Thursday, December 10, 2009

Gift giving from Peaceable Kingdom Press

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Finding an online shop that offers gorgeous quality kids games and gifts can be hard at times, but finding Peaceable Kingdom Press is a weight taken off. Peaceable Kingdom Press is a great place to find original games and other sets for kids, especially with the holidays coming up!

Peaceable Kingdom Press offers products for the younger set that are wholesome and teach at the same time. No hidden agendas, no hidden humor, just great, clean fun. There aren't enough companies out there like that now a days! Their products range from superb sticker sets, toys and puzzles, stationery, and of course, their amazing games!

Their Fish Stix Board Game is even an award winner!! Its won the 2009 Parents Choice gold award, Dr. Toy's 10 Best Games of 2009, as well as Dr. Toy's 100 Best Products of 2009.
Perfect for the car rides to Grandma's house this holiday season are their kids activity books with their carry along handle. Topics like wizardry, animals, mermaids, Dr. Seuss and many more are available. The match up games are great too, with Curious George and pirate options among others.

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Curious George... the curious little monkeyyyy....

I always remember the old old old original Curious George theme song, and I'd video it and sing it, but there's no way I'm posting that for the world to see. Nonetheless, Curious George has always been one of my own favorites and then with how popular it became when the full length movie came out- and how much Boug loved it- I had great reasons for loving it as well!!

Now normally I'm not a big Christmas music fan, but with the release of A Very Monkey Christmas, the Curious George Christmas Soundtrack, I'm loving it! We popped in our cd while trimming our tree and simply loved how catchy and well preformed the tunes are! Bougs favorite seems to be "Something As Special As You" and the hub and I just love track 7, the Christmas Main title!


Make sure to check out A Very Monkey Christmas on PBS on December 18th, 19th, 20th and Christmas Day! You can pick up your copy of A Very Monkey Christmas at itunes, target, and amazon.com.

Want to win a copy of A Very Monkey Christmas soundtrack on CD? Leave a comment here with which song from the track list is your favorite! You can listen to them and see the track list here.

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on December 14th. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win?

This post was written for Family Review Network as part of a program for Denon Records, who supplied the CD for review

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Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Wordless Wednesday

What a difference a year makes!!
Christmas card picture 2008


Christmas card picture 2009


You can always find more WW at EM, 5M4M and the Hub!

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Monday, December 7, 2009

Extraordinary Morsel Monday

This is a cross post from Extraordinary Mothers, be sure to visit Extraordinary Mothers for WW, Mega Reviews, giveaways, and much more!!
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'Tis the season and one thing that we do each and every year now in our house is make this simple, apple cinnamon ornaments for our tree. They smell DIVINE and fill the whole house with this warm, sweet and spicy scent. They're super easy to make and fun to do with the kids!
I know it looks yucky- this is only my "crafting" cookie sheet!!
Photo property of CaseyDeuce @ A Couch With A View

1/2 cup cinnamon
1/2 cup store bought applesauce- homemade is too watery

Stir together the applesauce and cinnamon until stiff. Create a dough ball. Flatten onto wax paper with your fingers. Place a second sheet of wax paper on top and roll out with a rolling pin to about 1/8th of an inch thick. Remove top sheet of wax paper and use your cookie cutters to cut whatever shapes you'd like. I use a small cocktail straw to put a hole in the top of the "cookie" so that the ornament can be hung. You can air dry these until hard or place into an oven until dried out. I like to dry mine out in the oven (LOW HEAT!) because it gives the house that extra kick of scent! Each year I place mine into a ziploc bag and they're still fragrant for the next holiday season!

These make great additions to gifts instead of bows, and look exceptionally fabulous around the top of one of those jar gifts I gave recipes for!!

(if you link up here at A Couch With A View, the link will automatically go to EM as well, and vice versa)
Have a recipe you want to share for Extraordinary Morsel Monday? Leave it in the Mcklinky!


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Sunday, December 6, 2009

Menu Plan Monday

Did you enter into the giveaway attached to last weeks MPM? I'm having a great time with my new Knock Knock pad to help me plan out my menu for the week- be sure to enter to get your hands on one!! The giveaway ends 12/14 at 11:59 pm!!
Of course it was another hectic week, between working REAL shifts, and then heading to the Family Dollar roundtable event in NYC. I can't wait to tell everyone all about it and I'm working on my info to get up on the site. You've gotta keep your eyes peeled for all the great info I'm going to give you!!

You may notice that I'm now rolling from Sunday through Saturday, instead of Monday through Sunday on my MPM. The Knock Knock pad starts on Sunday, so I figured I'd adjust my plan to work better with this pad!! I'm also doing a whole lot of cooking from my freezer this week, nothing too exciting here... :(

Recipes are below!!

Sunday: Corn and Spinach Enchiladas

Monday: Hot Dogs & Veggies

Tuesday: Crockpot Veggie Lasagne

Wednesday: Grilled Cheese & Soup

Thursday: Crockpot sausages with cabbage & potatoes

Friday: Beef over noodles (I don't have a good name for this recipe!)

Saturday: Veggie Burritos

Once again, breakfasts are usually cold cereal, oatmeal and sometimes Boug just wants toast and a banana! Lunches usually are leftovers or sandwiches paired with yogurt or fruit generally. My meals are usually a bit heavier in meats and chickens as hub is a butcher and brings so much home for free or next to nothing!! Check out more Menu Plan Monday entries at orgjunkie!!

Recipes::

Corn & Spinach Enchiladas (A Year of Slow Cooking)
1 c. creamed corn
1 c. shredded pre-cooked meat
1 c. baby spinach leaves
1/4 c. fine chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp. chopped jalepenos
1.5 c. shredded cheese of choice
1 can green enchilada sauce (28 oz. size)
2/3 c. sour cream
corn tortillas
extra shredded cheese

Combine meat, corn, spinach, cilantro, jalepenos and shredded cheese. Mix together to create your enchilada filling. Combine your enchilada sauce with the sour cream in a separate bowl. Fill corn tortillas with enchilada filling and place into crockpot seam side down. Stack to fit as many as need be. After all filling is put into the torts, and they are stacked, pour your sauce over top, top with shredded cheese. Cook on low for 5-7 hours.

Crockpot Veggie Lasagne
12 lasagna noodles, uncooked
1 zuchhini sliced
4 carrots grated
2 cups baby spinach
1 onion sliced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 jar(28 ounces) spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup water
16 ounces cottage cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

Break noodles in half. Place half of the noodles in bottom of greased 4-quart slow cooker. Stir Italian seasoning into veggies and spread half over the noodles already in slow cooker. Then layer half of the sauce and water, half of the cottage cheese, and half of mozzarella cheese over beef. Repeat layers. Cover and cook on low heat for 4-5 hours. Do not cook more than 5 hours.Makes 6-8 servings. Serve with salad and garlic bread.

Crockpot Smoked Sausage w/ Cabbage & Potatoes
2 pounds red-skinned potatoes, unpeeled or peeled, sliced about 1/4-inch thick
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf thyme
1 medium onion, halved, sliced
1/2 small cabbage, coarsely chopped or shredded
6 to 8 links of smoked sausage, such as andouille, chicken and apple, or your favorite
1/2 cup apple juice
2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Arrange sliced potatoes in the bottom of a 4-to 7-quart slow cooker. Drizzle with the butter and sprinkle with about half of the salt, pepper, and thyme. Toss to coat then add the cabbage and onions. Sprinkle with remaining seasonings and top with the sausages. Pour the apple cider over all and then drizzle with vinegar. Cover and cook for 6 to 8 hours on LOW or 3 to 4 hours on HIGH.

Beef over Noodles:
This recipe is supposed to be made with sirloin tips, but to save I pretty much will use whichever cut of beef is thawed out.
1 lb. beef, cut into chunks
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small can of sliced mushrooms

Place all into the crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours, serve over egg noodles, I sometimes top with a dollop of sour cream if I have it in the fridge!!

Veggie Burritos
1 can corn
1 can tomatoes (I use canned diced tomatoes just for ease.)
1 can black beans
grated cheddar or jack cheese
Flour tortillas

Pour the corn, tomatoes and beans into a pan. Heat the mixture to boiling and then let simmer until heated through (5 - 10 mins), add your favorite spices to taste. Warm up the tortillas in the microwave or on a burner. When the filling is ready, use a slotted spoon to put a spoonful (or so) on each tortilla. Sprinkle a little grated cheese on top of the filling, if desired. Wrap the tortilla around the filling "burrito-style."

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Saturday, December 5, 2009

Fun creepy crawly Hexbugs for the holidays!

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Sometimes the same ol' toys get boring, they can only change certain items so many times. The Hexbug Nano is so new and so different from so much that I've seen on the shelves lately- I love finding new great products!! Fact of the matter is, kids love creepy crawlies, kids love dirt, kids love bugs... yes, I've had to fish a real live ladybug out of Lil' Buddy's mouth before. Hexbug Nano is too cool cause it acts like a bug and is so neat to play with and watch! These things even flip over by themselves!! Think of the Hexbug like the "webkinz" of the bug world- you can register your Hexbug online to play games and learn about real science! The original is a bit bigger, and they also have the inchworm, the crab, as well as the ant!

The Hexbug is awesome and there are so many different varieties to choose from. The Nano that we got is only $9.99! You can get yours at the site or at retailers like Toys R Us and RadioShack. The products are also available at amazon.com

And if your kids school is looking for a unique fundraising option, the Hexbug has fundraising opportunities available where the school can earn up to 50% of the profit!

Make sure you head over to Melissa's to see what she had to say about the Hexbug Nano!!

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Get your green on with Clorox Green Works!


Being a mother myself, things always seem so much more important, and I do think it was the "mothering" that changed me. Not to sound "holier-than-thou" but when I was just a single chick, things didn't seem as important to me, I had my own agenda. Now as a mom of two, married, I'm much more aware of things that are going on in the world around me, as well as my little own world. So with the environment being what it is now, I'm always looking for great things that can help my families impact on the environment, help me use products that are better for them too.

The newest edition to the list of eco-friendly items that I love? Clorox Green Works natural laundry detergent and stain remover. Being able to use a product that is made from renewable resources, biodegradable, and free of petrochemicals is a big deal- its nice to know that I'm able to do something better, even if it is via route of doing laundry!

You know its funny, but sometimes I expect to be let down by products that are natural. I sometimes feel like all that artificial and bad junk in there is what does the majority of the cleaning work. Of course I wasn't let down with the Clorox Green Works detergent and stain remover. Even though they're natural, those natural ingredients do a superb job at getting the grime out of clothes- and I'm sure you know how grimy kids clothes can get!!

Don't forget! At the Green Works site, you can post your product review and be entered to win a washer and dryer set! You can also grab a coupon for $3 off of your purchase of the laundry detergent!

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Clorox Green Works and received a bottle of Green Works Natural Detergent and Stain Remover to facilitate my review and a $20 thank-you gift certificate.

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Pack your bags with Sherpani

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Its almost time to start traveling for the holidays and what better way then to do it responsibly, and in STYLE!!

Sherpani's bags, suitcases, luggage and more are so great for stashing all your stuff for those holiday trips coming up. Or maybe you know someone who is going on a great trip after the holidays? What an awesome gift would a piece of Sherpani luggage be!! You can even grab one of Sherpani's baby carriers or a baby bag for those walking trips that will be coming up in the spring!

As always, gift cards are available for Sherpani products and YAYYYY FOR FREE SHIPPING!!

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