OMG!!! I am gonna be a GRANDMA??!

join bag it forward

2010-09-10T06:36:00.000-07:00

The Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward is charity blog meme, bloggers are able to raise $10 per blog post for Adopt-A-Classroom by writing a blog post or Facebook note and donating a virtual bag of school supplies . Elmer’s will donate $10 per each post written for Adopt-A-Classroom, up to $10,000.

HOW CAN YOU JOIN? It’s easy.

•Participate in the Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward by giving away a virtual bag of school supplies and creating a blog post or Facebook note with specific rules described below.

•Elmer’s will donate up to $10,000 to Adopt-A-Classroom.

•You can give as many virtual bags as you want.

•The Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward will officially begin at 12 AM EST on July 22, 2010 and end at 11:59 PM EST on September 10, 2010. Blog posts submitted to us before or after that time period will not be counted.

•The blog post link has to be submitted in the comment section below for your participation to be counted.

•In addition copy and paste the following text into your blog post:

ELMER’S VIRTUAL BAG IT FORWARD RULES

•Copy and paste these rules into your blog post or Facebook note.

•Create a post giving a “virtual bag of school supplies” to other bloggers or write about your Back to School shopping trip at Walmart.

•Link back to the person who gave you a bag of school supplies.

•Let each person you are giving a virtual bag of school supplies know you have given them a bag.

•Leave your link in the Elmer’s Virtual Bag It Forward comment section. You can also find the official rules of this virtual #bagitforward program there.

•Elmer’s is donating $10 for each blog participating in the Virtual Bag It Forward Donation to Adopt-A-Classroom (up to total of $10,000 for blog posts written by September 10,2010).

•Please note that only one blog post per blog url will count towards the donation.

The side bar has a virtual bag you can send to friends!!

http://dkmommyspot.com/mystic-wonders-great-big-giveaway-with-51-winners/

2009-05-05T22:25:00.000-07:00

Okay this is a great opportunity for those of you that have never tried a laundry ball. dkMommy is giving away 50..yes you heard correctly...50 laundry balls to 50 different people!!! Go to the title of this thread and register at her site. Deadline is May 7th at midnight...not sure about the time zone but all of the info is there at her site.
Can you even IMAGINE how much money you can save with a laundry ball instead of detergent for one year?? Wow!!

YAYYYYYY $100 Cash Win For Me TODAY!!

2009-04-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

I was thrilled to get an email saying I was April 21st winner of $100 here...

You can win at activeamericans.com $100 a day...please use referral code SG1984

This is one of the easiest contests to win...I suggest you all give it a shot!!

http://thegiftcloset.blogspot.com/2009/04/mamalicious-monday.html

2009-04-20T19:14:00.000-07:00

Wow I hate Mondays...the ONLY good thing about Mondays are the contests run by The Gift Closet called Mammalicious Mondays. Go to the above link and try your luck at winning one of her great prizes. Well back to Mondays...since I was a kid in school I have hated Mondays...it has stayed with me through all these years. Most people seem to be in a bad mood, including myself, and bascially I am just waiting on the day to pass until it's NOT Monday anymore. I am lazy on Mondays and don't want to do anything...other than enter the contest at The Gift Closet..my only bright spot of the day. So now its about 9:17PM...I don't have to wait much longer and this day will be long gone until the next Monday comes around.

http://gamezreviewz.com/

2009-04-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

Honestly this will probably be the best chance you EVER have to win a PS3 or a NVIDIA Geforce 260 GTX graphics card...your choice!! The contest ends midnite April 4th UK time so I encourage you to go NOW...NOWWWWWWWWW...to register for this great prize!!!

http://everydaybabysteps.onsugar.com/2975281

2009-04-02T08:51:00.000-07:00

Who DOESNT need a spa break?? If you would like to win a Fiber One Spa Break Gift Basket go sign up at the link above before Friday April 3rd. I have wanted one of these so bad and everyone but ME seems to win them...so go ahead and win this one for yourself also hahaha :)
HEY WAIT..they are giving away 3!!!!!!!!!!!

http://doresdiaries.com/2009/03/lauras-lean-beef-review-giveaway.html

2009-03-29T23:56:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone...we ALL love Laura's Lean Beef that Target sells...well NOW is your chance to get $25 worth of it FREE!!! Go to the above link and follow the directions for your chance at this great prize!! What can be better than free food???

http://moomettesmagnificents.com/reviews/2009/03/23/its-hip-hop-baby-new-childrens-dvd-series-review-and-giveaway/

2009-03-29T20:28:00.000-07:00

Follow the above link to enter Moomette's Magnificents Reviews Giveaway of Hip Hop Baby Cd and DVD. Hip Hop Baby does an excellent job of keeping your child entertained while helping them with hand/eye coordination. Go check out Moomette's site and GOOD LUCK!!

http://littlemisshannah.com/2009/03/hannahs-first-giveaway/

2009-03-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

Go to the address listed above for some great giveaways that is going on now. While you are there read about Hannah and learn about Gaucher's Disease.

Hannah's Story

Hannah was born on July 25, 2008. She was 6 pounds 11 ounces and 19 inches long. Two days after birth, it was found she had an enlarged spleen and extremely low thrombocytopenia. Eventually her liver became involved, and she developed slight anemia. Now we are trying to find out what is going on.
Hannah was the “oops” baby that was never imagined. After 10 years of intense infertility treatments, we ended up with nothing more than 3 miscarriages. After grieving the loss of the biological child we could never have, we decided on adoption as the path to create our family.
Our son, Ethan, was adopted from Russia in December of 2001. We adopted Abigail from the same region in Russia in October of 2004. At the time, we felt our family was completed — after all, you can’t have an “oops” adoption!
In January of 2008, we found out that I was 9 weeks pregnant. To say we were shocked and surprised is an understatement. I ended up on bedrest at week 29 due to severe pregnancy-induced hypertension and remained there until I delivered at 36 weeks 1 day.
Hannah is a beautiful baby. I immediately fell in love with her and wanted to hold her every chance I had while I was in the hospital. However, I was exhausted on the second night, and I asked the nurse to take her down to the nursery so I could get a few hours of sleep.
That’s where it all started…Someone felt a “mass” on her abdomen, and then because of her jaundice and bloodwork relating to that, they found that her platelets were extremely low (6000 where 150,000 to 350,000 are normal). She was sent to the NICU because they were worried about spontaneous brain bleeds with platelets that low.
She remained in the NICU for two weeks. During that time she had a platelet transfusion and an IVIg transfusion. Ultrasound had confirmed the enlarged spleen and no head involvement. They were waiting to discharge her until her platelets reached 100,000, but after two weeks, we begged her to be released even though she was only at 66,000.
She didn’t reach that 100,000 mark until she was 8 weeks old. Thank goodness we had her home with us!
At her 4-month birthday, her platelets have remained stable around 93,000 to 106,000. Her spleen is still extremely large, and her liver is enlarged as well (but not as much as the spleen).
However, with all of her internal and blood-related symptoms, she is acting and has always acted like a happy and healthy child. She eats well, has gained weight as she should, is developing on track, etc. We are thrilled that she acts so healthy! She has since developed larynomalacia (poor throat muscle tone) and was accepted into the Early Intervention program due to physical developmental delays (tested at the 2-month level at 4 months old). But socially, she is testing 2 months ahead — easy to see, she just loves people and loves to smile!
We are now working with a team of doctors including a hematologist, hepatologist, opthamologist, and a genetics specialist to try and figure out what is going on. She had a skin biopsy on November 12th, and we just received the results on January 7th. Gaucher’s disease, most likely type 2 or 3, a physical and neurological disease due to a lack of an enzyme needed to process food. There are treatments for the physical aspects of the disease but none yet for the neurological. Her life expectancy is 2, 15, 20 years or so — but we are in a fight to give her a longer and healthier life!
She is an absolutely beautiful and charming baby! She was my gift from God. We were meant to bring home Ethan and Abby first, and then we were given the gift of Hannah.
I am very blessed to have three amazing kids. Please help me fight for the life of our daughter, Hannah.

http://frugalfrontporch.blogspot.com/2009/03/win-wonderwash-mini-countertop-spin.html

2009-03-12T12:31:00.000-07:00

Have one of these?? If not you are extremely lucky. This is the little pile of clothes that cannot be washed with anything else...maybe 2-3 pieces together but who wants to start up that HUGE washing machine for that? Also, time does not allow me to keep caught up by hand-washing UGH! Click on the site at the title and go check out the mini washing machine and dryers that are perfect for just a few pieces. Actually I would love this for camping so we could take less clothing. The mini washer and dryer--what a FABULOUS IDEA!!!

The beauty of Costa Rica

2009-03-05T01:59:00.000-08:00

There is so much natural beauty in Costa Rica that it is hard to take it all in. If you go plan on staying at least 7 days or you will miss something great.

Nature's Colors

2009-02-28T07:51:00.000-08:00

Nature's colors in Costa Rica are amazing. This was taken in the rain forrest and the contrast of the natural colors has always made this photo one of my favorites...especially for an amateur photographer!

Vegas Nights

2009-02-22T13:33:00.000-08:00

Nothing is more beautiful than Vegas in the Spring. I would suggest everyone go there at least ONCE in their life. Gena, thank you for my 50th birthday present of Vegas :)

2009-02-20T00:16:00.000-08:00

Here in the South is potato planting time. If you have only seen potatoes in a bag I encourage you all to visit some places in the South where planting time has started. We planted these last weekend and I wanted a photo of them before they were covered. I will update to show when they come up.

My Charmed Life

2009-02-19T16:12:00.000-08:00

The Good Lord knows that both of us do not like housework. First, we both work and have other committments with sick or elderly family members that we have to attend to on our days and nights off...so our homes suffer....Sherry's moreso than Gena because Gena is still in that new home stage and does pretty good...Sherry is burned out and usually ends up doing only the necessary items.
My Charmed Life has a giveaway with a GREAT book scheduled to be released in early March but you can win a copy. Anything that can help motivate me to clean I LOVE!!!

Feb 19 Spring Pic--Costa Rica

2009-02-19T15:42:00.001-08:00

Since we are in the low-20's in Alabama today I thought I would post a warmer photo. Gena took this in Costa Rica...Enjoy!

Congrats to Cathy Wilcox

2009-02-16T16:38:00.001-08:00

She has won $15.00 of Doctor Scholl's products. Cathy I have emailed you for your address. Thanks so much for being a follower!!

Sherry and Gena :)

http://www.mylilventure.com/contest-giveaway/blog-giveaway-take-your-health-to-heart/#comment-91717

2009-02-14T16:26:00.000-08:00

Heart attacks affect almost every family and a large percentage of women. Go to the above site to learn more about heart attacks and register for a crystal reproduction of Heidi Klum's Red Dress Pin. They are beautiful!!!

topsy Turvey Tomato Planter

2009-02-08T22:30:00.000-08:00

I am sure many of you have seen the advertisements for the upside down 'hanging basket' style tomato planters. Well, Gena -knowing how much her uncle and grandfather love gardening- thought this was would a great Christmas present for both of them. Please remember these are seasoned farmers that have been gardening for well over 60 years. Both were extremely excited to receive these thinking they could walk outside on their patio and pick tomatoes for dinner....WRONG. First they went and bought a mid-size plant to use in the planter...after planting it was treating with tender loving care for weeks...the results----both men's plants shriveled up and died within a month. Thinking they had possibly made a mistake when planting they emptied the planters and tried a second time and guess what? Dead Plants within a month. I personally know instructions were followed to a tee and these plants were looked after like new-born babies but the results were horrible. Our family loves gardening in all forms but everyone PLEASE be aware of this product because it basically does not work. Do not waste your money!!!

The Love of My Life

2009-02-08T07:33:00.001-08:00

Its almost Valentine's Day so I would like to give new couples some inspiration. I have been married 28 years in a week. The first years were hard..extremely hard since we were both hard-headed and really did not know much about 'being married'. To make a long story short..today my husband is my best friend and confidante. I love him more as each day passes and can't begin to imagine like without him. He is not only my husband but I feel he is as much a part of me as my arms or legs. If there was one thing I would have changed about my married life it would be 'nothing'...I love this man more with each passing day if that is possible.

I love you Greg!!

Fireproof DVD Plus Bonuses

2009-02-08T07:27:00.000-08:00

http://frugalchallenge2009.blogspot.com/2009/02/valentines-day-giveway-from-1200-frugal.html

Go to the above link to enter to win the dvd Fireproof and Fireproof bonuses such as the love Dare book. This would be the best Valentine's Gift for anyone!! Go Now..contest ends soon!!!

Repell-Em Contest Win $250 $100 or $50 Merchandise

2009-01-31T13:38:00.000-08:00

http://www.repellemblog.com/let-the-ecosmartplastics-blog-contest-begin/

Okay everyone I am going to promote my first contest!! YAY!!! Go to the above link and enter the contest and you could win 1 of the 3 prizes listed in the title.

EcoSmartPlastics wants to know why you would love to buy -and use every day - the only truly 100% biodegradeable plastics products on the planet: the unscented Eco-smartbags and the scented pest-repelling Repellem trash bags. We want to know how you feel about “being green,” and how you believe EcoSmartPlastics products can help you do that. We want to know your opinion of the clean, green safety that our products can help you achieve in your home. We want to know how you feel about you and your children living healthier and safer lives in a home that uses EcoSmartPlastics. The contest ends February 14th.

Also....as a little added bonus of my own if you become a follower of my blog I will choose you will automatically be entered for approx. $15 of Dr. Scholl's Products and trust me I only have 2 followers right now so your chances are pretty good. Leave me a comment once you become a follower so I can get in touch with you if you win...MY contest will end Feb 15th..the day AFTER the EcoSmartPlastics giveaway. So just become a follower...reply to my post with your email so I can get in touch with you and ENTER the ECOSMART giveaway above!!

GOOD LUCK!!!
Sherry and Gena

http://moderncatholicmoms.blogspot.com/2009/01/holy-baby-dvd-set-giveaway.html?showComment=1233170760000#c8635339484615031183

2009-01-28T17:44:00.000-08:00

If you happen to be Catholics like us...you would LOVE the above site!! It has everything Catholic for your baby. I know the only thing Gena knew about our religion when she was a baby is how to draw Jesus looking down over a church while she sat on the kneeler during church services and she was 3 years old by this time. The above site is giving away a set of HOLY Baby DVD's which will help your child learn a LOT WhIle They are still an infant. They are similar to the Baby Einstein DVD's but are Catholic oriented...also forgive my keyboard on this post..i see its time for a new one :)

http://aprongoddesses.blogspot.com/2008/01/hot-momma-its-valentines-give-away-from.html

2009-01-26T12:37:00.000-08:00

Click on the above link to try your luck at winning a beautiful red sweetheart apron that I desperately want for myself but am having the kind heart of sharing the sweepstakes with you.
The apron goddess site is definitely MY KIND OF SITE!! I LOVE IT!!!

Everything Up Close

2009-01-25T20:48:00.001-08:00

This lady is having a great giveaway of a $50 gift certificate to Mountains of the Moon. This store has some beautiful items made from organic materials that I absolutely love. Click on her sidebar to my left and check out her blog and enter her giveaway!!

Frugal Mommy Of 2 Girls

2009-01-25T20:31:00.001-08:00

Wow what a giveaway...click on the button to the right and go register!! Boon Inc. is giving one lucky reader a Flair Pedestal Highchair! In your choice of color white/orange or blue/white!
I absolutely LOVE this chair...it has that 'into the future' look to it. Click on her button to the right and go check it out!

http://www.sparkplugging.com/momsational/enter-to-win-new-dvd-release-swing-vote-starring-kevin-costner/

2009-01-25T08:35:00.000-08:00

Momsational is giving away a free copy of the movie Swingvote with Kevin Costner. I wanted to see this movie when it first came out during the election but never managed to find the time. It looks humorous and a GREAT movie to watch!! Go check out her site now!

http://supahmommy.blogspot.com/2009/01/freeby-friday-with-sima-jewlery.html

2009-01-24T12:49:00.000-08:00

Wow...there is a FANTABULOUS giveaway going on now at The Adventures of a Wannabe Supahmommy...check out the CUTE button on the right. She is giving away 2 beautiful hand stamped necklaces that I would give my eyeteeth for...GO NOW HURRY!!!

http://nwalkerscreations.blogspot.com/2009/01/100th-posting-giveaway.html

2009-01-11T17:52:00.000-08:00

Hurry over to Nancy's Creations and check out her giveaway but you better hurry since it ends soon!!
I love homemade crafts and she is giving away some great items this month!

WOW--- http://cindydianne.blogspot.com/

2009-01-09T15:31:00.000-08:00

http://cindydianne.blogspot.com/ has a fantastic giveaway on her blog right now for a prize pack that includes a GORGEOUS watch and some candles and who knows what else?? I LOVE SURPRISES!!! So go check it out but hurry since it ends at midnight tonight!!

Gena--Another Time And Place

2009-01-07T20:42:00.000-08:00

I have always told Gena she was born in the wrong time and era. She would have lived well in my grandmother's days unlike myself. One of Gena's passions is collecting aprons. She not only collects them but each time you go in her kitchen she is wearing one. I always found this odd since neither myself nor my mom ever wore an apron.
They are giving away a beautiful apron here
http://makingmyamericandream.blogspot.com/

They are so cute. They come in all different colors and styles. Check it out!!!

2009-01-07T20:06:00.001-08:00

Wow there is a GREAT contest going on here for a photography book we would all love to have!!

http://zestycook.com/fundamentals-of-photography-book-review-and-giveaway/

Simple Finds

2009-01-06T20:01:00.000-08:00

There is a great blog contest going on here. Gena and I both have trouble finding art for our walls but this place has got it going on!!

2009-01-04T10:58:00.001-08:00

Great Blog Here

You are gonna do what?

2009-01-03T21:14:00.000-08:00

So when Gena tells me she wants me to come over and watch her cook in her new dutch oven I was like umm...welll..yea okay. Inside I was thinking this sounded about as thrilling as watching my husband watch TV but what the heck. What I was about to see would have brought tears of joy to my deceased grandparent's eyes. From here I will let her pick up the story----signed, the NON-domestic mom :)

Ok it is my turn (Gena).....and as Clark Griswald said....."we made it damnit, we made it". For Christmas my husband gave me a Camp dutch oven, not the be confused with a regurlar dutch oven. The differance, (as you can see from one of the photos) the top is recessed slightly to give a small side to the top so coals will set nicely over the top of the oven to cook from above. Along with my new Lodge Camp Dutch oven came a cook book with several recipes, everything from pot roast to biscuts to peach cobbler. I decided to try the biscuts, they seemed easy enough. Of course with everything comes a learning curve and that was no exception with the dutch oven. My first lesson in Camp dutch oven cooking,.........preheat your oven. The recipe in the book said that the biscuts should only take 15mins (tops) to cook. My first set of biscuts took over an hour to cook. My first problem, I didn't preheat my dutch oven....number 2.....I needed to use more coals. After about an hour of preheating and loading the oven up with coals both under and over the oven.....we were roasty toasty and it did only take about 12mins. to cook biscuts. The first photo is of the finial product which took about 2hrs to get to. The second photo is me looking under the lid at my biscuts, notice the coals on top of my lid. The 3rd photo is of me mixing my biscuts and the 4th photo is the biscuts cooking over (and under) the coals. If you notice there are more coals on the 2nd photo than of the 4th photo...the 4th photo was taken early in the process before I really loaded up the cooker with coals to heat it up. It was a lot of fun and my next experiment will be with cake. So........... how will you feed your family when you have no electricity or gas to cook with? Me, I will me able to make a pot roast, biscuts, and peach cobbler....heck that is better cooking then I do now with my stove. LOL. Enjoy.

Adventures in Dumpster Diving

2009-01-02T20:41:00.000-08:00

We have all read the articles about the lady who eats 90% of her food from the dumpster or the couple who decorated their entire home from dumpster finds. Before I go any further, let it be known that I would never eat (well maybe if I was starving and homeless) from a dumpster or give anything to anyone that I had found in a dumpster. I learned my thriftiness from my family (this is Gena talking here).We are experts at finding the best sales or unique good deals at yard sales. We never go shopping without a coupon. Luckily (we are blessed) we don't HAVE to be that thrifty....it's that we actually enjoy it. It is a hobby just to see how cheap we can find something or live. Some people may laugh or snub their nose at such activities....but we find it fun and that is all that matters. Anyways.....I have always been interested in this "Dumpster Diving" thing. I imagined it being like finding buried treasure. It really doesn't take much to thrill me. So, my mom (Sherry) calls and asked if I wanted to go. Of course, I have asked her to go with me to no avail, so I jumped on this chance when she asked me. Some of the "rules" of dumpster divings are.....1. leave the place neater than you found it 2. Don't go look in medical dumpsters 3. Never actually jump INTO the dumpster (you may step on glass or nails or something). There is also necessary equipment that you have to take.....such as a flash light, and either gloves or a long stick grabber thingie. We took a camera along for photos to document and made sure to wear old clothes as well. We drove the truck in case we found any good large finds.

Mom and I plotted our route (names have been changed to protect the innocent). The home interior stores, 2 dept. stores, the home improvement stores, a shopping plaza and last but not least, a dollar store. I have to say I was very disappointed. At best we found some stinky trash and flatten cardboard boxes. I would have been happy with a half used bottle of Joy dish washing liquid. No, seriously. Instead I found NADA. At one point we had a police cruiser following us. We had little luck mostly because most stores now use these large dumpsters that are accessed from the inside of the building, as well as locking them up in fences. Why stores....why spoil all my fun!

So adventures in Dumpster Diving.......we fail. Maybe we will try again later. Maybe we hit the stores at the wrong time, after the trucks had emptied their trash. Anyways, we will give it another go and see what happens, if no luck, I will give up on the dumpster diving fun.

Tonight is the night!!

2009-01-02T18:58:00.000-08:00

Okay tonight my daughter and I are trying something extremely new. She has always wanted to go 'dumpster diving' and tonight's the night. Yes I never thought I would be doing this buttttt I am usually up for anything odd and a new experience. We are not actually 'diving' but using a claw stick and a flashlight. I will be reporting on any finds later.

You can help!

2009-01-02T18:48:00.001-08:00

http://i-heart-contest.com/2008/12/2...ay-it-forward/
Here is a place you can enter to help others and you dont have to do anything.

2009-01-02T18:46:00.000-08:00

My daughter and I have many interests and one of those is helping others. I thought this would be a great way to share the interests we have.

Too Easy

2009-01-02T18:34:00.000-08:00

Wow a new blog..that was just too easy and took maybe 5 seconds..so where do I begin?