for Celia

 

 

The Help Movie Clip I Got A Job Today

 

 

The Help Movie Clip Agrees to be Interviewed

 

 

The Help Movie Clip You Should Read the Book Hilly

 

Meatless Monday: Dominex Eggplant Cutlets with Whole Pasta in Cream Sauce

This is something new for my family as we haven’t been practicing meatless Mondays. We buy our meat local from all-natural farmers through a local butcher. In respect to saving the environment for the transport of meat, I think we’re doing pretty well, but taking a vegetarian day or a “Sabbath” for my body from meat can’t be bad.

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Dominex Eggplant Cutlets broiled for a crispy outside

Pasta of your choice

Garlic bread (My DH has to have garlic bread with pasta.)

Cream Sauce Recipe:

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 large or a ½ bunch of small – green onion, chopped
1 medium to large tomato , diced
¾ cup heavy cream
1 Tablespoon butter
12 fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 steams of oregano, diced

1. Heat oil over medium-high heat. When oil glistens, add onions.

2. When the white bits become translucent add remaining ingredients. Bring to a roll and reduce heat to medium or medium-low. Allow sauce to reduce for about 7-10 minutes or until desired thickness.

3. Toss with cooked pasta and serve warm.

 

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.

Big Savings At Seattle Aquarium

Doesn’t every child just enjoy looking for Nemo whenever they find a fishing tank? I know mine do and a great place to take them for a few hours of fun is the Seattle Aquarium. The Seattle Aquarium is on the water in Seattle and has plenty of fun activities to keep the children busy.

SEAQ 6462 UpClose OOH.PDF

They can peek into the Window on Washington Waters, a huge 120,000-gallon exhibit filled with salmon, colorful rockfish, sea anemones and other native Washington marine life. Divers take to the water three times a day in this exhibit and can actually talk back and forth with visitors. Make sure to tell them the divers are feeding the fish, otherwise they might get scared. Mine thought the divers were trying to steal the fish just like in Finding Nemo.

Your kids can also get hands-on in the Life of a Drifter three part exhibit, which displays some of Puget Sound’s most mysterious creatures for you to see, touch and explore. They can also enjoy the middle of The Ring of Life, a luminous, 12-foot high glass “donut” teeming with drifting Moon Jellies. Stand beneath the Underwater Dome and get 360 degree views into a huge tank filled with fish, and check out the action-packed marine mammal exhibit featuring the always entertaining, adorable sea otters and seals.

All of this can be yours for 1 adult and 1 child for the price of $15.00.

Limit 1 per person. Good for 1 adult (ages 13 & over) and 1 youth (ages 4-12) admission ticket to be redeemed in one visit. Must present Deal Code printout to redeem. Please be sure and check this Juicy Deal and all the details before buying.

 

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The Help With Stacey Snider Dreamworks CEO: It Takes a Village to Raise a Child.

“It takes a village to raise a child” says Stacey Snider CEO of Dreamworks movie studio. There is nothing wrong with having help while raising a child. Parents need time to recharge and should take a break. It’s ok to have a nanny care for your children. It’s ok to have a career. Stacey Snider wouldn’t be CEO of Dreamworks without the help she has had in raising her own children. Stacey talked a bit about the help she had with her children.

Stacey Snider DreamWorks CEO group shot

“Well, you know, I have two daughters. I have a 12 year old and a 14 year old. I first went to Universal after Katie had been born. She had just been born and then I had Natalie two and a half years later…….So I relied on women to help me raise the kids and I’m a pretty good hands on get home, get your butt home mom. But I’ve always felt like more love is good. More people that know them, that love them, you know, I know women who feel threatened by that. That feel that they don’t want — that’s a person that works for me. I feel like Jody, who’s the woman who’s been with us for 12 years, that Jody and my husband and I have raised the girls together.”

“She’s the boss when I’m not there and our values are comparable and she’s leaving us this year. So, you know, it’s funny my big girl graduated from eight grade yesterday and they had that, you know, as only teenagers get. I’m never gonna see my friends again and, all the crying and then she got home and she saw Jody and she said, you’re leaving me too. How can you leave me?”

“You just want your kids to have that love and that wisdom and you’re grateful to the women the help. It takes a village. My mom passed away when I was 17 so I used to get in bed with the night nurse that helped me when the kids were young and I would sleep with her all night. My husband was in the other room. it would be me and her and the baby and, you know, she got me through such a scary time that I just was attached like a little, you know, a little kangaroo. I didn’t want to let her leave.”

For me, hearing Stacey Snider speak about having help was refreshing. Being a blogger sometimes feels like a full time job. Plus the kids are there in my lap and any mother knows that kids are a full time job two, so I have have two full time jobs. I’m terrified of asking for help and constantly worried about the guild I would feel for leaving them with someone else. I never once considered the love they would get from one other person in their life.

In the movie The Help, it was quite obvious how the help really cared for the children. It was so sad to see how the mother’s instead of being grateful for all the help they received were vicious and cruel just because the color of their skin was different. These women were even raised by the help they hired to take care of their own children. Yet, once they were a young adult they suddenly decided that their toilet paper was too good for their help.

Stacy said, “Tate Taylor, who wrote the adaptation The Help and directed it grew up with Kathryn (the author) in Jackson, Mississippi and it’s a kind of great story because they were best friends growing up both raised by single moms, both raised by African American women who were like their moms and both trying to make it in their respective careers” Together they brought a realism to the movie, and Tate wouldn’t let any studio tell him how the movie should be done. We all need help in our lives and I feel that even though The Help is more about how terrible these women were, and how Aibileen and Skeeter were able to rise above their issues, I still walked away from my experience knowing that it’s ok to have help. We should remember to love our help the same way they love and care for our children.

 

Thank you to Disney and Dreamworks for the hotel stay and transportation to Hollywood to watch The Help.

Dominex The Eggplant People Veggie Fries & Cutlets

I’m not a fan of eggplant, but I was approached by Dominex “The Eggplant People” to try their products and write a review. I was curious what I’d get, what I could do with it, and really how it would taste. I received Veggie Fries which were breaded Italian style eggplant and eggplant cutlets. I was very pleasantly surprised to love it and NOT even need to disguise it under a dip or dressing or something.

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I made Dominex Veggie Fries with BBQ pork sandwich sliders. My husband and I both loved them and my 2YO ate and ate and ate them up! Shhhhh … don’t tell him they’re eggplant! My 4YO won’t even try them, but that was no surprise as we’re really getting this picky-eater thing from him. I digress; yum! The bag was perfectly enough for our family of four and I would LOVE to purchase these Dominex eggplant Veggie Fries in bulk at Costco! (Did you hear me Costco? Get on board!) Dominex Veggie Fries are available in a 14 oz. package.

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Just as tasty we enjoyed some Dominex Eggplant Cutlets for our meatless Monday meal [Louise add recipe link here]. These cutlets are available in 16 oz. packages and in 3 pound “value” packages. As you’ll see in my recipe we enjoyed Dominex cutlets with pasta and a cream sauce.

The fries and cutlets offer the same ingredients. Inside you’ll find no trans fats and no hydrogenated oils. Here is what you do get: Eggplant, Soybean Oil, Wheat Flour, Water, Corn Flour, Salt, Dextrose, Corn Starch, Spices, Garlic Powder, Dehydrated Parsley, Onion Powder, Extracts of Paprika and Annatto, and Natural Flavors. Nothing to hide!

clip_image006If you’re looking at other Dominex products you’ll find they are also only make with all natural ingredients for convenient, deliciously health dinning. The burgers are available in 11oz packages with 4 patties per package, the parm bites come in either 8oz packages or 2.5 pound “value” packages, and the vegetarian meatballs are offered in 10oz packages. After trying and loving Dominex’s Veggie Fries and Cutlets I’m definitely going to be trying their other products!

 

 

Get your own box or bag! Find out where on the Dominex site’s product retail locator. You can also get Dominex right to your doorstep by ordering from Amazon; you can chose from the Dominex vegetarian meatballs, burgers, cutlets, and parm bites.

Do you practice meatless Mondays? This was our family’s first (intentional) meatless Monday. Environmental Working Group (EWG) is partnering with Chef Mario Batali to get 100,000 pledges to skip meat one day a week to improve your health and protect the environment; “According to EWG’s Meat Eater’s Guide to Climate Change + Health, if everyone in the U.S. skipped eating meat and cheese just one day a week for a year, it would be like pulling 7.6 million cars off the road. At the same time, people — especially kids — would be less likely to develop health problems such as obesity and heart disease.” My husband’s work also promotes this practice and calls the lifestyle “flex-etarian”. If you already practice a meatless day in your house or are making the switch then you can make the meatless pledge now. By pledging you’ll get some added support to help make the change such as recipes and shopping tips.

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Many people substitute eggplant for meat because of the fleshy feel to the vegetable. It offers a mental psych-out for meat and offering tummy filling fiber for satisfying meals. If not sure about making eggplant (such as myself because I thought I didn’t like it), Dominex is great for already prepared, quick make, health, vegan options.

Like Dominex on Facebook. You can also follow them on Twitter @DominexEggplant. Though both sites seem to be a new adventure for them, you could be the first to know about deal and couples, and you’ll want those because you will be serving Dominex to your family.

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.

American Heart Association Third Thursday Wine Walk 8/18 Charity Event

As many of you know, heart disease is a huge issue in many families. A few months ago, I had a guest post by a mom in my MOMS Club and heart disease has been relentless in her family. You can read part of her story here. Her story continues though as she lost her uncle a week ago at age 49…a healthy, active soccer player. Because of this history, She has teamed up with the American Heart Association to help spread the word on heart disease prevention and on the signs of a heart attack.

wineHer little committee is teaming up with the "Third Thursday Wine Walk" in Woodinville on Thursday, August 18th from 4 to 8. For $20, you get to walk around and taste over 12 wineries. I know here in the greater Seattle area there are plenty of wine lovers. I’ve even found that I like wine as we have many wonderful local breweries. There will also be food vendors and restaurants at this particular wine walk sharing food samples. Wine and Food For Charity, what could be better?

Her committee will be there trying to share heart healthy facts and share about heart attacks signs. We all need to know what the signs are. Heart Disease could be very close to any one of us. I wanted to pass this along, in case anyone wanted check out this event. It should be a lot of fun and it is right here in Woodinville.

So grab a glass and some friends and we hope to see some of your smiling faces there.

5K Warrior Dash in the Seattle Complete!

I want to give a shout out to some companies who helped be attain my goal of completing (with dignity) the 5K Warrior Dash in the Seattle area.

warrior dash logo

Thank you to Ahnu shoes for helping me train. I ran many miles … but only really 2-3 at a time for many days in preparation. (NOTE: Ahnu’s shoes are so wonderful I did NOT wear them for the actual run because I didn’t want to have them ruined!)

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Thank you to Stain Solver and Robby Washing Ball for helping our clothing return to its pre-run form. Every piece is “new again.”

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Thank you to Lindsay Brin and Moms Into Fitness for starting my fitness journey strong. Still trying to get rid of about 15-20 pounds, but Lindsay got me moving and motivated. (If you have something else for me to review and rave about Lindsay, hit me up!) And to STR!DE for their “behind the scenes” support in all my workouts.

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Thank you for all the healthy food sample which helped curve cravings or offered healthier alternative to what I might’ve chosen — 22 Days bars and KIND Snack bars. Sip N’ Go thank you for being with me during my training to provide eco friendly refreshment.

Last but not least, thank 3M Scotch No Residue Duct Tape for helping me with my outfit.

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About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.

Giveaway Jingle Link Your Giveaway Here

You’ve got a giveaway, I want to know about it! Oh, and if you list your giveaway on Mom Start Facebook page then I will try to remember to tweet it out to all of my twitter followers. If you could link directly to the giveaway you want me to tweet that would be very helpful. At 10,000 followers and growing all the time! Cool? I hope so!

boy with ballons

I’ve got a few giveaways you might want to check out too!

Solve the Veggie & Toddler Debacle with Gerber Graduates Fruit & Veggie Melts

Did you know that research shows many toddlers are not eating a single serving, yet alone the recommended servings, of fruit or vegetable on a given day? Luckily, and thankfully I guess, I can say that this is not ever really the case in our house. Sure, we have the occasional veggie strikes by my little guy, but fruits and vegetables make up a big portion of our diet. We all know though, that there are those times… or “those days” where things are just tough. Whether it’s because you’ve got to clean the house for company coming to visit, your dog just ate your kid’s lunch off the table, or you’ve gone out somewhere that doesn’t really offer any kid friendly healthy options… sometimes you need a quick and easy food that provides the nourishment your toddler needs. GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ fill that exact need.

clip_image002GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ are something that I honestly ALWAYS keep on hand: at the house, in the car, in the diaper bag. GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ are my friend. My little guy thinks of them as a treat. He recognizes the package and will pick the melts out when offered with other foods. I try not to give him too many packaged foods, but I feel okay about giving him GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™. They really do have a lot to offer.

Here is more information on GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ straight from the company…

GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ are:

Good for Toddlers:

· clip_image004With a NutriProtect™ blend of vitamins A, C and E – nutrition for a healthy growth and natural immune support

· Each package delivers 3 fruit/vegetable servings[2]
· Made with real fruit and vegetable purees and juices
· No preservatives, artificial flavors or artificial sweeteners

Made for Toddlers:

· Easy to chew and swallow
· No mess
· Just right for self-feeding
· 2 flavor[3] combinations: Truly Tropical Blend and Very Berry Blend

 

No matter what stage your little one is in, Gerber® has something for you. I’ve used not only their products, but their online resources MANY times since my little guy arrived. If you’re someone like me, who’s out and about quite a bit, you should probably consider adding GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ to your Mommy Arsenal. They are also a great option if you’re little one is going on a fruit or veggie strike. Since Gerber® designed this product specifically with toddlers in mind, it’s got a taste that is hard for them to resist! Leave your comments and let us know what you think of GERBER® GRADUATES® Fruit & Veggie Melts™ or any other Gerber® product that has become a staple for you!

Disclosure – A product was provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or representing PR agency for the writing of this review; however, opinions expressed are my own and are NOT influenced by monetary compensation.

About Ashley:

Ashley has a background in teaching Kindergarten and working with children K through 8th grade. She is now a SAHM and a very active member of our local MOMS Club chapter, in July she became the President of our local chapter. She writes her own blog at Momicles.

Tasty Treat Thursday Cheesy Spinach Dip Recipe

This is always a favorite and takes no time to make but a bit longer to cook. This dip comes out piping hot and should be served warm. The dip needs to be cooked to melt the cheeses together, but doesn’t work well in your mouth hot or as a dip at all if cold.

Cheesy Spinach Dip

This dip, a recipe given to me from a cousin, is always loved. I get many compliments, and have passed this recipe around a lot … and now I share it with you!

Cheesy Spinach Dip Recipe

IF DESIRED:

· Use a new combination of cheese flavors every time.

· For simplicity you can combine ingredients in baking dish.

 

Cheesy Spinach Dip Recipe
4.5 from 2 reviews
Print
Recipe Type: Appetiser
Author: MOMS Club
Ingredients
  • 10oz frozen Spinach, thawed and drained
  • 3 boxes Cream Cheese
  • 3 packages of Cheese containing 4 cup each, mix and match your favorites
  • 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
  • 1 to 2 Tablespoons minced Garlic, to taste
  • Dash of Hot Sauce
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 400oF. Grease dish.
  2. Combine ingredients. Place in greased dish.
  3. Cook for 40 minutes. Allow to cook about 10-15 minutes.
Google Recipe View Microformatting by Easy Recipe

 

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.