Bay Area Mommy

This post brought to you by White Cloud. All opinions are 100% mine.

White Cloud has teamed up with Childrens Miracle Network (CMN) so they can create even more miracles in the lives of children who are receiving treatment in 168 US member hospitals! Just because the holidays are over doesn't mean we should stop thinking about ways to give back. Just this past weekend, my husband and I found out that our local church was in need of children's toys for the Nursery so we packed up some toys and donated them to our church.

How else can we give back? You can help one of the 168 member hospitals of the CMN by placing a vote on the designs made by children receiving treatment. Head over to the Voting App and choose your favorite design, or just check for the design from a child representing the nearest hospital and vote for them to show support to your local community! When you vote for a child's design, you not only give them the joy of seeing their own masterpiece on the shelves at Walmart, the local hospital will also receive a generous donation from White Cloud!

Those who vote for one of the designs will also be entered into a sweepstakes for $25 Walmart Gift Cards and the grand prize of a year's supply of White Cloud products! You can gain additional entries when your friends vote for their favorite designs using your link so be sure to share the contest to your friends!

Let's support companies that are giving back to the communiy even after the holidays are over! Find a store near you!

To get updates on their products and promotions, Like White Cloud on Facebook and Follow White Cloud on Twitter.

No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. The CMN Contests and Sweepstakes are sponsored by Kruger Products USA Inc. Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, between the ages of 4-14, who are eligible patients at one of the 168 participating CMN hospitals. Entry period begins on November 29, 2012 and ends on December 28, 2012. The Voter Sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, 18 years of age or older. The Voter Sweepstakes begin at 6PM EST on January 3, 2013 and end at 11:59PM EST on January 30, 2013. For official rules, visit http://mywhitecloud.com/tissue-box-contest.

This post brought to you by © Blue Shield of California. All opinions are 100% mine.

One thing I love about the internet is the fact that you can have access to information 24/7. So in case insomnia attacks, you can go onlne and do a research on whatever topic interests you, like maybe how to cure insomnia. But with so many so-called experts online, it can get really confusing. Let me introduce some real experts then. Meet Dr. Jim and Bob from BlueShield of CA.

BlueShield of CA is a not for profit company that offers access to great doctors and alternative care (chiropractors, acupuncture). They have a wide range of affordable health plans. And as a company that seeks to help us with our health, they have given us this dynamic duo. 

Dr. Jim and Bob's Fun & Helpful Health Advice is not only informative to the lay person. Its also a lot of fun. I have already watched a couple of their videos and I think what I like the most is their video on Heartburn. My husband and his family are so prone to heartburn even if they're really skinny people. But the video explains what actually happens during heartburn. They say that it doesn't necessarily happen only to bigger people even though most antacid commercials show overweight people getting heartburn. Here's the video.

I must say that Bob's quips and facial expressions are so funny! I love him already even if he's just Dr. Jim's sidekick. Imagine an assistant talk like that to his boss! LOL!

I love that BlueShield has thought of this kind of informative yet fun videos to educate people on various health care issues. We all know how short some people's attention span could get so keeping the videos at around a minute and a half is great too!

This post brought to you by Kmart. All opinions are 100% mine.

Can you believe we're already in the middle of September? In just a few weeks, we'll be preparing to celebrate the holidays! But wouldn't it be better if we start preparing now?

Yes! I think it's never to early to start shopping for holiday gifts! Imagine how much you can save if you're able to take advantage of every promo out there, such as KMart's free layaway, as you pick special gifts for your loved ones! 

Kmart's Big Layaway Giveaway is one promo you can't and shouldn't miss out on! Each week from September 9 through November 17, lucky customers will get credits to be applied to the remaining balance of their layaway up to a $500 value! There will be a total of 12,350 winners! Awesome, right?

I love layaway programs because it lets me purchase an item even if I don't have the cash yet! I just need to pay regularly! I can't tell you how much I hated it when I saw a pair of shoes that I couldn't buy because the store didn't have a layaway program! You may be asking how KMart's Layaway program compares to other retailers' programs. Well, a picture paints a thousand words so take a look at this.

If you ask me, it's definitely a wise decision to do christmas shopping at KMart. Not only do you get the best layaway program, you'll also get a chance to win the Big Layaway Giveaway so you won't have to pay the rest of your remaining balance! I sure hope I win! Here are some products I'd be purchasing — a Power Wheels Truck for my son and an Xbox Kinect for my hubby!

This post brought to you by NMEDA. All opinions are 100% mine.

My husband works as a durable medical and rehab mobility equipment technician. His job is to repair equipment such as wheelchairs and power chairs (among others) to make sure that everything is working fine for their customers. One of the main things I ask him about is how their customers travel and he did tell me that there are  vehicles that are modified to accommodate the mobility equipment needed. And I was glad to hear that an organization such as NMEDA existed for this purpose.

NMEDA, short for National Mobility Equipment Dealer Association, is a non-profit association of delaers and manufacturers, specialists and professionals for mobility equipment. They do not sell anything as an association but some of their members do sell equipment. NMEDA just simply works to improve the options of people with disabilities in terms of transportation. 

What's great about NMEDA is that their dealers are QAP-accredited. QAP stands for Quality Assurance Program and is an accreditation program for the mobility equipment industry. This means that you can be sure about their dealers when it comes to quality, safety and reliability. Their dealers offer 24-hour local emergency assistance, on-site sales and support, as well as in-person individual evaluations to make sure that customers get exactly what they need.

Persons with dsabilities can greatly benefit from having a wheelchair-accessible vehicle. I remember my grandmother when we needed to take her to the hospital every week for her physical therapy. It was really hard for us to take her out of her wheelchair and into the passenger seat. So when my uncle got a wheelchair-accessible van for her, everything became so easy for my grandmother. She didn't run the risk of falling on the floor and it helped her stop feeling like she was a burden — because she's not and we love her! 

Check out the NMEDA website and visit a NMEDA QAP (Quality Assurance Program) Dealer for mobility solutions now!