We have a winner!

I know I never really said I had a giveaway, but I (occasionally) reward those who comment on my blog posts. :). So congrats to Ashley Lee for winning the General Mills giveaway of movie cash good for 2 free movie tickets, in addition to 1 box of General Mills cereal! You should be getting your package in the mail. The instructions will tell you how to find out who accepts the Movie Cash. Let me know what you end up seeing!

2 Free Movie Tickets!

We don't get to go to the movies that often, but we are looking forward to The Hobbitt in December!  I wanted to let you know about a way to score some free movie tickets while enjoying something you eat on a regular basis anyways!  I found out that General Mills is giving away free tickets when you buy 2 of their specially marked boxes.

This promotion is called Movie Time.  Here's how it works:

Purchase 2 specially marked packages of General Mills cereals (Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, Trix, Cocoa Puffs, Golden Grahams, Reese's Peanut Butter Puffs).  Buy them between now and 12/06/2013.  Then visit www.generalmills.com/moviecash to enter the code found inside each box of cereal, and you will get to print off a certificate called Movie Cash good for one admission up to $12 valid at participating theaters.  To find a participating theater, go to www.emoviecash.com/dis_locator/

Let me know in the comments below if you see any of these specially marked boxes, and where - especially if it's at one of the stores that is hooked up with savingstar.com since I have a .50 coupon for Cheerios and .50 for Cinnomon Toast Crunch that I can combine with paper coupons... you see how this movie ticket is looking better and better?

Also let me know in my comments if there is a movie you are looking forward to.  I just might have a surprise coming to one of my commenters.  :) hint hint.

Disclosure: The information, products and General Mills gift pack were provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark. VJKTE97XWUEA 

Who's in the cabinet?

Get a free card from Treat!

What are you doing for Thanksgiving this year?  For our family, this is the first year in a while that we are NOT flying to California to visit with family.  It just didn't make sense with a new little nephew being born soon after we would leave.  So we are going to fly out on Christmas.  Our day will still be full though, as Darby will be running a 10K in the Gobble Jog - his first official race- in the morning, and then lots of cooking and baking, and afterwards skyping with family.  This is also the first time in a while that we will be free to "celebrate" Black Friday if we so desire... I have my eye on a store or two, but might not end up doing it.

Whatever you end up doing, I hope this week that you are able to have a heart full of gratitude for all you have and all that the Lord has done for you this year.

If your holiday list includes telling people how thankful you are for them, check out this offer from Treat, which is Shutterfly's new greeting card company.  They are giving you a chance to try them out with a free card to send to someone you love - whether it be to say hello, you miss them, happy birthday, whatever... I have tried them, and they have great quality cards with prices comparable to store cards.  They will either send your card to your recipient (they charge .45 for a stamp) or you can select that the card be sent to you first (you don't have to purchase a stamp).  If I have time, I like to have the cards sent to me first so I can write in them, but since you'd be paying for a stamp anyways to send it, it really doesn't cost more to have Treat send it to the recipient.

So, here's how to grab your free card.  Check out Treat, select a card, personalize it, and at the last step, enter the promo code TREATBLOGR.  You will see your total go down to $0 or the price of your stamp.  The deal is good for Monday 11/19 and Tuesday 11/20 only.  So tell someone how thankful you are for them!

Disclosure:  This is a sponsored post.  I was given free card credits to tell my readers about this free card campaign.

Calla's Yearly Questions

I'm trying to keep record of my kids and who they are as they grow by asking them some yearly questions.  These videos are long, but family might want to actually watch!
The first video is this year, age 3.  The second video is last year, age 2.  I think it is remarkable how much she has changed in one year!

A few memories

We had a busy September, and I came across some pictures that I wanted up on the blog.

The first pictures are from Sesame Street Live, to which we won tickets.  We actually were really disappointed and won't be going back again, but that's just our take on it.  Maybe we were spoiled by the Wiggles. :)  Calla had fun dressing up and enjoyed it at first, but she ended up crying at intermission when the lights went up and standing there were some Sesame Street folks with huge bunches of Elmo balloons (that cost like $10), tempting every child there to beg and plead and subsequently cry when the parents said no.  I got a little angry at this ploy to get our money, but it was an opportunity to address her heart (and mine).  Calla actually got bored and asked to leave after that.  They didn't sing many familiar songs, and the characters are really limited in what they can do in their big mascot-like monster suits.  But hey, Calla looked cute!! :)

 Here is a sweet picture of Cole and Calla watching Daddy and the worship team practice before Sunday evening church.

 And a picture of sweet Calla.  Oh, I have been meaning to upload a video from this day, when I asked Calla her yearly questions.  More about that later when it's uploaded!

 I have many memories of wearing and sleeping in these pink foam curlers from when I was little, so I had to buy them and try them on Calla.  She thought it was so much fun to wear them in her hair, but made it... oh... 10 minutes in bed with them before I had to take them out.

 Calla got to wear this sweet dress that I wore when I was a little girl.  Doesn't she look precious?

 And finally, some pictures from our vacation to Destin, FL.  Calla keeps talking about the time we "lived in Florida,"and thought that the condo itself was Florida.  When we would be out and return, she'd exclaim, "We're back in Florida!"  I wasn't expecting much from these beaches coming from California and growing up going to Malibu, but this beach really was amazing.  Fluffy, soft white sand.  Warm, clear turquoise water with fishies nibbling on your toes (ok that was more than a little creepy).  We think we've found a place to keep going back to as many times as we can!

Calla's first kite-flying experience

Cole loved when Papa would sing to him and play his guitar!

So maybe not the best pictures of us since I don't know how to take pictures , but we experienced some amazing sunsets!!

Calla with her Nana

I'm a Big Boy Now!

First haircut. 20 months. I couldn't bring myself to try, so a sweet friend agreed to cut Cole's hair for the first time (thank you Tara!!). He looks like a handsome big boy now, but I know he's still a baby at heart. :)

And the winner is....

#24 Courtney!!! Congrats, you are the winner of the $50 gift card to Tiny Prints. Hope I get one of your photo cards in the mail!! :). Thanks to everyone for entering!

Pumpkin Patching

Fun Fall Day

What a beautiful fall day! Today, we couldn't resist the perfect weather and took the kids over to Kennesaw Mountain, a local Civil War historical site. The kids loved hiking around and gathering whatever they could find, including acorns, leaves, and sticks. What a joy to get to spend time together as a family!

Tiny Prints Christmas Cards with Awesome Giveaway!!

It seems a little early to be starting this ball rolling, but I'm already jumping ahead to thinking about Christmas.  Maybe it's the fact that our weather has gotten quite cold.  Or that I'm already booking our flights for our Christmas trip home.  Either way, Christmas is coming!!!!  I have already started planning gifts, and now I'm starting to think about Christmas cards.  In the past, I have used a variety of companies, both online companies and local chain stores.  Last year, I used Tiny Prints.  Tiny Prints (in my opinion) has a lot more options as far as modern designs with better fonts and color schemes than other companies out there.  Once you look through their collections, you will see what I mean!  One of my hopes last year was that they include more religious-based cards, which they have.  They have some with Scripture and some with Christmas hymn quotes.  I love the ones with the rounded corners, and I also love how they put colorful designs on the backs of the cards.  You can also add pictures to the back as well as the front of the card.

  

So, check out the Tiny Prints Christmas Cards!

In addition, they have a webpage that lists all of their current promo codes, so you should check that out, too: Promo Codes

Now for the GIVEAWAY!!  

Tiny Prints has generously offered one of my readers a $50 code to use off your total order (does not include shipping and cannot be combined with other promo codes or offers).   

The giveaway ends on October 29, 2012 at 2:00 pm Eastern time.   I will not count entries left after that time.   To enter, leave comments below that meet the entry requirements.  There is one required entry, and you can do the other 2 entries to increase your odds.  Make sure you include your email address so I know how to notify you!  I will use random.org to choose a winner.  Winner's promo code will be sent by Tiny Prints to the winner.  

To enter:

First entry (required): Leave a comment below telling me either what you look forward to the most about the holidays, a holiday photo tip, or a holiday decorating tip.

Second entry (optional): Check out the Tiny Prints Christmas Cards (please use my link above) and come back and leave a comment here telling me which design is your favorite.

Third entry (optional): Like the Tiny Prints Facebook page, leaving a comment below telling me you did: http://www.facebook.com/tinyprints 

Thanks for reading, friends!!

(Disclosure: This blog post and giveaway was sponsored by Tiny Prints.  Opinions are all my own, though!)