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Lifetime’s #7DaysofSex Challenge Finale (And Giveaway!)

May 7, 2012 By

Last week Mike and I were asked to participate in the 7 Days of Sex Challenge which accompanies the new Lifetime Reality Series 7 Days of Sex.  Though we got off to a rocky start on Day 1, the week was absolutely amazing and changed so much about ourselves and our relationship.   We learned a lot in just 7 days, and the few days since – hey, I have been crazy busy with Brandcation this weekend – have been different as well.

To recap the week – Day 1 was an “anything goes” day… and for us it was a day of a huge misunderstanding, hurt feelings, and some hurtful words being thrown around at each other.   Not exactly how I had imagined the kick off to this Challenge.  But the next day and even still Mike and I agree it was a “necessary” argument, and though some hurtful things were said, some very good things have come from it as well.   Day 2 Mike got to “be on top” and choose the activities of the day.  It was a wonderful family day of eating out, watching movies, eating entirely too much candy and popcorn, and an early bedtime.  On Day 3 I took the family out shopping and perusing the Home Improvement stores, and then to the place Mike and I had our first date.   Day 4 was full of working in the garden, putting up a new mailbox, and just enjoying being outside and not cooped up in front of our computers.   Day 5 Mike helped me with a lot of my “to do” list… which in itself was wonderfully romantic.  Day 6 I had one last chance to pamper him and make his day a special one.

Day 7 was literally the day before I kicked off the first 2012 Brandcation Bloggers Gone Coastal Event so needless to say I had a million things to do, but Mike and I made a point to spend some uninterrupted time together – getting away from computers and cell phones and work phones… and just BE.  We made some plans for the future, discussed issues from the past, and reaffirmed that we are “in it to win it” with each other.

All in all it was an incredible week, and I am so glad I was asked to be a part of the 7 Days of Sex Challenge for Lifetime.  Mike and I have talked about continuing the ummm… “challenge”  and continuing to make time every single day for each other and spend more time making the effort to do things for and with the other person – even if we do not “feel” like it.  It made a change in our relationship too – leaving for Brandcation the next day was tough, and unlike the two other Brandcation trips where I was really happy to have the break from reality… I really missed Mike on this trip.  From the Ziplining to the Stargazing to the Parasailing… the whole time I wished Mike was experiencing it with me.

Sure it sounds crazy, but I fell in love with Mike all over again this week.  Though Mike and I were in a really good place when this began, we had still fallen into a place of monotony, just going through the motions of a typical American family – work, house, kids, pets, bills… and then getting up the next day to do it all over again.   I was reminded at how lucky I am to have a good man by my side every day of my life – supporting me, challenging me, making me laugh, and cheering me on.   I had really begun to take him for granted, and I am thankful to this Challenge that I realized it and have been making an effort every day to show him how much I love him, and how thankful I am to have him in my life.   I have to think that if everyone made the time to do just that, the divorce rate would practically plummet.  How amazing would that be?

When I began telling you about The 7 Days of Sex I challenged ALL of you to take on the challenge and see what it could do for your relationship.  Well, now it’s time to give you a little bit of incentive - props! 

GIVEAWAY:

I am excited to offer one of my readers one set of the 7 Days of the Week boyshort underwear – perfect to keep you on track with your very own challenge.  This set comes with 7 different colored panties with a sexy day on the back, and the 7 Days of Sex logo on the front.

MANDATORY ENTRY:

Comment below telling me about how you would spend your day “On Top” planning a full day of events that your partner would love!

EXTRA ENTRIES:

  • Follow MoscatoMom on Twitter {2 extra entries}
  • Tweet about giveaway {up to 3 times per day 1 extra entry each tweet} –
    “Win a #7DaysOfSex boyshort panties set from @moscatomom http://wp.me/p1FWxe-1cp Ends 5/21 US Only #giveaway“
  • Follow me on Stumble Upon and stumble this post {1 extra entry}
  • Comment on another post on MoscatoMom.com {2 extra entries}

Make sure you leave 1 comment for each entry to get credit!! Contest ends May 21, 2012.


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Our Day At The Gulf Breeze Zoo

August 7, 2011 By 12 Comments

Our Day At The Gulf Breeze Zoo

I have not been to The Zoo in years!  My grandfather and I used to go often, and I have many great memories from there, but I went a few years ago and had a bad experience… we saw very few animals, the ones that were there did not look happy… it was very sad.  So I stayed away a while, until yesterday when my Dad and Wanda had the idea to take the girls for the day.  I asked if I could tag along, and I am so glad that I did.  I had the kind of day that I remember with my Grandpa – and we all remarked on how beautiful everything looks.  It was an absolutely amazing day.

We headed towards The Zoo in the early afternoon, but I called ahead to ask what the best time of day was to see the animals.  The girl explained that normally as the sun starts to go down – around 4 or 5 – that they come out again and its also the time they feed the animals.  PERFECT!  So we killed some time and then headed back to The Zoo.

On the way out there I stopped by Target for a new Zoom Lens for my camera.  It was on sale so I was a happy camper.  Though I do wish I had spent some time getting to learn it a bit first.  Of the 200+ pictures I took, about 50% are AMAZING – like magazine quality – and a few… well, they are magazine quality of the CAGES but not the animals in them.

My favorite picture so far:

And then there are the images like this one:

Even with my not-so-stellar performance behind the camera, I still did manage to get some fantastic shots of our day to make our memories last forever.  (These are all UN-touched! I just added the name and border!)  Here are some of the best ones:

My favorite part of the day was the “Free-Flight Aviary” where they had probably 200 parakeets (I looked it up and they call them Australian Budgies…) flying free, and you can go in and feed them seeds that are stuck to popsicle sticks.  The girls freaked at first afraid the little beauties were going to hurt them, but after a few minutes we were all having a blast, COVERED in little bitty birds.

While walking around we spotted a peacock lying kinda half on it’s side… kind of at a strange angle.  We told one of the young ladies working the grounds, and she not only immediately went and checked on the bird, but took a moment to tell us a bit about them and some of their habits.  You could tell this girl loved her job.  We were super impressed with her.  (I wish I had gotten her name!)

We also rode the Train which was a blast.  We sat in the very back so that I could take great pictures… it was the first time ever that I was TOO TALL for something!  There was NO foot room in the caboose!  It was a great opportunity for a picture though!

My Zoo Tips:

  • Go in the late afternoon – like after 3pm.  The Zoo is open extended hours in the summertime, so you still have plenty of time to enjoy the entire Zoo, but the critters are more active.  Plus very few people were there – probably because of the heat, but it truly wasnt THAT bad.
  • Buy several Bird Feeder sticks!  They are only $1 and they go pretty quick.  Those parakeets Australian Budgies are well skilled in getting the seeds off quickly.
  • They have a covered picnic area just outside of The Zoo where you can pack a lunch and eat before or after your visit.  You are not allowed to take food in for obvious danger to the animals, but there is a place you can spread out and enjoy a picnic.
  • Wear comfy shoes!  I wore flipflops and my feet were KILLING me.  There is SO much great stuff to see now, that you do not want to miss any of it.  Wear comfy shoes even if your feet get hot, tennis shoes are the way to go.
  • They have drinks for sale scattered around the grounds, and even though they are $2 each, it is MORE than worth it on our 100* days.
  • Take plenty of quarters.  They still have the old bubblegum machine style food dispensers that I remember from 20 years ago that only take quarters,  and you KNOW you are going to want more food half way through.  Because really, what is more fun than feeding and getting totally slobbered on by 15 different animals… right?!
  • Everywhere we walked on the premises was wheel chair and stroller accessible.  If you have a little one – even if they normally do not ride in the stroller anymore- I would still recommend taking it.  If for nothing else, to carry your purse!
  • And finally, you do not need a zoom lens for all of these great pictures – the animals were so close I often had to stand back to be able to zoom in on the shot.  At The Zoo you get to have a real live experience of these animals “up close and personal.”

We are all still beaming at how beautiful everything was at The Zoo, especially after the threats for it to close down in the last few years.  Though I was sad to see that they have turned the old Cafe into the “Reptile Pavilion,” it is still a great place to go and spend the day with your family.

We will go back often, and I am considering buying Season Passes.  If you have ever been to The Zoo, I highly recommend you go and see it again.  It was a truly fantastic day, and though it made me miss my Daddy-T tremendously, it was great for my Dad to “carry on the tradition” with my girls.