Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Table Talkers…Fun for Family Dinnertime ~ Giveaway

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I am thrilled to share a new eBook with you, Table Talkers, written by Erin from In Between Laundry.
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I was recently sent this eBook to review and was a bit nervous because mealtime around our house is a bit chaotic thanks to a special someone who detests eating in general. Our little precious Krash is our meal time trouble maker and often brings me to the point of almost tears. IMG_3812 PacMan is the exact opposite, loves and eats everything! Ladybug is a good mix-some nights rejecting like K and some nights embracing new foods like P. The idea of adding fun to this time of the day seemed about as possible as, hmmm…pigs flying, and more. You know, it seemed virtually impossible.
But, we gave it a go and I printed out the wonderful cards to keep handy at the table and I read through them to choose a few that I thought might be worth a shot for my 2, 5, and 9 year old.

Thankfully the night we first tried a Table Talker idea, we were eating a meal that Krash liked, so it was a relative good-mood evening. We started out with a game that has since become a family favorite. Someone has to think of a movie/tv show that we are all familiar with {example Nemo}. Then the person gives a 1 word hint {example: fish}. We each get a turn to guess based on just the one word clue. If nobody gets it, the person gives a second clue {example: ocean}. I was AMAZED with how many we got with just 1 word! For example I thought of the movie Robots and my clue word was “dishes” and Pac got it right away!

On another night, the night I decided to snap a few pictures, we were eating a meal Krash does not prefer and attitudes were flying, but we were still able to get some laughs in that otherwise wouldn’t have been there. When I snapped these photos, they were pointing out shapes in the room. IMG_3827
One of the games is to think of a shape and go around the table to have each person point out something that is that shape. This is perfect for younger ages, and even PacMan enjoyed it!IMG_3825
Ladybug doesn’t actually play yet, but she giggles right along with us and I do believe enjoys our family mealtime much more without all of the somber faces. Mealtime had truly become a time of day that I just wanted to be over. I don’t love mealtime due to the struggles but adding in Table Talkers has brought much joy to my heart!

I can fully recommend Table Talkers as a worthwhile purchase for your family. It is currently only $2.99 and was created by another mom, so you know I love supporting her creative efforts also! For $2.99 you get 52 simple ideas to make your mealtime more fun. I would say if you have a child from the age of 3 or older this would be for you. There are many simple games and some more advanced ones that older children would really get into. There are even blank cards to have your family think of their own and write them in to have in your Table Talkers set.

I laminated our cards and put them on a metal ring so I can have them at the dinner table always. I also loaded the eBook onto my iPad too. You can load any PDF file into iBooks by importing the PDF file through your iTunes account and then plugging in your iPad to sync. It’s really that simple!


BUY IT!
If you’d rather not wait to see if you win, you can purchase Table Talkers for just $2.99! You really can’t beat that, huh? Get some great new fun dinner time ideas and support another mom in her creativity!

WIN IT!
Erin is giving away a copy of Table Talkers to 3 different winners!


Linking up with Giveaway Day on Hip Homeschool Moms

If you don't see the Rafflecopter giveaway entry widget, CLICK READ MORE below!  I am using a new giveaway widget, let me know what you think.  You'll need Javascript enabled also.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Boca Beth ~ Spanish Learning Fun Giveaway CLOSED

Congratulations #112-Cassie and #127-Leslie, you both won!

Boca Beth brings Spanish to life for your children! We were sent several Boca Beth items to review, including: Mi Casa/My House Coloring Books, the Boca puppet, 2 egg shakers, My First Songs in Spanish CD, Sing Praise For Children CD, and I Like Animals DVD.
From the moment I opened the package, the puppet and egg shakers went straight into Ladybug’s hands and have been favorites ever since!  Boca the puppet has turned into a little friend, you can even see Ladybug using Boca to color and help her clean up her markers!
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She has enjoyed coloring Boca in the coloring book too!
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I showed the DVD to all 3 kids at various times and asked them what they thought.  Here’s the verdict: Ladybug wandered a bit, only the song portions kept her attention.  Ladybug prefers the puppet, coloring book and even the music CD over the DVD.  Krash loved it and to my surprise so did PacMan {age 9}!  He specifically was able to tell me that he loved being able to read the words on screen and how it said both the Spanish and English.  He also LOVES animals so this DVD was perfect for him.
Is it helping with Spanish?  I am sure it is-but it’s hard to tell.   We are continuing to use Speekee also, and these 2 compliment each other well.  Beth and Jim have actually partnered up together!  I personally enjoy having both as resources and like to introduce as much Spanish as possible at a young age.  We live in a bi-lingual area with many Spanish speaking neighbors.  I hope to have my children grow up and become fluent in Spanish, if it is their desire also!
We have added the CDs to our iPod and have enjoyed having them in our rotation!  We look forward to more Spanish learning fun with Boca Beth!

BUY IT!
If you’d rather not wait to see if you win, you can purchase products on the Boca Beth website!  Use this amazing discount code ONEFAM to receive 40% savings on anything on the Boca Beth site PLUS shipping is always FREE on BocaBeth.com.  No limit on the order size.  This discount code is only good from now until Oct 15, 2011.  

WIN IT!
Beth is giving away the Boca Beth Beginner Backpack to 2 different winners!
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This Boca Beth Beginner Backpack will get your child's second language journey going right away! Use our award-winning Boca Beth bilingual music CD, DVD, coloring/activity book, puppet and musical shaker to bring Spanish and English together for children ages 1 month - 8 years old. We use the parallel method of teaching two languages so that everyone in the family will feel comfortable using these tools!
Mandatory Entry: Visit Boca Beth to take a peek and then leave a comment letting us know you’d like to win!

After you do that, you can gain some extra entries by any of the following, remember to leave an extra comment for each item so they will count as entries...
  1. If you subscribe via RSS or email to 1+1+1=1 , give yourself an extra entry!
  2. If you follow @1plus1plus1 on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, give yourself an extra entry! Sample tweet: @1plus1plus1 is hosting a giveaway for Boca Beth! Enter here: http://bit.ly/oFjPxU
  3. If you subscribe to Spanish Fun For Everyone-Beth’s blog, give yourself an extra entry!
  4. If you sign up for the Boca Beth Newsletter, give yourself an extra entry! Look for this:image
This Giveaway is open for USA Only!
 
I will select two winners using Random.org, so be sure you leave a separate comment for each entry, I will also be moderating comments to check that your entries are valid-please be honest!

Contest ENDS October 8, 2011. Winner will be announced here, and emailed (your email MUST be in each comment/or enabled in blogger). Winner must reply to my email within 48 hours or another winner will be chosen.

Linking up with Giveaway Day on Hip Homeschool Moms!

Monday, September 19, 2011

Weekly Homeschool Planner ~ Giveaway CLOSED

Congratulations to Cara #98, you won!

It’s no big secret that one of my best friends is Jolanthe from Homeschool Creations.  I met her online years ago and our friendship went from blog comments, to emails, to phone calls, to visits!  This is one thing I am most thankful that God has given me through blogging-true friendship with Jolanthe and a few others!  Here is us cheesing while at Relevant last year!
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I tell you all of that so you know upfront that I am TOTALLY biased and think anything she creates is simply wonderful.  I feel I must disclose this in a huge way!  So, now that you know that, I am honored to host a giveaway for my friend and her wonderful Weekly Homeschool Planner, even though I don’t even use it myself!  The only reason I don’t use hers is because I created my own {just for myself}.  We do many of the same things and even talked a lot as she was creating the planner. 
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Here’s some information about the Weekly Homeschool Planner
What's inside this editable pdf planner:
  • 138 planning pages ~ 8 1/2" x 11" sized
  • 12 blank month-at-a-glance pages
  • 40 weeks of weekly planning and journal sheets: each page can be customized to the         
    subjects that your family studies and can be saved to your computer!
  • Preschool planning sheets
  • Field trip/Event plan sheets
  • Yearly curriculum planning sheets
  • Yearly planning and evaluation sheets
  • Yearly attendance tracking sheets
  • Field trip/Event plan sheets
  • Daily to-do lists
  • Main dish menu planner
  • Customizable chore charts
  • Important contacts info
  • Additional note space
  • Standardized testing and yearly assessment result tracking
  • Homeschooling requirement planning
Type your lesson plans into the form and print them off or simply save them to your
computer, the choice is up to you! You can edit your plans any time and even save your
planner to your computer to have a digital copy each year.
One thing that I was really confused about when I previewed the final copy of the planner for Jolanthe before it went up for sale was the duplicate lesson planning pages {and duplicates of various others}.  I obviously had a lot to learn about editable PDF files {which I don’t create}.  She explained to me that when saving an editable PDF product you can’t copy/paste the pages and must have a blank copy of each page you plan to use.  So, if this confuses you also-know that you aren’t alone.  Jolanthe is smarter than both of us!  ha ha!
She also has an affiliate program that you can join and even make a bit of $ yourself!!  You can read more about that on her Weekly Homeschool Planner sale page too.

BUY IT!
If you’d rather not wait to see if you win, you can purchase the Weekly Homeschool Planner for just $20, which is a steal considering you can use it year after year!  Be sure to view the sample pages, as well as the fine print at the bottom of her site and ask any questions you may have beforehand!  Jolanthe is very willing to help you figure out if this is the planner for you!

WIN IT!
Jolanthe is giving away the Weekly Homeschool Planner to one of my readers!


Mandatory Entry: Visit the Weekly Homeschool Planner to take a peek and then leave a comment letting us know you’d like to win!!!
After you do that, you can gain some extra entries by any of the following, remember to leave an extra comment for each item so they will count as entries...
  1. If you subscribe via RSS or email to 1+1+1=1 , give yourself an extra entry!
  2. If you follow  @jolantheerb and @1plus1plus1 on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, give yourself an extra entry! Sample tweet: @1plus1plus1 is hosting a giveaway for @jolantheerb ‘s Weekly Homeschool Planner! Enter here: http://bit.ly/omL7N6
  3. If you follow/subscribe to Homeschool Creations, give yourself an extra entry!
This Giveaway is open for anyone!
I will select a winner using Random.org, so be sure you leave a separate comment for each entry, I will also be moderating comments to check that your entries are valid-please be honest!
Contest ENDS October 1, 2011. Winner will be announced here, and emailed (your email MUST be in each comment/or enabled in blogger). Winner must reply to my email within 48 hours or another winner will be chosen.
Linking up with Giveaway Day on Hip Homeschool Moms!

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Guidecraft Hideaway Country Kitchen Review

imageA while back I was sent the awesome Guidecraft Hideaway Country Kitchen to review.  It sat in the box way too long because I was waiting for my husband to put it together.  Finally I decided I could do it.  I figured if Jolanthe could do it, so could I.  So, I did.  I won’t lie-it wasn’t terribly fun to put together but I did it. The kids, and the husband, were all pretty impressed with me.

This kitchen is a 2nd kitchen in our house, Ladybug has her own from last Christmas up in her room.  It’s the plastic kind-that my husband picked out.  This adorable wooden hideaway kitchen is located downstairs in our dining room, right off of our schoolroom.  I LOVE the way it looks so I let it stay in public view!  The kids cook for me quite often and it has been something they have all 3 enjoyed for months now.

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I moved only our felt food and some dishes down here, to keep things simple and it has been wonderful.  I put a pink fabric basket underneath in one of the cabinets and it all stores away easily.  That’s one of the things I LOVE about this kitchen {especially versus the plastic one upstairs}-the storage underneath!  You can hide it all in the nice open space.

I was planning to give this kitchen away soon after the review, feeling bad owning 2 kitchens, BUT I think my kiddos would miss it for now so were hanging onto it for awhile longer!  They really like it!

If you are thinking of a kitchen as a gift this Christmas or anytime, I highly recommend this one.  It is VERY well made, sturdy {notice Krash sitting on it below!}, and adorable.

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It has features that kids and parents love.  The clock and the sink are two child favorites in our home…

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For those of you tight on space or who may be storing it for the next child, check out the hideaway feature {images from the Guidecraft website}…

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I tested out the storage feature and it was easy to use.  I wouldn’t want to store it every day and take it out again, but for longer term storage this is such a great option! It compacts to only 6” in depth with a simple twist of an Allen wrench. Fully extended, it measures 30"W x 15.25"D x 38" H.

Thanks to Guidecraft for allowing us to review this wonderful play kitchen!

Get yours on Amazon here or on the Guidecraft website here!