Busy Mom Reviews

Greetings from the beach!

The kids are getting bigger, and, each year our vacation ride gets tighter and tighter with the stuff, and, with the people.

The fine folks at Ford Motor Company graciously provided us use of a shiny new 2008 Ford Taurus X (formerly known as the Ford Freestyle), and, so far it's just what we needed.

When I first heard that I'd get to check out a "Taurus", I admit I thought, "How...functional." However, so far, we've driven over 700 miles, and, it's been great, and, I daresay, a lot of fun.

We're having Ford fun, Who knew?

It's what's known as a "tall wagon", not quite a van, not quite an SUV, and, there's room for everyone (this one has six seats), and, our stuff. We've had plenty of room to pack all the bulky vacation luggage, and, food, etc., and, everyone has been really comfortable.

As a matter of fact, the cargo area with the 3rd row folded holds two boys nicely:

It's really powerful (3.5-liter V-6) , and, so far, we've averaged about 25 mpg.

This model is also luxurious, not usually the first thing I think of about Ford, but, it is right fancy.
It has an onboard DVD system, Sirius Satellite Radio, and, GPS, so the kids are never going to want to give it back.

Actually, I'm pretty fascinated with the GPS thing myself. Drove around yesterday just to watch the little arrow thing move along the coastline.

The kids' favorite part is the one touch flip and fold second row seating. It's cool, to get to the 3rd row (which, btw, is quite comfortable for an adult) you push a button, and, the seat flips forward and folds itself up.

I know I'm easily entertained, but, so far, I've truly been impressed by this new Ford.

Actually, I've been especially impressed by the arctic blast air conditioning. It's really, really hot in Florida.

We're getting ready to take it fishing here in a little while, and, we've figured out that everything fits nicely because the 3rd row seats split, and, there's still room for a cooler.

For drinks. No one is putting fish in my shiny new car.

Yes, I can say "mine" for the next few weeks, anyway.

Wateroos are purified water, and, natural fruit flavored waters in a drink box.

Sometimes, it's hard to get kids to drink water when the sugary juice boxes are so much more exciting looking, but, Wateroos make drinking water fun, and, convenient for on the go.

My kids declared them, "really good", and, I even sent a few to camp. They can be frozen to take in a lunchbox, too.

The fruit ones have a good strong flavor without being too sweet, or, artificial tasting, and, they're sugar free!

Try them today, look for them at your local grocer.

3x Concentrated Wisk Multi-action Laundry Detergent is a detergent, and, stain pre-treater in one.

I received a bottle for review, and, we put it through the test at the beach for a week, and, then with dirty camp laundry.

It's highly concentrated, so, it only takes a small amount to clean a load of laundry. It has a pleasant smell, and, dissolves easily. It has a color-safe bleach that did a good job with whites, and, colors at various temperatures.

There's also an HE formula for high efficiency washers.

Also, check out Wiskmom.com and you can upload digital photos of your kids and place them on the digital cover of Life(r) or Sports Illustrated KIDS™.

BenzaClin, a topical gel indicated for the treatment of acne, wants to give teens the chance to shine as the new Clear Skin Star by entering for a chance to be the BenzaClin model in the BenzaClin Clear Star ad.

They want to hear from confident teens on how having clear skin has helped build their self-confidence to overcome a particular challenge in their life; whether it was trying out for a high school sports team, going on a first date or interviewing for a summer job.

Teens ages 13 – 18 can enter by submitting their story, in 300 words or less, to the site mentioned above.

Hurry! Contest ends on July 31, 2007.