Two Monkeys & A Washtub: November 2010

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Fantasy Jewelry Box Review & Giveaway!

I love finding jewelry that looks and feels expensive but without the matching high price tag. You could honestly spend hours browsing Fantasy Jewelry Box and filling your shopping cart with styles you like and then taking even longer to narrow your choices down to what you really, really want! I know I did, but I finally decided on the Designer Inspired Sterling Silver Toggle Heart Bracelet priced at $49.95!

At Fantasy Jewelry Box, you can find celebrity styles, men's jewelry, bridal jewelry in cubic zirconia and imitation diamond, and just about anything else you might be searching for from cocktail rings to birthstone jewelry. My bracelet looked even more amazing in person and has held up well to frequent use. The bracelet was packaged in a cute gift box so you'd just need to wrap these beautiful pieces for the perfect gift! I can't wait to place my order for more jewelry that I don't have to worry about actually wearing because the prices are really great too!

Buy It!

You can purchase just about any style of jewelry or celebrity style at Fantasy Jewelry Box and through December 5th you can save 25% on your entire order so this is a perfect time for Christmas shopping!

Win It - Giveaway Details!

One winner will have the opportunity to choose one item valued at up to $35 from Fantasy Jewelry Box! This giveaway is open to US & Canada and will end on December 13th at 10:00PM Central. I'll email the winner who will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen!

Mandatory Entry!

Visit Fantasy Jewelry Box and let me know what item you might choose that's under $35!

Extra Entries!

(If it states 2 extra entries, please leave 2 comments)

Follow me on Google Friend Connect (see right hand side bar) (+1 extra entry)

Like Two Monkeys & a Washtub on Facebook (+3 extra entries)
Like Fantasy Jewelry Box on Facebook (+2 exra entries)
Comment on the Milkbone Bark it Furward Post (+5 extra entries in all giveaways, only one comment please)

Subscribe to Two Monkeys & a Washtub by e-mail/RSS feed (+2 extra entries, you can do both)
Follow Fantasy Jewelry Box on YouTube (+2 extra entries)

Follow monkeyswashtub on Twitter (+1 extra entry)
Follow FantasyJewelry on Twitter (+1 extra entry)

Tweet up to 3x daily, must be 1hr apart, leave one comment with the link to your tweet (up to 3 extra entries daily):

Win jewelry valued up to $35 @monkeyswashtub from @FantasyJewelry *US&CAN* http://goo.gl/fb/o0aAZ Ends 12/13

Vote for me on the Fence (+2 extra entries daily)

Include the Dear Santa button (code on the upper left-hand side) on your blog's sidebar for 10 additional entries in every giveaway on every participating blog!

Disclosure: I received the item mentioned above for review in exchange for my honest opinion. No additional compensation was received.

Holiday Gift Giveaway Hop! US Only - CLOSED

So excited to participate in the Holiday Gift Giveaway Hop during my Dear Santa event! I know you're busy jumping from one blog to the next, but be sure to enter my amazing giveaways for great things too!

Please check out the great gift certificates donated by my wonderful sponsors (Amazon is from me since I love my readers!)! I've got three gift certificates for the Holiday Gift Giveaway Hop all for US addresses only! There will be one winner chosen randomly who gets them all! Woo-Hoo!

$25 credit loaded into your account for Jasmere.com
If you haven't signed up for Jasmere yet, you really should! They have some amazing deals and every day one lucky Facebook fan receives the deal for free!

$15 e-certificate for Amazon.com
We all love Amazon.com for finding great deals and must haves, so I wanted to make sure my readers were able to get something great!

$35 gift code for CSN Stores
With so much to offer at their 200+ stores, you're sure to find something perfect for anyone you're shopping for or even to treat yourself!

Mandatory Entry:

Follow me on Google Friend Connect!

Extra Entries: (up to 4 extra comments)

1. Leave a comment on my Milk Bone Bark it Furward post to raise money for Canine Assistants! (only counts as 1 extra entry due to the requirements of the Holiday Giveaway Hop, but you'll get 5 extra in any/all of my other giveaways)

2. Follow me (monkeyswashtub) on Twitter

3. Follow me on Facebook

4. Subscribe to my blog via e-mail/reader

This giveaway will end on December 5 at 11:59 pm EST! I'll e-mail the winner who will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected. Thanks for visiting and have fun in the hop!

ShaToBu - The Workout You Wear Review & Giveaway!

ShaToBu. The Workout You Wear is the revolutionary shaper that helps women shape, tone and burn more calories during everyday activities. The benefits go beyond ordinary shape wear. ShaToBu instantly gives a sleeker silhouette, but women can also see and feel a difference in their bodies with regular use over time. By incorporating resistance bands right into the garment, muscles work a little harder and more calories are burned during daily activities. ShaToBu helps women fit a workout into their normal day, while looking and feeling great.

I love the idea of ShaToBu because from experience it's easy to get discouraged when trying to lose weight. I know whenever I diet I always want instant results and it feels like it takes forever to get that bulge to go away and even when you start to make progress it takes forever for the skin to catch up. Wearing a ShaToBu shaper makes the process a little easier. By looking great, you'll be more motivated to keep up your routines and shed the pounds for good. Plus ShaToBu helps you tone and burn up to 12% more calories a day just from doing your normal daily activities.

After my two boys, I've always hated that extra bulge over my jeans (muffin top), so I chose the high waist to knee shaper for review. The ShaToBu goes one just like panty hose and is actually very comfortable, enough for daily use. I love that my thighs look more tone and my muffin top is missing even when my jeans are a little tight! I haven't noticed weight loss yet, but I've not been wearing my ShaToBu everyday either. I need to order a second so that I can wash and alternate for daily use. I appreciate anyway that I can easily tone and burn calories in addition to my normal activities, especially if it's easy and can be worn under any garment!

Buy It!

You can purchase your own ShaToBu shaping products online starting at only $34.00!

Win It - Giveaway Details!

One winner will receive their choice of ShaToBu shaping product in their choice of color/size! This giveaway is open to US & Canada and will end on December 10th at 10:00PM. I'll email the winner who will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen!

Mandatory Entry!

Visit ShaToBu and let me know which shaping product and color you'd choose if you won!

Extra Entries!

(If it states 2 extra entries, please leave 2 comments)

Follow me on Google Friend Connect (see right hand side bar) (+1 extra entry)

Like Two Monkeys & a Washtub on Facebook (+3 extra entries)
Comment on the Milkbone Bark it Furward Post (+5 extra entries in all giveaways, only one comment please)

Subscribe to Two Monkeys & a Washtub by e-mail/RSS feed (+2 extra entries, you can do both)
Subscribe to the ShaToBu newsletter on their webpage (+2 extra entries)

Follow monkeyswashtub on Twitter (+1 extra entry)
Follow ShaToBu on Twitter (+1 extra entry)

Tweet up to 3x daily, must be 1hr apart, leave one comment with the link to your tweet (up to 3 extra entries daily):

Win ShaToBu-The Workout You Wear Shapewear! @monkeyswashtub from @ShaToBu *US&CAN* http://goo.gl/fb/Unsis Ends 12/10

Vote for me on the Fence (+2 extra entries daily)

Include the Dear Santa button (code on the upper left-hand side) on your blog's sidebar for 10 additional entries in every giveaway on every participating blog!

Disclosure: I received a ShaToBu shaping product for review in exchange for my honest opinions. No additional compensation was received.

Monday, November 29, 2010

U-Play Mat - The Perfect Gift for young children or Mom-to-be! Review & Giveaway!

A little bit about the company and the product:
Play This Way Every Day was founded in 2008 with the goal of enhancing interactive floor play between toddlers and parents. Although there are many wonderful educational toys on market, very few provide guidance for parents and caregivers on how to play together. All products are designed by Dr. Jen (a pediatrician) with consultation from speech or occupational therapists in order to assure optimal design and instructions for use.

U-Play Mat

The U-Play Mat is a U-shaped mat with 15 clear pockets on its surface. The mat is 4 feet wide, and 3 feet deep. The innovative "U" shape allows the child to sit inside the opening of the "U" with full access to the 15 pockets. The child has full visual and tactile access to the whole surface, without having to crawl atop the mat. Child-safe see-through pockets allow fifteen theme-based cards to be secured to the mat surface. This patent pending design allows for the caregiver to sit across and engage the child in a variety of exercises using the adorable theme-based card decks. The pockets are designed to be slightly larger than the cards, allowing for the cards to be placed and removed easily.

The U-Play Mat comes with an accompanying tote bag. There are eight pockets allowing for all available card decks to be easily carried with the U-Play Mat in the tote bag. The tote is lightweight, surface washable and (if we do say so ourselves) absolutely super-cute!

What we thought about the U-Play Mat Starter Set:
My youngest son (2 years old) really loved the attention he received while playing and taking the time to learn the animals and foods. The pictures on the cards are bright colors but he would have loved photographs too since he had a hard time figuring out a couple animals since he's used to seeing them in person at the zoo. I don't think this is a negative to the U-Play Starter Set but more an enhancement to future sets of cards.

We started using the animals or the foods and now mix the two cards decks together. We've also used the Play Mat to remember family members that we don't see that frequently by associating their pictures with their names as we do with the animals and foods. It's been a great educational toy for him and I love the play ideas included in the downloadable book. The U-Play Mat has definitely enhanced his vocabulary by using animals and foods that are common to a child's everyday activities. This would definitely be a perfect activity for younger children as well that are just learning speech!

Buy It:

You can purchase a U-Play Mat Starter Set ($49) or Professional Edition Online ($84) through the Play This Way Every Day Online Store.

Win It, Giveaway Details:

One reader will win a U-Play Mat Starter Set! This giveaway will end on December 12th at 10:00PM Central. I'll email the winner who will have 48-hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is open to US addresses only.

Mandatory Entry:

Visit Play This Way Every Day and let me know why you'd love to have this for your kids or who you'll be giving this to!

Extra Entries:

(If it states 2 extra entries, please leave 2 comments)

Follow me on Google Friend Connect (see right hand side bar) (+1 extra entry)

Like Two Monkeys & a Washtub on Facebook (+3 extra entries)
Comment on the Milkbone Bark it Furward Post (+5 extra entries in all giveaways, only one comment please)

Subscribe to Two Monkeys & a Washtub by e-mail/RSS feed (+2 extra entries, you can do both)

Follow monkeyswashtub on Twitter (+1 extra entry)

Tweet up to 3x daily, must be 1hr apart, leave one comment with the link to your tweet (up to 3 extra entries daily):

Win a U-Play Mat Educational Toy! @monkeyswashtub *US* http://goo.gl/fb/HBUdO Ends 12/12

Vote for me on the Fence (+2 extra entries daily)

Include the Dear Santa button (code on the upper left-hand side) on your blog's sidebar for 10 additional entries in every giveaway on every participating blog!

Disclosure: We received a U-Play Mat Starter Set for Review in exchange for our honest opinions. No additional compensation was received.

Dragons Universe by MegaBloks - the perfect toys for boys of all ages (including their dads)!

I knew my boys and their dad would be so excited to see the Dragons Universe Mommy Party kit show up at our door! The hard part would be waiting until we could gather some friends together and have a party to let everyone else enjoy these fun toys too! At least with the holidays, we knew there would be plenty of friends in family in town to gather around new and exciting toys!

Sometimes when you throw a party and the weather's perfect...the kids decide that the games and food are fun and the dads decide that the toys were meant for them! Our party has proven that although the kids can build the dragons and the troops, the dads enjoy them just as much!

The dads had so much fun reliving their own childhood that many have added Dragons Universe by MegaBloks to their own Christmas wish lists! The ongoing discussions overheard in the background were that these toys were definitely built for play by boys and weren't going to fall apart easily. The instructions were also easy to follow and could be followed by the kids too (ages 7 & up without adult help unless they had lots of block building experience).

The kids loved the dragons, the lights, the sounds, and the troopers too! As you can see, there is amazing attention to detail in the pieces. The dragons have flexible wings, and the troopers have amazing mobility in their head and limbs.

If you're looking for the ideal gift for boys in your life this holiday season, Dragons Universe toys were given a thumbs up at our house! In addition, the small dragons and troopers are individually packaged and would make the perfect stocking stuffers regularly priced at $5.99 each.

Disclosure: I received a Dragons Universe Mommy Party kit courtesy of Dragons Universe by MegaBloks and Mommy Parties by BSM Media in exchange for sharing these toys with friends and family during a party. No additional compensation was received. These are our honest opinions and may differ from others.

Curious George - A Very Monkey Christmas Giveaway

George and The Man with The Yellow Hat are having a very merry time counting down the days until Christmas. There’s only one puzzle: neither of them can figure out what to give the other for a present. The Man is having trouble reading George’s wish list and George doesn’t have a clue about what to get for The Man who has everything. Will they be able to find the answers before Christmas morning?

Thanks to blog readers like you, Kidtoons has been able to expand their program into more theatres and they wish to express their thanks! Feel free to let Kidtoons know where you would like to see them offer this fun program since they are continuing to add theaters. Please contact them via their website (you can also leave it in your comment if not available in your area yet).

Win It, Giveaway Details:

One lucky reader is going to win a Curious George Prize Pack which includes:

1 Curious George Book

1 Curious George DVD

1 Curious George poster

This giveaway will end on December 7th at 10:00PM Central. I'll email the winner who will have 48-hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Mandatory Entry:

Visit Kidtoons and let me know if there's a theater near you that's hosting family matinees!

Extra Entries:

(If it states 2 extra entries, please leave 2 comments)

Follow me on Google Friend Connect (see right hand side bar) (+1 extra entry)

Like Two Monkeys & a Washtub on Facebook (+3 extra entries)
Like Kidtoons on Facebook (+3 extra entries)

Comment on the Milkbone Bark it Furward Post (+5 extra entries in all giveaways, only one comment please)

Subscribe to Two Monkeys & a Washtub by e-mail/RSS feed (+2 extra entries, you can do both)

Follow monkeyswashtub on Twitter (+1 extra entry)
Follow kidtoonfilms on Twitter (+1 extra entry)

Tweet up to 3x daily, must be 1hr apart, leave one comment with the link to your tweet (up to 3 extra entries daily):

Win a Curious George's A Very Monkey Christmas prize pack! @monkeyswashtub from @kidtoonfilms http://goo.gl/fb/xzuGb Ends 12/7!

Vote for me on the Fence (+2 extra entries daily)

Include the Dear Santa button on your blog's sidebar for an additional 10 entries on every giveaway on all three participating blog's giveaways!

Disclosure: This is a giveaway post only. No review product was received and no additional compensation was received.

Finding Me Mondays....the holidays...the food...ugh!

I love the holidays for time spent with family, the wonderful food and actually taking the time to cook wonderful food....BUT....I always eat too much! I know it's only one day...but I was stuffed! I've been good about food the other days, but the scale doesn't seem to care since I'm still at the same weight as last week (guess I should be happy it's not higher)...time to really get focused and start to lose weight. Stress has been high and that doesn't help I know! I've had so much going on and having my computer hard drive completely go didn't really help! At least in the end we didn't lose any files, but it took over three weeks to really figure out what was going on and a week to actually get everything taken apart and set back up...so I was spent!

Since the list was getting long, I'm going to start posting a link to the long list and just include the previous week and this week's weigh-in every Monday! (Long list June 21st (203.5 lbs) - September 13th (194 lbs))

Last weigh-in: September 13th/September 26th - 194lbs, Size 14

October 11th - 191 lbs
October 18th/25th & November 1st/8th/15th - 192 lbs
November 22nd/29th - 194 lbs (not happy about gaining weight, but not totally surprised either)
(ready to gain control and lose weight - ugh and the holidays are now upon us too!)

As I've said every week though, regardless of my current weight and how I feel right now, I am still hoping that by next June, I will still be able to reach my goal of being able to keep up with my kids and husband and wear the red dress that hangs prominently in my closest (it blocks all my pants) so I have to look at it every day....it will continue to be my motivation! I get tired of being the one behind the camera every time and am ready to be the one in front of the camera (smiling) more often! I don't want my kids to wonder what I looked like when they were young!

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Join me in the journey of finding yourself, whether it's weight loss or something else! We could all use some support! I'd love to hear your stories!

Dear Santa Event Starts Today - Lots of Giveaways on 3 blogs! Enter today!

Welcome to the "Dear Santa, All I Want is Everything" event hosted by Chubby Cheeks Thinks, The Coupon Challenge and Two Monkeys & a Washtub! Over the next week, we will be bringing you products that will give you gift ideas for everyone in the family! You will easily be able to find all of the giveaways from our three blogs on each of our sidebars! This way it is easy for you to see what the other 2 blogs have going on! If you have our event button on your sidebar, you can receive extra 10 Entries into ALL of our giveaways! We hope you have fun! :-)

Sunday, November 28, 2010

CSN Stores Giveaway coming soon!

I know you're excited to know there is a giveaway coming! I love browsing CSN Stores and always seem to get lost daydreaming about the next purchase. With 200+ stores, it's easy to get lost deciding what to purchase but since I'm typically lost in a daydream about where I can travel next...these luggage sets look amazing!

From Heys and Delsey to Samsonite and American Tourister, a $35 gift code will definitely help in pursuing your next travel destination or at least daydreaming about getting there!

Disclosure: As a CSNStores Preferred Blogger, I am given the opportunity to review or giveaway a dollar amount at the discretion of CSNStores. This is a giveaway pre-post, no additional compensation was received.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Milk Bone's Bark It Furward & Canine Assistants (Comment to help others)

For every comment received on this post, Milk-Bone^®will donate $1 to Canine Assistants so please take the time to leave a meaningful comment about this program or this charity! What an easy way to help those in need during this holiday season!

“It’s Good to Give…This Season!” What better way to celebrate the holiday season then through Bark It Furward, a program created to raise awareness and funds for Canine Assistants, a non-profit organization that trains and provides service dogs for children and adults with physical disabilities and the Milk-Bone^® brand’s long-time charitable partner since 1997. For nearly 20 years, Canine Assistants has provided 1,000 service dogs to people across the country, giving them the chance to have more independent lifestyles.

Many people in need of a service dog depend on Canine Assistants to pay for the lifelong care of the dog. Without the help of any government funding, Canine Assistants relies on the generosity and private donations made by philanthropic partners, like Milk-Bone^®, to help pay for the training of these special needs dogs. In an effort to help care for and train more assistance dogs for recipients across the country, Milk-Bone^®is asking you to rally around Canine Assistants.

Bark It Furward was created by Milk-Bone^® brand to educate others about the inspiring work being conducted by Canine Assistants. By joining the Bark It Furward movement, you can help raise awareness and much needed funds to provide assistance dogs for people with disabilities.

About Canine Assistants

Canine Assistants® is a non-profit organization, founded in 1991, which trains and provides service dogs for children and adults with physical disabilities or other special needs. In addition to physically assisting those with disabilities, Canine Assistants service dogs are instrumental in removing many of the barriers faced by the disabled in today's society.

Service Dogs:

Canine Assistants service dogs assist children and adults with physical disabilities or other special needs in a variety of ways. Some of the tasks the dogs perform include turning lights on and off, opening and closing doors, pulling wheelchairs, retrieving dropped objects, summoning help and providing secure companionship. While all of these functions are vitally important in helping a person obtain greater freedom, perhaps the most impressive gift the dogs provide is social, rather than physical, in nature. The dogs eliminate feelings of fear, isolation and loneliness felt by their companions. One Canine Assistants recipient made the value of this gift quite clear when asked by a reporter what she liked most about her service dog. Immediately, she responded, "My dog makes my wheelchair disappear."

Most Canine Assistants service dogs are born, raised and trained at the Milton, Georgia facility, while some are occasionally adopted from local organizations or breeders. The majority of the service dogs are retrievers, including both Golden Retrievers and Labradors.

Companion Dogs:

Like service dogs, companion dogs also serve to assist children and adults with physical disabilities or other special needs. Companion dogs work primarily in a recipient's home, assisting with tasks around the house and more importantly, contributing to the emotional well being of the person.

Seizure Response Dogs:

In addition to service dogs and companion dogs, Canine Assistants also trains and provides seizure response dogs for certain recipients. As with some of the service dogs, these dogs are adopted from various organizations and selectively screened for personality, temperament and general health. Following general training, seizure response dogs are trained to perform one of the following behaviors, depending on the recipient's need: remain next to the person during the course of a seizure, summon help in a controlled environment or retrieve a phone prior to the seizure when indicated by the recipient. Certain dogs may even develop the ability to predict and react in advance to an oncoming seizure once they are placed with their recipient.

Disclosure: No compensation was received to blog about this program! If this blog post receives the most comments, then I'll be given the opportunity to interview Jennifer Arnold, the founder of Canine Assistants. I'm more interested in helping the program through this post, so please leave your comments for that reason alone!

Cradle Rock Children's Music Review & Giveaway

I knew my kids would love hearing new music and I was excited to be able to introduce them to albums that I knew they would love and I would be able to hum along to as well! These acoustic albums are great for little ears and you'll probably enjoy listening to each CD as well! We received Cradle Rock's first three albums for review and can't wait to hear even more of their albums as they are released!

“Cradle Rock”, a series of children’s lullaby albums produced and created by Brash Music and Tree Top Records, hit stores and digital distribution channels October 25th. Cradle Rock uses vibraphones, glockenspiels and mellotrons to turn iconic songs and albums by top artists such as Kenny Chesney and Johnny Cash into naptime-friendly listening material.

With Cradle Rock, parents can introduce their children to some of the greatest albums ever recorded including the first ever urban album turned into lullabies, Michael Jackson’s Thriller (released 29 years ago November 30th). “Parents will appreciate that Cradle Rock keeps melodic structure and tempos in tact,” says Steve Jones, CEO of Brash Music. “Moms and dads write us saying they can sing right along to Cradle Rock while rocking baby to sleep.”

Cradle Rock albums in development include U2’s “The Joshua Sleep Tree,” Black Eyed Peas’ “Sleep-pea Hits” as well as lullaby albums inspired by Nickelback, Carrie Underwood and The Eagles. You'll definitely enjoy the lullaby versions of your favorite songs and sharing your favorite songs with your children!

Buy It!

You can listen to snippets of each Cradle Rock album before you purchase and then buy online for $11.98! When you purchase the CD, you'll also receive an automatic MP3 download too so you can listen immediately waiting for your CD to arrive!

Win It!

One lucky reader will win their choice of one Cradle Rock CD from the three mentioned above! This giveaway is open to US addresses only and will end on December 9th at 10:30PM. I'll email the winner who will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Mandatory Entry!

Visit Treetop records and listen to the snippets of each album and let me know which album you'd love to have for yourself or your kids!

Extra Entries!

(If it states 2 extra entries, please leave 2 comments)

Follow me on Google Friend Connect (see right hand side bar) (+1 extra entry)

Like Two Monkeys & a Washtub on Facebook (+3 extra entries)
Like TreeTop Records on Facebook (+3 extra entries)

Subscribe to Two Monkeys & a Washtub by e-mail/RSS feed (+2 extra entries, you can do both)

Follow monkeyswashtub on Twitter (+1 extra entry)
Follow treetoprecords on Twitter (+1 extra entry)

Tweet up to 3x daily, must be 1hr apart, leave one comment with the link to your tweet (up to 3 extra entries daily):

Win a CradleRock lullaby CD! @monkeyswashtub from @treetoprecords http://goo.gl/fb/1eJ5K Ends 12/9!

Vote for me on the Fence (+2 extra entries daily)

Disclosure: This post was written for Family Review Network & Cradle Rock who provided the complimentary product for review and giveaway in exchange for my honest opinions.

Friday, November 26, 2010

Surfin' Saturdays: Twitter Week! plus info about Dear Santa Event!

Welcome to the 21th Surfin' Saturdays hosted by Chubby Cheeks Thinks, Two Monkeys & a Washtub, And Then There Were Four and The Coupon Challenge! Each week we will be surfin' a different social network. You will have to check back every Saturday to see where we will be! One week it may be a

facebook hop and then the next an email hop! It will be lots of fun and you will get to meet new people and

see old friends as well!

We kindly ask that you follow these simple requests

Follow the hostesses in the first four spots (We will follow you back! Just please leave a comment letting us know that you are following us!)
Please only link up the network that is being hopped that specific week.
No spam please. These will be removed.
It would be wonderful if you are linking up this week if you could add our button to your sidebar or in a post to help spread the word! :) The more people that join, the more fun it will be! (Plus if you add our button to your sidebar you can grab 5 extra entries into any ONE giveaway!)
If someone follows you please feel free to follow them back! If you follow me and leave a comment you are guaranteed a follow back!

This is a new list every Saturday, so please remember to come back and link up!

This week is TWITTER!

Please link up only your TWITTER account!!

Starting November 29th, Chubby Cheeks Thinks, Two Monkeys & a Washtub, and The Coupon Challenge will be hosting the Dear Santa: All I Want Is Everything, which will be so much fun! We will have lots of reviews and giveaways all packed into one week that will give you gift ideas for everyone in the family! You won't want to miss it!

Also, if you add the button to your sidebar, you will get 10 extra entries into all of the event giveaways on all 3 blogs!

During the Dear Santa event at Two Monkeys & a Washtub, I'll be featuring a little bit of everything from gifts for kids, the men, and all things naughty and nice! Look for great reviews & some great giveaways giveaways coming soon from companies like Zippo, Steinlager Pure, Tukaiz Personalized Calendars, Fantasy Jewelry Box, Eden Fantasys, OhMiBod, Playful Threads, Blue Platypus, Vinylize It, Money Savvy Banks, PhotoPlaque, Milson Road, Enjoying Tea, ERGOBaby, Alize Liquer, Jasmere, Music for Little People, Pumpkin Doodle Designs, ShaToBu, Piczzle, Snaps Store Collars, Aspen Pet Products, U Play Mat, Imagination Box Co, EZSoxs, CSN Stores, and a few more (Please note that not all reviews will include a giveaway)! I'll also touch on some of my favorite products that we've purchased for our kids and reviewed over the past year!

Friday's Kid-Tested Recipe: Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole

I hate sneaking food into my children's diets, so I thought I would share some of the recipes that I make with my kids (ages 4 &2)! When kids help cook, they rarely avoid the food because they helped to make it! I'll try to note steps that even the youngest children can help with in the kitchen! I'm guessing you probably have leftovers from yesterday sitting in your fridges and you're thinking you will get tired of turkey sandwiches quickly! We've been making this "casserole" dish since our first Thanksgiving together when we cooked way too much food but didn't have enough money to buy any additional groceries!
What you'll need to make it!
Leftovers!
Turkey (or ham) sliced
Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes - mashed or from a Sweet Potato casserole
Green bean casserole
Gravy
(savory leftovers work best!)

How to make it!
We typically make individual casseroles in oven-safe bowls so that each person can pick and choose their favorites from the previous day's meal. In your oven-safe bowl, layer your casserole leftovers. From previous experience, it seems to work best to start with the stuffing or mashed potatoes on the bottom followed by the turkey (or ham), topped with gravy, then layered with your favorites (you can repeat stuffing or potatoes if that's your favorite). If your turkey was a little dry on Thanksgiving, you can drizzle a couple drops of water on it before adding your additional toppings for moisture!

Bake at 350°F. for 20 to 30 minutes or until any liquid stuff (gravy or green bean casserole sauce, etc.) starts to bubble (no liquid stuff, you're just hoping it's all warmed up again - you might see browning of your potatoes). I love cranberry sauce, but it doesn't work to bake it so I'll add it after it comes out of the oven for a sweet and tart pop on the top of my casserole!

Kids of all ages love to pick their leftovers and help layer their casserole making it special! Plus they’ll be waiting to try their casserole when it comes out of the oven so it’s an easy opportunity to engage your kids in the kitchen!

Have a great recipe to share or always talk about cooking? Link up and let everyone know...I'd love to see what you're cooking!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

It's a rough day waiting for leftovers!

...sent to the stairs...bummer!

Happy Thanksgiving...may you share your leftovers with your four-legged friends on this special day! Hey, even we like a warm meal every now and then (assuming the doctor lets them eat it...mommy promised to say it was only dog food for me)!