Betty Lukens Learning Fun with Felt Giveaway! CLOSED

Congratulations #480, Jay & Amy ~ You Won!!!

I love beautiful felt learning sets! I don’t know what it is about felt, and colorful, fun designs…but I think all teachers love them! When Betty Lukens emailed me I was simply thrilled! Not only are they a sponsor of my blog now, they also sent me several sets to review and are allowing me to host this amazing giveaway for 6 sets!! Here are the sets I chose for my review items {click on the images to see them on the Betty Lukens website}:

We have played with 2 sets so far, first the Fun in the Sun set, after returning from our beach trip…

Currently we are loving the ABC set!!! Ladybug is really attracted to this one and has completed it herself several times and also with me. She doesn’t match them up by letter on her own, just likes putting the pieces in the squares.

I sometimes have our neighbors over for some school time and one day these 3 were assigned the ABC board as a way to encourage teamwork so the older 2 brothers could help their younger brother! They all loved it!I am so excited to include these felt boards in our school time throughout the year. I chose my review items specifically for themes I know we have coming up and themes we just love.

I loved seeing a special part on their FAQ page about offering special discounts for missionaries!!

If you want to know more about Betty Lukens and the background of the company, you can read that here!

If you don’t “like” Betty Lukens on Facebook yet, be sure to jump over right now and do that. They are just beginning their Facebook journey, so you can be one of the first to show your “like” for them.

BUY IT!

If you’d rather not wait to see if you win, you can use coupon code OnePlus for a 15% discount! Or if you join their Facebook page or follow on Twitter, you'll find the code for an even better discount!

WIN IT!

Betty Lukens-Learning Fun with Felt is giving away 6 Learning Fun with Felt play board pre-cut felt sets of your choice - over a $100 value.

Mandatory Entry: Visit the Betty Lukens website and then leave a comment telling us which set is your favorite!!!

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 @bettylukens and @1plus1plus1 on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, give yourself an extra entry! Sample tweet: @1plus1plus1 is hosting a giveaway for @bettylukens for 6 felt board sets, over $100 value! Enter here: http://bit.ly/olIENS
3. If you sign up for their mailing list, give yourself an extra entry! Look for this at the top of their homepage:

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 August 27, 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!

Scripture Lullabies Giveaway

Congratulations #196-Debbie, you won!!!

It is not common for me to instantly fall in love with music. It usually takes me a few listens and then I am hooked. Not the case with Hidden in My Heart Scripture Lullabies! I heard a sample on another blog and was mesmerized and hooked…instantly! I emailed the company within minutes and we began a conversation over email which leads to this giveaway! I am thrilled to share my absolute favorite quiet music with you…

This powerfully peaceful music is helping children sleep soundly, free from nightmares, while also providing some much needed peace for mom and dad. It’s the perfect baby gift, but as you listen, you’ll understand why so many adults are buying their own copy or several to give as gifts to friends and family members. I personally listen to it alone more than with my children! We are also using it as background music during our morning school time just to help keep the peace.

One out of every 10 "Hidden In My Heart" CDs is donated to Pregnancy Resource centers around the country so by purchasing this CD, you are blessing more than just your family.

You can download a FREE sample song here!

Take a peek at this video also which features my favorite song on the CD!

Ifyou’d rather not wait, you can use coupon code SL2011 for a 15% discount!

WIN IT!

Scripture Lullabies is giving away a Hidden in My Heart CD to one of you!

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment telling us you’d like to win, and briefly why!!!

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 Hidden My Heart Scripture Lullabies, enter here: http://bit.ly/pAIKpT
3. If you choose a method to stay updated with Scripture Lullabies, give yourself an extra entry! Look for this graphic on their right sidebar and pick email, RSS or FB!

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 August 20, 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!

Guidecraft Crystal Beads/Shimmering Water Blocks Review {& Giveaway}

We love Guidecraft’s Crystal Bead Blocks, and Shimmering Water Blocks.

 

Actually we love all of Guidecraft’s wooden blocks, including the wonderful Rainbow Blocks we reviewed a few months ago. The kids actually saw the photos of the “special” blocks on the rainbow blocks package and asked me if we would be getting those too.  Thankfully we did a few months later and they all LOVE these wooden blocks!

 

Both the water and the bead blocks are a hit and they all work well together with our Rainbow Blocks set.  Ladybug loves examining the special blocks…

 

Peeking through them is a favorite activity.  Here she is using the bead block, but she normally uses the water blocks as she tells me the color she sees. 

  

Of course stacking is always a popular use for any type of blocks!

She also enjoyed measuring her feet with the blocks!

I absolutely love these blocks and highly recommend adding any set of the special wooden blocks to your block collection.  I am very thankful that we had the opportunity to review these! They also have mirror blocks and sand blocks!

 

BUY IT!

You can purchase the Crystal Bead Blocks and Shimmering Water Blocks on the Guidecraft site.  They also sell them on Amazon: Crystal Bead Blocks, Shimmering Water Blocks

WIN IT!

Jolanthe is hosting the giveaway this month! Head on over to enter to win.

This product was given to me for review purposes, and I do not have to return the product to the vendor. I was not paid for this post. All opinions expressed in this post are mine.

Roadtrip USA Review & Giveaway CLOSED

Congratulations #463 Kayla, you won!

We love USA geography around here! I had the honor of reviewing Erica’s Road Trip USA curriculum and I love it!!! Currently we don’t have time to do it all based on our other curriculum, but there are aspects that we are already doing and some we will be working in for next year! I was blown away when I opened the 363 page file and read through what was included, SO thorough! You can visit her detailed post to read and see all that is included! You can even download a free sample.

Right now we are using and loving these…

We are going through the states in ABC order as we do on my USA Geography PowerPoint {which you can see on the computer screen in this photo}

Each boy is coloring a different page to create one joint notebook.

Another fun thing we have added in is finding photographs of different items on the coloring pages. Before we begin I do a simple Google Image search and copy/paste the images into a document to display for the boys as they color. This is their favorite part and even I am learning a few things {OK, many things}.

BUY IT!

You can purchase Road Trip USA for $18-instant PDF download, or $23 for a CD.

WIN IT!

Erica is giving away an instant download of Road Trip USA to 1 winner!

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment telling us 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. Subscribe via email to Confessions of a Homeschooler
3. If you follow @ericahomeschool and @1plus1plus1 on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, give yourself an extra entry! Sample tweet: @1plus1plus1 is hosting a giveaway for @ericahomeschool for Road Trip USA, enter here: http://bit.ly/muJ3sy

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 July 17, 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!

MadeOn Hard Lotion Giveaway CLOSED

Congratulations Joyce #74, you won!!!

I am excited to share a unique and wonderful product with you…Hard Lotion!!! I had heard of it, but never tried it. When Renee emailed me I was thrilled to be able to try it out and share with my readers! I do not suffer from dry skin myself so I can’t speak on that, but I was very impressed with this strange little lotion bar! It comes in a cute little tin as shown above and honestly looks like a bar of soap! I have been using it on my heels at night and love it. I personally don’t like how it feels on my hands but I can imagine someone who suffers from dry cracked skin would love it. I am anxious for my husband and PacMan to try it out in the winter months as they both suffer from severe dry skin.

What exactly is hard lotion & why did Renee begin making it?

Hard lotion is lotion that is solid at room temperature. It is designed to specifically protect hands and feet from cracked skin and extreme dry skin. Ingredients are shea butter, coconut oil and beeswax. It also relieves skin that suffers from eczema and psoriasis. Renee began making it when she was searching for a recipe online that could help her cracked fingers that hurt from frequent hand-washing, and heels that split every summer from walking barefoot. The business took off in 2010 and now her husband joins her full-time in running the business while raising and homeschooling their 8 children in Northern California.

Renee also sent me the lip balm to test out and I am in LOVE with the peppermint flavor! The lip balm is a bit trickier to find on the website, look for this near the bottom of the home page:

They also make diaper rash cream, goat milk soap, and hair butter. They look amazing!!! You can even do it yourself with much help from Renee’s tutorials! There’s also a blog filled with amazing information. I love natural products and this website was a gem to find!

WIN IT!

MadeOn is giving away 3 Pack Dry Skin Care: 1 Family-size lotion bar, 1 Pocket-size lotion bar, & 1 lip balm.

Mandatory Entry: Visit MadeOn, browse around and then simply leave a comment telling us 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 have a particular skin condition that would make this product very useful to you, give yourself an extra entry!
2. If you subscribe via RSS or email to 1+1+1=1, give yourself an extra entry!
3. If you follow @hardlotion and @1plus1plus1 on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, give yourself an extra entry! Sample tweet: @1plus1plus1 is hosting a giveaway for @hardlotion enter here: http://bit.ly/lUzmnL

This Giveaway is open for USA Only!

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!

Giveaway ENDS July 10, 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!

Guidecraft Fraction Cups & Board ~ Review & Giveaway!

Guidecraft has amazing math toys! Wooden toys that introduce math in a fun playful way are ideal in my boat!  We love the Fraction Action Board and Fraction Cups!

These have been an awesome tool to use for introducing concepts and vocabulary to Krash and Ladybug.  Ladybug is especially drawn to these, they are the perfect challenge for her.

I use the proper terms with her while she plays, so down the road they won’t be as strange when she hears them and it’s actually time to really learn fractions!

 

I love seeing her try different combinations out and also perfecting her “try again” or “help please” skills!  This fraction board gives her more trouble and we have really worked on those 2 phrases a lot when working with it!

I love these math toys and know my kiddos will get years of play out of them!

 

BUY IT!

You can purchase the Fraction Action Board and Fraction Cups on the Guidecraft site.  They also sell them on Amazon: Fraction Action Board and Fraction Cups

WIN IT!

Mama Jenn is hosting the giveaway this month! Head on over to enter to win.

This product was given to me for review purposes, and I do not have to return the product to the vendor. I was not paid for this post. All opinions expressed in this post are mine.

Montessori at Home! Giveaway

Congratulations #300-Lindsey, you won!!

A few months ago I got an email from John Bowman asking me to review his books. I get emails like this quite often and honestly I don’t review many books simply for lack of time. However, my heart is based in Montessori and I was excited to review these particular books!

Soon after beginning to read both the paper book ~ Help Your Preschooler Build a Better Brain, and the eBook ~ Montessori at Home, I was in love! Both books are exactly what I had been looking for when I began homeschooling PacMan.

You may be wondering, “why 2 different books…what is the difference?” Honestly, I was too. Mr. Bowman sent me both formats and I have been able to pour over them both. Here’s my thoughts…

If you are on a computer or have an eReader that can read PDF books {like I do with iBooks on my iPad} I personally recommend getting the PDF version, Montessori at Home! It is more extensive and has more meat to it. The paper copy, Help Your Preschooler Build a Better Brain, was written for those parents who like a traditional book and want something to hold in their hands. It is filled with much of the same info and gives you everything you need, but is a bit more condensed.

What will you find in the books? Tons of scientific stuff, which I love! Tons of early childhood education stuff, which is my background and I love reading it even for the 100th time! Information about Maria Montessori and the background behind her methods. Lists of items to gather, simple ideas to make Montessori work for you at home.

You will also find TONS, and I mean TONS of activities…most which you can begin the day you read about them! Mr. Bowman makes it truly easy for you to do the activities at home! You can already see many of his activities featured in our first Montessori Minute post…

Each month, John will be sharing a new post with us, so be sure to follow along so you don’t miss his extensive posts!

I promise if you are even remotely interested in doing homeschool with your child for the early years, you want this book {either or both}. Mr. Bowman empowers you to believe you can do this. Many times in my early homeschool years-even with my early childhood degree, I felt like it was out of my reach and too complicated to pull off at home. John Bowman lets you know how wrong that thinking is! He assures you that you CAN do it!!!

Here are some more details straight from John Bowman himself…

Montessori At Home! is 193 full size pages with color photos throughout and over 200 Montessori early learning activities, adapted for use by parents at home. This book is available on CD for $12.95 and as a download for only $9.95. Most activities use common household items and are designed for easy, quick setup & use. Complete background information on Montessori education and how to set up, display, and do Montessori activities successfully at home are included to guide parents. Activity groups include Everyday Life, Sensory Experience, Science, Math, and Reading. The Math & Reading sections are completely sequenced for ease of use. Recommendations are given for a selection of Montessori and other excellent materials for home use by preschoolers. A second PDF file includes 36 printable activity sheets for use with various activities. A comprehensive guide just for parents.

For those who prefer a book to hold, I recently collected the activities from Montessori At Home! in a paperback titled Help Your Preschooler Build a Better Brain.

Want to know about John and his personal Montessori background and why he wrote these books? Here’s what he told me…

I spent 12 years as a Montessori preschool teacher and center director. I actually shelved this project after I got married in 1980 and entered a new career. In late 2009 I again became interested in writing a Montessori book for parents. I assumed that multiple similar books had probably been written in all that time, so I checked out most of the books on the market. Surprisingly, I found none that covered the subject in the comprehensive way I had in mind, especially concerning modifying Montessori activities for easy set up & use at home and giving parents a complete Montessori at home program. So, I wrote Montessori At Home! and then the second book.

BUY IT

You can go ahead and purchase your copy of Montessori At Home! here on his website, or you can order the paperback book Help Your Preschooler Build a Better Brain here on Amazon.

WIN IT!

John Bowman is giving away a CD with the Montessori At Home! book & Activity Sheets in two PDF files; and a copy of Help Your Preschooler Build a Better Brain (paperback).

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment telling us you’d like to win and who you are hoping to teach with your new books!

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 Follow/Subcribe to 1+1+1=1, give yourself an extra entry!
2. If you visit and read our 1st Montessori Minute post and leave a comment {on the other post, not this one} for John with either a question you have or a comment about his post…give yourself an extra entry!
3. If you follow @1plus1plus1 on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, give yourself an extra entry! Sample tweet: @1plus1plus1 is hosting a giveaway for #Montessori At Home! enter here: http://bit.ly/ilWDos

This Giveaway is open for anyone for downloadable book, paperback book can only be sent USA!

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 July 3, 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!