Lilla Rose Live FB Party Event Starts Soon!

In a little over an hour the live FB event for my online Lilla Rose party will begin.  Mandi, my Lilla Rose consultant will be answering any questions you may have about the Lilla Rose hair accessories and she will also be giving away prizes.  Be sure to log onto the event so you don't miss out on the fun!

Lilla Rose is offering some great deals today and tomorrow for Black Friday.  All items are 20% off and orders over $50 ship free!  As a free shipping junkie I love any deal that gives me free shipping!

If you're a new Lilla Rose customer Mandi also has another offer going where if you buy three items you get a fourth one free.  Combined with the Black Friday deal that's pretty sweet!

Be sure to join the Live FB party event at 8PM EST tonight for an hour!  

Jesse Tree Swap #2 Ornaments

At long last, here are the pictures of the swap 2 ornaments and the scripture they correspond with.  There are so many creative ornaments in this group.  

Beginning with the top row and moving left to right:

Day 1 Creation: Genesis 1:1-23 

Day 2 Creation: Continued

Day 3 Fall of Man: Genesis 3:1-15, 20-23

Day 4 Noah:  Genesis 6:5-20, 7:1-23, 8:1-17, 9:1-13 

Day 5 Abraham:  Genesis 12:1-5, 13:14-16, 18:1-10, 21:1-3 

Day 6 Isaac:  Genesis 22:1-14 

Day 7 Jacob:  Genesis 27:41-44, 28:10-17

Day 8 Joseph:  Genesis 37:3-4, 17-28 

Day 9 Moses:  Exodus 2:1-10, 3:1-12 

Day 10 Moses Continued:  Exodus, Chapters 7-14, 19, 32

Day 11 Ruth: Ruth 1:1-16, 7-22

Day 12 Samuel: 1 Samuel, Chapter 3 .

Day 13 Jesse:  1 Samuel, Chapter 16 

Day 14 David:  1 Samuel, Chapter 17, 19:1-2

Day 15 Solomon:  1 Kings, Chapter 3 

Day 16 Elijah:  1 Kings, Chapters 17 &; 18

Day 17 Elisha:  2 Kings 5

Day 18 Isaiah's Prophecies:  Isaiah 8:6-7

Day 19 Isaiah:  Isaiah Chapter 6

Day 20 Daniel:  Daniel 6:11-17, 19-25

Day 21 Jeremiah:  Jeremiah, Chapter 31

Day 22 Angels:  Luke, Chapter 1

Day 23 Zechariah, Elizabeth and John the Baptist:  Luke, Chapter 1

Day 24 Blessed Virgin Mary:  Luke, Chapter 1

Day 25 The Visitation:  Luke 1:39-56

Day 26 Joseph:  Matthew, Chapter 1

Day 27 The Nativity:  Luke, Chapter 2

Day 28 Magi: Matthew 2:1-12

Jesse Tree Ornament Swap #1 Ornaments

The Jesse Tree Swap ornaments for both swaps are all on their way to their new homes and should arrive in time for the first Sunday of Advent.  I'm still amazed that 1. there was enough interest to fill two swaps and 2. that the swaps both went as smoothly as they did.  I really expected there to be a disaster of some sort.  Last Monday a package arrived at my house that was damaged and had been taped up by the post office.  Shock, relief and total thankfulness pretty much sums up how I felt when I opened the box and found all of the ornaments in tact.  Crisis averted!

I've already had a few people ask if I'm going to do this again next year.  I'm considering it, but if I do it will only be one swap and I will start it a month earlier.  It will really all depend on how busy life is in our house next year.  We have some big changes coming up in the coming year so I will have to wait and see if I will have the time to take on another swap.

Back to the swap.  It was my original intention to put together a little booklet that had a picture of each ornament and the bible story that went with it.  Unfortunately I didn't anticipate spending a week battling a cold and then spending another week with a cranky teething toddler all while trying to get a handle on our first year of homeschooling.  Toss in some other happy circumstances that have pretty much sapped most of my energy and you have the reason why that little booklet never came into existence.

I'd still like to give you a run down on each of the ornaments so when you open up your box of ornaments you know which one goes with which day so I've created a few photo collages of the ornaments.

Beginning with the top row and moving left to right:

Day 1 Creation: Genesis 1:1-23 

Day 2 Creation: Continued

Day 3 Fall of Man: Genesis 3:1-15, 20-23

Day 4 Noah:  Genesis 6:5-20, 7:1-23, 8:1-17, 9:1-13 

Day 5 Abraham:  Genesis 12:1-5, 13:14-16, 18:1-10, 21:1-3 

Day 6 Isaac:  Genesis 22:1-14 

Day 7 Jacob:  Genesis 27:41-44, 28:10-17

Day 8 Joseph:  Genesis 37:3-4, 17-28 

Day 9 Moses:  Exodus 2:1-10, 3:1-12 

Day 10 Moses Continued:  Exodus, Chapters 7-14, 19, 32

Day 11 Ruth: Ruth 1:1-16, 7-22

Day 12 Samuel: 1 Samuel, Chapter 3 .

Day 13 Jesse:  1 Samuel, Chapter 16 

Day 14 David:  1 Samuel, Chapter 17, 19:1-2

Day 15 Solomon:  1 Kings, Chapter 3 

Day 16 Elijah:  1 Kings, Chapters 17 & 18

Day 17 Elisha:  2 Kings 5

Day 18 Isaiah's Prophecies:  Isaiah 8:6-7

Day 19 Isaiah:  Isaiah Chapter 6

Day 20 Daniel:  Daniel 6:11-17, 19-25

Day 21 Jeremiah:  Jeremiah, Chapter 31

Day 22 Angels:  Luke, Chapter 1

Day 23 Zechariah, Elizabeth and John the Baptist:  Luke, Chapter 1

Day 24 Blessed Virgin Mary:  Luke, Chapter 1

Day 25 The Visitation:  Luke 1:39-56

Day 26 Joseph:  Matthew, Chapter 1

Day 27 The Nativity:  Luke, Chapter 2 

Day 28 Magi: Matthew 2:1-12

O Antiphon: O Wisdom

O Antiphon: O Lord of Lords

O Antiphon: O Flower of Jesse's Stem

O Antiphon: O Key of David

O Antiphon: O Radiant Dawn

O Antiphon: O King of All Nations

O Antphon: O Emmanuel

The O Antiphons begin on December 18th.

The ornaments and the bible stories for each one are the same as what is used in the Holy Heroes Jesse Tree DVD.  You can also see the Jesse Tree videos that go with these ornaments by signing up for their free Advent Adventure.

I hope you all have a blessed Advent!  I know my children can't wait to use all of our lovely new Jesse Tree ornaments.  We will be praying for all of you this Advent.

I'm Hosting a Lilla Rose Online Party and You're Invited!

Over the past year I've seen so many blog posts with people absolutely raving about the beautiful hair accessories from Lilla Rose.  For the longest while, I figured with my chin length hair that those pretty flexi clips and beaded head bands just weren't for me even though I really liked them.  But now that I have slightly longer than shoulder length hair I thought it would be fun to host an online Lilla Rose party (November 24th-December 6th) and you're all invited!

My blogging friend Mandi, from Messy Wife, Blessed Life is a Lilla Rose consultant and she will be posting information about the great products offered by Lilla Rose and even some tips on different hair styles on the Facebook event page for the party.  And this Friday night, November 29th, at 8PM EST she will answer questions and give away prizes during an hour long LIVE event.  I hope you can join us, I think it will be fun.

If you're new to Lilla Rose, Mandi has a special offer for the party.  Buy three items and get one free! (up to a $16 value)

The party will close on December 6th to ensure delivery in time for Christmas, so be sure to place your orders before then!

Note:
All orders will be submitted together and shipped when the online party closes on December 6th.  Direct shipping is available to anywhere in the U.S.

CD Review: Brother Francis Walking with Jesus

Several months back I was sent a copy of Brother Francis' Walking with Jesus music CD.  The CD is a collection of rosary prayers in song.  Many of the songs on the CD are familiar songs from the Brother Francis DVD series so they were an instant hit with my toddler and have seen a lot of play time as a result.

So what should you know about these songs? Well, for starters, they help to familiarize little ones with the rosary and the the prayers of the rosary.  I play many of these songs for the students in my religious education kindergarten class and last year when they put on an end of year show with another class the teacher of the other class came to me weeks later telling me how she had one of the songs stuck in her head and she needed to know the name of the CD.  Several of the songs are quite catchy like that.  When teaching little ones their prayers I like anything that helps to make it stick and these songs do just that.

All of the prayers we pray during the rosary are presented in song form on this CD.  Children are also introduced to the four sets of rosary mysteries through a series of songs.  It's a great way to introduce little ones to the rosary.

This CD is perfect for toddlers through second grade.  The songs are all beautifully done and will resonate with youngsters.

Since we're approaching the time of year where people start thinking about Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers, I think this CD would make an excellent faith filled gift idea.  It would fit perfectly in a stocking!

I was provided with a review copy of Walking with Jesus: The Rosary Prayers in Song by the publisher, Herald Kids in exchange for my honest review.  Visit Brother Francis Online for more information on this CD and their other great Brother Francis products.

LifebankUSA Winter Peace of Mind Giveaway

LifebankUSA is hosting another awesome Britax car seat giveaway on their Facebook page.  Three entrants will be selected to win a Britax Marathon 70-G3 Convertible Car Seat valued at $260!  I actually have this seat (You can find my review of it here.).  I've trusted Britax car seats with my girls' safety for the past twelve years and I highly recommend their car seats. 

So what is LifebankUSA and why are they giving away three awesome Britax car seats?   LifebankUSA is hosting this Facebook Winter peace of mind giveaway to spread the word about the "peace of mind" services they provide to expectant parents.  They are the only company that offers cord blood, placenta blood and tissue banking -- and the first to release placenta-derived stem cells for a successful transplant -- New Jersey-based LifebankUSA is a technological leader that is pioneering key medical innovations in the field.  Owned by the Celgene Corporation, a world-class biopharmaceutical company, LifebankUSA also operates a robust donation program and collects cells from anywhere in the US for use primarily in advancing medical research.  

What are the benefits of banking cord blood? Through cord blood banking, you can collect and preserve potentially lifesaving stem cells, and doing so could one day save the life of your child or a blood relative. You can bank even more stem cells by collecting them from 2 usable sources of stem cell-rich blood: the umbilical cord and the placenta. This service is called Placental and Cord Blood Banking, and it's available only from LifebankUSA. Whether you choose Placental and Cord Blood Banking or Cord Blood Banking alone, there are many important reasons to choose LifebankUSA.  

Why choose LifebankUSA? When you bank with LifebankUSA, they include tissue banking (tissue from the placenta) for free.* Placental tissue contains mesenchymal cells (MSCs) and MSC-like cells. While stem cells found in cord blood and placenta blood have been used to successfully treat patients, there are currently no approved uses for stem cells derived from the umbilical cord or placenta tissue. Possible therapeutic applications are in early research stages and LifebankUSA's parent company is actively involved in their development.

LifebankUSA will store the placenta tissue for you as part of their complete banking package using their cryogenic tanks for long-term preservation. In the event your baby's tissue cells are ever needed for future therapies, the tissue may then be processed and cultured using available technology at that time.†  Tissue banking is just one more layer of protection and peace of mind offered by LifebankUSA.

The LifebankUSA Winter Peace of Mind Car Seat Giveaway runs from now until December 31, 2013.   Head over to LifebankUSA's Facebook page and enter for a chance to win a great carseat that will take your child from infancy to kindergarten.

*Storage fees apply after the first year

†Clients will be responsible for the cost of shipping the tissue and any culturing or expansion of the cells.

You know you have an awesome husband when...

I use Grammarly's grammar correction feature because having bad grammar is like washing dishes with no soap.  It just doesn't make sense.

I need to give a major shout out to Bryan that comes with some big awesome husband kudos.  All week long he's been getting up at 5:30AM and leaving for work only to return home around 8PM.  He's had a lot of important all day meetings with different vendors over the past month and it's not only exhausting for him, but it's pretty exhausting for me.  The kids and I are used to him working from home three days a week which clearly has us spoiled.

I had a bit of a melt down this evening.  Bryan was still working even though he thought he'd be home a bit earlier today.  The hand wash only pans and bakeware were piling up in the sink and we had no dish soap.  I was hungry and we had nothing good to eat and the baby was on a cry jag.  Also add in that I was exhausted and I haven't been feeling well.  Poor Bryan patiently let me complain to him via text and then over the phone as he made his way home.  I lamented that I really needed meat and have been dying for a filet mignon for the past six or seven weeks.

Now if I were Bryan, I'd have been a lot less patient and I certainly wouldn't have done what he did.  After a long day at work and a long commute he took a detour to the local grocery store to buy me a steak which he then had to prepare outside in forty some degree weather.  And to earn even more awesome husband bonus points, he even brought home two bottles of dish soap in the brand and scent that I like best (He did use a "phone-a-wife" life line to verify the brand and scent that I wanted.).  And the steak?  It was awesome.

So sorry, ladies, I'm keeping him.  I have a feeling that not all men would come home from a long day of work, stop at the grocery store and then grill up an amazing filet mignon for their complaining wife.  Clearly I'm helping him on his way to sainthood.

{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real} Disney World

Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life...

Two weeks ago we packed up the minivan and headed to Florida for a much needed vacation.  It's hard to believe that it was just a week ago that we headed home.  I feel like so much has happened in the past week that we can't possibly have been home for just seven days.

We had a great time in Disney World.  We went to all four parks and amazingly didn't wait longer than fifteen minutes to get on any of the rides.  I attribute that to us having the nifty "Magic Bands" that allowed us to schedule a fast pass for three rides per day as well as being able to use our room keys to get additional fast passes.  We also made sure we were at some of the parks right when they opened so we could take advantage of shorter lines.  It worked out so well that we managed to get on all the rides that tend to have very long lines with 0 and 5 minute wait times during the first hour that the park was open.

One of the nicest perks of our vacation was getting the Disney Dining Plan for free.  Free food is awesome when you are in Disney World.  They gave us so much food that we could barely eat it all.  Poor Ellie kept turning down dessert! Since ages nine and up are considered an adult at Disney World, Madeline really enjoyed getting to order off the adult menu, especially when it came time for dessert.  

{Pretty}

On our first day in the parks I took the obligatory picture of the kids in front of the castle.  If I didn't my mom would yell at me.  Now I wish I could tell you I took this picture as soon as we got there but unfortunately the skies opened up and it started pouring as soon as we made it through the gate.  It made for a very wet day, but we still had a lot of fun.

We spotted this pretty rainbow on Main Street on our next to the last day of vacation.  I don't think I've ever seen a rainbow in Disney World before.

I love this picture of Katie.  She was trying to watch a little show that was going on when I was taking pictures of her so she actually stayed still long enough for me to get a few good pictures.

{Happy}

Katie was star struck when she saw her favorite characters.  She was so excited to see Sophia the first that we ended up having to stand in a twenty minute line so she could meet her.  Her reaction was priceless.  She was beaming the entire time.

Even though they aren't going anywhere, the girls were happy to pose for a picture in the cute little Dumbo photo-op spot.

{Funny}

I like looking for hidden Mickeys and other little things of that nature in the rides.  In the Pooh Bear ride at the Magic Kingdom there are a few Mr. Toad shout outs in the ride.  The Mr. Toad ride, which was my favorite, was removed in order to make way for the Pooh Bear ride.

I particularly like the Donald Duck pinata that is found in the boat ride in Epcot's Mexico.  I wish they sold that pinata out in the little marketplace area they have.  I bet he'd sell fast!

Phone booths.  How many of you have kids who are totally unaware that there was such a thing in the days before everyone had a cell phone?  The girls went nuts when the saw the red phone booths in the UK area of Epcot.  "Hey, they had that in Harry Potter!"  Ellie wanted her picture taken in it so she started to play in the phone booth which was a total novelty to her.  Then she comes out and tells me that it has a real phone in it.  So Bryan and I took the opportunity to tell the girls about how phone booths used to be all over the place before people had cell phones.  We totally blew their minds!

{Real}

I'm shocked and amazed that we actually got a family picture where everyone was looking at the camera and looks reasonably happy.  We have a few others that are close to this but I think this one is the best.  I don't know why it's so difficult for us to get a nice family picture.  I guess it's just one of the mysteries of life.

Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment.

Found them!

After I blogged that last post Bryan walked in the door from a long day of work and I let him know that I was on the verge of either crying or having a major freak out because the SD card with Katie's second birthday pictures was MIA.  So before even getting a chance to sit down he helped me to find the memory card.  Everywhere I looked I found nothing but clutter and messes that needed to be addressed.  He managed to find the memory card in a pretty obvious spot: with the rest of my camera equipment.  I think he deserves some awesome husband points for saving the day.

So I can breathe a massive sigh of relief now.  Bryan insisted that I upload the pictures to my laptop right away.  As I scanned some of the images that were on the card I found pictures from our trip to the local pumpkin patch, both of Katie's parties and a series of pictures that make me so happy that we homeschool.

You see, in a regular middle school setting you don't have your parents goofing around with you while you take a test.  With homeschool, you might find that you have an inflatable pony inches away from your face as you take a vocabulary test.  So you really do have to learn how to concentrate and filter out even the most bizarre situations.  Life skills.  She's learning life skills and demonstrating that she can focus on academics even in odd situations.

And this is why I need to blog more often

The past two months have been a bit of an exhausting blur for me.  There is so much I want to do but I just have been lacking both the time and energy to do it all.  So here I am with a list of things I want to blog and I sit down to find I have a problem.

I wanted to share a few pictures from Katie's second birthday.  She had a party with family a few days before her birthday and I took lots of pictures and then she had cake and a few presents with us on her actual birthday and I took more pictures.  The big question is: Where are my pictures???  They're not in iPhoto and they're not on two of the memory cards I just checked.  I'm on the verge of freaking out.  I don't know whether to cry or scream.

This never would have happened if I made myself blog a bit more back in October.  Those pictures would be sitting in my iPhoto right now between the pictures from the alpaca farm field trip and Halloween and our Disney vacation.

Oh and I also need to take and share pictures of the Jesse Tree ornaments that have been arriving at my house over the past few weeks.  Maybe I'll do that later tonight.  I have so much to blog but I want to do a lot of it in order so it's not as scatterbrained as I feel right now.