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Captain No Beard Series Installment ~ Book Review

Posted by Professor on July 12, 2014
in Books, Reviews, Uncategorized

Another great series from author Carole P Roman! The Captain No Beard series stresses valuable life lessons and topics such as sharing, teamwork, loyalty, and cooperation.

We reviewed the latest installments in Carole P. Roman’s pirate series

The Treasure of Snake Island: A Captain No Beard Story

The crew of the Flying Dragon is together again and exploring the vast and beautiful oceans in search of treasure. A colorful sunrise sparks talk of how important books are in learning things. This is followed by a search for treasure, danger, and a great reward. Once again, the crew learns that through teamwork, friendship, and cooperation, there is nothing that can stop them from exploring and discovering the treats the world has to offer.

A Captain No Beard Story: The Crew Goes Coconuts!

As the imagination of cousins Hallie and Alexander bring their stuffed animals to life, the crew of critters is stranded alongside a desert island. The friends wish to refresh their thirst; however, the newcomer to the ship makes a critical error that draws the negative attention of the other shipmates. Miffed by Matty the Goat’s mistake, the parched crew turns on the hapless greenhorn with cruel taunts and personal attacks. Captain No Beard steps in and expertly navigates the rough waters of bullying with sensible leadership that leaves everyone with a good taste in their mouths.

These arre two wonderful installments in the Captain No Beard series of books! My children were engaged throughout both books. We loved the colorful illustrations that each book had to offer. I as a mom enjoyed that the books provided entertainment, while providing a life lesson for my children. That fact alone makes this an important series to read! We also love that the book is full of imagination and even after we read the book we could imagine our own adventures! We LOVE the entire series… this is a great new addition to the Captain No Beard adventure!

For more information about the author or her books please visit www.carolproman.com

This book can be found on Amazon.com

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Milo’s Kitchen® Treat Truck Visits Chicago Plus Giveaway

Posted by html404 on July 11, 2014
in Animals, Pet Food, Pet Health, Pet Products, Pet Treats, Things to Do in Chicago, Uncategorized

“The Milo’s Kitchen® dog treats, gift cards, and information have been provided by Milo’s Kitchen®.”

You all have met Padfoot, our Newfie/Golden Retriever mix. Padfoot had the opportunity to try Milo’s Kitchen® Homestyle treats. These yummy treats came at a good time because Padfoot decided to get lose a couple of times and I decided that because he came right to the door of the house I’d give him treats to encourage him to keep coming to the door of the house if he ever gets lose or out of his dog run. If you could see the traffic we get on our rural road you’d know why I was encouraging this behavior.

About Milo’s Kitchen® Treats

In the above photo Padfoot is trying Milo’s Grilled Burger Bites. They look exactly like they do on the package, just see the image below. My girls all exclaimed how good these treats smelled, especially the burger bites, good enough to eat they said. And I must say they did smell pretty good for dog treats!

We had Padfoot try Milo’s Chicken Grillers and tried to capture it on video…do you know how hard it is to contain a dog when he really wants a treat? He did well but after a couple of takes.

Lastly, Padfoot tried Milo’s Steak Grillers, which ironically resemble their packaging too. Sorry for the blurry photo! Padfoot displayed his eagerness pretty well in this photo!

Padfoot loved all three flavors and of course wanted more after he was done.

Milo’s Kitchen® Treat Truck Visits Chicago

When: July 19th
Where: Chicago, IL, Windy City Pet Expo, 1033 North Villa Ave.
What: Milo’s Kitchen Treat Truck

· The Milo’s Kitchen Treat Truck will be coming to your area so plan what better place to have a special date with your dog!

*Dog parks are subject to change due to weather and foot traffic

· It wouldn’t be a food truck without home-style dog treats! Your dog is invited to try free samples of Milo’s Kitchen® treats so you can figure out which varieties will have your four-legged friend begging for more.

· There’s no such thing as too many pictures of dogs. Receive family portrait photos straight from the Milo’s Kitchen photo booth or take your own selfies. Don’t forget to show off your dog’s look on Facebook, or via Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #MKTreatTruck

Milo’s Kitchen® Giveaway

Milo’s Kitchen® is generously providing and ship an additional gift pack one of you! The gift pack will include three varieties of Milo’s Kitchen® dog treats, and a $25 VISA gift card so that you can stay stocked up on some tasty favorites! Giveaway ends Wednesday, July 23rd. Enter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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If You Were Me and Lived In…. ~ Series Installment Book Review

Posted by Professor on July 10, 2014
in Books, Reviews, Uncategorized

IF YOU WERE ME AND LIVED IN … : A Child’s Introduction to Cultures Around the World, is the latest exciting new children’s series of children’s books from Carole P. Roman. Roman takes young readers all over the globe to explore different countries and cultures. With each book covering a different nation, Roman opens up a world of wonder while highlighting the fact that underneath it all we are far more alike than we might have imagined. Focusing on what life would be like for children if they were to live in another city or country, she examines the diversity around the world and the value possessed by each different culture. Think of the series as a children’s version of the travel Channel that is filled with entertaining and educational facts.

We reviewed two more exciting books in Carole P. Roman’s series

IF YOU WERE ME AND LIVED IN … PORTUGAL

In short we are in love with the idea of this new series! What a wonderful way to introduce young children to cultural diversity. The text of the books are simple yet powerful. We liked that the book was written for children … I did not have to summarize or paraphrase information because the text was outside of their knowledge grasp…what a plus! The vibrant illustrations were also a plus. My children not only loved listening and learning but took the book after we were done reading just to look at the pictures.

On a cultural note… this book really hit home for us. Our neighbors are from Portugal and we are always hearing about their Portuguese traditions. I thought this was very poignant for our family because it let the children learn about our neighbors’ cultural identity.

IF YOU WERE ME AND LIVED IN … RUSSIA

The books are geared toward Pre-K through age eight… well… my 5, 8, and 10 year olds all LOVED the books! Love of literature and cultural awareness is a must in our household, so this series was a hit!

Wow! What an excellent read! This is such a lovely book and we look forward to the next installment of the series!

For more information about the author or her books please visit www.carolproman.com

This book can be found on Amazon.com

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Beginner Driver in the House – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on July 9, 2014
in Family Stuff, Kids Stuff, Parenting, Safety, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

Beginner Driver in The House

Bobbie is actually doing really well with her driving lessons. I see her improve each time we go driving. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t nervous. I just try not to show it and correct her in a calm, matter of fact voice. That’s how my mom, dad and uncle (he took me out driving a stick shift!) were with me. I am proud of Bobbie’s developing driving skills and the fact she takes is seriously and cautiously. She’s got a pretty good head on her shoulders, which should make her a good driver.

Have you taught your children to drive? If so, how did you feel about the whole experience?

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The Revealing by Suzanne Woods Fisher

Posted by html404 on July 6, 2014
in Books, Gift Ideas, Products for Mom, Reviews, Uncategorized

Faith and Family Reviews received the following product in exchange for writing a review. While we consider it a privilege to receive products to review, our reviews are our honest opinion and thoughts of the product.

The Revealing by Suzanne Woods Fisher

The Revealing by Suzanne Woods Fisher is the third and last book in the Inn at Eagle Hill series. As a reminder, this is a series about an Amish family, as seen from the girl on the book cover above. The mother was widowed and started an inn to make ends meet, due some bad financial decisions on the part of her deceased husband. It is all about how the family is making the inn work and their life in their Amish community. A review of book one and book two are here and here.

It was sad to see this series come to an end. I have enjoyed getting to know Rose, Bethany, Mim, their neighbors the Kings and various other characters.

In this particular book, I really liked how Suzanne made baby Sarah a part of the story and how Tobe and Naomi triumphed through some troubled waters of their relationship.

I was disappointed that we did not get to see how Bethany and Mim’s love life ended. I mean we saw them get to know a couple of fellows but that was it. Granted, Mim is just 14 years old in this book so it is kind of hard to show who she ends up with….but it was like a cliff hanger gone wrong because the series ended with too many questions. It made me feel like the story of The Inn at Eagle Hill was left unfinished….unless she is going to start a new series and share the missing details in it. I want to know if the inn ends up being the income Rose needs to provide for her family, I want to know if Jimmy goes into the horse breeding business, I want to know if Mrs. Miracle continues to give advice, what Mim and Bethany go on to do? See? Too many questions!

Otherwise I did find it an enjoyable read since it will probably be one of the only books I read this summer.

What are you reading this summer?

Buy it Now

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Week #26 Saturday Top Five Laughs

Posted by html404 on July 5, 2014
in Family Stuff, Fun Stuff, Humor, Kids Stuff, Saturday Top Five Laughs, Uncategorized

If you haven’t noticed, I am taking it easy on my blog this summer. I’m posting as I need to or want to. It’s very freeing to be honest, but isn’t that what working for yourself should be like? I think so!

Anyhoo…we are joining Mel over at The Mommyhood Chronicles for week #26 (for us) in our Saturday Top Five Laughs of the week. Our six year old is the source of our laughs this week and most of them have been written down for a couple of weeks, I just haven’t felt like posting on the weekends and Fridays have been very busy for me lately.

5. My mom lives in VERY rural Nova Scotia. She actually lives in the “woods” as she calls it about ten minutes from my home town. When our six year old heard us talking about where Nanny lived he asked, “Why does Nanny live in the woods?” All I could say was, “Because she likes it!” And she truly does.

4. Six year old to me, “I’m pregnant. My baby is popping out of me. You have to tear it out of me. Mommy, it’s my second one.” “It’s squashing my lips.” All while the pop bottle is under his shirt!

3. Six year old to me, “Mommy, I’m hungry. Can I have you to eat?”

2. Me to six year old, “Why don’t you like baths?” His response, “I don’t like getting clean.” Odd ball child!

1. Six year old, “I’m a yummy bummy gummy bear.” New version of the Gummy Bear song.

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Kid’s Relief Allergy Review

Posted by Professor on July 2, 2014
in All Natural Products, Reviews, Uncategorized

Watching your child struggle with the sniffles is never easy. Now you can both breathe easier with Kids Relief® Allergy Oral Solution. This unique homeopathic formula helps relieve nasal congestion, sneezing, tearing eyes and itchy eyes, ears, throat and skin.

Kids Relief® Allergy is a great-tasting, easy-to-administer oral solution that is safe for kids ages 2 and up with no risk of side effects, drug interaction or overdose.

This homeopathic medicine helps relieve allergy symptoms:• sneezing
• nasal congestion
• throat and skin irritation
• teary eyes

The product is for use on children age 2 and older!

Active Ingredients HPUS:                     Purpose:

Pulsatilla 8X (Wind flower) nasal congestion, skin irritation

Allium cepa 6X (Onion) teary eyes

Arsenicum album 8X (Arsenous oxide) skin rash, throat irritation, sneezing

Nux vomica 6X (Poison nut) skin irritation, itchy nose and throat

Euphrasia officinalis 6X (Eyebright) eye & eyelid redness, burning tears

Sabadilla 6X (Cevadilla) wheezing, sneezing

Sticta pulmonaria 6X (Lungwort) minor throat irritation, runny nose

Aralia racemosa 6X (Spikenard) frequent sneezing

Cuprum metallicum 8X (Copper) itching sensation of eyes, ears,

throat and skin

The letters ‘HPUS’ indicate that the components in this product are officially monographed in the Homœopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States.

Inactive Ingredients:

Purified water, sorbitol, banana flavor, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate, citric acid.

Our review:

This is a neat little product! My son suffers from allergies and we usually use an over the counter medication like Zyrtec or Claratin. However after giving this a try I must say it is a nice homeopathic option to the regular pharmaceutical options.

My son said this tasted good and it was better than the chewable pills he usually takes…so that was a plus. You ask… did it work? YES IT DID!!!! I am very happy to report that this worked on all his allergy symptoms. The only downside was that it was not as fast acting as the pills he usually takes but it did work! He did not see immediate relief but he did see relief. The product says to use every 8 hours… so not too bad, so to get continual relief we had to use 3 times a day…compared to our once a day pill.

I like the homeopathic option much better than a pharmaceutical pill that is laden with medicines. This is a much more natural option. THAT WORKS!!!! I have to admit that I was skeptical at first but knowing that homeopathic remedies can work I tried the product and was PLEASED!

To find more out about this product and all Kids Relief products please visit:

http://www.kidsrelief.com/

Kids Relief® Allergy was a winner in Delicious Living’s 2012 Supplement Awards, winning an honorable mention for the “Best Kids Health” category.  Click here to check it out.

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Sundown Naturals – Smiley 360

Posted by Brande on July 1, 2014
in Health, Men's Health, Products for Dad, Products for Mom, Reviews, Uncategorized, Women's Health

“I received this product for free from Smiley360 in exchange for my honest review. You can join Smiley360 here!”

Don’t forget to take your vitamins!

Sundown Naturals have made your vitamins easier to take by introducing Gummies for Adults. These gummies are gluten free! The Vitamin C gummies I was sent are a vegetarian formula also. There are no artificial flavors in these dietary supplements.

Sundown Naturals Gummies are shaped like tiny orange slices!   They are chewy similar to a gummy bear. They taste good too!

Sundown Naturals has 10 different vitamin gummies to choose from including Vitamin C, B12, Fiber, Fish Oil, Calcium, and Multivitamin just to name a few.   If you click here you can print off at coupon for $2.00 off your next purchase.

Not sure which Sundown Natural vitamin would be good for you. Click here to take a quiz and find out! Don’t forget to like Sundown Naturals on Facebook also!

#SundownNaturalsGummies

Please consult your physician before taking any supplements and keep out of the reach of children.

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Why We Aren’t Taking a Family Vacation #PGeveryday #Sponsored

Posted by html404 on June 27, 2014
in Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Home, Things to Do in Chicago, Travel, Uncategorized

My husband and I love to travel, so do our children. We have traveled to Texas, Canada, Florida, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Minnesota and Iowa on family vacations or weekend trips. We always have fun, make memories and of course face challenges.

Copyright: hamik / 123RF Stock Photo. Used with permission

It has been a number of years since we took a family vacation. Probably 2009, if I remember correctly. Money has been tight, plus we have chosen to become farmers. Summer is our busiest time on the farm with our CSA (Consumer Supported Agriculture), markets, egg and chicken business. That is one of the downsides to farming. One of the agreements Robert and I had when we decided to farm was that we’d still take vacations. Well…we didn’t realize how long it would take to recover from a bout of unemployment nor did we expect another season of unemployment so soon.

Like the author of this article on P&Geveryday™ titled, Why We’re Skipping Summer Vacation, I admit it is kind of hard sometimes when we hear of others taking their family vacation. I also confess to being green with envy sometimes. But like Christie Tate and her husband, we realize this is the season of life we are in. Extended family vacations are not in the cards for us due to our commitments at home.

That does not mean we cannot take day trips to Chicago to visit museums, the zoo, Navy Pier or the Shedd Aquarium or travel other short distances. It just means it will take a bit of planning on our part to make sure everything at home is taken care of first.

P&Geveryday™ has a section on Travel Tips that will be useful to parents planning trips with children. P&Geveryday™is committed to making every day just a little easier by helping you achieve a life full of rewarding moments. Every day. The site aims to inspire, support and empower you to unlock the extraordinary potential in your everyday life. It offers a variety of topics, helpful articles for family life, delicious recipes for the 4th of July, etc. Check out their informative P&Geveryday Facebook page too.

Do you plan on taking a family vacation this summer? If so, where? If not, why not?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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Returning a Gift – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on June 25, 2014
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Gift Ideas, Girl Stuff, Kids Stuff, Parenting, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

Have you ever tried to surprise someone? It takes a lot of work and secrecy, even then plans can be thwarted. We successfully surprised our 14 year old daughter three weeks ago with the gift of a Palomino horse (she’s a quarter horse), on the condition that we’d keep her if she passed the vet’s pre-purchase exam. Sandy is an 18 year old Quarter horse, give or take according to the vet’s look at her teeth.

Over a week ago the vet did a pre-purchase exam and could not pass Sandy based on some lameness issues. The issues are fixable but would cost money and could cost us a good horse if she went completely lame. We were hoping for an easy keeper since Blaze his a hard keeper.

lameness
lame
1 [leym] Show IPA
adjective, lam·er, lam·est.
1.
crippled or physically disabled, especially in the foot or leg so as to limp or walk with difficulty.
2.
impaired or disabled through defect or injury: a lame arm.
3.
weak; inadequate; unsatisfactory; clumsy: a lame excuse.
4.
Slang. out of touch with modern fads or trends; unsophisticated.
verb (used with object), lamed, lam·ing.
5.
to make lame or defective.

We had hoped to keep Sandy for a good long time and let her get her weight up on our yummy pasture. Her stables do not have access to pasture. The horses live in their stalls.

So we say good-bye to Sandy tomorrow evening when her owner comes to pick her up. We had her here on a trial basis. Kind of sad to see her go. Our daughter is handling it like a champ and we are proud of her.

It is hard as a parent to successfully surprise your child with a gift she’s wanted since she was nine and then to have to turn around and return the gift.

Have you ever had to return a much wanted gift?

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