Giveaway: Flip Ultra HD Camcorder

Take a look at Mommy Snacks for her Flip Ultra HD Camcorder Giveaway. If you watch the entire vlog that Mommy Snacks posted and receive two extra entries to the giveaway for the Flip Ultra HD camcorder.

Giveaway: Aurora Photo System

The Frugalrimama is giving away a Aurora photo system. If you are anything me you could really use one of these!

Part of the review said:When I was asked to review a photo management system called Aurora I was super excited because I knew this was something I could really use since I have so many pictures. Aurora makes editing, organizing, sharing and storing digital images so quick and easy anyone can do it. I downloaded and installed the software in just a few easy steps. It immediately showed all my folders that I have pictures in and I found it really simple to use.

Enter this giveaway here.

Giveaway: Orek Halo

On Two Of A Kind Working On A Full House there is a new Oreck Halo Giveaway. I have always heard Orecks are great vaccum's so I'm certainly entered in the giveaway. Don't miss out on this one!

Go here to enter the Oreck Giveaway.

Giveaway: $100 Cash

Okay, all of us could use this $100 cash givaway at Choyster Cash.

Go here to enter this giveaway.

Giveaway: 16 gb Ipod Touch

Here's another fun giveaway at Momsbyheart. It's a 16gb Ipod Touch valued at $299.The iPod Touch. It has a 3.5 inch widescreen that allows for 20 hours of movie and tv viewing. Lots of games available, and of course gobs of music storage! 3500 songs to be exact. Retail value: $299.

Visit here to find out more about the sponser and enter the giveaway.

Giveaway: SwellyBelly

Here's a fun giveaway for all you pregnant moms. I had never heard of this until now but at the Thrifty Minnesota Mamma enter to get one and try it out.

She said: Now that my belly is slowly expanding (I'm 3 months pregnant) I have become aware of some of my shirts slowly getting shorter. No I'm not shrinking them in the wash, but I definitely remember (from my first pregnancy) how short regular shirts become once your belly starts to pop out. Being that I really only wear maternity clothes for six months I hate to go out and buy a whole wardrobe of new shirts.
The SwellyBelly from Nine Moons solves this problem. You wear the SwellyBelly under your shirts as a layering accessory to help "lengthen" your shirts and allow you to wear them longer. You simply slide it over your head and the elastic on the top and bottom holds it in place. Personally I love the layered look anyway so I think it really looks great and extends the life of your pre-maternity wardrobe.

Go here to read her complete review and enter.

Giveaway: Cloth Swim Diapers

Now this giveaway caught my attention. After a week of record high heat I have used several disposable swim diapers for a little girl I babysit and thinking what a waste of money they can be. These cloth swim diapers are $10 a piece. what a great idea!

At the Thrifty Minnesota Mamma she reviewed these cloth swim diapers:
I have never in my life used a cloth diaper, but the appeal of cloth swim diapers was for cost savings. I noticed the price of a pack of swim diapers is almost $10! All they do is where them in the pool/lake and get them soggy and throw them away! I couldn't imagine putting a new swim diaper on her every time she went swimming.

So go here to enter for a Cloth Swim Diaper.

Giveaway: Car Seat Cover

At the Thrifty and Chic Mom she has a car seat cover giveaway. She had this to say about the car seat cover:

I had heard of car seat covers in the past and in my pre-toddler days wondered what is the point? You can take the padding out and wash it right? So other than the cute look is it really that beneficial? Well the answer is YES! As I soon found out while you can take the cover out it is a HUGE hassle. You have to undo all the straps, ect., ect. and I found myself letting the car seat get pretty gross before washing it since it was such a pain. Baby Bella Maya makes adorable car seat covers and sent me the Ocean Mist toddler car seat from their couture collection to try out. First of all it looks very chic and my daughter loves her pretty new car seat ( so does mommy!), but beyond that it really is very functional. It covers all those crevices and places that crumbs like to hide in and you can easily grab the mess before it falls way down in the car seat. It also removes very easily for washing so it is no big deal to keep my daughters car seat looking great.

Go here to enter the giveaway and read her complete review.

Thinking about Cloth Diapering?

If you are thinking about using cloth diapers you will want to head over to SimpleMom to read her post for the Cloth Diaper 101 week. Even if you already use cloth diapers you will want to stop by as she is posting so thoroughly on the subject you may learn something new!

Cloth Diaper Review was yesterday and she went over several popular brands of cloths diapers. She has a great Cloth Diaper giveaway going on! If you enter the Cloth Diaper giveaway by June 7th you have the chance to win 4 different cloth diaper gift packages. Even if you don’t use cloth diapers yourself enter the giveaway and share them with family or a friend who could put the diapers to good use. They would love it!

Make Homemade Baby Food!

The cost of pre-made baby food at the store is enough to make a dent in a grocery budget. Why not make your own homemade baby food? Not only will it be much cheaper but you can be assured it can be healthier for your baby too. A great website to visit for all the information you could ever need to make your own baby food is Wholesomebabyfood.com. At Wholesomebabyfood.com you can find out how easy it is to make Homemade Baby Food and find many Baby Food Recipes. You won't need to look anywhere else! A great idea when making your own homemade baby food is to ask a friend or family member who does buy baby food at the store to save back the jars for you. Then when you make your own baby food you can put it in the jars and freeze or use immediately.

Win a Vado HD Pocket Camcorder!

Over at the Grocery Shrink blog they are giving away a Vado HD Pocket Camcorder. Angela had this camcorder herself and is excited about this giveaway on her Grocery Shrink blog. Angela shares:

Hi Friend! I'm so excited! Creative Technology Inc. has donated a Vado HD pocket camcorder just for the readers here to win! I am a proud owner of a Vado HD already and if you've seen my videos on Youtube, they were made with the camera. It takes great video and is about the size of a cell phone. I love that I can drop it in my tiny purse or put it in my pocket for recording anytime. It recharges with a USB plug that folds right out of the camera. It couldn't be easier. It also has a USB extension cord so it will work with any computer setup. When it's time to download your video clips just plug it into your computer. Built in software on the camera takes care of the rest. My computer came with Windows Movie Maker built in and the videos interfaced well with the program for editing. I also love that there are no pricey tapes to buy. The video is stored on the camera and then downloaded. The video can be burned to a DVD from the recording for playback on any family theater system. Retailing at $229, the price is hard to beat for High Definition recording. If you are interested in videoing special family moments, or giving your business a boost through internet video, this is the camera for you!

Visit the Grocery Shrink blog now to enter this contest! The drawing will be held June 10th.

FAST AND HEALTHY MENUS FOR BUSY MOMS by Marilyn Moll

Marilyn Moll of the Urban Homemaker is offering a sale on her book, Fast and Healthy Menus for Busy Moms. I knew that Marilyn Moll has been recently widowed and thought I would like to help her business at this time. Please stop by the Urban Homemaker to look at the products she has to offer. My Mom bought an electric grain grinder a few years back and a Bosch mixer from the Urban Homemaker. She was very happy with the service from the Urban Homemaker and the products as well.


FAST AND HEALTHY MENUS FOR BUSY MOMS Reliable Recipes for Busy Families by Marilyn Moll – Pre-publication Promotion Continues with Eight Bonuses


If you and your family are tired of the pizza,hamburger, and the fast food rut and need some major cash infusion into your grocery budget....


Then Fast and Healthy Menus, provides the menus, the recipes, and grocery list to get you started to better health and drastic reduction of grocery expenses.


Menus rely on family favorite recipes the whole family will eat and basic, whole food ingredients readily found in the grocery store. No convenience products loaded with questionable ingredients, additives, or preservatives are used


You may subscribe to From the Heart of The Urban Homemaker at http://www.urbanhomemaker.com/subscriptions or call us at 1-800-552-7323.

Gardening To Save Money

I do enjoy gardening under the right conditions. Those conditions are good soil and enough time to take care of the weeds. Since I am lacking sorely in both areas at this time in my life I haven't planted a garden this year. However, I did come across a very interesting article, 5 foods it's cheaper to grow, by Sally Herigstad. In this article she shares:


"I've dallied with gardening on and off for years, but with prices at the supermarket higher every time I go, it's time to get serious. I want to grow a garden that saves a significant amount of money.
There's one catch to that plan: It's easy to spend more on a garden than you will ever get out of it.
Whether you save by gardening depends largely on where you live, what you grow and how well you resist slick gadgets and miracle solutions. If you're looking to save money rather than to start a hobby, here are five garden crops likely to give you the best return:

1. Fruit trees. If you really want a return on your garden investment, plant fruit trees. Alexander planted one $14 peach tree, and it gives him more than 200 pounds of peaches every year. Yes, he sprays it every year with about $3 worth of fungicide and pesticides. (The sprayer cost $30.) In the Hudson Valley, he doesn't have to water fruit trees. At $1 per pound for the peaches, in the first year that he got a full crop, he had a 1,400% return (or a mere 339% if you throw in the cost of the sprayer and a few years' worth of spray). Try getting a return like that on Wall Street. It took Alexander five years to get a full crop, so it does require patience.

2. Lettuce. Can't wait five years for results? Try lettuce. You'll be eating the thinnings in two or three weeks. From a $2 package of mixed lettuce seed, you can have lettuce for months. A bag of spring greens costs about $3 at a store, so you recoup your investment with the first picking. Lettuce bolts -- goes to seed -- during the summer heat, so plant again in the fall.

3. Herbs. These can give you the fastest payback of all. Buy a pot of parsley or mint and you can nibble on leaves on the way home. A parsley plant costs about the same amount as a bunch of cut parsley from the produce department. Parsley in a pot, kept out of reach of slugs, will provide fresh herbs all summer and can be brought inside in the fall. Thyme, rosemary, sage and other herbs come back on their own year after year in moderate climates.

4. Vine vegetables. These are the most prolific crop producers by far. Zucchini and cucumbers are notorious. Put an 88-cent zucchini plant in your garden and, if cutworms don't get it, it will try to take over the neighborhood. In most parts of the country, you can grow more zucchini from one plant than you'll ever eat. The Alexanders grow a couple of cucumber plants, from which they make a dozen jars of pickles. They never buy pickles.

5. Bell peppers. You can pay $1.50 for one pepper, or you can use your $1.50 to buy one pepper plant that can produce six peppers or more. But first make sure peppers will grow in your part of the country."


Go here to read more of this article.

Revolution Money Exchange

I was reading at Money Saving Mom Blog about the Revolution Money Exchange and decided to give it a try myself. I've tried several of Crystal's great "find's" and have never had an idea she passed along that didn't work. The Revolution Money Exchange sounded like a PayPal account without the fees involved when sending money to someone else who also has a Revolution Money Exchange account. Sure enough when I signed up I did receive the $25 for signing up!


Here's the review from Crystal:

"I've been seeing a lot of talk around the internet about Revolution Money Exchange and how you can earn $25 for signing up for an account. I'm usually someone who blows off things like this as "too good to be true" but after being repeatedly encouraged to sign up and try it out myself, I did just that two weeks ago.It was a simple 5-minute sign-up process and almost immediately, I had $25 showing up in my account! I've checked this out very thoroughly and have found this company to be very legitimate--in fact, it was started by the former CEO of AOL! Many of my friends who have signed up have already received their checks and I just requested mine and am hoping to receive it soon. This is an inexpensive viral marketing campaign for this new competitor of Paypal and it's worth signing up for if you have a few minutes and could use $25. And it gets even better--they also have a referral Program which allows you to refer others and receive $10 per referral (up to $500)! Who couldn't use $25? So sign up and then tell your friends and they'll thank you for it and you'll get a nice little kickback, too! I've already received my $500 in referrals from posting about this on my blog and will now be getting a check for $525 in the mail!"


This offer is only good for a few more weeks!

Caroline's Birth Announcement

My sister Caroline and her husband Sean welcomed their third child, and first daughter, to their family on Easter Sunday. I am sharing the birth announcement Caroline wrote and some pictures. Carianna is so sweet and looks just like Caroline did when she born!

It's a Girl!

Carianna Jewel Allen was born March 23rd, at 12:53, on her Mama's Birthday, Carianna's Due Date, and Easter Sunday! She is 20 inches long, and weighs somewhere between 8-9 pounds. The baby scales broke as our midwife tried to weigh her, so that is as close as we could get using regular scales. We are all doing well, she is sleeping and eating and cries only when her diaper is changed! So far she is very peaceful, and her brothers love to hold her and love her. And of course her Papa can't stop kissing and loving on his little girl! God has blessed us greatly, and we are so very thankful. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us!