I recently received a book in the mail to read.  It’s called Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity.

Wow.

If you are looking for something that will help pull you out of that spiritual funk that you have found yourself in, check it out.  While Primal may not be the answer, it will point you back to the answer.

What does that mean?  It means that Mark Batterson has written a book about getting back into that relationship with God that we need to have.  He has included ideas and personal anecdotes that will help spur you onto good things and remind you of many of the ways you can build – or re-build – your relationship with Jesus Christ.  He focuses on compassion, wonder, curiosity, and power in our relationship with God, and reminds us of why these are important.

It’s that time of year when we have been going, going, going with a slow-down that hits right after Christmas and a time for looking at our lives and re-evaluating things.  Is there a better time for a refresher course on getting in touch with our Creator?

If you are floundering out there somewhere feeling like you need to draw closer to God, I recommend picking up Primal – it will show you a way back into that relationship.  It will remind you why we need a Savior and how to take part in that Great Commandment that Jesus gave us – to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind & strength, and to love others.  After all, is there a better way to share God with others than through relationships?  Our lives should proclaim Him, but if we aren’t strengthening our relationship with Him, our lives won’t be talking very loudly.

So, where can you pick up your copy of Primal?

It is available at booksellers nationwide on Dec 22, 2009, just in time to be the first book you read in 2010 – or perhaps that quieter week after Christmas.

Personally, I like to get books through Amazon.com.  Other places that I often shop for books are CBD,  Borders.com and BarnesandNoble.com

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Oh, and the legal stuff – I received this book for free to read and review.

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!

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!**

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!

This one isn’t related to Breast Cancer Awareness, but to climate awareness.  Yes, that is an important issue too.

Over at Design-My-Handbag.com I am giving away my entry in the Crafster 350 for Climate Change contest that I entered back in August.  No, I didn’t win, but YOU can!

The official rules & entry form are on the other site, so head over and read all about it!

I recently heard about a giveaway that I think you may be interested in… and it involves you getting just a little more sleep!

Sleep Number Beds is having a sleep-in challenge – and they are giving away a sleep number bed to one lucky (and well rested!) winner! There are other prizes too, plus you get all of the benefits of getting just a little more rest.

For more info on this contest, head over to Sleep Number, or click on the big countdown button below…