The Day After Christmas - a Blizzard!

This was the beginning of our "day after Christmas" blizzard!  We got about a foot and a half of blowing snow.  The kids played in it for a little bit in the early afternoon yesterday then decided it was too cold!  Smart kids if you ask me!  SweeTart came in and crashed for a 2 hour nap on the couch.  Needless to say, she was up most of the night.  We haven't seen, the Hubs except for spurts of an hour or two when he is trying to catch a rest.  I received an email from him earlier this morning, he is TIRED.

I'm actually still missing SweeTart as she decided to sleep in today.  Nice, right?  Actually, yes it is!  I got to shower this morning!  (Thank goodness for small favors!)  Twink is prepping to have breakfast and DinoBoy can't decide what he wants for breakfast.  I can tell you that the two kidlets that are up have decided that they will be playing outside in the snow today!  I guess that means I will be cleaning up the messes in the living room, the kitchen, drying snow clothes and making hot chocolate.  :-)  Wanna play? 

Merry Christmas!

It was a very Merry Christmas at our house this year!   Oh wait - our cable is blinking in and out and the girls are now at each other's throats and DinoBoy has been MIA since we returned from our Christmas Dinner at my SIL's house. 

But - it started out wonderfully - although DinoBoy is a Santa Skeptic, he was fantastically excited for Christmas morning and went to bed well last night. Twink?  She decided to stay up all night because she kept hearing funny noises in the house and heard Santa's sleigh bells and hohoho-ing all night long.  Which made our job all the tougher.  SweeTart decided that she didn't buy the stuff that her brother and sister were trying to sell, telling her that Santa would leave her more gifts under the tree if she slept in her own bed - she still bunked with us.  

Luckily, after a long night, the older two didn't get out of bed until just before 7 a.m.  They were so excited after peeking downstairs - SweeTart got a bike! - that they felt the need to try to wake her up.  Not even telling her she got a bike was incentive enough.  They came back down and got her a Rapunzel doll and Maximus the horse (from Tangled) to entice her out of bed so the gift opening could begin. 

All were excited with their gifts.  DinoBoy's expression was priceless when he opened his "special edition" of Xbox360 - Halo (wars?)  All of his friends told him there was no way he was getting "that."  He cannot wait to start making phone calls tomorrow.  Twink is excited about her Dsi and less than excited about her iPod but - I think the excitement will come after she gets a few things downloaded onto it.  SweeTart can't figure out what she likes the best.  She is sitting next to me now, watching Curious George on Nick, looking a little dazed and confused, holding on to her new baby Ariel doll with all she's got.  My sister gave SweeTart  a Weeble Wobble treehouse ('member those??) and some Weeble people.  Its so cute and just like I remember but bigger. 

Hubs was more than generous to me - a beautiful sunburst diamond pendant - so much for "I didn't get you much" and lots of other great stuffs!  I wish we weren't expecting two feet of snow tomorrow into Monday so I could wear my cool, new Margaritaville flops!   I will be fishing out my snow boots from the drawers in the laundry room instead.    Also made plans to return the *great* gift that I got for him - he decided that it wasn't what he wanted - not "green" enough and it's going back.  After the snow, of course. 

My family came over for our traditional brunch at 11:30.  I made our now "traditional" Celebration Strata (was originally in one of those small supermarket checkout aisle cookbooks - for Easter but it is so dang yummy!)   I was happy that my uncle brought my Grandmother over.  She is usually house bound - very, very limited mobility but she put her happy face on and shared the love our house today.  Loads of kids, happiness, screaming and crying all at once. Everyone was gone by 2:15 so that we could head to SILs.   Had a great time there too - my girls had a great time playing with my nieces who are 12 and 15 and DinoBoy had fun playing with my nephew who is just a year older than him.  Before we left, we got surprising news that another of our nephews is expecting with his girlfriend and planning a wedding.  Heard it through the grapevine so we weren't as surprised to hear that as we were to hear that my SIL and her fiance are expecting (my expectant nephew's mother.)  They're due 2 months apart.   Drama, right?  Probably at first but I guess they're all used to the facts now and it's happiness abound!   So happy for them both - can't wait for the babies to arrive safe and sound in the 2nd quarter of 2011.  (PS - a boy and a girl!)  After we all regained consciousness at the dinner table, we shared lots of stories and laughter - it was a lot of fun - a great night and a very merry Christmas!

PS - our local NBC affiliate in Philadelphia is forecasting a local "pocket" around my area of 18-24" of snow.  For real?  During Christmas vacation?  No snow day???  Come on!  I'm going to have to reschedule 5 - yes - FIVE dentist appointments that I have scheduled for Monday afternoon that are already seriously overdue?  What are the chances of my getting all five in a row (or simultaneously) again ... before Easter break?? 

eBay is so not my forte'!

Over the past few weeks, I've been listing (and even selling some) items on eBay:  Heely shoes in both girl and boy varieties that were "too big" when they were received as gifts, then too small when we decided to let the kidlets have them, an unused brand new, (they sold but weren't paid for does any one want me to overnight them to you for under your tree?), a new, unused toddler bed (that SweeTart refuses to sleep in!), a Pottery Barn Speed Boat Bed that DinoBoy outgrew (sold it right from under him) and most significantly:  the Dune Buggy! 

I've had people not pay for items, not realize that "pick up only in NJ" means that I will not ship it to Michigan, and most significantly:  a dude sent me money through PayPal for the Dune Buggy then hopped in his truck, not really knowing where he was going, to pick this Buggy up... from Wisconsin.  HELLO?  I don't care how good a deal it was or how nice the dune buggy really is ... driving from Wisconsin, blindly, then calling us from Harrisburg wanting to know if he can pick it up that night?  Um, no. 

The dude used "buy it now" to purchase the dune buggy, paypaled the $ over then I heard the distinct sound of crickets chirping when I emailed him after receiving the payment - it kind of went like this:  "dude, i received your payment for the dune buggy.  i need to make sure that you know this is a pick up only item in new jersey.  it appears you're located in Wisconsin - so i just wanted to touch base with you.  please let me know how you wish to proceed.  signed: i have your cash"  I sent this email to the Paypal email address I had for him at 6:36 a.m.  A little early in Wisconsin, I know.  At lunchtime, I still heard nothing until I get a message from my mom that dude called my house to find out my address and to see if he could pick it up before Christmas or after.  He left his number and asked that I call him back.  No problem.  I called back about an hour after he called my house. Left a nice message.  Again.  Crickets.  Four hours go by, I call the number again ... left another message "dude, just wanted to make sure you got my previous message."  Crickets.  I left work, went home, called from there - answering machine.  Again.  I didn't leave a message.  Took Twink to an eye doctor appointment.  Called dude from cell phone in the waiting room, left another message.  Hit "refresh" on my phone.  Received an email, through eBay from the dude.  Wanting to know where his item is.  For real?  It's in freaking NJ dude.  That's where it is.  

I called him immediately.  Guess what?  CRICKETS.  Answering Machine.  Left another message that went like this "are you checking your messages?  i received your email through eBay wanting to know where the item is and it is in NJ.  please call me to discuss."  I no sooner hung up that my phone refreshed, leaving me another message from this dude, again, via eBay.  This one said:  "call me at xxxxxxxxx if you do not, i will report you to eBay."  WTF?  Sorry, my hubs is trying to get me to limit my cursing but in this instance, it just slips out!!  I immediately do two things:  I respond to his email through eBay and I call said number (which is the same number I've been calling all day!!)   Guess what the response that I get is?  Yup, CRICKETS.  The dude does not answer the phone nor does he respond to my email.

We leave the doctor's office, and take DinoBoy to meet Hubs at wrestling practice.  I am fuming.  We are trying to look at the pretty Christmas lights on the way to the school.  SweeTart falls asleep and misses all of the light action.  Twink tries to keep things light when she knows I am steaming because of this "dude."  When we arrive at the school for practice, Hubs is not yet there.  I try to call the dude again.  No answer.  Left another message.  Who is this joker threatening to report me to eBay yet he doesn't respond to one email or phone message that I've left??!!!  When Hubs arrives, I tell him the saga.  He tries calling the dude and leaves a rather unpleasant message telling him that we're going to send back the money that he sent us and cancel this transaction because this is getting a bit CRAZY.  After Hubs and DinoBoy go to practice, the girls and I went home to ... call eBay to figure out how we can get rid of this psycho.  eBay can't do anything .. yet.  After 45 minutes and 2 supervisors, the best I can get out of them was to contact the dude one more time, through eBay's email and give him an entire 24 hours to respond.  If he doesn't respond or responds unfavorably, send a request. 

Move on to the next day (yesterday.)  I still hadn't heard from the dude by lunchtime.  I didn't push the matter as I really just wanted to cancel the transaction, refund his money and move on.  But, the stars were not aligned exactly as I had hoped.  In the afternoon, he again called the house - told my Mom that his phone had died yesterday (no apologies or anything) and indicated he was in Harrisburg, PA and wanted to know if he could pick the dune buggy up that evening.  What?  He went from "contact me or else" to "i'm driving halfway across the country and want to come to visit you?"  Hubs called him back this time and told him that he could pick up the dune buggy from his shop instead of at our house.  Who knows what kind of weirdo this guy is, right?  Why give him access to us at home.  He tells him the address and tells him he can pick it up at 9:00 a.m.  The guy calls back and wants to pick it up earlier - so he tells him it can be picked up at 7 a.m.: take it or leave it.  This is all before 5:00 when Twink needs to be at practice.

Fastfoward to 7:45 p.m. - the phone rings and it is the dude!!!!  WTF - oh no - I cursed again.  When I answered the phone he tells me that he is a little lost but close by.  He proceeds to tell me that he is in a strip mall with a pizza place and is going to spend the night there.  WTF?  (that makes three for this post!)  About 8 miles down the road is a rinky dink motel that the dude can stay at.  What is the name of the pizza joint again?  I have never  heard of it.  I pass the phone to Hubs who wants no part of it!  Ha!  He has no idea where the pizza joint is either and we try to look it up on the internet.  Can't find it anywhere close by (or far away for that matter either!)  Hubs gives him the address of his shop again and determines that he has gone too far south and is probably by Rowan University .. and tells him he'll see him in the morning.

Bright and early this morning, the dude shows up at Hubs' shop.  without a trailer.  He assumed he would be able to throw the dune buggy in the back of his truck and continue on his merry way back to Wisconsin.  Unfortunately, the dune buggy is at least as wide of his truck and much longer than the length of the bed as well.  Now he has to figure out how to rent a trailer.  Luckily for him, there is a Uhaul that has trailer rentals down the street from the shop.  They have to wait 2 hours for the store to open!  He must have gone to the local diner or something - I can't imagine Hubs trying to run his business get his guys out and babysit this dude too!

My story ends with the dude renting a box trailer, having to take the wheels and rear fenders off of the buggy to get it into the trailer.  He didn't want to take the front fenders off - so one of those cracked shoving it into the trailer - (you already bought it buddy!)  And, he's very happy with the deal he got and is well on his way back to Wisconsin as we speak. 

The moral of the story?  If you sell on eBay, do not have your home phone number in your account information .. use your cell phone number.  Once you have a transaction started with someone they can request your information and eBay will automatically send them your name, email address and phone number.  If you have your home phone number on file, the weirdos in the world can do a reverse look up and find you online - they might be able to find you anyway but this just facilitates the process.  Also, if you are expecting to be paid, only sell to users that have a Paypal account and that have had positive feedback.  In my case, dude had a Paypal account but just joined eBay on Sunday!  Zero feedback! 

I have definitely made the suggested changes to my account.  I so do not need any extra drama in my life these days!  But it does make a good story!!  :-)

Our Celia's Journey Winner is ...

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Abitosunshine said .... following on Twitter @abitosunshine!  I'm emailing you now - please respond asap so that we can get the book out to you asap!
 
Thank you to all who entered! 
 

Celia's Journey: A Review and Book Giveaway

I have just finished reading a fabulous book, Celia's Journey, the debut novel for author Heather Muzik.   I am fascinated by the book.  It was done in an alternating person narration so we get to hear from several different main characters, and their take on all of the trials and tribulations they all experienced during the timeframe of their story.  It is set in "regular" America - never giving a location - it could be set in my backyard.   This family's story could be my story, your story or the story of the new family on the block.  It reaches out and grabs you from the first chapter and doesn't let you go until Celia's Journey is over .... or is it just beginning?  The only spoiler I will give is that you will need tissues while reading this book!

About Celia's Journey  .....

 ... How long does it take to upend and then transform a family?  To lose yourself and those you most cherish, then redefine yourself - your purpose - your unit? 

 ... In our case it was a journey of 39 weeks.  A journey that began before we even knew it had begun.  It started with a tiny spark of life and grew through death, grief, guilt, despair, frustration, fear, hope, healing and intense love; until we learned to laugh and rejoice and trust that life was worth living again ...

I thoroughly enjoyed Celia's Journey and am happy to let you know that there are three copies of this book to be given away. One via my blog and two via Facebook through the Celia's Journey page.

Let's get to the nitty gritty on my giveaway. The only thing you need to do to enter is be my follower (public follower) via Google Friend Connect and leave a comment letting me know.  Extra entries (not necessary to win, simply increase your odds of winning) are also being offered as follows (remember to leave your email address in your comment or be able to be contacted via GFC so that I don't have to "find" you):

• Follow CeliasJourney on Twitter and leave me a comment letting me know (one entry)
• Tweet about this giveaway and leave me a comment letting me know with your Twitter name (tweet once daily for one extra entry daily)
• Facebook about this giveaway (one entry per day)
• Friend Celia's Journey on facebook then leave me a comment letting me know (one entry) (let her know I sent you!)
• Blog about this entry (three entries per blog post) (leave three comments with the link to your post)

My contest will close at 11:59 p.m. EST Sunday, 12/19/10.  The winner will be picked via random.org and notified on Monday, 12/20/10.  The winner will have 48 hours to email me their particulars (real name, address, etc.)  If no answer from the original winner, I will move on to pick another winner - my object is to get this book to you for your own little "holiday" gift.  :-)  And, if you're not my winner, maybe you will be lucky enough to win a copy right from Heather Muzik on Facebook (details are below)  Otherwise, this wonderful book is available currently at Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com (click on the "other sellers" to get a signed, less expensive copy) and a Kindle edition of the book is currently in the works and will be appearing soon!

There are two copies of the book that are going to be given away by the author herself.  The contest will be open through the weekend as well.  Like "Celia's Journey" on facebook and refer your friends to "like" the page as well.  Once you "like" the page and are able to write on the wall, post a comment telling Heather who referred you there.  Have your friends do the same.  The person who has the most referrals on the page will win their very own copy of Celia's Journey.  The winner of the 2nd book is a little trickier - that person will be the first person who confirmed that the winner sent them to Friends of Celia's page.  Get it? If not, leave me a comment and I'll explain it further. 

You can learn more about Heather Muzik at her website, http://www.heathermuzik.com/. 

I think it is leaning ...

a book review and giveaway next week!

Stay tuned ... I am currently awaiting my very own, signed copy of:



Celia's Journey

After I receive it, I will be reading an actual, real, paper based book - not Kindle Edition (which is in the works but not available yet!)  Then I will post a review and host a giveaway for your very own, first edition, signed copy of Celia's Journey by Heather Muzik.  This is very exciting stuff!  I cannot wait to get it! 

The Inevitable ...

One of our favorite movies to watch together is The Polar Express.  I love the animation, Tom Hanks and the story line in general ... the magic of Christmas lies in your heart....

In the middle of all of our Christmas madness and just returning from an exhausting trip to Walt Disney World with three kids ages 9, 8 and 2 and my mom, I realized how quickly I lose sight of the magic and the spirit of Christmas.  Not to worry, I'm back in the spirit, having ditched my "bah humbug" attitude when I pulled up to my beautifully decorated home.  It was secretly decorated (on the outside) while I was at work!  The lights are beautiful! They are not only adorning the roof of the house this year, like they have in years past, but on trees and ornamental shrubs/trees, our three dormers and there are even wreaths on each of the windows in the dormers and on our front door.  It is spectacular!  I have a lot of work to do on the inside this weekend, but I'm sure I'll never get the inside as beautiful as the outside! 

The title of my blog post today is: The Inevitable.  DinoBoy and I have had talks about Santa over the years.  To me, it's all the same.  Santa is in our hearts.  He is now 9 ~ and in the 4th grade ~ I knew it was coming but I still haven't admitted it.  He has been in class with boys of the Jewish faith who do not celebrate Christmas, so we've had the "Santa talk" before - if you don't believe, you don't receive.  Hence, his Jewish friend receives no gifts on Christmas.  DinoBoy just told me that there is a boy on his bus, I'll call him ... Bruce ... who is a "non-believer."  I guess he needed to tell me that because we're watching the Polar Express.  I told him again - Christmas is in your heart and if you don't believe, you don't receive. 

We also celebrate Jesus' birth and the spiritual side of Christmas.  All three kidlets have their own nativity sets which come out around now - although SweeTart has been playing with hers throughout the year.  They are respectful about their gifts, as much as any kid can be, I guess and donate to those who have less. 

Do your children celebrate the Magic of Christmas with Santa? 

Guess this post is all over the place ... it's all good ... it's my blog, right? 



Thankful ... a bit late ...

I am thankful for ....

• a wonderful, fantabulous hubs!
• Dinoboy, our boy who likes to delegate to get things done;
• Twinkletoes, our first girl, who reminds us everyday to pay attention;
• SweeTart, our newest kidlet, who gives us a run for our money every day;
• my family and friends, near and far, who help to keep me sane (if this is what sane is);
• our doggies, who catch tears and listen to secrets and dreams;
• food on our table and a roof above our head (and all the stuff under that roof!);
• our health;
• many, many other things but too numerous to mention in a blogpost. 

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."


— Maya Angelou

wordless wednesday - fun stuff

Post It Note Tuesday

Our Cute Kid!

To heck with Thecutekid.com!  We're entering a contest for over $500 worth of prizes for a Cute Kid contest sponsored by Freckles and Fudge and Unexpected Surprises.

SweeTart is such a blessing in our lives, coming 6 years behind her sister and 7 years behind her brother, we forgot what it was like to be parents of a toddler.  She has a great personality, is very nuturing with other children if they are having problems (i.e. joining gymnastics class without their parent, have fallen down and no adult has run to thier aid, etc.) and she is a Scooby Doo lover!  She is wise beyond her years, speaks as if she were 5 (except when she says smells and it sounds like "fells")  She loves her brother and sister and her two doggies equally.  She enjoys going to Petsmart to purchase the crickets for Yoda and seeing all the other animals while she is there.  She participates in gymnastics class weekly and will show off to you, all you need to do is ask! If she didn't insist on sleeping with Hubs and me every night I might say she is the BEST TODDLER ON THE PLANET.  Of course, she is very strong-willed and opinionated as well, having sent, among other peeps, me to the time out chair for not doing exactly as she asked.  Even on the most stressful days, pushing her on the swing while she sings Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Mary had a Little Lamb or Itsy Bitsy Spider, can bring a smile to my face, and even more importantly, my heart.    If you think SweeTart is the cutest kid around, vote for her by clicking HERE. 


Special thanks to Daniel Pullen Photography and Michele Borton Photography for the photos of SweeTart.  If you're ever in the OBX, look Daniel up or in the Reading PA area, give Michele a shout! Thanks to you both for great shots of our SweeTart!

Wordless Wednesday - Halloween Style

I'm a winner!

Can you believe it?  I entered a contest over at Debbie Does Dinner ... Healthy & Low Calorie  (which is a great site and I LOVE her recipes!!!) for the Once A Month Mom holiday ebook and I WON  my very own copy of the Ebook.  I cannot wait til it arrives!!  So excited.  If you're looking to get your own copy of the OAMM Holiday ebook, click on the pretty picture right up there and it will take you to the order form! The price of this eCookbook is $9.99. (Through November 1st it is on sale for $5.99 (40% off) when you use coupon code OAMM40!) It has recipe cards for the these great recipes: ◦Veggie Pizza, ◦Pumpkin Cheeseball, ◦Scalloped Corn, ◦Freezer Mashed Potatoes, ◦Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes, ◦Slow Cooker Stuffing, ◦Make Ahead Butterhorn Rolls, ◦Turkey Baste, ◦Cranberry Mustard Ham Glaze, ◦Pumpkin Pie, and, last but not least, ◦Caramel Apple Pie Trifle.  Four of these recipes cannot be found elsewhere on the OAMM site.  YUM!  I am so excited!! (Did I already say that??) Thanks girls!!!  You definitely have a winner who is appreciating this more than you know (or can you tell?)

Do you want to hear the rest of my boring story for the day yesterday?  Winning the Ebook really puts things in a different perspective for me today because yesterday ... well, it sucked.  I had a crappy afternoon at work because I didn't triple check my work and double cross my T's ... then when I got home, we realized that Twink's cool witch costume became an enchanted costume and magically disappeared.  SweeTart had a 5:45 doctor's appointment for a flu shot, Twink had to be dropped at gymnastics by 6:30 and I had 2 hours before she needed to be picked up to find the stupid costume.  At 7:30, I decided that I needed to get her a new costume.  I didn't have enough time to get all the way to JoAnn's to get the costume that she already had so Hubs suggested I go to ... Walmart.  Ewwww.  I have to confess that I hate Walmart.  I hate the store, I hate the confusion and most of all I hate the crazies that are in Walmart and last night, I found myself in the midst of one of the places I despise most. 

It took me forever to even find the Halloween section of the store.  Instead of being right where I would put it if I were a Walmart manager (as soon as you walk in the front door,) it was all the way to the far left (but still in front) of the store, over by the gardening section .. which would be great if I needed POTTING SOIL.   The way I figure it, Halloween is for kidlets although the parents do the purchasing.  If the Halloween stuff isn't directly in front of my face when I walk in the door, I expect it to be in or near the kidlet section.  So, long story short, I traversed the entire store looking for the crazy Halloween section.  I then proceeded to pick through the costumes which where strewn every which way looking for a "green witch" costume.  Purple witches, rainbow witches, light up witches - yep, I found them.  I wound up getting her a "sparkle" witch, fishnet stockings and a 30 inch black wig with green at the very front of the wig...all this was done in 21 minutes....then to wait in the LINE.  Express checkout at Walmart is so not express at all.  The bottom line is:  Twink is okay with her costume,  I got to the gym on time to pick her up and, if the missing green witch costume shows up within the next 360 days, we definitely know what she'll be for Halloween 2011.

Bring on the weekend!  Hope you have a wonderful one!

Wordless Wednesday on a Thursday!

On my way to work ....

Dear Diary

Dear Diary,

I need to know:  How do stay at home mom's do it?  I was home yesterday with SweeTart.  I know I should have showered at my normal time but didn't - before I knew it, SweeTart was awake, it was time to get the school bound kidlets out of bed and ready for their day.  Then ... SweeTart and I took a ride to JoAnn's to get stuff that we need for the guests we're expecting to come Trick or Treat with us on Sunday.  Then ...  a quick trip to Costco to use the gift membership we redeemed over a month ago.  Then ... home to try to get the girlie girl to take a nap.  Saw Hubs for a few minutes while he stopped home to grab lunch, spoke to him about Twink's need for glasses and going to order them when she got home from school ... sat with SweeTart for a few minutes trying to get her to settle down and relax for a nap ... took a ride to a separate store to get salad stuffs because we don't need as much as Costco was offering (plus there was someone in my way @ the store and I couldn't get down a few aisles) ... chatted with a friend for a few minutes in the store while SweeTart was running around like a crazy woman ... finally convinced her to get into the back of the cart and only got her to sit by telling her if the monsters couldn't see her above the cart, they couldn't "get" her ... went home ... got the kids off the bus ... assessed the homework situation ... packed everyone up to go to pick out frames for Twink's glasses (WAIT ...guess who is now asleep on the couch??) ...carried sleeping SweeTart to the car only to find that Twink is no where to be found because she is upstairs crying because I reprimanded her for having an "oops notice" (forgot her homework) ... in our house, we have been stressing over the kidlets being responsible for their schoolwork ... ok, get her in the car, pick out the glasses (calling the girls out of gymnastics on our way,) text SIL to see if she can cut the kidlets hair at her house which is right around the block from the eye doctor's office ... get DinoBoy and Twink a hair cut ... catch up on some of the family gossip that I generally don't hear because it breaks my heart that they just can't freaking get along! ... went home, pulled homework back out, tried to get something on TV to appease SweeTart, started dinner ... I am exhausted thinking about it. 

Luckily, my Prince Charming came to my rescue and came home from work.  After biting his tounge about me forgetting to take the guacamole out of the freezer, he helped and he cleaned up 100% while I helped Twink with her language arts homework.   I am not quite sure where I lost control, I think it was somewhere between SweeTart trying to color on the computer screen or Twink whining over something that I cannot even recall but I totally lost my cool at 8:10 p.m.  That would be when I sent Twink to her room to do her 20 minutes of reading, until her bedtime at 8:30. She had definitely done something to piss me off then told me "no" when I told her to go to her room to read - she kept coming back at me with she would go up at 8:30 when it was time for her to go to bed.  Really?  She is 8.  I thought I told my kids when to go to bed?  No worries, Prince Charming took care of that too.  Somehow, we managed to get SweeTart upstairs (amid her telling everyone they're meanies and they're going to get a time out) and into bed.  Our bed.  Again.  Not just because she has stuff all over her new toddler bed from me cleaning out the closet but because she HATES her toddler bed and refuses to sleep in it. 

Super Nanny was back in action this morning at our house - we missed her yesterday and hope that loverboy gets out of the hosptial soon!!  We need her tons more than she needs us!!

Anyway, my back hurts, my Hubs is tired of sleeping with the 2 y.o. as much as I am so any advice, Dear Diary, is most appreciated. 

Hugs,

Surprising Way to a Stronger Marriage

My Review of The Surprising Way to a Stronger Marriage by Michael and Amy Smalley

Well, this is my first ever, "eh, it was okay" book review.  Don't get me wrong:  this book has tons of fabulous advice and tips on how you, individually, can work to make your marriage stronger.  While relevant in marriage, a lot of these tips can be used in everyday life as well - i.e. dealing with children.  It just isn't a book that I will be running to recommend to all of my friends if their marriage is not in crisis.  If it is, I will surely recommend if they ask my opinion at all. 

This book wants you to work on the items you know you are lacking:  confidence, patience, and motivation, to touch on a few pointed out.   Basically, the book is telling you to make yourself better by working on items (the ones mentioned are the ones I know I am falling short in) and by feeling better about yourself, you will present yourself differently into the marriage and it will improve (or stay good.) 

Also, I am a Christian, but maybe not as devout as the authors are.  Much of the Scripture quoted makes perfect and relevant sense within their text but I am unable to "leave my problems with God" and not dwell on them.  It is one of the ways I am not, nor is anyone else (as also pointed out in the book,) perfect. 

There was a quirky way in which this book was written where they pointed out who was speaking in parenthesis.  I think that maybe they should have prefaced each area of thought i.e. "Amy's thoughts are ..." etc.  This could have led to further confusion but each time I hit a parenthesis, I would have to stop, reread the line and try to apply it to that author. 

All in all, it was a good book filled with great advice, including the Golden Rule "Do onto others as you'd have done to you."   If you are suffering any type of marital woes, this book will coach you through looking within yourself for the answers instead of blaming your spouse. 

*A free copy of this book was provided to me by Tyndale Publishers who asked only for my honest opinion and did not require me to produce a positive review.*

Wordless Wednesday - FUN!

How to really scare your coworkers in two easy steps.

1) Give blood in the school blood drive.

2) Begin to pass out at your desk over an hour after you've donated and already had lunch ...

My luck, I work in an office within a high school.  Really, this is lucky!  I share an office with 5 other great women.  We were celebrating boss' day with our boss - kind of - we had lunch that we all at at our desks (boss in his office at his desk) because of conference room has been taken over by our auditors.  They were supposed to be here for 2 weeks and we're entering our third week. 

I donated blood on Monday morning in the school at a drive sponsored by one of the student council groups.  (I am not 100% sure which one!) I breezed through (STOP RIGHT HERE: this is where we should have known something was bound to happen since the last few times I've tried to give blood, they've either deferred me for iron or gone right through one of my veins.)  All was fine - I was finished in record time for me - by 11:40 which meant that I could still have lunch and all that other fun stuff.  Fast forward to a little after 1:00, I could feel myself getting faint and knew that I was pale but didn't want to scare anyone so I just grabbed onto my desk and tried to gain control.  Unfortunately, this was at the same time someone was trying to share a brownie with me. She noticed something was terribly wrong.  I could hear her telling me that I was as white as a ghost and telling me to take my sweater off (it is cold in our office - all the time!) then I heard her telling someone to go get help - (thank goodness they didn't call 911, I am embarrassed enough as it is!)  Seconds later, I was being whisked down to the nurses office in a wheelchair (by this time I felt better.)   The friend pushing me was the EMT and she was yelling "outta the way - broken leg - coming through"  -- thanks for making me laugh Donna!

After getting OJ in the nurse's office, and a bottle of water I was feeling much, much, much better.  Then the nurse had me put my feet on the incline so that blood would leave my legs and get into the parts where it was needed.  Sorry to say this was the key to unlocking my sinuses which I try very hard to keep in check.  By the time I was finished at the nurse's office, my nose was running like a spigot.  (TMI, I know.)  It proceeded to do so for the next .... heck, it still is and I'm getting ready to go to work (the next day.) 

I still don't know what caused this weird reaction!  I have given at least 15 pints of blood since I was 18.  Not a lot considering I can donate whole blood once every 56 days.  I've even done pheresis on a few different occasions as well. 

But - I am thankful to have great coworkers who took excellent care of me.  When I got back to my desk after this fun incident, the girls told me that I looked much better and had color in my face.  Don't tell them, but I think my face might stay this pink for a while because I'm so embarrassed!!

My Love/Hate Relationships

After doing a very stupid thing yesterday, I thought that I would outline my most frequented love/hate relationships before telling about how I screwed up majorly ....

• Exercise:  This kind of speaks for itself, doesn't it?
• Inlaws: (I love to call them outlaws)  There are many that we love ... many that we ... okay - hate is a strong word .... disagree with often. 
• Drama: that the outlaws thrive on.
• Calliou:  love that SweeTart LOVES him - hate his voice!!!
• Fantasy Sports: Love that my hubs loves to play each and every fantasy sport he can; hate when he makes bad calls and loses!
• Kids who don't listen: okay, this is mostly a hate relationship but I do love my kids!
• Clutter:  Love to feel surrounded by my stuff; hate that I am overrun by it!! 
• my IPHONE:  This is where we come into the bit about my stupidity.

When I got my new Iphone I was thinking of myself as being very cutting-edge and since I don't have my "own" Ipod, I was killing two birds with one stone.  I needed a new phone but wanted an ipod.  I debated and went back and forth - I had pro lists and I had con lists.  When my other phone took a crap and started acting funny, I went ahead and ordered my Iphone. 

I had done my homework.   I priced, repriced, researched and gathered knowledge.  I found out that I could use Hubs' ipod and have a "home" account for us.  I could have all that was on his ipod plus so much more! 

I have had the phone for about 2 months.  Yesterday, because we had some time to kill after breakfast but before the birthday party we were going to, I decided it was finally time to get Tunes on my Iphone.  I hooked it up, I tried to sync but I needed to make a choice, set up new or restore from Hubs' iphone.  Sounded like a silly question.  I don't want a new account - I want what he has:  RESTORE.  A warning came up - are you sure?  Yes, silly, I am sure.  CLICK.  In one swift click of my finger, all of my apps, videos and photos went into CYBERSPACE and are subsequently ... GONE.  The cute pictures I took of the kids outside last week?  Gone.  The wonderful video I took of SweeTart singing "itsy bitsy spider" and yelling at her grandmom to "go home" in the middle of it?  Gone.  All fo the great pictures I took when Hubs and I were in Disney a few weeks ago?  Hasta Lavista - GONE. 

Now, of course, I didn't notice this right away which makes it all the worse ... a better building block for proving my stupidity yesterday.  When I logged into FB on my phone I was scrolling through statuses and I even asked Hubs, why am I seeing so and so's status, I am not friends with them?  (He is.)  Oh, look, I am logged into your account.  (This came when I "restored" from the Ipod since his Ipod is linked to his FB account.)  I logged out and logged back in.  Ahh, better.  My friends.  Welcome back. 

Hours later, same scenario, different account.  This time it was Yahoo that I was concerned about.  Where is the last email from my sister that I was looking for?  Not here - wait - none of my emails were around.  Again, log out from Hubs account, log into my own.  Another sigh of relief.  Next, reload Scrabble and Lexolous so that I can continue my games. 

Wait, I got a missed call from one of my best friends while we were out.  Why didn't her name come up?  Oh jinkes, my contact list is GONE.  Absolutely LOVELY. 

After going to two different parties and deciding we were too tired to cook, we ordered take out and I went to get it while Hubs was sitting with SweeTart watching the boob tube.  Wait, first let me grab my phone so that I can transfer all of these cool tunes from the Ipod into the hard drive on the van.  I grabbed the necessary USB cable,  my purse and the phone and headed outside.  Only to discover that there are NO TUNES on my phone.  I still have no idea how this happened. 

I won't have time tonight to figure out what happened. Not tomorrow night either.  Maybe Wednesday?  Do any of you know how this happened???  Maybe I should have done a little more research or goodness forbid, read an instruction manual!  

Wordless Wednesday

SweeTart & Guinness:  zzzzzzzzzzzz

Visit the Wordless Wednesday linky  and this one too for more particpants. :-)

The Last Play @ Shea

Info on the Last Play @ Shea Stadium is too good to pass up.  Click here to get info for when you can see in a theatre near you. 

Our Escape to Old Key West (9/29/10 - 10/2/10)

- Our Cast of Characters: Me and Hubs, most recent trip in 2009 with 2 out of 3 kidlets, newbie DVC members - this was a quick get away to burn "bonus" points about to expire plus experience the magic on our own!

- Our Journey: AirTran flights (upgraded to first class for $69 each/flight!! wahoo!) PHL to MCO - both flights 7:30 a.m. flights putting at our destination, including Magical Express, by noon.

- Our Lodging: One Bedroom Villa in Turtle Creek section of OKW. It was HUGE. We certainly can get away with a one bedroom for our family of 5 - the girls can sleep on the pull out couch and our son on the pull out chair! Way too much room for the two of us!!

- Our Special Plans: trip to celebrate our 11th Anniversary which was in May - wanted to rent a car to visit an old friend living nearby and also visit Epcot to do Soarin' (because we weren't able to ride on previous trip) and the 15th Food and Wine Festival!

We thought that with all of the activity in the Gulf and the Caribbean our first day, Wednesday, Sept. 29th would be rainy and a great day to do nothing ... We weren't able to check in when we arrived around noon as our room wasn't ready yet but we dropped our bags with bell services and took the boat over to Downtown Disney to grab lunch and kill some time til our room was ready. (can you believe they send you a text message when it's ready? now that is coolness!) We lunched at TRex Cafe - we were able to walk in because it was just 11:30 and they were just opening. We had a great lunch and had way too much food for the two of us! Hubs had the appetizer sampler, with a side of ribs and I had the chicken pita with fries. I helped him eat his and I couldn't finish mine. We didn't get "doggie bags" because we didn't know when our room would be ready. If you're not on Disney Dining and are DVC, don't forget to ask for your discount! After lunch we shopped and waited ... and shopped ... and waited. LOL. Our room wasn't ready til almost 4 o'clock which is okay because that is the check in time at OKW.

After we were in our room, it was a little challenging to get all of our stuff up to us. The Bell People who were working at 4:00 weren't the same ones who where there at 11:30 and didn't know that we had * carry on bags, *grocery delivery, *one checked bag from DME, and *one purple locker that all needed to get to us. We had bell services to us three different times just to get all of our stuff. Again, not a big deal but .... tipping was getting a little out of control. LOL.

Dinner Wednesday night was at Raglan Road, DTD. (HEY - it never rained on Wednesday for us! How great was that??) Raglan Road was fantastic! Hubs had the prime rib (bone in) special -- ordered medium. (If you like your steak mooing, this is how you want to order it, otherwise, order it medium well so it isn't talking to you from the plate.) I had the pork loin stuffed with sausage. They were both fabulous meals. The Sangria rocked(!) and he had a beer. The Irish Dancers that were performing that night were great and fun to watch. We watched a little girl sitting behind us doing her Irish dance - I can only imagine our little one would have been doing the same thing. *note to self: make sure we bring the kidlets here in December!! It was a lot of fun!* Hung out at DTD, watching a guy play guitar while we were sipping Margaritas across from the SoundStage ... now that is cool!! We were cracking up at all of the people getting scared off by the "statutes."

Thursday, we got a shuttle from the Hospitality House to the Car Care center where we rented a convertible (please don't rain) for the day to go visit one of Hubs' friends. Renting the car was painless, GPS on our cell phones was priceless, too bad we didn't know about all of the tolls on the Florida roads. Holy cow! We can never complain about Jersey tolls again!! Luckily I had enough loose change in my purse to get us to our destination. Lunched with an old friend at Macaroni Grill, quick stop at Target to get stuff for our Purple Locker, then we were going to try to find Margaritaville Orlando for a visit and shopping.

Our GPS took us to a corner on Universal Boulevard and left us there. "You have reached your destination on your right." WHAT? We actually would have had to park the car in a parking garage, walk across a ... bridge ... I can't think of a better word for it right now ... then into a complex which we couldn't really see from the road to get there. So, we canned it. LOL We wanted to get the car back early and we had reservations that evening at House of Blues, DTD. We got a 10% discount for returning the car early which negated their special 10% tax for land recovery something or other. It was definitely worth it though, renting the car and visiting our friend!

Dinner at House of Blues was great. We got to see the sun go down by the water and enjoyed the music while we ate. I asked the waiter for his drink recommendation, which was a Gator Bite. Sweet, but good. Hubs had the ribs while I had a steak. Delicious. Too full from drinks, salad and dinner to try dessert. Hung out by the SoundStage again after dinner and shopping. HoB - another place to use your DVC discount for food and purchases in the store.

Around lunchtime on Friday, we headed over to Epcot. We got in line for Soarin' first since we weren't able to get on the ride in 2009. It was a 40 minute stand-by time and the wait time was right on. The ride was about 7 minutes long and I definitely want to do it again!!! I have already told the kidlets that is on our "to do" list for December!

After Soarin', we headed over to the Food & Wine Festival. The Mexico pavilion was our first stop. Hubs had a Dos Xs beer and I had a frozen pomegranate margarita. The margarita was delicious! We passed many other places, but stopped in Norway to ride Malestrom. Different. Not what I was expecting but fun! We'll take the kids back here in December too. On to Germany!! At the pavilion, Hubs had the trio of beers. After finishing those, we had an ADR for lunch at Beirgarten. Lunch was awesome. The German girls who worked at the hostess table and the actual hostess who showed us to our table were smiley and spoke heavily accented WAY.TOO.FAST. LOL. Lunch rocked! We saw the tail end of a show then were able to share our Soarin' fast passes with a couple at our table who didn't have fast passes, but their friends did. We weren't going to make it back over there by the time on our fastpasses, so we might as well spread the love, right?? Hubs was surprised when he came back from the men's room and I had ordered him a beer - a Liter of Beer. They even give plastic cups to go if you can't finish it with your lunch. We'd definitely go here again but I don't know that my kids would dig it. They're not very adventurous when it comes to eating different things.

We headed to Morocco where I got a Henna Tattoo. We saw the belly dancers there too (and Jasmine and Alladin). On our way out, we stopped at the New Zeland pavilion for a lamb slider and a glass of chardonnay (SWEET!) then detoured after shopping for gifts for the kids at the Mexico pavilion for another round of margaritas. We went over to Test Track but the standby line was pretty long and fast passes were pretty far in the future too so we headed back to OKW. A quick bite to eat at Olivia's then back to pack.

Our flight out was at 7:30 a.m. so the DME was picking us up at 4:20 am at the Hospitality House. We were able to schedule with Bell Services (early in the day on Friday) a pick up for us and our luggage at 4:00 a.m. so we didn't have to walk so far sleepy and in the dark. Nice!! Return flight was uneventful and if you must know, we forgot where we parked our car at PHL and spent 1/2 hour looking for it. A few people giggled at us as I'm sure I would have if I were them. Definitely putting that info in the cell phone when we head back down in December with the kidlets!

 

Crappiness and Minnie Mouse

Day three of feeling like crap!  Oh, please, please, please let me get better -- soon!! 

I just got an text message from my SIL, KW, reminding me that preschool class pictures are ... tomorrow!  I could have played it off like I remembered because it is, after all, text messaging.  But I gave myself up, told her I completely forgot and I would make sure that she was bathed tonight.  (Of course she will be bathed tonight, she has gymnastics - duh!)  I am a crappy mom. 

But my mom just made me laugh.  I called her to remind her that SweeTart's preschool pictures were tomorrow (Tuesday is a regular school day for SweeTart.)  She remembered (dammit. she is showing me up was my first thought) but she only remembered because the preschool posted it on their Facebook page.  Gotta love Facebook.  It gets better.  She asked me what I wanted SweeTart to wear for her pictures ... hmmmmmm ... maybe Minnie Mouse (meaning one of the new Minnie Mouse outfits that we got a great deal on @ Walmart a few weeks ago).  Mom's reponse "for class pictures???"  I think the woman is totally off her rocker because we just got at least three great outfits with Minnie on them.  Then I realize she thinks I want her dressed as Minnie Mouse.  Oh my.  That costume was from when Twink was not even six months old.  That will so not fit SweeTart's body at 2 1/2. 

Short Week - woot woot!

Even though I have a terrible head cold, I am looking foward to a 2 day work week and a 3 day escape with Hubs!!  Woot..woot!!!  We are heading to the Sunshine State sans kidlets and will be attending the Disney Food & Wine Festival at Epcot after visiting with friends.  It couldn't have worked out better, the kidlets won't be missing practices while were gone and our flight comes in on Saturday morning early enough that we'll be home in time to take DinoBoy to his game on Saturday in the early afternoon.  A LOUD shout out to my Mom who is taking charge of the kidlets, dogs and Yoda while we're gone.  I'm pretty sure, although SweeTart will be in school for 1/2 day Wednesday and Thursday that all will run smoothly.  

Am I packed?  For any other trip, I'd probably be packed x2 by now.  Yesterday morning I woke with a head cold *eeewww*.  Last night while Hubs was at the Alice in Chains concert, I thought my head might blow off of my shoulders from all of the sinus pressure.  Funny this:  the older kidlets must have seen how terrible I felt and *got along* while watching the boob tube and camping out on the couch while SweeTart and I were in bed watching Scooby Doo upstairs.  It was a tremendous relief to not have to worry about them scratching each others eyes out while SweeTart and I rested. 

Tomorrow is a busy night with the girls having dueling gymnastics practice and DinoBoy having an away game.  Since we had pizza tonight and McDonald's last night I might actually have to figure out a good meal to feed them all before they leave for their activities.  I guess my packing will be last minute, on Tuesday night ... and that being said, we know that I will forget something important.  But - it's Florida, not a 3rd world country right??  I should be able to get anything I forget there ..... should. 

Have a fabulous week!!  I'll give Mickey a kiss from you!

Visit the Roaring 20’s with Julie Lessman in the Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway!

It's a Giveaway Extravaganza! Kindle Giveaway, Facebook Party and Book Bomb - OH MY!

Visit the Roaring 20’s with Julie Lessman in the Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway! Julie’s latest series has just ‘shimmied’ it’s way onto the scene with book 1 in The Winds of Change series, A Hope Undaunted! 

Find out more about the book, Julie here.

Enter The Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway!

One Grand Prize winner will receive a KINDLE preloaded with Julie Lessman's latest title. The Prize Pack (valued at over $150.00) includes:

* A brand new KINDLE, with Wi-Fi

* A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman

To enter, simply click on the icons below to fill out the entry form and be sure to tell your friends about the contest.

Oh, and enter soon! Winner will be announced on October 7th.

Not only is Julie hosting the fabulous KINDLE giveaway, but also a FACEBOOK  PARTY and a BOOK BOMB!!!
Are you ready for PRIZES GALORE??? Then come to the Facebook Party!

How does a gift certificate and a signed book given away EVERY 10 minutes during an hour-long Facebook party sound? (Yeah, we think it sounds pretty great too!) On October 7th at 5pm PST (6:00 MST, 7:00 CST, & 8:00 EST) Julie is inviting you to attend the A Hope Undaunted Facebook Party! She'll announce the winner of the KINDLE and in addition to the prizes every 10 minutes, she'll also be giving away great prize baskets filled with even more Romance and Technology (Netflix, Starbucks, Amazon.com, Champagne body Lotion, Pearls, & more!)!

BUT WAIT … there’s more (and no, this is not an infomercial … it’s WAY better!).  If you participate in the Book Bomb on October 7th you’ll be entered to win a $50 gift certificate to Amazon.com. All you need to do to participate is buy a copy of A Hope Undaunted on October 7th and send your receipt (just transaction number from store, store name & date) to mailto:amy@litfusegroup.com?subject=I%20bought%20a%20copy%20of%20A%20Hope%20Undaunted%21! Each book purchased equals one entry, buy 10 books get 10 entries!

All this fun begins with Revell’s blog tour SEPTEMBER 19-25, when 122 blogger/reviewers will post reviews about A Hope Undaunted, followed by the Book Bomb and Facebook Party!

So mark your calendars with these important dates:

September 19-25: A Hope Undaunted will be making an appearance on blogs across the country (and beyond!) in Revell's blog tour!

September 20th: The Technology and Romance KINDLE Giveaway launches (contest runs 9/20 - 10/6)

October 7th: Book Bomb Day (where everyone is encouraged to buy the book online at the same time!) and Facebook Party - meet and chat with Julie, win some great prizes & find out who won the KINDLE!

Want to help us spread the word about all this fun and be entered to win a $50 Amazon.com gift certificate?

Share Julie's Giveaway Extravaganza on Facebook, Twitter or your blog and we'll enter your name into our random drawing to win 50 smackers to Amazon.com!

Once you've tweeted, posted on Facebok or added the button to your blog/website - simple email Amy and let her know you helped spread the word. Easy.

Here is a sample post for both Twitter/Facebook:

Tweet This: @JulieLessman is giving away a KINDLE and tons more during her giveaway extravaganza! Details here: http://ow.ly/2Czbn Pls RT

Share on Facebook: Julie Lessman is celebrating her new release, A Hope Undaunted by giving away a KINDLE, having a Book Bomb and a Facebook Party! Prizes Galore - don't miss the fun! http://ow.ly/2Czbn

Or add this button to your blog or website! Simply copy and paste the code in the box into the HTML screen of your blog or website. Then email Amy and let her know you did!

<a href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143920688983543&index=1"><img alt="A Hope Undaunted Facebook Party" width="125" src="http://www.litfusegroup.com/images/stories/party_bomb_facebook_button.3.gif" height="125" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143920688983543&index=1">A Hope Undaunted Facebook Party</a>

Kind of makes you say .... aaaaahhhhhhh .....

Wow - on my dashboard this morning is the Pool of the Day by Beechwood Landscape Architecture and Construction.  Kind of makes me want this in my back yard ... How about you??  

Win A Kindle from Cheryl Ricker!

Cheryl Ricker is hosting this great contest over at her website during the blog tour for A Friend in the Storm, Zondervan’s latest innovative gift book of quotes, Scripture and poetry that leads to lasting hope!Since this book covers matters of the heart, Cheryl wants to hear from YOUR heart! In the midst of any type of loss, grief or crisis, A Friend in the Storm takes you on a healing journey where you experience Christ’s love in a fresh, memorable way. Now she invites you to submit an original poem, story or snippet about a time when someone was a friend in your storm… and she's giving you the opportunity to win a KINDLE to do it!


Head on over to her Contest Page on her website to find out how to enter!

On October 3rd, she will randomly select one winner to receive a brand-new KINDLE! She's also choosing 5 more names at random to receive a signed copy of A Friend in the Storm! The winners will be announced at her Facebook Party on October 4th. The party will take place on Cheryl's Facebook "A Friend in the Storm" Page - go here for all the details.

The Facebook Party will be a blast!  Not only will she be announcing the

Share Your Storm Kindle Giveaway winners, but she'll also be chatting with party goers, hosting fun trivia contests, and giving away even more prizes every 10 minutes – including signed copies of A Friend in the Storm, and gift certificates to Amazon.com and Starbucks.com!

Oh, and check this out - Cheryl is also giving away a $50 Amazon gift certificate! Simply help her spread the word about the contest; Facebook Party. Interested? It’s easy to enter! Here’s how:

Share this on FACEBOOK: Want to help someone who’s hurting? “A Friend in the Storm,” Zondervan’s latest gift book of quotes, Scripture and poetry, is helping thousands find lasting Hope! Go here http://ow.ly/2BYiN to enter to win a KINDLE!

Post this on TWITTER: A Friend in the Storm by @cherylricker heals hearts in tough times. Enter 2 win a KINDLE http://ow.ly/2BYiN here! #litfuse (You must use hashtag #litfuse to be entered.)

Share this as many times as you like – just email amy@litfusegroup.com by October 4th and let her know how many times you tweeted/shared on Facebook, twittered or blogged about the contest. Each ‘sharing’ represents one entry into the contest.

Another way to ‘share’ the contest is to add this button to your blog or website.  Adding the button is worth ten entries into the contest!

Simply copy and paste the code in the text box below into the html screen of your blog/website, then send Amy an email letting her know that you added it along with your URL and she’ll toss your extra entries into the pot.

<a href="http://www.cherylricker.com/contests/"><img alt="Share Your Storm Kindle Giveaway" width="125" src="http://www.litfusegroup.com/images/stories/CherylRFBparty3_3.gif" height="125" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.cherylricker.com/contests/">Share Your Storm Kindle Giveaway</a>