'Giggles Computer Funtime for Baby' giveaway details....

"Giggles Computer Funtime For Baby"

Memorable Children Books and Gifts has a great giveaway going on.

They are giving away "Giggles Computer Funtime For Baby"

This program is wonderful for babies 6 months to 36 months.

This is what they have to say about the program:

"Giggles Computer Funtime For Baby™ is award-winning software that lets your baby tap and touch the keys on your computer for adorable on-screen fun."

"Lovingly crafted for babies 6-to-36 months old, the program locks out the system and protects your computer and files, allowing your little one to touch any key at all."

"Babies love touching the computer keyboard — NOW YOU CAN LET THEM! Each curious key press entertains your baby with delightful animated characters in classic Nursery Rhymes. There are 14 adorable key tapping activities, each representing a different Nursery Rhyme, for you and baby to explore! Includes more than 50 songs in 5 baby-fun categories. Nursery Rhymes also includes a "sing-a-long" mode for the rhymes that have accompanying songs, such as Mary Had A Little Lamb. Giggles Computer Funtime For Baby™ is also filled with fun sound effects, animal sounds, and adorable animal character voices."

For specific giveaway rules go to  Mymcbook's blog.   

Good luck :)

'Amy Brown Photography and More' review and giveaway....

Hey everyone, I want to introduce you to Amy Brown, a friend of mine.

She is a wonderful photographer who has just opened a brand new "Etsy" shop, which I will feature here today!!

Amy and the hubby :)

Amy Brown Photography and More

Come for the Photo, Stay for the Handmade

If you are lucky enough to live anywhere near Amy,

you can contact her to set a custom photo shoot for your special occasions,

or family photos :)

I absolutely love Amy's nature photos.

She certainly has an eye for natural beauty, I can tell you that!!

 Take a look at some of these great photos she has to offer and see for yourself...

"Dewey Rose"

 "Getting Ready For Winter"

"Morning Glory Dew"

"Giraffe Family"

"Sail Boat in Wickford Bay"

And finally, my personal favorite

So unless Amy has more than one copy of this photo,

this one is all mine...lol :)

J/K...if you order this before I do....Enjoy!!

"Flower"

Amy has more items than the one's I have featured here, and will also be adding new items frequently.

Be sure to check out her "Etsy" shop often so you won't miss anything :)

Amy has ever so generously offered one of my followers

their choice of one of her 8 x 10 photos!!

Mandatory Entry: Visit Amy's "Etsy" shop and tell me which item is your favorite.

Extra Entries: You may do as many or as few of these as you wish. Just make sure you do the Mandatory Entry first and leave an email in each comment so I can easily contact the winner.

--Heart Amy's "Etsy" shop (2 entries)

--Follow Amy's blogs via GFC

Live, Laugh, Love Our Way

and

Amy Brown Photography

 (2 entries for each blog)

--Friend Amy on facebook

--Follow Amy on twitter (2 entries)

--Make a purchase from Amy's "Etsy" shop (10 entries) Must be able to confirm purchase if you win

--Follow me via GFC, email subscription, facebook,  twitter, and/or Feed Reader (1 entry each)

--Tweet about this giveway and leave me the link

--Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link (5 entries)

Good luck everyone ;)

Lovable Labels Review & Giveaway....

Lovable Labels

Ok, I first must tell you how much I love these labels.

Now I must tell you that with my five kids, it's awfully hard to keep things as organized

as I'd like them to be. I'll be the first to admit that I envision having everything in it's proper place

all the time, with labels on everything, so that everyone could easily put things back in their place.

But..that's just not the way it is in my house......YET :)

However, very soon it will be *big smiles* !!!

I have found this wonderful label company and they have labels for everything!!

And I mean everything! Things that I would never have even thought to label.

Like for instance, their 'spa labels' package includes labels for:

-bandages -makeup remover -bath crystals -qtips

-razors, both his & hers -hand lotions...

well you get the point!! Wouldn't this be AWESOME???

But for my bathroom, not likely :)

I'll stick to 'my reality,' my dream labeled household...

I'd want labels inside all the kitchen cupboards so the babysitters would know where to

correctly put the dishes when and if they wash and put them away....lol.

I'd want labels for everything in the kids' rooms. For their drawers, closets, toy boxes,

and all the numerous plastic totes we have thought our whole house.

Lovable Labels offers exactly what I need!!

And, labels are not the only thing that Lovable Labels offers.

Check out these other great items:

Personalized books.

Stationary and note cards.

and even zip it tags.

Ok, so now that we have established that they have labels for EVERYTHING you can imagine

and WAY MORE...

Let's get on to the giveaway :)

Lovable Labels is graciously offering one of my wonderful followers

a personalized 'Back to School Pack' in your choice of designs

which includes:

15 regular sticker labels

40 slimline sticker labels

72 press n' stick clothing DOTS

2 mini-metal Tags

and

12 square labels

Here are two of the designs. And now is a good time for me to mention that Lovable Labels

is also sending my son "Nathan" one of these great 'Back to School' packs as well :)
But, we wanted to get this giveaway posted now, because these special
'Back to School' packs will be gone the end of October!!

 Here are just two of the adorable styles they offer:

"Movin and Groovin'

'Nature Lover'

So how do you enter??

Mandatory Entry:  Go to Lovable Labels and tell me which style "Back to School' labels you would pick if you are the winner. Make sure to leave your email address in each comment so that I

can contact you if you are the winner.

Extra Entries: You may do as many or as few of these as you like PROVIDED YOU DID THE MANDATORY ENTRY FIRST!!

Follow Lovable Labels on Twitter (2 entries)

Tweet about this giveaway and leave me the link
This can be done daily.

Follow Lovable Labels on Facebook (2 entries)

Visit Lovable Labels blog and tell me something you learned while there. (2 entries)

Make a purchase from Lovable Labels. (10 entries) You must be able to prove purchase if you win.

--Follow my blog via GFC

--Follow me on Twitter (2 entries)

--Follow me on Facebook (2 entries)

Mention this giveaway on your Facebook account
make sure to put @Stephanie Christmann in the comment so that I can see it!
(3 entries)

Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link. (5 entries)

Giveaway ends 10/18 and the winner will be notified by email
and will have 48 hours to reply or I will have to choose another winner.

Best of luck to all of you!!

Book Review..."Oogy" by Larry Levin

"Oogy"

'the dog only a family could love'

by Larry Levin

Oogy was close to death when found and taken to the Animal Hospital. He'd been a fight dog, or "bait dog" as they call him in the video. He'd been in a fight and then basically just left to die. (how heartless) As Larry and his twin boys take their very sick cat to the same animal hospital to have it put to sleep, their emotions and attitudes, needless to say aren't the greatest. As the hospital, as what you can only describe as a very ugly dog runs up to them and the boys and their Dads mood seems to start changing immediately for the better. I guess you would say that Oogy lifted their spirits because he was so happy to see the boys and their Dad.

Sitting here before them is a dog with only one ear and a very deformed face and jaw. But the looks of this dog don't even matter to the Levin family. They decide almost immediately (well, they have to talk their mom/wife into it first..AKA= beg, lol) They bring this dog home and show Oogy true love and how a real family takes care of each other, no matter what!!

Despite numerous surgeries, the boys growing up and a whole lot of messes...this family never loses their temper with Oogy. They continue to show him nothing but love so that he won't ever have to be reminded of his life before the Levins.

This love story sees the twins all the way through to their beginning of college.

This is a wonderful and very emotional read.

You won't want to miss this one!

 

In fact, you migth want to pre-order your copy at Amazon now.

I want to share an awesome video interview with the author, Larry Levin.

It provides a little more insight into the story behind the book!
In it Larry talks about first seeing Oogy, "he looked like he had melted...thought he'd been in a fire."
Don't miss the rest of what Larry has to say...

Check it out on You Tube.

Here is a picture of Oogy and the twins, Dan and Noah

And...

Now a few of my own thoughts on this book.

I think that the special relationship that each family member shares with Oogy is amazingly sentimental. This book is very emotional and will most likely at some point bring you to the verge of crying.

It is a tender story of love and affection for a dog who is treated just as every other  member of the family is!

Oogy definitely proves that what is on the inside is what really matters. You can't judge people or animals solely by their looks. If you do, you are potentially loosing out on some really great relationships, friends and pets.

And finally, about the part where they say that Oogy is a dog only a family could love. I'm not so sure about this, although I do really like and appreciate the way the Levin's so graciously took Oogy in and treated him as one of their own.

On this matter, I think that Oogy could just have easily been taken in by a single person, perhaps a hurting person who needed to heal from some personal tragedy or something like that. They could have helped each other heal.....possibly.

Although, I definitely think in Oogy's case, there was no better family to take him in that the Levins.

This is one of the best true stories I have read in a really long time.

 For more information on Larry Levin the author, check out Good Reads.

Now...hurry out and grab your copy of "Oogy,' I just know you

will enjoy it as much as I did :)

Blessings!

Enjoy your reading  :)

Note: I received this book at no charge so that I could post a review of it on my blog

I want to thank Anna at Hachette Books for the opportunity :)

Not Your Average Teen's "Operation Silly Bandz"...

http://www.notyouraverageteen.com/

Hey there.

I wanted to let everyone know about Brittany from 'Not Your Average Teen' blog's great cause.

I'm hoping that you all might consider donating to this wonderful cause.

Brittany has teamed up with The Child Crisis Center.

What do you have to donate now, you might be thinking??

But it's only a package of Silly Bandz.

Yep, you know the silly band, it's all the craze right now.

All the kids are wearing them.

Well, Brittany decided to help out some kids that don't have any silly bands to wear.

In fact these children and their familiies are going through a crisis of some sort or another.

Brittany's goal is to collect 250 packages of Silly Bandz by October 29th

so that they can deliver them on the 30th, just in time for Halloween.

You can even buy the cheap ones, these kids aren't going to know the difference.

All you have to do is add al nice or silly little not to the package to put a smile on some kids face!!

Now who doesn't want to do that??

Check out her site for more info...

'Operation Silly Bandz'

And please join in and help out.

It's such a small price to pay,

for such a big reward (putting a smile on a child's face!!)

Please help!

New GFC followers....(contest to win $10 gift card of choice)

Hello!
Right now I am hosting a contest...
The first follower to send me 10 new GFC followers who each leave a comment
on this post and tell me who sent them will win a $10 gift certificate
to their choice between:
Barnes & Noble, Starbucks, Walmart or McDonalds!!!

 If you have been sent here by someone else...please leave me a comment on who sent you!!

Thanx 4 following :)

2 FREE Multi-media books for all my followers....EVERYONE WINS!!!

http://storytimeforme.com/

That's right...you didn't read that wrong! Everyone wins 2 FREE multi-media books :) You and your kids are absolutely going to love them!!

These books are designed especially for toddlers and children in early elementary school.

They can really help toddlers (ages 1 - 4) build their vocabulary.

These books have the most gorgeous illustrations (the kids will fall in love with them!)

The music and sound effects keep your child intrigued throughout the whole story.

And wait til they meet the characters.

Ben the Mouse, Fern the Fox, and Flame the Dragon, just to name a few!!

They say "practice makes perfect" and that's why these books let the child click on any word at any time and the narrator will repeat the word for them.

These stories can be read in auto-mode or manually. This is great because then the children are able to turn the pages at their own speed.

Once the story is complete, the children can answer questions and do activities to go along with the story.

The reader can also rate the story online, write a short review, and/or leave comments about the story.

And here is one of my favorite features...the children can upload their own artwork or crafts to the 'art gallery' and include their name, age, and even a picture of themselves :)

Now what child doesn't want to get online and see a picture of themselves and something they created themselves.

And best of all (at least in my opinion) they offer a kid-safe browser. Once the kid-safe browser opens, it will block the Internet so we (the parents) don't have to worry about unwanted or inappropriate pop-ups.

Now, I personally feel that once you and your children have enjoyed and experienced your 2 free books, that you will want more and more of these great books. And when you do...the prices are GREAT :)

One book for only $8

10 books for only $24

50 books for only $59

and..

what I haven't mentioned yet....

They also offer personalized books for only $24.

I KNOW, I KNOW....

Hurry up and tell you what you need to do to get your free books, right??

Well, that's the easy part.

3 EASY STEPS...

(1) 'like' their facebook page.

(2) Go to www.storytimeforme.com/redeem and

Enter 4j9Cn3m8 as the code and fill out the brief form.

and finally...

(3)Please give this link and code to EVERYONE you know with young kids so they can

also take advantage of this great deal.

I personally hope that each and every one of my followers, that either has kids or knows kids will

take 'Story Time For Me' up on this amazing offer.

The love of reading is one of the most important things you can instill in a child.

(Again, this is my opinion!!)

And I firmly believe that the earlier you get them started, the better :)

Enjoy!!!

Detroit, MI area Car Seat Safety Checks tomorrow 9/25....

SEAT CHECK SATURDAY EVENT AT GENERAL MOTORS TECHNICAL CENTER CAPS CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY WEEK

Safe Kids USA Invites Parents to Ensure Their Child Seat is Installed Properly.

 GM is holding a seat check event tomorrow from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Technical Centers Vehicle Engineering Center in Warren.

At "Seat Check Saturday," you can get your children's car seats checked in your vehicle by certified child safety experts from Safe Kids Macomb County. It's part of a partnership between GM and Safe Kids USA and caps off National Child Passenger Safety Week (Sept. 19-25).

“Since the program began in 1997, our partnership with General Motors and the General Motors Foundation has resulted in 1.3 million car seats checked at about 65,000 car seat checkup events around the country.”

Safe Kids Buckle Up, the child passenger safety program of Safe Kids USA in partnership with the General Motors Foundation, hosts child safety seat checkups and other vehicle safety events throughout the year. Through the generosity of the General Motors Foundation, Safe Kids has reached more than 21 million people and donated more than 457,000 car seats to families in need.

 

The Warren, Mich. event will be held at the GM Technical Centers Vehicle Engineering Center, 30001 Van Dyke road (enter at Gate 11) from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Saturday, September 2th!! (that's tomorrow!!!)Certified child passenger safety technicians from Safe Kids Macomb County, will inspect and help assure child safety seats are properly installed for families from local Head Start Centers, Selfridge Air National Guard, the Michigan WIC (Women, Infant and Children) program and the general public.

Parents and caregivers can find additional Safe Kids Buckle Up seat check events by visiting the Safe Kids web-site at http://www.safekids.org/.

Research from NHTSA shows that roughly 3 out of 4 child safety seats are not used properly and as children age they are less likely to be in the appropriate child safety seat for their age and weight.

(That's not a very good ratio...take the time to get your car seat checked out!!)

Some basic guidelines for parents:

• For the best possible protection, keep infants in a back seat, in rear-facing child safety seats, as long as possible—up to the height or weight limit of the particular seat. Never turn a child forward-facing before age 1 and at least 20 pounds, although keeping kids rear-facing until at least age 2 is safer and preferred if the seat allows.

• When children outgrow their rear-facing seats, they should ride in forward-facing child safety seats, in a back seat, until they reach the upper weight or height limit of the particular harnessed seat. Many newer seats exceed the old 40 pound weight limit.

• Once children outgrow their forward-facing seats, they should ride in booster seats, in the back seat, until the vehicle seat belts fit properly.

• Seat belts fit properly when the lap belt lays across the upper thighs and the shoulder belt rests on the shoulder or collar bone (usually when the child is between 8 and 12 years old, approximately 4’9” tall and 80 to 100 pounds).

Here's a little extra information about the wonderfully, generous companies who are sponsoring this event...

About Safe Kids USA

Safe Kids USA is a member of Safe Kids Worldwide, a global network of organizations with the mission of preventing unintentional childhood injury, the leading cause of death and disability to children ages 1 to 14. More than 600 coalitions in the United States and nineteen member countries worldwide bring together health and safety experts, educators, corporations, foundations, governments and volunteers to educate and protect families.

About General Motors Foundation:

Since its inception in 1976, the GM Foundation has donated hundreds of millions to deserving American charities and to disaster relief efforts worldwide. The GM Foundation focuses on Education, Health and Human Services, Environment and Energy and Community Development initiatives, mainly in the communities where GM operates. For more information, visit www.gm.com/corporate/responsibility/community.

 

So...if you live in the area, and have car seats in your car...PLEASE take the time to have them checked!

AND...if you don't live in the area, but have car seats in your

car...Please check to see where you can have them checked

by clicking here.

AND...

last but not least....

How can you help???

-- Become a Safety Advocate

-- Join 'We Believe'

-- Donate

Have a great weekend!!

I love meeting new friends and giving things away.....

Today I chose to follow two seperate blog hops, both new ones that I have never followed before!

They are:

"Design It Chic"

And

"Still on the Verge"

Check both of them out, and let's meet some new friends together :)

AND....

If you are a new follower as of today, and you leave me a comment here

as well as enter any or all of my contests...

you may take five extra entries for each contest.

Today only...just mention in the comment that you are new from "Friday Follows"

(((HUGS)))

CSN gift card giveaway.....(HAS ENDED)

$35 gift card giveaway...ends (10/28)

‘CSN Stores has over 200 online stores where you can find everything from stylish handbags, to great cookware, or a funky twin bed set for the guest room....or in my case for my 5 year old Nathan's room!!

When I first seen this set, I completely fell in love it!!
And I just know Nate will too :)

And then I started picking out accessories to decorate his room...

And of course it's all skate-board related :)

He's going to love it!!!

Check out this ceiling ligt

And then I chosea couple of cool pictures for the wall...

And called it good.

 or, how bout this one...

 

Well anyways, you get the picture...CSN Stores have so much to choose from.

And one of my lucky winners is going to get a $35 one time use gift certificate

to use at any of their over 200 CSN Stores.

Mandatory Entry: You must follow my blog via GFC...AND...visit CSN Stores and tell me what you would choose if you win the $35 gift card.

Extra Entries:  You may do as many or as few of these as you like...just make sure that you leave your EMAIL address in EACH COMMENT, so that I can easily contact you if you win.

--Follow CSN Stores on twitter. (2 entries)

--Make a purchase from CSN Stores. (10 entries) You must be able to prove purchase if you win.

--Sign up to follow my blog by email.

--Sign up to follow my blog via a feed of your choice. (2 entries)

--Follow me on twitter. (2 entries)

--Tweet about this giveaway and leave me the link. This can be done twice each day!

--Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link. (5 entries)

Good luck to everyone!!