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I was fortunate enough to win a gift certificate to Yummie Tummie last month at the Classy Closet Twitter Party. I picked out the basic tank in white, (for versatility) and received it this past week! I was really excited to try out this Tummy shaping tank that even Oprah herself has raved about. Here is a quote from the Yummie Tummie website:

The Yummie Tummie Tank comfortably smoothes away unsightly lumps and bumps, while adding style to your wardrobe!
An everyday layering basic, your most essential Tank now comes with a one-of-a-kind design that slims and smoothes your middle!

I have worn my tank underneath a few different types of shirts and noticed the difference for myself immediately. Under a form fitting tee, my stomach, and love-handles were smoother, and not as noticeable as they are without the Yummie Tummie. Next, I tried wearing the tank underneath a sweater, and noticed that the sweater didn't cling to the shape of my "muffin-top" area as it had before. And with a swing top, I tucked the Yummie Tummie tank in underneath the top, and felt more covered and protected, and looked slightly slimmer. Overall I don't believe that people would look at me and think that I had lost a lot of weight, or anything like that, but I do believe that it polishes off my look, and makes my mid-section appear a little more whittled. The Yummie Tummie Tank is not a miracle worker by any means, but it is a Mom's helper, in my humble opinion.

The cost is a little pricey for the Yummie Tummie, starting at $62.00 for the basic tank. I personally couldn't have convinced my hubby to let me purchase this if I hadn't won it, to be perfectly honest. This price could deter some possible buyers from making this purchase, but it might not affect others. I only found one downside to this great tank, when wearing it untucked, it occasionally rode up and I had to yank it back down in place. This was easily solved by adjusting, or tucking it into my pants/jeans.

I would highly recommend this Slimming tank top to any woman who wants to smooth out her mid-section, and reduce the "muffin-top" we all despise. I would say that the tank is worth the money you pay for it, especially if the results are "priceless."

As many of you know, my hubby Jason is a pastor of a small (and I do mean tiny) rural church, and he also works for his Dad pumping oil wells to help make ends meet. With a family of six, finances are especially tight right now. So, I have been pouting and feeling sorry for myself because we can't really afford for me to go to BlissDom in February. (For those of you who don't know about this, BlissDom is an awesome Conference for Bloggers to attend in Nashville.)

Well, I had heard through various posts about the BlogHer conference that is going on in Chicago during the summer of 2009, which is also a blogging get-together that looks very enlightening, as well as educational. This also sounded quite interesting, but I just thought all hope was gone for me to be able to attend that conference because of finances as well. But low and behold, while perusing through some top-notch online reading material, I found Erin's blog, The Queen of Spain and read that she is generously offering to pay for one bloggers registration to attend BlogHer! As any of my readers know, I am pretty new to the blogosphere, and I am quickly finding that I LOVE blogging, and reading other blogs in copious amounts. I am working on finding my own little niche on the World Wide Web, and I could definitely use the help and guidance I would receive at BlogHer. I would be extremely grateful to Erin at The Queen of Spain, if she chose me to win this wonderful "prize."

Now, as for empowering and encouraging women, I plan to continue (more vigilantly) my other blog that I originally started for our church, by beginning a daily devotion/bible study geared towards women and moms in particular. I believe that this could be used to reach women everywhere, not just in my church and community, but in other areas as well. Women need all the boosts and bites of God's word they can get, in my opinion anyway. So going to BlogHer could help me learn how to better write not only my personal blog, but my Womens Daily Devo Blog also.

I just wanted to show my appreciation to all of those who voted for my choice of Mom 2 Mom for a Blog Talk Radio Show. I just found out that my name choice won, and I am totally surprised! So thank you to everyone who voted and I will post a link later, so that you can listen to the podcast of the show if you want. Thanks Again.

The year of 2009 is fast approaching, and I must say I haven't spent a lot of time thinking about New Years resolutions or anything (like that) for that matter. I know for me, every year it is the same old song and dance, "I need to lose weight, or workout more often", but I need to face the facts, and be realistic. I have a list probably at least a mile long of things I need to improve upon in my life, or things that I need to "do". I'm not superhuman, or perfect, so I am going to work on a few things at a time and not set such unrealistic goals for myself this year. Besides, when I pressure myself to accomplish insurmountable tasks, then I totally set myself up for failure. Here are a few of my ideas on becoming the "new me" in 2009.

• Become more organized, and this includes in my home, my schedule, with my children, and all aspects of my life in general. First and foremost I will start each morning with quiet time with my Lord by reading the Bible, and then spending some prayer time to lead my day in the right path and direction. I will then start by following the advice from FlyLady, who offers decluttering techniques for keeping your home organized and spic and span. I will also utilize my new day planner (yes, old fashioned pen and paper) for a daily schedule, and to remind myself of upcoming appointments and whatnot. I will also use a chore chart for my children, somewhat like this free printable one to help them stay on task. To round out my organizational plans, I will continue my Menu Plan Monday, with Org Junkie, to stay on target with our meals for the week.
• Another area of concern to me is my physical health and activity. I believe I can accomplish more physical activity by committing to at least five days a week of cardio and three days of toning exercises. I'm not talking boot camp here, but I do need to get my booty in gear. I will also commit to including at least three fruits and/or green veggies in my diet daily. I have noticed recently that I can go days at a time on carbs and sugar, with no fruit in sight. This isn't healthy or balanced at all, and could cause me to feel more sluggish and run down. I will also increase my water consumption to eight glasses daily.( I can start with a nice cold 12 ounce bottle from the fridge in the morning, and refill it throughout the day.) I have joined some other ladies on MomLogic here, for a group that is to promote and encourage healthy living and a change of lifestyle.
• One thing I would like to include in the year 2009 is more"paying it forward" on my part. I have participated in our family March of Dimes team for the past four years, (and plan to continue) and contributed significantly to this charity that is very near and dear to my heart. I regularly contribute clothing, toys, etc. to our local Salvation Army, which is something that isn't that difficult to do. My hubby and I also regularly give time, money and anything else necessary to our church. But I still feel the need to be more giving, even in times when cash is tight. I spend a lot of time focused on things I don't have, (materialistically at least,) that I don't think of those that really don't have food to eat, clothes to wear, or a roof over their head. I would like to contribute to Loaves and Fishes, which is a church-run food pantry in our community. On a monthly basis I will donate the needed food items on the list provided by this organization to help feed those in need. I am also considering volunteering at the Crisis Pregnancy Resource Center in our area. I have felt led to do this for some time now, and believe it is a service I can feasibly offer at least one day a month. If I come across other organizations, or situations that I feel I can help, then I will "pay it forward". I have truly been inspired by Jessica's blog and all of her fifteen days of resolutions, so I must give her some credit for motivating me to write this post.