Category — Contests!

Thanksgiving is ONE WEEK from TODAY!  Somehow that just doesn’t seem possible!  I mean, where did August go?  Not to mention September, October and half of November!  Wow, but this year seems to be screaming past.

But I digress… as usual.

Thanksgiving… it is a wholly American holiday (although the Canadians have their version too) and one that seems to be the “kick-off” for the holiday season of parties and get-together’s.  The beginning of that “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” - or something like that.

This year we will be spending Thanksgiving with some extended family that we haven’t seen in a while, and I am so looking forward to it!  I was reading through my email and came across a contest where Target is asking about Thanksgiving Traditions, and it got me thinking about some of ours.  If you want to take part in the bloggy goodness, head over to TwitterMoms and read up on it.

We all have those traditions that were passed down to us or that we have begun in our own family - those little things that we do or foods that we eat every year that almost seem required.  It’s just not Thanksgiving without Grandma’s stuffing or that homemade pumpkin pie.  Well, our family is no different when it comes to having those traditions that have been handed to us, and that we are passing along to the next generation.

And football has no part in it!

One of the traditions that was begun by my family when I was around 10 was going to see a Christmas movie on Thanksgiving night.  We started doing it when the theaters first opened up their doors for the occasion.  I remember going to the theater and NOT having to stand in a hugely long line to get tickets - or getting them in advance!  Now that seems to be a tradition for a lot of families - the line stretches around the outside of the theater!  We make sure it’s always a Christmas movie - whichever one is out early enough to see on Thanksgiving.  This year I think it’s going to be A Christmas Carol - but not in 3D since 3D really freaks one of my kids out.

Another of our traditions has been passed down through the generations.  Whether you call it dressing or stuffing, it’s the savory bread pudding-ish dish that is a Thanksgiving must-have.  My grandma started the recipe (as far as I know!), and both my mom and I have tweaked the recipe to fit into our family and place our own signature on it.  But to have a Thanksgiving meal without it?  That just won’t be happening!  I’ve even passed it along to my in-law’s!  Which reminds me… I need to send the recipe over to D today so she can get a jump on it.  I am hopeful that the girls will take the basic recipe that has been handed down and place their own stamp on it and continue the tradition.

One food tradition that I personally can do without though?  The onion green bean casserole thing.  No thanks!  Green beans, absolutely!  Cooked quickly with a little bit of bacon and perhaps some oyster sauce, salt and pepper, but that’s it!

The tradition that Eric & I have started, however, revolves around the pumpkin pie.  He gets a good sugar pumpkin and we all gather around the counter and work at scraping out the seeds and pulp.  He roasts it while the girls & I separate the seeds from the “gunk” inside and we dry out the seeds or roast them while the pumpkin browns in the oven.  Then the girls help him scrape, mix and bake a fabulous pumpkin pie totally from scratch.  And wow, is it good!

The only other requirement for Thanksgiving around here?  Make sure it is filled with family and friends!  After all, relationships are one of those things that I am most thankful for!

What are some of your traditions?

Yep, this is a little off the beaten path, but when I came across this contest, I just couldn’t say no!  What contest, you ask?  The one from What Not To Wear, of course!

What Not To Wear has teamed up with ShopSmartLookFab.com, TwitterMoms, and General Growth Properties to give away a $25 mall gift card to 50 lucky bloggers.  Want in?  Just visit Twitter Moms and write your post!

So, on with my must haves for fall…

1. A good scarf. Really, it just doesn’t seem like fall if I don’t have a great scarf.  Fortunately scarves have made a huge comeback and there is a huge varety of styles out there to choose from.  I’m loving the large pashmina’s that are everywhere (some as low as $5!) but I still keep coming back to my funky wool and paper scarf.  Paper?!?!?  Yep!  The yarn was called Papyrus and has wool mixed with cotton thread and little paper fiber pieces.  I always get comments on it and it’s snuggly warm and fabulous.
2. A new handbag.  Not that we need a reason to get a new bag, but hey, Autumn is a great one!  Personally I love any reason to embrace the warm colors of fall - gold and rust, cranberry,deep green and chocolate brown.  These are the colors I love and this is the season that is all about them!  A couple of years ago I started September with a very “teacher-y” handbag - brown background with orange, pink and cream apples and pears on it.  Sounds odd, but it was just so cute!
3. Boots.  Ankle, knee high or somewhere in between, this is the season that they start coming out and I am sooo glad.  While I am always on the lookout for the perfect pair of boots, I’m happily trying a few different styles until I can find that one pair.  What would my perfect pair look like?  Knee high with a 3″ chunky heel.  Smooth leather and most likely in a deep brown.  Black boots rock too though, so I think we should all get both!
4. A plaid skirt.  Plaid just seems like fall to me, and I’m not sure why.  Perhaps it was the years of back-to-school shopping as a kid when I had the plaid skirt and matching sweater combo in a variety of colors - who knows!  Plaids just seem “right” in fall.  Long, short or in-between, plaid is fab - and it’s coming back into style in a big way this season!  Doin’ a happy dance over here!
5. The Perfect Top.  Well, with a new skirt, boots handbag and scarf, you need something to wear with them, right?  My perfect top would be in bright white.  A nice heavy-yet-soft fabric with a v-neck.  Somewhat formal looking, but with something flirty about it.  You know, like the one I bought for M this year (and she consequently will NOT wear!  Kids!)  Well, either that or something in a nice, warm, chocolat-y brown.  I do love chocolate brown…

So, those are my picks for Fall Must Have’s.  Now if I just had the funds to complete the outfit I’d be in good shape!  Here’s hoping…

Want to get in on the action?  Head over to TwitterMoms and get yourself entered!  Here’s hoping we both win!

Well, once again we woke up to snow! Fortunately it was just a half-inch or so of slushy stuff and it wasn’t sticking.

We started a new series today on David called King of Hearts, and today was based in 1 Samuel 15. We looked at the fruit of the hearts of Saul, Samuel and David. It was pretty interesting!

We also had a commissioning of our new Youth Leader this morning, which was pretty exciting. I think Shelli will do a great job with the youth, and I’m excited to see what she does.

Onto the music…

• Jesus Messiah [E]
• Better Is One Day [D]
• All I Have Is You [F]
• Nothing Without You [D]
• commissioning
• kids message
• Jesus Loves Me [C]
• announcements
• message - Royalty Among Discards
• Communion
• How Great Is Our God [F]

Once again, I just can’t find that perfect tempo for Jesus Messiah. We had it at practice on Wednesday, but couldn’t find it this morning. It always seems too fast or too slow… weird.

Better Is One Day is one of those songs that I love! The best day we could ever have cannot compare to even one minute spent in the presence of God… and I can’t wait until we have days without end to spend worshiping at His feet!

All I Have is a song that we have done a few times - and I really like it - but I’m still learning it. I think this key was just a bit low (at least it is when I have a cold!)

We introduced Nothing Without You this morning, as apparently I am the only one who has ever sang it before - go figure! I know it’s been out for a few years, because we used to sing it at CCBothell (and that was a couple of years ago!). Pastor Chris decided that it had a country feel to it (which we NEVER do) and enjoyed himself making a joke about me bringing a country song. Grr. However, when he mentioned the country feel to it, there were cheers. I’m worried now! (in case you hadn’t noticed, country is not my fav. genre…)

Since we were talking about how God looks at the heart, we sang Jesus Loves Me… not the usual stuff for Sunday morning, but it worked. It was a little slower than I would have liked, but it worked pretty well. We sang 2 verses of it (out of the 7+ that are out there). The kids enjoyed doing the sign language to it, and I even saw a couple of adults joining in with the signs - it was pretty cool.

We sang How Great Is Our God, and Art did a great job leading it (as usual!). We had planned to tack on the chorus to How Great Thou Art, but we were running late on time so we ended it a bit early, cutting off a couple of repeats to the chorus as well.

I still can’t hear very well, and Pastor Chris was having the same problem… made things a bit more interesting to be sure. The team pulled together and did a great job though!

That was our Sunday morning… how was yours?

** As always, this is part of the Sunday Setlist / Worship Confessional over at Fred’s blog…**

I almost guarantee that your kids will like this one - and it will last a bit longer than the normal ones too!

We recently got a great little package in the mail - one that my girls were VERY excited to open. Inside were two complete sets of the new Milkshake CD, DVD and Comic Book! Yep, the DVD is the videos and some behind-the-scenes of their latest album “Play!” and features the comic book as well.

I know what you are thinking “Another kid songs CD that I’m going to get sick of, or my kids aren’t going to like AT ALL?” But that’s not what this is… The 2 people that started Milkshake are professional musicians, who also happen to be parents. And their music, while written for kids, is also written with adults in mind. Yes, the lyrics are catchy, and kid-friendly, but the melodies are catchy and highly sing-able - even if you are 40 instead of 4.

Want more info on the band? Check out MilkshakeMusic.com - there’s even a great kids page, and bio’s for each band member.

Remember how I said I got two sets? Yes, the girls were hoping that I was giving each of them a set, but no - I saved one for you!

Yes, one of you lucky readers gets to introduce your kids to a great new band (and hopefully retire a CD you just can’t take anymore!)

My girls are 7 & 8 years old, and they both love Milkshake. I will warn you though, the lead singer loves to dress in tu-tu’s, so if you have a little princess she may decide that tu-tu’s are the required attire whenever she listens or watches Milkshake. I mean, what Rock-n-Roll Princess doesn’t think that?

My 8 year old has memorized a few of the songs already, and loves to sing them. She has claimed our CD as hers, and goes to sleep listening to it every night. She also has the band members memorized - along with their favorite sports and foods… It really is a winner!

***DETAILS FOR WINNING***

What do you need to do to win?

Comment - Visit MilkshakeMusic.com tell me which band member is your favorite, or which song you like best. This one is required - no visit to the site and comment about the band, no win.

Tweet this post - add in @jehudson and link to your tweet in a separate comment below to let me know.

Follow me on twitter - jehudson - leave a comment

Visit Milkshake on Facebook & become a fan - leave a comment below

Stumble it - comment about your stumble.

Blog it - yep, tell your blog readers about this contest & send over a trackback or add another comment below.

Each of these things will get you an entry!

Oh, and you’ll gain an extra entry if you can tell me which band member’s mom was a Ukranian Opera Singer… just ’cause I like opera…  DM me the answer (on twitter) so everyone has a chance to find it!

Contest ends at 11:59 pm on Monday, March 16th, 2009.

Good luck!

Well, I did the drawing for the Frugal  book, and have notified the winner, who now has 3 days to reply.  Congrats to Jessica!

I also wanted to remind you that the giveaway for the natural snack bars ends TONIGHT at 11:59 pm.  It takes but a comment to get entered…

I’m still waiting for some other goodies to arrive for another giveaway (learning patience!) so I will share that info when they get here…

Well, go enter!

I received a fun package in the mail last week… it contained 6 of the new Quaker True Delights chewy granola bars. And a coupon to get more (good marketing there…)

The flavors we received are:

• Dark Chocolate Raspberry Almond
• Honey Roasted Cashew Mixed Berry
• Toasted Coconut Banana Macadamia Nut

Since there were 2 of each, I had intended to eat one of each and do a giveaway with the others, but I do have a family living here with me. I managed to get 2 of the bars. It worked out though, because I am not a fan of coconut.

So, what are these things and why am I telling you about them? Well, Quaker is getting on the “health bar” bandwagon and offering up granola bars that not only taste great (yes, they really do) but have ingredients that you can actually pronounce!

My favorite of the 2 that I tried is the dark chocolate raspberry almond (I know, big surprise there), but the berry was also very tasty. My 6 year old LOVED the toasted coconut banana macadamia nut one - I had to wrestle the 2nd one away from her to keep her from eating the other one too.

While I applaud Quaker for getting better with these than their other granola bars, I still take issue with the fact that they are filled with corn syrup… not high fructose corn syrup, but corn syrup, corn syrup solids, sugar, fructose, oligofructose (whatever that is), more sugar, invert sugar, oh, and more sugar. Yes, that many different listings of some form of sugar on the label. They also have soy in them, along with natural and artificial flavors and caramel color.

If I may… have you tried the Lara Bars? They have less than 10 ingredients (usually closer to 5) ALL are actual, naturally occurring foods, and they taste great. Another great snack is Erin Baker’s Breakfast Cookies & Brownies. Again, short ingredients list (no corn syrup or soy) and great tasting. Mrs. May’s Trio Bars are also great - fruits, nuts & seeds.

Quaker is getting better, and for that I am thankful, but I would really like to see more all-natural foods on our shelves! I am tired of having to read labels to make sure there isn’t things in them that my kids can’t or shouldn’t have.

So, if you want to try these out yourself, leave a comment below. I have one Honey Roasted Cashew Mixed Berry left (I’m hiding it!) and a coupon for $1 off a box of them that I will ship out…

I’ll also throw in a Laura Bar and a Trio bar for you to try (just because I like them so much!)

What do you need to do?

Comment below… do you eat granola bars often? Have you ever tried any of the more natural ones? Do your kids eat these? That’s one entry…

For a second entry, add this giveaway to your blog. Send a trackback or add a second comment letting me know where to look for it.

Third entry… tweet this post!

The drawing ends at 11:59 pm on Monday, Feb 2nd, so that just gives you this weekend to get your entries in. I know you can do it though.

Thanks and good luck!

**Contest is closed - Congrats!**

Here are some great giveaways that are happening around the web this week…

National Eye Institute
~ The National Eye Institute is giving away an activity book for kids ages 6-8 o learn about their eyes and how they work.  You can download your copy here.

Audible.com
~ Audible.com is giving away an audio version of Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People… if you’ve ever been interested in this system, now is a great time to get started!  Download it here for a limited time.

BlogEnergizer.com
~ For a limited time only Blog Energizer.com is giving away their Family Budget Checklist in PDf form.  If you are struggling to make ends meet (and most of us are these days it seems) this is a great way to track where you are spending.  Get your copy here.

MomDot.com
~ Yes, the lovely ladies over at MomDot.com are at it again - and this giveaway ends on the 30th, so get over there quick.  They are giving away a Month of Meals ebook to one lucky reader.  The details are here.  Go get entered!

CraftyCarey
~ Crafty Carey is giving away a “Get It Together” gift pack including some Tupperware, a Franklin Covey planner and some memo note pads.  Head over there and get entered!

She Lives
~ Want to win a $25 Starbucks gift card?  Then think of a name for a cute little bird!  Yep, She Lives has a cockateil that has yet to be named (for over 6 years now) and she wants to fix that problem.  Her wonderful family will choose the name from those submitted, and she will send out the gift card.  Head over there and add your name to the que!

That should be enough to get you started down the giveaway aisle for a bit…  enjoy!

I know I have not done too many giveaways here on this blog, but that is something that I would like to change moving forward… and I have a couple in the works.

The first one, however, is designed to help you out in the midst of these tough economic times.  It’s a small booklet entitled “101 Ways to Spend Less When Raising a Family” and there are some great tips there-in.

I actually picked it up a while ago, but never got the chance to post the giveaway… then it got lost in the shuffle of papers (oops!)

Better late than never, right?

What do you need to do?  Just share your favorite frugal tip below and I’ll draw a name on January 31 for the winner!

During these times it is more important than ever for us to be able to stretch our dollars to feed and care for our families, and I am hopeful that this little booklet will help someone find even more ideas and ways to make their budget go further.

Good Luck!