Eversave Texas Hill Country & Winery Tour

Today Eversave.com for San Antonio has a fantastic deal. For $30 you get to tour two historic Texas towns and up to three wineries. I have yet to experience the hill country wineries, but I keep mentioning to Dadda monkey that it's something I'd love to do. While we live here, I need to take advantage of all that the hill country has to offer. To top that off, getting to do it for $30 AND not having to drive is a bonus. I'm sure you'd meet some fabulous people, with similar interests, if you decide to jump on this, but hurry because this deal ends on October 22nd.

As a bonus, the great people at Eversave have offered this Save ($65 value) to one of my readers! Eversave.com is a place I check frequently because of the great deals they offer. I've picked up a few Saves from them before and it's a fun, easy, and cheaper way to explore businesses in the area. As a note, the winner of the Save will be announced after the winery tour deal has ended so if you want to ensure you get to go on the tour, grab it now!

How To Enter:

(The first step is required for your first entry. Any steps after that reward you with an extra entry.)

This giveaway is only offered within the United States.

1. Let me know if you've ever been to any of the Texas hill country wineries OR what great deals you've picked up from Eversave.

2. Become a public (GFC) follower of my blog, Mommy 2 Monkeys, and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

3. 'Like' the Mommy 2 Monkeys Facebook page and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

4. Follow me on Twitter and leave  a comment on this post that you've done so.

5. 'Like' Eversave on Facebook, tell them Mommy 2 Monkeys sent you, and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

6. Follow Eversave on Twitter and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

6. Place my button on your blog/website and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

This giveaway will remain open until October 23, 2011 at 6:00 AM, central time. The winner will be chosen using Random.org. I will post the winner on my blog and also email the winner (please make sure your email is visible on your profile or post it in your comment). The winner will have 24 hours to respond to my email or I will choose another winner via Random.org. Good luck!

Disclaimer:

Mommy 2 Monkeys was provided with the opportunity to hold a giveaway for my readers. No other compensation was received and the views expressed here are my own.

Back From Florida

The monkey family has returned from our vacation. We had a nice visit with my parents near Tampa. Most of our friends criticize us for not taking the kids to Disney World while we're there, but I've heard it's really better to wait until they're older. Monkey girl is currently 3 and Bro Bro is 2. Not to mention, we're there to visit with family who lives there so there will be return trips to the area. I'm not denying them the Disney experience permanently.

We took Monkey girl on a tugboat ride and watched a dolphin play in the wake. Also, the Largo Central Park playground is fantastic! That park will definitely be a spot we go to again (repeatedly). All in all, we just got a chance to relax and spend time as a family, but it's good to be home!

Neighborhood Teen Jobs

We're going on vacation soon and I was trying to find a teenager in the neighborhood who might be interested in making a few bucks by coming by and caring for the dogs. I know when I was a teenager that was a great job. Easy job, no travel, and a great way to pick up some spending cash. I posted to our neighborhood facebook page and I asked some friends, but I couldn't find anyone interested. I know there are teenagers here, I've seen them around. How could this be so difficult? So, we asked the vet and they had a recommendation, but who knows how much that will cost us. I just thought this was a win-win situation for both parties if we found a neighborhood teen. I'm still holding out hope so maybe not this vacation, but the next we'll find someone interested in it.

Shoes!

No one ever told me that there was a good chance my feet would grow a size larger after I got pregnant. After Monkey girl was born, I noticed my shoes were a bit snug. However, after Bro Bro monkey was born, I knew there was no way I could wear most of my shoes again. Apparently the weight of carrying a baby around can flatten your arches. I'm now a full size bigger than I used to be. So the hunt began to begin a new shoe collection (gradually). I know you feel so sorry for me that I have to build a new shoe wardrobe. Though truth be told, as much as I love buying new shoes, I still have my old favorites sitting in the closet, but I'm going to have to part with them soon. The other big difference is that my favorite strappy heels and pumps that I used to wear are now being replaced by loafers, ballet flats, and athletic shoes. Just the other day I was browsing Zappos.com and decided to purchase a pair of driving loafers (the ones pictured above). And so continues the metamorphosis of my life.

Sirius XM Radio

I mentioned that we bought a new car a few weeks ago. It happened to come with a free preview of XM radio, which I didn't think I'd care much for. However, with all the chauffeuring I'm doing, and the lack of radio stations that I enjoy in San Antonio, I found a couple of stations on XM that I liked. Anyways, the free preview ended and we had gotten several pieces of correspondence asking us to subscribe. I finally buckled down and mailed the check for a year's subscription. Mind you, the multiple items of unsolicited mail we received had an account number and an amount due for the year just like ordinary bills. They cashed the check shortly after it was sent and ten days after that we still didn't have the service. We called and they apologized for not starting the service for us and that they would activate it immediately. The next day we still didn't have service so we called again. We were then told that there was a subscription fee that hadn't been paid. We told them we could fax them a copy of the letter that said how much a year would be and that it said it included all taxes and fees. A few hours later, 2 levels of supervisors, and they finally conceded that our account was paid in full for the year. I'm not sure how they keep a business afloat when they send you a bill, the consumer pays it, the company doesn't uphold it's end of the bargain, AND wants to charge more fees?! At the end of this year, I'm pretty sure they won't be getting my business back. I'd consider cancelling now, but wouldn't you know... there's a $75 early termination fee.

Give Us Rain!

Well, that was close! A few days ago, we were coming home from the vet and noticed the traffic was heavier than normal, fire trucks kept passing us, and ahead in the distance was a whole lot of black smoke. As we neared our neighborhood, we saw that one of the major side streets was closed and that the fire was less than two miles away from our home.

We pulled into our driveway and many of our neighbors were in their driveways packing to evacuate. It wasn't mandatory at the time, but it was too close for comfort. So we immediately headed in and started packing a couple of suitcases so we could head out. We grabbed the important paperwork, a few sets of clothes, many toys and movies, and departed on back roads to a nearby town where we met a friend at Dairy Queen to discuss what was going on (and enjoy a Blizzard of course). By the way, we found out later that in these situations, you should also bring a utility bill as proof of residence. And something that has moved WAY UP on my To Do List is to buy a safe so we can keep important things in a convenient, centralized location.

It was surreal as we sat there watching the smoke around us. We were still close enough to smell the smoke in the air and see ash flying around. Another friend invited us over to watch the news and hang out until we decided whether or not we could head home or if we should get a hotel room. Thankfully, a couple of hours later, it was deemed safe enough to go home. We kept our bags in the car just in case we needed to make a quick exit, because the winds did shift a few times and the neighborhood across the street was ordered to evacuate.

The drought conditions, here in Texas are beyond horrible and I've never seen a population wish so intently for a hurricane to head this way. I know my friends back home in the mid-Atlantic would love to ship us some of  their rain and we'd gladly take it. The forecast is slightly humorous at this point because someone called it 'wishcasting'. The last day of the 10, or however many, day forecast is the only one calling for a 20-40% chance of rain. Then as the days go by, that day continues to slide to the last day of the forecast. It's been that way for quite some time now. Anyways, I'll mark this down as another experience we've gone through with lessons learned and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for multiple days of rain.

Annual Carpet Cleaning

So it's time for our annual carpet cleaning experience. With multiple dogs and two small monkeys, we make sure to do this every year. We used to use Steamers, and they were great, but we got a brochure on our front door a few weeks ago for a new company. As a side note, I frequently debate putting up a no soliciting sign, but every once in a while, someone worth while comes along. This advertised deal was really great and useful for our needs. They're going to clean 5 rooms AND our couch. I can't tell you how badly our couch needs it. As a bonus, the company uses an all natural system so it's safe for the kids and pets. As a second bonus, the owner said when they made the switch to the natural system, they noticed that it actually did a better job than the chemicals. I'm excited to get the carpet/couch cleaned and to see how good of a job they do. We have one nagging stain that disappears each carpet cleaning only to reappear about a week later so that will be a real test for them. Hopefully, we'll be able to get our downstairs flooring replaced, but for now I'm really looking forward to this cleaning.