Blog - Life in the DayngrZone

Help Carolina Locals During the One Warm Coat Drive

{ December 1, 2016 } - Trish

One Warm Coat Drive

Hey friends! I’m a big fan of getting involved at a local level so this year, one of the non-profit organizations I’m on the board for is encouraging everyone who can to donate a new or gently used coat this Winter.

Why Coats?

Health experts report that even a 2-degree drop in body temperature results in reduced heart rate, loss of coordination, and confusion. Adults cannot work effectively and children find it difficult to learn. For most, a warm coat solves the problem. But, for the nearly 15% of Americans living in poverty, a warm winter coat is a budget “extra.”

Did you know?

15% of seniors live in poverty
3.5 million people experience homelessness each year
One in five children is living in poverty

You Can Help Carolina Locals During the One Warm Coat Drive

Gateway Western Carteret Community Alliance and the Crystal Coast Christmas Festival have teamed up with One Warm Coat this holiday season to help our local community members in need. This is such a sweet way to help someone in need, right here in our community, this holiday season.

You can donate a new or gently used coat during the Festival (Dec 2 – 11) and your contributions will go to a local domestic violence center and a local homeless shelter.

You can also bring in canned goods as well, contributions will also go to our local shelters.

Cans and One Warm Coat Drive and Drop Off Location:

The Market At Cedar Point
1046 Cedar Point Blvd
Cedar Point, North Carolina

For more info call (910) 330-7937 or (252) 285-6606

About One Warm Coat

One Warm Coat works to provide a free, warm coat to any person in need. We encourage people to keep others warm by donating a new or gently used coat.

One Warm Coat is a national non-profit organization that assists in the donation of coats. We help individuals, groups, companies and organizations across the country collect coats and deliver them to local agencies that distribute them free, to people in need.

Key Facts and Figures

WHAT THEY DO ANNUALLY

Support over 3,000 Coat Drive Ambassadors by:

Providing free instructions, materials, tools and resources
Hosting and maintain a searchable database of coat drive events across North America

Assist community nonprofit agencies by:

Listing them on their searchable database
Assisting them in receiving needed coats

Work with business and brands to:

Engage employees and customers in giving warmth
Develop and support marketing goals and initiatives

WHAT THEY HAVE ACCOMPLISHED

They have focused on one specific need for 22 years allowing us to:

Support more than 20,000 coat drives to date
Expand to support coat drives held in all 50 states & 10 countries
Collect over four million coats providing over four million people with warmth

Keep their expenses low (with an average cost of .50 per coat) allowing them to:

Use our funds efficiently with 95% of every $1 supporting our programs
Provided over 300,000 children with new coats of their own

If you have gently used coats and jackets you’re no longer using or no longer need, please pass them on to someone who desperately needs them this Christmas. You can drop them off now through December 11th.

Thanks in advance!

A Cardinal on the Crystal Coast

{ February 23, 2016 } - Trish

Moving to North Carolina’s Crystal Coast has given the kids and I so many more opportunities to see a wide variety of wildlife, especially birds like the Cardinal. All along the Crystal Coast, there are great places for bird watching and if you have a bird feeder like we do, you already know this!

cardinal, winter cardinal, cardinal in snow

Gorgeous Cardinal perched on a black metal bar during Winter. © Chris Chow

The Cardinal is One of Our Favorites

One of our local favorites is the Cardinal. It also happens to be North Carolina’s state bird. Did you know they’re also known as cardinal-grosbeaks and cardinal-buntings? The sexes usually have distinctive appearances with males being bright red, like the one above, and females being a rusty brown.

Swansboro Cardinal, Cardinal, Crystal Coast Birds

Beautiful Cardinal enjoying a little Winter weather in Swansboro, NC.

The kids’ dad snapped the photo above on his phone from the window while he was in Swansboro. It was a brisk Winter morning but the birds don’t seem to mind at all. Of course, we do notice a whole lot of activity at the feeders during the Winter, most likely because it’s harder to find seeds and berries.

Have you ever wondered what a Cardinal sounds like? You can listen to a Cardinal’s song right here. Enjoy!

Inviting Cardinals to Your Yard

cardinals feeding, female cardinal, cardinals and bird feeder

The perfect moment when a female Cardinal takes flight. © Elvis Bueno

If you’d like to encourage Cardinals to visit your backyard, you can help by supplying some of their favorites like seeds, insects (you can buy mealworms), and berries. That’s what we do. Their diet is quite varied. Most home and garden stores will have a wide variety of seed selections perfect for Cardinals.

Bird in snow, Female Cardinal, cardinal in a snowy tree

Female Cardinal perched on a tree branch. © Ryan Tasto

Our favorite place to shop for all things bird-related, including seed, is a sweet little shop in Atlantic Beach that acts as a dual purpose store. It’s Kites Unlimited and Bird Stuff, etc. That’s literally the name!

I love that store so much and so do my kids. We’ve been popping in there since we moved here in 2012 and we still enjoy stopping in whenever we’re in Atlantic Beach. It’s one of those stores where there’s always something new to see and they’re so knowledgable about birds.

Kites Unlimited and Bird Stuff, Etc.
1010 W Fort Macon Rd
Atlantic Beach, North Carolina 28512

(252) 247-7011

What’s your favorite bird? Is it one that’s local to you? Kick off the conversation in the comments.

DayngrZone Media Expands to Work with Bloggers and Brands

{ September 14, 2015 } - Trish

I’m so excited to finally share my big news with you! Did you know North Carolina has its own Blogger Network? Founded in the summer 2014, the NC Blogger Network {NCBN} was created as a way to unite North Carolina based bloggers and help them build a better blogging community.

I’m proud to announce that I’ve taken ownership of NC Blogger Network and look forward to helping the community grow. If you’ve ever wanted to learn about blogging or join the thriving and active community, check out NC Blogger Network. NCBN provides education, sponsored campaigns, networking events, and conferences for members.

Expanding our Agency – The Big Benefit For You

If you’re already working with me through DayngrZone Media, my network just grew that much larger. If you’ve been looking to promote your business, product or brand throughout North Carolina, NCBN provides the perfect opportunity to do so. NCBN offers a variety of sponsorship and advertising opportunities.

The North Carolina Blogger Network’s bloggers are seasoned bloggers covering lifestyle topics such as the fashion, beauty, parenting, health, wellness, food, travel and tourism niches – and their audience is far-reaching.

If you’re a blogger, (or know one) or you’re interested in getting started blogging, you can join through the end of September using our discount code, and receive a 10% discount off membership. Just contact me and I’ll send you the code.

The East Coast NC Lifestyle Brand

Another exciting addition to our portfolio is the East Coast NC (ECNC) lifestyle brand. Through it we have a variety of sponsorship and advertising opportunities available as well. When you team up with DayngrZone Media, you also have the power of these two brands to choose from.

I’m thrilled to head up the NCBN team as well as the team at ECNC, and I look forward to all the big changes ahead and ways to better serve you!

Interested in Working with Us?

If you’re interested in having me find the right blogger for your brand, I’d love to help! If you’re more interested in digital marketing, advertising, design or social media for your business, contact me and let’s get started. I’d love to discuss what I have to offer and how I can help you.

Free Marketing Resources

Whether you’re ready to work with me or not, I’ve got plenty of FREE marketing resources here on our website, and on my Twitter account and Facebook page. Pick your favorite place to follow along and enjoy!

Thank You

Thanks so much for being a part of my network. I look forward to working with you and hearing from you soon!

The Influenster TLC VoxBox

{ July 12, 2014 } - Trish

Brands love it when consumers try their products and share their opinions. Social media is a great way for brands to get direct feedback from consumers, and folks like us, who might like their products. One way that they do this is by teaming up with public relations firms or with companies who specialize in blogger outreach.

Influenster is one such company. Recently they sent me their TLC VoxBox for the Moms of the Influenster Nation to try our a few great products. I love surprises and there’s nothing better than getting a surprise box, filled with items to sample in the mail.

Here’s what was in my TLC VoxBox:

A Shell rewards card good for gas discounts. Can’t wait to try this!
A coupon for a free Breyers Gelato Indulgences so we can give it a try. Yum!
Puffs to Go, Which I always carry with me in my purse. My kids and I have seasonal allergies.
Neosporin’s Neo to Go, another staple. I have one in the car and now, one in my purse. I’m a mom and my kids are typical kids.
A beautiful bar of Ivory Soap. Years ago my doctor recommended I use Ivory, and I do! So it’s nice to have this bar on hand.
Avon’s Anew Reversalist Express Wrinkle Smoother. This is something I’ve never tried, so I’m looking forward to it – even though I don’t have any wrinkles yet.

Here’s how you can reach these brands:

Shell Fuel Rewards Network [affiliate link] Tweet them at @Shell_US using #FuelRewards
Breyers Gelato Indulgences Tweet them at @Breyers using #GelatoLove
Puffs to Go Tweet them at @Puffs using #PassthePuffs
Neosporin Neo to Go Tweet about their products using #NeoReady
Ivory Bar Soap Tweet them at @Ivory using #SudLife
Avon Anew Reversalist Express Wrinkle Smoother Tweet them at @AvonInsider using #AvonANEW

Have you tried any of these products? Let me know what you thought about them. Are you part of any blogger outreach programs? Which would you recommend? Let me know in the comments below! Also, If you’d like to become an Influenster too, let me know and I will send you an invite code from my account. Win/Win!

Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast – June Recap

{ July 8, 2014 } - Trish

We had another great Geek Breakfast this morning with lively conversation and great participation.

Who Joined Us

This week the following great folks, representing the following great businesses, joined me for a lively discussion on tech, digital marketing, blogging, social media and more –

Christoph Hintze – Cristoph Hintze Drafting
Fran Pigott-Harding – MainSail Marketing
Martha Vaughn – The Fruit Bowl and Breakfast Bar
Mike Parsons – MyNetWiz.com
Nathan Forant – SOBX Tech
Sherry Hintze – Aspiring Novelist

What We Discussed

As always, we covered a variety of topics from building membership and interest around Crystal Coast Social Media Club, social media best practices, photo editing platforms, online security, tech support, free resources for businesses, and shared case studies and more. We don’t want to give it all away, we want you to come out and join us!

What’s Next?

RSVP and join us for the next breakfast: Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast – July MeetUp

Questions?

For more information, call us at (252) 226-0885 or post your questions below or on our Facebook page. We’re looking forward to meeting you, July 31st and getting some great conversations started!

It’s Free Comic Book Day

{ May 4, 2014 } - Trish

It’s Free Comic Book Day! This is our first year participating in this annual event and the kids had a good time.

I grew up reading comics and they were such a treat. My dad used to bring me comics and my parents let me pick them out all the time, especially on road trips.

Free Comic Book Day

Free Comic Book Day, takes place on the first Saturday of May. It’s an annual promotional effort by the North American comic book industry to help bring new readers into independent comic book stores.

I took the kids out to Beach Book Mart, our local comic book store in Atlantic Beach, to get a free comic today. We picked up a few more to enjoy, too.

As a strong woman, I’m always on the lookout for anything that spotlights women or shows girls in a position of power. It’s so important to me that my kids see lots of examples of this and female empowerment. Of course, I gravitated to two new releases hitting the shelves – Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel.

Captain Marvel

I have to admit, I didn’t know much about Captain Marvel before this year. It’s been a really long time since I enjoyed reading comics. But, I was thrilled to learn about her and the new release.

As Captain Marvel, a.k.a. Carol Danvers, comes to a crossroads with a new life and new romance, she makes a dramatic decision that will alter the course of her life and the entire Marvel Universe in the months to come. It’s time to go HIGHER, FURTHER, FASTER and more in the most super-powered comic around!

Sounds good, right?

Ms. Marvel

Talk about history in the making. I love that this comic exists showing comic book heroines in a new light. She’s a teenager, from New Jersey and she’s Muslim.

Marvel Comics presents the all-new Ms. Marvel, the ground breaking heroine that has become an international sensation! Kamala Khan is an ordinary girl from Jersey City – until she is suddenly empowered with extraordinary gifts. But who truly is the all-new Ms. Marvel? Teenager? Muslim? Inhuman? Find out as she takes the Marvel Universe by storm! As Kamala discovers the dangers of her newfound powers, she unlocks a secret behind them as well. Is Kamala ready to wield these immense new gifts? Or will the weight of the legacy before her be too much to handle? Kamala has no idea either. But she’s comin’ for you, New York!

Girl power all the way!

If you’re local and would like to check out our favorite comic book store, here’s where you can go:

Beach Book Mart
1010 West Fort Macon Road
Atlantic Beach, NC 28512
252-240-5655

Did you grab some new comics today? Which ones did you pick up? Were the characters new to you or old favorites? I can’t wait to hear from you.

Hollywood Swag Bag and Gift Card Giveaway

{ April 21, 2014 } - Trish

This is a sponsored post

Ever watch one an award shows on TV and wish you could score some of the awesome swag that the celebrities take home? I’ve teamed up with Bloggin’ Mamas & Hollywood Swag Bags through this sponsored post to make that wish a reality. One lucky winner will receive a Swag Bag that was given out to Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards 2014 Presenters and Nominees ($800 Value) + a $500 gift card sponsored by The Children’s Place. Who doesn’t love a Swag Bag and Gift Card Giveaway?

Guidelines

The giveaway starts 4/17/14 at 12:01 AM EST and ends 4/30/14 at 11:59 PM EST. It’s open to United States Residents 18 and over. Winner will be selected via random.org and notified via email within 48 hours after the drawing. Winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected. Winner’s name will be displayed via the Rafflecopter widget below.

Here is some of what you might find in your swag bag if you win:

Buddy Ball – The Buddy Ball is a multi-functional toy that can go from a teddy bear into a ball in a matter of seconds. The soft plush also stores a variety of kid treasures inside. The company gifted the nominees with a variety of their bears named Max, Eva, Landry, and Sam.
OPPOS – A line of girls leggings featuring interchangeable legs. Short for opposites, OPPOS™ enables girls to mix and match the legs of their leggings for a different look every day of the month (and beyond).
Various pieces of AngieShel Design’s gorgeous handcrafted jewelry.
Ericka La Presle-Freer, creator of Starbars is added her gourmet organic superfood bar in a delicious mint chocolate chip flavor.
The “Brain Bar” was included to help nominees get their “Think On”, particularly helpful during an acceptance speech.
Darby’s English Toffee is the finest toffee maker in Southern California. They have added their classic box for the nominees.
Author Jennifer Ormond gifted her precious book Baby’s Binky Box.
Oxylent Multivitamin Supplement Drink Oxygenates, hydrates, circulates and rejuvenates. Drink Oxylent Breathe Life.
SeaSnax, a favorite among celebrities, launched a new product “Chomperz” to all the recipients. Chomperz can be described similar to a chip, but with the low calories and nutrition of seaweed. SeaSnax are gluten-free and all-natural. Try Chomperz and you will be hooked.
Crave Naturals included three items from their product line, featuring the best-selling Glide Thru Detangling Brush, Whiplash Eyelash Curler & Mirage Argan Oil.
Tat Patch takes your ripped, destroyed and distressed jeans to a new level. Tat Patches go on the inside, peeking out. Everyone received an assortment of cool designs.
DidiPopMusic supplied nominees with a collection of her smart and soulful music for kids.
Rusk Hair made sure the nominees’ hair was perfectly groomed with its entire line of products.
Nominees over the age of 21 enjoyed Tipsy Girl Wine Design Custom bedazzled wine glasses for the sophisticated oenophile.
Focal Instincts Photography is including a gift certificate for award-winning photography.

Enter Now!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast – March 27th MeetUp

{ March 25, 2014 } - Trish

Hey there Crystal Coast Tech Enthusiasts,

You’re invited to join us for our monthly Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast, Thursday, March 27th, from 9 AM to 10 AM at The Java Post.

We’re quite excited to be a part of bringing the local tech community together, right here along North Carolina’s Crystal Coast. If you’re interested in technology, work in the industry or just want to learn what’s going on in the area, come on out and let’s connect.

What’s a Geek Breakfast?

A Geek Breakfast is a monthly community-driven meeting for local (and visiting) technology-minded people. Each month attendees congregate over breakfast foods and plenty of coffee to discuss topics like social media, blogging, digital marketing, design, programming, and ways to better their communities through technology.

Who Can Participate?

Everyone is invited, attendance is free (excluding food, beverage and gratuity).

Where?

This breakfast will be held at The Java Post:

The Java Post

207 WB McLean Drive

Cape Carteret, NC. 28584

When?

Thursday, March 27th, from 9:00 am to 10:00 am and then once a month after that. Stay tuned!

What’s the Hashtag?

The official hashtag for this event is #GeekBreakfastSOBX if you can’t make it but would like to follow along online. Pictures, audio and video should be licensed under Creative Commons and tagged using “CrystalCoastGeekBreakfast” and “GeekBreakfast” and we encourage you to add them to the Geek Breakfast Flickr Group.

What’s Next?

Though registration isn’t required, please take a moment to RSVP the Facebook Page at: Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast – March MeetUp so we can get a good idea of how many people to expect.

Questions?

For more information, call us at (252) 226-0885 or post your questions on our Facebook page. We’re looking forward to meeting you, March 27, 2014 and getting some great conversations started!

How Social Media is Driving Reality TV

{ February 21, 2014 } - Trish

Reality TV – There’s no escaping it and for many of us, we don’t want to. From American Idol to Survivor reality television has taken over. But how does social media play a part in reality television or the making of a star? The “Social Media as the Driver of Reality Television” panel touched upon these questions, and many more yesterday, at Social Media Week Miami.

“Social Media as the Driver of Reality Television” Panelists

Photo Credit: Ivan Nava – Steve Berke, Lesley Abravanel, Alexia Echevarria, Louis Aguirre

The panel was hosted by Emmy award-winning TV host of WSVN 7’s “Deco Drive”, Louis Aguirre. The local all-star panel included Lesley Abravanel (pop culture writer for the Miami Herald), Alexia Echevarria (Executive Editor for Venue Magazine and cast member Real Housewives of Miami on Bravo), Steve Berke (Contestant on Fox’s The Rebel Billionaire) and was certainly one of the more popular and entertaining panels of the day.

There’s no doubt you’ve heard of Bravo TV’s hit franchise “The Real Housewives.” Part of what makes it so popular is that Andy Cohen had the foresight to give people the power to share their stories around the shows and directly interact and engage with him, the network and the reality stars themselves. All reality show housewives are required to have social media accounts. They tweet, they blog and they have Facebook pages and clearly, their audience loves it and it’s working for them.

Also, driving the link between Reality TV and social media are apps like Into Now and Get Glue, that allow you to check in to the shows you’re watching and talk about it with others who are watching as well in real-time.

Social media has already changed the world as we know it… – Steve Berke

At one point, Steve Berke stated that social media has already changed the world as we know it stating that if it wasn’t for social media, today’s U.S. President wouldn’t be Obama, it would be Hillary.

Social media is turning the average Joe or Jane into celebrities

Social media is turning the average Joe or Jane into celebrities. Don’t believe me? Ask Justin Bieber. Steve Berke mentions that in order to break into the music business, you’d better have a pretty healthy following on YouTube if you even want to be considered by a record label. His suggestion for creating videos that will get watched – digital shorts. He added, “If a video is too long (10Min) I’m going to skip it, but if the video is 3 min long ok.”

Journalists vs. Social Media Influencers

Speaking of celebrities, it’s said that they will measure your level of celebrity by the number of followers you have on your social media accounts. Which leads me to the conversation about Klout. If you don’t think people are paying attention to Klout or that your Klout score doesn’t matter, think again. Fashion Night Out at Bal Harbour Shops selected their VIPs based on high Klout Scores, stated Louis Aguirre. Respected journalists with years of hard work couldn’t even get into some of the VIP Parties, yet there were bloggers who were in attendance because they had more clout than traditional journalists.

Key Takeaways

90% of the television shows being produced right now are digital oriented.
Teenagers watch 5 times more YouTube videos than TV.
Social TV is where it’s at with apps like Into Now and Get Glue.
Everything is heading toward being web-based – so social will become even more important.
Attention spans are getting shorter, build your content around that fact.
SuperBowl had over 1 million viewers watching ONLINE.
Twitter is the new focus group.
Social networks have become the online water cooler.
Don’t underestimate the power of YouTube (or social media in general).

And finally, Reality TV much like social media, isn’t going anywhere, anytime soon.

There were plenty of great conversations around this panel and I could write for days, but in the interest of accommodating those short attention spans, I’ll let you check the recorded version yourself for more. You can watch the livestream playback at http://new.livestream.com/smwmiami/realitytelevision

You can read Lesley Abravanel’s blog “Scene in the Tropics” in the Miami Herald, check out Alexia Echevarria’s magazine “Venue Magazine”, keep up with Louis Aguirre on his Facebook page “Louis Aguirre TV“ and learn more about the projects Steve Berke’s working on at his website “Steve Berke for Mayor”.

Do you think reality television is here to stay? What reality shows are your favorite? (You can tell us, we promise we won’t judge) Do you use Twitter and Facebook while you’re watching TV?

Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast MeetUp January 30

{ January 22, 2014 } - Trish

Crystal Coast Tech Enthusiasts,

You’re invited to join me for my monthly Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast, Thursday, January 30, from 9 AM to 10 AM at The Java Post.

I’m pleased to be a part of bringing the local tech community together, right here along North Carolina’s Crystal Coast. If you’re interested in technology, work in the industry or just want to learn what’s going on in the area, come on out and let’s connect.

What’s a Geek Breakfast?

Who Can Participate?

Everyone is invited, attendance is free (just pay for your own breakfast).

Where?

This breakfast will be held at The Java Post:

The Java Post

207 WB McLean Drive

Cape Carteret, NC. 28584

When?

Thursday, January 30, from 9:00 am to 10:00 am and then once a month after that. Stay tuned!

What’s the Hashtag?

The official hashtag for this event is #GeekBreakfastSOBX if you can’t make it but would like to follow along online.

What’s Next?

Though registration isn’t required, please take a moment to RSVP the Facebook Page at: Crystal Coast Geek Breakfast – January so I can get a good idea of how many people to expect.

Questions?

For more information, call us at (252) 226-0885 or post your questions on our Facebook page. I’m looking forward to meeting you, January 30, 2014 and getting some great conversations started!