1 Prince and 3 Princesses

The Comforts of Home~ book review

2011-10-31T09:46:00.002-04:00

Jodi Thomas' newest book The Comforts of Home hits the shelves November 1, 2011. I love this series and was excited to read this new book.

Publishers Weekly Review
In her third Harmony novel, Thomas takes readers back to that Texas town where a number of romances come to a head after a tornado strikes. Funeral director Tyler Wright struggles to profess his love to Maj. Kate Cummings. Aspiring rodeo star Noah MacAllen keeps returning to Harmony and his best friend (and beloved) Reagan Tru-man. Reagan, whose "uncle" Jeremiah (he’s her foster father) is dying, wrestles with her feelings for Noah and local firefighter Bran-don Biggs. Meanwhile, shy Ronelle Logan meets angry, lonely Martin Winslow, who helps her emerge from her shell. Despite their passion, Claire Matheson has trouble committing to Denver Sims. The tornado leaves each character wondering if loved ones have survived, and this uncertainty forces them to action. Even for readers new to the series, the intricate relationships be-tween these affable men and eccentric women are easy to follow and even easier to love. Thomas skillfully juggles the many subplots, and the relationship between Ro-nelle and Marty, which inspires both to trust again, is especially touching.

About Jodi Thomas
Jodi Thomas is the NY Times and USA Today best-selling author of 34 novels and 11 short story collections. In June 2011, WELCOME TO HARMONY won a RITA, the highest award for contemporary fiction. Jodi currently serves as the Writer in Resi-dence at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas.

*Disclosure* I was not paid for this book review. I was sent a free copy of the book in exchange for my review. Thank you to Jodi Thomas and publishers for sending the book.

The Comforts of Home- Jodi Thomas

2011-10-31T09:38:00.003-04:00

I’m getting excited. THE COMFORTS OF HOME is on its way and due to hit the stands on Nov. 1. Whenever I write any of the Harmony Series, I always feel like I’m stepping into another world and for me it is a real world. The town is as real to me as any place I’ve ever lived. I’ve lived in little towns from Freehold, NJ. to Sierra Vista, AZ but now spend most of my days in the little town of Canyon, Texas. For me, I feel at home writing about a small town and the warm, caring people who live there.

THE COMFORTS OF HOME is about a woman I’d wanted to write about since she first appeared in WELCOME TO HARMONY. Ronelle was one of those invisible people we see about town but don’t take the time to know. After a chance meeting with a man who seems more isolated than her, she begins to grow as a person and discovers a world she’d only dreamed of living. The magic of this story for me was how two broken people can help one another.

I hope you’ll join me for this journey inside a small town where people care deeply about one another. You’ll see people you’ve grown to know in WELCOME TO HARMONY and SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY. When I’m writing I always think of the reader at the other end of the line. I always wish I could whisper, ‘come along with me on an adventure. I’ll make you laugh and cry and fall in love with the people of Harmony, just as I have.

Jodi Thomas

www.jodithomas.com

www.facebook.com/JodiThomasAuthor

*Disclosure* This post was a guest post written by Jodi Thomas.

Shadow in Serenity- book review

2011-09-26T14:07:00.000-04:00

Shadow in Serenity written by New York Bestselling author, Terri Blackstock takes you on a journey to small town Texas.

Carny Sullivan, suspicious about suave, handsome Logan Brisco and his charming ways, is drawn to him, despite her best intentions and her determination to expose his plans for her quiet Texas town.

Carny Sullivan grew up in the zany world of a traveling carnival. Quaint and peaceful Serenity, Texas, has given her a home, a life, and a child. Logan Brisco is the smoothest, slickest, handsomest man Serenity, Texas has ever seen. But Carny Sullivan knows a con artist when she sees one—and she’s seen plenty, starting with her father. As far as Carny Sullivan can tell, she’s the only one in town who has his number. Because from his Italian shoes to his movie-actor smile, Logan has the rest of the town snowed.

Carny is determined to reveal Brisco’s selfish intentions before his promise to the townspeople for a cut in a giant amusement park sucks Serenity dry. Yet, as much as she hates his winning ways, there is a man behind that suave smile, a man who may win her heart against her will.

For me personally it took a bit longer to read, as I had a hard time getting into the plot of the story, not because it was a bad book, just not one I was overly excited about reading, not a hard plot to follow so I pretty much figured out how it would end well before I was done reading it.
Shadow in Serenity is a fun read, with a happy ending. This book was previously published under a different title, and has been modified to fit into the Christian realm. I would give this book 3 out of 5 stars, and would recommend it to those that like Christian books.
Shadow in Serenity will be available to purchase starting in September 2011.

*Disclaimer* I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free copy of the book to read in exchange for my review. Thank you to the PR Company for sending the book.

It's Your Kid Not a Gerbil - Winner

2011-09-16T11:23:00.000-04:00

The big winner of the It's Your Kid Not a Gerbil gift certificate is entry 1, Karen B.
Thanks to the two who entered :)

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It's Your Kid Not a Gerbil- book review and GIVEAWAY

2011-09-06T11:42:00.000-04:00

I just love the title of this book! It's Your Kid Not a Gerbil was written by Dr. Kevin Leman. Dr. Leman has written many books on children and parents. He has a way with words and it was a fun book to read. Obviously from the title you can figure out what the book is going to deal with and I think most families will find the book a help.

Do you sometimes feel like a gerbil running on a wheel inside a cage as you scurry from place to place, chauffeuring your children from one endless activity to another? What if, for one moment, you could just step off of the wheel . . . and relax? How would you feel then? And what if that single moment could stretch into an hour, or even a whole day? It’s Your Kid, Not a Gerbil will provide practical solutions and helpful insight to get off the activity wheel so that you can put your time and energies where they really count: in establishing strong character and a love for home and family that will serve your kids well for a lifetime.

I know most people who have kids have felt at one time or another that they are just running from activity to activity with no real purpose- I felt that way last school year, even though we homeschool it's still easy to get caught up in every activity under the sun. This year we are not doing as much running around! Most times my kids would rather stay home and play than run and do errands anyway.

I recommend this book for everyone. It's well written and has many helps throughout the book.

Giveaway

One reader is going to win a gift certificate to receive a free copy of the book It's Your Kid Not a Gerbil. All you have to do is comment. Tell me why you would like to read this book. One comment per person. I will choose a winner using Random.org. The winner will be notified by email. The giveaway will run through September 15th and end at 11:00 p.m. est. Open to USA residents only.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this review. I was given a free copy in exchange for review. I was also sent a free gift certificate to give to a reader. Thanks to Tyndale!

Horse Dreams- Book Review

2011-09-06T11:10:00.000-04:00

Horse Dreams was written by Dandi Daley Mackall, who is the author of the bestselling Winnie the Horse Gentler series.

Fourth-grader Ellie James has a great imagination. She spends a lot of time daydreaming of owning a black stallion show horse and winning trophies in the horse show. But when the answer to all her dreams and prayers gallops into her life, will Ellie be able to recognize it? Join Ellie and her quirky family in their exciting, horse-loving adventures.
I gave this book to my 5th grade daughter to read. She easily read it in one day. With 16 chapters it's a quick and easy read for most kids. She liked the book and would like to read more books from the author.
I also read the book. I know it's a book for kids, but still it seemed a bit silly. I didn't care for how silly and dumb the adults were made to be in the books. I did like the sign language that was used in the book, which made it more educational. There is also a section in the back with horse terms. Overall, it's a book for kids and there was nothing bad or wrong with the book, just nothing substantial in it. It would be good for a child that loves horse stories.

**Disclaimer** I was not paid for this review. I was given the book free of charge in exchange for my review. Thanks to the Tyndale blog program.

Courageous- Book Review

2011-08-09T15:44:00.000-04:00

I had the wonderful opportunity to read the book Courageous, before it comes out in theaters this September. The book Courageous, was written by Randy Alcorn. About twenty percent of the book is based from the movie, and the rest is the authors invention of the story.

From the back cover From the creators of Fireproof comes an inspiring new story about everyday heroes who long to be the kinds of dads that make a lifelong impact on their children. As law enforcement officers, Adam Mitchell, Nathan Hayes, and their partners willingly stand up to the worst the world can offer. Yet at the end of the day, they face a challenge that none of them are truly prepared to tackle: fatherhood. While they consistently give their best on the job, good enough seems to be all they can muster as dads. But they’re quickly discovering that their standard is missing the mark.
They know that God desires to turn the hearts of fathers to their children, but their children are beginning to drift farther and farther away from them. Will they be able to find a way to serve and protect those who are most dear to them? When tragedy hits home, these men are left wrestling with their hopes, their fears, their faith, and their fathering. Can a newfound urgency help these dads draw closer to God . . . and to their children?
The story plays out as each man must come to terms with his job, fatherhood, and his duty to God. There is tragedy and there is triumph in this book. Just a warning :there is reference to drugs and their is gang violence.
I think it will be a great hit once the movie comes out, and I can't wait to see the movie version. The book was good, a few parts are a bit corny. Overall, I would recommend the book, and hope that the book will touch many lives.

*Disclaimer* I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free copy of the book thanks to Tyndale publishers.

EvoraPlus- Review

2011-07-22T16:26:00.000-04:00

EvoraPlus® is a unique probiotic mint that contains the patented beneficial bacteria blend, ProBiora3®. EvoraPlus® represents a whole new level of oral care, one in which good oral health is supported and maintained with good bacteria – just the way nature intended.

EvoraPlus is a 100% natural, all-in-one probiotic mint that gently whitens your teeth and takes care of your bad breath. One small mint, that taken daily will whiten your teeth, while giving you fresh breath.
EvoraPlus is the now more powerful and simple and easy to use. EvoraPlus was developed by Oragenics Chief Scientific Office, Dr. Jeffrey Hillman.

Who doesn't want fresh breath. This is the perfect way to whiten your teeth and freshen your breath at the same time. I loved the light minty taste. I am looking forward to seeing the results after trying EvoraPlus. You can purchase EvoraPlus and a variety of stores, like CVS, Target, Walgreen's, etc.

Now through August 31, 2011 you can save $5.00 when you order online at www.oragenics.com. Use coupon code EPLUS811 ( US only).

**Disclaimer** I was not paid for this review. I was sent a free sample in return for my review. Thanks to EvoraPlus and Cara Downs for the opportunity.

The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven- Book Review

2011-07-12T18:12:00.000-04:00

In 2004, Kevin Malarkey and his six-year-old son, Alex, suffered an horrific car accident. The impact from the crash paralyzed Alex—and medically speaking, it was unlikely that he could survive. “I think Alex has gone to be with Jesus,” a friend told the stricken dad. But two months later, Alex awoke from a coma with an incredible story to share. Of events at the accident scene and in the hospital while he was unconscious. Of the angels that took him through the gates of heaven itself. Of the unearthly music that sounded just terrible to a six-year-old. And, most amazing of all . . . Of meeting and talking to Jesus. The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven is the true story of an ordinary boy’s most extraordinary journey. As you see heaven and earth through Alex’s eyes, you’ll come away with new insights on miracles, life beyond this world, and the power of a father’s love.

The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven was written by Kevin Malarkey. A terrible, tragic story of one man's car accident that changed the life of his son, Alex for ever. For me personally, it took me a while to read the book, mostly because I did not enjoy it, but needed to finish it for the review.

I tried to read this book with an open mind, but I will be honest, I don't believe the story. This is my personal opinion. I found the book fascinating, but very hard to believe. While I feel horrible for the family and all that they have gone through, the book to me feels like a way to make a profit out of terrible tragedy. I will let you read the book for yourself to decide, as we are all entitled to our own opinions. I recommend reading it merely for the debate, about whether or not you believe Alex's story.

* Disclaimer* I was given a copy of this book for review purposes. I was not paid for this review. Thanks to Tyndale Publishers for making this review possible.

Say Good-bye to Your Preschoolers Summer Boredom Blues

2011-06-20T09:38:00.000-04:00

We've all been there, we've heard the dreaded words of "I'm bored!" "There's nothing to do!" come from our children's mouth at least once during the summer months, and even more so on a rainy summer day. Even when the summer seems to be filled with endless opportunities, they always will find a way to be bored.

So plan ahead with some fun and stimulating activities!

Beat the Boredom Jar: At the beginning of the summer, sit down with your family and brainstorm a list of activities that can be done alone or that you can enjoy doing together. Encourage your children to share their own ideas and help you decorate and label a simple jar as the family “Boredom Buster Jar.” They’ll feel more involved in the project and more likely to think this is a “neat” idea, if they participate in the creation and idea generation. Next, write everyone’s ideas down on slips of paper and as a group decide which ones should go in the jar. Anyone in the family can pull any idea out of the jar to fight the summertime boredom blues.

Art Treasure Chest: You’ll need to gather basic art supplies–child safe scissors, glue, markers, tape, and construction paper. Put them in a special box along with empty oatmeal boxes and paper towel rolls, colorful magazines, and bits of aluminum foil. Occasionally add a special surprise like chalk, stickers, or stamp pads so there’s always something new for the children to find. Even if you normally have these supplies around the house, it‘s fun for children to know that the Art Treasure Chest is just for them. They’ll probably have some good ideas of other household items that can be recycled to fuel their creative energies.

Family Performances: Break out old clothes or costumes and encourage children to make up characters and create a play to act out. They are the directors, actors, and producers. They can also make musical instruments out of pots/pans, wooden spoons, empty canisters and have a parade; or everyone can play along to your family’s favorite songs. Record or video the performances, and enjoy the replay. You’ll also be capturing a bit of family history everyone will enjoy for years to come.

Fort Building: Children love to build all kinds of structures--from small towns to large towers. Constructing forts or tents is an activity that can keep children focused and problem solving for hours. All the items you need can be found around the house–some chairs, cushions, blankets… and of course adult supervision.

Summer Scrapbook: All you need for this project is a spiral notebook. Encourage everyone in the family to draw pictures of favorite activities and collect mementos from special events throughout the summer. Children love to go back through scrapbooks and albums and tell about what happened at each occasion. They will also be building their storytelling skills at the same time.

Listening Game: Lie down in the backyard, in the den or at the park and listen. What do you hear? Do you hear what I hear? Can you imitate the sound? This is similar to watching the clouds and naming the shapes, and it encourages everyone to slow down and focus on listening.

Studies show that without stimulation, children can lose up to 60 percent of what they learned during the school year. Primrose Schools, a family of 200 accredited private preschools, suggests the key to overcoming summertime boredom and the “brain drain” effect is to encourage imaginative play and have a plan in place to keep children engaged during the summer months. So with activities like these you can offer a balance between the freedom of child-initiated play time and more structured activities that will help them keep engaged in what they learned all year long.

So with these tips in mind, sit down with your family and make a plan for an engaging, imaginative and fun summer.

Submitted by Emily Patterson on behalf of Primrose Schools. For over 25 years, they have helped individuals achieve higher levels of success by providing them with an AdvancED® accredited preschool services and education. Through an accelerated Balanced Learning® curriculum, Primrose Schools students are exposed to a widely diverse range of subject matter giving them a much greater opportunity to develop mentally, physically and socially. Emily has written a number of articles on topics varying from bilingual learning to teaching the importance of volunteering.

Alphabeasts~Always Playing, Always Learning

2011-06-13T22:50:00.000-04:00

Are you looking for a new and innovative way to teach your child the alphabet? Alphabeasts is a fun and exciting way to teach your child all the letters of the alphabet and to learn how to put letters together and learn to read. Alphabeasts are soft and cuddly,with each one having a letter of the alphabet on it's stomach. Each Alphabeast has a unique name and it's own story.

Alphabeasts are a great teaching tool, perfect for parents and educators alike. Whether your child is just learning their letters or is an avid speller, Alphabeasts are a fun way to encourage learning. Alphabeasts can be purchased online for $20.00 each.

Each of the 26 Alphabeasts has a distinctive design characteristic and physical attribute that makes them unique from one another. The beasts are 15" in height and are two-sided with contrasting colors front and back as well as upper and lower case alphabet characters on each side to enhance learning and playful functionality. Each beast has solid thread eye detail, a felt mouth with solid thread teeth, an exclusive custom dyed pallette, a generous polyester fill and a plush, washable velveteen outer body.

I was sent three Alphabeasts and my son loved them. I was very surprised at how well made they were. Extremely bright and bold colors and very soft. My son, who is 4, is learning his letters and I was happy that he knew what two of the letters on his Alphabeasts were. He had fun turning his Alphabeast over to see the upper case letter and the lower case letters. We were sent letters M, I and P, so we couldn't make any words, but they are still useful in letter recognition. Overall I think they are a great tool for learning and just plain fun. My only concern would be the price, at $20.00 each it would be very expensive to purchase the entire alphabet, but it could be a good investment for homeschoolers and schools.

Check them out on Facebook too!

*Disclaimer* Thank you to Mark at Higher Advertising for sending the Alphabeasts for review. I was sent this product for review purposes, I was not paid for this review.

A Reluctant Queen - Book Review

2011-06-09T17:39:00.000-04:00

The story of Esther as you have never read it before! Joan Wolf has taken the beloved Bible story of Esther and has turned it into a modern day love story.

From the back cover -

She was a simple girl faced with an impossible choice. He was a magnificent king with a lonely heart.

Their love was the divine surprise that changed the course of history.

The beloved story of Esther springs to fresh life in this inspired novel that vibrates with mystery, intrigue, and romance.

It was a very good book and I really enjoyed it. It was a fun way to read a Bible story I have heard from childhood spun into an adult book. The author has a great way of bringing the story to life.

I definitely recommend this book

* Disclaimer* I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free copy thanks to Thomas Nelson publishers.

Barielle - Review

2011-06-04T19:48:00.001-04:00

With summer weather in full swing it's time to start wearing flip-flops and sandals. It's also time to make your feet and nails pretty! Barielle has just the products you need to get your hands and feet summer ready. With a great line of products you are sure to find just what you need. I tried out a few of the following products, and was pleasantly surprised. The nail polish was a pretty summer shade, and lasts for about two weeks. I also enjoyed the cracked heel cream. It has a really nice scent and feels great on my feet.

They also carry a line of nail polish, with many shades to choose from.

Shades by Barielle ($8 each). Salon-strength formula that is completely free of the chemicals dibutyl phthalate, toluene and formaldehyde – pregnancy safe.
Provides high-shine glossy coat and forms protective barrier for a long-lasting finish. When shopping online…buy one get one 50% only at barielle.com.

•Barielle Nail Strengthener Cream ($10): The most popular, ground-breaking product for nail treatment. Helps strengthen nails to resist splits, peels and breaks.

Use daily to maintain healthy nails.

Noticeable improvement in 3-4 weeks.

Can be used over nail polish or on bare nails.

Barielle Ultra Speed Dry Manicure Extender -- CEW Award Winner ($16): Quick drying top coat with UV protection. Keeps dark colors from fading and light colors from yellowing. Apply as needed after manicure.

•Barielle Nail Brightener -- Cosmo Girl Award Winner ($16): Natural nail enhancement for dull or yellow nails.

Specifically formulated with anti-oxidizing properties to hydrate and brighten nails. Apply every other day.

•Barielle Total Foot Care Cream -- Allure Best of Beauty Award Winner ($12): Luxurious conditioning cream that helps eliminate calluses and cracks.

Contains NO harsh peeling ingredients, acids, or camphor.

Leaves your feet feeling soft and silky.

Baby powder fragrance. Apply one or twice per day.
Be sure and check Barielle out on Facebook and Twitter for contests and chances to win great prizes.

* Disclaimer* I was not paid for this post. I was sent free samples of products in exchange for my review. Thanks to Barielle and to Robin Leedy Associates for the opportunity.

The Wild Soccer Bunch book 2 - Review

2011-04-14T00:01:00.002-04:00

Author Joachim Masannek is back with the second book of the wildly popular series The Wild Soccer Bunch : Diego the Tornado.

Fabio, the son of a famous Brazilian soccer player, wants to join the Wild Soccer Bunch. But Fabio’s father has other plans. He makes his son play for the Furies, one of the best youth club teams in the country. The Wild Soccer Bunch is devastated, but Diego has a plan. He turns the Wild Soccer Bunch into a club team and challenges the Furies to a game! Can the Wild Soccer Bunch survive the game? Can their friendship endure the test?

If your child loves soccer they will love this series of books. Both boys and girls alike will find the series fun and captivating.
My nine year old daughter read the book in about two days, she really enjoyed reading it and couldn't put it down.

The Wild Soccer Bunch has sold over 10 million copies world wide and is a world wide phenomenom. You can purchase book two Diego the Tornado on Amazon.com or through The Wild Soccer Bunch website.
For more information as well as contests, games, and prizes follow on Facebook .

Disclaimer: I was not paid for this review. I was sent a free copy to read and review. Thank you to the PR team for sending this book.

The Adventures of Joe-Joe Nut & Biscuit Bill - Review

2011-04-13T10:41:00.001-04:00

The second book in the The Adventures of Joe-Joe Nut and Biscuit Bill is Case #2: Mineral Mischief. Written by Renee Hand and Illustrated by: Jake Karwoski.

In the midst of having her friends visit her rock collection, Maple Moo’s rare mineral goes missing from underneath her large cow nose. She instantly turns to Joe-Joe Nut and Biscuit Bill, the most famous detectives in Acorn Valley, to find it. But they didn’t know the task was going to be an impossible one. The suspects were hard to figure out. Was it Candy Cardinal, who committed the crime? She collects various gemstones to make jewelry. Brutus and Betty Blue Beaver also collect minerals and have a fancy quartz collection. Liam the Llama looks suspicious with his igneous rocks and exploding volcano, or was it Huckleberry Moose with his sedimentary rock collection? Joe-Joe and Biscuit find themselves at a loss until some bullies roar into town. Will the detectives be able to find the missing mineral? Or, will this be a case they won’t be able to close? Find out in case #2 in the award-winning Joe-Joe Nut and Biscuit Bill Series-Mineral Mischief. Look for the various activities in the back of the book concerning rocks and minerals for added learning. Bubbling rocks, anyone?

My nine year old daughter read the book and loved it. She especially liked all the information about rocks and the experiments in the back of the book.
As a homeschooling mom, I love that the experiments were added to the book, as this will give us some fun projects to try.
The book is funny, and educational and is well suited for children ages 7 and up.
I think the only thing I would like to see changed for the series is too see the illustrations done in color, instead of black and white.
You can find more information about the author Renee Hand on her website. She is an award winning author and has written many other books as well as the The Adventures of Joe-Joe Nut and Biscuit Bill. You can order book two through Amazon.com and Barnes and Nobles.
*Disclaimer* I was not paid for this review. I was sent a free copy to read and review. Thank you to Renee Hand for sending the copy and for writing an excellent book.

TEXAS BLUE Book Tour with Jodi Thomas

2011-03-30T11:51:00.001-04:00

About the book:
TEXAS BLUE, my 31st book, will be out in April and I had a great time with this adventure across Texas. First, I opened in 1875, with two friends parting ways one stormy night in Austin. Duncan, a Texas Ranger, is off to fight at the border and Lewt, a gambler, plans to find a wife while his friend is away.

Duncan, called Duck when he was a boy in earlier books, is wild and fearless. Lewt has never done anything brave and never plans to.
Lewt decides to join a group of men Duncan hand selected to travel to Whispering Mountain and meet his three female cousins. Though Lewt knows his friend would never introduce a gambler to his rich relatives, he wants a chance for more than just a life in saloons.

The reader steps into two stories running at once. Duncan fighting, being hurt in the fight, being held captive and Lewt learning how to act around women he doesn’t have to buy a drink to talk to. Both learn and grow as they discover what is important in life.
Ride along with me and I promise I’ll take you through Texas from a ranch big enough to be its own kingdom to a fight in Texas history that became a legend the Texas Rangers still repeat.

From the author:
I’ve been setting books in Texas history for almost twenty years. As a fifth generation Texan, the world seems very real to me. People sometimes ask if I’d like to go back there, and I always say no, I just loving living there in my imagination. While writing this book I felt like I was returning to a much loved ranch I’d written about before called Whispering Mountain. My hero, Duncan, was rescued as a boy from an outlaw camp and adopted by the McMurrays. He’s been raised with three girl cousins and feels very protective of them. When they think he sent men to the ranching hoping to marry them off, the girls declare war on Duncan.

I hope readers will love this story as much as I loved writing it. Though TEXAS BLUE was my 31st book, I was a little surprised that I still love writing as much as ever. Some stories come easy, some seem more like work, but with this one all I did was turn on the laptop and hang on. The story took off all on its own. My characters were so strong at some points they took over the story.

Wishing you many hours lost in reading,
Jodi Thomas
http://www.jodithomas.com/
www.facebook.com/JodiThomasAuthor

*Disclosure* All content was written and sent from the author Jodi Thomas with her permission to post. Thank you to Jodi Thomas for supplying the book to read for my review. I was not paid for this post.

Texas Blue - Book Review

2011-03-30T00:05:00.000-04:00

Texas Blue is the fifth book in the “Whispering Mountain” series by author Jodi Thomas.

From the back cover:
Gambling man Lewton Paterson wants to marry into a respectable family, even if it costs him his friendship with Duncan McMurray. After fleecing a train ticket from one of the three gentlemen picked to call on Duncan's cousins, Lewt makes his way to Whispering Mountain. But seducing a well-bred woman is harder than Lewt thought, and he realizes that to entice a McMurray sister, he'll need to learn a thing or two about ranching—and love.

I absolutley loved this book! I couldn't put it down and was able to read it in a weekend. The characters were so fun and Ms. Thomas brings Texas to life in her books. I went to my local library and have put on hold as many of Jodi Thomas' books as they had.
I don't want to give anything away in the book, but it is a must read. As it is the fifth book in a series, you don't necessarily have to read the first four books, I am going to go back and read them so I can get caught up in the series, but Texas Blue can be read first.
Texas Blue comes out April 5th so be sure and order you copy.
You can follow Jodi Thomas on Facebook and Twitter and visit her webpage here.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free book for review purposes. Thank you to Ms. Thomas for the book.

Scunci Bendini clip - review

2011-03-15T10:35:00.001-04:00

As a mom of three little girls I am always interested in new hair products. I was asked to review the newest hair clips from Scunci called the Bendini clip.

Here’s a new and easy way to dress up your hair…just bend and snap!
Perfect for prom, wedding, communion or just to add a bit of sparkle to hair any day, we are introducing the new scünci® bendini™ clips! This high fashion hair jewelry adds instant glam in two easy steps, and works on almost any hair length and texture. The scünci bendini is available in three different sizes and a variety of styles, including jeweled crystals, colorful beads and metallics. It’s also available in the special scünci “girl” line designed especially for the little beauties in your life.

To use the scünci bendini clip, start with gathering your hair in the desired style. Slide the bendini comb into the hair, and bend and snap it securely in place for an all-day hold.

The bendini clip are now hitting shelves at drug, mass and grocery stores nationwide starting in at a suggested retail price of about $4.99 per pack.

We received two packs of the Bendini clips for girls. They are bright and colorful and right away two of my girls fought over them. It took us a few minutes to figure them out. They stayed in pretty well and my oldest daughter really likes them. Honestly, I am not sold on them. I am not sure how many uses we will get out of them as the clips are made from plastic and are already starting to bend funny. I am hoping they hold up as my daughter has worn them every day since we received them.

They also make clips for moms too.

You can find out more great information and take part in scünci giveaways at the scünci Facebook page or following scünci on Twitter .

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a sample product for review purposes. Thanks to Julie at Robin Leedy & Associates, Inc.

Lilly's Wedding Quilt - book review

2011-03-15T10:06:00.000-04:00

Lilly's Wedding Quilt was written by Kelly Long. From the back cover:

She isn't looking for love. He's mending a broken heart. It will take divine intervention for these two to get together.

Local Amish schoolteacher Lilly Lapp is tired of weddings, afraid of horses, and immersed in caring for her depressed mother. But when Jacob Wyse, a handsome horse breeder from her small community rescues her from a dangerous accident, Lilly discovers a renewed interest in life and the possibility of love.
Yet Jacob has lost the one true love of his life to another man and doesn't care to expose himself to the vulnerabilities of loving again.

God works to bring this unlikely pair into a sweet romance to produce a pattern of faith, which leads to the creation and comfort of Lilly's Wedding Quilt.

If you love to read Amish fiction this is a must read. The author has done a wonderful job of bringing the Amish culture to life. The story is one of finding true love and the ups and downs that go along with it. I really enjoyed this new to me author and plan on reading the first book in the series. I also can't wait to read the next book!

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free book to read in exchange for my review. Thank you to Book Sneeze for making this possible.

Seek Me with all your Heart - Book Review

2011-03-02T12:11:00.000-05:00

Seek Me with all your Heart was written by Beth Wiseman.

A groundbreaking series takes Amish readers where they've never gone before . . . Colorado. Emily Detweiler’s family abruptly moved to Colorado after tragedy struck in Ohio. But Emily can’t get far enough to escape what happened there.
David Stoltzfus is not happy when his family relocates from Pennsylvania to Colorado. Never mind that they haven't told him why. David struggles not only with this unwelcome move, but also with the fear that a health condition could keep him from living his life in full.
Emily and David each come to terms with a past that follows them, testing their faith and resolve. Will they overcome adversity and step onto the path God has chosen for them?

Author Beth Wiseman takes you into the daily lives of the Amish and the struggles that they deal with. A very well written book and a great story line, I look forward to reading the next book in the series. The only thing I didn't care for is the italicized Amish words, I know the author wants to add the language that the Amish speak, but it is a bit annoying to have to look to the front of the book to see what the words mean. Overall a great work of Christian fiction about the Amish, and I would definitely recommend this book to others.

***Disclosure*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free copy of the book thanks to Thomas Nelson Publishers and the Book Sneeze program.

Winner

2011-02-17T13:50:00.000-05:00

The winner of the Pediacare giveaway is entry #1
SavannahsSmiles said...

I cuddle with him on the couch watching his favorite shows. He loves to eat popsicles when he is sick too.

The winner was chosen using Random.org. The winner has 48 hours to respond to my email of another winner will be chosen.
Thank you to the 2 that participated in the giveaway :)

Journey to Riverbend - book review

2011-02-14T16:52:00.000-05:00

Michael Archer is nothing if not a man of his word. Though he was unable to save Ben Carstairs, Michael is determined to carry out Ben’s dying wish: to be reconciled with his father. Unfortunately, Sam Carstairs, one of the most ruthless businessmen on the frontier, has no use for his own son, much less a man of God seeking reconciliation.

Soon after arriving in Riverbend, Michael meets and falls for the stunning Rachel Stone while waiting for Sam to return from a business trip. Beautiful yet guarded, Rachel seems to be running from a past as dark as Michael’s.
When word reaches town that Sam has been kidnapped on the stagecoach home, Michael offers to join the search party formed by the local sheriff. With a budding romance behind him and a dangerous rescue ahead of him, he sets out on the trail, determined to complete his journey no matter the cost.

Henry McLaughlin is the 2009 winner of the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writer's Guild Operation First Novel Contest. He has written an amazing story with Journey to Riverbend. You will find yourself out in the old west, awaiting action from the cowboys of days long gone. This book shows God's amazing grace and how forgiveness is the key to relationships. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and really hope that the author left the ending the way he did so that there will be a second book.

*Disclaimer* I was not paid for this review. I was sent a free book in exchange for my review. Thank you to Tyndale publishers for the book.

Pedia Care Products - Review & Giveaway

2011-02-08T12:14:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year when sickness just keeps on keeping on. It seems like everyone I know has a sick child or has been sick in the last month. I have had two kids with either strep or ear infections in the last 2 weeks. I am so ready for spring!
I was asked to review some new products from Pedia Care, and they came right in the nick of time! I was able to test out the new Children's Fever/Pain Reliever on my daughter. She actually had no complaints about the flavor, which was a good thing. We were also sent the new Children's Mulit-System Cold medicine, but I haven't had to use it yet, though I may try it out if my son keeps coughing.

PediaCare® products help the next generation of teachers, astronauts and scientists get the most out of their childhood. Because they can’t conquer the world, until they’ve mastered the playground. And they can’t master the playground if sniffles and fevers keep them in bed. That’s why for years pediatricians and parents have relied on us for safe, effective medicines. And now we’re proud to introduce an expanded line of products especially formulated for kids. No matter what the ailment, like cough, cold, fever or aches and pains, you can count on PediaCare® products to care for your kids.

You can purchase Pedia Care products nationwide at retailers and drugstores for around $6.99.
To see more products offered by Pedia Care you can visit their website, you will also find valuable coupons on the website.

GIVEAWAY

One reader (US Residents only) will have the chance to win 1 bottle of the new Pedia Care Fever Reducer or the Cough & Cold formula.

How to enter:

My only requirement is to tell me how you help your little one when they are sick.

Please leave your email address with your comment.

One winner will be chosen by Random.org on February 15th at 10:00 PM EST.

The winner will be notified by email, and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

This is open to US residents only.

Feel free to blog, tweet or facebook about this giveaway, but the only entry is the one mentioned above.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent free samples in exchange for my review. Thank you to Julie at Robin Leedy & Assocaites for sending the review and giveaway product.

Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion- review

2011-02-03T10:26:00.000-05:00

It's winter and along with all the cold and snow comes dry, itchy skin.

Our family suffers from a variety of skin problems from eczema to issues from thyroid problems, and I am always on the look out for a great skin care product.

Last year I had the chance to try out Skin MD Natural, and I was very happy when they asked me to review more of their shielding lotions.

What is a Shielding lotion?

A shielding lotion does the real work to prevent dry skin in two ways.

First, it assists the inner layers of skin to absorb moisture. The humectant (an ingredient that attracts moisture) used in Skin MD Natural is unique to it and has been laboratory tested to be 6 times more effective than any other you will find in common creams.

Second, a shielding lotion enhances the power of the top layer of the skin to resist environmental irritants while protecting the inner natural moisture.

This can be a big benefit for those who cook, wash dishes and garden because Skin MD Natural helps skin retain its natural moisture and oils in the face of all those irritating soaps and chemicals.

The manufacturer's website http://www.skinmdnatural.com/ has hundreds of dermatologist and user reviews including many addressing severe dry skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis. People with sensitive skin -- and those of us who like to live as naturally as possible -- will appreciate that Skin MD Natural is hypoallergenic, free of fragrances, parabens and colorants. It is made with more than 90% natural ingredients and 100% food-grade ingredients that are on the FDA's "most safe" list.

I have been extremely happy with the skin care products that Skin MD Natural has made, and highly recommend you try it out.

You can get a sample here and see for yourself the difference that is in Skin MD Natural products.

You can find out more about Skin MD Natural on Facebook and Twitter and YouTube.

*Disclaimer* I was sent a free bottle of Skin MD in exchange of for my honest review of the product. I was not paid for this post. Thank you to Skin MD for the product.

Beneath The Night Tree - book review

2011-02-02T17:12:00.000-05:00

Beneath the Night Tree was written by Nicole Baart. This is the third book in a series about the life of Julia DeSmit. The preface of the book is:

Do I have a child? Julia DeSmit knew she would face the question eventually, but she didn’t expect it now. At twenty-four, she is finally content with the way her life has unfolded. A single mother to her son and young brother, she works at the local grocery store while chipping away at a two-year degree. All her free time is spent with her unorthodox family—her boys, her grandmother, and her boyfriend of five years. It’s not perfect, but Julia is happier than ever.

So when she receives the cryptic e-mail from her son’s father, Julia’s world is turned upside down. She hasn’t heard from Parker since he left her in a college parking lot nearly six years ago. But one look at her son—the spitting image of his father—is enough to convince her that, for better or worse, Parker is a part of their story. Faced with this new reality and an unexpected tragedy, Julia begins a tightrope walk between what was and what is, what she hopes for and what will be.

I wish I had read the first two books so I knew the whole back story. It isn't necessary to read the previous two books, it is still easy to follow along, just reading the first two books would have helped me make a connection to the characters.
While this is a christian themed book, I felt it lacked in christian content. The whole book is about an unmarried girl raising a child, and other than a few "prayers" there didn't seem to be much about Christ in the book. Overall it was a quick read, but the plot was pretty easy to pick out, and was like most other books.

*Disclaimer* I was sent a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to Tyndale for the book.

Need a seat?

2011-01-26T16:04:00.000-05:00

We recently completed a remodel of our kitchen and one of the big changes was adding a counter height bar area. We needed some modern bar stools to complete the project.
My husband and I both had different ideas when it came to seating. When I think of bar stools I think of a seat with a back so the kids don't fall off and get hurt. He was thinking of an actual stool type seat, no back and something small.

The great set we bought!

We headed out to look around in stores and couldn't find what either one of us wanted and the prices were crazy high. I told my hubby that I knew of a great online store that carries everything and we started looking. We found the perfect pair for our kitchen, and we found them online at CSNstores.

These stools are the perfect size for our small area, and they are great for kids and adults alike, and even better was the price!

**Disclaimer** I was not paid for this post. I was given a $40 gift code to use at CSNstores in exchange for my post.

Bow Allure - review

2011-01-26T14:46:00.000-05:00

As a mom of three girls I am always looking for fun, new hair accessories and we found it at Bow Allure! Bow Allure offers a wide assortment of bows, headbands, hair clips and bow holders.

Bow Allure is a brand new online boutique, based in Florida, specializing in hair accessories.

Bow Allure was started in 2010 by Juliet Hartley, who is a mom of two girls. Bow Allures goal is to provide fashionable, chic, handmade accessories.

We were sent 2 headbands, and 1 set of hair bows (the ones pictured). My girls were so excited to try their hair bands and bows. I especially liked the hairbands for the older girls. They were super cute, and perfect for the 7 and up crowd! My 2 year old loved the purple bows and they worked great in her fine, toddler hair. The hair bows come on an alligator clip that is lined, so their was no pulling of little baby hairs.
I think I am going to be ordering this cute bow holder to contain all of our bows!
You can shop from Bow Allures online catalog and you can find them on Face book.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this review. I was sent free products to review. Thank you to Juliet at Bow Allure for contacting me and allowing me to review her products.

Voices of the Faithful book 2- Review

2011-01-24T17:26:00.000-05:00

Are you looking for a daily devotional? Voices of the Faithful book 2 is a great devotional book by Beth Moore and Kim Davis. With 366 daily devotions, this book will inspire you as you read about the lives of missionaries. I have always found missionary stories to be very enjoyable and this devotion book gives you insight into the daily lives of some very great people and the experiences that they encounter. The book is broken down into topics such as: Prayer, Priority, God, Our Loving Father, Divine Appointments, Lessons from the Young, Lost and Found, Making Him Known, and many more. This book is a great read and a great reminder of those that are sacrificing their lives for the Lord.

Disclaimer: I was given a free copy of this book for review purposes. Thank you to Thomas Nelson publisher for the book.

Juno Baby - Review

2011-01-13T16:54:00.000-05:00

Juno Baby is a great new series that all preschoolers and babies will love. With award winning DVDs and Cd's this is a great way to introduce music to your children.

Juno Baby was co-created by mom and composer, Belinda Takahashi, who has spent her life immersed in music.

Juno Baby offers DVDs, Cd's, books and apparel for little ones. Your child will embark on a musical journey with Juno and her friends as they travel through the land of Harmonia Springs. Listening to classical music and learning all about music and instruments, your child will be delighted.

My younger two children ages 2 and 4 loved watching the DVD we received. I was very surprised at the bright pictures and the fun characters, as well as the beautiful music. A great way to instill a love of music in your children.
For more information about Juno Baby visit their website. You will find DVDs, and Cd's to purchase on their website.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. Thank you to Juno Baby for the free DVD to review. Thank you to The US Family Guide for the opportunity.

If I could keep you little... book review

2010-12-31T17:28:00.000-05:00

If I Could Keep You Little is a wonderful new story book written and illustrated by Marianne Richmond.
As a mother, there are sometimes you wish that your children could stay little forever. The author writes a fun book all about the ways a mother wishes she could keep her child young. Whether you are a seasoned mother of many or a new mom to be this book will bring a smile to your face. With beautiful illustrations throughout, If I Could Keep You Little, would make a great addition to any child's library.
This book can be purchased for 15.99 at www.sourcebooks.com.

***Disclaimer*** I was sent a copy of this book for review purposes. I was not paid for this post.
Thank you to Sourcebooks for the opportunity.

How to start the New Year Organized

2010-12-10T14:15:00.000-05:00

Do you ever wish you could just live a simplified life? A life where there was no messy pile of papers, no inbox full of messages, no toys piled up waiting to be tripped on?

I am afraid that life only exists in dreams! But wait, there is a solution! SMEAD Organomics! SMEAD has wonderful ways to help you get organized and stay organized in the new coming year.

For scheduling and time management at home:

Trying to coordinate your family’s schedule can seem like a monumental task. Work responsibilities for mom and dad, extracurricular activities for the kids, trying to fit in chores and family time – how can you possibly manage it with only 24 hours in the day? All it takes is a little advance planning!

Set Up a Family Calendar
There is really only one way to avoid scheduling conflicts and last minute scrambles – and that is to set up a “family calendar.” Hang a large wall calendar in a high-traffic area of the house (kitchen seems to work well, because everyone goes there daily). Label each family member’s activities in a different color (Susie in blue, Jimmy in orange, mom in green, dad in red) for easy recognition. Then take a second to record every single upcoming activity for each person in the family – meetings, social engagements, sporting events, doctor appointments, you name it. Every time someone brings home an invitation to a party or permission slip for a field trip, write it down. Every time the school sends out a calendar of upcoming days off, transfer it to the family calendar. When your boss asks if you can work late or your child’s piano teacher wants to switch from Tuesday to Wednesday, change the calendar. Get in the habit of putting EVERYTHING related to your family's schedule in one place. To get started, try out the Smead Organomics Family Calendar.

Get On the Same Page
The next step is to block off a regular weekly meeting with the entire family to go over your upcoming schedule. Take a look at any activities occurring within the next couple of weeks – address conflicts (ex: mom’s got to work late and Johnny needs a ride home from the game, so he should make plans to go with a friend), decide on any shopping trips you need for supplies (so you can bake cupcakes for the school party or get Jimmy’s diorama put together), and add the week's chores to the calendar. If you carry a personal planner or PDA, this is also the time to update your portable calendar with the current info (it doesn’t do you much good to plan out the week if you can't see the schedule while you’re out of the house!) Your stress level will drop by a factor of ten, just having each person's to-do’s and responsibilities written down in one visible place.

Get Ready The Night Before (Or Sooner!)
Now that you have your schedule in order, you need to work on your daily routines. Getting ready in the morning is much easier if you start working on it the night before. Have your children spend 15 minutes before they go to bed packing everything they need for school into their book bags. Ask each person to pick out the clothes they plan to wear the next day and lay them out on a chair. Make everyone’s lunches in advance and store them in the refrigerator overnight. Also consider setting up a “launching pad” – a table, chair, basket, or other container located near the door where each person can put the supplies they will need the next day. If your kids can never seem to remember what they need for school, create a standard checklist for them – homework, band instrument, gym clothes, sports equipment, supplies for any extracurricular activities, library books, whatever. You can even make a note of where they tend to leave things if that helps – “Gym Clothes: check the laundry basket.” The goal is to have everything in one place when it comes time to hit the road.

For the office

No matter how crazy or chaotic your work life feels during the last quarter, the start of a new year is the perfect opportunity to clear out the clutter from your office and regain control over your schedule. Here are a few simple suggestions for starting 2011 out the organized way!

Clean Out Your Files
It’s easy for your cabinets and folders to become overstuffed with outdated paperwork, so it’s important that you take time once a year to purge the old and make room for the new. Start with your reference, client, and financial files. Ask yourself whether or not those documents will be relevant to your work in the coming year – completed projects and last year’s receipts should not be living in your active files! If you might need to refer back to those papers at some point in the future (for legal, tax, or other reasons), move those items to an archive file out of your office in permanent storage. But obsolete journal articles and memos that serve no real long-term purpose can be tossed or shredded. And if you find papers that have no logical home in your filing system, create a new folder with the appropriate category. When January 1 hits, you should be able to file any new document in seconds!

Take A Look At Your Office
Office clutter can take over throughout the year – you get busy, create a few piles here, a stack over there, and suddenly you can’t see a single horizontal surface! Go around the room and collect up every homeless item you find, creating a set spot for each:

 Supplies and equipment: Only keep what you use on a regular basis at your desk - then store the “extras” in a cabinet or closet.

 Books and periodicals: Store journals in a magazine holder grouped by title or topic.

 Reference manuals: Keep loose brochures and sets of papers in expanding files or 3-ring binders with Index Dividers between topics. Try Smead’s durable TUFF™ Expanding File® for frequently accessed items.

 Multimedia: To save space, remove CDs and DVDs from their jewel cases and store them in file folders with self-adhesive CD/DVD pockets.

 Blank stationery items: Neatly stored in either stacking trays or a document sorter.

 To-do’s: Set up a desk file sorter or hanging files with categories for each type of action – “to call,” “to pay,” “to file,” “to read,” etc.
Having an assigned storage space for everything makes it easier for you to maintain order after the first of the year. Just take a few minutes at the end of each day to put things away (not hard when you know where everything goes!)

Make Some Plans
If you’re ending 2010 wishing you had accomplished more, now is the time to take a look at what got in your way. Endless interruptions throughout your work day? Or did you just have a hard time getting started on those bigger, more important projects? Decide now what you would like to accomplish in the next year, then plan some uninterrupted time in your calendar to work toward these goals. Let your boss know that you would like one day (or a half a day) each week to work on capturing a big account, implementing a major marketing strategy, or completing a large research project for the company. You might need to shut your door, turn off your phone, ignore your email, or even work from home on that day – but your boss will probably be so thrilled at your initiative that she’ll do whatever it takes to help you succeed!

These are just a few ways that SMEAD Organomics can help you enter 2011 a little more organized.

Don't forget to follow SMEAD on Facebook for other great tips.

Disclaimer: I was compensated with a gift card to Target for writing this post. Thanks to SMEAD and Alicia at Buttoned Up, Inc. for the opportunity.

The Juno Company - 50% off Offer

2010-12-10T10:45:00.000-05:00

Here is a great deal from the Juno Company, parents can purchase a $40 online store credit from the Juno Company for just $20! Once purchased, parents will instantly receive a unique promo code to redeem directly for any purchase at the Juno Company's online store.

The Juno Company carries an award-winning line of products. They offer CDs, DVDs and books featuring a cast of lovable characters that interact with your child, along with original music composed for and performed by live orchestral musicians.

This would make a great gift for your child or anyone expecting a baby. Please click here to order.

Disclosure: I will receive a small credit for each order placed using my link. Thank you to The US Family Guide and Juno for the opportunity.

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-12-09T00:01:00.001-05:00

Pretty Neat - book review and contest

2010-12-08T14:58:00.001-05:00

The newest book from Alicia Rockmore and Sarah Welch is called Pretty Neat - the buttoned up way to get organized & let go of perfection.

This is the second book from Rockmore and Welch, that discusses the topic of organization. As a total neat freak, and one who dreams that my house will someday look like a page out of Pottery Barn, this book was perfect for me.

There are lots of ideas and tips for those of us that stress over perfection. With real life stories from women across the globe, I truly found ways to cope and handle my own desire to have the perfect household.

The book is easy to read and is broken down into chapters that will help any women who wants to be organized. With practical tips on cleaning out your inbox, to the toy clutter invading your home, their is something to be learned for women and men of all walks of life.

As a bonus the authors have a contest going on: All you need to do is share your best organizational tip or shortcut by commenting on this post no later than December 31st at midnight! The blogger with the most comments on their post will win $250. In addition, the reader who submits the best tip across all participating blogs will also win $250. The winning tip will be selected by Alicia Rockmore and Sarah Welch, authors of Pretty Neat and co-founders of Buttoned Up (http://www.getbuttonedup.com/ ) and will be announced on January 10th.

So who can come up with the best tip? It may be worth $250! Share this with your friends and feel free to post about this contest- linking back to my site.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post, I was sent a free copy of Pretty Neat for review purposes. Thank you to the Authors and the folks at Get Buttoned Up for the opportunity.

Zhu-Zhu Pets - Review

2010-12-05T14:12:00.000-05:00

A year ago I was a crazy woman trying to find the year's hottest toy for my daughters. I didn't pay attention to the "Mommy we want Zhu-Zhu Pets" until it was seriously too late.
Now a year later and Zhu-Zhu Pets are still on the top of many kids Christmas lists. To make things even better, Zhu-Zhu Pets are not so hard to find anymore, and they have come out with a lot more accessories as well as many new Zhu-Zhu Pets.

We had the opportunity to test out some new accessories for the Zhu-Zhu's as well as the new Rock star Zhu-Zhu pets.

My kids still like the Zhu-Zhu pets so they were excited to be able to try out the new ones, and I was excited that I wouldn't have to be fighting through crowds looking for them this year.

Honestly, I don't care for the new Rock star Pets, I don't think they are as cute as the original ones, but the kids all enjoyed them.
With lots of fun accessories the kids had a blast dressing their "pets" up and doing their hair.

I definitely think if your child is a big Zhu-Zhu fan, you can't go wrong, and since they are easy to find this year they would make a great Christmas gift.

Zhu-Zhu pets and accessories can be found at Walmart and Target, and I have seen them for as low as $6.99.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this review, we were sent a free product to review. Thank you to Amy at BSMmedia for sending the Zhu-Zhu pets and accessories for review.

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-11-18T15:07:00.001-05:00

Holiday Travel

2010-11-17T10:06:00.001-05:00

It's that time of year when everyone starts travelling. If you are going to be doing a lot of travel over the holidays, you may need a new suitcase. CSN stores is the perfect place to find all your luggage needs. With a wide variety of suitcases to choose from you will be certain to find something for everyone in your family.

And what child wouldn't love to travel to Grandma's carrying this cute suitcase!

Disclaimer: In exchange for this post I was given a gift certificate to CSN stores to facilitate my post.

Blind Sight - Book Review

2010-11-12T00:01:00.002-05:00

Blind Sight written by author James H. Pence is a fast paced must read.

Peter Bishop is on a mission to save his two children, Micah and Michelle. He has one chance left to get the children into the safe arms of their mother. Peter calls Thomas Kent, an old college friend and leaves a message saying "Save my children", those are the last words Peter Bishop ever says.
Thomas Kent, is a man with baggage, trying to cope with the death of his wife and children in a car accident, he has no desire to help anyone, let alone someone he hasn't heard from in years.
Thomas reluctantly decides to help Micah and Michelle find there mother Justine, who is in hiding, she is hiding from a cult, who is desperately trying to find Justine and take her out before she can expose the cult and all its leaders.
Thomas and Justine find themselves on a mission to bring down a cult and save themselves from a group of people that will stop at nothing.

This book is really an interesting book, the fact that cults can so easily deceive people was really eye opening and believable. Blind Sight is a good read, and I looking forward to reading more books by James H. Pence.

Disclaimer: I was not paid for this post. I was sent a copy of Blind Sight free of charge. Thanks to Kathy Carlton Willis Communications for the book.

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-11-11T00:00:00.000-05:00

The winner is

2010-11-10T15:35:00.000-05:00

The winner of the Jodi Thomas book is entry # 13 kalea_kane said...

Tweet

Thanks for entering and tweeting daily!
The winner has been contacted and has until Friday to get back with me or another winner will be chosen.

Disclaimer- The winner was chosen using Random.org

Thursday's Giveaway's

2010-11-04T09:28:00.001-04:00

Wordless Wednesday

2010-11-03T08:38:00.000-04:00

Bugalug - Simple & Sassy Accessories- Review

2010-11-02T11:26:00.000-04:00

Are you looking for cute and stylish accessories for your little girl? Look no further, Bugalug carries Simple & Sassy Accessories that stay in place.

Bugalug has hair accessories for girls, belts for boys, and even cute belt buckles for mom!

Bugalug offers...

•one of a kind non-slip grip

•top quality design

•mom-made products in Canada

•exclusive ribbon designs

•non-toxic and lead free

Bugalug is a company based out of Calgary, AB that has products in over 400 stores and 5 countries. Bugalug offers products that are modern and fun with accessories for all your little ones needs.

We were sent a belt for my son, and for my girls a pony loop, headband and hair clip. Each is made from cute, modern and fun material. I really liked the belt and the fact that it was reversible. The hair accessories were cute and easy to use.

If you are looking to find fun new accessories then stop by Bugalug and check out their selection. They offer a VIP membership, where you get a discount on all your purchases, and a birthday club.

Visit the Bugalug blog and sign-up for their newsletter where you will get all the latest information, and don't forget to find them on Facebook and Twitter.

***Disclaimer*** I was sent the products free of charge in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to Bugalug for sending the review products.

Somewhere Along The Way by Jodi Thomas - book review and giveaway CLOSED

2010-10-29T00:01:00.005-04:00

I had the great pleasure to read the second book in the series Welcome to Harmony by Jodi Thomas. Somewhere Along The Way is a wonderful story that picks up right where the characters of Welcome to Harmony left off. This time around there are more characters brought into the story as well as a little bit of romance and alot of mystery and intrigue.

Jodi Thomas is a superb story teller who's characters come to life. Thomas has the ability to make you feel like you are in Harmony, Texas smack in the middle of a snow storm.

From Jodi Thomas:

Thanks for asking me to drop by and tell everyone about my thirtieth novel and what I think is the best one I’ve ever written. These characters came alive for me and I hope they will for you. So, lets step into the second book about a small town in Texas, Harmony called SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY.
In my new book I had a great time creating characters. In truth it was more like meeting them. I felt like they were so real, I just had to get them down on paper, nothing more.
The first one who talked to me was Gabe. He was a man shattered by what he saw in war and now only wanted to live lone without anyone, but he met Liz and couldn’t stay away. She was everything he wasn’t in life. She completed him and surprisingly, he did the same for her.

A few lines from Liz and Gabe’s story:
“You have any idea whose blue Mustang that is?” He pointed at a car parked on the side street halfway between the front and the back of the building. “Could be a stalker. That parking spot allows whoever’s in the car to see both stairwells. You should really park out front, Elizabeth. It’s safer.”
Liz slammed the trunk. “This conversation is over, Mr. Smith. Stop trying to frighten me.”
He grabbed her arm to stop her retreat, then let go an instant later as if realizing his mistake. “I didn’t mean to. I came to say I’m sorry about what happened the other night. I . . .”
Liz waited several seconds before she realized he wasn’t going to continue. “Let me make it easy on you, Gabe. Let’s try a multiple-choice question. A. You’re sorry you kissed me. B. You are sorry you stopped. C. You’re involved with someone else and figured your wife and kids wouldn’t approve. And of course, D. We should just be friends.” She moved away. “Oh, wait, we’re not friends in the first place, so forget D.”
He followed her, standing just behind her as she opened her car door. “B,” he said as she backed into him trying to open her door. “I’m sorry I stopped.”
She turned to face him. “Let me get this straight. You don’t want to be friends. You don’t want to talk or hang out. You just want to drop by now and then and kiss me.”
He was so close she could feel his breath. “That’s about it,” he said as he shoved her door closed and backed her against her car. “You interested, Elizabeth?”
“You’re nuts,” she answered.
He moved away. “Yeah, you’re right, but I’ve lived alone for so long, one kiss a week is all I can handle right now, and you’re about the most kissable woman I’ve ever met.”
He turned and walked into the shadows close to the building. “I had to give it a shot. No hard feelings.”
Liz had to hurry to catch his arm before he started up the stairs.

Another character who almost danced across my desk to get me to notice her was Martha Q.
Martha Q Patterson had been considered the town slut for so long she’d learned to embrace the title. When she was in her teens she’d take any dare. In her twenties and thirties, folks claimed she married half the eligible men in town and slept with the other half.
Which wasn’t true, Martha liked to remind everyone. Two of her husbands were from Bailee and one from Oklahoma City. But in the twenty years she considered her “marrying phase,” she did marry seven times, if she counted Bobby Earl Patterson twice, him being both her second and seventh.

Thanks for letting me drop by and thank you for reading. Writing is a fascinating journey, but if it wasn’t for readers coming along with me it wouldn’t be any fun.

Jodi Thomas

I highly recommend reading Jodi Thomas' books and I can't wait for book three of the series to come out! I just had the opportunity to watch the trailer on youtube and hope it gives you a sneak peak at what the book is about:

About the Author:
Jodi Thomas is the NY Times and USA Today best-selling author of 31 novels and 8 short story collections. As of July 2006, she was the 11th woman to be inducted in to RWA Hall of Fame. She is also currently serving as the Writer in Residence at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas.

Somewhere Along the Way will be available starting in November, but 1 of my readers will have the chance to win a copy of their own!

WIN IT
Mandatory entry: Tell me your favorite author or book.

Other ways to enter:
1.Follow my blog
2.Follow me on twitter
3.Follow me on facebook
4.Subscribe by email
5. Grab my button
6. Tweet about this giveaway- once a day and leave your URL.
7.Follow Jodi Thomas on twitter
8.Follow Jodi Thomas on facebook

That's 9 ways to enter- do one or all - it's up to you! Please leave an email address with one comment.

This giveaway is open to US residents only. The winner will be chosen using Random.org. The winner will be notified by email and have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.
This giveaway will end on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 at 10 PM EST.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a copy to review. A big Thank-you to Jodi Thomas and her PR company for sending me the giveaway copy.

Thursday's blog hop

2010-10-28T17:04:00.000-04:00

Moving Part 3

2010-10-22T00:01:00.000-04:00

Wednesday was the day that the moving truck was coming, it was also the day that a tropical storm decided to work it's way up the East coast bringing lots of rain. Rain is not good on moving day!

We had just had new carpet laid on Monday and we were also having some work done on the kitchen as well as some hard wood flooring laid in the dining room. Word of warning- never have remodeling work going on when you are trying to move into a new house.

The mover's arrived late and were not happy to be moving stuff in the rain, and the fact that I didn't want mud tracked through the house made for some happy workers. My poor kids sat in the van watching movies most of the day so that they wouldn't be in the way, they were super good at staying out of trouble and so I took them to Chuck E Cheese's for a long lunch!

By dinner time the mover's had emptied the truck and said someone would be back the next day to unpack the boxes, apparently they were in a big hurry and alot of the boxes ended up in the wrong rooms, making more work for us to do. So around midnight we finally tumbled into bed too tired to shower, knowing we had to get up really early the next morning as the work men were coming at 7 and the mover's were coming back at 8.
I got up at 6 and too our surprise we had NO hot water, that made for a very grumpy momma! Apparently the hot water heater got turned off and never was re lit.

We finally got most of our stuff unpacked and on Friday night we were in my daughter's room going through boxes when she projectile vomited all over the new bedding and the brand new carpet! What a way to christen the new house!

So anyway it's been 3 weeks now that we have been in the house. It had been a slow process, the kitchen is still not done, hopefully next week the materials will arrive and I will have a functioning kitchen. There is still stuff to hang on the walls and once we get it all together I will post before and after pictures.

If you missed Part 1 and Part 2 you can catch up here.

Thursday's Blog Giveaway's

2010-10-21T00:01:00.000-04:00

Moving Part 2

2010-10-20T00:01:00.000-04:00

Now that we had a contract ona house, we had to finish packing up and get our stuff ready for the move.
Thankfully we had movers so we didn't have to do a whole lot.   We were going to be staying in a hotel for what we thought was going to be a week, but unfortunately it was much longer.
We left New York on the 9th of September and we had hoped to close on the house by the 21st.   We were told that we could either close on the 17th or the 21st, and I was hoping the sooner the better.

Homeschooling, 4 children and a hotel are not a good match long term and so I really wanted to close fast.
Meanwhile, because we were able to get the house for a good price (compared to what the other houses that were newer and more expensive) we decided to have some remodeling work done on the house.

Let me just say, we are not the type of people who are "do it yourself" fixer- uppers. We had permission to go in the house early and paint etc. We thought it would be "fun" and a good learning experience to paint the house ourselves.
I will never think that painting is "fun" again!   We started on a Saturday, went to Lowe's, let the kids pick out what color they wanted their bedrooms and bought all the necessary supplies. Word of warning: never try to paint or do anything with 4 kids under foot.
Apparently I have "sucker" written across my forehead, because when I asked the lady at the paint counter what would be the best paint option to use when you have kids in the house, she gets the most expensive paint she can find, tells me I need satin paint and sends me on my merry way. Never use satin paint, because it shows every single paint streak we put on the walls.
We let the kids each have a few minutes "painting" a patch on their walls- my 4 year old son was the best painter of the bunch!
We painted all day Saturday, one room purple, one blue, and one yellow. It was late and it was starting to look really, really bad, my hubby said don't worry it will look better tomorrow. Sunday after night church we headed back to the house to put a second coat of paint on.
By midnight, I was crying- it looked really, really bad. Also the yellow that my youngest had chosen no longer looked like the cute sample, but actually hurt your eyes to look at.
Thankfully my husband saw the error of our ways and agreed for my sake that we would have someone else paint and fix it.
I went back to Lowe's and asked somebody else about paint and showed him the yellow and how we could fix it. He said -never use Satin paint- gee thanks! We picked out a different yellow in hopes to tame the other yellow down, and I left it to the painters to make my house livable.

Meanwhile, the whole closing of the house has been delayed till the 27th of September- that's almost 3 weeks in a hotel with four kids, trying to home school and basically keep my sanity!
Have you ever tried to do laundry for a family of 6 in a hotel- it cost me $10.00 just to do a few loads of laundry and I didn't even dry most of it.

The 27th came and I found a babysitter to watch the younger two kids, and figured the older two could sit quietly enough through the closing. As I was getting to the baby sitters house, my husband called and said the closing had been delayed until the next day. (By now I was screaming silently to myself) Thankfully the lady was kind enough to offer to watch the kids the next day as well.

Tuesday, the 28th, closing is set for 2 o'clock, I dropped the kids of at the sitter's, head to the closing and my husband calls, the closing has been delayed an hour- then another hour. I was feeling really bad because the sitter already has 3 kids of her own and now my 2, and I thought I would be done with the closing by now. At 5 o'clock I start to go pick up the kids, when finally the realtor calls and says it's time to close. So I turn around and head to the office to close. Two hours and a lot of stress later, we finally close.

We head to the babysitter's house for pizza and to pick up the kids. My son is laying on the floor and says he is really tired and can we just go home. The baby sitter's said he had been saying he was tired and his head hurt, and didn't want anything to eat. So I decided he was proabably just worn out from the late nights painting, and playing with his friend all day. I eat my pizza and he wanted to be held, now my son is 4 and a big boy, so I am standing in my friends kitchen talking and he is alseep in my arms. I moved him so his head was on my should and all of a sudden he vomited all down the front and back of me.
Yep, that's the kind of week it had been and it could only get better-right?

If you missed the first part of this story see Part 1 and stay tuned for Part 3.

The Search for the "Perfect" House Part 1

2010-10-19T11:02:00.002-04:00

I'm back! It's been quite a while since I have posted much of anything, it's been 2 months since we left for our house hunting trip, moved, and finally got settled into our house. I guess I should start at the beginning....

In August my hubby and I left the kids with my parents for what we thought would be a quick house hunting trip. We had 10 days to find a house and get a contract on it, I honestly thought we would find something right away and that it would be a fun, stress-free mini- vacation. WRONG!
We had been looking online and had a really good idea of what we wanted in a house with a few specific qualifications for the house.
We arrived late on a Wednesday, and the following morning we met with our realtor and began our search.
When you hear that the market had crashed in certain locations, we really had no idea how bad it really was, and in the D.C./ Virginia metro area, the market had crashed big time. It was surprising to see how many homes had been foreclosed on or were in the process of being foreclosed upon. It was really sad to see so many neighborhoods empty, and houses literally trashed and abandoned.
By day two of our house hunting trip we were getting discouraged and frustrated with the choices that were being shown to us. We had a specific price that we wanted to stay under, even though we could afford more, we realized (especially after seeing so many homes that people could not afford and had lost) that we didn't want to get a house that would stretch us and not allow for other things down the road.
One of the specific things we were looking for in a house was a finished basement, mainly because we home school and I wanted 1 room set up specifically for school.
On Friday we found a house that was brand spanking new and gorgeous, higher than what we wanted to pay and the basement was NOT finished, after talking with our realtor we decided to offer a price, that was lower than what it was listed for (and still over our original budget) and we would ask for the basement to be finished. We waited and played the "game" of counter offering the whole weekend- it was not a good weekend, we were on a time line and we were wasting time waiting, so we decided to keep looking while we "patiently" waited.
We found house number 2 over the weekend, this time the house had a finished basement, was gorgeous and was way over the budget. So again we offered a bid, knowing the house had been on the market a long time, and through negotiations we found out that they had another house being built and they "had" to sell.
Meanwhile, house number one was ruled out, and I started loving house number 2. It's never good to fall in love with a house you can't afford! Two whole days of going back and forth we could not reach an agreement on the price and so it is now Wednesday, we have to leave on Friday and we need to have a contract on a house- talk about STRESS!
While waiting for the drama of house number two to play out, we find house number three, which is in the same neighborhood as house number two.
House number three is way UNDER budget, has a FINISHED basement, and wood floors throughout ( something I wanted but wasn't a must have) and an UGLY kitchen.
House number two fell through ( and still is on the market, which secretly I am happy for b/c of the behind the scenes story, and in a not very nice way I am getting a kick out of the fact that they can't sell it because it's over priced and way over what it was appraised at) .
We put a bid on house number three and after some negotiating we finally had a contract on Thursday, the day before we had to leave- so much for my nice, stress-free mini-vacation!

Sweet Dreams

2010-10-04T14:17:00.000-04:00

Since buying the new house we realized that the older girls needed to have new bed sets and so I once again started browsing the web to look for ideas. Girls rooms are so much fun to decorate and there are so many choices to choose from.

What little girl wouldn't love a room like this!

or this!

Obviously, they have great bed sets for boys and adults alike, but since girls bed sets are what I have been searching for that is the pictures I will show.
One of the things I love about CSNstores is the 200+ stores to browse from as well as the variety of items they carry. There is something for everyone at CSNstores.
We finally have settled on our new bed sets, and we are busy getting the girls room ready and will post pictures soon.

***Disclosure: I was given a gift code to use at CSNstores in exchange for this review.

Easy Lunch Boxes

2010-10-01T11:56:00.002-04:00

Finally, a lunch box system that works for both children and adults! Easy Lunch Boxes is a great product for fixing lunches and snacks on the go!
Pack waste-free lunch boxes fast with our single-lid, 3-compartment, bento-style plastic food containers. The Easy Lunch Box system comes with 4 reusable containers, each with a different color lid. You can also purchase the Easy Lunch Box cooler in an assortment of colors.

The Easy Lunch Box system can be purchased for $13.95 for a set of four, and the lunch cooler can be purchased for $ 7.95.
NOTE: Due to the overwhelming number of orders the Easy Lunch Box system is currently unavailable until the end of October, however if you purchase your system now you will get a FREE cooler with your order.

I love the Easy Lunch Box system! I love that you get 4 containers (makes life with 4 kids easier!) but most of all I love that there are three compartments. Its the perfect size portions for little ones, and adults alike.
We used our Easy Lunch boxes on a picnic recently and I was able to pack a salad, seperate toppings, and dressing all in one container. I also like the sturdiness of the containers and that they open easily.

The Easy Lunch Boxes are made from non-toxic, food-safe, polypropylene. They are also freezer, dishwasher, and microwave safe. DIMENSIONS: 9.38" x 6.1" x 2" Compartment capacities: Large section - 2.5 Cups, Smaller section - 3/4 cup, Smallest section- 1/2 cup.

You can also find Easy Lunch Boxes on Facebook and Twitter.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent an Easy Lunch Box system thanks to my affiliation with Mom Spark Media.

The winner is.....

2010-09-17T21:37:00.000-04:00

The winner of the Paperlicious giveaway is entry #5 Abi Beuning. The winner has been notified and has 2 days to contact me. The winner was drawn using Random.org.
Thanks to all who entered.

On another note, staying in a hotel with 4 kids has not been easy, and has not allowed me much time to check my blog or write any reviews.

Hopefully our stay at the Residence Inn by Marriott is not too long, and that the house will be ready soon.
I do have some reviews coming soon~ as soon as I can find time to get to a computer~ a laptop would be really beneficial right about now!

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-09-09T00:00:00.001-04:00

SCARS - Book Review

2010-09-08T00:01:00.000-04:00

SCARS is a must read for every Christian. The author, Patience Prence, takes Biblical prophecy and weaves a story that is based on the end times.

As Christians we all need to be ready for the coming of Christ, and for the anti-Christ. SCARS is a story about a young teenager, named Becky, and how she lives through the end times. Biblical prophecy is portrayed in an intriguing way,as Becky's life is changed when the anti-Christ takes his place upon earth. In the end Becky must decide whether to stay true to the real Jesus Christ or sway and give in to the anti-Christ.

The author really makes you think about what it will be like when the Lord comes back, and for those that are left behind and all that will happen to them.

I really think that all Christians should read this book as it is thought provoking, and then pass it on to those that are not saved. And I was so glad to see the author use the King James Bible and how she accurately showed verse after verse of Scripture in this well thought out book.

About the Author:
Patience Prence is a lifelong Christian and busineness women. As a child she was fascinated by the book of Revelations and prophecy. She suffers from Usher Syndrome, a disease that causes blindness and hearing loss. You can visit her website at www.thespringharvest.com/patienceprence/

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free copy of the book SCARS by the author in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to the author for a wonderful book!

So long New York

2010-09-07T00:01:00.001-04:00

We are moving! Finally! The last 8 months have been a "learning time" for all of us. The six of us living in an apartment has been a great teaching tool and we have all learned to be content in our small space. That being said the movers are coming tomorrow and packing us up to go to Virginia!!! We are all excited, but still have some waiting to do until we get in our "new" house.
We will be living it up in even tighter quarters until the settlement of the house-hopefully sooner than anticipated. The six of us in a hotel plus homeschooling is going to take some patience - for some more than others! Pray the kids don't kill each other and that mom keeps her sanity! I will be with out a computer (unless I can sneak away to use the computer at the hotel) until we get moved in to the house, presumably the end of September. I can't wait to post pictures as we are "remodeling" the house- so stay tuned......

Clipettes from No Slippy Hair Clippy - Review

2010-09-06T00:00:00.039-04:00

New from No Slippy Hair Clippy is Clipettes.

The latest creation from No Slippy Hair Clippy Clipettes feature modern ribbon prints and bows and best of all they start at just 2.95 for an every day value.

Clipettes™ are fully lined grosgrain hair clips, and feature No Slippy’s trademark “non-slip clip®” design, to hold the wispiest hair securely without damaging it.

With a variety of colors and patterns to choose from you are sure to find something for your little girl.

I was sent a few of the Clipettes to try, and they work amazingly well on my daughters fine hair. She is in the middle of growing out a "bad" hair cut and these little Clipettes keep the bangs out of her eyes. Plus they are super cute and with such good prices you can get several different bows. I highly recommend Clipettes from No Slippy Hair Clippy.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free sample in order to facilitate my review. Thanks to the PR Company and No Slippy Hair Clippy for the product samples.

Become a Fan of Smead products

2010-09-03T15:19:00.000-04:00

Go From This:

To This:

It is really very simple:

-You want to get organized

-Smead wants to help you succeed

All you need to do is like them on facebook and the simple, bite sized tips and tricks will be coming your way.

So here are 3 reasons to like Smead Organomics on facebook

1. It’s a Zen Thing:

Getting organized helps you lower stress and often saves time and money. Who doesn’t want that?

2. Take the !*#? Out of Organizing:

It’s easy to do and won’t take a lot of time. Why not try it?

3. Win Some Stuff:

Like Smead Organomics NOW and you could win an amazing basket of organizing products!

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was asked to share about this opportunity through Get Buttoned UP. I will be entered into a drawing for a chance to win a $100 gift card.

Mabels Labels - Review

2010-09-03T00:01:00.000-04:00

I recently had the chance to try out Mabel's Labels, thanks to a gift certificate I received in a big gift box. I have seen Mabel's Labels every where and I couldn't wait to try them out first hand.

I had the opportunity to try the new Label Out Loud Sticky Labels. I received a pack of 45 labels with my youngest daughters name on them with a super cute cupcake design.
With 26 design choices I had a tough time deciding, they are all super cute. I love the new bright colors and am very happy with my Mabel's Labels.
As with all the Mabel's Labels the features are fantastic:

■Dishwasher safe

■Microwave safe

■UV resistant

■Peel and stick

■Satisfaction guaranteed
The customer service is also fantastic. My first order was lost in the mail, and the representative was very quick in shipping me out another set of labels.
I really do love the labels and would be happy to recommend them to every one. There are tons of different labels and designs to choose from and with school starting they are a must have!

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a gift card in order to facilitate my review. Thanks to Mabel's Labels for the product.

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-09-02T00:00:00.000-04:00

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-01T00:01:00.000-04:00

First Day of K-4 - he lost his excitement after 10 minutes!

First Day of 4th grade

Hard at work- First Day of 2nd grade

We started school on Monday and will work all week (the weekend too) and then the following week we move, so the kids will get most of that week off. I can't wait till we get in our new house and get the school room set up. This will be our 3rd year homeschooling and it will be our first year with a whole room dedicated to school only- I am looking forward to painting a wall with the chalkboard paint!

Paperlicious- Review and Giveaway

2010-08-31T00:01:00.002-04:00

With another move looming around the corner I wanted my older girls to be able to correspond with the friends that they made over the summer. Paperlicious came to the rescue with their adorable note cards.

Whatever your stationary needs are you will be sure to find it at Paperlicious.

I chose note cards with my daughters names imprinted on them and they are so cute! The girls love them and they are the perfect size for a nice handwritten note to their long lost friends.

Paperlicious has everything from baby to wedding, holiday cards to luggage tags, and a product I just love called calling cards~ a must for every mom on a play date!

Ordering from Paperlicious is super easy and you can see what your invitation will look like as you go along. With fast turn around time and super great shipping rates, Paperlicious is a must have!

Win It!

Paperlicious is offering one of my readers the chance to win a set of Note Cards in your choice of design.

Mandatory Entry:

Visit Paperlicious and tell me what product is your favorite- this must be done before any other entry.

Other Ways to enter:

1. Tweet about the giveaway leave a link to 1Prince and 3 Princesses

2. Blog about the giveaway on your own blog or facebook status

3. Grab my button and add it to your blog/site – leave me a link
4. Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Facebook

5.Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Twitter

6.Subscribe to my emails

7.Follow me on google friend connect

8.Follow Paperlicious on Twitter

9. Fan Paperlicious on Facebook

You must leave an email address with your comment so I can get in touch with you if you win.

This giveaway will end on Tuesday, September 14th at 10:00 PM EST. The winner will be chosen using Random.org and the winner will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen.

**Dislaimer** I was not paid for this post. Thanks to Mom Made That for the opportunity. Thanks to Paperlicious for the review product and the giveaway product.

The Devil in Pew Number Seven- book review

2010-08-30T13:36:00.000-04:00

I chose this book to read and review based on the title, and this book did not disappoint. The Devil in Pew Number Seven is a true life story. The terror and horror that one family went through as well as a story of true forgiveness, no matter what.

Rebecca Nichols Alonzo shares the unimaginable story that her family went through in The Devil in Pew Number Seven, and she shares a truly remarkable lesson in forgiveness.

When Rebecca was just a small child her family moved Sellerstown, North Carolina so that her father could be a Pastor. Most of the town gladly accepted the family, except for the man in pew number seven, Mr. Watts. The story that is told is one of hatred, by Mr. Watts, and love and forgiveness, by the Nichols family. As the family is threatened day after day, they continue to show love and forgiveness, and as the family is destroyed right before Rebecca's young eyes she continues to show love and forgiveness to those that have taken the ones she loves the most.

A true story of one families undeniable faith and the ability to show true forgiveness no matter what the price.
I really enjoyed the whole story and couldn't put it down. I don't know that I would ever be able to do what Rebecca did, as she truly shows the love of Jesus in her abililty to forgive those that took so much away from her.

**Disclaimer** I was not paid for this review. I was given a free copy to read from Tyndale publishers in exchange for my review.

New York City Part 4

2010-08-27T00:00:00.000-04:00

The kids had a blast playing in Central Park. It was a beautiful day and they enjoyed the giant sandbox.

Thursdays Giveaways

2010-08-26T00:01:00.000-04:00

New York City Part 3

2010-08-26T00:00:00.001-04:00

One of our favorite shows is The Cake Boss on TLC. Since Carlo's Bakery is so close to NYC we stopped on our way home. It is unbelievable! The line was extremely long and people were a bit crazy hoping to get a look at Buddy.
Once inside the bakery you are given a number, inside we waited about an hour- that is not counting the wait outside just to get in!
We were lucky enough that Buddy came out and the older girls got to "shake" his hand! We bought cupcakes and a beautiful cake, as well as chocolate covered strawberries, and some cookies- delicious!

New York City Part 2

2010-08-25T00:00:00.001-04:00

The older girls and I went to see the Broadway play of Mary Poppins. It was fantastic! A little different than the movie with a few extra songs, but my girls loved it and were on the edge of their seats the whole 3 hours.

New York City Part 1

2010-08-24T00:01:00.001-04:00

Visiting New York City with children is not the same as visiting the Big Apple with just your husband. We took all 4 kids for a quick 2 day trip. We had planned on visiting the Statue of Liberty and going to a Yankee game, but the kids pretty much wanted to stay in Toys R Us the whole time. So the Statue of Liberty will have to wait until they are a little older. We did go to the American Girl store, FAO Schwarz, Toys R Us (3 times) and the Hershey and M&M store- the places that kids enjoy!

Made By You Monday -Modern and Classy Designs - Review

2010-08-23T00:00:00.000-04:00

Today's Made by You feature is Modern and Classy Designs.

With school right around the corner I was looking for something unique for my daughter. I found it at Modern and Classy Designs. Jennifer sent me a personalized pink pencil box with my daughters name displayed across the top. It's super cute and my daughter loves the fact that it's hers!

Modern and Classy Designs is a home-based business created by Jennifer from York, South Carolina. Modern and Classy is your one stop place to shop for all things personalized. From water bottles, to mirrors, baby wipe cases, and more Jennifer offers a wide variety of items that can be personalized to suite all types. Whatever you are looking for Jennifer is sure to please.

Whether you are in need of a gift or just looking for something for yourself stop by Modern and Classy Designs, you will be glad you did.

You can find Modern and Classy Designs on Facebook. and check out all the fun stuff she has.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this review. I was sent a free product to review. Thank you to Jennifer at Modern and Classy Designs for the review product.

Simply Spray - Review

2010-08-20T00:00:00.001-04:00

My girls love to make crafty projects and when I had heard about Simply Spray Paint I thought it would be a fun project for the kids and I to try.

Simply Spray features three different products. Soft Fabric Spray paint, Stencil Spray Fabric paint and Upholstery Fabric paint.

We were sent a collection of colors from the Soft Fabric Spray paint line. I really wanted to make Tye dye shirts, but have had a hard time finding the white t-shirts, so we bought aprons instead.

The website has demonstrations to show you how fun and easy Simply Spray is. With a variety of colors to choose from Simply Spray is a great source for your next project.

You can purchase Simply Spray online or at select craft stores.

We made 2 Tye-dye aprons. Word of warning don't use on a windy day! The girls had fun, and can't wait to try this out on t-shirts.

Obviously we aren't super good at it yet, but with more practice we will get it!

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent Simply Spray paint for review purposes. Thank you to the company for the review product.

Thursdays Giveaways

2010-08-19T00:00:00.000-04:00

Wordless Wednesday

2010-08-18T00:01:00.000-04:00

The strangest things are found in New York City~

Let's Do Lunch- Book Review

2010-08-17T00:01:00.001-04:00

Let's Do Lunch written by Roger Troy Wilson. This is the true story about the author himself. Roger Troy Wilson weighed an astonishing 425 pounds with a waist measurement of 5 feet before he finally got serious and started to control his weight problem.
Let's Do Lunch is a weight management how to book. Mr. Wilson shows you how he learned to control his addicting habits and what foods are best to eat in order to lose weight.
The book has meal plans, recipes and the authors story all divided into easy to follow steps.

Honestly I was curious about this book because under the title it says Eating all the Calories and Carbs you want to lose weight. After reading the book I really feel that this is a misleading statement. The author clearly states you have to avoid bread, rice, potatoes, etc. So obviously you can't really eat everything you want and still lose weight.
I did enjoy reading his story and how he lost the weight, although it really is common sense. You can't eat and eat and expect not to get fat, and the way the author ate in the beginning of the story explains why he weighed 425 pounds.
I think the book is like all the other books out there, just another "diet" plan, that may or may not work for you.

I did try to follow the meal plan, but it really hasn't been possible to stick to for me, though I am going to incorporate eating more fruits and vegetables. I did try the frozen grapes as the author suggested, and they really are good!

***Disclaimer*** I was given a copy of this book free of charge in exchange for my honest review. All opinions stated are my own opinion and yours may differ. Thanks to Thomas Nelson and the Booksneeze program for the copy.

M-I-A

2010-08-16T16:07:00.000-04:00

I am going to be missing in action for a bit. Remember I said we were moving again? Well the move is faster than expected- like we are moving in 3 weeks!!! So the next 3 weeks I am going house hunting, starting school with 3 of the kids, and moving to yet another state. I have posted reviews or pictures for the next 2 weeks so be sure and visit every day, after that things will be a bit spotty depending on whether or not I have Internet service. I will continue to post the reviews I have, but I may not take anything additional until I get a permanent address. Thursday Giveaway links will still run so be sure and add your giveaways!
Thanks for reading 1 Prince and 3 Princesses! Things will return to normal someday!

Lisa Leonard Designs- Review

2010-08-16T00:05:00.002-04:00

I recently received a box of products in the mail, and inside I found a gift certificate to Lisa Leonard Designs.
To say that I was excited would be an understatement! I have seen Lisa Leonard Design ads everywhere and I was so excited to be able to purchase something from her website.

Since it was my daughter's birthday I decided to choose a necklace for her. I chose the Little Lady necklace with her name stamped on it. It is the perfect necklace for a girl who is "growing up".

Lisa Leonard Designs carries a variety of custom necklaces, inspired necklaces, bracelets and earrings. Definitely the place to find unique and personalized jewelry.

I wanted to Thank Lisa Leonard Designs for the necklace and earrings that were sent to me and for the great customer service!

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was given a free gift certificate from Mom magazine to Lisa Leonard Designs. Thank you to both!

Paperspring - Review

2010-08-16T00:00:00.001-04:00

I just love stationary! I love going to the mailbox and getting a letter and so do my kids. In the day of email and instant messaging we are missing out on getting "real" mail. I recently had the chance to choose some stationary from Paperspring. I was very impressed with the wide variety of stationary choices. I finally decided on personalized stationary for one of my daughter's birthday gifts. I chose the Upsy Daisy Note paper in pink. She loved getting something with her name on it, and it works great for thank you notes.

Paperspring carries a wide variety of birthday invitations, wedding invitations, birth announcements, holiday cards, and thank you notes. You will definitely find what you are looking for at Paperspring. Ordering is simple and you can view your order as you make your selections and personalize them. And shipping is FREE.

For the month of August, Paperspring is offering my readers a special discount of $10 off orders of $50 or more plus free shipping. Just use the following code at checkout PSAUGUST (expires 8/31).

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was given a free gift certificate from Mom magazine to use at Paperspring. Thank you to Paperspring for the coupon code for my readers.

Oh Be Careful....

2010-08-13T00:00:00.007-04:00

As children we have all heard the song Oh, Be Careful Little Eyes....have you ever stopped to think, really think about the words? Casting Crowns has an amazing song, called Slow Fade. I love this song and wanted to share it with you. I can honestly say that I know people that if they had only stopped to think what they were doing and what they were ruining. It is a slow fade, and the consequences of a ruined family, ruined life, ruined everything, they last forever. If only they had stopped and thought of the words Oh, Be Careful....

Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.
Jeremiah 5:25

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-08-12T00:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday!

2010-08-11T00:00:00.000-04:00

Four years ago, our little man was born! As the only boy, you are a delight and we love you~ stinky boy germs and all! Happy 4th Birthday buddy~ we love you!

Thought provoking question

2010-08-10T00:00:00.000-04:00

What does the baby look like now? That is a question that my kids (and I) have often wondered.
If you are anything like I was when I was pregnant with my first child, all I wanted was to get past week 13. I had read that most miscarrages happen by week twelve and so my goal was always get to week 13. With our first child, I was at week 13 when I miscarried. It was the hardest thing I have ever gone through and the only time I have ever seen my husband cry. It was too early to tell whether the baby was a boy or girl and we have always wondered. My girls that are 7 and 9 know that we had a baby that died and they have asked this question- What will he or she look like when we get to Heaven? I am stuck on this and always answer that I don't know.
I do believe that all babies, whether by miscarriage or abortion, go to Heaven. What I can't seem to explain to my children is What do they look like? Will they still be babies or is eveyone the same age? So I am turning to you, my readers~ any thoughts on this?

The winner is...

2010-08-09T09:27:00.000-04:00

The winner of the ReUsies is entry: #8
Sarah said...

subscribe to your email

The winner was chosen using Random.org and the winner has been notified by email and has 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

What We Have - Book Review

2010-08-09T00:00:00.001-04:00

One of the best things about being a blogger is the chance to read really great books and I just had the opportunity to read an amazing book called:
What We Have: A Family's Inspiring Story About Love, Loss, and Survival written by Amy Boesky.

Grab a cup of coffee and a box of tissues and be prepared to put yourself in the author's shoes. What would you do if you had a cancer gene that ran in your family? Would you live your life to it's fullest, treasuring every moment? Or would you sit and worry and go through life always waiting for the bad news?

What We Have is the amazing life story of Amy Boesky and her family. Ever since she was a child it was drilled in her that women in her family die at a young age due to ovarian cancer. Amy's own biological clock is ticking and she knows that at age 35 she must have her ovaries removed so that she too won't fall victim to the disease. Amy takes you on her and her family's journey through birth, death, happy times and sad times.

This is the BEST book I have read all year! I couldn't stop reading this book, and I read it in two days. It is a book that every women will want to read. Whether you are a mother, daughter, sister, or friend this is a book that will resonate will all women. I encourage you to either buy the book or borrow it from the library, you will not be disappointed.

You can purchase What We Have at Barnes and Nobles, Amazon, and Borders. You can also visit the website for more information and to read an excerpt from the book.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was given a free copy for review purposes. Thank you to the PR company and Jessica for sending me the book to review.

Happy Birthday!

2010-08-08T00:00:00.001-04:00

Nine years ago today, I gave birth to my first born daughter- on her due date! I prayed and prayed that I would have a baby girl with black hair and blue eyes~ God granted that prayer, and you arrived (after a horrible first delivery) with a head full of black hair and beautiful blue eyes! After the Doctors pronounced you healthy they handed you to your daddy and you promptly peed all over him, welcoming him into parenthood!

Happy 9th Birthday~we love you!

Paperspring - Coupon code

2010-08-06T09:42:00.000-04:00

Paperspring is your one stop place to shop for invitations, thank you cards and birth announcements. For the month of August, Paperspring is offering my readers a special discount of $10 off orders of $50 or more plus free shipping. Just use the following code at checkout PSAUGUST (expires 8/31).

Next week I will be posting by review of Paperspring, but in the meantime stop by their site and start shopping!

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was given a complimentary gift card in order to facilitate by review. Thank you to Paperspring for the coupon code.

Warmables - Review

2010-08-06T00:01:00.001-04:00

With school right around the corner, I have the perfect solution to all those back to school lunches. This year instead of packing your child a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, you can send them to school with a delicious home cooked hot meal, using Warmables.

Warmables is a highly effective heat source consolidator; that keeps food warm for 4-6 hours. Warmables was created by parents,Yvonne and Julian, who wanted their son to be able to take a warm, nutritious lunch to school. After many practice tests they finally succeeded and Warmables was born. Now parents around the globe can send their child to school packed with a warm lunch.

What is included:

Warmables Pouch
BPA-free food container- that does not leak, and holds up to 16 oz.
Cherry Pit bag for long lasting heat

How it Works:

1) Fill provided plastic container with food.

2) Heat THOROUGHLY. REALLY!

3) Heat cherry pit bag thoroughly, making sure NOT to burn pits. Depending on your microwave this will take 45-90 seconds. Heat in 30 second intervals, shake and repeat until hot.

4) Put plastic container and cherry pit bag inside the WARMABLES pouch and seal.

5) Put WARMABLES pouch in your child’s INSULATED lunch box (metal and plastic boxes will not allow WARMABLES to consolidate heat and keep food warm).

This is really a great way to pack your child's lunch. No more cold sandwiches! Great for those children who are picky eaters, and a cost saver too, no more buying school lunches! Think of all the times you can send your child a warm lunch or dinner - after school practices, sport games, on the go outings, field trips, the possibilities are endless.
I think my only complaint is the size of the Warmables bag, I may need to buy a larger lunch bag for it all to fit, but other than that I think it is a marvelous idea!

You can purchase your Warmables for kids kit for $29.95 plus $5.70 shipping. The Warmables for the office kit is $37.95 plus $7.50 shipping.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a sample product free of charge. This in no way influenced my opinion and all statements made are my opinion and your may differ. Thank you to the Warmables company for the review product.

Link up you giveaways

2010-08-05T00:00:00.000-04:00

Wordless Wednesday

2010-08-04T00:01:00.000-04:00

We sent the kids outside to play and a few minutes later my hubby looked out to see why it was so quiet~ and this is what we found~ my book worms!

Find me here today~

2010-08-03T09:32:00.000-04:00

I am the featured post over at We Aren't Perfect. Would love for you to stop over, this week's topic is Post Partum Depression.

Vemayca Cosmetic bag - Review & Giveaway - CLOSED

2010-08-03T00:01:00.005-04:00

The winner of the Vemayca bag is entry #6 apple blossom said...

button on my blog
http://abis-scrapsoflife.blogspot.com/

The winner was chosen by Random.org and has been notified.

Being a mom of 4 kids I am usually the one that is going to go without that something special and because of that my makeup bag has been a little black case that I received in a diaper bag sample after one of the kids was born. It was ugly and not very practical as it says enfamil all over it. Not something you get excited about. All of that has changed because I had the great opportunity to review a beautiful Vemayca Cosmetic Bag.

Vemayca bags are chic, irresistibly soft and sumptuous featuring a removable Soft Pearl Liner.

The bag which comes in Red Amore or Charcoal mink features:

Generous central compartment for your favorite beauty and personal items
Two large zippered side pockets for additional storage and organization
Light-colored silver satin lining, making the contents highly visible
Custom metal zipper pulls that are easy to grip
Flat bottom so the Vemayca cosmetic bag stays upright
Super soft and and lightweight
Size: measures approximately 9 inches wide, 6 inches high and 2 inches deep

They can be purchased for 35.00 and you can buy the liners for 10.00 for a pack of 3. I cannot wait for our next getaway so I can proudly pack my Vemayca cosmetic bag! The Vemayca bag can also be used for other things besides cosmetics, you can carry your electronics in it for travel, throw some stuff in there for the kids (small toys, crayons, paper). Really the possibilities are endless.

Meet the creator of Vemayca:

Vemayca Cosmetic bags were created by Veronica Mayo, a mom and a busy business executive. Veronica was frustrated with her cosmetic bag always being dirty from her makeup and she decided to quit the corporate world and design her own cosmetic bag. The result is a beautiful cosmetic bag that anyone would be proud to own.

Vemayca is listed as Honeymoons.com top 10 must have beauty product.

Win It!

One reader will win there own Vemayca bag~ Mandatory entry~ Visit Vemayca and tell me something you learned. This must be done before any other entries will count.
Other ways to enter:
1. Like Vemayca on Facebook - be sure and tell them 1 Prince and 3 Princesses sent you!
2. Follow Vemayca on Twitter
3. Tweet about the giveaway leave a link to 1Prince and 3 Princesses
4. Blog about the giveaway on your own blog or facebook status
5.Grab my button and add it to your blog/site – leave me a link
6.Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Facebook
7.Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Twitter
8.Subscribe to my emails
9.Follow me on google friend connect

You must leave an email address with your comment so I can get in touch with you if you win.

This giveaway will end on Tuesday, August 17th at 10:00 PM EST. The winner will be chosen using Random.org and the winner will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen.

***Disclaimer*** Thanks to Mom Made That for the opportunity to review this product. I was not paid for this post. I was sent a product free of charge and this in no way influenced my review. Thanks to the company for providing the product for review and giveaway.

Wiglington and Wenks - Review and Giveaway - CLOSED

2010-08-02T00:01:00.001-04:00

Wiglington and Wenks is a great new website for children. The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks Virtual World is an exciting new massive online virtual world for kids where players can travel to places around the world, through time and space, meet famous historical people, play fun enriching games, make new friends own exotic islands, build culture-inspired houses, wear all kinds of cool clothing and costumes, explore secret locations, solve ancient mysteries and become a legendary traveler!

Probably the most massive virtual world for kids to date, The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks features more than 100 fun-filled educational real world and imaginary locations from the past, present and future.

Parents can look forward to a safe site for their children where they will be learning about history, geography, landmarks, famous people, inventions, the environment, animals and more.

And for the children, they can expect hours of fun-filled exploration.

The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks was originally a children story book series by John Bittleston.

My daughter absolutley loves this website. She loves history and I love that while she is playing fun games she is also learning about historical figures. She has asked to play every single day. I really like the fact that I had the option to not sign up for the open chat, as we don't allow online chatting for our kids. You can play Wiglington and Wenks for free, but there are also other options that do cost a small fee, you can purchase a membership for $5.99 a month.

Win it! 3 of my readers are going to win a 1 month membership to Wiglington and Wenks!

Mandatory entry:

Visit Wiglington and Wenks and tell me something you learned.

Other ways to enter:

Tweet about the giveaway leave a link to 1Prince and 3 Princesses

Blog about the giveaway on your own blog or facebook status
Grab my button and add it to your blog/site – leave me a link
Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Facebook
Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Twitter
Subscribe to my emails
Follow me on google friend connect
Follow Wiglington and Wenks on Facebook
Follow Wiglington and Wenks on Twitter

This giveaway is open to US residents. This giveaway will end on Monday, August 16th at 10:00 PM EST. The winners will be chosen using Random.org. The winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email before another winner will be chosen.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was given a 1 month free trial membership to review this product. This in no way influenced my review. Thanks to the company for providing the review and giveaway memberships.

Fatal Convictions - Book Review

2010-07-30T00:01:00.000-04:00

Fatal Convictions written by critically acclaimed author Randy Singer is great new legal thriller. Author Randy Singer has written a suspenseful book centered around Muslim honor killings. Fatal Convictions is about attorney and pastor Alexander Madison. When a client comes to Alex regarding a car accident he gladly takes the case, but no sooner than taking the case his client is charged in connection with an honor killing. Alex and his partner, Shannon realize they are in over their heads. Alex and Shannon firmly believe their client is innocent and they soon discover things aren't always what they seem.

This book takes you on a journey through the Muslim world and what they believe. The book itself is a great legal thriller and there is plenty of suspense and mystery. While the chapters are short, there are many and the first part of the book is background to the story. Once the book gets going it is a fast read. I really enjoyed the book and look forward to reading more of Randy Singers books. My only complaint is that it is classified as a Christian book, and I didn't really feel that there was anything in it that would "shout" out Christian. The main character is supposed to be a minister, but there really wasn't anything to support this. No plan of salvation, or anything of that nature. Overall if you like to read John Grisham novels then you would enjoy Fatal Convictions by Randy Singer.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this review. I was sent a copy for review purposes by Tyndale Publishers. Thank you to Tyndale for the opportunity.

Thursday's Giveaways

2010-07-29T00:00:00.000-04:00

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-28T00:01:00.000-04:00

One day he will hate me for these pictures, but I couldn't resist.

He took his sisters pet shops and wanted to fall asleep with them all.

M-O-V-I-N-G

2010-07-27T13:28:00.000-04:00

If you have been reading my blog for awhile you will remember that just 7 months ago we moved from South Texas to New York. Well this will be the shortest stay yet, because we are moving again! This time we are moving to the Virginia/DC area! I am so excited, but have alot to do in a short amount of time. So I will be posting as much as I can, but bare with me if I am not around a lot in the next few weeks.
Don't forget to enter the ReUsies giveaway, with school just around the corner it will make a great addition to your child's lunch box.

The winner is:

2010-07-27T12:42:00.000-04:00

The winner of the Corioliss Flat Iron and Hanna Shine Shield is :
Entry # 11 Congratulations to SavannahsSmiles said...

I would like to try the CHI Professional Pink Dryer

True Random Number Generator

Min: 1

Max: 76

Result:

11

Powered by RANDOM.ORG

The winner has been notified and has 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. Thanks to all who entered!

Which would you choose?

2010-07-26T09:27:00.000-04:00

I am super busy with some family stuff, I will share about it soon! But I have one question for you all.
Which would you choose~
A new house or a pre-owned house?

ReUsies - Review & Giveaway - CLOSED

2010-07-23T00:01:00.001-04:00

Do you ever get tired of buying plastic baggies for your children's snacks and lunches? I recently came across a company with the most ingenious product called ReUsies. ReUsies are a re-usable alternative to sandwich/snack bags. Each bag is made from 100% cotton lined with leak-resistant nylon and are secured with Velcro closures. There are tons of cute patterns to choose from. They come in two sizes.
Snack size fits items like pretzels, apple slices, or half a sandwich.
Sandwich size fits items like a whole sandwich, bagel or a large portion of snacks.

Each ReUsie can be machine washed and dried, washed in the dishwasher, or for longest life simply wiped clean with a soapy sponge and air dried.

ReUsies was started by a group of moms from Seattle, who wanted a solution to plastic baggies. ReUsies is a great alternative to plastic bags, and a fun way to pack your children's lunches.

I was sent both a snack size and lunch size ReUsie in the Going Green pattern. I have to tell you this is one of those products that you think Why didn't I think of this! It really is a great way to pack your children's snacks and lunches without using plastic bags, plus they are super cute!
I love the fact that they Velcro, which makes it easy for little hands to open. And most of all I love that you can machine wash or throw them in the dishwasher.

ReUsies can be purchased online for 6.95 for the snack size and 8.75 for the lunch size. If you think of how many plastic baggies you buy and throw away, these are really good prices. Right now they offer free shipping on three or more ReUsies.

Win it!

One reader is going to win both a snack size and lunch size set of ReUsies.

Mandatory Entry:

Visit ReUsies and tell me which pattern is your favorite. This must be done before any other entry.

Other ways to enter:

Subscribe to the ReUsies Newsletter and let me know that you did
Like ReUsies on Facebook & let me know
Follow ReUsies on Twitter & let me know
Tweet about the giveaway leave a link to 1Prince and 3 Princesses
Blog about the giveaway on your own blog or facebook status
Grab my button and add it to your blog/site – leave me a link
Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Facebook
Follow 1 Prince and 3 Princesses on Twitter
Subscribe to my emails
Follow me on google friend connect

This giveaway is open to US residents. The giveaway will end on Friday, August 6th at 10:00 PM EST. The winner will be chosen using Random.org and the winner will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free product for review purposes. Thank you to ReUsies for the review and giveaway product.

Enter Your Giveaways

2010-07-22T00:01:00.000-04:00

The Winners are

2010-07-21T17:00:00.000-04:00

The 2 winners of the Hidden In Your Heart CD are.....

Entry # 5 Amanda said...

I "like" 'Hidden in my Heart' on Facebook.

Entry # 8 SavannahsSmiles said...

Be Still and Know,

Love the Lord,

Love Is

Congratulations to both of you - you will love this music! The winners have been notified and have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-21T00:01:00.000-04:00

While at Nana's last week, little man was bitten by a bug, not once but 3 times above the eye. I finally had to take him to the Dr. due to the swelling near his eye. He seriously looked like the character on The Hunchback of Notre Dame. After 3 days I am glad to say it went back to normal.

Geek Dad- book review

2010-07-20T00:01:00.003-04:00

I have to tell you neither my husband nor myself are geeks, but the title of the book Geek Dad was to intriguing to pass up. Geek Dad was written by Ken Denmead, a self proclaimed super geek.
The idea of the book is that
Today's generation of dads grew up more tech-savvy than ever. Rather than joining the Little League team, many grew up playing computer games, Dungeons and Dragons, and watching Star Wars. Now with kids of their own, these digital-age dads are looking for fresh ways to share their love of science and technology, and help their kids develop a passion for learning and discovery.

The author, Ken Denmead is an engineer and editor of the incredibly popular Geek Dad blog on wired.com, Ken has created the ultimate, idea-packed guide guaranteed to help dads and kids alike enjoy the magic of playtime together and tap into the infinite possibility of their imagination. With illustrations throughout, this book offers projects for all ages to suit any time frame or budget.

This book is great for those that love hands on projects with their kids. The book takes each project and lets you know the cost, time, and skill for each activity. With the handy guide you will be able to tell in minutes if the project is right for you.
A few of the projects:

•Fly a night-time kite ablaze with lights or launch a video camera with balloons

•Construct the "Best Slip n' Slide Ever," a guaranteed thrill ride

•Build a working lamp with LEGO bricks and CDs

•Make geeky crafts like cyborg jack-o'-lanterns or Ethernet cuff links

I think my favorite project to try is going to be the Windup Toy Finger Painting- doesn't it sound fun!

Brimming with endlessly fun and futuristic tidbits on everything from gaming to gadgets, Geek Dad helps every tech-savvy father unleash his inner kid-and bond with the next generation of brainiacs. (edited by author)

This book is for you if you are a Geek Dad (or mom) and are looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer. You can purchase your copy on Amazon.com for $11.59.

***Disclaimer*** I was not paid for this post. I was sent a free copy for review purposes. Thank you to the PR company for the review copy.