A Silly Mommy of 2 Silly Girls: September 2010

Thursday, September 30

KNOW Magazine Review

Princess A and Princess G are very interested in science and just love getting mail. I know they will be so excited when our first issue of Know magazine arrives. Meanwhile I was able to download an issue and they loved it. The magazine is geared toward children 6 to 9, but Princess G is only 5 and she really likes it too. I did have to read the magazine to her unlike Princess A who can read it by herself. The issue we read had a lot on shapes and shapes you see everyday. Princess G actually had a homework assignment about shapes and the magazine fit in perfectly with the lesson. Each issue has lots of information and on many different subjects. My girls liked learning about the glass frog (you can see through the skin to the gut) and about starfish. Touching starfish at our local zoo s always a highlight so they liked learning more about them. Know magazine is full of interesting facts and each one is just a small taste so that if it sparks your child's imagination you can learn more. Both of the girls want to go to our local library and pick up some books on origami, sea creatures and Jupiter. The magazine also has a caption contest and a section where readers art can be sent in and printed in the magazine. The girl also really liked the try at home string art. We have not tried it yet but I am sure we will by the end of the weekend. If you have kids who are curious about the world around us and science or a kid you want to get interested in those things this Know magazine is great, maybe even a great gift for Christmas (when I was a kid my grandparents always liked getting us a magazine subscription and I would of loved this back then.) My girls are looking forward to their first issue and your kids probably will too.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Mad Science and received the products necessary to facilitate my review. In addition, I received a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Tuesday, September 28

Wordless Wednesday: Dressing Up and Daddy Too!

Sunday, September 26

SoyJoy Review and Contest

I tried SOYJOY a few years ago and I have to say I did not like them. They were not something I would choose to eat. Well SOYJOY has changed the recipe and the new bars taste so much better. A SOYJOY bar is a perfect snack and I have to admit sometimes I don't eat breakfast before I take the girls to school. I always go home after dropping them off but it takes at least 30 minutes to take them to the back of the school and then drive home. SOYJOY bars are perfect for a mini-breakfast until I get home. We have also been running race as a family (we ran a 5K and a 1 mile race over the weekend) and SOYJOY is a great after workout snack.

Now have you tried SOYJOY before? If you did not like them try them again. Give SOYJOY a second chance. Have you ever made a bad first impression but after a second chance, success? If you have a great story like that SOYJOY want to know. SOYJOY is hosting the Second Chances Contest on Facebook. Share your story about a time you did not make the best first impression, but later after a second chance, you turned it into a joyous ending! You might win one of three $1,000 prizes. Entries can be submitted in the form of a 30-second video or a 100-word written story. You better hurry as the submission period ends October 3.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of SOYJOY and received samples of their nutritional bars to facilitate my candid review. Mom Central also sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Giveaway: Review of Yummy Treats From in-dulj

I must admit I do have a sweet tooth and chocolate and caramel are two of my weaknesses. I was sent two products from in-dulj (the phonetic spelling of indulge.) They sell a selection of yummy cookies and popcorn. The products are made in a licenced kitchen and when you order them, not before. That means that your treats do not have preservatives, which also means you need to eat them soon. Of course the real problem is not eating them all at once. I

received the

Chocolate Indulgence Cookies and the Cravin' "Nutty" Caramel Corn. They were both so yummy! The caramel for the popcorn is even made from scratch using an old family recipe. I did share the treats with my family so I did not eat them all by myself (though I was tempted!)

in-dulj can handle special (large or small) orders and provide sweets for catered events (personal or corporate). Can you imagine these yummy treats at a baby shower or even as a wedding favor? Of course you don't need a special reason, 'just because' is always a valid reason in my book!

So are you hungry yet? Well two of you can win a treat from in-dulj! One of you will received the Chocolate Indulgence Cookies and the other Cravin' "Nutty" Caramel Corn.

Entry:
To enter please leave a comment with the name of the yummy treat you want if you win, if you would like either one please list your order of preference.

(If your email is not available on your blog please include in comment.)
US only
Ends 10/18/10 at midnight PST.
Extra Entries: (please leave a comment for each extra comment)

1. List another treat you would like from in-dulj not listed in the review
2.Follow my blog (button on side of blog)
3. Follow me @SillyMommy on Twitter (leave your twitter name in comment)

4. Follow in-dulge @induljsweets (leave your twitter handle)
4. Blog about the contest (2 entries, leave link in comment)
5. Tweet about contest (leave link in comment, may tweet once a day)
6. Enter another of my giveaways (listed on right near top, one entry per giveaway entered)

This post was written for in-dulj who provided the complimentary product for review and giveaway in exchange for my honest opinions.

Wednesday, September 22

Wordless Wednesday: Tent Picnic Dinner

Tuesday, September 21

Homelink Rocks!!

Yesterday I was taking the girls to school when part of my car broke off!! I have a built in garage door opener in the visor of my car. Which is a good thing because our two car garage only came with one opener. I went to press the button and the button broke off and the whole cover fell too! I did not want to be late so I figured out how to shut our garage and we were off to school. When I got home I called Volkswagen and asked about replacing the plastic cover thing. Guess how much? Come on guess? No, higher. $600!! Yes, $600 dollars and that does not include labor. Want to know why? I would have to replace the whole visor. They do not sell that plastic cover, only the visor. $600, I don't think so. I was just going to superglue it. Before I did that I thought I would see if anyone else sold that part. Well no one sold that part but lots of people were trying to buy it, that part must break often. A few people suggested wrecking yards so I started calling some in my area. During the phone calls I found a forum for Passat owners and someone suggested contacting Homelink, the company that makes the built in garage door openers. They don't have a number so I sent them an email. I started to get antsy when the thread in the forum (which was from 2006) mentioned that people who called usually got the part and some who emailed did not. I called the parent company in Wisconsin and they gave me the number to Homelink in Michigan. After a 15 minute phone call full of questions they are sending me the part for free! I saved $600 in 90 minutes!! Can you tell I am gloating a little, lol!

Also I found out someone else had tried to superglue the plastic parts together and then to the visor. Their whole steering column shorted out. So in addition to getting the part I did not not short out my steering column. Happy dance!!

Monday, September 20

Tackle it Tuesday: Painting the Bathroom

They are so cute with their handkerchief's.

We finally decided ti change the bathroom from yellow to blue.

The girls were in charge of this wall They lasted quite a while before they wandered off to play while mommy and daddy finished. We were able to get it done in just one morning.

Saturday, September 18

Sand in the City

We decided to take a trip down to the Olympia Farmer's Market and as luck would have it the Sand in City was going on. We used to live in Tumwater so we always attended the Sand in the City down by the waterfront. I remember taking Princess A the first year we lived in Washington. After looking at the sand sculptures we played with bubbles. No one was actually at the booth as it was off the beaten path. I remembered that it was the spot for the bubbles so we went to take a look. I was correct and for a while we had all of the bubble wands to ourselves. Soon all of our bubbles started attracting more kids. I miss having the Olympia Farmer's market so close to our house. I used to go every Thursday and knew which booth had the best produce and prices. After the bubbles we did all of the other craft booths. The girls made a sun catcher with sea glass, colored sand bracelet, the plastic vase above and stamped a Sun in the City logo on wood. We had a great time and I am so glad we happen to go that weekend. I really do miss living there!

Friday, September 17

Giveaway: Ziploc Brand Review

I have always prefered Ziploc Brand bags but I have never tried their food storage containers. In fact Ziploc bags were specificly requested for Princess G's kindergartener supply list. I was sent four different Ziploc Brand products. I was sent their sandwich bags, freezer slider bags, storage slider bags and containers. I used the sandwich bags the very next day for Princess A's school lunch. I know that the bags

are closed but Princess A can still open then with out help. The freezer quart slider bag was perfect for some fruit I was freezing. I like to freezer fresh fruit when it is in season and then use them for smoothies. I need to open and shut the bags many times and the slider makes that easy. The freezer and the storage quart bags have an expandable bottom which really makes it easier when adding wet stuff in the bags. With the expandable bottom the bag some what stood up by itself as I added the last bit. Lastly and the product I was most excited to try the containers with the Smart Snap™ Seal. As per the instructions I washed the four containers in the top shelf of my dishwasher. My husband used one the next day to bring leftovers to work for lunch. He said he heated up the food in the microwave and it worked great. I received the medium square container and they are the perfect size for my husband's lunch. I have also been using them for fresh fruit and other foods at home.

I am using the Ziploc Brand products everyday. Would you like to use them too?

Giveaway:
One winner will receive the same package I received:

Entry:
To enter please leave a comment with what the first thing you will store in the Ziploc Brand products if you win.

(If your email is not available on your blog please include in comment.)
US only
Ends 10/08/10 at midnight PST.
Extra Entries: (please leave a comment for each extra comment)

1.Follow my blog (button on side of blog)
2.Follow me @SillyMommy on Twitter (leave your twitter name in comment)
3.Blog about contest (2 entries, leave link in comment)
4.Tweet about contest (leave link in comment, may tweet once a day)
5. Enter another of my giveaways (listed on right near top, one entry per giveaway entered)

This post was written for Family Review Network & SC Johnson who provided the complimentary product for review and giveaway in exchange for my honest opinions.

Thursday, September 16

Last Visit to the Big Top Circus at the Pacfic Science Center

Princess A really wanted to walk the high wire one more time so we made another visit to the Pacific Science Center. We really are getting our money's worth with our membership! I went again and this time I took a few steps without holding onto the straps. Next they tried on costumes. Princess G was a ballerina. The last costume change which was just perfect timing since the volunteer showed up and we got in trouble for wearing shoes. Daddy had fun playing with the wheel. If the tire is spinning you can cause yourself to spin or change direction by tilting the wheel. Daddy went to get food for a picnic and we played near the fountain. During a pause between songs the girls raced to touch the fountain before it sprayed the water in the air again. Surprisingly we did not get went. After our picnic lunch we went to visit the butterflies, my favorite part. Princess G found a little friend and she stayed on her the whole time we walked through the exhibit. Princess A had two different butterflies land on her but both times the same women backed into her and scared the butterfly off. Luckily Princess A had the butterflies for good amount of time first. Here we are about to exit and Princess G still has her little friend. She said that its mouth tickled as it tried to find nectar from her red painted fingernails. Eventually the staff had to remove the butterfly so we could leave, it must of really liked Princess G.

We had another great visit and I can't wait until we go back!

Princess G was so excited when we went to open house for kindergarten. She has the same teacher her sister has so she already knows the classroom very well. Princess A was excited to see her old teacher too. Her teacher show us the picture I took of the Princess A and her teacher the first day of kindergarten two years ago. She has it on the book shelf behind her desk. She just adored Princess A and now Princess G adores her. This is where Princess G will be sitting for class. The class size is less than 20 kids so we are very grateful for that. The only disappointment is that Princess G's best friend is in another class but they will have recess together twice a week. We had to come back again in the evening for Princess A's open house, the kindergarten was in the morning. Of course it was raining just like the Princess G loves her new teacher as do I. Princess A is in the High Achievement classroom which just means there are more kids who are a advanced but not all of the kids are advanced. Her teacher will challenge them more than in other classrooms. Princess A at her desk which the teacher made sure was in the front. Princess A's eyesight is not 20/20. She can not see the board clearly from the back of the room but her eyesight is not bad enough to warrant glasses, she just needs to sit toward the front. Daddy was working late so he met us there. My husband just kept looking around say how much he loves their school and I have to agree, it is a wonderful school. The first hour was to visit classrooms and to sign-up for different activities and volunteer opportunities. The second hour was to go over the curriculum for each grade. Daddy took them home and I stayed for the second half. The girls were so excited and did not want to wait the extra day before school started!