What are your five tips & tricks for getting your kids to bed on time and getting them to stay in bed?

Getting two children to sleep at the ages of 2 and 6 can be very difficult.  When one gets up, the other wants to get up.  When one yells out for "mom," the other yells for mom.  It can be a daunting task at times!  TwitterMoms and St. Eve Kids have asked bloggers this question with a great link to http://www.dramau.net. 

My routine is simple:

• Make sure they have full tummies!  Nothing worse than a grumbly tummy!  My girls will not sleep if they are hungry so if we had an early dinner, I'll make sure they get a light snack.
• I give them a bath that not only gives them the great aroma of lavendar but it also allows them to get some extra play time in.
• Dressing them in warm jammies is a big key to keep them sleeping.  If they get cold, they will wak up.  Footy pajamas are the best since neither one will keep a blanket on them.
• Bed time isn't complete without a good bedtime story.  I let the girls pick from the library of books they have and I read to them.
• Finally, a night light is used to give them just enough light to not be scared.

It doesn't always work but most of the time it does.  Sometimes they still need mommy time and I have to stay with them until they fall asleep.  Who doesn't mind a little extra cuddly time anyway?

Have any great tips or routines, enter yourself at TwitterMoms.com or go to www.DramaU.net.

Help St. Jude's by Purchasing Target GiftCoins

Target donates $2 of every purchase to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital® when you purchase any GiftCoin package between 11/1/09 and 12/24/09. Maximum donation of $750,000. 1-800-4STJUDE.

Give them as small gifts, rewards or prizes.

Ages 3+

Learn more about how Target supports St. Jude at Target.com/targethouse.

The names and logos of ALSAC and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital are used with their permission, which in no way constitutes an endorsement, expressed or implied, of any product or company.

Winners Announced!

Random.org was used to select all winners from eligible comment entries.  Each winner has been contacted and has 48 hours to respond with mailing information.  If a winner does not respond, random.org will be used to pick a new one.

Thanks to everyone who has entered and follow my blog.  I truly wished I had enough to give to everyone especially during Christmas.

Amazon GC - Anndancer
AMC GC - Gradschoolmommy
SmartKnit Sensitive Socks - Carol
THERAFIRM GOGO Energy to Go Review & 2 Pair Giveaway - Checkers
THERAFIRM Therapeutic Gradient Compression Hosiery - Belinda M.

Operation USO Care Package

Distributed to deploying service members, care packages may include snacks, entertainment items, toiletries, sunscreen and other items requested by troops. With a donation of $25 you can sponsor a USO care package and include a personal message of support and encouragement. To support Operation USO Care Package, click here.

The trip over to Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan is long and boring as told by my husband!  Once they get there, they could be stuck for days waiting to be processed.  Anything they get can be used and greatly appreciated!


 

3 Relatives Christmas Cheer - 11/21 - 12/5

Christmas Gift Guide

The holidays will be here before we know it and Health, Beauty, Children and Family, My So Called Homeschool Life and Baby Plus Me wants to help you celebrate with less to worry about.  We're putting together a holiday guide full of ideas, gift suggestions and giveaways.


Stay tuned as the fun will start the end of November for the giveaways but until then, you can see what we have prepared and see our sponsors.  We have more sponsors coming on board so this is just the start.  



Preparing for the holiday:

• Recipes
• Party Ideas
• Fun Activities
• Making Christmas Less Expensive
• Homemade Christmas Cheer Ideas

Gifts by Category

Children (click on the title)

Play-Doh

Baby GoGo Baby Doll & Accessories
Adorable Baby Clothing (and toys)
TamaTown by Tomagotchi
Ficklets - Eyewear Charm Huggers 
Strider Sports PREbike
Uncommonly Cute - Clothing 
Amy Adele
Klutz


Babies (click on the title)

Boudreaux's Butt Paste
Uncommonly Cute - Clothing
Amy Adele


Women (click on the title)

Lipo-in-a-Box

Fantasy Jewelry Box

Frownies (skin care)

Kohana (Hawaiian skin care)
Underology Skin Care
Go2 Bras & Panties
Ficklets Eyewear Charm Huggers 
Amy Adele


Men (click on the title)

Fantasy Jewelry Box
Frownies (skin care)

Kohana (Hawaiian skin care)
Underology Skin Care 

Everyone (click on the title)

Zuvo 150

Spin & Go Mop

Hem-Eze (easy way to hem clothes)

Check out our fine sponsors below and stay tuned for all the giveaways!

Starbucks $10 GiftCard Winner Announced

Congratulations to Kristy as she was the random.org lucky winner of the $10 Starbucks Gift Card.  Kristy has been sent an e-mail.

Thanks to everyone for entering!

Click here to see the original post: http://youthfultips.blogspot.com/2009/11/10-starbucks-gift-card-113009.html

First 25 People Get Up to $25 or Choice of Gift from American Greeting/Photoworks

American Greeting has a special for the first 20,000 people.  You can choose a free book, card pack, calendar or a $25 coupon.

I just used the $25 off one and made a free cup.  I had to pay $6.95 for shipping but it's a great deal!

Sprout Baby 33% Off Cyber Monday Discount Through Wednesday Night

From today through Wednesday evening, Sproutbaby.com, the web's leading provider of eco-friendly baby products, will offer a full 33% off everything in its store, including biodegradable diapers, organic baby foods, reusable feeding utensils, toys and much more. For all orders over $75, free shipping is included for anywhere in the continental U.S. To obtain the discount, simply enter "333" at the checkout prompt. This code will expire Wednesday evening at 12:00 p.m. midnight PST.

Sproutbaby offers a wide selection of certified, family vetted, expert approved, eco-friendly baby products at affordable prices. Given the option to choose reusable, biodegradable and nature friendly products, Sproutbaby has found a wide world of new parents who prefer green products and environmentally sustainable options to standard baby care items found in children's boutiques or the grocery store.

 

This Week's Kmart Bluelight Teasers 12/5 to 12/6

Ready for more Bluelight specials at Kmart? 

Here they are:

• All 14k gold Birthstone Baby Charms $29.99 (reg $69.99)
• Mushabellies $14.99 (reg. $24.99) 
• 4 piece table tennis table $99.99 (reg. 149.99)

All day offers:

• Saturday: Small Wonder Blankets & Wonderkids Thermals – BOGO Free 
• Sunday: Men’s 3pk Fashion Brief or 2pk Micro Knit Boxers or Musical Card Boxer $5 (reg. 9.99-12.99)

Don’t forget to follow @KmartDealsnNews and use the #KmartBLS hashtag for a chance to win every day! For more info & rules: http://tr.im/KmartBLS. Good luck!

National Military Family Association’s New Resource

As a volunteer of the National Military Family Association, here is a new press release:
ALEXANDRIA, VA – November 30, 2009 The National Military Family Association unveiled its redesigned and improved website at www.MilitaryFamily.org. Not only does the website have a fresh new look, it also reflects the most up-to-date information for military families and their supporters.

The Association’s user-friendly website serves as a valuable resource for military families, whatever their needs may be. It also allows military family supporters to learn more about the needs of the military families in their community and what they can do to help. Information on the website is organized in six subject areas: Get Info, Speak Up, Participate, Your Benefits, Our Programs, and Publications.

Get Info

Gain insight into the military lifestyle. This section is rich with information on many issues military families deal with, including mental health care, deployment, and education.

Speak Up

The Association has long been speaking out on the issues that affect military families, but we know that military families are their own best advocates. Learn more about current issues and how we can work together to influence policy-makers. We explain governmental decisions that affect military families and offer resources to help understand the impact of those decisions.

Participate

Whether visitors are part of a military family or just want to support the military families in their community, features here allow users to contribute to the Association’s mission, whether it is by becoming a member, donating to support an initiative, or joining our Volunteer Corps.

Your Benefits

Here you’ll find a military family member’s guide to understanding and navigating their benefits. In addition to general information on benefits like TRICARE, there is specific information for wounded warriors, survivors, and retirees.

Our Programs

Find out more about our Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship Program, Operation Purple® Program, and awards.

Publications

The Association produces several publications to keep our supporters and military families in the know. Learn about the Association’s research on military families and find the online versions of our various publications.

About the National Military Family Association

Military families serve our country with pride, honor, and quiet dedication. The National Military Family Association is the leading nonprofit organization committed to strengthening and protecting the families of the men and women currently serving, retired, wounded or fallen. We provide families of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Commissioned Corps of the USPHS and NOAA with information, work to get them the benefits they deserve, and offer programs that improve their lives. Our 40 years of service and accomplishments have made us a trusted resource for military families and the Nation's leaders. To learn more, visit http://www.militaryfamily.org/.

Little Skink's Tail Book Review by Janet Halfmann

This is truly a delightful book after having a chance to read it to my girls.  The illustrations are bright and colorful and the story is fun yet educational.  Little Skink takes his little audience on a journey among many different animals to find a new tail.  The way Ms. Halfmann presents Little Skink's path is interesting, playful and fun.  I like how Ms. Halfmann utilizes the story to teach children about animals and the various tails each one has.  Seeing how Little Skink and his tail are involved in this tale of pursuit is sure to captivate any child.  Laurie Allen Klein's illustrations really piece the whole story together.  I think it will also increase imagination as the children might try to imagine themselves with a different tail just as Little Skink does.

Ms. Halfmann has been writing children's books for more than 20 years.  Little Skink's Tail is her 28th book.  This book was dedicated to her granddaughter which makes it even more speical.  Ms. Halfmann used to be a manager, editor and writer of coloring and activity books for Golden Books so she has plenty of experience on what children like.

The back of Little Skink's Tail has three pages dedicated "for creative minds."  Once you purchase the book, the pages can also be photocopied or downloaded for use.

• Footprint Activity Map
• Adaptations: Why do animals have tails?
• Tail Matching Activity

Each page provided a laugh by my two year old and the six year tried to read the words she knew.  I would recommend this book to any child!  My girls loved it!

If you want more information on this book or any other book offered by Sylvan Dell Publishing, click HERE.

One newer option that I was not aware of are eBooks.  This is great for kids who do love to be on the computer as it allows them to read their favorite book right on the computer!  Click HERE for more information.  Since I had the hard book and access to the eBook for Little Skink's Tail, I was able to compare. There were no differences in the quality or ability to read and another benefit of having an eBook is it takes up less space!

Little Skink's Tail received many awards/recognition:

• 2009 Learning Magazine Teachers' Choice Award
• 2009 FPA President's Award Best Children's Book
• 2009 Mom's Choice Awards GOLD:  Best Three Children's Books of 2009, Children's Picture Book-Animal Kingdom, Educators' Choice
• 2009 Florida Recommended Summer Reading List

Sylvan Dell Publishing has many other features outside of books and gifts, they also offer resources for teachers and librarians, parents and homeschoolers and children.

I particularly loved the area for children.  There were fun learning games, activities for creative minds, teaching activities, audio books and much more!

Interested in any author signings and events, Sylvan Dell Publishing has them listed HERE.

What was the most surprising gift you've ever received?

Thinking back to what was the most surprising gift I have ever received would be a toss up.  Thanks to TwitterMoms and Target, I had to take some time to think and reflect on the answer to this one.  Being 41, I've had a lot of Christmas memories to ponder.  My earliest memory would be the arrival of a baby brother 34 years ago.  He didn't arrive on Christmas but December 23rd was pretty close!  That one big event altered the path of many lives which produced many more memories.

I could also think of many others like marrying in Hawaii three year's ago at Thanksgiving and finding out I was pregnant right around Christmas or just all the years spent with my beautiful girls.  To choose one that sticks in my mind of the most recent present, there would be two with this one coming in second with my in-laws.

I watched a grown man reduced to tears as he opened a photo book I put together by Blurb that contained the military history of his father during WWII.  I not only utilized photos he had on his father but I added the military records and photographs that related to where he was during that time period.  The inside jacket included a picture of my father-in-law with a dedication.  He was so proud of that book that he ordered multiple copies for everyone in the family to include the extended family.

Right before that, I also watched my step-mother-in-law tear up as she opened a box that had a personalized black and white photo of her and her sister as little girls talking to Santa.  I "stole" the photo from her picture blog and had it made as a surprise.  She also ended up ordering more for her family members.

I have to say the most memorable present was finding out my dad was cancer free.  He was battling an advanced stage of colon cancer. He waited too long to go in when he had the initial warning signs and symptoms so this meant aggressive treatment.  I had a boss that was so good to me and allowed me to spend most of my summer there helping out.  He had radiation and chemo therapy which followed by a surgery to remove what they could.  He was a trooper and for being 70 at that time, amazing!  He was still mowing the yard and was active. I don't know how he did it but he did.  Three years later, he was with me while my husband was deployed to Iraq and after a battery for retests, he was still cancer free.  Christmas, three year's ago, was the best!

Giving is the most special time of this season and to be able to give such a heartfelt gift is better than any gift received.

What is your most memorable time?  Enter at TwitterMoms!

My Plans for a Frugal Christmas & Holiday Ideas with TwitterMoms & Staples

I started out half the year thinking about how to be more frugal with Christmas given we have five kids and three sets of parents. I was losing track of the ways I was going to make this an inexpensive yet nice Christmas so I went to Staples, picked up a cheap handy journal to keep my lists of money making opportunities ranging from surveys, buyer advantage programs, bank debit programs and other opportunities.  TwitterMoms and Staples has put together a challenge for moms to share how they are saving money.

When I think of Staples, I always rememeber my step son taking the "That was easy" button and blasting it in my ear last year for Christmas.  Staples is another great place to pick up some of those high tech gifts or even office supplies or furnishings.  An avid printer might appreciate a big supply of cartridges.  A hopeless direction finder would love a new GPS (my sister for example)!  Not only can you get your presents but you can order wonderful personalized cards, calendars and one of my favorites, gift card holders.






Deals for Busy Moms This Holiday Season Check out This Week's Deals!

About this TwitterMoms Blogging Program

Looking for more creative ways to save money?  Zazzle, if you are creative, is a great venue for making items with no costs out of your pocket. I started in the political arena and ventured into other areas such as business cards, children's products and invitations. Not quite a year later, I've made over $2,000 which has been handy for customized photo gifts and cash. This will definitely take care of a few gifts.

My latest real time frugal Christmas deals/buys.

Customized Wine Labels:

Use these to customize and accompany the wine to explain the vintage, type and other wine maker notes:

Mypoints.com is a quick way to make points to turn into gift cards and more. If you buy a lot on the internet, definitely use this site as the points add up fast! They also offer other incentives to earn points ranging from surveys to games to referrals. The points accumulated will amount to one gift off the book for Christmas in a Macy's gift card! 

My bank offers debit card rewards so whenever we click that debit button, we add on more points. Utilize those cards especially if it's via a free account! These points will knock off two more gifts in the form of two gift cards from The Gap for those hard to buy for teens:

I'm trying the survey route as many bloggers note are worthwhile along with Swagbucks but I haven't quite got the hang of that one so I'll keep moving along as a snail's pace.

Take advantage of cosmetic type freebies if you use products such as Clinique or Lancome. They have nice free items that can add up to a nice gift basket:

My employer also provides thank you for a good job points to spend with a company in exchange for gifts.  It's been a good year and here is what I'm purchasing as gifts:

I know that one isn't necessarily fair as not everyone gets a perk such as that from their employer but it's to show an opportunity that I could spend on myself but am choosing to use towards making the holiday more frugal.

My Coke Rewards points can add up quickly if you an avid Coke fan as we are.  Thanks to TwitterMoms, I took part in an earlier opportunity where I received an additional 500 points which quickly bumped up our Coke addiction points.  Not sure what I'll purchase yet but it's looking like a $50 gift card.

This year, I will also bake to save a little from purchasing some of the higher priced YET very good baked items.  I posted previously about some really simple but elegant looking from AllYou.com.

CreativeGiftWrapping.Com has very elegant and sophisticated packaging to add the final touch to your gifts.

Have you ever noticed how many bloggers have giveaways? If you have the time, enter! There are some really nice giveaways and given the volume, you are bound to win something eventually!

Colts Won 11-0!!!!

All I can say is.....

Yeahhhhhhh!!!!!!!

Gift Card Savings at Kroger, Publix and CVS

This week, Kroger, Publix and CVS are all having gift card purchase incentives.

Kroger - 11/27 - 12/13

• Buy $100 of participating gift cards and get $10 off at the checkout with your shopper's card plus save .10 per gallon with every $50 eligible gift card purchase.

CVS - 11/29 - 12/5 

• Buy three American Express Prepaid Gift Cards and get $10 extra bucks. 
• Buy Prepaid Master Card or Visa Cards for $4.95.  Normally $9.95.

Publix - 11/29 - 12/2 

• $10 off a purchase of a $50 BP Gas Card. 
• $10 off the purchase of $50 worth of iTunes Gift Cards. 
• Free $10 Publix Gift Card with the purchase of $100 worth of American Express Gift Cards.

Good deals to save a little money for gifts or even to use yourself.