Yoplait Gift Bag Winners

Looks like there weren't many takers on the yogurt giveaway. Thanks to those who entered. Winners were chosen by using www.random.org. I have sent an email and/or left a comment on your blog if you are a winner. Please respond back to me with your mailing information. Thanks again and congratulations to the winners!

Winners:

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

5
Timestamp: 2009-02-27 11:51:56 UTC

Steph
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Here are your random numbers:

3
Timestamp: 2009-02-27 11:52:43 UTC

Nicole I.
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Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

6
Timestamp: 2009-02-27 11:53:19 UTC

Black Eyed Susans Kitchen

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Aloha Friday - Girl Scout Cookies

It's Girl Scout Cookie time! We bought 13 boxes this year. YIKES! They are just so good, and we are a family of 6. So, 13 boxes disappear in no time. Our favorites are the Thin Mints and Tagalongs. For my Aloha Friday question:

Do you buy Girl Scout Cookies?

If so, what's your favorite? How many boxes do you usually buy?


For more Aloha Friday, visit Kailani, at An Island Life, by clicking here.

My Top 5 Favorite Posts

This is my post for entry into a fun contest going on over at Barking Mad. I have to create a post sharing links to my top 5 favorite posts from my own blog. It's just a way to let new readers and/or visitors learn a little more about me and my blog. Cool idea, right? And, what's even cooler? She's giving away a $250 Target gift card to a lucky winner. What an awesome prize!

It's hard to "toot my own horn" so to speak, but, here goes. These are my top 5 favorite blog posts:

1. What do I see - my thoughts on our only daughter becoming a teenager

2. I'm a highly accomplished female business executive...sort of - my attempt to explain why I am worthy of this title

3. My "Top 10 Tear-Jerker Movies" - I'm a huge movie fanatic; I love movies of almost all genres, but, especially tear-jerkers. This post has brought many, many visitors to my blog who were searching for "tear-jerker movies".

4. Let your face light up! - One little question I heard on tv really made me think. I want my kids to know and see that they make "my face light up."

5. Conversations with a 7 yr. old and Sleepy Dreamer - Okay, I guess it was a tie between these two. Kids can come up with the funniest, quirkiest things to say. Both of these posts are about just that.

If this is your first time at my blog, thanks for visiting. If you are a regular, thanks for coming back. Be sure and go over to Barking Mad to say hello and check out all the details of her contest.

What's On Your Nightstand?

*Be sure and go here to enter my Yoplait Gift Bag Giveaway*




I haven't been able to spend much time reading, so, last month, I had a short list of "to be read" books. Out of my list of three books, I completed only one. But, I did end up reading another book at the last minute. Here's what I read in February:

Cupid and Diana - Quick and easy read, I enjoyed it, but, wouldn't say it was great.

The Lost Duke of Wyndham - I loved this one! It's the same story as told in Julia Quinn's other book "Mr. Cavendish, I Presume", only it's told from another perspective. I actually went back and read the "Mr. Cavendish" book again, at the same time as this. It was fun to read each book together, chapter by chapter, getting the same story but told from different characters' point of views.

Here's what I hope to read now-March (another short list):

The Flat Belly Diet Book - I just started this one last night. Sounds very interesting and I think I might give this diet a try.

The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever - I've loved the other two Julia Quinn books that I've read, so I'm looking forward to this one (although it did not get very good reviews on Amazon)

Coraline - this movie is now out in 3D, would love to read it with the kids and then go see it at the theater.

How about you? What are you reading right now? Click here to check out more "What's On Your Nightstand" at 5 Minutes for Mom.

Giveaway - Yoplait Yogurt

Check out Yoplait's Yo-Plus yogurt for digestive health. Here's what their website has to say:

"With just one cup of Yo-Plus™ yogurt, you'll treat your body to our unique Optibalance™ blend of both probiotics and prebiotics — including three grams of fiber — to help your digestive system keep the balance nature intended."

Click here to learn more and also get a $1.00 off coupon for Yoplait yogurt.

I've tried the cherry flavor and it is delicious. At 110 calories and 1.5 grams of total fat, it's a great healthy snack choice.

And, Yoplait has generously offered three Yo-Plus gift bags to give away to my readers. Each Yo-Plus gift bag includes a coupon for a free 4-pack of Yo-Plus yogurt, Yoplait cooler tote bag, water bottle and a nutrition journal –
great for keeping track of your health goals and eating habits. It's really a nice prize pack!


To enter the giveaway:

1. Visit the Yoplait website. Then come back here and leave a comment telling me what flavor of yogurt you would like to try. (MANDATORY)

To earn extra entries, you may do any or all of the following (leave a seperate comment here for any of these that you do):

2. Go to my sidebar and follow me through blogger

3. Add my button to your blog (you can find it on my sidebar)

4. Follow me on twitter and tweet about this giveaway (you can find my twitter link on my sidebar)

5. Post about this giveaway on your blog, with links to me and yoplait.com

Three winners will be chosen at random on Friday February 27, 2009.
US entrants only, please.

Movie Trailer Tuesday - Owl and the Sparrow

This looks like a great film. I think it's only playing in select cities, so, I'll be waiting for this one to come out on DVD.

Fun Find

I really have no need for a mini-fridge, but, this is so cute! Surely I could find someplace to put it.

Haier Passion Pink Color Cube Mini Refrigerator and Freezer - available at Walmart.com

Keurig Platinum Coffeemaker Giveaway

Check out Coupon Princess - great site and she's giving away a Keurig Platinum Brewer Single Cup Coffeemaker. Click here for all the details. Giveaway ends March 6, 2009.

Aloha Friday - Love Your Pet Day!

Today is "Love Your Pet Day" - a day for all pet-lovers to celebrate and share some love with their little furry friends (or fur less, if they happen to have one of those weird hairless animals). Anyway, in honor of this day, make sure and pamper your pet with a special treat or just spend some extra time together. And, if you are not a pet owner, but, thinking of becoming one, check out http://www.petfinder.com/. This is a wonderful site that lets you search your area for adoptable pets that would love to find new homes.

If you are a dog-lover, like me, check out this site for the most adorable puppy pics ever! They are so sweet, you will surely have a big smile on your face after browsing through these pictures.

Our dog is a 4-yr. old airedale terrier, named Emma. She is such a wonderful pet. She lives inside with us and is quite spoiled. While she loves to play and is great with our kids, she can also be a big lazy-bones. When she needs to go out to potty, she rings a little bell that we have hanging on our back door. And, for goodness sakes, if it is cold or rainy outside, she may just refuse to even go, she really can't stand to get her feet wet, you know. She gives me a huge sense of security because she will alert us anytime someone pulls in the driveway or comes to the door - I think she would surely scare off anyone who was here for no good. She loves to go with me in the morning to wake up my kids for school and she gets very excited when she hears the school bus in the afternoon. We are so lucky to have her!

For my Aloha Friday question:

Are you a pet-owner?

If so, what kind of animal do you have? What is his/her name?

For more Aloha Friday, click here.

What do I see?

I think it's happening. Others told me it would. I laughed and said "no, that's a long way off." I'm talking about the transformation that has suddenly taken place in our twelve-year old daughter. Our little girl. She is our only daughter. A sister to three brothers. She is smart, talented, creative, beautiful, and just plain good. Always has been. It seems like overnight, she has become a new person. She is still all of those things I just described to you. But, now, she's growing up. When I look at her, I see her pretty face looking back at me. A face that has started to wear mascara. And, sometimes even trying to sneak on a little eyeliner. Even though we've told her "not yet" on that. I see a smiling face, wearing silver braces. Her hand, automatically in place to cover those braces when she laughs. I notice the way she spends a lot more time standing in front of the mirror in the mornings, when I think she should already be at the door watching for the bus. I am impressed at the precise skill she has mastered using a flat iron. Turning her blonde wavy hair into super-straight, shiny golden tresses. I see her, as she tells me she wants to put some color in her hair. Dark brown. Or maybe even blue or pink. And, I tell her of all the women who pay top dollars to get gorgeous blonde hair like hers. To this, I see a little bit of the eye rolling. I see her messy room with clothes laying everywhere. I hear her complaining that she needs some new jeans. And, I see her long legs and how cute she looks, wearing those Aeropostale jeans that she loves. I see her with her girlfriends, giggling and talking about how cute Jasper Cullen is. I also see her holding her little pink cell phone. It seems to be permanently attached to her hands, fingers constantly busy, texting important messages to everyone she knows. Yes, I think it's happening. Our daughter is turning into a teenager. You know what? I like what I see!

Movie Trailer Tuesday - Zelary

Foreign films - most people either love 'em or hate 'em. I love them. This is one of my favorites....



How about you? Do you like foreign films? Do you have a favorite? Or, do subtitles drive you crazy?

As Seen on TV

It's official. My kids have been watching too much tv. Twice today, I've been told by two of my sons, that I need a product they "saw on tv". I was watering the tree in our dining room, when my youngest (age 8) said, "Mom, you really need an aqua globe"


Then, as I was dicing potatoes for dinner, my middle son (age 10) said, "you need one of those choppers on tv, you know the one from the Sham-Wow guy"


Alrighty then!

Pesky Bug!

We have a nasty stomach bug running amuck in our household. First my youngest son had it, then me (not to sound like a drama queen, but, I had it the worst), then my middle son, now my daughter. UGH! It only lasts about 8-1o hours, but, that is 8-10 hours too much for me. I have been scrubbing bathrooms, spraying Lysol on everything in site, wiping down everything with Clorox wipes, acting like a drill Sergeant instructing everyone to wash their hands over and over - and, still, that darn thing keeps hanging around. UGH! At least the kiddos are out of school today for President's Day, giving them another day to recoup. Now, I'm off to tackle the 210 loads of laundry that have piled up over the last couple days. Wish me luck.

Aloha Friday - Superstitions

Today is Friday the 13th. A dreaded day, for those who are superstitious. Here's what wikipedia says about Friday the 13th:

One theory states that it is a modern amalgamation of two older superstitions: that thirteen is an unlucky number and that Friday is an unlucky day.

In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve signs of the zodiac, twelve hours of the clock, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve apostles of Jesus, twelve gods of Olympus, etc., whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular, transgressing this completeness. There is also a superstition, thought by some to derive from the Last Supper or a Norse myth, that having thirteen people seated at a table will result in the death of one of the diners

Friday has been considered an unlucky day at least since the 14th century's The Canterbury Tales, and many other professions have regarded Friday as an unlucky day to undertake journeys or begin new projects. Black Friday has been associated with stock market crashes and other disasters since the 1800s. It has also been suggested that Friday was the day that Jesus was crucified.

I think sometimes I am a superstitious person. A little bit, anyway. But, the whole "Friday the 13th" thing never really bothered me. Here's a list of some other superstitions that I found while looking around urbanlegendsonline.com - some very common, others, I've never heard of:

*Step on a crack, break your mother's back = don't step on a crack in the sidewalk

*Finding a four-leaf-clover is good luck

*A cricket in the house brings good luck

*It is good luck to find a ladybug on you

*Walking under a ladder is bad luck

*See a penny pick it up, all day long you'll have good luck

*It's good luck to see three butterflies together

*Before using a bat for the first time, spit on it to make it lucky

*If you sweep trash out your door after dark, that will bring a strange visitor

*It is bad luck to put a hat on a bed

For my Aloha Friday question:

Are you superstitious?

Do you do anything differently on Friday the 13th?

What's another superstition that you've heard of?

If you would like to play along and/or check out more Aloha Friday, click here. Thanks to Kailani, from An Island Life, for being our host.

Thursday Thirteen - My Top 13 Chick Flicks

From Dictionary.com:

Main Entry: chick flick

Part of Speech: n

Definition: a movie intended for and marketed to females, with themes, characters, or events more likely to appeal to women than men; also called chick's flick

Usage: slang


Today, I'll be listing 13 of my favorite chick flicks. I have to tell you, it's very hard to narrow it down to only 13, because chick flicks happen to be one of my favorite types of film. I could probably come up with a list of 100 or more. But, for the sake of the "Thursday Thirteen", here goes:

(listed in no particular order)

1. Under The Tuscan Sun

2. Serendipity

3. One Fine Day

4. The Devil Wears Prada

5. Bridget Jones Diary

6. Sweet Home Alabama

7. The Holiday

8. French Kiss

9. While You Were Sleeping

10. Love Actually

11. Sabrina

12. 27 Dresses

13. Baby Boom

What's your favorite chick flick? If you want to see more Thursday Thirteen, click here.

Wordless Wednesday - Haircut

Our third-born child -- good looking, guitar-playing boy, tender-hearted, adores babies, can be moody, rocks the long hair skater-boy look, the girls love him...and he all of a sudden decided last night he wanted his hair cut off. Don't tell him, but, I almost secretly cried.

For more Wordless Wednesday, click here

Go Enter this Giveaway

My good bloggy friend, Daniela, is doing a giveaway. You could win a $25 gift certificate to either Starbucks, Target, Bed Bath and Beyond, or Amazon. Now, wouldn't that be nice. Go. Enter now. And, tell her I sent ya. And, while you're there, read about her sweet little dog, Logan, and send some prayers their way.


~Kari

Movie Trailer Tuesday

I like scary movies! Not the slasher-type, though. Today's movie trailer is an older movie, from the 1970's. I saw it for the first time in 1987. It's funny that I remember, so clearly, the night that I first watched it. I had just started dating my now-husband. We were in high school - I was a junior, he was a senior. He had brought me home and dropped me off after our first (or maybe second) date. I could still smell his polo cologne on my sweater, where he had hugged and kissed me goodnight. I turned on the television, and this movie was on. It's a little cheesy, but, hey, it's from the 70's. It still scared the you-know-what out of me.



Do you like scary movies? What's your favorite or most scary?

Home Office Inspiration Part Deux - Fun with Polyvore

Home Office Inspiration - by alas3lads on Polyvore.com

Home Office Inspiration

Our basement is unfinished, with the exception of one room - my oldest son's bedroom. Eventually, we hope to have a large family room/recreation area, an entry-way/foyer area, a bathroom, a small workout room, and a home office/craft room. I love to browse around on the internet for design and decorating ideas. Even though it will be a while before we complete the basement, I like to keep a folder of inspirational pictures that I've come across. We are doing all of the work ourselves, a little at a time, as money allows. Here are a few of my favorite home office designs that I wanted to share:


Right now, I'm leaning toward using dark pink in our home office. I'm just crazy about the colors and wallpaper in this room. These little pink-cushioned stools are calling my name!
~photo from Country Living Jan.2009

Although we won't be able to have a brick wall in our basement, I still love this design. It's so cool and I like the contrast of the white furniture pieces with the mixed prints of the rug, stool, and window treatments. And, the huge inspiration board/bulletin board is really an idea I want to use.
~photo from At Home with Chris Madden

This is one of my favorites. It's simple, bright, and cheery. And, again, I love the pink wallpaper. We haven't used wallpaper in years, it's such a hassle to remove and I thought that it was not considered the "in" thing to do anymore. But, it seems that I'm seeing wallpaper more and more these days. I will consider it for our office, at least maybe on one wall.
~photo from http://www.housetohome.co.uk/

I like the green walls and the cute little chair here. And, the cabinetry is great. My husband is a wonderful carpenter, so we could definitely incorporate some of this into our own home office.
~photo from http://www.unplggd.com/

Another simple little design - I love the pale wood floors with the dark navy colored walls.
~photo by http://www.housetohome.co.uk/

Another favorite! This is just so pretty and elegant. I love the black desk and the white chair (although I'm not sure if a white chair would be very practical for us). And, the chandelier is gorgeous!
~photo from http://www.pointclickhome.com/

Pinching Pennies

Times are tough around here. Everyone is looking for ways to save money. I'm not an Oprah fan. At all. But, I did have to tune in the other day when she had "America's thriftiest family" on her show. After watching, I was inspired to try and save a few dollars on some of our monthly expenses. Now, if anyone were to go over our monthly expenditures, I know they would tell us to get rid of a lot of non-necessities. But, who am I kidding. We are not going to get rid of certain perks that we enjoy, such as our premium movie channel package or our Netflix subscription (we rarely go out, so tv is our entertainment). But, I did do a few simple things to try and reduce the money going out each month. Let's see how I did:

*Changed our Netflix subscription to a lesser plan: one-at-time rental vs. two-at-a-time. Savings = $5 per month

*Changed our newspaper subscription from daily to weekends only. Savings = $8.50 per month

*Dropped one cell phone line from our family plan; it was not being used because my son got a prepaid phone instead. Savings = $10 per month

*My youngest son's medication is now available in generic form. Savings = $10 per month

*I have vowed to stop buying magazines; magazines are a real problem for me, I just can't seem to pass them up. Savings = approx. $10 per month

*I'm still looking into this one, but, we may be able to save some money if we switch from satellite to cable. Cable offers a bundling package that would put together our tv, phone, and internet. Possible savings = approx. $30 per month

So, those few simple things will save us just over $70 per month. It may not sound like much, but, every little thing adds up. That's an extra $70 to put toward something else - gas, groceries, or to pay on other bills. Another guest on Oprah that day was Stephanie Nelson, from CouponMom.com. I'm also going to check out her site and make a real effort to spend less on groceries each month. Planning weekly menus based on what's on sale that week, always making a shopping list, and using coupons are some strategies that should help.

How about you? Are you doing anything that is helping you to trim your monthly budget? Share your tips....

Aloha Friday - Movie and a Cocktail

It's Aloha Friday! And, tonight, my friend and I are going out for a cocktail and to see a movie. We try to make this a monthly outing. But, with seven kids between us, things don't always work out. We haven't been for a few months. Needless to say, we are both looking forward to a little "me" time away from the families. We will be seeing New in Town, starring Renee Zellweger and Harry Connick Jr.(love him!) It looks like a typical chick-flick - cute, romantic, and fun! But, first we will be stopping off for an appetizer and cocktail. I will probably order a frozen strawberry margarita. I love a good fruity-frozen cocktail. YUM!

What about you? If you were going with us tonight, what cocktail would you order? (Or, if you prefer the non-alcoholic route, what appetizer would you order?)

After posting your answer here, be sure to head over to An Island Life for more Aloha Friday. Thanks, as always, to Kailani for hosting!

~Kari

Giveaway at Mommy Daddy Blog

Go check out this fantastic website and enter their giveaway.

Mommy Daddy Blog is giving away something you’d love to touch; a shiny spankin’ new 2nd Gen 8GB iPod Touch MP3 player and a $10 iTunes gift card! Click here to enter this sweet giveaway!

Movie Trailer Tuesday

Today, I have trailers from two of my all-time favorite movies. These are movies that I could watch again and again. Both are available on Netflix. Check them out....


The Claim - (Rated R) Heartbreaking story, it's a version of Thomas Hardy's 'The Mayor of Casterbridge', but set in the 1800's gold-rush era California; a wonderful cast, including Nastassja Kinski, Sarah Polley, Milla Jovovich, and Wes Bentley



Me Without You - (Rated R) Follows the ups and downs of two London best friends through the 1970's-1980's

Monday Update

• Today is the 5th day in a row that school has been cancelled due to snow/power outages. Needless to say, we are going a bit stir crazy around here (especially me). We were lucky that our power was only out for about 14 hours last Wednesday. Otherwise, we've had no problems.
• Two of my sons have been sick during this whole little school break. Poor Connor literally laid on the couch for four days straight. He has finally perked up a bit today.
• I woke up yesterday with aches, a sore throat, and possibly 'pink eye'. I've never had pink eye so I'm not sure. But, my eye is very red and has a little bit of gunk in it (sorry, was that TMI? - let's move on)
• I didn't watch the Superbowl or even one single Superbowl commercial. I did watch The Chronicles of Narnia for the first time - loved it.
• My house is a mess. Lots of piles of boots, gloves, caps, etc. and tracking in and out of snow and water.
• While our power was out, we removed all food from our refrigerator/freezer and stored it elsewhere. As soon as the power was restored, I totally scrubbed my fridge from top to bottom before putting the food back. That was the only positive thing about losing power.
• And, yet again, I'm ashamed to say I was not prepared. I did have working flashlights, but, no battery-operated radio. I felt like I was cut off from the world. I'm one of those people who constantly needs to know what's happening in the news.
• Looking forward to tonight - it's a good t.v. night! The Bachelor, Gossip Girl, 24, and Medium. Oh, and I'm so happy that Big Love is finally back on HBO on Sunday nights. It's pretty good this time.
• I actually took a two-hour nap this afternoon - something I NEVER do and it was WONDERFUL!
• Come back tomorrow for 'Movie Trailer Tuesday'. I'll have trailers up from a couple of my all-time favorite movies that you can see on DVD.