Don’t forget the Rayovac Twitter Party tonight!

Have you ever been to a Twitter party?  I went to one last night and I WON something cool.  I had forgotten how much fun they can be.  Tonight’s party is the Rayovac Powers Your Summer Twitter Party.  Use #rayovac in the search box on Tweetgrid or Tweetdeck to see all the party posts.  Join the FUN from 7-9pm CST to win prizes!

Go HERE to see a list of prizes and RSVP for the party

Take Me Back Tuesday…June 2006

Four years ago at this time, we were on vacation at Norris Lake.  Mason was 16 and Marissa was almost 11 months.

Music Monday

Five for Fighting is one of those bands that I don't listen to all the time, but when I hear one of their songs on the radio I'm reminded how much I LOVE their music.

Of course I couldn't pick just one song.

What’s moving you today?

Happy 10th Birthday Maggie!!!

Today Maggie is 10!

We made this cheesecake this morning and drizzled it with melted chocolate

This is her birthday cake we made this afternoon with homemade butter cream frosting

In the evening, we went out on the deck and played Chubby Bunny!  It is a camp game, the object is to stuff as many marshmallows into your mouth as you can.  After each marshmallow you have to say "Chubby Bunny"

It is a competition to see who has the biggest mouth.

Maggie lost.  If Mason had been here, Morgan would have lost too.

Saturday Stumble

 I have had a VERY busy week of finding new blogs!!!  Here are a few of my new favorites:

Ma What's 4 Dinner I hear this 100 times a day at least, except my kids call me Mom
Never Growing Old I joined the Over 40 Blog Hop yesterday and am really enjoying meeting bloggers my age!!
If you haven't yet, you really need to check out Mommy's Piggy Tales.  Janna's story this week had me bawling my eyes out.
Yesterday I participated in a slew of Follow Friday Meme's. I found most of them when I was checking out blogs during the blog hop on Tuesday.

I've got a couple giveaways going on right now, be sure to click the links below my header to enter to win!

Follow Me Back Friday

Friday seems to be a popular day to find new blogs to follow....this week I am participating in all these events. Click the buttons to sign up. If you are following my blog, leave me a comment with your URL and I will follow you back.













 

Friday Photo Flashback

Tomorrow is Maggie's 10th Birthday! I am really struggling with the idea of this milestone birthday. This picture is from her First Birthday. She has always been such a sweet kid. In this picture she is offering to share some birthday cake.




 

Through the Lens Thursday...Oakdale

Many years ago, Hubby and I both graduated from High School in Oakdale California. We've been told that there is an Oakdale in just about every continental United State, but we had only ever been to the one in California. Recently we came across this sign while driving on a rural road in Tennessee.

We were eager to see what Oakdale Tennessee would look like.  We wondered if there was an Oakdale High School and if so what was the mascot.  We drove the 4 miles and were disappointed to find no real “town” at all.  Oakdale Tennessee seems to be little more than an intersection of two roads.  It is much greener than California this time of the year.

Through the Lens Thursday is hosted by my friend Janet at Frugal and Focused.

Mommy’s Piggy Tales…First Grade

 

This is week 3 of a 15 week project. The object is to write a story each week about a different period of time from our childhood. I am writing this for my children. The first week was about my birth. Last week was about Kindergarten and the birth of my brother Allan. This week I will be sharing some random memories about First Grade.

First Grade was a REALLY long time ago, but I remember a few things.  When I was in first grade we moved several times and I went to a couple different schools.  At one of the schools I had a teacher who always called me Diane.  Every time she called me Diane, I would remind her that my name was Denise and she would say “oh, yes, I remember” but she NEVER got my name right.  She wasn’t OLD or anything, she just couldn’t get my name right.  I told my Mom and she thought I was exaggerating, but when we moved and we got my report card she knew I was right…the name on my report card was Diane.

In February of 1st grade we moved into a row house that would end up being the last place we ever lived in New Jersey.  It was on the end and had a nice yard.  In March it snowed a lot. Big Allan (my brother’s father) helped my Mom and I to build a giant snowman.  Even though my brother was only a year old, we took him out to play in the snow…he LOVED it.

 

Big Allan had been part of our lives off and on for several years.  First grade is the only time I really remember him living with us most of the time.  In my memories, he is around at times, then gone for long periods, then back again.

Toward the end of 1st grade our dog, Ginger had puppies.  She was part fox and a very sweet dog.  I remember the puppies being in a box by the washing machine and Ginger would pick them up by their necks and hide them under and behind furniture.  When they were old enough we gave them away and Ginger got fixed so she wouldn’t have any more puppies. Ginger was a very good dog.  She loved my brother and I very much.  I LOVED to dress her up in my outgrown clothes, she was just the right size and she didn’t seem to mind at all.

Jumpstart Wii game Review and Giveaway--CLOSED

Jumpstart and Knowledge Adventure have always been one of our favorite brands for kids computer games. This week we received the new JumpStart® Get Moving™ Family Fitness Wii game to try. WOW!!! This is a fabulous game!  The active games are my personal favorites for Wii to begin with, but this game is designed to be used by the whole family and surprisingly even in a family with our age range I am finding it keeps everyone entertained.
Everytime we get a new game, my kids want ME to play.  Usually I don’t, but the pinball in this game has me very interested. Hubby is much more of a video game person than I am and he has been having a lot of fun competing against the kids.  Marissa will turn 5 in August and this is the first Wii game we’ve tried that she was able to play without lots of help.  Dodgeball and the Bike Riding are her two favorite events.  Melanie just turned 3 in May and I didn’t think she would be able to play at all, she surprised us by getting the hang of both Dodgeball and Pinball the first day.
  Our oldest daughter Maggie is turning 10 on Saturday and isn’t much of a video game player.  The combination of having many events to choose from and being able to compete against her Dad and brother has hooked her on this game.  I never had any doubt that our 12 yr old son Morgan would like this game.  I doubt there is a Wii game out there that he wouldn’t enjoy, he’s just that kind of boy.
Morgan really enjoys Ice Skating underwater and in outer space. There are quite a few cool backgrounds including Ancient Egypt, a Volcano and Atlantis.  Most of the events are played with the regular Wii controller and some of them are compatible with the Wii Balance Board.  We only have 2 controllers and I was concerned that the kids would fight over waiting for their turn, but I’ve been happy to see that they are so into the competition aspect that instead of fighting they cheer for their siblings. This is a VERY active game and I can tell that we are all getting more out of it than just entertainment.  It didn’t feel like work while we were playing, but we’ve got sore arms and legs from working our muscles while we play.

Would you like to win a copy of this great game for your family?
  
Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment telling your kids favorite sport to play on the Wii
 Extra Entries:
Go to the Jumpstart website and come back to leave a comment about what other Jumpstart Wii games you think your kids would enjoy.
Follow my blog publicly and leave a comment
Check out the Jumpstart blog and leave me a comment about something fun you discovered there
Follow me on Twitter and leave a comment with your twitter id
Tweet about this giveaway once a day for an extra entry and leave a comment

I will pick a winner on July 10th using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hrs to get their shipping info to me or I will have to pick a new winner. If your e-mail isn't in your profile, be sure to put it in all your comments so I can contact you if you win.
Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of JumpStart® Get Moving™ Family Fitness at no cost by Knowledge Adventure in order to test the products’ abilities and give my own personal opinions on it. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided

I've got a new Template....what do you think?

I've been wanting to play around with the new DESIGN tool in Blogger since I first heard about it, but I didn't have the time.  Today, I was feeling brave and took the plunge.  It wasn't as hard as a feared it might be and I didn't lose anything!

I've got extra space now for displaying buttons, so if you've got a blog button that you would like me to put up, send me the code and I'll be happy to add it.

I'd also LOVE some feedback....what do you think of my new layout and background?

Wordless/Wordful Wednesday…Melanie

Tuesday Tag Along, Follow Me back Tuesday and Trailing Tuesdays

This is a new Follow Meme that I came across last week.  The object is to link up and find new blogs to follow.  If you follow me, leave me a comment with your blog address and I will gladly follow you back.  Click the button to go to the Tuesday Tag-Along post and add your blog to the linky.

and here are two more following Memes I found today!  Click the button to join the linky.

Rayovac Powers Your Summer

Rayovac is having a fantastic promotion this Summer.  Become a fan on Facebook and you can have a daily chance to win fun prizes. Today's prize is a camping kit with tent and batteries.

Check out Rayovac's website for all the details www.rayovac.com/PowersYourSummer.  There will also be a Twitter party  on June 30th, featuring more chances to win lots of prizes. 

Rayovac Powers Your Vacation Summer Promotion Twitter Event


Date: Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Time: 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. CST

Location: #rayovac

Follow: @Rayovac_Battery, @5minutesformom, @CirclePRMary



Disclosure: The first 99 eligible bloggers who follow the above requirements will win one Prize Package.  The first 99 bloggers to promote the Rayovac Powers Your Summer Twitter Event won a prize package from Rayovac.

Take Me Back Tuesday

On Saturday, Maggie will turn 10!  In this picture she is less than a month old.

Bella Sara MoonFairies review and giveaway--CLOSED

Moonfairies is the 12th trading card series from Bella Sara.  My 10 year old daughter Maggie LOVES the games on their FREE website. The games involve taking care of horses, growing plants to benefit the animals and exploring different areas to perform good deeds for others.  This card series brings together the love of horses and the world of fairies and sprites.  Each pack of trading cards includes a secret code that opens up bonus adventures in the games, along with trading cards featuring the beautiful horses and stickers to collect.

Bella Sara appeals to a wide age range, my almost 5 yr old is able to play with a little assistance from me and Maggie has been playing for over a year without losing interest.  The horse never dies or runs away, the child can forget about it for an extended period of time, then go back and play again without having lost anything. The messages are all positive, there is no snarky teen attitude and the horses themselves are beautiful and very appealing.  Go to the Bella Sara website to see all they have to offer and sign up for the FREE online games.

Bella Sara Trading Cards are also available for purchase at Target, Wal-Mart and Toys R Us for about $2.99 per pack.  Each pack includes trading cards, stickers and a feature code. 

Do you know a little girl who would like these? One lucky winner will receive a Bella Sara Moonfairies card pack.

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment telling me who you would give the prize to.

Extra Entries:
Go to the Bella Sara store and come back to leave a comment about what other items you like besides the trading cards
Follow my blog publicly and leave a comment
Follow me on Twitter and leave a comment with your twitter id
Tweet about this giveaway once a day for an extra entry and leave a comment

I will pick a winner on July 3rd using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hrs to get their shipping info to me or I will have to pick a new winner. If your e-mail isn't in your profile, be sure to put it in all your comments so I can contact you if you win.

Music Monday—Beach Boys! It’s SUMMER

Today is the official first day of Summer and nothing says SUMMER to me like Beach Boys music.  I found some great videos on YouTube.

 

Friday Photo Flashback

 

I was scanning pictures yesterday and came across these two pictures. The first one is our oldest son when he was about 2 weeks old and the second one is our oldest daughter when she was about 2 weeks old. Everyone is always telling me how much our kids look alike, but looking at these two pictures side by side I really SEE it.


 

SkyWatch Friday Frozen Head State Park

We took a family trip to Frozen Head State Park last Friday. This is about 2 hrs West of Great Smoky Mountain National Park in Tennessee.

Mommy’s Piggy Tales…When I was little

This Meme started last week, it is a 15 week project.  The object is to write a story each week about a different period of time from our childhood.  I am writing this for my children.  Last week I told the story of my birth. This week, I’ll be telling you about the year I started Kindergarten.  It was a very exciting year!

When I was a little girl, Gramma and I lived by ourselves in a small house. There was a little kitchen that was bright yellow and a little living room that was bright orange.  In the living room we had an upright piano with my fishtank on top.  We had a black and white television, but we almost never watched TV.

This picture is from Christmas 1970, I had just turned 4.  Gramma's room was a bright shade of lavendar and a stairway led from Gramma's room up to my room.  My room was PINK and I loved it very much.  Every other weekend, my Daddy would come to pick me up and take me to my MomMom's house to spend the weekend with him. During the week, Gramma worked and I went to a baby sitter. On the weekend that I was home with Gramma, I played outside in our fenced yard. I was lonely most of the time and I would BEG Gramma to please go to the store and buy me a baby brother or sister. I didn't understand where babies came from and since all the STUFF for babies was sold at the store I thought that we should be able to buy a baby at the store too. We moved several times when I was 5 and I don't remember where we lived when I started kindergarten.

When I was almost 6, I started kindergarten and I found out that Gramma was going to have a baby! I was very excited! I kept asking when the baby was going to get here and she kept telling me “in a few months”.  One day in early March Gramma was getting ready to take me to buy a new pair of shoes.  First she had to go to the bathroom.  When she came out of the bathroom she looked like she wasn’t feeling well and she told me that we weren’t going to be able to go shoe shopping that day.  She had to go to the Dr.  She took me to one of her friend’s houses.  There were a lot of kids and I really liked playing with them, but on this day I was worried.  Later that night my Grandmother came and picked me up.  She told me that I had a new baby brother and I was going to come stay with her and my Great Grandmother for a few days while my Mom and my new baby brother were in the hospital.

Great Grandmother was one of the oldest people in our family when I was little and she had some strange ideas.  The worst part for me about staying with her was that she thought that even though I was SIX I might wet the bed and so she made me sleep on a plastic pad.  I couldn’t remember having EVER wet the bed and I was very upset that she didn’t believe I was big enough to sleep without plastic under me.

After a few days, my Grandmother took me to the hospital to see Gramma.  At that time, kids, even the sister of the baby, were not allowed to visit.  My Grandmother had to take me around the outside of the building to the window of Gramma’s hospital room.  One of Gramma’s friends opened the window and I got to see her for just a few minutes, but I didn’t get to see my baby brother.  A couple days later,  Gramma was able to come home. My brother had to stay in the hospital for another day because he had been born early and they wanted to make sure he was ready to leave the hospital.  Your Uncle Allan was born 6 weeks early and only weighed about 4 1/2 lbs.  He had ended up being born in the Dr’s office when Gramma went to be checked out...he was in a BIG hurry to be born.  He was so tiny that his whole head fit inside the palm of Gramma’s hand.  This was 1973 and at that time they didn’t have a lot of the technology they have today for babies who are born early.  Fortunately, he was very strong and didn’t have any medical problems from being born so early.  On the day that he came home, I finally got to hold him.  I was very happy to finally have a baby of our own! This picture is of my Mom , my brother and I from Easter 1973.  Allan is only a few weeks old.

This picture is from one of those photo booths. I am 7 and Allan is about 6 months old.