Reviews

Cedar Point – HalloWeekends and a 48″ kid

1 Comment

Disclosure: I was given media passes to check out HalloWeekends at Cedar Point. I paid for travel, food and souvenirs. I was not asked to post about my trip, but I am so you can read about an easily-frightened/sensitive child’s visit to HalloWeekends. 

As part of her 7th birthday presents I told Matilda we’d be going to Cedar Point for HalloWeekends. In all my life, filled with many dozen Cedar Point trips, I have never gone during HalloWeekends, so I was as excited as she was. But, my sweet girl is also the one so frightened of anyone in costume that she hid in the bathroom when Slider visited the social suite. After much discussion with others we decided that a day at CP would be great, even with a little spookiness.

My sister and her family joined us because I thought that having her older cousins around would help Matilda be a bit more brave in the face of a plastic skeleton. In typical fashion for my family, we arrived about 30 minutes before the gates opened. The kids took the time to map out our day.

IMG_9255

IMG_9257

Last year Matilda was only tall enough to ride the Iron Dragon; now that she’s 48″ she had big plans to hit all 8 roller coasters that allow 48″+. We thought a “warm up” ride on the familiar Iron Dragon would be a good start to the day. As we headed to the ride she was nervous – not about the ride but about seeing scary things in the park. 95% of the decor is tame (fake grave yards, plastic skeletons, bats in the trees, etc.) but we had passed two really creepy HalloWeekend billboards on our drive to the park and she was on high alert. What’s up with the terrifying clown fad? It needs to go away – it freaks ME out and she was super-anxious about seeing one inside the park.

She kept her head down and a with tight grip on my hand we got to the Iron Dragon without incident. She was excited to show off her favorite ride to her cousins.

IMG_9258

Then we worked our way back through the Frontier Trail towards the Mine Ride. (Fun fact – my sister worked at the Red Garter Saloon on the Frontier Trail 22 years ago and the menu is still the same.) The trail was littered with pretty cool steampunk-type decor – nothing creepy as the mazes and haunted areas weren’t open yet. We of course stopped to get a photo in the stockade – my brother, sister and I have several of these from when we were growing up.

IMG_9260

We hopped right onto the Mine Ride and Matilda declared it her new favorite. She rode it a few more times throughout the day.

IMG_9281

IMG_9280

After that we decided the kids were ready for the Gemini. Again, we hopped right on the ride with little waiting. My sister’s family in the blue train and Matilda and I in the red – we were off to the race! (Fun Fact – the Gemini was my first roller coaster back when I was Matilda’s age. I rode with my sister and about halfway up the first hill I decided I didn’t want to ride so I tried to climb out of the train!) This time Matilda was ready to beat her cousins in the roller coaster race but our train stopped midway up the hill – the blue train kept going. I was in a mild panic about a broken coaster and trying to keep Matilda calm when a park employee walked up the hill to confiscate a phone from the guy in the front seat. He was trying to photograph the ride so they stopped the train to take his phone away! They remind you before each and every ride “For safety reasons, taking pictures, videotaping and filming on rides is strictly prohibited” and they are NOT messing around with that rule.

Anyway – off we finally went on Matilda’s biggest coaster yet! Her face after the first hill was pure white and wide-eyed. She clung to the harness but managed to smile a bit by the end. She said is was scary fun but didn’t want to go on it again. She was more upset about losing the race to her cousins than anything else! She also waited in the short line for the Magnum XL-200 but in the end the sight of that 200-foot first hill had her opt out of riding.

We spent a lot of time on some of the “thrill rides” and this is where having her cousins with us was a plus – I didn’t have to ride any of the “spinny” rides with her (they make me motion sick). So she got to ride to her heart’s content and I stayed nausea-free. We checked out the kid-friendly Howl-O-Palooza area where Matilda literally jumped into my arms as we toured the Magical House on Boo Hill. There was nothing scary in it – it was simply spooky! However Matilda is the kid who will bravely jump off a diving board and ride roller coasters yet freak out at the sight of a  mechanical fake spider dropping down from the ceiling. But while we were in the area we also caught a ride on the Blue Streak, which was just re-opening after a brief rain. I had forgotten how much air time that ride gives you. It’s old but fun!

IMG_9270

IMG_9269

These decorations were tame enough for her to enjoy

We had a terrific day and by the end Matilda seemed unfazed by the decorations and knew to simply look away or cover her eyes if she saw something scary. And that was one of the reasons we went…so she could face her fears and learn to deal with them.  A year ago she would have hid under my shirt and refused to do anything, so we’ve come a long way. In the end she rode 4 roller coasters – she really wanted to ride the Corkscrew but it was closed when we were nearby. The Magnum, Millennium Force and Mean Streak will have to wait for next year when maybe those big first hills won’t seem so daunting.

Would I go to HalloWeekends again? Well, Matilda said that while she DOES want to go back to Cedar Point next year, she doesn’t want to go during HalloWeekends. But this was right after telling me that the day wasn’t that spooky! So yes, I would go back simply because it was a great day – no lines, good weather (a few short-lived sprinkles didn’t slow us down), no crowds. There’s no doubt that fall a great time to visit Cedar Point!

Indians Family Social Suite

1 Comment

Earlier in the summer I had applied to attend a Tribe game in the Family Social Suite. I asked to attend this last weekend because Mark is a life-long Mets fan and it was my birthday weekend. I was overjoyed when the Indians told me I was selected to attend and we were looking forward to taking Madman to his first Tribe game.

photo 1

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – the Indians know what families want and need and they cater to it. From the Kids Clubhouse  to adding the Family Social Suite to the popular Social Suite this year, they are a fantastic organization. Having been in the regular Social Suite before, I was excited to take the kids this time.

photo 2

IMG_8991

Being selected gets you access to the wifi enabled suite (hello private bathroom!) – everything else is on your own dime. We were in the suite with 2 other families. Friday night was dollar dog night and we were visited by all three of the racing Hot Dogs…I’ll tell you now that Ketchup is very sweet and Mustard is a prankster!

IMG_8994

Mark was “attacked” by Onion and Ketchup as he ate his second Dollar Dog. Not awkward at all to be eating
hot dogs when the Hot Dogs visit the suite.
Matilda, who is terrified of people in costume, hid in the bathroom the whole time.

The game was a good one (GRAND SLAM!), the weather was perfect and the suite had enough space and things to do to keep the kids entertained while we watched the game. (The family suite is stocked with games, puzzles and drawing materials!)

IMG_8996

Madman preferred to watch the game inside the suite on the TV from the comfy chairs, of course. 

IMG_8999

Even Slider made a visit to the suite! 

During the 7th inning we took the kids down to the Rookie Suite where they could blow off some steam while we still watched the game. Seriously, if you haven’t been to a game with little kids in the last 2 seasons, get there ASAP. The Kids Clubhouse is situated so the parents can still see the game while the kids climb, play, and craft.

IMG_9004

Seventh Inning Stretch

When we got back up to to the suite the real surprise of the night happened. We were going to watch the post-game fireworks from a dugout! As soon as the game ended we gathered up our stuff and hustled down to the field with strict instructions to stay off the grass.

IMG_9011

After some family photographs on the field we went into the (sunflower seed shell covered) dugout. It was then that the Mets ball boy (it think it was their ball boy), who was getting something from the dugout, handed Madman a game ball! Mark was just over the moon. The kids were excited because “cool! a ball!” – they have no idea how awesome it is that they got a game ball while in the dugout after a MLB game.

photo 4

Soon the fireworks started and we had the best seats in the house, hands down.

IMG_9025

The entire night was unforgettable. We had such a fantastic time with the Tribe. There are 11 home games left as they chase the postseason. Tickets start at just $10 and you can always apply to be in the Social Suites.

I applied for and was granted access to the Family Social Suite. I was not asked to post about the game nor was I given any compensation. I just wanted to write about a fantastic night with the Tribe. 

Sky Zone Westlake Review and Giveaway

19 Comments

UPDATE: Congratulations to lucky number 1: Ashley, who won the 4 1-hour passes. Please check your email!

Screen Shot 2013-09-06 at 1.45.52 PM

Disclosure: I was invited to bring my family to Sky Zone Westlake to try it out for free but I was not compensated for this post. As always, my thoughts are 100% my own. I only share events that my family plans to attend or has attended in the past, so I know they are worth the visit. 

Awhile back, one of my favorite bloggers mentioned taking her boys to an indoor trampoline park and I thought “OMG that sounds so cool! Cleveland needs one of those”. Fast forward to this summer and now we do! And let me tell you, it’s a blast!

Sky Zone Westlake opened in July and it has not taken long for the word to get out. In fact, the first time we made the trip, on a rainy Saturday afternoon, the parking lot was overflowing with parked cars lining the street surrounding the brand new facility. We didn’t even try to go in that day. We came back another weekend, bright and early on a Saturday morning. We arrived when they opened at 9:00 AM and basically had the place to ourselves.

IMG_8746

Sky Zone Jump Shoes – they are required to jump and included in the price. 
Don’t forget your socks!

I opted not to jump due to an old knee injury (torn ACL) that makes me scared to jump. But Mark and the kids took no time to check it all out. From the open jump area (a floor of trampolines, with trampoline walls) to the foam pit, they ran back and forth like crazy hopping frogs.

IMG_8747

IMG_8761

IMG_8749

Sorry for the blur – the kids never stood still!

I was worried that at age 3.5, Madman would have a hard time. I didn’t need to worry. He buzzed around enjoying all the features. Our only problem  with him was keeping him from sitting down on the trampolines (against the rules) and running along the padded edges (blue strips between the trampolines – also against the rules). I think for a regular day, age 3-3.5 may be as young as you want to go. But they just started a toddler time which sounds be perfect for the littles as parents are allowed on the pads to supervise. Madman found his true love in the foam pit. That dude spent most of the hour flinging himself into the pit then climbing back out.

IMG_8755

IMG_8754

IMG_8757

The pit is so fun, even Mark did a few dives.
Madman loved it even though he did sometimes struggle to get out of the pit, but there was
always a Sky Zone employee there to give him a hand.

One last thing – while a 30 minute ($10) or even 60 minute ($14) session doesn’t sound that long, my kids could only jump for about 10 minutes at a time before having to take a break. They were wiped out after an hour. Even Mr. Marathon Runner Mark was tired and sore the next day. This place is going to be awesome this winter – a perfect place to get the energy out!

The facility  was clean, they had friendly, helpful staff and they offer all kinds of programs – from dodgeball, SkySlam Basketball and SkyRobics (fitness classes on the trampoline floor) to teen nights and birthday parties. There are quarter-operated lockers for your stuff, a snack bar, and lots of areas to sit and watch (or rest!)

IMG_8771

IMG_8769

View from upper viewing area and the private party room

Tips for when you visit Sky Zone Westlake:
1) bring your socks!
2) go close to opening time for less crowds
3) fill out your waiver before you go to save time
4) bring quarters to stash your stuff in the lockers.

Ready to give it a try? One reader will win passes for one (1) hour jump time for a family of four (4). All you need to do is visit Sky Zone’s website and tell me in comments what you want to try out or why you want to go OR tweet the following phrase and leave a comment letting me know you tweeted: I want to jump at @SkyZoneWestlake thanks to @kakaty : http://wp.me/p3i9i6-Fw 

 One comment/entry per person, winner will be selected on Friday, September 6.

My Kids are NoodleKids – Are Yours? (Giveaway)

4 Comments

It’s no secret that this entire family is a fan of Noodlecat. It’s Matilda’s favorite place and, judging by Mark’s twitter feed, his favorite lunch spot. We eat there often because we love the food, we love the sustainable philosophy and we love Chef Sawyer.


Here’s a fun fact… when we moved to Cleveland 5 years ago, Chef Sawyer was at Bar Cento which is where we took our first date night in the city. It was there we met the chef and learned about his “Cook Chefin’,”  nights where kids got to make their own pizzas (with chef assistance) in the restaurant’s kitchen. The entire Sawyer family’s devotion to making good, healthy food accessible and fun for kids is something they’ve made a priority for years. Kids are warmly welcomed in their restaurants. It’s one of the many things we love about them. So I’m thrilled to tell you about their upcoming NoodleKid event at Noodlecat:

We will be there for sure. We can’t wait.

The Cat wants you there so I have tickets to give away to my readers. The winner will get up to 4 tickets for either a 11 a.m. or 12 p.m. seating. You have 2 chances to enter:

1) Leave me a comment telling me either your kid’s favorite food or your favorite meal to cook with them.

2) Tweet: “I want my #Noodlekids to get their slurp on @Noodle_Cat 2/23 http://www.kakakakaty.com/2013/02/13/noodlekids”  then leave me a comment telling me you tweeted. Please only do this one time so you don’t annoy your followers.

You have until 6:00 PM on Monday, 2/18 to enter. I’ll email the winner that night.

Seats are filling up fast, so if you want a guaranteed spot call the number above ASAP to make your reservation.

Good luck!

Disclosure: Our family has spent many meals at Noodlecat and I’m happy to help them promote their kids events. I received tickets Noodlekids but I was not compensated for this post. As always, my thoughts are 100% my own. I only share events that my family plans to attend or has attended in the past, so I know they are worth the visit. And believe me, Noodlecat is always worth the visit.

Sunday at the Cleveland Museum of Art

1 Comment

As you know, my main goal every weekend is to get the kids out of the house. On Saturday it was warm enough to shoo them into the backyard for a bit, but Sunday dawned bitter cold so an inside activity was needed. I texted Mark at 9:20 this morning “CMA today? they open @ 10” and he replied with a “sure” (what? you don’t text your spouse who is in the same house as you?). By 9:58 we had parked in front of the Cleveland Museum of Art and were on our way inside. Mark had taken Matilda on a daddy/daughter date a few weeks back so they had seen the new atrium but this was Madman and my first time. Matilda couldn’t wait to show us.

Doing her best Vanna White impression to show me the huge expanse of the atrium

We are so incredibly lucky to have such an amazing art museum less than 10 minutes from our house. And it’s free. The new addition of the atrium and Gallery One is just breathtaking. After romping around the atrium and sneaking a peak the interactive wall of all the CMA works, we headed to the galleries.

Matilda taking in Monet’s Water Lilies (Agapanthus)

Like most women my age, the Impressionist galleries are my favorites. It seems Matilda likes them, too. But she declared this piece her favorite (for this trip, anyway. Every CMA visit leads to a new favorite):

A Rothko in the Contemporary Collection. She wants Mark to paint one like it for our living room

Madman was the wild-card of the day and he was a real trooper as we strolled the galleries. He likes the ancient art galleries and especially the Morton Mandel Armor Court. But today his favorite thing was not inside the CMA… it was the view of the “diggers” across the street at CWRU as seen from the Glass Box.

We had lunch from the new Provenance Café, which was amazing. We had 3 entrees split between the 4 of us and we were all beyond happy.

Post-peanut butter and banana sandwich happiness

It was nearly noon so we decided to go back to Gallery One to get a chance to play with the touch-screen wall of all the museum’s works. It’s pretty amazing (and apparently we were some of the first to use it! It doesn’t officially open until tomorrow). Next visit, we’ll borrow one of their iPads, too. Such fantastic technology coupled with the art!

After that we headed for the doors but stumbled onto the most perfect play area for the kids. I wish we had known about it sooner because we could have spent an hour in just that spot. It had sketching seats and frames to hang your artwork, Tegu blocks for sculptures and mobiles to build. There were books, and tents and art to touch, even some touch-screen displays. We had to drag the kids away. They can’t wait to go back.

While certainly not our first or last trip, this was one of our more memorable trips… perhaps because of all the new things to see and do. Or maybe because it was our first time as a family to be there while not under construction. I know some people shy away from taking younger kids to the CMA but you shouldn’t. They are extremely patient with kids, have tons of amenities (changing tables, stroller rental, high chairs). I do recommend getting there early, it was starting to get crowded by noon.

We frequent University Circle but for some reason the CMA has always been the last on our list from all the places to visit. I think we’ll be re-thinking that strategy over the next few months as we look for ways to keep the kids entertained and out of the house.

non-disclosure: nothing to disclose. I just wanted to share our family fun day at the CMA!

Splish Splash Swim Bash at Goldfish Swim School (Free!)

3 Comments

I’ve been a swimmer from before I could remember. Seriously… I don’t remember learning how to swim, I just remember always swimming. We lived at the pool in the summers (bonus of a mom who was a teacher and had her summers off), and I was on a swim team from age 6 until high school graduation. I think swimming is beyond a sport, it’s a life skill. As you can imagine, I want to pass this love of the water to my kids.

We’ve had Matilda in lessons on and off in the past. But, either the instructor was not good, the water was cold or the times were just so inconvenient that we stopped the lessons. Madman – poor 2nd child that he is – had never been in lessons. That is until Sonali Morris (whom I knew only on Twitter) along with some others said they were opening a Goldfish Swim School nearby. After reading about it we signed up as soon as we could and we were there the week it opened.

Madman and Mark in the Mini2 class

Why is Goldfish different? First of all they are all about lessons. You’re not jockeying for space with water aerobics classes or fitness swimmers. Unlike other indoor pools which are kept cold for competitive swimmers, Goldfish keeps their water a a tepid 90 degrees. Their classes are small since they keep their ratio at 4 to 1 (so far my kids have been in classes with only 1 other kid!). They have a great area for parents to watch the lessons (and free wifi!). Best of all their program works. After 4 weeks of lessons, Matilda has moved up a level because she can do freestyle and circle breathing! She is so excited.

Look at that freestyle! Perhaps we should start planning for the 2020 Olympics?

Movin’ on up to the next class!

We’ve also been to their family swim times because – why not? It’s great fun and they have a ton of awesome pool toys for the kids to play with. 90 minutes in the pool guarantees an easy bedtime. Their facility is built with kids in mind – clean changing rooms and bathrooms, lots of places to stash their stuff, a turtle tank, chalkboard and books galore make any downtime easy to handle. Plus they do parties (which reminds me, I need to get Matidla’s next birthday party scheduled at Goldfish ASAP!).

Are you sold yet? Want to chance to check it out yourself? Perfect! Because Goldfish Swim School is holding a community open house. Come to the Splish Splash Swim Bash on Saturday, January 26 from 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. It will have a free four-hour open swim session, scavenger hunt, kid-friendly entertainment, photo station, prizes, giveaways, facility tours, snacks and more. You’ll get to met the funny dynamo that is Sonali and the whole Goldfish team. And you’ve got nothing to loose – it’s free and likely to be about 33 degrees outside. Doesn’t a 90 degree pool sound much better?

We’ll be there and we hope to see you too.

Goldfish Swim School
4670 Richmond Road, Suite 100
Warrensville Heights, OH 44128

Disclaimer: I was thrilled to help out with some marketing when Goldfish starting working on their facility because it was a group of local parents starting their own business. I’m again thrilled to help them promote their free community event because we LOVE our time in the Goldfish pool. We’ve been a paying customer since they opened but we are receiving a month of free lessons in exchange for this post. As always, my thoughts are 100% my own. I only share events that my family plans to attend or has attended in the past, so I know they are worth the visit. 

Cleveland: Disney On Ice Rockin’ Ever After – Ticket Giveaway

21 Comments

UPDATE:
Congratulations to Melissa for winning the tickets! Check your email and please respond ASAP!

Please note: I removed comment #1 (from my sister, who did not want to enter the contest) and #20 (received after the deadline). I put the remaining 18 comments in order and Melissa’s comment was #13 of the eligible comments.  Thanks everyone for entering! I hope you take advantage of the discounts offered below and go see Rockin’ Ever After while it’s in Cleveland. 

I can’t wait to surprise the kids this weekend. Matilda has been asking if they’ll ever put Merida from Brave in Disney on Ice (she’s obsessed with Brave) and she doesn’t know that we’re taking her to see Rockin’ Ever After on Friday. If you had told me 10 years ago that I would be excited about going to a Disney ice show I would have laughed. But, this will be our 4th one and I love them. And guess what? Merida is one of the stars…

About the show: Get ready to rock out with some of the most magical idols of all in a musical showcase that features the hottest tunes and talent from across the kingdom in Disney On Ice presents Rockin’ Ever After! Jam to a Scottish jig as a group of royal contenders from the latest Disney•Pixar film, Brave, competes to win the heart of headstrong, sharp-shooting Merida, making her ice debut!

Experience a show-stopping performance as Sebastian breaks out of his shell for one night only to make waves with Ariel. A chorus of harmless hooligans from Tangled unleashes musical mayhem when they get a visit from the sassy and spirited Rapunzel and her charming ally Flynn.

And, get your feet moving as the Beast and his castle’s enchanted entourage take center stage in a spectacular show for Belle. It will be a rockin’ remix of royalty when Disney On Ice brings this superstar line-up to Cleveland! 

Where: Quicken Loans Arena
When: January 11-21, 2013

Show Times:
Friday, January 11th at 7pm
Saturday, January 12th at 11am, 3pm, and 7pm
Sunday, January 13th at 1pm and 5pm
Wednesday, January 16th at 7pm
Thursday, January 17th at 7pm
Friday, January 18th at 7pm
Saturday, January 19th at 11am, 3pm, and 7pm
Sunday, January 20th at 1pm and 5pm
Monday, January 21st at 1pm and 5pm

Ticket Prices: $70 Front Row, $48 VIP, $40 VIP, $21, $15
To Buy Tickets: Purchase your tickets here.

Special Discounts:
Use promo code ROCK4 to get 4/$44 on weekday performances (M, W, TR)
Use promo code ROCK25 to get 25% off weekend performances (F, S, Sun)
Use promo code FAMILY and when you buy 4 tickets, you get 4 FREE hot dogs and 4 FREE sodas. (Not valid on Saturday 3:00 pm or Sunday 1:00 pm shows.)
Note: $3 facility fee. Expires on 1/21/13. No double discounts. Not valid on FR or VIP tickets. Limit 6 per order. Not valid on Opening Night.

Win a family 4-pack of tickets!
Leave any comment below for your first entry.
Get an extra entry by tweeting the following “I just entered to win tickets to #disneyonicecle from @kakaty & @DisneyOnIce. Enter here: http://www.kakakakaty.com/2013/01/08/disneyonicecle”  using the tweet button below.
(You can tweet once per day, just leave a separate comment letting me know you tweeted)

Deadline to enter is 6:00 pm on January 10, 2013. Winners will be chosen at using random.org from all the comments on this post. You MUST post a comment for each twitter entry to be counted. Winner 24 hours to claim their prize. Good luck!

I have partnered with Feld Entertainment for several years to promote Disney on Ice shows that come to Cleveland. I received tickets to the show but I was not compensated for this post. As always, my thoughts are 100% my own. I only share events that my family plans to attend or has attended in the past, so I know they are worth the visit. 

Cleveland: Disney On Ice Rockin’ Ever After Event & Discount Code

1 Comment

Cleveland – you all know that Disney on Ice tickets make for FABULOUS holiday gifts for kids, right? Because they do! And you know that Disney On Ice Rockin’ Ever After is coming to Quicken Loans Arena from January 11-21, right? Okay – now that we’re all on the same page, you want to know how to get some free tickets, right? Here’s how…

There is a community-wide book drive* starting this Saturday, December 8 at the University Circle Wade Oval Ice Rink. 300 tickets will be given out to every family that donates new or gently-used books (two free vouchers to the show per donation). After all 300 free tickets are given away, a big discount code for the show will be given out in exchange for donations. The event runs noon-3:oo PM so get there early, visit some of the great museums and take a spin around the rink.

Can’t make it on Saturday? You can donate books from December 9 – December 22 at any of the following ice skating rings and you’ll be be entered to win 4 tickets to the show!

  • Halloran Ice Skating Rink at 3550 W. 117 St., Cleveland, OH 44111
  • Winterhurst Ice Rink at 14740 Lakewood Hts. Blvd., Lakewood, OH 44107
  • Lock 3 at 200 S. Main St., Akron, OH 44308
  • OBM Arena aka Hoover at 15381 Royalton Rd., Strongsville, OH 44136
  • Quicken Loans Arena at 1 Center Ct., Cleveland, OH 44115
I love this promotion so much! You can help teach your kids about giving back while checking an item off your to-buy list and visiting University Circle – one of our family’s favorite places in Cleveland. And it’s books…I love giving books to kids who need them!
If you just want to buy tickets for someone’s stocking, you can get some discounts: Get 4 tickets for $44 on weekday performances (M, W, TR) using CODE ROCK4, or 25% off weekend (F, S, Sun) using code ROCK25. Fine print: $3 facility fee.  Expires on 1/21/13.  No double discounts.  Not valid on FR or VIP tickets.  Limit 6 per order.  Not valid on Opening Night.
* Books donated at the UC kick-off event will go to the University Circle Education Department. Remaining books donated throughout December 22 will be split between Cavs Learning Centers and the Cleveland Clinic.
I have partnered with Feld Entertainment for several years to promote Disney on Ice shows that come to Cleveland. I was not compensated for this post. As always, my thoughts are 100% my own. I only share events that my family plans to attend or has attended in the past, so I know they are worth the visit. 

One Blow Out at Dinos (giveaways!)

41 Comments

I have a confession. I don’t color my hair. I use only 3 items of make-up on a daily basis (L’oreal BB cream, Nars blush, BeneFit They’re Real mascara, if you must know). I only paint my nails occasionally. I’m far from a big spender when it comes to looking good…heck, I only get my hair cut like 3 times a year.  And yet, last April I got invited to an event for ONE Styling and I fell flat-out in love with their Legacy Pro hair dryer and Legacy flat iron. So when I got invited to another event just before Thanksgiving I eagerly replied “yes!”

ONE Styling tools – life changing!

This time the evening was to check out the new Legacy Lite blow dryer and celebrate the grand opening of the new Dino Palmieri Salon and Spa at Eton. There was a VIP blogger hour to show off their new blow dry bar before the salon had an open house. Dino Palmieri Salons feature ONE Styling’s blow dryers, flat irons, curing wands so I knew I was in good hands. After having some bubbly with Dino himself, I was escorted to the massaging shampoo chairs to relax.

The tools, the fabulous massaging shampoo chairs, Dino

Then my stylist turned my blah hair into stick-straight shiny locks using some Oribe Supershine Light Cream and the ONE Styling Legacy Pro dryer. That’s it. No other products were used to make my hair look like this:

 If you follow me on Twitter, you saw my excitement at getting a blow out. I’ve always said that if I won the lottery that one of the first things I’d do would be to set it up so I got blow-outs at least 2 times a week. I love my hair but it’s so thick that it takes forever to dry. My ONE hair dryer has helped with that but nothing beats having someone play with your hair! I will be back to Dino Palmieri at Eton before Christmas for some more pampering ($40 for the styling of your choice), because my blow out looked fantastic for three days.

When Amelia, Charlene and I headed to BSpot for some post-‘do drinks we were handed swag bags stuffed with all kinds of goodies including the new One Styling Legacy Lite blow dryer, and products from Zoya, Oribe, Kerastase, and Sebastian Professional. The Legacy Lite went to my sister as an early Christmas gift…she has equally thick hair and I received an excited text from her after Thanksgiving: “I just dried my hair in less than 5 minutes!” The gift of more time in the morning is priceless.

Now, I want to share my swag with you and I have TWO gifts this time:

First is the amazing ONE Styling Verge Bubble Wand. I got one in the spring and I love it. My hair actually holds on to the curls it makes and I like that it doesn’t give me a uniform curl. There were lots of beachy waves being created with this tool at the event last week.

Second are some ZOYA nail products. Even before this event, I was a Zoya fan and though I don’t polish my nails often, Zoya is what’s in my cupboard for when I do. The winner will get the Guilty Pleasures 18K Real Gold Trio gift box and the mini Color Lock system, which has travel-sized nail polish remover, base coat, and two top coats.

Here’s how to enter (leave a SEPARATE comment for each entry):

If you want to win the ONE Styling Verge Bubble Wand – follow @ONEStyling on Twitter and/or “like” them on Facebook then come back and tell me you did and that you want to win the Bubble Wand. (one entry)

If you want to win the Zoya products – follow @zoya_nailpolish on Twitter and/or “like” them on Facebook then come back and tell me you did and that you want to win the Zoya products. (one entry)

Extra entry: Tweet the following “I want some holiday style from @onestyling @zoya_nailpolish & @kakaty! http://www.kakakakaty.com/2012/11/29/one-blow-out-at-dinos-giveaways”  using the tweet button below.
(You can tweet once per day, just leave a separate comment letting me know you tweeted and which prize you want.)

The giveaway will end at 11:59pm eastern on Thursday, December 6 and the winners will be announced the next day. Good luck!

A HUGE thank you to ONE Styling, Dino Palmieri, Zoya and Jayne & Company for a fabulous night!

Disclosure: I was invited by ONE Styling to attend the blogger blow dry bar event at Dino Palmieri and received a complimentary blow out, as well as a swag bag. I was not asked to blog about the product or host a giveaway but I want to share the wealth. As always, my thoughts are 100% my own.

Photos provided by the event photographer

Treat yo’self (Treat Free Code)

1 Comment

woot! woot! sponsored post alert!

Treat is a new card brand on the block – owned by Shutterfly and run by the former Tiny Prints Greetings. And while I adore and use Tiny Prints for things like holiday cards, thank you notes and invitations; Treat has become my go-to for one-off cards (but! you can order multiples of a single card, too!).

Here’s what I love about Treat:

– High quality cards that you pick from the comfort of your laptop (even at 1:00 AM when you remember that your aunt’s birthday is in 3 days).

– They have designs that use photos or not – it’s up to you. And there are over 300 Hallmark-designed cards to choose from.

– You can set up all your cards at once and then Treat will send them out at the right time making you look like a rockstar. I did this in May – I sat down for an hour and set up about 27 birthday cards to go out over the next year and it’s awesome. Remember “set it and forget it”?. Yep, it’s like that but instead of a perfectly roasted chicken you get the praise of being a good friend/daughter/coworker/etc. You can even add gifts to the card by including a gift card to places like Amazon and Target.

– Treat will send the card to your recipient or to you. If you want to add a handwritten note, they’ll send it right to you and you can deliver it yourself.

– You can set up a card then edit it for several different recipients. I just did this today and several Thanksgiving cards featuring my kids will be going to the family who isn’t joining us around the table. All I had to do was update the personalization and the address. Easy peasy.

– They have an App! You can send cards right from your phone. Talk about easy!

So here’s the deal. I’ve been using and loving Treat since May. And they are running a promo right now where you can give them a try for free, too. Use code TREATBLOGR for one free Treat card good only on Monday 11/19 & Tuesday 11/20. I know you’ve got someone in your life who would appreciate a card. What have you got to loose?

Disclosure: Treat is giving me a credit in exchange for this post. I only share products that my family  has used, so I can attest to their quality.