Shutterfly Photo Story App Makes Photo Books Review & 8x8 Photo Book Giveaway

Every holiday season I struggle to find great unique gifts for the grandparents that they will love. What do you give the grandparent that has everything? Then I discovered photo books. Each year I make a book to give the grandparents and they absolutely love them, but I have to admit, it takes some time to create. However, now Shutterfly has a new Photo Book iPad App that makes easier than every to create and put together quality photo books in no time. I couldn't wait to give it a try.

The cover of my photo book!

From the iTunes store, I downloaded the app for free onto my iPad, which took less than a minute, and just signed in with my Shutterfly username and password, just like on the website. The app gives you the option of going through a tutorial so you know exactly how to use it, which was very helpful before giving it a try. Then, I could either upload more pictures to my Shutterfly account via my computer to access through the app OR I could retrieve photos from my Facebook and Instagram accounts or my own photo stream. There are so many different options and, since I have many pictures in all those places, I took them from them all! All I had to do was click on "Photos" at the bottom of the page and then click the + symbol to add more pictures. I decided my book would have all the great photos from spring and summer since we've had such a busy few months. We easily filled 20 pages from all the pictures we'd taken!

Photos show up at the bottom of the page & can be added into the book!

What I love the most about the app is that I can create photo books anytime I would like. I don't even need an internet connection. So, when we are in the car or even waiting for a doctor's appointment, I can work on a book to help the time go by. The books can be completely personalized with captions and you can even select your choice of backgrounds and layouts. When you click "Layouts" at the bottom of the app, you can choose exactly how many photos you would like added to each pages. Plus, on the app, you can even add in sound, so you can get your kids to include a message. You can add up to 30 seconds of messages per page! The kids loved helping with this part and had so much fun with it.

More book pages I created!

Another thing I love about this app is that it is made for sharing. Yes, you can order your book, but you can also share on Facebook and email. When you share digitally, others can hear the sound messages and see your creative book you made. Here's a video that shows exactly what the Shutterfly Photo Story App is all about:

Click below to download the Shutterfly Photo Story App:

We had a great time creating our 8x8 photo book on the new Shutterfly app are so excited because our readers have a chance to create one, too!

Giveaway Time

One Lucky Children Teaching Mama Reader Will Win A Code To Create Their Own 8x8 Shutterfly Hardcover 20 Page Photo Book! 

Novica's New Gift Finder Review & $30 GC Giveaway

Novica is a bustling online marketplace for global artisans to express their talents and offer their  wares for sale through the National Geographic network. Novica features an extensive gallery of limited edition and one-of-a-kind handmade gifts, from exquisite jewelry to handmade apparel to globally-inspired home accents. And all this is available at amazing values, delivered right to your door.

After browsing the Novica for a long time (the selection is incredible!) I decided on this classy Assam Constellation Sling Bag:

This cotton tote features crimson constellations on a midnight background and a sheeshasm wood button to close it, and is inspired by traditional Assamese sarongs. It arrived at my house beautifully wrapped with a personal note and story card from the artisan (Manjuri Hazarika of India) tucked inside. Novica wants you to know who you are buying from so you can create a connection with the artist and discover what inspires them. It's a really unique concept!

I like how comfortable the straps are on my shoulder; they are wide but lightweight. The inside is fully lined with a zipper-top pocket and even has a little compartment which is perfect for your cell phone or keys. I take this bag everywhere with me as a shopping tote. It saves some paper and plastic, and makes a striking statement!

This handmade treasure retails for $24.95! So for less than twenty-five dollars you can support a talented global artisan and snag something gorgeous for yourself or to give as a gift.

Speaking of gifts, Novica has a great Gift Finder on their website which helps you to find something perfect for anyone on your list, even those you would usually consider hard to buy for.

You can also become a “Curator” and display collections of your favorite items on Novica. It's fun to add items to your gallery as well as to browse “Curations” that other Novica customers have put together. Here's one example:

One of my favorite sections at the Novica website is their drinkware collection. Recently, I ordered a set of their blown-glass tumblers for a housewarming gift. No one glass is exactly alike:

Every day, one product at Novica is featured for up to 30% off in their Daily Deal. And you can save $7 on your first purchase with code SAVE7NOVICA at checkout. I hope you enjoy shopping there and supporting global artists as much as I do!

So, now that you've heard all about Novica, how about a giveaway?

One Lucky Reader Will Receive a $30 Novica Gift Code! 

Just use the Rafflecopter code below to enter. This giveaway is open to US Residents, 18+ years of age. Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lego Holiday Deals

My kids absolutely love Legos and now that the holidays are here, they have requested several sets from Santa. Luckily, the Lego website has some awesome deals going on right now!

Lego Winter Village Set

Lego has several great deals going on for the holidays, including:

• FREE Exclusive LEGO Friends Set with any LEGO Friends Purchase.
  Valid Dec 1st – 11th or while supplies last
  
• FREE Gandalf™  the Grey minifigure with a purchase of 3920 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey LEGO Game.
  Valid Dec 9th – 31st or while supplies las
• FREE Shippting on all orders of $99 or more.
  Valid Dec 1 – 18th
  
• Offers Combinable – No Code Required

**Last Standard Shipping Date for guaranteed Christmas Delivery is Dec 18th**

The Holiday Gift That Keeps On Giving: The California Wine Club

Have you ever been to a wine tasting session? For someone who loves wines, this can be such a fun experience. You get to try several different types of wines and can experience all the different flavors and notes. When I was in Germany, I had the pleasure of visiting a winery and it was amazing! We tasted several Rieslings, some of which had been aged for many years. Now that I am a mom, traveling to Europe for months at a time is just not doable, but for wine lovers around the U.S. there is another way to experience different wines each month.

With the California Wine Club, members can receive many different full bottles of wine to sample every single month!There are actually four different wine clubs from which to choose. Here are the great choices:
1. The Premiere Club- This is the most popular club (and makes a great holiday gift), which includes two bottles of wine each month and a 12-page issue of the publication, Uncorked, featuring great articles about wine, tasting notes, recipes and more. This club costs $49.95 per month plus shipping and handling.
2. The Signature Series- This club is especially for collectors and connoisseurs and includes two-four bottles. The pricing for this club starts at $150.
3. International Selections- Members of this club receive two bottles from smaller boutique wineries around the world. (I would love this one. Hint! Hint!) Membership costs between $65-80 a month.
4. Aged Cabernet Series- Club members receive two delicious bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa's most prestigious wineries and the cabs are aged 8-12 years.This level of membership costs $150-$235 a month.

I love that they have a club starting at only $49.95! This is a perfect holiday gift for those who love wine and who enjoy receiving unique presents. They would never imagine receiving a fun gift like this.

We received membership to the Premiere Club for two months and have received our first 2 bottles of wine. Let me just say they are absolutely mouthwatering! I love both white and red wines, so I was excited to receive one of each to review. I was wondering how these would get safely delivered to our home and this picture shows you how. I was impressed how well the wines were packaged and packed in the box for delivery.

We received both the 2009 Robledo Family Winery Seven Brothers Napa Valley Tempranillo and the 2008 Robledo Family Winery Seven Brothers Lake Country Sauvignon Blanc. I'd honestly never had a Tempranillo before and loved the oak flavor to it. I am a huge red wine fan and this reminded me of a Cabernet, but seemed a bit lighter.

 The Sauvignon Blanc was a very light wine, great with our chicken pasta dinner one night. I could taste the fruity notes and think this would be a great wine for a hot summer evening. Both were impressive, from the bottling to the flavor. I would definitely purchase these again and am excited to find new wines that I enjoy. These would be great for a dinner or holiday party, too. You don't have to be a wine connoisseur or know much about wine at all to sample them. It's just pure fun and, when you find a wine you like, it's something you can share with others.

Take a look at the California Wine Club and see what all they have to offer for the upcoming holidays! If this looks like a gift you would enjoy, it's time to start dropping hints like me so you can start receiving your wine next month.

Be sure to "Like" the California Wine Club on Facebook and Follow on Twitter. Come back next month for a California Wine Club $50 Gift Credit Giveaway!! You don't want to miss that one. 

This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. Thoughts are my own. I received a 2 month Membership to the California Wine Club for the purpose of this review.

Great Baby & Toddler Gift Ideas For Special Occasions

As a parent, it is very important to me to look for eco-conscious alternatives when purchasing items for my children. Since we live in a rural mountain area, there really aren't any local shops nearby with eco-friendly products unfortunately, so we do most of our purchasing online. I am sure many of you can relate. Purchasing online often actually saves me money and, when I purchase from Babe-Equip, I can receive free shipping when the items equal over £49.99!

If I have learned anything over the years, it's what items and toys babies and toddlers will love! That's why I have put together some gift ideas.

Here are some of my suggestions for great baby and toddler gift ideas:

Strollers Accessories To Keep Baby Warm
We like using our baby carrier, but sometimes it's not possible. For these times, we use our stroller and, with the upcoming cold weather, warm stroller accessories are a must! Cosie Toes, Cocoons, and footmuffs are perfect for keeping baby warm.

 

Eco-conscious Wooden Toys
I love purchasing toys for babies and toddlers! Wooden toys are the way to go because they are eco-friendly and long-lasting. We have several great wooden toys in our house and many of them are either Melissa and Doug or EverEarth! Both of these are favorites with my boys. These make great presents and always please. The walker in the picture is perfect for babies 18 months and older!

Balance Bikes
When my oldest, Josiah, started showing an interest in bikes, I did some research and found that wooden balance bikes were the perfect way for toddlers to improve balance and prepare for learning to ride a real bike. The Kiddimoto Kurve is the one we purchased with the Union Jack print. Josiah loves it!

Training Potties
We have used cloth nappies with both children and highly recommend parents giving them a try. However, now that Liam is getting older, we've started the potty training process! He is so resistant, but there are some great potty training products that can help the process, including travel potties for the upcoming holiday season when we are in the car so often. This may not sound like a go-to present, but we gave Liam his for Christmas and he was thrilled to receive such a big boy item! 

What products or toys do you recommend as presents for babies and toddlers? Liam's birthday is coming up soon and I need some help deciding on what else to buy!

A Few Great Birthday Gifts To Consider

For parents who will soon celebrate their little angels' birthday, coming up with birthday gift ideas is always a hard work. There are just too many wonderful things out there they can consider and sometimes, they will just want to buy everything so that they will be sure their child is going to be satisfied with what he or she gets. With that being said parents who don't know what to get for the upcoming birthday of their child will be presented with a few ideas in the following paragraphs.

Personalized teddy bears

Every child out there has had at least one teddy bear until now, yet no teddy bear will be as cool as a customized one. Parents will love to know that these teddy bears are made using some of the highest quality materials which are not only pleasant to the eye, but also soft to the touch. With no parts that can be swallowed, regardless of the child's age, parents won't have to worry about safety at all.

They can thus add a text on the teddy bear's shirt and can write something like "Happy Birthday" or anything else they think the baby will love to see, even though he cannot read. The colors are also customizable, so regardless if it's pink, blue, yellow, red or any other, it will be there!

Personalized blankets

Another very important item a baby always has with him is his blanket. The blanket needs not only to be soft, but also look nice and inspire a child to use it. Choosing to go with a personalized blanket is a great idea and on it anything can be written, starting with the name of the baby and going all the way to maybe his favorite cartoon hero. The text can also be colored in any chosen color, so that it further more reflects the baby's personality.

Wall stickers

These wall stickers are great in order to challenge and provoke the imagination of children. They come in many colors and a plethora of model varieties meaning children will always get a good mood when looking at them. These stickers are removable and can range from flowers, birds, rainbows, planes, hyppos and so on. Any room will look better when such stickers are there to brighten it.


Beach towels

These towels are just perfect for those who want to take their babies to the beach. They are made using very soft materials and not only that, but they are also colored in order to match the beach theme. The good news is that they can also be imprinted with the name of the baby, making them even more fun!

Buying a gift for the baby's upcoming birthday is certainly an important task and any parent will have to consider it a priority.

There are plenty of gifts they can choose from and with such amazing birthday gift ideas, they will certainly make a good decision!

Father's Day

 Father’s Day is an opportunity to show Dads and Grandads just how much you care. What better way to do this than by adding your own unique, personal message to a gift; or making it truly theirs by putting their name on it. With Getting Personal you can do just that; easily, affordable and in the comfort of your own home. Getting Personal has brought together a wide range of gifts for you to choose from that will suit the tastes and interests of every Father and Grandfather. Whatever hobbies and likes they may have: be it football, fishing, golfing or fast cars, there will be a gift available that matches perfectly.

The range spans from smaller gifts - to add that extra touch - to items like engraved silver cufflinks. There are also other types of gifts available that don’t have to be personalised, like ‘driving thrill’ experiences in luxury fast cars. The choice is yours. If you just want to add a bit of fun to light up their day, why not choose a personalised ‘Superhero’ mug to remind them how much you appreciate all that they do all year round. With Fathers Day Gifts at Getting Personal you can cut out all the exhausting trudging around the shops looking for that perfect present.

The site itself is easy to use with gifts grouped into categories for you, which helps make choosing your gift a pleasure. While you’re at it you can also create a personalised card to go with your gift, all on the same site. Get it all done in one go! With hundreds of card designs to choose from, you are sure to find the right one for them. With fast delivery and award winning customer service, you are just a few clicks away from a gift they will love.

Holiday Gift Guide PlasmaCar Review & Giveaway US & CA

 When looking for Christmas presents this year, I saw a review for the PlasmaCar and it immediately caught my interest. This, I thought, would be something our entire family would enjoy playing with and it's something the boys will not outgrow for quite a while. No batteries or electricity are needed to power the PlasmaCar. It's powered by the rider. Using your own body and movements to push the steering wheel back and forth propels the PlasmaCar forward! It's fun for kids and it's also a workout.

The PlasmaCar is not only quiet and provides hours of fun, but it's also inexpensive. It holds up to 220 pounds (100kg) and can reach up to 6mph. It's kid friendly, but something adults can also enjoy. I know we did!

My Thoughts

The PlasmaCar comes in five different colors: red, yellow, purple, blue and pink. We received the blue PlasmaCar and I was just as excited as the kids to get it out and start playing! The PlasmaCar is not recommended for linoleum or hardwood floors. Our floors are easily scratched, so we didn't even try it. We played with it on our carpeted area in the playroom, but it works much better on a flat, smooth area. We took it to the park and the boys (including my husband) had a blast.

There's no wonder at all why the PlasmaCar has won so many awards. It will quickly become a favorite toy and, for around $59.99, it's very affordable. For ages 3 years and up, a wide range of ages can enjoy this one. My youngest son is 2.5 years old and even figured out the PlasmaCar after a few minutes of trial and error. It is definitely kid-friendly and easy to figure out. It's simplicity is what makes the PlasmaCar so unique and fun!

Right now you can purchase the PlasmaCar for as low as $48.41 on Amazon.com! That's a great deal as I've never seen it so low before.

Ready for your chance to win your very own PlasmaCar?

Just use the Rafflecopter form below to enter! This giveaway can also be found on Happenings of the Harper Household and can only be entered once, so if you've entered there, you cannot enter here. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for entering! This giveaway will end on January 21st at 12:01AM and is open to US and Canada Residents!

Summer Block Party %7: Shari's Berries Father's Day Review & &50 Giveaway

My husband is not the easiest person to buy for and never gives me any hints as to what he'd like for birthday's and holidays. This year, it's time to take matters into my own hands and purchase something I know he will like... and so will the rest of us, for that matter! Shari's Berries offers a variety of great gifts for just about anyone, including their famous chocolate covered strawberries!

3 Father's Day Brownie Pops & 6 Sports Berries

In addition to strawberries, Shari's Berries also sells delicious cupcakes, cakes, caramel apples, and more! With an entire section dedicated to gifts "For Him", you are sure to find that perfect gift for your father or husband. You can make this a Father's Day to remember with their delicious treats that come neatly packed and ready to eat as soon as they arrive!

My Thoughts

We received a Dozen Chocolate Strawberries from Shari's Berries to review and, let me just say, they didn't last longer than 2 days. Between the four of us. the strawberries really didn't stand a chance. Deliciously topped with a nice thick layer of chocolate, the strawberries seemed to melt in our mouths. I was happily surprised to receive them well-packed and still cool at my doorstep, too!

Berries for Him - Full Dozen

I can honestly say my husband's eyes about popped out of his head when I showed him his gift. He was so excited to finally try Shari's Berries after hearing his co-workers talk about them. I've read other reviews that mention how big the strawberries are, but I had no idea! The biggest strawberries in our patch are about half the size of the strawberries we received.

I'm so happy with Shari's Berries and can't wait to try something from them in the future. I've been eying up those cupcakes for a while now, which were featured on MSNBC! The caramel apples are also high on my list of must-try items. Believe me, you will love Shari's Berries!

Buy It

Purchase a Dozen Chocolate Strawberries for $29.98 or Full Half Dozen Berries For Him On Sale Now for $19.99! Those are great deals!

Win It

One Lucky Children Teaching Mama Reader Will Win A $50 Gift Card To Shari's Berries

How To Enter

Go To Shari's Berries, Look Around & Comment Below About What Item(s) You'd Love To Purchase If You Win!

**Remember to include your email address if it is NOT visible in your profile so I will know how to contact you! The initial entry is mandatory! Be sure to answer that question before earning extra entries listed below! Each bullet is worth one extra entry unless specified. Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry you earn and include your email address is at least one entry.

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 Plenty of opportunities to increase your chance of winning! This Giveaway is open to US Residents and Ends June 15th at 11:59pm EST. Winner will be drawn by random.org. An announcement will be made on the blog and the winner will also be contacted by email. The winner has 48 hours to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen.