3 tricks girls with fine, straight hair should know.

fine, thin hair. i have always had it. i'm the one envious of those with the awesome thick ponytails because mine look like those pathetic wisps of a pony that we put on toddler girls. even though my hair was always on the fine/thin side of the tracks....it got worse post having babies. much worse. after kids, it seems like my hair is falling out at a rapid rate. it's all over my pillowcase in the morning, it clogs up the drain in the shower and it all over the floor after i blow dry my hair. now that turning 40 is right around the corner (eek!), it seemed like the perfect time to start to reverse this problem. 

i am pleased to say that the changes i have made have made a *huge* difference in my hair. i no longer find hair on my pillowcase and the rest of the loss has been drastically reduced to maybe 90% less than before.


this is what i did:

1. purchase a silk pillowcase. 
i talked to my fabulous hairdresser about my problem and this is the first thing he suggested. it has done wonders. (plus, i have read that sleeping on a silk pillowcase also helps prevent wrinkles...so, it's a win-win). here is the one i purchased:

spasilk 100-percent silky satin pillowcase 

2. start taking biotin/silica. 
i spoke to my dr. and she suggested that i start taking this product to help strengthen and grow my hair. the bonus is that it also has done wonders for my nails. note: i am NOT a dr. my dr is NOT your dr. *please* talk to your own dr before taking something like this to make sure it is okay for you to take.

escali 5000 mcg biotin silica & l-cystine 60 tablets

3. start using ovation cell therapy. 
i had heard about this product, but was a little skeptical. i am now a complete convert and will sing it's praises from the rooftops. ovation is a three step process that includes a shampoo, treatment and a conditioner. they have a holiday set right now that is fantastic and comes with a hair mask and oil that smell divine, plus some other goodies. it really has made a huge difference in my hair and it's also paraben free which is awesome. 

ovation cell therapy

so, this is what has worked for me. have you tried anything that has done wonders for your fine/thin hair? if so, dish. this mama needs to know. 

disclaimer: although we received some products for free, many are purchased on our own dime and *all* are products that we love and the opinions are all our own. also, from time to time we do use affiliate links in our posts.

have kids, will travel: the disney experience

i grew up in california so my disney experiences growing up all revolved around disneyland. disney world was completely foreign to me. that all changed a few years ago when we attempted our first disney vacation to disney world. at the time, we were traveling with four kids...the oldest was seven and the youngest was six months old. we learned a few things on that trip and we enjoyed it so much that we decided to try it again...this time with five. we drove down to orlando and enjoyed our experience...this time with five kids ranging in ages from 14 months to 9 years. if we can do disney, anyone can.

through both of our disney adventures, we picked up a few tips. if you are planning a disney trip of your own, here are some things that saved us along the way.

• plan a visit that is several days long... disneyworld gets increasingly affordable per day the more days you spend in the parks. in reality, you need at least one day for each of the parks you are visiting. plan on a four or five day pass to see most of the things the parks have to offer. note: if you are active military or retired miliary with 20 years of service or more, you can get discounted tickets to the parks. my parents traveled with us and my dad is retired miliary. through the military discounts, he was able to get up to six four-day hopper passes for just over $150.00 a piece. that is unheard of. i think disney deserves commending for honoring the military that way. contact the local military base for more information.

• pick a park a day... there is so much to see in disney. picking a park to start at each day at least keeps you focused. look at the park map ahead of time online and see the things you really don't want to miss. by preparing yourself and your kids, you will not only build excitement but you'll make sure you don't miss something.

•  be aware of resort extra magic hours... certain parks open early and stay open late for those staying at the disney resorts. the list of the specific park hours and the "extra magic hours" can be found online. avoid the parks they have extra magic hours on a certain day as they are likely to have more crowds. 

• work the fast passes... head into a park and right away head to a ride that requires a fast pass. get a fast pass at the beginning of the day and be aware of the time printed at the bottom that will let you get another fast pass. if you don't want to send the whole family, send someone to get a new batch of fast passes when your time has arrived. fast passes save a ton of time in lines and allow you to ride a great deal more rides than you would standing in the regular lines.

• make restaurant reservations in advance... if there is a particular restaurant where you would like to dine, call that restaurant a few weeks in advance to make your reservations. all the information for the restaurants can be found online and many of the restaurants fill up and do not take reservations the day of. be prepared and make sure you don't miss something wonderful.

• bring in drinks and snacks and pack a lunch... you can bring a cooler, food and drinks into the parks. pack water bottles and snacks to make it through a day. if you are not staying at the disney resorts, it is also more economical to pack a lunch and bring that in to the parks. if you are staying at the resorts, look to see how much it would cost to purchase a meal plan for your family. these are generally very cost effective when you add up the cost per meal. if you are not staying at a resort, save yourself a ton of money by bringing in a lot of food to help make it through the disney days.

• bring reinforcements... this may not be necessary if you only have two kids but with five, we needed some extra hands on deck. my parents flew out and went on our disney adventure as well. we had the best time with them and it combined a visit with the grandparents and a disney vacation...two great things that go amazingly well together. i highly recommend having some extra adult hands...it makes the trip so much easier.

• use the rider switch service... this service is the best thing ever at disney. if you are ready to ride one of the more exciting disney rides but you have a child or a baby in your party that does not meet the height requirements, you can approach the cast member at that ride and ask for a rider switch card. this card acts like a fast pass for the person staying out of the line with the small children. when the first group exits the ride, the person holding the switch service pass gets to enter in the fast pass line along with two other people. my kids usually took turns and got to ride each of the fast rides twice. this makes disney enjoyable for everyone so no one has to miss out to care for a small child.

• get a AAA parking pass... i have my dad to thank for this one. he checked with AAA before we left and found out they give special parking passes to their members. we had one mailed to us one trip and picked on up at a local office then next trip. this priority parking pass saved us a significant amount of time walking from our car into the park and back each day. it generally lets you park right next to where the handicap parking is and then you are able to walk to the entrance in much less time. it is fabulous!

• visit downtown disney... we like to visit downtown disney the day before we are scheduled to go into the park. this gives us an evening to explore unhurried and to start our experience. the lego store is a fantastic place for all the kids to play and explore. there are also some amazing interactive dining experiences in downtown disney to try. this is a great introduction into all things disney and free chance to enjoy some of the disney magic.

• give yourself a day of rest... disney is exhausting. going five straight days is not a great idea. it can be done, but you will be beyond spent. it worked much better for us to break the days up and take a much needed rest day in the middle of our trip. the kids played in the pool, took good naps, played outside and generally just let out some kid steam. disney requires a lot of patience, good behavior and endurance for kids. a day to let loose and, conversely, to relax, is just the thing.

• buy disney gifts for your kids in advance... this idea is thanks to a great friend of mine. she had the brilliant idea to go shopping before she left for little disney toys for her kids. each morning, the kids were greeted with a disney surpise. then as she explored the parks during the day, the kids were reminded they already had souvenirs back at the hotels. the kids didn't know the difference and it saved the family a ton of cash. we tried this too and our kids were so happy. it also worked perfectly as we were then able to get each child one special souvenir to purchase in the park. 

• pack ponchos... florida weather can involve rain...big rain. on our last visit, it rained for one solid afternoon. we had packed some ponchos and umbrellas on the off chance that the rain was unbearable. we were so thankful! there is nothing worse than wet, miserable kids. the ponchos saved us and helped us to make the best of a less than perfect situation.

• if you are watching the magic kingdom fireworks, watch it from as close to the park exit as possible... the only way to get to magic kingdom is by boat or monorail. you have to park off site and travel in by one of those methods. that means that when the park closes, everyone exiting the park has to leave by one of those two methods as well. when the fireworks end, it is a mass exodus to leave the park and the lines can be hours long. the last thing you want to do as you are ready to leave a park is to stand in another line for two hours waiting to get to your car...especially late at night. watch the fireworks from close to the park entrance and you can be among the first to leave and catch the monorail. 

• take advantage of the playgrounds in certain parks... kids have to work hard to be patient and well behaved while in line at disney. the playgrounds in the different parks give them a chance to wiggle around for a while. take advantage. your kids will need a break and so will you.

• if you ever have a chance to see epcot's flower show, take it! the flower displays that epcot has in the spring are absolutely amazing. if you can plan a trip to disney in the spring, besides having very short lines, you will also enjoy some beautiful displays. the kids were in awe.

• take lots of pictures... disney vacations are memories in the making. my kids look through photo albums of their disney trips more than any others. they are happy memories and ones you'll want to share for years to come. you can't take too many.

if i am forgetting something or you have another great tip, please feel free to share. as parents, we need to rely on the expertise of those who have gone before us. if you have something wonderful to share, please don't hesistate to add it here. here's to the hopes that disney is magical for you all!

travel with infants--step 1: getting to the aircraft (guest blogger: beth from cloud surfing kids)

travel with infants--step 1: getting to the aircraft.


traveling with infants is easier than you think. infants often sleep much of the flight so you can at least breathe once you settle in your seat. the toughest part is getting through security, so that's why i start here.

do yourself a favor and check your suitcase. even if you have to pay a checked bag fee, it's worth it. can you imagine lifting it into the overhead bin while juggling your infant? even if you have baby in a carrier, it will be nearly impossible to safely lift that bag. yes, it would be nice if someone helped you, but you can't count on that. simplify the trip in any area you can. i carry on only a backpack and diaper bag (or combine the two).


you can check your car seat (airlines do not charge for car seats/pack 'n' plays/strollers), or do what I do: use gogobabyz wheelz.

gogobabyz wheelz

gogobabyz has amazing products to assist in air travel and if you fly with the baby more than once a year, the cost is *DEFINITELY* worth it! the infant cruizer comes with an adapter to allow you to use it with a convertible car seat once the baby gets bigger so it's a great investment.


even if the baby will be in your lap, not in her own seat, it's nice to have wheels to push the baby or the bags through the airport. Leave the wheels attached and gate check if the baby does not have a seat.


getting through security:

many large airports have a line at security dedicated to families with children. look for this line where there will be less pressure to rush from the passengers in line behind you.


it's nice to have baby in a front pack/sling/or infant carrier while setting everything on the scanner belt so you can have both hands free.


-remove your ziploc baggie of liquids and place in their own bin. (add to this bin liquid for bottles, if bringing. more advice on this next week.)


-put the backpack and diaper bag straight on the belt (no bin)


-remove your shoes and yes, baby's shoes if he is wearing them. (don't bother with shoes on your infant for airport travel. if the look of shoes is important to you, get trumpette socks.

-if you have the car seat and wheels, detach the wheels and put both through the scanner.


-last, remove baby from carrier and put carrier on the belt.


after walking through the scanner don't feel you have to rush in reassembling, but move out of everyones way. push all your belongings to the end of the belt and assemble in reverse of how you put bags on in the first place:
-put on front pack/sling
-put baby in carrier
-shoes on
-wheels on car seat
-backpack on car seat
diaper bag stacked on backpack


or, of course you can use the infant cruizer the way it's intended and put the baby in. then wear the backpack and carry the diaper bag. (go-go babyz also has a great diaper bag that attaches to the infant cruizer handle.) 


you made it though the toughest part of travel with an infant! next week I'll show you how i pack for the airplane with an infant. 

stay tuned: beth will be blogging with us for the next few weeks sharing her *fabulous* airplane travel tips for infants and toddlers both!


**i do not represent any of the above mentioned companies. i am simply a fan of their products and want to share them with you.**


welcome to beth!

beth is a flight attendant for a major airline and  mom to a curious explorer, "e".  "e" earned elite status at the airline at 20 months. in her blog, "cloud surfing kids", beth gives helpful tips and insight based on her experiences.