Wow them, easily!

It's time to start all of that Holiday baking, well if you haven't already that is.  I know that I should have started, and wanted to start, about 2 weeks ago but still haven't.  It always creeps up on me this time of year just how much there is going on and how much there is to do in such a short amount of time.  You not only have all of your regular daily food to cook you have to bring appies and desserts to school functions, staff parties and nights out not to mention the gifts and fancy party clothes to pick out!

We don't always have time to whip up a few dozen treats the night before your child tells you that they are signed up to bring treats to school.  What about when you work all day and need to take an appy out for after work?

What all of us need is a stack of easy recipes that we can call on when we are stuck like that!  I also love baking in advance, which I am still trying to do, freeze it all and then you can pull it out and ice it etc the night before or the morning that you need it.  I am thinking that sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies will be great like this.  You pop them out of the freezer and then ice them, soooo good. 

The Life Made Delicious site, that I am sure you have checked out by now, has lots of great easy Holiday recipes on it now.  There is also another one called three steps to wow and its fabulous!  Time to break out the printer or old school pen and paper and mark down your favoties!  You start with Pilsbury cookie dough or some Pilsbury Cresent rolls dough and add a few quick and easy things.  Here are some of my favorites!

Disclosure: I am part of the Life Made Delicious Blogger program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

TinkerBell on Disney Junior

Brandon uses his imagination all of the time!  Hes a big play on his own kid, probably because I was big on that from the beginning.  I have always believed that if you are always entertaining them they will always need you to entertain them.  I am not saying that I don't play with him, at all, but just that its so good for him to play on his own.  With his sister at school all day hes like an only child for a lot of the day.  Also even when Kristina is home you have to remember that they are more than 5 years apart so as much as they do play together they also have lots of play time apart.

Brandon will talk to his toys and talk back for them, he plays a lot of dress up, and makes make believe houses and forts.  The other day, the entire day was spent playing Buzz and Woody.  Daddy was Woody all day and Brandon was Buzz all day.  It worked into everything and lasted all day lol!

Have you seen TinkerBell Fridays this month?  TinkerBell is over 100 years old now, she was first introduced in 1904, how crazy is that.  I remember when my brother and I were little and my mom took us to see Peter Pan in the theatre and my brother thought that if Peter Pan could fly, he could fly.  So with my horrified mother watching he jumped up on the arm rest of the seat and jumped off as high as he could, during the movie.  Obviously he didn't fly but it sure stuck with us and just goes to show you how imaginative kids can be.

Each Friday Disney Junior will air a different TinkerBell movie PLUS they have a brand new “Pixie Hollow Game” coming to http://www.disneyjunior.ca/

What do you do to ignite your kids imagination?

Disclosure:  I’m part of the Disney Junior Mom program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group.  The opinions on this blog are my own!

Free Yogurt!

I can't believe I went almost 2 weeks without posting!  I have gotten a little coupon crazy!  Ya my husband thinks I am a little crazy, well a lot crazy actually.  I have started collecting, trading and of course redeeming.  Its been a lot of fun and I don't know if its because I have an obsessive personality or what but I have become quite addicted to it.

The hottest coupons are FPC (free product coupons) and you would think that because its giving you a free item that these coupons would be really hard to find.  They are really easy to find if you know where to look!  Even if you don't coupon per say I would think these would be pretty hard to throw out.

Life Made Delicious products are always known to have coupons on them.  There were the taco kits with free cheese, now there are some with $4 off beef or chicken.  There was the Hamburger Helper with the free veggies and the granola bars and fruit snacks with free juice, and now there is cereal with free yogurt!  You can check out all of the Life Made Delicious offers here!

On specially marked packages of General Mills cereal you get a free coupon for yogurt!  As much as I love a good coupon it has to be for something that you will use, and when its for a free product, even better!  I have already collected a few of these.  I buy cereal all the time, preferably when its on sale and I have a coupon :) but to pay $3 or $4 and then get a coupon for free yogurt worth $4 or so how can you not stock up and get lots!

Yes I guess I am turning into a bit of a hoarder.  I have always, when I had the money, bought a few of things that I knew I would use before they expired and were on for a great deal.  Now that I use coupons I stock up even more :)  It can be bad but when its an amazing deal you just have to do it, assuming you have the room and will use it or donate it before it goes bad!  Be sure to watch for these great coupons on your favorite cereals and check out the easy recipes on Life Made Delicious as well!

Disclaimer: I am part of the Life Made Delicious Connector program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

Posterjack

My husband has a very close knit family.  I don't know if I have shared our living arrangement before but we live on a large chunk on land with some of my husbands family.  His Nana and Papa have a house down past the pond near the bottom of the property, Kris and I have a house at the top and across the driveway Kris's Aunt and Uncle have a house with a basement suite where Kris's Mom lives.  Usually when I tell people about this they ask me how we can do it.  Family 24/7 :)

To be totally honest I love it.  I have come to love Kris's family as my own and we spend a lot of time with them.  When Kris's cousins come to visit their parents (his Aunt and Uncle) all of our kids play together and if we didn't all live here the kids wouldn't be as close as they are and that's pretty important to me.  Also when Kris's Sisters come over to visit we get to see them the entire time they are here and can still come and go for naps etc as we need, just a hop skip and jump away.

Party because of this, Brandon is very close with his two cousins who come to visit every other weekend or so.  He calls them his kids and talks to them or about them on a daily basis.  He loves them to bits and so we have some pictures of them up around the house, on the fridge and I wanted to get one for his room.  When I was contacted by Posterjack I thought this was the perfect opportunity to get a big picture of Brandon and his boys done up.   How cute are they?

When it arrived Brandon couldn't have been happier.  He wanted it hung right above his bed and he loves looking at it. Its made very well and is so much better than a framed picture in my opinion!  I love it, it looks like art and we will have it for years to come.  It will make a great memory one day when he is to old to remember having matching pjs with his boys!

Poster Jack would make a great Christmas gift for your partner or even a Grandparent.  I know that my Mom would love to have a canvas of the kids hanging in her living room.  Maybe I will have to add that to her list!  Be sure to check out Posterjack, they don't just have canvas prints either!  You can see them on Facebook and Twitter as well!

November and December winners

December Jumpstart giveaway

I can't believe I forgot to pick a winner!!!

The winner is 67. Tannie's Chatter said...


Daily Tweet


http://twitter.com/#!/tannieschatter/status/150083317260230656

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2011 9:21:00 PM



tanandjosh@telus.net

December 20th 2011

The winner of the Brother Labeler is comment number 99

99. Emma said...


I follow you publicly 1/2 entries
benjifiliso@hotmail.com
Sunday, December 04, 2011 2:07:00 AM
 
The winner of the Burts Bees basket worth $150!!!  is comment number 112
 
112. janice budgell pollard said...


email subscriber

janicebudgellpollard at hotmail dot com
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 7:14:00 PM
 
Dec 13th 2011

The winner of the luxe box from Loose Button is comment number 2

2. Lisa KH said...


I've subscribed to Fun and Funky Mommy newsletter.
weezi_k@hotmail.com
Saturday, December 03, 2011 11:08:00 PM

Dec 8th 2011

The new winner for the skillet and Hamburger Helper is comment number 302

102. C Wilson said...


tweeted mailto:cacch71@gmail.com
http://twitter.com/#!/Carolineinbc/status/133916993341493248
Tuesday, November 08, 2011 6:52:00 AM

The new winner of the Invisalign chair is comment number 69

69. robynl said...


http://twitter.com/#!/rlee1950/status/135195133841907713
yourstrulee(at)sasktel(dot)net
Friday, November 11, 2011 7:21:00 PM

Dec 1st 2011

The winner of the Invisalign teen chair is comment number 57

57. ginette4 said...


daily tweet
https://twitter.com/#!/ginette4/status/133964179806765056
anger_family @yahoo dot com`
Tuesday, November 08, 2011 11:51:00 AM
 
The winner of the Hamberger Helper and veggies is comment number 94
 
94. ksceviour said...


I follow on twitter & tweeted
http://twitter.com/#!/ksceviour/status/130756414091182080
ksceviour@hotmail.com
Sunday, October 30, 2011 2:24:00 PM
 
The winner of the $50 to Uncommon Goods is comment number 5
 
5. Terra H. said...


follow your blog via gfc #2
partymix25(at)hotmail(dot)com
Tuesday, November 01, 2011 11:51:00 PM
 
Nov 2011

The winner of the crock pot is comment number 161

161. Debbie said...


daily tweet

http://twitter.com/#!/mommakoala/status/134278017760509952

mommakoala(at)cogeco(dot)ca

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 09, 2011 6:36:00 AM


The winner of the Betty Crocker cook book is comment number 238

38. renee said...

http://twitter.com/#!/nicjosemm/status/124789939517931520
Friday, October 14, 2011 3:14:00 AM
reneetaylor@sympatico.ca

The winner of the pink racecar from Raspberry Kids is comment number 79

79. andalene said...

I also like the Skip Hop Studio Diaper Tote in grey. abrennan09@hotmail.com
Saturday, October 08, 2011 10:15:00 PM
 
The winner of the entire Live Clean Baby Soothing Relief Collection from Live Clean is comment number 117
 
117. Sweet Panda said...


tweeted: https://twitter.com/#!/PandaSweetSweet/status/124944837203075072
sweetpanda2010 at gmail dot com
Friday, October 14, 2011 1:29:00 PM
 
The winner of sand and play set from Green Toys (US Only) is comment number 18
 
18. Christina said...

I "like" Fun and Funky Mommy on Facebook (Christina F)
Sunday, October 09, 2011 4:58:00 AM
ChristinaAileenF@gmail.com
 
The winner of the two tees from Hank Player is comment number 47
 
47. robynl said...

Like you on facebook(Robyn Lee)
yourstrulee(at)sasktel(dot)net
Wednesday, October 19, 2011 12:23:00 PM
 
The two winners each winning two packs of Shoo Zoos are comment number 16 and 36
 
16. Paula M-B said...


Subscribe to Fun and Funky via email
pjkmitchell at hotmail dot com
Thursday, October 20, 2011 9:33:00 AM

36. Diana said...


dt
http://twitter.com/#!/goldiez/status/128255665117478912
goldiez at hotmail dot com
Sunday, October 23, 2011 4:46:00 PM

Crockpot is celebrating 40 years with a Giveaway

For the modern at-home chef, Crock-Pot® Designer Series slow cookers are designed for today’s lifestyle. These 6 quart programmable slow cookers feature programmable settings, dishwasher-safe stoneware and a gasket lid for added comfort and handling. The hide-away easy lifting handles tuck completely into the base and rectangular body shape allows the design to stand alone – and with a sleek brushed stainless steel finish, they look great on the counter.

I have a crockpot but its ugly.  I know stupid reason for not using it very often but I don't have room to leave it on the counter and wouldn't if I did have room because its ugly.  Because its always in the cupboard I never think to use it.  Well now I don't have an excuse not to use my crockpot as often now that I have the new 6.0 Qt. Crock-Pot® Designer Series Slow Cooker

• 6.0 Qt. / 5.6L oblong slow Cooker – ideal for 6-7 people
• Removable stoneware for easy serving and cleaning
• Tempered glass lid
• Digital timer counts down cooking time
• Auto-shift to Warm setting when cook time is complete
• Dishwasher safe lid and stoneware
• Rinse-Clean™ stick resistant coating for easy cleaning
• Programmable cooking time from 30 minutes to 20 hours
• Gasketed lid
• Brushed stainless steel finish
• Integrated Handles and Cord Storage
• Model # SCCPBP600S-CN
• MRSP $89.99. Available at Sears

Did you know . . . ?

• Anything goes: Although slow cookers are known for traditional dishes like roasts and beef chili, you can cook almost anything—from crème brule to lamb shanks—in your slow cooker.

• Celebrities love them too: Reese Witherspoon brought her Crock-Pot® slow cooker onto The Ellen DeGeneres Show to showcase her favourite dish, coq au vin.

• Meal ideas are in the palm of your hand: The Crock-Pot® brand’s iPhone App helps you decide what’s for dinner with hundreds of slow cooker recipes right at your fingertips.

• Red ruled in 1971: The first Crock-Pot® slow cooker featured the iconic glass lid, with a bright red exterior and basic crock interior.
The last thing I made in a crockpot was my apple butter.  If you don't know what apple butter is its applesauce simmered down to be extra thick and sweeter than apple sauce.  Its sooooo good.  Here is a link to the recipe. 

I know I see my friends always posting their favorite crockpot recipes on facebook.  Whats your favorite recipe?  I have a quick giveaway!  One of you can with this 6.0 Qt. Crock-Pot® Designer Series Slow Cooker, it will end on Saturday night though so be quick!

To Enter:

Tell me your favorite Crockpot recipe

(this must be done for additional entries to count)

Additional Entries:

- add my Fun and Funky Mommy button to your blog (2 entries)

- follow me publicly (2 entries)

- subscribe to Fun and Funky Mommy

- like me on facebook (leave your first name and last initial so I can find you)

- blog about this giveaway with a link to me

- follow me on twitter @Funfunkymommy AND tweet about this giveaway for one entry (can RT daily for another entry)

***Feel free to Retweet this***

Win a  6.0 Qt. Crock-Pot® Designer Series Slow Cooker @Funfunkymommy http://tinyurl.com/cxotehw


***** Contest will end on November 12th at 8:00 PM. I will use Random.org to choose the winner. The winner will have 72 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. Make sure that your profile is set to public or that you include your email in your comments because if I can't get a hold of you can't win! Contest open to Canada ONLY*****

Invisalign Teen with a giveaway worth up to $7000

Every time I take my kids to the dentist I cringe.  Not because I don't like the dentist, I do, they are great, but I am worried about Kristina, her teeth and my pocket book in the next few years.  Sometimes the dentist will tell me bits and pieces about what he thinks is going to happen with Kristinas teeth but he says its hard for him to know for sure until her mouth stops growing and the teeth finally stop shifting.

Ultimately it looks like she is going to need some sort of intervention teeth wise.  They are definitely crowded and there isn't enough room in their for all of her monster teeth.  I thought that it would be better to do something about it now before they all go crooked but the dentist says that we can't.  All I can do at this point is research what I want to do when the time comes and try to save a whole lot of cash!

When I learned of Invisalign I was pretty intrigued.  Basically what Invisaline is is an alternative to the classic treatment of crooked teeth, metal braces.  Metal braces can be very painful, they can scratch your mouth, you get food stuck in them, when they are tightened I have heard that its very painful and of course they don't look so great and don't make you feel so great when you have them.  Of course this isn't to say that braces are not a great product just that there are some flaws with them. 

Invisalign takes a modern approach to straightening teeth, using a custom-made series of aligners created for you and only you. These aligner trays are made of smooth, comfortable and virtually invisible plastic that you simply wear over your teeth. Wearing the aligners will gradually and gently shift your teeth into place, based on the exact movements your dentist or orthodontist plans out for you. There are no metal brackets to attach and no wires to tighten. You simply pop in a new set of aligners approximately every two weeks, until your treatment is complete and you achieve the confident smile that you've always wanted. The best part about the whole process is that most people won't even know you're straightening your teeth.

Invisalign is not only available for adults. The new Invisalign Teen was developed with leading orthodontists who understand the unique treatment and compliance needs of teens as well as their active lifestyles.  Every patient’s needs are different and there are many factors that determine the cost of Invisalign treatment. But, in most cases, Invisalign is comparable in costs to traditional braces, is covered by most dental insurance plans, and affordable financing options are always available. 

Invisalign’s treatment capabilities are not limited to mild/cosmetic cases – Invisalign can help correct a broad range of cases: Overly crowded teeth, widely spaced teeth, crossbite, overbite and underbite.  Treatment time is about the same as with metal braces and in some cases, shorter.  Invisalign treatment is also ideal for busy parents because there are never any emergency appointment from broken wires/brackets; it requires fewer appointment (because you get your sets in advance) and less chair time (for those uncomfortable tightenings)

My brother had braces as a child as well as the hated headgear!  He was definitely made fun of by his friends, and maybe me, kids are mean.  I couldn't imagine watching my child go through that.  Its hard to deal with bullying in the first place but when you can prevent it, possibly, by going another route I would totally do that.  Also how annoying would it be to go to the orthodontist every few weeks and then having to get in right away when you have troubles.  I barley get any sleep as it is because I have to much to do and then to fit in all of those appointments, no thanks!

Something else that I was very happy to see was that I could have Kristinas teeth done with Invisalign in my own town.  Its available in so many places, there is a place on the site, here, that you can go to and see if its available anywhere close to you.  Its available at so many orthodontist and dentist offices and they are able to do it for you right there.  I guess unless you ask about different options everyone just assumes that braces are the only thing available.  Not anymore!  Make sure you ask your dentist or orthodontist and check out Invisalign!

I have a giveaway as well for one of you!  You can enter on all of the blogs but you can only win on one!  You can enter to win your own Invisalign foldable outdoor sports chair!  The best thing you can enter to win?  A full Invisalign treatment worth up to $7000!!!  You can enter to win the treatment here and all of the rules and regulations are found here!  I will be entering and would love to win so if you don't want to enter feel free to skip this one :)

To Enter to win the Invisalign foldable outdoor sports chair:

Tell me how the Invisalign Teen treatment benefit you

(this must be done for additional entries to count)

Additional Entries:

- add my Fun and Funky Mommy button to your blog (2 entries)

- follow me publicly (2 entries)

- subscribe to Fun and Funky Mommy

- like me on facebook (leave your first name and last initial so I can find you)

- blog about this giveaway with a link to me

- follow me on twitter @Funfunkymommy AND tweet about this giveaway for one entry (can RT daily for another entry)

***Feel free to Retweet this***

Win an Invisalign sports chair and a full teen treatment worth up to $7000 @Funfunkymommy http://tinyurl.com/3auqpwy


***** Contest will end on November 18th at 8:00 PM. I will use Random.org to choose the winner. The winner will have 72 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. Make sure that your profile is set to public or that you include your email in your comments because if I can't get a hold of you can't win! Contest open to Canada ONLY*****

Disclosure - I am participating in the Invisalign Teen program by Mom Central Canada on behalf of Align Technology, Inc.  I received compensation as a thank you for my participation.  The opinions on this blog are my own.

RUBIK's Race game

Looking for the perfect retro gift for the holidays?  Look no further!  The RUBIK’s Race® is a blast from the past and promises hours of fun!  The fastest game in town, RUBIK’s Race is a re-introduction of the original ‘80s game inspired by the world’s most popular, yet torturous, hand-held puzzle! Designed by reclusive Hungarian sculptor, engineer and architect, Professor Erno Rubik, inventor of the original RUBIK’s Cube®, RUBIK’s Race is the ultimate face-to-face game that challenges players to get their brain and fingers racing and go head-to-head with their opponent to match the pattern of nine coloured squares. Like the original RUBIK’s Cube, the world’s best selling puzzle ever which has achieved global sales exceeding 350 million units since its launch in 1980, RUBIK’s Race requires skill, speed and logic.  But in this game — players race to complete a puzzle!    

Here’s how it works:

Shift It.  Slide It. Solve it! The RUBIK’s Race includes a Scrambler, a device that contains 9 coloured cubes, and a Game Base.  The Base allows two players to face one another, separated by a hinged vertical “window,” and provides each player with a 5x5 slide puzzle of 24 tiles comprising of the six iconic cube face colours — white, yellow, orange, red, green and blue. At the beginning of each round, the Scrambler is shaken to set the target pattern. The goal for each player is to frantically shift and slide their tiles around and try to be the first to make the 3x3 centre of their puzzle match the target pattern of the RUBIK’s Cube Scrambler.  When a player completes the 3x3 target pattern on their board, they drop the window onto their playing area, covering all but the centre 3x3 grid, and declare themselves the winner!

Holiday Favourite“The retro RUBIK’s Race will inspire an entirely new generation of Cubers to challenge the puzzle with outstanding speed as well as bring back fond memories for die-hard ‘80s Cubists,” says Dave Charbonneau, president of Kroeger Inc., one of Canada’s leading toy experts and best known for distributing the world famous RUBIK’s Cube.   RUBIK’s Race is suitable for children ages 5 and up and requires no electricity or batteries – it’s eco-friendly and easy to use!  RUBIK’s Race can be found at toy and game retailers across Canada, including Toys ‘R’ Us.  Manufacturer’s suggested retail price is $19.99.

We got the RUBIK's cube race game to review and the kids had fun with it.  Brandon was definitely to young to understand the concept of how to play properly but he did like "playing" with his sister and moving the pieces around.  Kristina however really enjoyed the game, she get frustrated at the end however when I told her that the pieces had to match up the center 9 squares not just any 9 squares. 

It was very easy to put together and set up.  Its also great to take with you on the go, camping or on a trip.  We took it over to my girlfriends house for the kids to play while we were canning!  We will definitely be playing it again though, all of us.  Check it out for the Holidays for those kids who have way to many toys!