Fun Find Friday – The Shine Project

As I was browsing through Facebook this week I came across a post about a brand new social impact company called THREADS.  They employ at-risk youth in Phoenix to make these amazing bracelets so they can pay their way through college.

“Threads is a cause driven business that changes the future of at risk youth. They come from various backgrounds, but all have one thing in common, they want to break the cycle. By employing them, we instill values of self reliance and hard work. They are paid fair wages for the bracelets they make, and in turn are able to pay their way through school. Many of Threads employees are first generation college students. They dream of becoming nurses, broadcasters, writers and engineers.”

After doing lots research and spending some time on The Shine Project‘s website, I can tell you I have honestly fallen in love with this organization and its mission of spreading hope, positivity and inspiration into the community.  Other than these stunning bracelets, one of my favorite things they offer are Pass It Forward cards.  For $2.50 you get a pack of ten Pass It Forward cards and each card comes with a personalized ID number.  The idea is to do a random act of kindness and add the Pass It Forward card with the act.  The person who receives the card will go to www.spreadtheshine.com and enter the ID # to describe the expereince.  That person is then supposed to “pass it forward” with another random act of kindness.  The new recipient can get on the website and add their story.  I can only imagine where these cards will end up and what stories will be connected to each one.  What an amazing idea!  I don’t know about you, but I’m heading over to The Shine Project to order a bracelet and a packet of cards right now.  We are in no way affiliated with The Shine Project, we just think it is doing amazing things for our community and world and we want you all to know about them.

The Wiggles Winner is…

Lorri Cerva Bucholz!  Congratulations, Lorri!  Please email me with your address at nora@tiesandtutus.com to claim your family four-pack of tickets to see The Wiggles!  A great big thank you to everyone who entered.  Check back next week for the last giveaway in our Summer Concert Series.

Hump Day Giveaway – Summer Concert Series III

We are on week three of our four week Summer Concert Giveaway Series.  Today’s giveaway is a great one that will be a wonderful event for the entire family.  We are giving you the opportunity to pack up the kids and head down to Comerica Theater to see The Wiggles live on July 24th.  In order to be entered to win the Family Four-Pack all you have to do is “like” this post on the Ties & Tutus Facebook page.  If’ you’d like to be entered a second time, “share” this post on your personal Facebook page and double your chances to win!  You have until midnight PST to enter.  Good luck!

Monday Morning Challenge – Read your way to the Ball Park!

Happy Monday everyone!  Your challenge this week is to make sure that your children’s brains don’t turn to mush over the summer!  The Phoenix Public Libraries are making it easy to do so by providing an awesome incentive –  FREE Diamondbacks tickets!  Kids from birth to age eighteen are able to participate in the program, either by reading themselves or having others read to them.  All participants will receive a voucher for a ticket to a Diamondbacks game – talk about a nice prize for using your brain a bit this summer!  More information about the program can be found on the Phoenix Public Library website.  Happy reading!

Fun Find Friday – Sea Life Aquarium

Have you been to the Sea Life Aquarium inside Arizona Mills lately?  It is a wonderful way to entertain the kids, learn about sea life (appropriately named, eh?) and escape the summer heat.  The aquarium houses over 5,000 creatures in 30 displays, including a 360 degree tunnel with sharks, rays and the Ziva, the aquarium’s famous rescued sea turtle.   They also offer a hands-on center where you can hold a crab or touch a starfish.  Pretty cool, huh?  Well, I’m just getting started because today I was lucky enough to get a VIP behind-the-scenes tour, which they are opening to the public on Friday, June 29th.  Tours will be held five times each day at 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00 and 3:o0.  During this tour you and your gang will learn how the team cares for the 5,000 creatures, how they make ocean water in the desert, visit the laboratory, animal care and kitchen areas as well as experience hands-on learning and interactive fun.  I have got to tell you, before today I hadn’t been out to the aquarium but WOW, my son loved it and we will definitely be going back very soon.  Don’t live in the Valley?  Don’t fret, there are Sea Life Aquariums all throughout the United States.  Visit www.sealifeus.com to find an aquarium near you.  Here are a few pictures from our adventure today.

 

 

We’ve Got a Winner — Jacksons

Congratulations to Desiree Huynh, you are the winner of The Jacksons Unity Tour 2012 tickets! Please email me at nora@tiesandtutus.com to claim your prize!

Hump Day Giveaway — Summer Concert Series II

It’s time for another Hump Day Giveaway and today is the second part of our Summer Concert Series.  We have got so many great concerts coming to the Valley this summer, are you ready for another one?  Today’s giveaway is for four tickets to The Jacksons Unity Tour 2012.  The Jackson brothers have come together on tour and will be performing some of The Jackson classics we all know and love.  The concert is Wednesday, July 18th at 7:30 pm at Comerica Theater in downtown Phoenix.  You won’t want to miss out on this concert, it is likely your last chance to see The Jacksons live in concert.  In order to be entered, we ask you comment on this post and tell us your favorite Jacksons song, it’s that easy!

Happy Monday! We Challenge you to be In-The-Know!

Happy Monday everyone!  We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend, and for those celebrating, a great Father’s Day!  This week we are challenging our readers to spend a week dedicating themselves, albeit just a little bit, to knowing what is going on in the world.  This challenge is prompted from the fact that many times my husband comes home from work asking me, “Did you hear about so and so…?”  So often my answer is no, and when it is yes, it is usually because I saw it via someone’s Facebook status.  Coming to this realization, I figured I should challenge myself to knowing what is going on in the world around me, even at a very base level.  I certainly couldn’t tell you what the stock market did last Friday and I certainly couldn’t tell you who was on the cover of this month’s Time Magazine.  But I figure, maybe I should know why gas prices have gone down a bit, how the real estate market is doing in my area and what the latest info is in the upcoming Presidential election.

So this week I challenge myself and all of you to spend a mere 30 minutes a day educating ourselves on the goings-on in the world.  Whether that be tuning in to your local news, watching the headlines on CNN, looking on Google news, or sitting down old-fashioned-style and whipping out the newspaper; this week, be in-the-know!  I have a feeling I’ll be amazed at all the stuff that is going on out there, especially the stuff I had no idea about.  Who knows, could make for some interesting dinner table conversation and maybe I’ll know an interesting factoid that my husband will be clueless about for once :)

Fun Find Friday!

I was out to dinner with friends last night and two of my girlfriends were raving about their newest fun find, their Birchboxes.  What is that you say?  Yes, a Birchbox, it’s a little delectable box that shows up to your door once a month with samples of the newest beauty products; lip glosses, bronzers, perfumes and so much more.  For just $10 a month you get your own personalized, yes personalized – you fill out a little survey, of things that you might enjoy.  The most delectable part is that they are typically very high-end products, so not only are you getting fun mail (always awesome) you are getting something that you might consider a little lavish :)  If you are looking for a little way to treat yourself, this is definitely the way to go!  Also would be a thoughtful gift for a friend, and you look like the best friend ever because you get more than one!  If you are looking for more info or want to sign up you can check it out at www.birchbox.com.  Hope everyone is having a fun Friday – and have a great weekend!

Hump Day Giveaway Winner…

Congratulations to Nicole Conrad, the winner of the Big Time Rush tickets!  Please email me at nora@tiesandtutus.com to claim your prize.  A great big thank you to Live Nation for sponsoring this giveaway and as always, thanks to everyone who entered.