Mama Mimi @ Mom Central

Kicking up my heels in Ariat boots!

I have this beautiful memory of my grandfather - a.k.a. “Papa” - as a cowboy boot-wearing son-of-a-gun. He was a top executive at a Fortune 500 company and he wore Western-cut suits, cowboy boots and talked on a CB-radio. His handle was “Cotton-pickin' Chicken Plucker.” Papa was a wonderful character and set the tone for me of what a “real man” is. 

Whenever I visited Papa, it was my “job” to help him pull off his cowboy boots at the end of a long day. I don’t know if he actually needed help, but I jumped at the chance and enjoyed the tug-of-war during each boot-removal ceremony. I usually ended up flat on my bottom holding the heel of one of his fancy boots with two hands and laughing my head off. 

Maybe it was Papa’s influence or my Texas heritage, but for me, wearing cowboy boots means you are also wearing your personality. You just can’t wear ‘em without feeling a little swagger in your walk. 

Ariat cowboy boots

When the kind folks at Ariat asked me to check out their cowboy boots I was happy to oblige. Talk about boot-inducing personality! I had a helluva time choosing a pair and ended up with the Heritage Western X Toe in vintage black with turquoise stitching. They are GORGEOUS! I really think the “X” toe is key in making these boots look stylish and versatile for jeans/pants or dresses. I tried a wide toe and I didn't love them as much. Plus, I don’t think they work as well with skirts – and with the beautiful stitching, you will want to show off the detailed work underneath a simple dress or skirt. Just perfect for this urban cowgirl.

I also tried on the Ariat Crossfire Caliente – which are hot, hot, hot! But I wasn’t keen on the wide square toe. But if you like a little color in your life, then these might be your ticket to the rodeo. 

Comfortable style

Ariat was founded on creating advanced performance footwear and apparel for top equestrian athletes.  They use this same technology in their more fashion-forward items as well. The Heritage Western boots are really comfortable. It only took about a week to work them in – just a little rubbing on the backs of my ankles – but any full-grain leather boots will need some time to mold to your feet. The soles of my feet never felt better in boots. The padding is generous, even with a 2.5” heel, I didn’t have any discomfort on the bottom of my feet. 

Recently, Ariat unveiled an improved Ariat.com that features an enhanced shopping experience with powerful navigation, product comparisons, multi-angled product photography and a community section with social media, news, events and athlete blogs. Yee haw!

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Disclaimer: Michelle received a pair of Ariat Heritage Western X Toe boots in vintage black to facilitate this review. 

Counting games with Count Me Healthy Jewelry

I count all the time. I count stairs, steps, bites. It's like a tick in my head to just count what I'm doing.  My son started counting a couple of weeks ago and just seemed to do it on his own. I was amazed, but not surprised because I'm sure I've drilled numbers 1-10 into his little 19-month-old brain!

But counting what we are doing does have a purpose. It can help us keep track of our health and good intentions. And if I lived on the planet where I think of everything first, I would have SO come up with Count Me Healthy Jewelry. But Chelsea Gosett beat me to it and she is much more clever! This jewelry is more than beautiful, it's jewelry with a mission.

Healthy jewelry

Chelsea is committed to preventing women's diseases and aims to create a “health jewelry” category. The premise behind Count Me Healthy jewelry is that you assign a value to each bead and slide one of the 12 beads from one side of the bracelet to the other.  It is a constant reminder on your wrist to eat another serving of fruit and vegetables, keep track of sugary drinks or to drink more water. It's like a little secret health journal in your line of sight that only you know how to crack the code.

I tried counting glasses of water with my bracelet. I fell short, so I'm now counting gulps of water. I feel much more accomplished at the end of the day now.

Counting for health

Chelsea has all kinds of encouragement and ideas for counting using the little beads.  Here are some of my favorites: vitamins, hours between meals, kind words, happy thoughts, miles walked, workouts per week, snacks, Weight Watchers POINTS, and baby kicks. 

She also has a “Golf Goddess” one that counts strokes per hole or par per round. So it isn't far fetched that you can use these eye-catching beauties to count arguments won with your husband or non-verbal I told you so's. Just brainstorming here.

Check out Chelsea's cleverness through her blog, Counting with Chelsea.

Count Me Healthy bracelets are a unique gift and the packaging is beautiful - no wrapping required. I'll be sending the Counting for a Cause one to a couple of women I adore this month to help support Breast Cancer research. 

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Disclosure: I received a Count Me Healthy bracelet to facilitate my post.

Celebrating my belly at Destination Maternity

As I write this, I'm 20 weeks pregnant with my second child. It seems that at about the half point of pregnancy I hit my limit of trying to make regular clothes work. I did have some left over clothes from my first pregnancy. Also, I bought a few second hand items from some neighbors, but it was time I get a few things that made me feel good. 

I'm more of a skirt and dress kinda girl.  My favorite “uniform” is a dress with a longer cardigan and sandals. In the winter or on rainy days, I add leggings/tights, boots and a scarf. Although I know my body a bit better for this pregnancy, it was time to go try on a few things that will take me through the second half of my pregnancy plus meetings with clients, conferences and events.

My trip to Destination Maternity

I was so thrilled to meet Sheila at the New York City Destination Maternity on East 57th Street.  Her specialty is understanding your needs based on your pregnancy stage and picking out the best products for her clients. She sized me up perfectly and knew her inventory - ultimately this saved me loads of time and I was in and out within an hour.

Destination Maternity is a one-stop shop for expectant mothers that includes A Pea In the Pod, Motherhood Maternity, skin care, classes and spa services. You can also take prenatal classes in yoga and Pilates, plus childbirth education. It's a warm and inviting place in which you are greeted and offered water or juice. The bathrooms are also clean and easy to find - an important factor in keeping you comfortable while shopping!