Angry Birds Star WArs Millenium Falcon Bounce Game #spon

*We received these products from Hasbro in exchange for a review. All opinions expressed are our own.

My boys love Star Wars. Ok, Buddy loves Star Wars and if he can have anything related to it, he’s a happy camper. When we got the Hasbro Star Wars for review he was pretty stoked! Doodle got Angry Birds Jenga from his aunt from Christmas it looked like we were going to start a toy closet with all things Star Wars!

One thing about these Hasbro games is you get to put some of it together yourself. the boys had to add stickers to the Millenium Falcon and build the stand. I have this thing about putting stickers on with no bubbles and got to teach my son how to do it. lol I know, it’s one of my “things”. Ask my coworkers from Menards. =)

The boys got it together and they started playing. It’s a super easy game to play, but something I had them do in another room because quite honestly, it’s one of those things that has the ability to make you crazy if you’re concentrating. lol

So, to play the game, you try to knock down the pigs as well as land in the cockpit. The boys dig it because they keep trying to get the balls into the cockpit. They wanted to hit the enemy pigs, but for them, the high achievement was making the ball go in, in such a way it rolled into the cockpit. I love how kids give themselves their own challenges in games!

We also got a StormTrooper Pig Foam Flyer. lol The kids’ fascination with all things Angry Birds never ceases to amaze me! My Doodle loves this crazy “ball”. We’ve had to keep it up out of the puppy’s sight because she would destroy this thing. So, basically it goes with him everywhere. He’s always tossing it around. He wanted to use it for baseball practice and I nixed that idea pretty dang quickly. =)

If you see above, you can also unlock content in the Angry Birds Star Wars app. Have your kids (or you) played that game? Buddy plays it simply to hear the Angry Bird Darth Vader laughing at the end. He plays that thing over and over and over. It’s amusing for the first few minutes, but then…not so much. HA! The boys were pretty dang happy to be able to get a new bird.

Doodle got the Angry Birds Star Wars Jenga from his Aunt Liz for Christmas and I just know Buddy will want the AT-AT for his birthday next month! Our house is being overrun by Angry Birds Star Wars games! lol Neither of my boys has a problem with that. As long as they’re enjoying themselves, I’m a happy camper!

Fred’s View On Dating A Woman With Trust Issues

So Mimi and I were texting each other a few days ago and she asked if I would consider posting to her site to explain what it is like to be a guy dating a woman who has trust issues. I agreed that it would be a great idea to guest post on each other’s sites, but, honestly, I think I am getting off easy here because, although our relationship is still fairly new, I am dating an absolutely wonderful woman.

That said, no one is perfect and BOTH Mimi and myself are no different. We both have baggage. You see, both Mimi and I are, well….old. After 40+ years of life, everyone is bound to have something in their life that has changed them. And since both Mimi and I have crossed that 40-year old mark, we are no strangers to the baggage that comes with it.

But you want to know something? Baggage is simply that. Baggage. We’ve both been married before and subsequently divorced. We both have kids. We’ve both been hurt. When a person is hurt, they change, hoping never to get hurt again. Sometimes those changes are good. Sometimes they are not. But something happens every time that a person relies on God in their life, God changes the bad experiences to good ones and the good experiences become that which we are used by God to bring glory to Him.

Let me explain while sharing a few of my favorite scriptures on baggage.

Hebrews 12:1 - Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us

So when I was going through my separation and subsequent divorce, I met with a couple of counselors at my church. Once divorce was pretty much a given, my counselors changed the way they worked with me. They started focusing on what it was going to take to allow Christ to completely transform my life. Almost immediately, they helped me to begin throwing everything off that hindered my walk with Him.

You see, I may not have known it at that time, but everything I had been going through was getting me ready for the future that God has given me. The same has happened to Mimi. Everything that she went through was to get her ready for the life she is living right now.

Deuteronomy 30 - When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come on you and you take them to heart wherever the Lord your God disperses you among the nations

One thing is certain. There will be good and bad things that happen in our lives. Both Mimi and I have been hurt. As you read toward the end of Deuteronomy 30, you will find two words that encompass a life direction that will stop a person’s heart from getting so hard that it simply dies. Those two little words are, “choose life” (30:19). CHOOSE LIFE! If you make the conscious choice to LIVE then your heart will never die.

Mimi and I both have not been able to tell another person (other than our families and friends) that we love them, in an overall Christian way (of agape, phileo, and eros). Our hearts died when we were hurt by our ex-spouses. But the awesome thing about God is that He is the God of resurrection. If we make the choice to let Christ back in to our lives, then He will resurrect our hearts. Because of Christ, Mimi and I have felt the love that we never thought could come back to us.

Romans 8:37 - in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

So Mimi and I are choosing to live intentional. To keep our intentions on Christ. And as we do, we are finding that God not only brings our love back to us, but, even in the tough times, the times where I become distant or silent, the times where she reverts back to her distrust of men, it is in those times that Christ reminds us that we are MORE THAN CONQUERORS! We are going to struggle. We are going to feel the pain of our past. But God has given us a model. He has told us to shed off our troubles, He has given us life to choose, and He has made us more than conquerors.

I know this is simply a guest post, but I’d love to be able to pray for those of you who are finding similar questions in your relationships. You can simply reply on Mimi’s blog or email me at frednoble11@comcast.net.

Thor: The Dark World Trailer

I was so excited to share this trailer with Buddy! We both sat here saying, “Oh my gosh, I can’t wait to see it!” This trailer is exclusive on iTunes!

And to top off we watched the first movie last night!

 

You’re welcome!

Like THOR on Facebook: Facebook.com/Thor

Follow THOR on Twitter: Twitter.com/ThorMovies

Visit the website: www.marvel.com/thor

THOR: THE DARK WORLD releases in theaters on November 8, 2013!

Enjoying Silk Iced Latte And Good Weather #TasteSilk #spon

Both of my daughters started having some dietary issues a few years ago. They weren't sure if it was allergies, a change in diet, or what. My oldest saw a doctor a couple of times and from what I could tell, she didn't really get a lot of answers. When she started cutting out dairy I think she saw a marked improvement.

She had to go lactose free which was something very new to this dairy loving mom. We had to start searching for something she'd like that didn't taste awful.

Then, when my boys and I moved to VA, I found out that my mom was drinking Silk instead of dairy milk. I had no idea she had cut dairy milk out of her diet! You learn so much about a person when you live with them. =)

One thing I am is a fan of making my own coffees at home. First, I'd have to drive a minimum of 20 minutes to get a barista to make me a drink and second, I'd then have to pay for said drink. Yea, I'm not a fan of spending money needlessly!

This is where the Silk Iced Coffee has come in deliciously handy! First, it's dairy free so I can enjoy it with my mom if she ever wants some. Second, I can be my own barista. And third, I save money on gas and an individual drink! The last may be my favorite!

In this day and age, I'm happy to see things like "No Artificial Colors, Non-GMO Ingredients, and No High-Fructose Corn Syrup". Really, you can't beat that in a drink you thoroughly love.

And while our old home in MN is still wrestling with snow at the end of April, here in VA we've been enjoying warmer weather! With baseball games in full swing, I want my Iced Latte to take with me for the game!


This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Wordless Wednesday: Mission Trip

So, last week it was made official. I’m going on my first mission trip this summer…to Peru! I’ll be writing a blog post on it, but I’m excited and nervous all at the same time!

On my way home from MN I opened they SkyMall Magazine and this was what I turned to, when I was trying to decide if this trip was going to be a reality! Ha!

Be sure to visit Full Time Mama!

Thor: The Dark World Poster

My oldest son, Buddy and I are HUGE fans of Thor and neither of us can contain our excitement about the movie release in November…November. It’s like torture having to wait! lol

Also make sure you watch the trailer on Tuesday exclusively on iTunes Movie Trailers!

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/

Like THOR on Facebook: Facebook.com/Thor

Follow THOR on Twitter: Twitter.com/ThorMovies

THOR: THE DARK WORLD releases in theaters on November 8, 2013!

*I haven’t received anything by sharing this except the happiness I have by sharing it. You’re welcome!

Request for Kohls and Getting On My Soap Box

Let’s start off with the good, shall we?

I like Kohl’s. I’d have to say 95% of our clothing comes from there. They’re affordable, have a great selection for me and my kids and I love their Kohl’s Cash. In fact, I have $50 in Kohl’s Cash to spend this week because I’ve gone shopping there 2x this past week.

Unfortunately, when I was at our local Kohl’s a few days ago to get clothing for my boys, I ran across something I found inappropriate in the boys section:

And when I say “boys section” you can see that it’s in the size 4-7 for boys.

Two different t-shirts promoting Call of Duty.

I went back tonight to double check that I wasn’t losing my mind because I tweeted out to them asking them to pull those shirts off the floor. I know, a bit of a stretch considering all of the money they’d lose even if it were the right thing to do.

I even spoke to the cashier about it saying I knew it had nothing to do with her, but that Kohl’s had made a poor choice marketing that brand to boys.

Now, let’s be clear, the shirts are S-L (and probably XL) in the boys section, so it could go up to a 14 yr old boy size. Do you KNOW what age Call of Duty is marketed to? The audience of “M”. I’m sorry, but my 9 yo doesn’t fall into that age range. He’s a Medium and I’d probably say 7-8 year olds wear the Small.

Here are some facts about Call of Duty. It’s Rated M so that means it’s for people 17+. Here’s WHY it received that rating:

• Intense Violence
• Strong Language
• Suggestive Themes
• Use of Drugs
• Blood and Gore

Now, will a t-shirt cause violence? Obviously not. Is the shirt in and of itself “bad”? No. It can’t actually DO anything to cause someone to be violent.

What I believe it does is a number of things.

First of all, it’s another way to numb kids to things around them. Heck if they start wearing the apparel and any other gear, when they can get the game, they’ll already have in their mind a “coolness” to it.

Second, it gets their minds pointed to this game. Yes, it’s out there, it’s available everywhere, but at Kohl’s? No. The shirts are sold along with Angry Bird, Star Wars and Batman t-shirts. In a way, it lumps them together. Let’s just say for the record, Call of Duty is no Angry Birds. Not even close.

Third, I wonder who even thought that this would even be ok. Who’s choosing what goes on these shirts? Do they not have common sense to say, “Hey lets print these on MEN’S shirts not ones for boys”? How did this make it through the idea phase? Are there no parents on the team that approves the products they sell? And if there are, are they too numb to it as well?

I wonder how the people on the Board of Kohl’s Cares feels about this. On their home page it says this, “When it comes to kids, Kohl's cares.” What if, for their Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program, the winner showed up to accept their award in this t-shirt? You think they’d be impressed or do you think they’d question their own judgment on who they chose? No a t-shirt doesn’t make a person. I’m just trying to get a point across.

Oh, and this is a soap box issue for me! Always has been. It has nothing to do with what’s happened this past week. Ask my daughter who’s 21. She’ll tell you this kind of stuff being fed to our kids as “ok” is something I’m 100% against.

I’m only one mom. I can’t force Kohl’s to take a double take at what they’ve done and admit they’ve made a poor choice, but what I can do is ask parents NOT to buy those tshirts. Get Lego Ninjago, Angry Birds, etc but not Call of Duty. Please don’t get your young son thinking that Call of Duty is a game he should be interested in. Not now. Not at this age. Please?

I will now step off my box. At least until I get upset again.

Babyliss Tourmaline Curling Iron #spon

When you see me, you’ll typically see me with my hair curled. Not in ringlets, although I’d love them! My hair is stick straight and thin. Getting a curl to stay in my hair is pretty close to impossible, but what I usually want is to just round my hair. lol Does that even make sense?

My curling irons have usually been 1 1/2” barrels because it gives me a tighter curl. The only problem with that is sometimes the curl is more than any other part on my hair. I had always wanted a larger barrel curling iron, I just felt like it was an expense I couldn’t justify.

When I had the chance to review this Babyliss Tourmaline curling iron, I was pretty thrilled. I realize sometimes the expense of a product ends up paying for itself in more way than one.

The temperature guide pops out and pops in to adjust the temperature. That way while you’re doing your hair it doesn’t accidentally move on it’s own or by swiping your finger by it as you’re doing your hair.

The only issue I had while doing my hair was that sometimes when I held the curling iron a certain way in my hand, I’d accidentally turn it off because of where the on/off button is located.

First, let me say, for the record, since I’ve started using this curling iron, I haven’t gotten back to my old curling iron. The curls this gives me are soft and round. I’ve never had the chance to have gentle curls. lol It’s always been sort of a race to curl my hair long enough to give it the curl, but not so long that it becomes a ring.

Halfway through the process you can see the difference from one side to the other. And that’s exactly the look I’m always going for. If my hair is going to be straight, then I want to use my straightener and for it to look nice and smooth, but the “straight, blah” look is not what I’m ever going for. I’d have to say 95% of the time, I like a curl or a wave of some sort.

My next goal is to find product that will help keep these waves/curls in my hair. I’ve tried different mousse and hair spray, but so far, by the end of the day…lol sometimes by the time I leave the bathroom, my hair has lost much of the curl. I just got my hair cut while in MN and my hair has kept the curl all day! Obviously that matters as well!

It all comes together! =) And I know, I have ZERO make-up on, but meh, such is life. lol

How many curling irons do you have? Are they different sizes? What do you do keep the curl in your hair all day?

h.h. gregg & Frigidaire’s “100 Ways To Organize” Sweepstakes #spon

*I participated in a campaign for Mom Central Consulting on behalf of h.h. gregg. I received a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

Looking at houses this past weekend, I realized that starting over in a new home will probably mean some improvements will be needed…at least based on what I could ever afford. As I walked through the homes, my mind started wandering to all of the fun I could have if I had an unlimited budget! Now that I’m in Virginia, I could actually shop at h.h. gregg and my parent like shopping there.

Check out this one that I found that's totally out of my price range, but I like it nevertheless!

Source: homes.com via Mimi on Pinterest

What’s awesome is, they have a sweepstakes going now through April 27th and they’re giving away 4 Frigidaire French-Door Refrigerators! Woot! Three of the winners will be selected through the register-to-win sweepstakes, and one winner will be selected through the ‘100 Ways to Organize’ game on Facebook, iPhone and Android. You can bet your sweet bippy that I’ll be entering to win and I hope you will, too!

Have you done any organizing in your home recently?

Wordless Wednesday: Tombstones and Spring

One of my favorite things is all of the “old” stuff in Virginia There are so many signs of history here, you can’t miss them. I found a little cemetery driving around town the other day. Amazing to see tombstones from the 1700s!

On top of that, everything is blooming!



Please be sure to visit Alesha at Full Time Mama!

Cleaning With Formula 409: Time to Start Doing My Share & Give Away #sprayeverydrop

So, I kind of get off a bit easy around my house. Living with my parents now is much different than when I was a kid. They’re in a better place financially and they live in the nicest house they’ve ever owned. That being said, my mom has a gal who comes to clean every two weeks. That means we just do maintenance around the house.

A gal could get used to this.

My mom used to tell me I needed to marry a rich man because he’d have to give me a maid. I have an even better solution…move back home with the ‘rents! =)

Ok, all kidding aside, I’m not a fan of the daily tasks of cleaning counters, bathrooms, etc. One of the irritating aspects of cleaning is when you’re doing a job and you get to the end of the bottle, but you can’t spray any more out because the tube inside doesn’t suck it up for some goofy reason!

You know what I’m talking about, right? Do you do what I do and turn the bottle every single direction imaginable to see if you can get the last vestiges of cleaner out? And then what do you (well, I) do? End up dumping it out because you need to finish what you’ve started.

The people at Clorox have done us all a favor and created the Clorox Smart Tube Technology and since I have an awesome partnership with TheMotherhood, I was able to try them out for review! They’ve got this awesome tube that extends down the side/front of the bottle, when you get to the very end, it just keeps sucking up the juice that sits down there.

Now, since I don’t have to clean so much, it would’ve taken me ages to get to the bottom of this Formula 409 bottle. Problem solved, I decided to empty the bottle out until there was just a tiny bit left to give this fandangled idea a workout. Yes, I’m serious when I do these reviews!

I sprayed and sprayed (had to dump out more) and finally got to the end. I kid you not, I sprayed until there was only maybe residue left in the bottle. I shook it around and didn’t hear anything sloshing inside! It truly used the last drop of cleaner from the bottle! It does what it says it’ll do! Gotta love that!

I’ve used Formula 409 since I was a kid because it’s what my mom always used for her cleaning. Now I’ll get to use it to the very last drop!

Clorox just launched a new coupon on their SprayEveryDrop.com site. When you watch the quick video about the spray bottle's "makeover" you get a $1 coupon. If you share the video on Facebook or Twitter, you get a $1.50 coupon. How cool is that?! I’m all for saving more money. =)

Here’s a list of all of the products currently using the Smart Tube Technology:

· Clorox^® Clean-Up^®
· Clorox^® Disinfecting Bathroom Cleaner
· Clorox^® Disinfecting Bleach Foamer
· Clorox^® Bleach Gel
· Clorox^® Kitchen
· Formula 409^® (Original, Lemon, Stone & Steel, Glass & Surface, Carpet/Pet)
· Tilex^® (Bathroom Cleaner, Mold & Mildew Remover, Mildew Root Penetrator™)
· Clorox^® Antihongos
· Clorox^® Desengrasantes

For more information and to see SMART TUBE^® TECHNOLOGY in action, visit www.sprayeverydrop.com. Visit www.Clorox.com, log on to www.Facebook.com/Clorox, or follow @Clorox to receive the latest product news, tips, offers and more.

Guess what? One winner will receive 5 coupons for freed products! Be sure to enter to win!

Bejeweled by Hasbro Give Away

One of our favorite apps to play is Bejeweled. We actually liked it before it was an app and we could just play it online. My boys love it! When I found out Hasbro had a new game that the family could play together, I definitely threw my name into the hat to do a review!

Hasbro took the PopCap’s digital game and made it so the family could play the real game! It comes with 91 gems that slide just like they do in the digital version, although you’re the one sliding the pieces. =)

The game pieces will remind you of the digital game you’re used to. When we set the game up and started playing, we realized that we weren’t sure of one of the rules, namely when a person’s turn is done. lol The rules say if you see another match you go again. But do you go once more only or keep going until you don’t find any more matches?

We tried going until you don’t find any more matches and that became a game of Solitaire basically. So, we decided that each person could go twice. their first match and then if they found another one that was their last turn and it became the next player’s turn.


It was a fun game! I can see this being educational with younger kids, teaching them to match colors and to count, but for my boys and myself, we had to figure out how to get the most patterns at once.
Now’s your chance to win this family game from Hasbro!

*We were provided this game for review purposes. The opinions expressed are my own.

Wordless Wednesday: Becoming An Elder

Sunday was such a good and blessed day! Fred became an elder at his church. His parents, his kids, my boys and I were all there to watch him. I can’t tell you how sweet of a day it was!

Be sure to visit Full Time Mama because she always has great WW pics!

Making A Meal For Me! Southwestern Chicken Salad #InspireMyDinner

As a single mom, my boys aren’t always so thrilled with the what I want to make and seriously, I don’t always want to eat macaroni and cheese, hotdogs or chicken nuggets.

Scratch that, I rarely want to eat those.

For the longest time I just made things that were easy and something they wouldn’t complain about, but I’d try something every once in a while. Gee that was always fun. Buddy learned to not complain, but give me his feedback. Doodle, yea, he still gags at the table. Nice, right? I won’t take that personal or anything.

Lately I’ve been on a salad kick! I’ve been eating them about 3x a week and usually it’s prepackaged. Not a big deal, but I’m really wanting to cut out as much prepackaged food as possible. Trying to eat healthier and with fresher foods is a goal of mine this year!

We actually eat chicken quite a bit, but with these new flavored chickens, our/my dinners will be much easier to make. I can make something fun for myself or make a healthy meal for all of us!

I’ve also been loving Southwestern flavored food. We’ve been eating homemade salsa, nachos and now…I have a new Tyson Southwestern Chicken Salad! Nothing like healthy chicken recipes!

My mom was home the other day and I started cooking a single chicken breast since no one else was hungry. I opened the brand new bag of Tyson Southwest Pepper Trio Seasoned Chicken and could smell the seasoning! I knew I scored a goal before I even started cooking!

Once I had the chicken breast cooking, my mom literally came out of the laundry room saying how good the house smelled! I definitely agreed! While the chicken was browning, I got all of my other ingredients washed and ready to add.


Tonight, I’m making another chicken dinner, which I’ll be sharing on here a little later, hopefully tonight! When we were out to dinner last night, Fred was going to order a grilled bbq chicken with smokey apple gouda cheese with a whole wheat bun, avocado, tomato and romaine lettuc. I thought that would taste fantastic as a sandwich!

Once I get dinner done, I’ll share my newest meal with you too! Yay!

Be sure to check out my entire shopping and cooking experience on Google +! The product is available at Walmart in the frozen food section.

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias®  and Tyson Foods #cbias #SocialFabric. All opinions are my own!

Earth Day Unstitched Utilities Give Away

I’m so excited to be partnering with all of these bloggers for the Earth Day Giveaway!

Welcome to The Earth Day Giveaway Event hosted by Andersons Angels and Joy of Momma Joyner. This Event features a little bit of everything to help you celebrate Earth Day anytime! Each blog has gathered up a unique Earth Day Prize Package of $25 or more so be sure to visit each blog from the linky below and enter for your chance to win some really amazing prizes! This event will end on April 20th at 11:59pm EST.

What you’ll be winning from me is a pair of Unstitched Utilities Cosmo Low shoes! They’re eco and vegan friendly!

Be sure to hop along through each of the blogs to be entered to win their giveaways as well!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I was provided a pair of Unstitched Utilities for review. Andersons Angels, and The Earth Day bloggers are not responsible for sponsors that fail to fulfill their prizes

Unstitched Utilities Cosmo Low Earth Day Give Away

I seem to have quite the fetish for shoes. I didn’t realize I had it, but it’s becoming very clear to me that I do. Not only do I have a thing for shoes, I have a thing for this planet. I really do love it. It’s evidence of God’s handiwork. We were put here to take care of it!

Lately I’ve been thinking so much about how we’re living our lives. It’s not very eco-friendly, but it has gotten better over the years. I’ve been putting a lot of thought into the lack of healthy living I’ve been doing.

One thing I’ve found in my search is that by purchasing eco friendly products, we’re making a difference. That’s where Unstitched Utilities comes in! I stumbled upon them last month and aside from how cute their shoes are, what drew me in was that they’re eco friendly and and vegan friendly. That matters a ton, especially since my 2nd daughter is living a vegan lifestyle. I try to do what I can to respect that!

So, about these shoes, they’re made out of TYVEK® Material. When I saw them for the first time I thought they looked like they were made out of paper. It’s because they’re unpressed. They’re really crinkly looking. The Cosmo Low sneakers are very lightweight. I’m not one to wear shoes around the house, but truly, I couldn’t take them off. They were that comfortable!

I didn’t feel like I was clomping around in some heavy shoes. They fit extremely well and I really liked the elastic inside the shoe to keep it snug around your foot. They’re a really cute, vibrant color!

And yes, I may have already found the next pair I’ll purchase on my own (shush up, no comments)! I think the Fast Lane design in LIMESTONE/CREAMSICLE are what I’ll get! Cute, right?!

I also love the Next Day Low in the camo for my oldest son! He would seriously go nuts over them. I was also telling Fred that now, since he’s going to be an elder at church he needs a couple of good pairs of shoes. The Rafter Lows would look so great with him dressed up for church!


Here’s a bit about how Unstitched Utilities describes their shoes:
“Fashioned from repurposed and recyclable materials, which are environmentally and vegan friendly, this line of sustainable forward-thinking shoes provide the consumer with a hip and trendy alternative to the usual standbys.”

I couldn’t agree more! They’re very trendy and extremely comfortable!
Now…woo hoo…you have the opportunity to win a pair of Cosmo Low shoes!
Go to my Earth Day Giveaway page to win them!