5 Minutes for Mom's Annual Mother's Day Giveaway!

Exciting news! 5 Minutes for Mom is celebrating motherhood in fine style with their annual Mother’s Day Giveaway. They are offering up some truly fantastic prizes during this two week event, so click over and be sure to join in on the fun!

100,000 playspaces in 100 days!

KaBOOM!, a non-profit organization dedicated to finding and creating play spaces within walking distance for every child, has embarked on a nationwide mission to help communities build playspaces. This proves critical for those many children living in neighborhoods without playgrounds or playspaces, or unable to use existing ones because of rundown conditions or dangerous neighborhoods.

We live in a too small apartment and if it wasn't for the fabulous parks around here, I would have gone off the deep end long ago; I am always eagerly listening in when I hear other moms talking about cool kid spots they've found. There is nothing to match fresh air and a safe, fun area where kids can release their apparently limitless supply of energy.

KaBOOM! believes that play has a purpose and unstructured play in particular helps make children happier, fitter, smarter, more socially adept and creative. So how can we help make this a reality for kids in less fortunate neighborhoods? Mom Central has teamed up with KaBOOM! to help map online 100,000 playspaces in 100 days.

Here's what counts as a playspace: a playground, field, a skate park, roller hockey rink, lake, dog park, community center, basketball court or ice rink - any place where kids can engage in unstructured play for free or a nominal fee.

A playspace listing on KaBOOM! consists of an address or cross street and a description, one photo and one rating. KaBOOM! has made creating this playspace listing easy: either a quick fill-in on their website or even easier - a twitpic from your cellphone.

For every play space entered into the KaBOOM! database on behalf of the Mom Central team, $1 will be donated to Jumpstart, a non-profit that brings at-risk preschool children and caring adults together to improve literacy. It's something to feel doubly good about!

Moreover, we all stand to benefit as all the playspaces with their photos and ratings will be available to us as we go on road trips this spring and summer, to visit relatives, or on vacation. You can go online and find cool places to take your kids to play- near the grandparents, the hotel, or off the highway to break up a long drive.

This Post Courtesy of Mom Central.

Plant A Virtual Flower And Win An Eco-Friendly Electrolux Washer And Dryer!

It's true, I don't have a whole lot of fun doing laundry. I find it a pretty thankless and never-ending task, and I shudder to think of how much water and energy our daily laundry loads consume. I imagine many other moms share these sentiments, so I was pleased to hear that Electrolux and Kelly Ripa have teamed up to take out some of the drollness - and the waste - of doing laundry with their introduction of an eco-friendly front-load washer and dryer in a truly vibrant shade – “Kelly Green.”

The new limited edition shade, an upbeat green designed to pack a visual punch, was inspired by the great outdoors and self-proclaimed eco-Mom Kelly Ripa. Here’s a quote from Kelly herself: “I love green … the color green and the act of living green,” said Ripa. “What better place to make a simple, every day difference than in the laundry room? Kelly Green is a gorgeous shade, and just by using the new Electrolux high-efficiency washer and dryer you can save energy and use less water. How green is that?”

Just in time for Earth day, Electrolux kicks off its virtual flower garden campaign to drive awareness and raise funds for Global Green USA. Starting today, when you go to http://www.electroluxappliances.com/ and plant a virtual flower for a friend, Electrolux will donate $1 to Global Green USA to support their healthy green schools initiatives across America. Everyone who logs on to the site and plants a virtual flower will be automatically entered for a chance to win a new eco-friendly Kelly Green front-load washer and dryer!

In addition, Mom Central will be giving away one eco-friendly “Kelly Green” washer and dryer set to a member of our community! To enter, simply go to http://www.momcentral.com/blogs/win-a-kelly-green-electrolux-washer-a-dryer.html and (1) tell us which flower you planted on the Electrolux site and (2) share your own “laundry tips” for saving time and energy. Mom Central will pick one lucky winner in a random drawing from all entries received!

So, what are you waiting for? Go plant your flowers! You'll not only be helping the Global Green USA initiative, you could also be on your way to owning an eco-friendly new washer and dryer that will seriously jazz up your laundry room!

This Post Courtesy of Mom Central