Months ago, when this blog was still Books, Products and More!, I announced a 500 follower giveaway. I've eagerly been awaiting the moment I could tell you that all these prizes were up for grabs, but it seems we're stuck at 399 followers between Linky Followers and GFC.
I really want to give you a chance these prizes, so please share our link with your friends. Tell them what you like about The Book Loving Busy Mom's Daily. If you found a recipe or I reviewed a product that made your life easier, please let your friends--and me--know.
Today is Free for All Friday! While I don't always plan giveaways, today I wanted to get back into the swing of this popular regular feature. It's not even a book prize this week. :)
I have for one lucky winner, two boxes of Tazo® tea. I've always been a big tea drinker. The Lil Princess drinks a cup of decaffeinated tea before bed each night.
For this giveaway, I have one box of Tazo Calm™ and one box of Tazo Passion™ herbal tea.
Calm is a blend of chamomile blossoms, lemon balm leaf, pink rose petals, spearmint and sarsaparilla. Passion has luscious hibiscus flowers, lemongrass and rose hips blended with the flavors of mango and passion fruit.
Use the Rafflecopter form below for your chance to win.
After the Blogging from A to Z Challenge is over, things should be getting back to normal around here. I'll have themed posts Monday through Friday. I haven't figured out what I'll do for Thursdays yet, but we'll see how it all works out.
I hope you've been enjoying the posts for the Blogging from A to Z Challenge. I wasn't sure what I would talk about when I started, so I think it worked out well.
I am thinking of doing two things in the near future:
Switching the title of the blog,
Possibly switching to WordPress
I'm on the fence about the second one, but the first one is almost a definite. Problem is, I would also like to change the URL, which means starting all over again in many ways. Decisions. Decisions.
Congratulations go out to Tayet, winner of the two books by Michael MacColl. The winner has been emailed and has 72 hours to respond before I select a new winner.
Thanks to all who participated. Check the giveaways page to see what else you have a chance of winning. Thanks for your support!
Time sure flies when you're having fun! It seems I only just started at Pump Up Your Book (back then, Pump Up Your Book Promotion), and we're already celebrating our 5th Anniversary. How is that possible?
When Pump Up opened its virtual doors in 2007, it started with an experiment and only one client. By the time I came on board a few months later, that number had grown to between 8 and 10 clients a month. Now, Pump Up Your Book works with an average of 35 - 40 authors a month, and the staff has grown from two tour coordinators to five.
In addition to all the wonderful books we've promoted, we've built relationships with authors in a variety of genres, many who come back to tour with us over again. Kathi Macias is on tour in April for her tenth time! We also can't forget the dedicated bloggers who host our clients. We wouldn't be able to do this without them.
In honor our our 5th anniversary, Pump Up Your Book is traveling the blogosphere during the month of April giving away all sorts of neat prizes: books, magnets, t-shirts, Amazon gift cards, free virtual book tours and more! We'll wrap up this celebration on April 27th with a day-long Q&A session on Goodreads, giving away even more prizes! Please visit our website and follow along with us during the month of April.
I am also pleased to be offering one of the first giveaways of the tour. One lucky person will win a copy of my children's picture book, Little Shepherd. You can get some Christmas shopping done early with this one. Fill out the Rafflecopter form below for your chance to win.
It's time for some spring cleaning. The weather in Massachusetts has been lovely with temperatures today reaching 80. It looks like it will stay warm and bright most of the week. Just the thing to encourage me to do some cleaning up around here.
Books, Products and More! is featuring 14 children's picture books for this giveaway. One lucky winner will walk away with the whole bunch. Up for grabs are:
The Suburban Dragon by Garasamo Maccagnone (paperback)
Jack's Dreams Come to Life by Sara Jackson (paperback)
The Adventures of Oliver the Clownfish: Invitation Slip Up by Stephanie Guzman (paperback)
Marie and Her Friend the Sea Turtle by Nicole Weaver (trilingual - English/French/Spanish) (paperback)
A Winter Solstice Celebration by DiDi LeMay (paperback)
The Little Candy Breathing Dragons by Gloria Clark (paperback)
The Adventures of Oliver the Clownfish: Acting Cool by Stephanie Guzman (hardcover)
God Has A Purpose for Me by LaRonda Koffi (hardcover)
A Carousel Tale by Elisa Kleven (hardcover)
A Dog Is A Dog by Stephen Shaskan (hardcover)
Monkey Made Dream by Tom Listul and Heather Listul Hewitt (paperback)
Naughty Toes by Ann Bonwill (hardcover)
My Little Troublemaker by Thierry Robberecht (hardcover)
To make up for not holding a giveaway last Friday--though I never promised a giveaway every Friday--I am offering you writer type folks a two-book giveaway. These books are for my fellow writers or those who aspire to be writers. I enjoyed these books and I hope you will too.
A powerful motivator for aspiring writers, Grit for the Oyster offers wit, wisdom, and inspiration to take that first step and persevere through the writing journey. More than a how-to, this confidence-building book is designed to draw readers to a closer relationship with God, to affirm their calling to write, and to offer pithy practical guidance from successful writers like Terri Blackstock, Martha Bolton, James Scott Bell, Liz Curtis Higgs, Dr. Gary Chapman, and David Kopp.
Join a variety of well-known authors as they share the Scripture or quotations they find inspiring to their writing. The devotionals they ve contributed reflect all aspects of the writing life: basic motivation, rejection, publishing and succeeding. Spend some time with the writers you love and discover what words they write by.
One lucky winner will take home both of these books. Fill out the Rafflecopter form below for your chance to win.
Our subdivision does not allow residents to put up clothes lines, so I usually use a drying rack when I need to handle clothes that can't go into the dryer. It's a small one, so I can't put too much on it. This means I have to depend on my gas dryer more than I would like.
According to the California Energy Commission, consumers can conserve energy--and money--by following these tips:
Keep your dryer in a heated space. Cold, damp basements and unheated areas make the dryer work harder.
Clean your lint filter after every load. This improves air quality. My appliance guy also suggests cleaning the filter regularly with soapy warm water.
Dry two or more loads in a row. Most energy is used in heating up the dryer, so take advantage of retained heat.
Okay, it's time to get down to brass tacks. Last week on the blog was horrible. I was late with everything I wanted to do. I didn't have a Free for All Friday. Movie Review Month has been delayed by my lack of time to watch anything. Basically, it has put me in a nasty mood. Cranky writers are not fun to be around.
So, here's the scoop. I am doing my best to get you the things you said you were interested in seeing: more reviews, more giveaways, recipes, time savings tips, etc. Unfortunately, I'm not independently wealthy, so when I run a giveaway it comes out of my pocket. I don't always have sponsors sending me products to review. Rubbermaid is sending me the Hidden Recycler to review during April, so I know that is coming up. I plan on going to see The Hunger Games with the Lil Diva (10), so I'll be reviewing that. I also have a couple of product samples I'll be talking about. I am actively seeking sponsors for Spring Cleaning Month. In the efforts to move toward self-sufficiency, we are looking to try out more eco-friendly products and review them.
Now that's over, let's talk about my mailbox. I am drowning in books, but I love them. The main reason I don't review more books here is that I save that for my book blog, The Book Connection. Feel free to let me know if you would like to see more here. I'm figuring you're looking for more products reviews instead.
The ghostwriting project I am working on is an historical book, so I've had to perform research. I love the Internet, but it only brings you so far. I ordered two books from Amazon to help me along: Remembering Colorado Springs by Sharon Swint and Images of America: Pikes Peak-Adventurers, Communities, and Lifestyles. These are filled with images and will be the perfect complement to Pikes Peak Backcountry: The Historic Saga of the Peak's West Slope by Celinda Reynolds Kaelin. I'm a bit bummed that I just received Swint's book and a page already fell out of it.
Toward the tail end of last week I received Children's Picturebooks: The Art of Visual Storytelling by Martin Salisbury and Morag Styles. This book, "looks at every aspect of picture bookmaking--from education and training to the interplay of words and images on a page, from the use of old and new printing methods to the editorial process and demands of the publishing industry in the twenty-first century." It includes case studies and interviews with artists, publishers and scholars. Since this is my target market, I like to learn all about it that I can.
The latest Land's End Kids catalog arrived. For the first time, I can say I didn't feel the need to rush out and buy something, but I think that has more to do with spending over $200 on clothes and shoes for the girls two weekends ago, than what is in the catalog. Through 11:59 PM Central time they are offering FREE SHIPPING - no minimum order, so it's actually a great time to buy.
That's it for now. I hope you enjoyed this latest edition of You've Got Mail Mondays.
Thanks to all who voted in our poll. There's still a few hours left, but I have enough information to announce some changes. The three new features that are the most popular are:
WSJ Wednesdays (pleasantly surprised by that one),
Free for All Fridays,
You've Got Mail Mondays.
So, those features will stay as is. I was sort of bummed no one thought Tunes Tuesdays was worth a vote, but I'll live. The second poll, asked readers what they would like to see added to the blog. Recipes got the most votes, which didn't surprise me at all. I'm always on the lookout for good recipes too. More product and movie reviews, and time saving tips also picked up votes. I'm already working on the first one, but it is dependent upon sponsors sending me products to review or me reviewing products I already own. Other than my regular groceries I don't buy things often, and I had hoped to offer some new, exciting products and movies for review. I'm still plugging away, though, so don't give up hope. I can definitely work some time saving tips into the blog. I'm also good at organization, so you might see those tips too.
Starting this week, Taking Time for Mom Thursdays won't be featured anymore, but I'll replace it with something you requested. Maybe Tunes Tuesday won't be a regular feature any longer, but I'll still talk about music from time to time. Also, I'll still blog about our family moving--albeit slowly--toward self-sufficiency.
Thanks again for your feedback. It is greatly appreciated.
The Lil Diva (10) and the Lil Princess (8) are at a scrapbooking workshop right now. Thanks to a friend, they discovered scrapbooking two years ago and never miss a chance to feed their habit.
Scrapbooking isn't a new thing. In my hope chest I have a scrapbook I put together when I was a pre-teen. The girls get a kick out of browsing through my various report cards, awards, and photos. I don't have the time these days to sit down and cut, tape, etc. So, when Liz from My Memories asked me to try out the My Memories Suite™ digital scrapbooking software, I hopped at the chance.
Now, you have to keep in mind that I am technology dummy when I tell you this digital scrapbooking software is easy to use. I'm not big on tutorials or using online help--which this has. I prefer to learn as I go. So, I went to MyMemories.com and downloaded the My Memories Suite Version 3. Installation ran smoothly and soon I was browsing around. I decided to create some basic scrapbook pages so I could get a feel for what I was doing. All I had to do was click and add photos from my PC. Then I added the journal entry next to the photos. Even with a few embellishments, the whole process took under two minutes. I was thrilled to see it has spell check.
The right side of the dashboard contains your control panel. Here you can change the color of your background, select paper, and view your purchased backgrounds. There is a healthy variety of selections, so the only thing that will limit your digital scrapbooking experience is your imagination. The choices don't stop there. You can select your album shape and even create a customized size for your album. Fonts in a variety of styles and sizes allow you to customize titles and journal entries, and a WordArt Designer allows you to create your own look and style. There are tons of embellishments you can add to the pages. Buttons, ribbons, Ric-Rac, flowers, flourishes and more add special touches to your digital scrapbook pages.
The My Memories Suite scrapbook software allows you to add music, narration, video and audio. Imagine sharing this scrapbook with a relative far away. You can print your album at home or export the pages into high-quality JPEG files, transparency-capable PNG image files, or a portable PDF file with a couple of clicks. Professional printing options also allow you to change your album into a calendar. For those technology lovers, multimedia options include being able to burn your album onto CD-R or DVD-R discs. My Memories Suite users can download the free Media Export Tools package and then create a movie or DVD-video of their album, or create an iPod ready file.
The left side of the dashboard has a Resource Gallery that includes featured designs. With one click, you are able to visit the My Memories website and purchase additional options, so the creativity never ends.
Here's something original I created. I choose everything from the size, to the background, to the photo placement, to the text, to the embellishments. It's nothing glorious, but as I get more familiar with the software I'm sure I'll be expanding my horizons and feel free to try more adventurous things.
I've enjoyed "playing around" with this digital scrapbooking software. For under $40, I was able to create special memories I can now easily share with family and friends. I'm hooked, and I think you will be too.
Free for All Friday is coming a bit early this week, because My Memories is offering one of our loyal readers a chance to win a free download of the My Memories Suite digital scrapbooking software. Please fill out the Rafflecopter form for your chance to win. Good luck!
I'm giving a shout out to my readers for results on Shout® Color Catcher® sheets. I ordered a free sample a while back and a few weeks ago I tried it out. Using warm water I placed a red turtleneck in with some old white underwear I didn't care much about. I also put in a few other items.
The result? It looks like the sheet picked up maybe two tiny grease stains--at least that's what they looked like when I pulled it out--but nothing else. Did I do something wrong? I guess it's possible my turtleneck alone wasn't enough to make an impact. It's been washed more than once.
I found a couple of articlesonline that indicated they had success with the product, so I can only guess it was me who screwed up.
Have any of you used them? If you have, what did you think?
Note: The free sample came with a sample of Shout® Wipe & Go Instant Stain Remover Wipes. I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but I'll let you know how it turns out when I do.
I requested a free sample from the manufacturer. I received no monetary compensation to discuss this product.
Books, Products and More! is participating in the Spring Cleaning - Clearing Your Shelf Giveaway Hop in March! I'm not sure which books will be given away yet, but I'm sure you'll find something you want to read.
Do you have books sitting on your bookshelves that you've read but will never read again?
How about books you've started but just couldn't get through?
Review copies you've accepted but have never read?
It's time for some spring cleaning!
This is your chance to clear out your overflowing bookshelf and pass some of your books on to other booklovers. Time to pass on those books that just weren't for you or the review copies that you are never going to get read.
March 20th is the first day of spring, the perfect time to remedy an overflowing bookshelf.
Spring Cleaning Giveaway Hop - March 20th to 25th
Hop Rules
•You can offer just one book or a box of books.
•Please include the linky & hop image in your post.
•No gift cards, you need to give away books from your own bookshelf
One of the ways our family plans to move toward self-sufficiency (even if I have to drag some of them) is by becoming aware of ways we waste energy. Lights and televisions left on in rooms, plugged in chargers for devices when not in use, and uninsulated hot water heaters not only waste energy, they cost you money. Another way that you can toss money out the window and use more energy than you should is by not performing regular maintenance on household appliances.
Here are a few tips that can help:
Check the seals on your refrigerator and freezer annually.
Vacuum your refrigerator and freezer coils twice a year.
Clean your dishwasher filter twice a year.
Scrub mineral deposits off the spray arms of your dishwasher with hot distilled white vinegar.
Check the water-fill hoses on your washing machine for signs of wear.
Keep your washing machine's lint filter clean.
Wash your dryer's lint filter with warm soapy water two to three times a year.
Drain your hot water heater once a year.
Check your oven seal once a year.
Follow the owner's manual for how to keep your gas or electric stove clean.
It's important to check the owner's manual for all your appliances before performing any maintenance.
When it is time to replace your appliances, look for products that conserve energy. I'm hoping to buy a moisture-sensing or auto-dry clothes dryer the next time around.
Do you perform regular maintenance on your appliances? What is your next major appliance purchase?
It is your lucky day. Free for All Friday has come, and with it a fabulous giveaway for you to enter. Del Mar Designs Lighting and Ceiling Fans is offering one of you--my dedicated readers--a chance to win an Emerson CF940ORB Mariol Oil-Rubbed Bronze Energy Star 52" Ceiling Fan! The manufacturer's suggested retail value for this product is $410! Good thing you can't see my happy dance. It's not pretty.
Here is a description of the fan from their website:
Emerson CF940ORB Mariol Oil-Rubbed Bronze Energy Star 52" Ceiling Fan •52" Blade Span •UL Indoor listed •Pull Chain Control Included •13.5" Height, Top to Bottom •Standard Mount •No Light Included UPC: 030844016974
You can find an expanded description if you click on this link.
I know you're all excited, so I'll stop talking. Please use the Rafflecopter form below to enter this giveaway. Good luck!
Romance Novel Month continues with Miss Francie's Folly by Fran Baker.
Three years ago Francie Hampton shocked the ton by jilting Sir Thomas Spencer at their bethrothal ball when she discovered that he kept several lightskirts. How dare Sir Thomas now ask to marry her sister! Gentle Mary should not be married to a proud, tyrannical rake. But Francie protested too much against the man who long ago had won her heart...though not her hand.
Excerpt:
"Have you been happy, Francie?"
Her mouth went dry, her pulse began racing wildly. It was as if the past three years had never happened and she was once again his darling Francie. Her head was bent, and she felt his warm breath stirring the wisps of hair on her neck.
"Of course I have," she answered.
The heat of his breath upon her neck increased, and a shiver coursed the length of her spine as his warm lips pressed into the softness of her neck. She let the delight of it overwhelm her for one brief, delicious moment.
"Oh, Francie, Francie," he whispered.
Her eyes closed as his finger lightly traced the line of her delicate cheek beside her defiant, upturned nose. He drew her against him and, as if possessing a will of its own, her head tilted back to meet his kiss.
Reviews:
"Miss Francie's Folly is a wonderful story of misbehavior in a society that stresses correct etiquette. The story is full of emotional scenes and untoward developments everyone who loves Regency romances will enjoy."
Robin Lee @ RomRevToday.blogspot.com
"If you're looking for exquisite Regency romance, look no further than Fran Baker."
Fran Baker has written fourteen novels, with another in progress. Her books have appeared on several bestseller lists and have been translated into more than 20 languages. Fran is a member of Novelists, Inc., the Author's Guild, and the Society of Midland Authors. She blogs at http://www.daughterofthegreatdepression.blogspot.com/ and at http://www.romancingtheyarn.blogspot.com/ with other authors who knit. Readers are invited to visit her web site at http://www.franbaker.com/.
Congratulations go out to Melissa C. and Jilma M. They each won a printed copy of my book, Little Shepherd. I've emailed the winners. They have 72 hours to respond.
Thanks to all who participated. Don't forget we have a giveaway running for a Bath and Body Works set--lotion and body spray. You can find our current giveaways on our giveaways page. In addition, we'll be participating in the Follower Love Giveaway Hop in February.
Last year, thanks to Stephen Tremp, we learned of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge. Taking place during the month of April, you blog through the alphabet daily, with Sundays off for good behavior. I had a ton of fun in 2011, so I signed up for this year's today at http://www.breakthroughblogs.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html
Make sure you check in with us in February to help celebrate the month of love. All month long we'll be featuring romance novels for your reading pleasure. Visit our Upcoming Events page for a complete list of authors we'll be featuring in February.
While you're here, please consider becoming a follower of Books, Products and More! Once we reach 500 followers a list of great prizes will be raffled off.
Thanks to The Jolly Blogger, I learned about the Book Bonanza Giveaway 2012 being run by Hobbies on a Budget. Books, Products and More! signed up to participate. This giveaway runs from February 1st - 29th. There will be prizes for U.S. residents and worldwide prizes too!
