Out of the Box Games Review and Giveaway

One of the best things that we like to do when the weather is to cold or bad to be out is to play games. We love cards, board games and even puzzles. The Out of the Box Games has some awesome games as well. One of the games they have is called Word on the Street. This game is a tug of war sort of game using words instead of strength.

If you are familiar with the Out of the Box games you know that they create games of all sorts and for all ages. Word games is a common sort of game for Out of the Box Games. The game Word on the Street is a fun game that you can either compete with players or it makes a great team playing game where more people can have fun.

The game board itself is designed like a road or highway. The game pieces are well constructed and I especially loved the letter tiles as they were designed to make you think of street signs. I must say that the makers of the game Word on the Street put alot of thought into this fun filled game.

The game is played using cards which have two different colors on them one side is easier and the other is a bit tougher. I think once again this is great as it allows not only adults to play but children as well. Families, kids or adults could all have a great time playing the game Word on the Street. The fun challenge of trying to capture the letters allowed my family time to have fun and enjoy each others company in a fun challenging but easy game. Later on I challenged my husband to a fun game and we enjoyed it just as much as we did playing it with the kids. I believe that Out of the Box Games did a great job on the Word on the Street Game. To find out if you agree with my opinion or not you may have to play the game to find out.

Buy: you can buy the Word on the Street Game from the Out of the Board Games you can purchase directly from their website located at http://www.otb-games.com or use this quick and easy link to find a retailer near you http://www.otb-games.com/locator/locator2.asp

Win: One of Annie's Home readers will receive the same game Word on the Street that I did.

Mandatory Entry: Please visit Out of the Board Games and let me know what other game you may be interested in playing

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Contest starts now and ends December 31, 2009. Good Luck Email in comment or on blog is mandatory

UPrinting.com Postcard Giveaway

I have been a sponsored blog of UPrinting.com for quite some time. One of the privileges of being sponsored by U Printing is being allowed to offer my readers a chance to win wonderful prizes. U Printing recently reached out with an opportunity to offer my readers a chance to win 100 postcards and in return I would receive 100 postcards as well. With the holidays here I thought this would be a great idea in case my readers are like me and would love to thank all those that gave us gifts. I believe postcards are perfect for little notes of thanks for the good times and gifts that we received. I also thought that postcards would be great to send my college kids notes of aspiration and encouragement. What would you do with 100 postcards?

Buy: If you would like to order postcards from UPrinting.com please follow this link http://www.uprinting.com/Postcards.html

Win: One of Annie's home readers will receive 100 postcards (winner must pay shipping cost)

Mandatory Entry (must be answered) I shared with you a couple of different ways that I would use the post cards not it is your turn. If you were the lucky winner of 100 postcards how would you use them?

Extra Entries:

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Giveaway starts now and will run through December 31, 2009. Good Luck. Email must be on blog or in comment Winner will have 48 hours to accept or forfeit the giveaway.

Don't Forget The Batteries Energizer giveaway

I bet you are making a list and checking it twice for the items you will need for Christmas. Don't forget the batteries for the cameras, new toys and anything else you will need or want to use. Energizer now has rechargeable batteries that last longer because they can be recharged what a victory. I am so happy because in the past the batteries would die and if we did not remember to purchase new batteries we would not be able to use the item we needed them for. Whether it be my camera or the new toy the kids loved with out the batteries we were out of luck. That is why I love the new rechargeable batteries by energizer.

The Energizer company wanted to make the job of shopping for the right rechargeable battery even easier. They have devised a new AA battery that can be recharged. Without raising the price of the batteries Energizer increased their power. The new AA rechargeable battery will stay charged later and with a the regular high rate of power. The new AA rechargeable batteries can be charged up to 500 times. WOW!!!!! The new battery will continue to last up to four times longer than other batteries and hold more charge for 6 months than other rechargeable batteries.


What does that mean for us? That means that we will not run out of batteries as fast which means that camera, game or toy will last longer. I received two energizer charger sets in return for this review. There is one for me and one for you. That's right one of you readers will receive a energizer charger set for your self.

To enter follow the energizer on facebook

For extra entries:

• follow my blog
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Contest starts now and runs through January 31, 2009. Good Luck Email must be on blog or in comment

Giveaway To Help Keep You Out of Dog House

Do you ever find your self in the dog house over gift giving? Well JCPenny is here to help keep you out of the dog house. The blog An Island Life is hosting a giveaway sponsored by JCPenny for $100 gift card. JcPenny has a special section called Beward of the Doghouse which will help your man keep himself out of the doghouse with you when you receive your gift.

Weight Watcher Stock Stuffers giveaway

The blog Cheif Family Officer is hosting a giveaway for several Weight Watcher products including a couple of cookbooks, candies and a couple of vouchers for weight watchers baked goods. This giveaway ends December 21, 2009

Build A Bear Review and Giveaway

I have shared my love for Build A Bear with you before. You can read previous posts here and here . Once again Build A Bear has created some of the most adorable characters for Christmas. Santa's elves I believe are a bit jealous as they continue to keep an eye out for the great fun characters at Build A Bear. Best part of all there are over 400 Build A Bear stores and all the great products are also available on their website located at http://www.buildabear.com/ and the prices are great as well.

We were lucky enough to receive the Frosty the Snowman to review for this post. Frosty and other great convents gifts are available daily at Build A Bear. If you are like me you may look for that perfect gift til Christmas morning. With time quickly running out and the being tired of shopping syndrome set in you may wonder where that perfect gift is. May I suggest Build A Bear. Select Build A Bear stores are offering "Gift on the Go" packages to help you save time as well. Frosty and his friends at the Build A Bear Store are all at an affordable price with Frosty available for $15. If you are not sure which to choose perhaps the Amazing Gift O Matic "gift generator" will help greatly. Shopping and Delivery can both be speedily done.

The Build A Bear Elves have created classical gifts like Frosty the Snowman. The super cute couple of Holly and Hal introduced last year are back again.
New on the scene at Build A Bear are characters such as the Chipmunks Alvin, Simon and yes Theodore as well as a couple of cute bear elves.

For those special people on your list why not create a personalized gift for them? Perhaps there is a sports fan on your list why not create them a furry friend dressed in their favorite sports uniform. At Build A Bear there are football uniforms, tees, college caps and bandannas available. For those that feel at home in the kitchen why not gift them with a Chef curly Teddy

Whatever your choice would be Build A Bear can help you find gifts for all family and friends at an affordable price.

Win: The Build A Bear Workshop would love to offer one of Annie's Home readers a Build A Bear character of your own.

To Enter you must visit the Build A Bear website and let me know which one is your favorite.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
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• follow build a bear on twitter and my blog on twitter (2 entries)
• tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet)
• enter any of my giveaways
• blog about the giveaway (5 entries)

Contest starts now and will run through December 31, 2009. Email in comment or on blog. Good Luck

BuddyTops Review and Giveaway

I am the type of person that always makes sure that the little ones have hats and gloves on. I really believe this trait either came from my grandmothers or my daddy. Which ever is the case I believe this is a great trait to have if you are going to have one. The adorable hats and gloves that children wear today are precious. BuddyTops are keeping the adorability alive by creating hats for the young ones that can not be denied. a

We received the Chip the Chick and Milton the Wolf hats to review for this post. They are adorable and while I have not been able to see Princess since we received I can tell you when she visits Saturday I will be taking pictures to share with you all. Princess will look adorable in these cute creative hats. Just imagine what your child could look like. The hats are great for children up to 7 and 8 years of age.

Besides the cuteness these hats are created to provide warmth for the little ones heads. I have always heard and believe that heat in the winter time escapes through your head. The BuddyTops will put a stop to this as the hats their selves are among the warmest I have ever found. Now while you may not agree with my opinion you can have the chance to purchase your own. Simply visit their website at http://buddytops.com/

The sweet people over at BuddyTops would love to offer you the chance to win a hat of your own.

To enter this giveaway: You must visit the BuddyTops website and let me know which one of the hats is your favorite

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
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Contest starts now and will run through January 8, 2009. Email must be in comment or on blog. Good Luck

FashionPlaytes A Neat Idea for Christmas save $15 off purchase of $25 discount code

Do you have a daughter that loves to play with their clothes? My daughter used to love to make matching outfits. She started young around 5 or 6 and continues on today. I just found out about a wonderful place that allows your daughter to create their own outfit. Fashionplaytes allows the creator to follow simple steps on the Internet to create and design their clothing line. From backpacks to dresses and everything in between FashionPlaytes can in reality become your child's new clothing line. They select the color, style, what embellishments if any they want and it becomes theirs. They can show these wonderful outfits off to their friends and when they ask where they can get one like it they can brag that they created it their selves using the FashionPlaytes website. What fun.

I think that FashionPlaytes would make a great gift for any tween or teen from ages 6 to 16. Just think of all the praise you could get from the little designer in your life. In return you get to watch them as they create the one of a kind look.

The creator of FashionPlaytes was a young designer at heart that would create her outfits that she would love to wear and her talented mother would create them for her. Now she wants to make this a reality for all those young girls that are designers at heart. Sarah believes that by allowing the young designers this advantage they will build self esteem and create something unique. The best part is that FashionPlaytes has kept economics in mind and the prices are terrific as well. So yes we can allow our children to design their own clothing at around the same price the stores charge.

FashionPlaytes would like to introduce their products to you and offer a $15 discount on your first order by using the code TwitterMom15

Lots of Hugs and Kisses for the Holiday Season recipes

Peanut Butter Hugs and Kisses Cookies

1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® peanut butter cookie mix
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon water
1 egg
Sugar
36 Hershey's® Kisses® milk chocolate or Hugs® white and milk chocolate, unwrapped
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1Heat oven to 375°F. In medium bowl, stir cookie mix, oil, water and egg until dough forms. Shape dough into 36 (1-inch) balls; roll in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Immediately press 1 milk chocolate candy in center of each cookie. Remove from cookie sheets. Cool completely, about 20 minutes. Store cookies in tightly covered container.

Sugar Cookies Decorated X's and O's

1⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
1⁄2 of an 18-oz roll refrigerated sugar-cookie dough
Royal Icing (recipe follows)
Red and pink paste or gel food color*
Decorations: tiny heart decors, red and white sprinkles (jimmies), nonpareils and decorating sugars

Heat oven to 350°F. You’ll need 2-in. X and O cookie cutters*, baking sheet(s), 3 qt-size ziptop bags and a small paintbrush. Knead flour into cookie dough until completely blended. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to 1⁄8 in. thick. Cut out cookies with cutters; reroll and cut scraps. Place about 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 9 to 11 minutes until just beginning to brown around edges. Cool 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. To decorate cookies: Divide Royal Icing among 3 bowls. Tint 1 red, 1 pink and leave other white. Working with 1 color at a time, spoon icing into a ziptop bag. Thin icing in bowls with drops of water until spreadable. Snip tip off a corner of the ziptop bag. Pipe outline on cookies. Let outlines dry about 5 minutes. Dip brush into thinned icing; spread to piped border. While wet, sprinkle some cookies with decorations. Pipe lines or dots of an alternate color onto wet icing on other cookies and pull a toothpick through lines or through dots to make hearts. Let dry at least 2 hours.

ROYAL ICING: In a large bowl, with mixer on low speed, beat 1 lb confectioners’ sugar and 3 Tbsp Just Whites.** Add 6 Tbsp water; beat until blended. Increase mixer speed to high and beat 8 minutes or until icing is very thick and white. Makes 21⁄2 cups



find more delicious cookie recipes at the Womans Day magazine website located at http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Food/Recipes/12-Simply-Jolly-Sugar-Cookies.html?cid=5385 or the Betty Crocker Tablespoon website at http://www.tablespoon.com/recipes//

Giveaways at My Organized Chaos

Have you visited My Organized Chaos as of late? If not you need to head over there. They are hosting a great Christmas themed event they titled their 2009 Holiday Gift Guide. As they show us great ideas for gifts they are also hosting wonderful giveaways. Here are a few that I signed up for today.

My daughter loves the creations Anne Geddes and one of the great giveaways located on My Organized Chaos is for a Reindeer Baby Plush Toy. Is it not as cute as it can be? Well if you agree with me you will want to enter to win this great giveaway that ends December 27, 2009.

Every one needs a great pair of shoes in this type of weather and if those shoes can be a pair of adorable shoes from Robeez then all the better. The blog My Organized Chaos is also hosting a giveaway where the winner will receive a pair of Robeez shoes. Yeah!!!! This giveaway ends December 27, 2009

Aloha Friday

The blog an Island Life host Aloha Friday each week and here is how they explain it:
In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that we take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So I thought that on Fridays I would take it easy on posting, too. Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.


With Christmas speedily approaching our family has been to a few different get togethers. Tomorrow Princess will be here and Christmas Eve will see us with family as well as Christmas Day.

My question today: when does your family get together? Are you like me and have different get togethers or do you all gather all together in a large bunch for the holidays?

Fun Recipes to Keep Kids Busy

So the kids are home from school and you are not sure what to do with them? Well there are always the baking, Christmas crafts and holiday traditions but for a bit of a switch try a couple of these fun activities:

Gloop

8 oz bottle of glue
8 oz water
1 cup water
1 1/2 tsp borax powder

Pour 8 oz bottle of glue into bowl. Fill empty bottle with water and add to the glue - stir constantly. If you want to add a color, add a few drops of food coloring to this part of the mixture. In another bowl, stir together 1 cup of water and 1 1/2 tsp of borax powder until dissolved. Mix the 2 bowls together - Instantly they will become slime! Working it with your hands to make it a little more stiff.
To make this "noise" putty put in a small container, then stick your fingers through the putty, it makes some "interesting" noises!
Keep in a covered container in the refrige

Silly Putty

2 cups white glue
1 cup liquid starch

Mix together with hands. Keep kneading until it forms a silly putty ball. Will take a few minutes of kneeding before the wetness goes away. If it is wet and starch is not bonding, add more glue. If it is sticky, add more starch. Keep kneading until it forms a silly putty ball.
Store in an air tight container in refrigerator

and for another great one visit my friend Kim over at Mom Tried It. Kim shared a great post on making homemade floam.

Perfect Gifts for the One You Love Without Spending Alot Of Money

Do you want to buy your special someone a gift but just don't have a lot of money this year? Well, many of my gifts that I remember the most is time we spent together as well as the gifts that are made for me. Here are some ideas that you may want to think about

• Place a picture of your special person in a frame with a blank photo mat. On the photo mat write messages of love and compliments.
• Leave cleverly written notes in places that they will find them. Leave notes with messages of adornment and inspiration.
• clean the house or complete regular chores of the other person allowing them to take the day off
• Take the time and write a heart felt letter or a love poem. The words shared may be all that the individual needs
• Take the time to give the special person a lesson. Perhaps they are wanting a recipe that you cook often take the time and create it with them.

How To Make Sure You are Buying The Right Toy

Often while shopping we see the flashy, cool looking toys that we think any child would love but are we always right? Are you buying the correct toy for that child on your Christmas list? Here are a few tips to be aware of while you are shopping and gifting.

• The package often contains recommended age and skill levels. This is not only a recommendation but often the wisest note to be aware of
• We all know that infants and toddlers love to put toys (and everything else) in their mouths Gifting toys with small parts could lead to choking hazards When buying toys for the youngest on the list be aware of a special safety tip: if the toy can fit through the toilet paper role then it is not proper for the ages 0 to 3 years of age.
• Another feature of toys to be aware of for children in the youngest age group is to not purchase toys with metal parts, cords or strings. Once again all these items can lead to safety problems
• Magnets can be a problem for all ages. The older ones should be taught to never put a magnet in their mouths and the youngest group of children should never be gifted with a magnet related product
• For important information on toy recalls you can easily sign up for notices from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission at www.cpsc.gov

White Chocolate Dipped Ritz and PB and Oreos

This is easier to fix than any other Christmas recipe that I make. They are simply melting white block chocolate and dipping ritz peanut butter sandwiched crackers and oreos. These are delicious.
listed at Simply Sweets Home blog for the Holly Bloggy Christmas Bash

Flirty Aprons discount code

There are just a few days to enter my Flirty Aprons giveaway currently going on and ending December 20, 2009. Flirty Aprons wants to make sure that you save a bit of money if you can't wait til then. Save 15% when you use the code Apron15. This code is only good through the end of this year and after December 31, 2009 it will expire.

Brunch Parfait

Brunch Parfait


1/3 cup apricot preserves
3 cups sliced strawberries
2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup low-fat granola without raisins (such as Kellogg's)
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
Preparation
Place apricot preserves in a medium microwave-safe bowl, and microwave at high for 10 to 15 seconds or until preserves melt. Add strawberries, and toss gently to coat.

Spoon 1/4 cup yogurt into each of 4 parfait glasses; top each serving with 1/3 cup strawberry mixture. Repeat the layers with the remaining yogurt and strawberry mixture. Top each serving with 2 tablespoons granola and 1 1/2 teaspoons almonds. Serve immediately

Eden Fantasy review and giveaway

Eden Fantasy's is celebrating Christmas and wants to give a gift to one of Annies Home readers. I love to sit by the candle light and enjoy a romantic time with my husband at this time of year. The simple light just bright enough to see each other provides a romantic background. Eden Fantasy's has many candles available and the ones that I seem to like the best are the candles that give off a scent.

The simple candle light with a beautiful soft fragrance in the air can set the mood that allows a happy couple to share each others delight. The Illume23 candles that are available at Eden Fantasy's are not the type of candle that is artificial smell that is filled with chemicals. Rather the Eden Fantasy's Illume23 candle shares a common scent created from soy wax with no real harsh odor that takes control of the room. The candle will burn up to 50 hours so plenty of time to enjoy the scent. The Illume23 candle is available in 4 flavors. The Valencia Orange which shares an uplifting scent, the angel food cake which makes it smell as if the room is filled with baked goods, the pomegranate which we all know is sweet and juicy, and the cucumber which often leaves the scent of revitalizing.

Buy: The Eden Fantasy's Illume23 candle is available in your choice of scent from the Eden Fantasy's website. As you know Eden Fantasy's has some wonderful products including the Illume23 candles that would make for great Christmas gift for someone you love. If you are buying for yourself then find the perfect treat on Eden Fantasy's

Win: Eden Fantasy wants to help brighten the Christmas of one of Annie's Home readers by giving them the choice of an Illume23 candle.

Enter to win: visit the Eden Fantasy website and let me know what sort of item on their website you would love to have. Also for a second entry tell me what scent you would choose if you were the lucky winner.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
• grab my button let me know where you placed it
• follow me on twitter
• follow Eden fantasy on twitter
• tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet)
• blog about the giveaway (5 entries)

Contest starts now and will run through new years eve December 31,2009 Email in comment or on blog Good Luck

Cowgirl Chocolates Review

What type of snack do you like? Sweet or Spicy? I am often told that I am a sweet person and while I love to eat my sweets I also love my spicy food as well. If you are like me then you will love Cowgirl Chocolates where the spice is built into the chocolate. Many of us have tasted delicious caramels and chocolates. Cowgirl Chocolates have taken this just a bit further by including ingredients such as habenerao peppers or a splash of raspberry lemonade. Wow what a kick it places in the delicious chocolates available at Cowgirl Chocolates.



We were able to sample some of the delicious chocolates that were sent to us by the Cowgirl Chocolate makers. They were delicious but because we received the assortment set with no instructions on which were hot or not when that spicy kick hit your mouth when not expecting it the candy seemed to bite back. WOW!!!! The delicious taste mixed with a spicy kick was great in my opinion. If you do not like spice then they have a package just for you of sweet chocolates with no spice. But if you adore that spicy kick then take the challenge and purchase the chocolate with the spicy peppers mixed in.




The Cowgirl Chocolates arrive wrapped in beautiful colors and would make the perfect gift for any occasion including Christmas. Do you have a person on the list that adores spice or sweets? Then look no further than Cowgirl Chocolates.

The words I share are my opinion only so you may want to try it for yourself to see if my review is worthy or not. Purchase the cowgirl chocolates from their website at http://www.cowgirlchocolates.com/

Pretzel Salad recipe

This is one of my daughters favorite desserts:

Strawberry Pretzel Dessert

2 2/3 cups crushed pretzels
3/4 cups melted butter or margarine
12 oz. Cream cheese
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 large package frozen strawberries
About 1/2 of a large container Cool Whip, thawed
1 large package strawberry jello
2 cups pineapple juice, heated


Combine cream cheese and sugar; set aside. Mix pretzels and margarine and press into 9x13 dish. Bake at 400F for 10 minutes. Cool. Spread cream cheese mixture over pretzels. Spread the Cool Whip over cream cheese. Chill about 30 minutes. Dissolve Jello in hot pineapple juice. Add frozen strawberries; chill until partially set. Carefully pour over all; refrigerate several hours.