Disclosure: I received a product sample; this post contains my affiliate link. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

Welcome to the Holiday Sweepstakes Event hosted by Makobi Scribe.   The grand prize is sponsored by Nature’s Sleep.   My son is in Pre-K and there’s always some type of holiday shirt day.  While those shirts get worn once and passed down to a friend afterwards, this year I decided to go with something really special.  At one of my favorite kids’ online stores, Petite Lemon, they had a cute reindeer shirt that I just couldn’t resist.  It only took seconds to get this top ordered—I snapped a quick photo and emailed it for customization of the tee.  Petite Lemon did all the magic.  And Voila!  This is what we got just a couple of days later:

I just can’t tell you how much I adore this shirt. It warms my heart every time I look at it. It completely embodies my son’s personality: bright, happy, and funny. Somehow Petite Lemon even kept that sparkle in his eyes when creating this cute top. Every single person who has seen this shirt just smiles and chuckles.  We’ve had several people ask where we got it and I LOVE telling them about Petite Lemon.  This will be a shirt that we’ll save forever.  Petite Lemon has so many options for personalized tshirts for boys and girls. You can also find growth charts and posters.  They also have a lot of great freebies available on their site, such as the birthday interview printable and thank you cards you can download.  The new mom in your life would definitely love a Petite Lemon gift card for Christmas this year!

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Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

When you’re a small business owner, you might wear the hats of a hydra.  You’re often the jack of all trades, running the show from every angle.  It’s impossible to cover all the bases while you’re also trying to navigate the waters of Customer Relationship Management.  So why not let Insightly help you do some of that number crunching?   Insightly can help you be more productive whether you’re working a trade show (like this Groovy Lights success story) or showing up to your online store on a daily basis. A few years ago I ran an online store for my Arbonne consultant sales. Trying to keep up with my contacts, track new leads, and monitor sales performance was keeping me up until the wee hours of the night. Considering that I also had a full-time job as a teacher at the time, it’s a wonder that I’m here to tell the tale. Having Insightly on board would have certainly given me that extra hand I so needed for project management.  Insightly can be used in any field, from real estate to education.  They even offer a substantial discount for non-profit organizations.  Since Insightly allows multiple users per plan, it facilitates delegation of responsibility to your sales team.  Additionally, there are webinars available to help you learn the ropes. Work smarter – not harder!  [Read more…]

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book to review; the post contains affiliate links. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

When I received Seasons of the Heart, I immediately thought of my grandmother. From the cover of the book to the inset text “A Year of Devotions from One Generation of Women to Another,” all of it just seemed a bit nostalgic. This is a serious type of devotional, too. The dictation is somewhat reminiscent of the King James Bible to me. For some people, it might be just the right type of devotional. I did like certain features of this book. For one thing, most of the entries are one-page in length. Some devotionals have chapters to read each day and that isn’t going to happen on my schedule, unfortunately. That’s a recipe for quitting the devotional in a week. This one has potential to be the one that stays on my nightstand. I enjoyed the inclusion of poetry throughout the book. At the end, there’s a helpful scriptural index.  Short biographies for each of the women whose thoughts were included in this book. [Read more…]

Disclosure: I received a gift code for my post. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

Welcome to the Fur Babies giveaway hop.  We’re thankful for them, aren’t we?  These sweet creatures are devoted and loving from sunup to sundown.  Our event is hosted by Cheap Is The New Classy and Saving More Than Me.  Our sponsor for this giveaway is Pear Tree Greetings. One lucky winner will receive a $25 gift code, perfect for making your Christmas cards with your Fur Baby as the star! Check out the beautiful new designs for 2013.  I love finding cards that have non-traditional colors.  Pear Tree Greetings has a wide assortment of all styles, from the cool cut to the tri-fold.  You could even send everyone a little card ornament with your pet’s face as the center.  So cute!!

This giveaway is open to US readers ages 18+.  Void where prohibited by law.

Disclosure: I was given product samples to facilitate this review.  This post contains affiliate links. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

  When you’re the child of two educators, it’s a given that you’ll receive some educational gifts.  The good news is that there are LOTS of educational gifts that are disguised as a toy!!   Every teacher knows that if learning is fun, kids are more interested.  So why not make toys that teach?  Here are some great examples that should be on your gift list this year! [Read more…]

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book to review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

 
A friend of mine recently gave me the book One Thousand White Women to read. Historical fiction is my favorite but I often skip the pioneer era for some reason. When I found that I really liked the book, I was excited to read Whispers in the Wind which had been sitting on my shelf for a few weeks. The cover of the book just didn’t appeal to me, I guess, but when I started reading I couldn’t stop.  Since I hadn’t read the first book in this series I felt a little lost in a few parts but overall it was a good book.  It was clear that many of the characters and situations had been thoroughly exhausted in the first book, so this one felt a little bit like an afterthought.   The romance factor was strong in this book.  Poor Cassie has all kinds of issues to deal with and then to add love issues on top of it seemed like overkill.   Life in the Wild West was hard enough for women and this book certainly showcases some of those hardships.  I would hope to see some of these problems resolved in future books in the series.

Disclosure: This sponsored post contains my affiliate link. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

We saw our first snowflakes of winter today.  The weather changes here so quickly!  This morning it was really not cold enough to wear a coat, yet the temperature dropped enough to snow by midday.  A good book is a great way to warm up in the winter.  On those cold days, I need something more than a hot cup of tea or a cozy blanket.  On those days when the cozy blanket just isn’t enough, it’s my soul that needs to be warmed.  I love the idea of making one of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books from Blurb.   I’d love to fill the personalized “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book with stories that my grandmother has shared with me, or maybe even some of my own childhood memories to pass down to my children.  You can even make the book really special by personalizing the nameplate and cover!   Blurb makes it so easy to create a special book.   And if you do have trouble, they have little video clips and prompts to walk you through the process. [Read more…]