LG LuV400T Kompressor Vacuum. . .With Commentary on Grace and Good Manners

If motherhood has taught me anything, it has been the quest for balance. (Please note: key word is “quest,” as in it is a challenging effort to find something perfect yet so elusive as balance).



In the past, I would teeter between never saying anything and saying too much. Now when something bothers me, I try to evaluate if a situation is something worth making a fuss over or not. I like to think that within the past five years, I have refined my technique to incorporate a bit more grace than gruff.



Case in point:



Last year at BlogHer10, I attended the Mouthy Party put on by the wonderful Mouthy Housewives. One of the sponsors was LG. At their station, guests were invited to try out a LuV300B Kompressor Vacuum, and LG would send us the vacuum. I could NOT believe it! How awesome would that be?! A brand new vacuum! Yes, please!



So I waited. And waited and waited.



I read some blogs and their reviews of this awesome piece of machinery. I watched the front door like a hawk. I knew it had to arrive soon.



And then I waited some more.



Finally, in December, I gave up.



(Side bar: My mother-in-law felt so bad for me that she bought me a new vacuum. How sweet)!



To be honest, I was unsure how to navigate through this situation. I didn’t want to tell the Mouthy Housewives because I had a great time at the party, and I didn’t want to appear to be all about the swag. I enjoy that blog and the contributors’ individual blogs; I didn’t want to make a fuss. I also don’t think it was their responsibility either.



I did contact LG through email, but to no avail.



I could have blogged about it or made a scene on Twitter, but that didn’t feel right, either. I had been blogging for just over a year, and I thought that maybe this was par for the course.



This year, at BlogHer 11, I saw some reps from LG out of their suite. I introduced myself and explained the situation of the vacuum and the failed attempt to rectify the situation through email. I told them it was not my style to cause trouble, but if there was some way to look into this, I would greatly appreciate it.



The reps stood up, shook my hand, and thanked me profusely for not making a scene on Twitter. They took my information and promised to get back to me.



I was a cautiously optimistic.



On the following Monday, a rep had emailed me for the details of the situation.



On Tuesday, he determined there was a mistake with data entry, and my information had been recorded incorrectly. He promised the LuV400T Kompressor Vacuum (an updated version) would be delivered by Fed Ex on Friday.



On Friday, Fed Ex showed up with the LuV400T Kompressor Vacuum.

Now tell me that is not a totally awesome
piece of machinery.  It looks like it
deserves its own parking space
in the garage.

And I have to say, the LuV400T Kompressor Vacuum was everything I hoped it would be. I LOVE IT! It makes my twelve year old carpet look new again.



Thomas dumped Marie’s snack of dried veggies all over the floor. There were peas and corn and crumbled up tomatoes and peppers *everywhere*.



LuV400T Kompressor Vacuum picked it up like it was dust.



According to LG, here’s why it can do that:

*LG’s patented Kompressor technology utilizes the world’s first motorized compression system and a larger bin to compress the dust intake to hold three times more household dust than non-compressor models.

*Its mattress tool allows you to loosen deeply embedded dust and allergens using a unique pulsating vibration system.

*LG’s DualForce Suction provides a wide suction area for better cleaning in hard to reach places, by adding air pathways to both sides of the vacuum head in addition to the traditional center suction.

*The Click 'N Go™ provides 15 feet of additional reach for easier cleaning of stairs, upholstery and other out-of-the-way spots. With a radio-frequency wand, consumers to control the unit remotely from the wand when it is detached from the base.

*The HEPA filter captures 99.97 percent of allergens such as dust mites and animal dander.

*The LuV400T has been certified asthma & allergy friendly™ by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA).

IN LOVE!



I also think that this is a testament that grace and good manners can produce the desired results. There might be something to that saying that one catches more flies with honey instead of vinegar.



Thank you, LG, for making good on your word.



I love my new vacuum!





Tell me about a time when grace and good manners worked better for you than a harsh words.

Feel Good Friday. . . Sort Of

Be sure to check out The Girl Next Door Grows Up and her awesome blog!

Well, I have to say this week was really fun, pulling a John C. Mayer with my dear Aunt Becky.  Kathy M. Griffin, I *heart* you, and I hope that you see my post named As Maggie Griffin Would Say on Kathy Griffin’s show My Life on The D-List on Bravo TV Network, “Tip it!”  Anyway, enough of all that . . .for now.

So this time next week The Hubs and I will be going on an all expense paid trip to Vancouver for his work conference.  This will be the first time we will have gone anywhere together since Marie was 9 months old.  If you do the math, it’s like 3 ½ years ago.  And the only time I have ever left them both was my Spa-venture, which was only 4 hours away. 

So next week, The Hubs and I will be traveling eight hours by plane, thru three time zones, clear across the land to the foreign country of Canada.  YIKES!  Now Harrington was all worried about it being an 8 hour flight because that’s such a long time to be in a plane.  Really?  Eight hours where I can sit by myself and read and/or sleep sounds like a relaxing way to spend the day.  A far cry from the two eight hours days in The Mini with the Babes and my Mom all the way to New York for BlogHer.  Which was the longest. Car. Drive. Ever.

I’m also really excited because we’ll be staying at the Four Seasons!  Can you believe that?!  Plus we get to go on some tour of the islands and see wild bears and lumberjacks and the blue ox Babe.  (Well, I just threw in the blue ox part).  This is all Feel Good Friday stuff, right?

So here’s where the sort of part: I feel guilty about enjoying this awesome opportunity because I didn’t necessarily “earn,”  like I’m riding his coattails.  And when I think about it, that’s really ridiculous because when he’s working all those extra hours, I’m working all those extra hours, too.  It just feels weird to be doing something like this.  I guess he got to enjoy all my BlogHer 10 swag, like my Jimmy Dean alarm clock, Jimmy Dean Coupons, Eucerin lotion, DreamSakes package and my new LG vacuum from the Mouthy Housewives party (when I hopefully get it soon).  But somehow that just doesn’t add up to a free vacation (for me at least) in Vancouver at the Four Seasons. 

Also, I’m sick to my stomach leaving The Babes.  I know it’s good for everyone (me, them, their alternative caregivers), but it still makes me nervous.  I don’t even want to get into all the what ifs because there’s a gagillion. 

But enough, because this is Feel GOOD Friday.  I will feel GOOD about this because I deserve a break with Harrington.  And The Babes will be fine.  Don’t you think three years is a long time without a break?  I do.

So what’s going on with your, Friends?  Any exciting plans in the mix for you?

Have a good weekend!

BlogHer Part 3 – The Unplanned Moments

I think this will be the last of the BlogHer installments. I had fun talking about the Mouthy Housewife Happy Hour, the breakout sessions, and now I’ll conclude about the splendor of spontaneous moments. I love to plan, and it serves me well, but I am glad that I also left room for these little gems a chance to materialize.

Lunch
(Otherwise known as how I Embarrassed Myself Yet Again)

As you know, I was afraid of connecting with no one and having to eat my lunch that would have consisted of a Cliff Bar. Thankfully, that was not the case. Maria and I met her friend from http://www.kidsmealcrowd.com/. We were also joined by some other women at the table. So we all started to hand out our business cards. Laura, Gretchen, and Amy give me their cards. And here begins the scene titled How Erin Makes an Ass Out of Herself. . . Again:

Me: Amy, you look really familiar.

Amy: I just wrote a book.

Me: What’s the title?

Amy: When Did I Get Like This?

Me (scary-excited delightfully surprised tone): OHMYGOODNESS! I KNOW YOU! YOU WERE ON THE TODAY SHOW! HOW EXCITING! YOU GAVE SUCH A GREAT INTERVIEW AND YOUR BOOK SEEMED REALLY INTERESTINGOHMYGOD!

Amy (graciously): Yes, that was me.

Gretchen: Didn’t she look beautiful?

Me (adrenaline still hasn’t had a chance to dissipate into untraceable amounts): YES, SHE DID! YOU LOOKED GREAT!

End scene with them going back to their regularly scheduled conversation.

Yes, I did it again. I sounded like a screaming preteen at yet another Twilight meet-n-greet (like I did with Wendi Aarons at the Mouthy Housewife party). Seriously, I need to get a grip on my gushing. Sorry, Amy, if I frightened you with my overzealous response. I swear I leave the house and socialize (when I am not watching The Today Show). It’s just when I am trolling the aisles of Kroger for groceries with The Babes wearing my Mom Uniform, I don’t usually run into writers of books I want to read.

Everything after this conversation was pretty much a blur since I felt like I made a total ass our of myself and couldn’t leave the table since that would have meant eating alone in the bathroom. And you all know how I feel about that.

Old New Friends
I was so excited to meet The Culture Mom  and La Mere Joie. I have been commenting on their blogs for awhile so it was exciting to finally meet them. I felt like I was meeting old friends, yet for the first time face to face. They were both so sweet. I am glad I had a chance to connect with them. I only wish I had more time to chat.
During this time, I learned that La Mere Joie was Amethyst Moon. *

After the awesome keynote speaker, I took me and my 3 GIGANTIC bags of swag to The Green Affair. I was s exhausted; I knew that it was time to go home. I was looking so forward to Sparklecorn, but alas, I felt the opposite of sparkly; my head was swimming with all my new experiences, my swag bags were rubbing the flesh away on my shoulders, and blisters were forming on my feet.

At this time Maria texted me to see if I wanted to meet up with her for dinner. I really wanted to hang out with her again, so we met in the lobby. At this time, I saw a woman who I thought was someone I knew. (It’s hard to tell with those itty bitty Twitter pictures, right?) When she told me her name was Amethyst Moon, I couldn’t believe it! What were the chances? I told her La Mere Joie was looking for her. Maria met us, and we decided to go get some street meat from this vendor that has a 45 minute wait for his food. And it only cost $6! Marie, Amethyst, and I ventured out to the famous (or infamous) Hallal for the chicken platter.

We sat by the fountain outside the Hilton, looking at the Radio City Music Hall sign, eating our absolutely (and surprisingly) delish food, and chatting about our lives. And I think this was my favorite moment of BlogHer. No pressure, just talking about our lives. Then it occurred to me that this was like blogging but in real life. I knew Maria, we met Amethyst, and we all just started talking. That feeling of connection I get from blogging was happening right here outside all the planning and fanfare of BlogHer. It was awesome!

Doesn't that look delish?!  All for $6. WIN!

There's the lovely Maria.  This meal was her awesome idea!

Final Impressions
There is  a whole new world out there I didn’t even know existed. There are so many avenues to pursue with blogging. I was in awe by these women who followed their love of writing which then led them to have these amazing opportunities. I was also thankful that I was able to meet some of my blog friends in person and meet a lot of new people, too. I left BlogHer 10 feeling both inspired and motivated.

So BlogHer 11, I need to start saving NOW. . . unless you have a lay-away plan because that would be great, too.

*My crude attempt of foreshadowing. What can I say, I am still working on my craft.

BlogHer Part 1: Mouthy Housewives Happy Hour

BlogHer Part 1: Mouthy Housewives Happy Hour

Friends, I made it home from BlogHer ‘10/family vacation. If you were following me on Twitter, (all 99 of you) (I was at 100. . . but anonymous left, I am guessing, because there was too much of a disconnect between his cool PR tweets and my fascinating laundry tweets), then you know I made it home with a close call. I do promise to give you the details in another post.

I kicked off my BlogHer experience with the Mouthy Housewives Happy Hour at the Forty Eight Cocktail Lounge. It. was. AWESOME! I wore a little black dress and strappy heels with my makeup and hair done by my team of 1 – me. I know it’s hard to imagine, so I took a picture since it would last long after my coach turned back into a pumpkin.

Prom? No, just on my way to the Mouthy Housewives Happy Hour!

I was so nervous when I arrived. As a junior high teacher, our staff gatherings were a little less. . . glamorous. Our Christmas parties were usually potluck at someone’s house. I usually watched in horror as married staff members hit on other married staff members, but I digress. A real splurge was meeting at the microbrewery or the pool hall. And this is all great, but never had I been to a party like this; white wine flowing like water with portabella cheese bits and tuna tartar being served. Not to mention awesome swag and sponsors and photographers.

As if the food and wine weren’t enough, I met some fantastic people. Nicole from http://www.notjustaworkingmom.com/ was lovely. I really enjoyed talking with her about blogging and our families. April Welch, The Mental Clutter Coach, was so interesting. Her adventures in tackling the issues surrounding clutter were fascinating. I spoke briefly with Maggie at magpiemusings.com. Café Kel at http://www.cafekel.com/ was delightful. I also got to meet Wendi “Tha Dream” Aarons. We met briefly at the beginning of the night, and she introduced me to Tracy at www.lostinsuburbia.net. She was so cool and very down to earth. Tracy wrote the book Rebel Without a Minivan. Imagine my horror when I vomited the fact that I have a minivan. Tracy still talked to me, despite Mini, and even offered a link to get some racing stripes to make her BA (that’s Dane Cook speak for bad ass). She’s a great example of an A-lister being totally cool with a little blogger like me.

At the end of the night, Wendi Aarons came back to talk with me. I was so incredibly nervous, I am sure I chatted on and on like an idiot. I think I mentioned how much I like to blog and write, but I can’t be sure because what I was saying was not the same monologue in my head which was Ohmygodjustshutupandlethertalkalready. So Wendi, I apologize if I acted like a pre-teen at a Twilight meet-n-greet.

And those were just the bloggers. The reps from sponsors were really nice, too. (Yes, I know they are supposed to be, but let’s just say some people are better than others). Sharron and Heather, reps for Whirlpool, were so nice. I loved hearing their stories of how they landed in New York City. The rep from LG, who I don’t remember her name, was really cool. I mean, how could she not? She did give me a brand new LG vacuum. She demoed how the vacuum could pick up glitter, and if it could pick up glitter, then I knew it could pick up goldfish crackers, right? I couldn’t believe it! I don’t even have to give LG my first born in exchange for this awesome swag! How sweet is that?!

Me and my new LG vacuum! Yes, I plan to wear that everytime I use it, too!

When it was time to leave, I wasn’t ready to go home. I mean, it took a lot of effort to look that hot. So I followed two ladies that I met earlier, Diane and her friend, to another bar. I enjoyed chatting with Diane about writing and our kids. She really was so sweet.

All in all I had a great time at the Mouthy Housewives Happy Hour. I am so glad that I went and powered through my anxiety. Because really, there ain’t no party like Housewives party!