Silly boys, silly boys underwear. š One day last week or the week before my two little boys somehow got baby’s new training pants and look what they did? I think all my children wore underwear on their heads at some point or another. All I can say is goofy!
Have your children worn underwear on their heads? Let me know!
Redwood Hill’s Goat Milk Yogurt Review
We were excited to try two different brands of yogurt. Green Valley andĀ Redwood Hill Farm yogurt and kefir. Our store only had Redwood Hill blueberry yogurt in stock so that is what we got to try. And to clarify Redwood Hill Farm makes the goat milk yogurt, kefir and cheese. and Green Valley Organics Lactose free makes cow milk yogurt, kefir and sour cream.
See? All natural organic yogurt. It’s really hard to find in stores, but I love that you canĀ pronounceĀ all theĀ ingredientsĀ and that it is healthy and good for you. As organic farmers and a mom of eight children it is important to feed my family food that doesn’t containĀ ingredientsĀ that could harm them.
My family was eager to see how goat milk yogurt would taste. In the past we haven’t really liked goat milk products that we tested out, but this brand was different.
A few children thought that they could taste the goat milk, but theĀ majorityĀ thought that it tasted just like regular yogurt. My kids could eat yogurt everyday and they really enjoyed Redwood Hill’s. Even my pickier eaters liked it.
Green Valley Organics Lactose Free Yogurt – Cow’s Milk Yogurt Review
My husband loved the Green Valley Organics Lactose Free strawberry yogurt, which is made from cow’s milk. He thought that it was the best strawberry yogurt he had tasted – we have tried many brands and my husband can be very particular when it comes to food! He thought this strawberry yogurt was creamy and very good. The strawberry flavor really popped and it’s affordable as well. My husband eats yogurt almost daily and he is rather picky about what brands he will buys, but this one hit the spot for him and he would buy it in the future.
The Redwood Hill Farm Kefir was yummy. My oldest daughter who is very health conscious, loved it and thought it was the best kefir she had ever had. She typically doesn’t care for goat milk products, but loved this one. My other kids really enjoyed it too. We could not even tell it was made from goat milk due to the yummy flavors and fruity texture.
You can find Green Valley and Redwood Hill Farm’s products at Whole Foods stores nationwide as well as Jewel-Osco. Organic, all natural, and free from harmful chemicals and additives – sure to be a family staple at our house.
Visit Redwood Hill Farm & Creamery or Green Valley Organics Lactose Free on the web to find out more information about their farm and their products.
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.
I love spending outside, especially in the summer. There’s just something relaxing and peaceful about being surrounded by nature. I get that from my mother. We have a beautiful spacious backyard here at the house we are renting. However, the patio is in need of a little love. We only have a couple of lawn chairs and that is the extent of our outdoor furniture.
We really do not have any outdoor decor either. That’s why I scoured Sears online catalog and Outdoor Living section last night and today looking for outdoor furniture and accessories to spice up our sad looking patio.
I have always been somewhat of an early riser. I love early mornings. I dream of creating Mom’s Dream Backyard Oasis. Of course it would be for the whole family but my plan is to use it in the early morning for some alone time. Whether it’s reading or getting a head start on blog posts or client work, I want to have a place to go that is all my own – at least for a short time during the day!
It was so fun to dream and create what I consider my dream backyard oasis. Below you will find my Polyvore Wish Board of most of the items I found that would make my patio more attractive and fun to spend time on. The one thing I did not do is consider cost as I chose things, after all this was a “dream”. When I dream I dream big and dreaming means money is not a factor. Sears does have a Shop Your Way Rewards program, but I did not get a chance to check that out, but I am thinking it might offer some sort of savings for a huge dream project like this.There’s also the Sears local ad to search for budget friendly items too and I think when the time comes for me to seriously plunk down some money for a whole new patio makeover, I would start with the ads, shop sales and watch for promotions.
Sears Style Hub really did not help me in my research, perhaps someone more design focused would find it helpful.
I thought Sears had a great selection and would definitely consider making my purchases there.
My online shopping experience was good. However, I did experience a scripting message last night that froze up my computer causing me to go to bed early to start fresh in the morning. That was one negative thing, the other was Polyvore doesn’t have their themes categorized, at least from what I could see so it took me a long time to find a board for the amount of photos I wanted to use. It was very time consuming. Uploading them to the board took no time at all, which was definitely a plus.
Here are the steps I took, starting with Sears online catalog:
Shopping the Sears Outdoor Living Section
Creating a Polyvore Wish Board
Adding Photos to My Wish Board
My Completed Polyvore Wish Board
Here’s a complete list of everything above and a couple more. Please give a thumbs up to the items you like:
For those of you shopping for new outdoor items, Sears is currently offering:
Up to 30% off patio furniture and grills
All Grills on sale
Be sure to check out the Red Tag Event for great deals on Patio Furniture and Grills
More than 50% Off this Ty Pennington Style Halston 4-pc. seating set
Consider following Sears on Facebook and Twitter to receive more informational updates and promotions.
In the comments, tell me about your dream backyard oasis.
“I am a member of the Collective Biasā¢ Social FabricĀ® Community. This content has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Biasā¢ and Sears. #CBias #SocialFabric. All opinions are my own.ā
Disclaimer: Please note that I do not necessarily agree with the content of the books listed below. I am more interested in the idea of an e-book gift card.
Most of you know that I love to read. Love, love, love books. They are my dear friends that take me to new places and introduce me to new worlds. E-books have been around for a while. E-readers are still relatively new. I still haven’t gone over to the “dark” side. There’s just something about having a book in hand to read. I am intrigued though and maybe all the new e-readers will improve so much they’ll win me over. Either way, Livrada has come up with a cool new way to give e-books as gifts – Livrada E-book Gift Cards.
Today Livrada is launching their e-book gift cards at ALL Target stores! In this initial launch there are six best-selling titles available. Here are the current titles available:
Fifty Shades of Grey
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest
State of Wonder
Gone Girl
Charles Street
Odd Thomas
No more gift via email or generic gift cards. Our gift cards are replicas of the actual book cover! So grabbing a quick gift, no longer has to feel impersonal.
And they have offered one to giveaway to our readers – YOU!
Now for the giveaway!
Giveaway of Fifty Shades of Grey Livrada E-book Gift Card
Watch for Brande’s future review of Fifty Shades of Grey and her thoughts on the e-book gift cards! Coming Soon!
It’s been an incredibly busy weekend. We went to look at a vehicle yesterday – a gas guzzler Ford Expedition – but the vehicle isn’t big enough. š It was older but very clean and in good condition. We are talking about going to two vehicles instead of one big one. Then some of us traveled 2 hours in traffic to the Taste of Chicago 2012. It was busy. Slight rain did not deter people either.
I think it was busier than last year by the size of the crowds, but maybe not.
Lots and lots of people.
We ran into pockets of much needed rain, but it cleared up by the time we got to the Transitions booth.
While my husband drove around the block with our sleeping toddler, my rock star boy, Peanut and I went to get our free vision screening. The screening line went quickly and they were very efficient and wiped off the screening equipment after every person. That impressed me. The screener was very courteous. I didn’t learn anything I didn’t already know – all three of us are overdue for an eye exam and new prescriptions. That means the other three children and my husband are too since it’s been a couple of years since we went to the eye doctor. Bad, I know, but I plan to make our appointments this week as it makes my heart sick to think my children are not seeing as clearly as they should be. I have been experiencing mama guilt since last fall when we didn’t make our yearly appointments.
We didn’t know celebrity chef Robert Irvine is going to be at the Transitions booth today from 11am-1pm. We were very disappointed to find that out there. We like Chef Robert and watch his TV show Restaurant Impossible. The thing is I had already offered to volunteer at a local Folk Festival to help with the kids’ craft table. So even if we had known, my girls and I were already booked. š Though, my husband could have dropped us off and taken the boys into the city.
If you are planning on going to the Taste of Chicago today, plan to drop by Transitions for your free vision screening and to meet Chef Robert. Even if you aren’t planning on going, Chef Robert is a great reason to go, don’t you think? š Leave me a comment telling me what you’d say if you met Chef Robert or another celebrity chef.
While this is a part of Transitions #seemoresights series, this particular post was not a requirement. I chose to write this myself.
A couple of months ago a fellow homeschooler posted on our homeschool group that a friend was selling their pool. It was only used one season. We thought with all the land we had here that it would be great to have a pool to play in so we bought it. One minor detail….we neglected to ask the landlords first, as we really didn’t think it would be an issue. When we did, they talked among their sibling group – this sibling group manages the property since their dad has Alzheimer’s and is in a nursing home – they said no because it’s a liability. š You don’t know how disappointed we were. Now we have a nice 15ft by 36″ pool sitting in our garage all boxed up waiting for us to find our forever home….some day.
How can we have a pool party then without a pool? We played in the water at the outside tap. All our garden hoses were out in the garden and in the pasture with the chickens so we filled up water balloons to celebrate and used the water at the side of the house; which also happens to leak and spray all over the place and acted as our sprinkler. We did look for sprinklers at Walmart when we went shopping but there was only one style available and after envisioning the children breaking it, we opted to save the money. Things break easily and fast and lots at our house.
We bought our treats though!
Video of who the little princess above was aiming for! See the video below to find out! š
Our pool party was in celebration of National Ice Cream Day, which is tomorrow July 15. It has been super hot here lately. It’s like that every where from what we hear and read. And what better way to cool down than to play in cool refreshing water and snack on some TCBY Frozen Yogurt treats?! Fun, eh?
Leave a comment telling us what flavor frozen yogurt or ice cream you will eat in honor of National Ice Cream Day! Personally, I really like the Vanilla Bean, Orange and Chocolate. All the TCBY Frozen Novelties we tried are a hit with our crew. We really enjoyed TCBY’s frozen yogurt. Special thanks to #CBias for giving us the opportunity to try it for the first time! Hmmm…speaking of treats…wonder if there’s any left?
If you are interested in learning more about #TCBYGrocery, then please join us on Thursday, July 26, 2012 for a Twitter Party from 1-2pm EST. There will be chances to win some cool prizes too! In the meantime, check them out at TCBYGrocery.com, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.
āI am a member of the Collective Biasā¢ Social FabricĀ® Community. This content has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Biasā¢ and TCBY #CBias #SocialFabric #TCBYGrocery. All opinions are my own.”
A Guest Post
MyCouportiera and Dani Sue Dreams have teamed up with Me4Kids to bring you this amazing giveaway!
My Daughter Delaney loved the Nailbuddy kit from Me4Kids. Read our review by clicking here. Read more
Flash drives are something that we use alot of at this house. Several of my children are writers and we use flash drives for all sorts of things including school so we were excited for review the We Share Bytes. These new USB drives are made especially for kids and the back to school season. They have three fun new lines that just came out this month. So there is something for everyone!
These flash drives are very unique and I don’t think we have ever seen anything like them. Even though they are made from metal and plastic they seem very durable. Since they come with a five year warranty my kids feel safe saving their work on it.
The ColorBytes line was designed with younger kids in mind. My middle daughters loved the bright, colorful and fun designs. They have a clip so they can be attached to a backpack. They come in several different designs and a value back of two 4GB hard drives.
My kids loved the twin double sided graphics on the ShareBytes. We were sent the X-Ray design and they thought the monsters were just adorable. They are designed for sharing and kids can give one to a friend and keep the other. They interlock to stay in place and are flat and small enough to transport anywhere.
For older teens they have the ShareBytes that are available in two packs of 4GB or 8GB as well as single 16GB usb drives. They are roughly 1″ square and easily fit into a pocket without any bumps or awkward lumps. My oldest daughter loves the Peace one that we were sent. The colors are great and she loves that it is flat enough to fit anywhere!
These flash drives are available for purchase at wesharebytes.com as well as at national retailers including Target, OfficeMax, Staples, BestBuy, Office Depot, and The Source starting at only $9.99.
I know most of us are watching our spending these days, especially with gas prices so high. That’s why when I learned of a new frugal website, I thought that you all would enjoy learning about it too, considering that most people desire to know how to be frugal when the economy isn’t at its best. The great thing is I got to speak with the founder as well.
Q & A Session
I spoke to Jon, founder of BeFrugal.com and asked him a few questions. Below you will find our short Q & A session about how to be a frugal online shopper:
TG: What was behind starting BeFrugal.com?
Jon: The whole purpose behind BeFrugal is how and where you spend money. Internet technology makes it all more efficient and getting a better deal when you do buy something. We first started with coupons and that was a huge success. Then we added restaurant coupons, etc. and the cashback on online purchases.
TG: What is Befrugal.com and how does it work?
Jon: The first thing is to sign up for a free account on our website. Just an email is required, no credit card. Membership is free. Once your account is set up, then you are free to browse through the tabs. For example if you are looking for an online coupon for a store you want to shop at you can do a search for that store and find coupons. We have over 200 chains of stores. There are online coupons for 40,000+ stores. After you have your coupon, you click on complete purchase. There is an average of $27 off with coupons. We also offer an average of 7% cashback.(This was just recently updated here.) You can double up on cashback and coupons for more savings! The savings can be pretty significant.
The coupons savings is seen at the point of purchase. The cashback is credited to your BeFrugal account and needs to reach a $25 balance as that is the minimum withdrawl.
Shopping Tips
TG: What are some of the biggest shopping tips you can offer my readers?
Jon: The cool thing about online shopping is that you can do your research first online even if you do your shopping offline. You can print your coupons before going into the store.
1. Shop online as much as possible. No standing in lines with people behind you waiting. Online shopping saves time and gas, which equals money saved too.
2. Budget.
3. Use promo codes.
4. Use BeFrugal.com because it’s much easier to stay organized.
5. Use cashback and coupons.
6. Use a rewards credit card with your cashback and coupons. In most cases you can use all 3 together – $27, 7% and another 1-2% saved adds up.
All of these are available thru BeFrugal.com
I appreciate the time Jon took to speak with me. Please check out BeFrugal.com to increase your savings today.
My children love to draw. They create paper dolls, they draw pictures of families, animals and have lots of fun doing so. What’s that old saying about idle hands? Well drawing keeps my children mostly out of trouble because their hands are kept busy. They can draw for hours on end and be pretty quiet while doing so…until they start fighting over markers or crayons (grimace). Drawing has been a great activity to do inside during this hot spell we have been experiencing.
Last summer I invested in a number of wipe off activity books so my younger crew could practice writing their names, alphabet and numbers. I thought this would help save on the amount of paper we used, in addition to saving money. They worked really well, except now we go through more white board markers!
Speaking of whiteboard markers, drawing, art and the Magic Whiteboard have been lifesavers for me during times I need to get work done.
Magic Whiteboard is a roll of whiteboard paper that has 25 sheets per roll ($59.99 retail value). It is portable so setting up a whiteboard on the go never got any easier. The surface wipes off really well and is completely reusable. Ripping the sheet of whiteboard paper off straight and in one piece is challenging at times, especially now that my children broke the box the roll came in. š Update: Let me amend this by saying I completely missed the perforated sheets! It works great even with my broken box. (wry smile)
It works great for keeping little boys busy too. What do you think, is it a keeper? I would have to agree!
Interested in the Magic Whiteboard for your family? Feel free to connect with Magic Whiteboard on their website, Twitter , Facebook or Pinterest. Be sure to check out their other products too while you are there!
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.
