And the Winner Is.................!

First, let me say that I really appreciate all of you who left comments this week and participated in the give-a-way. Thanks so much for your support!!!

Next, I truly love all of you, my bloggy buddies...you really encourage and strengthen me and I will be forever grateful for being allowed into your corner of the world.





And finally, thank you to DS, my awesome and handsome name-drawing assistant!!!









Now....The winner of the Fruit 2 O Essentials give-a-way is..................................................

Andrea over at Arise to Write!!!



Congratulations Andrea and if you would be so kind as to e-mail me your full name and address, I'll get that to the sponsors of this give-a-way so you can start enjoying this delicious water!!

Last Day of Give-a-Way & Just Sayin'

Just a reminder...today is the last day of my Fruit 2 O Essentials give-a-way.....I would love to be able to give everyone a chance to try this delicious water, but I can only choose one and that will happen in the morning. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment. You can leave as many comments as you want, but only one per day per post can I count!!

Okay....I was just scrolling around on my Facebook and saw a 'conversation'...if you can call it that between two women. One of the ladies is a woman I've went to church with and known most of my adult life. The other woman I don't know. I won't go into the conversation because that becomes gossip, but it did spark something in me that I've just got to speak up on....

So many people live such stressed out lives brought about by their own hand. Who fills up that day calendar? Who says, "Of course I'll be happy to _______" knowing that one more thing on your list will put you over the edge. We do!!

We put so much on our plate.....we try to be a part of everything that is going on....we allow our children to participate in every sport, play, etc that comes around for fear that they might get 'left out' (seriously??!!)..we meet ourselves coming and going, yellin' and stressin'..for what???? This just doesn't make sense in my mind. Why would anyone want that kind of lifestyle??

No one is more of a people pleaser than myself. No one has a harder time saying no than I do...but even I have limits. My children have limits and many times when they were younger they would get frustrated because I would say, "No you can't (do, go, play, watch..) because I could tell they were running on reserve and that was emptying out fast!!

Even now, with them being 17 and 19 I still tell them off the phone by 11:30 and every other weekend they have a midnight curfew..the rest of the time it's 10 pm. That's not popular, believe me...but they will (and have) pushed themselves to dangerous levels (like DS almost running his car over a bluff because he was so tired and sleepy!!)..

Come on parents!!...grow up, set boundaries. Little Johnny or Suzie won't die if they can't play year round sports. They won't miss out if they don't go to every sleep over, every concert every party that comes along.

But they are missing out if it's rush here to get there. They are missing out if supper is always in the back seat while they are rushing to the next thing they "have to do". They are missing out if mom and dad are so stressed about the schedule that all they can do is yell or stay in an uptight frame all of the time...

Is it really worth it????

"Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted.
Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good.
It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night,
anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones.
Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him.
Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warrior’s hands.
How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them!
He will not be put to shame when he confronts his accusers at the city gates."
Psalm 127, NLT

My Sumthin' Is...........

A GIVE-A-WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yep!! That's what it is!!

I was chosen to try out these really cool bottles of water called Fruit 2 O Essentials. These not only taste delicious, but they are so healthy for you!!!

Their taste is cool and refreshing with an added bonus of zero calories and zero sugar!! Talk about Mom-friendly!!!...for us and the kiddos!!!




When our box arrived, I opened it to find many different varieties of water. We enjoyed Strawberry/Kiwi, Peach Mango, Blueberry Pomegranate, Cranberry Raspberry (2), Citrus and Cherry Acai. (You'll notice in the pic that there aren't as many bottles showing as I listed...uhh....the kiddos got to them before I could get the pic.........sorry...:o) )

DS couldn't wait for them to get cold, so he grabbed the Strawberry/Kiwi, opened it and poured it over ice. YUMM!!!!!!!!

We have not been disappointed. Each flavor is so distinct but I have to say that my favorite has been the Cranberry/Raspberry.

So..for the give-a-way part....

Sunny Delight Beverage Co., the distributors for Fruit 2 O Essentials, will send to the winner of my give-a-way, a box of these delicious bottled waters just like I received!!

Included are several pages of nutrition information, how to become a Fruit 2 O fan on Facebook, information on their partnership with the American Diabetes Association, a comparison sheet on the calories, carbs and sugars of other drinks compared to Fruit 2 O and information on how to lose 10 pounds in 2010.

This is an awesome opportunity to try, free of charge, tasty, healthy bottled waters that will spark that desire to not just lose weight, but make health conscious choices for you and your family!

The way to enter??....Just leave a comment! The contest will run today through Friday, April 23, 2010, midnight, CST. I will have one of my beautiful assistants, aka DH, DD or DS, draw the winner on Saturday and I will post the winner on Saturday as well.

You can up your chances of winning by commenting each day, but only one comment per day will be counted, so you will have up to 5 chances of winning.

Now.....start leaving those comments!!!!!

And the Winner Is!!.......

I want to thank everyone who took the time last week to leave a comment on my posts and participate in my give-a-way. I was blessed by your comments and encouragement!!

There were so many entries and I wish that I had enough to just give everybody something.....but it had to come down to just one and the winner was...(drawn by my dear hubby).....

Kris over at Hands, House and Heart Full!!



Kris if you will just zap me your address via e-mail, I'll get the gifts out to you right away!!

Let me encourage to drop by Kris's blog to say hi and congratulations!!

I am looking so forward to blogging in the next year but more so meeting and making new friends!!

Hugs and prayers !!!!

"Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God."
Philippians 1:3, NLT

Just a Reminder!!

Just a reminder!!!....

Don't forget about my give-a-way that will be closing at midnight Friday!!

All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on any blog post, Monday thru Friday of this week. You can have up to 5 chances to win!!

HUGS!!!

Blogoversary Give-a-Way!!

Well today's the day!! I finally have it all together to do my Blogoversary give-a-way!! :o)

I thought and prayed about what I wanted to do and here's where I ended up:

I love the seasons and try to decorate my house according to the seasons. I found an adorable little platter that looks like a large autumn leaf. It's actually for a cheese ball and comes with a knife for spreading. I also have 4 books that I would like to give away that have spoken to and encouraged my heart over the last year or so. Here are the titles and authors:

Certain Peace in Uncertain Times; Shirley Dobson
You're Late Again, Lord; Karon Phillips Goodman
God is in the Small Stuff and it all matters; Bruce & Stan
Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart (Daily devotional from praise & worship songs)



My hope is that whoever wins this little gift basket will enjoy these books and the new autumn season as much as I did and do.

Here's where your part comes in:
The give-a-way begins today and runs through Friday the 18th with the winner being announced next Monday the 21st.

To be entered, just leave a comment. Now, if you leave a comment each day, Monday thru Friday, you can have up to five chances to win!! It's that simple.

Thanks for being here with me and for me over the last year. Thank you those that follow my blog, get my post through feeds and e-mails, e-mail me privately and just pop in now and then to say hi!!!

Don't Forget!!!

I'm kind of surprised....Couldn't anyone use some free laundry detergent???

I've only had 2 respond to getting some free laundry detergent.

I'm giving away 5 coupons for free laundry detergent...this will fit anyone's budget Im sure!!

Want to know how to get this free detergent??..click here!!

Got a Give-a-Way Goin' On!!!

I love a good give-a-way, don't you?? And what makes a give-a-way even better, is when it's for something I use everyday...something I would pay for.....unless....I could get it for free!!!!

I was chosen to try a bottle of Sun Laundry Detergent. Now, I was very happy to get this bottle of detergent to try for free, but...I must confess....I already use Sun Laundry Detergent. So, getting this bottle to try was just perfect for me!!!

It does a great job cleaning our laundry. It comes in a variety of scents (which I really love!!) and it's incredibly affordable (which our budget really loves!!).

Now, here's where it gets really good......

Along with my free bottle of detergent, I was also given 5 coupons for a free bottle of Sun Laundry Detergent! So, you know what that means...

Five of my readers will get a coupon for a free bottle of this detergent to try as well!!!!!

Think about it...we all do laundry and if you're like me..you do several loads a day! Laundry detergent is something we use a lot of.

If you're not familiar with Sun Laundry detergent, then this would be a great chance to try a very good, very affordable product for free.

Here's all you have to do......

Leave me a comment telling me why you'd love to win and try this product and (just because I'm curious if anyone does more loads of laundry a week than I do) share about how many loads of laundry you do in a week.

This will be open until midnight, June 21 and I'll announce the winners first thing Monday morning, the 22nd.

Can't wait to hear from everyone!!!!

Laced With Grace Giveaway

I want to share with you a wonderful give-a-way that is going on over at Laced With Grace.

They are giving away so many wonderful resources in celebration of our Lord's Resurrection.

I encourage you to head on over and check out this great opportunity!!

Entering ends today so hurry over!!!

Free Blog Makeover!!

By now, most of you have guessed that I'm not the smartest chip in the computer when it comes to the computer. If it weren't for some very dear..compassionate..I feel so sorry for this poor thing, somebody help her, (mom!!)..blogging sisters, my site would still be pathetic.

Then along comes my sweet sister Beth who has got this awesome blog makeover!!! (No, I'm not envious..but this thing looks GOOD!!) and she has been gracious enough to give each of us a shot at winning a makeover!!

Head on over to her site, I AM HEADING TOWARD MY DESTINY and get in on this chance for a makeover. (Let me add that I want to win this, I'm just being nice and letting you know about it too!!! :o).....

Now don't waste any time as the drawing for this makeover is February 9!!!

Blessings........

Give-a-Way Reminder!!

Only 2 days left on my HP Photosmart gift card give-a-way!

I have 4 gift cards for 10 free prints at any HP Photosmart Express station that I will be giving away Saturday, November 15. Deadline to enter is midnight November 14, CST.

Since I only have 1 entry, 3 other people have an excellent chance of winning!!!

Blessings......

Just a Reminder....

Just a reminder...you have until midnight tonight to enter for the Build a Bear gift card! I will be announcing the winner in the morning and sending that person an e-mail.
Thanks so much!!

Blessings....

An HP Give-a-Way!

I'm not aware of any HP Photosmart Express stations in my area, but I have used stations similar to this and love them! They are very convenient, and in my busy world, I'm all about convenience!

While I've never had the opportunity to use a HP Photosmart Express station, I have used HP products and have been very satisfied. I have no doubt that the same great quality I've experienced from other HP products, remains true for these Photosmart stations.

If you have one of these in your area, I would encourage you to check them out and in order to help you along in that process...

I've got another great Give-a-Way going on!!!

I have 4 gift cards to give away to 4 blessed readers! Each card is for 10 free HP prints at one of the HP Photosmart Express stations.

You have until November 14 to enter this give-a-way. Just leave me a comment along with your e-mail address so I can get in touch with you should you win!
I look forward to hearing from each of you!!

Blessings.....

My First Give-a-Way!!!

I am SO excited to be able to share with you what an awesome gift I got to preview. What makes this more exciting for me, is that in getting to preview this gift, I get to give away something to my readers!!

I was blessed to get to preview a Build a Bear!! I opened my box and squealed (yes, at 44 years old it's still okay to squeal over a stuffed animal!!) at the cutest, cuddliest Koala bear I'd ever seen! This bear was gray and white with the cutest black nose and eyes! He was wearing a Build a Bear t-shirt and I gave him an immediate hug!! My son, who by the way has his first girlfriend, begged me to let him have it for his girlfriend and I looked him square in the eyes and said, "NO!" (Sorry Ashley....) He came with a birth certificate which allows me to register him (I named him Kirby by the way) in Build a Bearville and there you can play neat games and lots of fun stuff.

Any of you that have read my blog know that I try to give ideas and encouragment on how to live a simpler, more frugal lifestyle and how to be the wife Christ has called us to be and so, being wise with our spending is one of the things I focus on. Here's where my give-a-way comes in.....

I have a $10 gift card for Build a Bear that one of my readers will get to spend!!! (Told you I'm excited!!) And yes...you can buy a Build a Bear for $10!!! I got on their website at www.buildabear.com and found several of the cutest animals for $10 and with Christmas just around the corner...(see where this is going??)...you can get a great Christmas gift for that special little (or 40something) someone in your life!!!

How can you get this gift card?? Just leave me a comment with your e-mail address so that I can notify you if you're the winner.

I will close this give-a-way on Friday, October 31 and announce the winner on November 1st.

Kirby and I will be anxiously waiting on you!!!

Blessings.....