You've Got Mail Monday

Yes, it's Tuesday, but I needed a day of rest yesterday. This weekend we had the sleepover for the Lil' Diva's birthday party. Check out the cake she designed herself. She printed the two photos and then drew a picture of the design she wanted so the bakery would get it right.

After eating out, cake, and presents, the girls decided to perform blind makeovers--the Lil' Diva's idea. One girl was blindfolded and had to make up her partner. Then they switched. In a rare moment of silliness, I allowed each girl to take a turn making me up. Here is the result.

After the guests left on Saturday, Dad took the family into Boston. We wandered around the Boston Public Library, and then watched the Red Sox beat the White Sox.

Fenway replica

On Sunday, we joined the in-laws and drove to Marlborough to meet my brother-in-law, his wife, and their son for a trip to the local Greek festival. 

I ate way too much. I really want to try my hand at making loukoumades.

So now you know why I had to take it easy on Monday. The girls are back to school today, so it's quiet. Here's what the mail carrier brought last week.

Cabela’s® sent not only their Garden Harvest catalog for me, but Dad received the hunting one. Not that he hunts, but they probably have our name from somewhere. I'm very interested in their vacuum sealers. Too much food can go to waste if it isn't sealed probably. I've tried the Ziploc® Vacuum Freezer System, but it's not that easy to use and I've had some things I thought were airtight that ended up not being so.

The only other two things worth mentioning are the books I received. I'm reviewing Winter Wishes by Charlotte Hubbard in November at The Book Connection. Just What Kind of Mother Are You? by Paula Daly also arrived. That is a prize I won from Broken Teepee.

Right now, I'm waiting for the fall garlic and bulbs to arrive from Burpee so I can plant them. I also have plans to move my fruit plants before the first frost. Hopefully I'll be able to manage it. It seems time goes quickly right now.

That's it for this edition of You've Got Mail Monday. Hope you have a great week.

Winners of a Free Bar of Happy Goats Soap!

Our congratulations go out to:

Tayet

Farrah

and noteasytobegreen, all winners of a free bar of Happy Goats Soap.

I'll be contacting the winners in the morning. They will have 72 hours to respond with mailing information. If I don't hear from them within that time frame, I will select a new winner/winners.

Thanks to all who participated.

Product Review and Giveaway: Happy Goats Soap

Happy Goats Soap is made from rich ingredients like: shea butter, cocoa butter, Olive oil and apricot kernel oil. These ingredients are blended together with goats' milk to create unique soaps you are sure to love. They come in a variety of shapes with a nice fragrance that isn't overpowering for those with allergies--like me. These soaps are made in small batches using the cold process method.

What I liked best about the soap I received is it left my skin feeling soft and smooth. I suffer from extremely dry skin in winter, which isn't helped along by the long baths I take each night while I read. Last night I washed up first and soaked for about an hour. When I climbed out, my skin will still nice and soft. I have to admit to being very impressed. I usually use a soap for sensitive sky, but Happy Goats Soap has got that beat 100 times over.

While browsing the Happy Goats Soap website, I discovered this neat Favor Soap. While the regular bars are 3 to 4 ounces, these Favor Soaps are 1.5 ounces, the perfect size for weddings, showers, and parties. Additional lead time is necessary to order these, but they will be well worth it to have such a unique and useful gift for your guests.

I've saved the best for last. Pricilla, the famous spokesgoat for Happy Goats Soap is allowing me to give away three bars of soap to my readers. That means we'll be choosing three separate winners and those lucky people will receive a FREE bar of Happy Goats Soap.

I received this free sample from Happy Goats Soap in exchange for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation.

Here are the details on how you can enter for a chance to win!

1) You must be a follower of Book Tours and More to win. Leave a separate comment for each entry.

2) Visit the Happy Goats Soap website and leave a comment here telling us what your favorite soap is. Be sure to leave a valid email address so we can contact you if you win!

3) One additional entry if you like Broken Teepee on Facebook, which is a blog run by Pricilla's owner, Patty.

4) One additional entry if you follow Patty/Broken Teepee on Twitter.

5) Three additional entries if you blog about this contest. Leave a link to your post here.

6) You must reside in the U.S. or Canada to be eligible to win.


Deadline for entries is 11:59 PM Eastern on Sunday, February 6, 2011. Winner will be selected out of all entrants who followed the rules governing this contest. Winner will have 72 hours after being contacted to email me their mailing address. If I have not heard from the winner within that time frame, I will select a new winner. Product will be shipped directly from Happy Goats Soap in Montana. Book Tours and More is not responsible for lost or damaged goods. Only those who follow the guidelines governing this contest are eligible to win.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Year Round Gardening by Delilah Smittle and Sherri Ann Richerson Giveaway at Broken Teepee

Patty over at Broken Teepee has a lot of great giveaways going on. If you haven't stopped by her blog, you really should.

Today I wandered over there and found a giveaway for The Complete Idiot's Guide to Year Round Gardening by Delilah Smittle and Sherri Ann Richerson. I don't know if I've told you this, but I loved gardening, I just happen to have a brown thumb. I also can't design a garden plot to save my life. And every time I try getting the seeds going early in the year it is a disaster.

I need a book like this BAD!

If you really need a book like this too, stop by Broken Teepee and enter for your chance to win. There are ways to increase your chances of winning--like I'm doing now.

This giveaway is open to residents of the United States only. Deadline to enter is 9PM MDT on June 10th.