Thanks to MommyB, I also got a chance to step up my yoga mat. I’d been using the same one day after day for who knows how long, and I didn’t realize how worn out it had become until I unfurled my new Northern Lights mat from Aurorae Yoga.

Measuring 72″ long x 24″ wide, the Aurorae mat is about four inches longer than a standard mat, which doesn’t seem like much but makes a difference: I’m no longer having to hop back throughout a DVD or class so that my hands stay on the mat. Similarly, the 5 mm thickness seems incrementally cushier than normal mats but the difference is undeniable. My knees, creaky old things that don’t like repeated contact with cold floors, no longer scream after a session. And where I was once uncomfortably aware of my sit-bones and the base of my neck during the relaxation phase at the end of a session, I’m now supported and comfortable, and able to actually let go.

The mat’s thickness and grip make it much easier to really dig in your fingers and toes to support your weight, and slipping is minimal.

So strictly based on performance, we have a winner in the Aurorae mat… but wait! There’s more! The Northern Lights model also scores big points for aesthetics and eco-friendliness.

Mimicking the serenely undulating dance of the aurora borealis (but also echoing the recent ombre craze that’s been happening, at least in my mind), the Northern Lights mats come in five richly toned colors and no two mats are exactly the same. The colors are identified with certain characteristics, so that you can choose a mat that signifies the qualities you want to evoke/boost with your workout. The top of the mat is strategically emblazoned with Aurorae’s logo to create a point of focus, to aid with balance (brilliant). And in spite of its extra length and thickness, it easily rolls tight and is not noticeably heavier than my old mat.

Aurorae mats are made from PER Eco Safe material, and are biodegradable and phthalate-free. There was none of that wretched plastic off-gassing odor when I opened the package. I still flipped it over the clothesline to let it relax and air out, but I didn’t feel like I had to, to avoid breathing in chemicals.

Basically, I’ve learned that a good mat is essential to really getting the most from your yoga workout, and post-workout relaxation poses. I feel like I can perform the poses better and hold them longer without straining or slipping. The fact that the mats are eco-conscious, pretty, affordable and from a company that appears to really appreciate its customers? Incredibly awesome and totally welcome bonuses.

Aurorae Yoga supplies are sold through Amazon and ship for free when spending more than $25. Add it to your wish list today!

Disclosure: I received an Aurorae yoga mat to review; no other compensation was received. This mat was put through the paces of many hours of Rodney Yee DVDs and YMCA yoga sessions; therefore all thoughts and opinions are thorough, honest, and entirely my own.

Robin Elton is a real food advocate, wilderness champion and Honey Badger Mom of three. She blogs about the life non-toxic, the restorative benefits of the outdoors, and the power of play at simple. green. organic. happy.

I want my girls to love who God created them to be inside and out and with My Twinn Dolls facilitates that desire. Each My Twinn Doll is a one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted, pose-able, and 18 inches tall. There are so many customization options like; face shaps, eye color, skin tone, and hair color/length/texture/cut/bang options. Artisans also hand-paint on freckles, birthmarks, eyebrows, plus the doll’s cheeks and lips are enhanced with hand-painted colors as well.

The My Twinn Doll website makes it easy to choose your custom options to create a doll that resembles your 3 to 12 year-old child. They also have you submit photos of your child to ensure that they capture their features as best as possible.

After making our selections that best fit Miss A, submitting our photos, and filling out the birthmark form, we excitedly waited for our doll to arrive. I don’t know who was more excited to open the My Twinn Doll packaging, {which was super cute by the way} but once I saw her I knew that My Twinn did an AMAZING job. See:

Here “Olivia” is in comparison to my very tall (95% height for her age) 4 year-old:

And here they are faces next to each other, no it’s not 100% but being her mom I see all of Miss A’s faces and I think they did an amazing job and didn’t make it look too similar to be creepy, you know what I mean! I actually did Miss A’s hair to look like “Olivia’s” too.

Miss A was delighted to see her doll and immediately named her Olivia, and started playing with her. Because My Twinn Dolls have 18 joints you can pose them and better yet they can actually sit up, unlike a lot of dolls we currently own. Miss A loved this feature. She also was excited to see her birthmark on the doll and said, “Her outfit is adorable.” Lucky for us My Twinn has clothing for their dolls, and also for your child. A My Twinn outfit for Miss A is already on the Christmas list.

Speaking of Christmas, or the holiday season in general, be sure to check dates to see when last orders for specific dates are. Standard My Twinn Dolls run about $149.00 retail value and includes your customized doll and one clothing choice from select My Twinn options. There are so many extras that you can purchase as well including earrings, wheelchairs, clothing, and more.

Now you may be thinking $149.00 is a lot for a doll, yes, I completely agree, however My Twinn really isn’t “just a doll”. Personally I feel like this is a keepsake that is so personal to Miss A and there is nothing out there that I have found that compares to her being able to say, “This doll was made for me, to look like me”. It’s durable and made with great quality, but also made with great care. If something happens to the doll there are care options and resources to “fix dolly up”.

If you are interested in purchasing this doll, or want to ask for it as a gift, or even go half-in with someone else here is the link to the My Twinn Doll website: http://www.mytwinn.com and you can check out their Facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/MyTwinn

Also you can win your very own My Twinn Doll and here’s how:

HOW READERS CAN ENTER TO WIN THEIR OWN MY TWINN DOLL

My Twinn is hosting an online contest through December 5, 2011. Log onto http://www.mytwinn.com/Doll-Giveaway to enter!

What are you buying your children for Christmas? Would you consider one of these awesome dolls?

I received this My Twinn doll in order to give my honest thoughts about My Twinn Doll’s website and product. This in no way effects the outcome of my post and all opinions are mine, however yours may vary. 

This is just a little snip-it of what is to come, so stay tuned for more……. I hope you likey!! Leave me a comment and let me know what you think.

Studio Jewel features some pretty nice stamped/personalized pieces as well as traditional and simple pieces. If you take a look you’ll find that there’s something for every taste level. I always love the “mother necklaces” where you can add each of your children’s names, or birthdates, it’s a great commemoration piece, and a perfect gift for any mom *hint, hint!

And even though I adore the women’s jewelry they also have a few great things for the men as well, in case you were trying to decide what to get your favorite man.Check out Lisa’s shop here: http://studiojewel.com/ and check out all the amazing pieces she has to offer. Your gift is guaranteed to be a hit if it’s from Studio Jewel.

And now for another… Holiday Gift Guide Giveaway: Studio Jewel is giving one lucky MommyB Knows Best reader a $50 gift certificate to her shop.

How to Win:

We’re doing things a little different for the Holiday Gift Guide Giveaways so please be sure to read the directions to make sure your entries count. Entries will be recorded through the comment form below this post. Each entry must be in a separate comment, one comment form per entry. Please be sure to write in the comment box the entry you are completing.

(ie, 1 comment will say, “Following MommyBKnowsBest on Facebook” then you submit it, the next comment will say, “Following MommyBKnowsBest on Twitter” and so forth. The more you complete the more entries you will have towards the giveaway.

Entries include:

1. Go to http://studiojewel.com/and tell me which piece of jewelry you’d choose if you won

2. Follow Me on Twitter

3. Follow Me on Facebook

4. Subscribe to my Blog

5.  Add my Blog Button to your Blog and tell me the link address under mandatory entry

6. Friend me on Google Friend Connect

7. .Follow Studio Jewel on Facebook

7. Follow Studio Jewel on Twitter

8. Subscribe to Studio Jewel’s Blog

9.**Daily entry** Update FB status using @mommybknowsbest & @studiojewel linking to this post

Giveaway ends December 5th, 2010 @12:00 am. The winners will be chosen at random, verified, emailed, and announced in a Winner’s post. The winners will have 48 hours to respond to the email from MommyB to claim the prize, if the prize is not claimed within 48 hours a new winner will be chosen at random. You must be a US resident and 18 years or older to enter.

With a wide variety of online sites to choose from Vistaprint’s pretty easy to access. While perusing the product selection I found some great ideas for mother’s day, hint hint Daddies!!  Here are a few of my top picks:In no specific order because really at these prices you could purchase all of them for me the mother of your choosing.

Okay so I lied this one really is my favorite, but you’ll see why I love the photo books. Of course pictures of my family,Daddy B, Little Miss A and of course new Baby C would melt my heart. Vistaprint also makes it super easy to upload your pictures and has tons of templates to choose from, now the only problem to solve is which design will mom like best?

Another one of my favorites are the T-shirts, what says I love Mom more than a shirt with, “I Love Mom” on it?? Or other choices for a great shirt would be again pictures of our beautiful children, our favorite vacation spot, or maybe even an inspirational phrase to boost our day.

Lastly I think I’d have to choose Thank You cards and Letterhead because even though I am online way too much I really do enjoy sending out “snail-mail,” partly in hopes that I’ll get some back. With these products you can choose from one of Vistaprint’s great templates or custom make your own, the options are endless!

So daddies and children, what do you think you’ll be getting that great mommy of yours from Vistaprint? Don’t forget Father’s Day and Graduation are also just around the corner, get Dad a great Father’s Day key chain and order your Graduation Announcements too while you’re at it!

Vistaprint is giving away a set of 50 Graduation Announcements to one lucky MommyB Knows Best reader.

Here’s how to win: Using the entry form directly below this post (NOT the comment form), submit your name, an email address that you check regularly, and the entry you are submitting. *Please note the Mandatory Entry MUST be completed before you can qualify for additional entries.

Giveaway ends May 6th @12:00 am. The winner will be chosen at random, verified, emailed, and announced in a Winner’s post. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the email from MommyB to claim the prize, if the prize is not claimed within 48 hours a new winner will be chosen at random. You must be a US resident and 18 years or older to enter.

With a number of spring birthdays to celebrate, what better idea than a creative box to give it in. Prank Pack’s Genuine Fake Gift Boxes are a fun and light-hearted way to gift give. They will make any gift receiver scratch their head and give a half-hearted thank-you.

Prank Pack offers several different “styles” of boxes including: Coffee Talkies – The Original Travel Mug/ 2-way Radio, Beer Beard – Secret Beverage Dispenser, BirdieBelt – Rangefinder/Belt/Buckle, Noggin Net – Wearable Fishing Net, Wake and Bake Dream Griddle – Alarm Clock and the box I got a chance to test out: Motorized Rolling Pin.

The Motorized Rolling Pin was a great box for me to try out because I’m a stay-at-home mom and have a lot of friends that are stay-at-home mom’s as well. This product was semi-believable to my audience although just weird enough to solicit some awkward faces. Although I think some people receiving the gift may in deed prefer what is on the fake box over what they actually received.

These boxes come flat and are very simple to assemble. At 11.25 x 9 x 3.25 (About the size of a giant phone book) they are a great size for most gifts and if you have something smaller you could even fill it up with tissue paper to fill the entire box.

Depending on where you purchase your Prank Pack, they typically run from about $5- $7 per box when you purchase more than one at a time. So more expensive than a regular box but definitely not as fun!

Just in case you have a gift receiver who’s still oblivious there is a flap inside the box that says, “Prank You!” Hopefully they would catch on at that point.

I definitely have people in mind that would be great to use these boxes on, plus with April Fool’s Day just around the corner you don’t need to prepare an elaborate scheme, just buy a Prank Pack Genuine Fake Gift Box and you’re good to go.

What are you planning for April Fool’s Day?