Saturday, July 24, 2010

Sunglass Warehouse Winner!


Congrats to Debbi Does Dinner Healthy!  She is our lucky winner of the Sunglass Warehouse Giveaway.  Out of 254 entries, Debbi won with comment #4.  "I love the retro style ones!  These looks great, I'm always losing my sunglasses! Great giveaway, thanks!"  Debbi has 48 hours to accept her prize or I will randomly draw a new winner.  Thanks to all that entered and I hope you keep reading Between the Lines!

Enjoying Tea Review with Free Tea Samples

There is nothing better for me than a hot mug of tea early in the morning. In the summer, I usually limit my tea intake to one mug. But from Fall through Spring, you can usually find a half full mug nearby. Before last year, I hadn’t been very adventurous in my tea sampling. I drank green tea and I was happy with it. I occasionally had some lemon soother tea when I was sick, but that was about it. However, last year my dad began introducing me to all different kinds of tea. I instantly fell in love and he even bought me a tea maker for tea bags. With the tea maker, we have even been known to mix different flavors together to make a new flavor.


Just a few weeks ago, my tea taste buds expanded even further. Thanks to a wonderful company, Enjoying Tea, I was introduced to loose tea. How did I not know that you can make tea without tea bags? The wonderful people from Enjoying Tea, sent me their Smart Tea Maker and eight tins of samples tea. Among the eight, my favorites were Strawberry Black Tea and Provence Rooibos. I don’t even know how to pronounce the second one, but I love it!




The Smart Tea Maker is easy to use. You simply pour some dry tea into the maker and pour hot water in. Close the lid and let it steep to your desired taste. When your tea is ready, place it over your cup or mug and place it gently on top. The tea then seeps through the stainless steel filter, leaving the tea leaves behind. When you are ready to wash your Smart Tea Maker you can do it by hand or stick it in the dishwasher!


Enjoying Tea sells more than just loose tea leaves. They also sell tea bags, instant tea, tea sets, teapots, tea cups, and tea accessories. You should definitely go check out all their great teas. If you like what you see, they are offering free promotional tea. Just go HERE to order. Supplies are limited, so head over sooner than later. Thanks again to Enjoying Tea for allowing me to review some samples.


Disclosure: I received free samples to write the review. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

Open Discussion: Favorite Movies

My hubby and I love watching movies.  We recently got the premium cable channels for a free trial and I am amazed at how many movies he has actually seen that I haven't.  So that got me thinking that many of you probably have favorites that I have never seen either.  So help me out by letting me know:

1)  What was your favorite childhood movie?

2)  What was your favorite adoloencent movie?

3) What is your favorite current movie?

4) What is your favorite movie of all time?

Grab a latte, put up your feet, and join the discussion!

Tricky Trivia

When did Christmas become a National holiday?

Take a guess in the comments below.

Friday, July 23, 2010

My Poor Baby!

My youngest daughter has never been big on nap-time.  I think that in the last two years she has taken maybe three naps.  But this week we have been go, go, go and she is wiped!  She was so tired today that she walked herself to her room and cried herself to sleep.  My poor baby is exhausted!!!  Hopefully she can sleep for an hour or two.

Wacky Jacqui’s Review and Giveaway

So what do you think of my new blog look? Looking kind of sharp, right?!? Well, my fantastic blog makeover is courtesy of Jacqui from Wacky Jacqui’s Designs. Wacky Jacqui’s Designs is a brand new design business. Jacqui offers complete blog makeovers, as well as smaller packages and a la carte items. Need a tweak here or there, Jacqui’s your girl. Need an overhaul, she can do that too.

  Jacqui was real easy to work with and didn’t mind my constant questions. She made sure that I was happy every step of the way. I think she may have adjusted my sidebar titles about 5 or 6 times until I was sure it was right. I liked feeling that I was completely in charge of my blog. It is after all my third baby.



Jacqui has generously offered one of my lucky readers a chance to win a blog makeover of their own. (This offer is only available for Blogger blogs.)  The winner will receive all of the items listed in the above picture. Are you in need of a makeover? Do you know of someone else that would jump at the chance? Well, enter today!

Mandatory Entry: Visit Wacky Jacqui’s Designs and become a follower. Come back here and leave a comment saying you did so.

Extras: (Remember each entry must have a separate comment and an email address is needed to contact winner.)

~Follow Between the Lines (3)
~ Subscribe to my email (5)
~ Grab Wacky Jacqui’s Designs Button and leave a link of where it’s displayed (5)
~ Grab my button and leave a link of where it’s displayed (5)
~ Add Wacky Jacqui’s Designs to your blogroll and leave a link (5)
~Add me to your Blogroll and leave a link (5)

Giveaway ends August 6th at 10 pm eastern time.
Contest is open to all Blogger users.  Winner will be randomly selected by random.org and will be sent an email notification.  Winner will have 48 hours to contact me or they will forfeit their prize.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary blog makeover in exchange for the review.  No other compensation was given.  I was not required to give a positive review. All opinions are my own.

Camp: Part One

This has been a long, yet fun week.  I hosted a summer camp for my kids and some of their friends in my basement.  We learned, we played, we made a mess, and had fun!   The kids did so much better than I expected and I am so proud of all of them.  I figured since they all are such good friends, they would have a hard time concentrating on their activities, but I was wrong.  They usually got the loudest when their mom's came to get them.


On Monday, we focused on where we lived (read previous summer series post here) and on the food pyramid.  They  learned the different food groups and how to eat a well balanced diet.  They worked together as teams to sort bags of foods into their proper food group.  By the end of the day, everyone knew the proper piles the foods went in.  In between activities, the girls had the chance to view insects in a microscope and shells with a magnify glass.  They also enjoys playing with the cash register and selling food to their "customers".


 On Tuesday, we focused on colors.  We met Mr. Roy G. Biv (see previous summer series post here) and made rainbow out of Fruit Loops.  We also learned about the differences of primary and secondary colors.  The kids had a hard time remembering those big words, but they could remember which colors went in each group.  We used our homemade color wheels to help us mix icing.  The kids watched in awe as they saw that red and yellow actually make orange.  They used their different colored icing to decorate color wheel cookies.  The girls also made their own color books where they practiced writing sentences about a colored picture they drew. 


 Stayed tuned to hear about all the other fun activities we did this week!  What creative learning activities have your kids done this summer?  We are always looking for new ideas!  Grab a latte, put up your feet, and join the discussion!

Tricky Trivia

What food is sometimes used in the center of golf balls?

Take a guess in the comments below.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Personal Best!

I know that it is nothing to write home about, but I am excited.  I just  ran  a 5K in my fastest time ever as a result of some encouragement from my little darlings.  When I say encouragement, I mean constant whining.  "I'm hungry!!!!  Hurry Mommy!"  In their defense, they are used to me running first thing in the morning and today I ran right before dinner.  I promised I would be done quickly and I wouldn't run my normal 4 miles.  So I booked it and ran a 5K in under 27 minutes!  That is about 2 minutes off my previous personal best.  Go Me!!

Blogmania Feature: Illumenature


It is time again for another sneak peak at an awesome Blogmania Sponsor. Illumenature is a candle company that offers eco-friendly , hand poured soy candles. All of their lovely smelling candles are made right here in the U.S.




I personally have used their candles. My favorite scent is the Banana Nut Bread. I honestly can say that the scent smells like fresh bread baking in the oven. And what’s even better is that their candles burn slowly and evenly. This makes your candle last even longer!

Banana Nutbread offers a flavorful blend of ripe bananas, freshly ground walnuts, and a hint of vanilla and brown sugar. Banana Nutbread is sure to be a family favorite, and for that, it is available to you year-round.
Illumenature candles are hand poured using 100% soy wax, as well as premium scented oils & color. Our glass jars are made in the USA.
We also offer a recycling program for used illumenature candles. Each used illumenature candle can be returned to us for $1 credit towards the purchase of a new illumenature candle.

 


As an awesome Blogmania sponsor, Illumenature will be donating an item to Between the Lines’ gift pack. I’m not revealing any of the prizes just yet, but swing on over to Illumenature and check out all their wonderful scent choices. If you make a purchase, email me at betweenthelines-kam@hotmail.com  and it will earn you ten extra entries to any of my current giveaways.

Special Blogmania News!

Blogmania bloggers are all about building relationships - between our blogs, our cherished readers, the online community and business owners. We value each other's opinion as we all are endeavoring to make the best choices for our home life. So it seemed natural to partner up with The Lane Real Estate Team and Breebee's blog to bring you our first ever twitter and blog blast party.

The Lane Real Estate Team is all about building relationships through communities - specializing in Kennewick Homes for Sale. And Bree is a blogger - and a mom - trying to think outside of the box and help build community ties in NW Columbus OH via her Kid event website! Our other twitter party sponsors also offer items to help strengthen and maintain relationships - from stationary to hand stamped sentiments.

Our Party Theme: "Building toward Blogmania with The Lane Real Estate Team" [http://www.joelane.com/]


Info on the Blog Blast:

If you post on your blog(s) our announcement between now and the twitter party you will be entered to win $100 cash. If we reach 500 blogs there will be two additional $50 drawings, totaling 3 winners! You can email me, breejanderson@gmail.com or blogmaniapr@gmail.com for the HTML code for blog(s) links and some posting specific OR ask the post owner for info and that blog owner will provide you an HTML code.

Please return with your specific blog post links on Bree's Blog, under her Twitter Party PAGE tab.

Info on the Twitter Party:

9:30-10:30pm, Sunday, EST we will party!

There is a custom tweet grid and a linky for early RSVP. RSVP'ing early also enters you into special drawings. You do not have to RSVP to tweet and win but the 'extra' will not be available.

You can win both the blog blast and at the twitter party!


RSVP at BreeBee's:



Recipe Corner: Mexican Salad (from allrecipe.com)

This is a recipe that I found on allrecipes.com. I haven’t tried it yet, but plan on making it next taco night! If you’ve tried it or try it before I do, let me know what you think. And don’t forget to contact me if you are interested in having your blog and your yummy recipe featured in a Fabulous Food Friday Post. Whether you bake it, sauté it, or just microwave it, send it in! Share your yummy food and you may find yourself with new visitors. Please email me directly if you are interested. (betweenthelines-kam@hotmail.com )

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
• 2 cups frozen corn kernels
• 1/2 onion, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced (optional)
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• salt to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon honey

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the black beans, garbanzo beans, corn, onion, cilantro, jalapenos, bell pepper, olive oil, lime juice, pepper, salt and honey. Mix well; refrigerate and allow flavors to blend.

Tricky Trivia

What are baby beavers called?

Take a guess in the comments below (no peaking...I want to see how many different answers we can come up with)!

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Really?!?

Take a minute and look at my picture under the about me section....  Did you see it?  Do you notice the dark brown hair on my head?  Typically, hair color is the first thing that you notice about a person.  Well today I made a brave, but miscalculated choice.  I attempted to have red highlights put in my hair to  cancel out the gray.  When you have dark brown hair, the gray really pops out at you.  Unfortunately, I didn't get red highlights.  I got a full head of orange hair.  Dirty orange, like a carrot that just got pulled out of the ground.  Yuck, I know.  So I'm feeling sick to my stomach about it, even go to my friend's house across the street to see if it is ok to color it again the same day.  But when my hubby gets home from work, he says nothing.  My sister and I leave hints all over the place and he still doesn't notice my hair.  I'm not sure if I should be happy that it may not be as bad as I thought, or sad that he hasn't notice that my hair is orange.  I love the man to death, but he certainly isn't the most observant one.  If he hasn't noticed by tomorrow night, I'll let him know, but REALLY?!?!

NeoStrata Review and Giveaway

The NeoStrata Company creates and sells dermatology approved skin care products from Neostrata, Exuviance, Coverblend, and Neoceuticals. Without animal testing, Dr.Eugene Van Scott and Dr. Ruey Yu have produced “the dermatology developed skin care collections recommended and highly regarded by skin care experts around the world”. They sell various collections that meet the needs of everyone‘s specific skin type.


I was lucky enough to have a chance to review some great products. The first one, shown above, was Exuviance’s Introductory Collection for Sensitive/Dry skin. I cannot express enough how sensitive my skin is. Even on my legs, I am very limited to the type of lotion I use. Therefore, even though it said it was for sensitive skin, I was a little hesitant. However, I am happy to report that it worked wonders! I have been using it for two weeks and the lines around my eyes are almost unnoticeable. Even my husband, who is very unobservant, has noticed the difference. This product states that is helps even skin tone, improves skin texture, stimulates cell turnover for improved clarity, diminishes fine lines and wrinkles, and is suitable for all skin types, even the most sensitive.

A daily regimen including five high-performance anti-aging solutions uniquely formulated for sensitive/dry skin types.
In a clinical study, participants experienced significant benefits after only four weeks:
* 93% reported improvement in appearance and feel
* 85% reported visibly reduced lines and wrinkles
* 96% rated Exuviance non-irritating and compatible with their sensitive skin

The second product I reviewed is perfect for the summer months. I review Exuviance’s Heel Repair cream. Have you ever noticed that during the summer months your heel dry out a bit? I think that with wearing flip flops or going barefoot all the time does this to our poor feet. After using this cream for two weeks I now have soft, uncracked feet. My feet weren’t that bad to start with, so it make take you a bit longer to see the same results. But the good news is, it definitely works wonders.

Do your heels need rescuing? Exfoliate, soothe and smooth dry, cracked and calloused skin on feet with Exuviance Heel Repair.
* High strength Alpha and Poly Hydroxy Acids
* Exfoliates and repairs dry, cracked, scaly skin
* Pro-Vitamin E and conditioning oils soothe and refresh tired feet
* Amphoteric formulation to reduce irritation


Thanks to Michelle from NeoStrata, one lucky reader of Between the Lines will get to win their own Heel Repair cream! If you can’t wait to win because your feet are screaming for help, visit their site here and buy your own. They even have before and after photos of some people who have used the Heel Repair.

Mandatory Entry: Visit NeoStrata and join their email list. Come back and leave a comment that you did so.


Extras: (Remember each entry must have a separate comment and an email address is needed to contact winner.)

~Follow Between the Lines (3)
~ Subscribe to my email (5)
~ Grab my button and leave a link of where it’s displayed (5)
~Add me to your Blogroll and leave a link (5)
~Follow me on Twitter (2)
~ Follow NeoStrata on Twitter (2)
~ Add my Twitter Hop Button and leave a link (5)
~Like NeoStrata on Facebook (2)
~Tweet this giveaway leaving me your link. (3x a day not back to back) (1 entry each)
~ Enter another one of my giveaways (1 each)
~Blog about this giveaway and leave me a link (10)
~Make a purchase from NeoStrata (10)

This giveaway will end on August 6th @10p.m Eastern

*This giveaway is open to US only. Winner will be chosen randomly. An email notification will be sent to the email address provided by the winner. The winner must respond within 48 hours. Failure to do so will result in being disqualified and a new winner will be chosen.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary Exuviance products in exchange for my honest review. The opinions & thoughts expressed are my own. I received no other compensation for my review nor was I under any obligation to give a positive review.

Tricky Trivia

In which country is it illegal to sell or own chewing gum?

Take a guess in the comments below!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

A New Look!

So what do you think ?  Are you digging the new look?  I just received a complete overhaul courtesy of Wacky Jacqui's Designs. Are you looking to change up your blog a bit?  Well, come back on Friday because Jacqui is offering one of my lucky readers a chance to win their own blog makeover!  And don't forget to check out my other great giveaways on the top right of the blog. My newest giveaway is from SodaStream!  Who wouldn't want to make their own soda???

Summer Learning Series: Where I Live

Every child loves summer. Summer is a time for playing outside, swimming in the pool, and hanging out with your friends. Unfortunately, summer is also a time when kids lose a lot of what they learned during the previous year of school. As an elementary school teacher, it was frustrating to watch my students struggle at the beginning of each year with objectives that they had mastered the previous year. As a parent, I want to make sure that this doesn’t happen to my children. This summer, I will be setting aside a little time each day for some fun learning activities for my kids. Starting in June, check in each Tuesday if you are looking for some activities for your kids. I will be posting a few things we did the previous week to share. Also if you are interested in doing the same thing, I would love to link up with all you creative moms out there! Just shoot me an email and let me know you are interested. (betweenthelines-kam@hotmail.com)  Let’s work together to help our children have a fun, but educational summer!

“Where do I live?” is a big question. For my kids, they have now learned that they live in a house, on a street, in a neighbor that’s part of a town, that belongs to a state, that’s part of a country on the planet Earth. I know that’s a bit much, but they love learning new things. This week I am teaching a “camp” to some of my friend’s kids and we learned where we lived, but not to such a great extent.


The first thing we talked about was our address. We discussed the importance of remembering your own address and how the post office uses our address to send us our mail. After we all practiced our address we designed our own mailboxes. We used mini cereal boxes and construction paper.  On one side of the mailbox the kids put a sticker with their address and on the other a flag to use when they want to send out mail. Throughout the week the kids will be able to send mail to each other. Should be fun!



The next thing we talked about was our state. Since the kids I’m working with are between the ages of 3 and 6, we kept it simple. We learned about where our state was on the US map, where our town was on the state map, and our state’s capital, bird, and flower. We then decorated our state’s flag and glued on pictures of the state bird and flower. On the opposite side, we put a state map with a star for the capital.  They turned out real cute, but the pictures didn't come out well. 

The kids all had fun making them and telling me all the things they knew about where they lived. Picture nine little girls having a million things to say at once. It was kind of funny! Do your kids know about where they live? What tricks have you used to help them remember their address? Grab a latte, put up your feet, and join the discussion!

Recipe Corner: Blueberry Zucchini Bread

I love zucchini bread. It is so moist and delicious. It is not the most healthy snack, but there are ways to lower the calories. I’ll give you the original recipe, the one I make when company is coming, and in parentheses I’ll put my substitute. And don’t forget to contact me if you are interested in having your blog and your yummy recipe featured in a Fabulous Food Friday Post. Whether you bake it, sauté it, or just microwave it, send it in! Share your yummy food and you may find yourself with new visitors. Please email me directly if you are interested. (betweenthelines-kam@hotmail.com )


Ingredients

• 3 eggs, lightly beaten (3/4 c egg beaters)
• 1 cup vegetable oil (1/2 c oil and ½ cup applesauce)
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups white sugar (1 cup Splenda and 1 ¼ cup white sugar)
• 2 cups shredded zucchini
• 3 cups all-purpose flour (3 cups Whole wheat Flour)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon (2 TBS Cinnamon)
• 1 pint fresh blueberries

Directions


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 4 mini-loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar. Fold in the zucchini. Beat in the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Gently fold in the blueberries. Transfer to the prepared mini-loaf pans.
3. Bake 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean. Cool 20 minutes in pans, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

Tricky Trivia

What was the first man-made object to reach the moon?

Take a guess in the comments below!

Monday, July 19, 2010

SodaStream Review and Giveaway


Although my husband is the big soda drinker in our house, I love a good diet soda every once in awhile. I tend not to buy my favorites because I just enjoy it and he NEEDS it to get through the day. However, now thanks to Jenna from SodaStream, everyone can enjoy their favorites at the fraction of the cost and calories! I will admit that I am very excited about my new SodaStream maker. I have talked about it to all my family and friends and have encouraged them to go out and purchase one. For those of you unfamiliar with SodaStream, let me fill you in.



To create your own SodaStream system, you first must pick the Soda Maker that fits your needs the best. SodaStream offers 4 different Soda Makers. They basically serve the same purpose, but the more expensive models are stainless steel and/or provide dishwasher safe bottles. Check out the Fountain Jet, Genesis, Pure, and Penguin Soda Makers HERE.


Once you’ve chosen your Soda Maker, it is time to choose your flavors. SodaStream provides such a great variety of flavors that you’ll definitely find some that you love. They offer regular and diet, but don’t let the regular fool you. SodaStream uses Splenda in their flavorings, so your calorie intake is significantly less than a regular can of soda. Check out this information from their website:

How does SodaStream nutrition stack up against national brands?

With a SodaStream home soda maker and over 30 delicious regular, diet and caffeine-free sodamix flavors to choose from, you'll enjoy freshly made, great tasting soda that fits your health and diet. Regular flavors contain no high-fructose corn syrup, and diet flavors are sweetened with Splenda® brand sweetener, not aspartame.



Yumnut Winner!


I am so excited to announce that with 127 entries, deanna is our lucky Yumnuts winner with comment number 58!  deanna won with this comment: "Entered Wild Texas Wear giveaway #1."  Congratulations deanna!  I hope you enjoy your delicious Yumnuts!  deanna has 48 hours to accept her prize before I randomly pick a new winner.  Thanks to all that entered and thanks for reading Between the Lines!

Tricky Trivia

In Albania, nodding your head means______________?

Take a guess in the comments below.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Wacky Jacqui's Designs

Have you heard about Wacky Jacqui’s Designs? Probably not because it is a brand new design business. As I type, Jacqui is probably working to complete her creative new website. But you should definitely go over and check out what she has so far. She has samples of designs that she’s done and a list of designs she can do for you! Stay tune because Between the Lines is getting a makeover courtesy of Wacky Jacqui’s Designs. In the meantime, if you go over to visit Jacqui’s new design site and become a follower you can have 5 extra entries into any of my giveaways. Just shoot me an email at betweenthelines-kam@hotmail.com and I’ll give you your entry word.

Silent Sunday

Our Trip To The Shenandoah Discovery Museum













Simple Sunday Twitter Hop

Simple Sunday Twitter Hop 

& this weeks guest host Chickenista!
 

Grab a cup of coffee & join us every Sunday !!
Every week we will be drawing a weekly #3 Spot to link up  the following week 





How it Works

  1. Follow blogs 1 -3  ( we will follow back )
  2. Add your Twitter URL ( not your blog )
  3. Then follow as many others as you would like 
  4. & follow everyone back that follows you  :)


Link up every Sunday at 12:00 am est !!