GIVEAWAY CLOSED!

I absolutely LOVE MA! (Motherhood With Attitude). Their products tell the TRUE story of “motherhood” and would keep any REAL Mom (or even Dad) laughing! Last year I got a great sampling of cards that each featured a “greeting” that made me laugh and made me want to actually send them to my partners in crime (in other words – the other Mom’s I know).

This time I received some awesome magnets to check out! The magnets come in sizes of  2 1/8″ x 3 3/8″ and are very durable with a metal shell, mylar/UV protecting cover, and flat magnetic back.  They would make a great set of gifts for your fellow Mom’s. Plus, they are pretty cheap at 4-bucks fifty  a pop so they even fit in the tiniest budget.

The MA! company was started by Janalee Chmel and Tiffany Hauber – two Mom’s – when they realized that there was a severe lack of creative and supportive products for REAL Mom’s.

Even better is that a portion of all profits made by MA! go to ‘A Mother’s Wings,’ a nonprofit organization for women facing post-partum depression.

BUY IT : Available in 4 different designs, you can get your own magnet with attitude from  MA! While you are there, don’t forget to check out the other great products available. With honest and humorous messages about Motherhood, they will make great gifts and make any MOM feel appreciated.

WIN IT : Here’s your chance to win a set of four magnets worth $18 for yourself OR  make someone else’s day a little brighter.  There will only be one winner and this is what you need to do:

• One mandatory entry – Visit www.motherhoodwithattitude.com and name one other product that interest you
• Three additional entries – Tweet this giveaway and leave your twitter id/thread in the comment section
• Three additional entries – Just place our Mega Xmas  Giveaway badge on your site and leave your url.
• Entry is open to US shipping addresses only.
• Giveaway closes on  20th November 2009 and a winner will be picked using Random.org. We will not be emailing winners, so please make sure you subscribe to our feed or check back here for the winner announcement post.

Disclosure of Material Connection : http://cmp.ly/0

Parenting Spike: The seriously difficult child- Dad doesn’t understand why his kid is so awful?

by Andrew D. Gibson, Ph.D.

Frank in Hartford asks, “ My kid is horrible. I don’t understand it. What did we do wrong?” This guy has a ten year old by the name of Spike who is miserable to live with. Frank may or may not have done anything wrong. It is sometimes hard to figure. Take the dilemma to a counselor or therapist and talk about it. They may be able to figure something out. What they come up with may or may not be accurate. It will seem logical, whatever it is but logical isn’t necessarily truth. Frank will probably have some sense of satisfaction that he at least think he know what he is dealing with.

However, knowing the problem is not the same thing as doing something effective about it. Most kids grow into their label, not away from it, because the treatments that they and their families are given are ineffective. It isn’t because people who give out those treatments don’t care; they do. It is just that the problem is tough. Maladjustment is often sort of like a fatal case of cancer; there are lots of treatments that help to keep you comfortable and may be even to slow down the spread but you are still going to die.

It is entirely true, however, that the longer Frank lives with Spike, the worse his son will get. Sounds mean and accusing, doesn’t it? This is not about blame. It means that in an effort to get some controls round Spike, we end up making the situation worse because what we do in the name of parenting enables the problem, doesn’t discourage it. That is because you use techniques (albeit an exaggerated form of them that are best applied to the normally developing kid. Yours isn’t. We can yell at the normally developing kid once in a while and we get compliance. Same for a rotten tone of voice, or sarcasm or any of a host of other things we do when we get upset. The kid may not like them but he isn’t going to go off the deep end. He will comply. Yet you apply those same techniques to the abnormally developing kid and you’ve got serious problems. It takes a long time to understand this dilemma.

So ultimately, it does not matter what the problem is. Knowing probably isn’t going to change anything. Frank can, if he will, make big changes in his life and the life of his son Spike if he will just learn to back away. He shouldn’t allow himself to get sucked into Spike’s meanness and unkindness. Anytime Frank finds himself returning fire for fire, he has lost. And Spike loses the most. Frank needs to get beyond his own anger. If in reading this over Frank feels blamed, he will never be able to get Spike to overcome himself. If, however, he feels responsibility, he can achieve a lot. Much depends on Frank’s frame of mind.

About The Author

 
Dr. Andrew Gibson was born in Detroit at the close of WWII. He grew up in the midst of farming country in central Michigan. Both parents were teachers. He keeps a picture of his childhood companion, Wags, to this day (you had to see the tail to appreciate the name). After discharge from the Navy after the Viet Name war, he graduated with a BA and MA from San Diego State University and earned his Ph. D from the University of Connecticut. He has taught at Portland State University, n Portland Oregon, at the University of Maine, Presque Isle and at SUNY New Paltz. He resides in Eastern Connecticut, with his wife of 41 years, where he conducts a private practice in parenting seriously difficult children. His book “Got An Angry Kid? Parenting Spike-A Seriously Difficult Child’ is the first of a series examining seriously difficult children at various age and emotional disturbance levels. He invites you to find him on the web at DrAGibson.com.

The Suburban Outlaw : Tales from the Edge is snippets of Pam Sherman’s life and she shares it with her wit, poignancy and honesty. It doesn’t start from the beginning of her life. Rather, it goes from one significant event to another. There are about 21 of such events, and each and every one is guaranteed to bring a smile or a tear.

What is the “Edge”? According to Pam Sherman, it is about you, daring to dream, explore grow and excite. I’m sure everyone of us has a little bit of edge-ness, despite the many roles we play.

Pamela Sherman is by profession, a lawyer, actress, writer and a mom of 2 kids. Yes, being a mom is a profession too, y’know! I honestly, don’t know how she juggles all these ‘balls’ with her two hands, and still remain insanely funny! I think I’d be guzzling down lots and lots of pills by now!

There was one chapter on monthly hormones and honestly, that made me laugh so much, I ended up choking myself. And here I was thinking, I must be only crazy one screaming at everybody in the family. I mean, if you ever visited me in my neighbourhood, it’s pretty peaceful, until of course, I reach the red danger level of flamin’ hormonal balls.

Buy it! : Suburban Outlaw is available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Well, here are reviews from other moms and why they’re loving it :

Idaho Jill of Contests & Giveaways : I thought the book was funny and easy to read.   I could really relate to a lot of the stories – even though I used to live in the suburbs and now live downtown.  Many of the stories were funny, many were touching.  All were very honest.  I recommend this book!

Sassy2 of Pookie and The Boys : I loved how I was drawn to each and every story. I laughed out loud and may have even shed a tear or two in a story of a friend whom she held dear until the end. The book is enlightening and warm and filled with quick wit and charm. I recommend it to anyone woman who may feel her life has been completely uprooted and she now feels out of place in her new community.

Blogmania : This collection of essays is inspiring. Sherman tells it like it is – no fluff, glossing over or embellishments. She humorously, eloquently and simply shares her perceptions through her experiences in life and love. Sherman brings her readers fresh perspective wrapped in intelligent and witty dialogue.

Deb of JAMTOT : Each of the chapters (columns) in The Suburban Outlaw covers a specific topic, from the author’s despair at losing her full-time, live-in nanny, to her husband’s so-called love affair with their bichon frise, Curley – and each chapter brings a humorous look at the everyday, mundane aspects of being a wife and mother. The chapters are fairly short – only a few pages each for the most part, and overall the book’s a quick read. I like that I could simply pick it up and read a chapter here or there as I had time and didn’t feel that I had to sit down and read the entire book all in one sitting. I liked reading the columns a few at a time and therefore spreading out the enjoyment of the book overall.

1Stop Mom : The book starts off giving the definition of what an Suburban Outlaw is exactly. That was helpful to me because I had no clue what it was. As soon as I started reading, the section titled “The Rebel Wears Sweater Sets” I found myself laughing. Actually I found myself laughing quite a few times while reading this book. The way Pam wrote made it so easy and enjoyable to read. It was fun to read about her nanny and how she took to living where it snowed, a lot. After reading The Suburban Outlaws I feel like I made a new friend. Someone who does not claim to be perfect and speaks her mind.

Housewifemom : I read Suburban Outlaw by Pam Sherman, about a month ago and have already loaned it out twice. First of all because it was laugh out loud funny and secondly beacuse it was a quick read that I knew several of my friends would enjoy. I love it when you read something that can be engagingly familiar without having to tug at heartstrings.

Happy Healthy Families – Pam relates her everyday life as she deals with the chaos of marriage, parenthood and family that made me feel like she was talking about my life at times. I think that is one of the best parts of this book: we as moms and wives can see so much of ourselves in Pam’s narratives, and laugh and cry as we read along. It is hysterical to read about Pam’s hairdresser woes, and poignant when she shares about losing a fellow Suburban Outlaw, Cherie, to cancer. I really found this book impossible to let go of once I started reading it.

Chefdruck Reviews – The Suburban Outlaw is a nice read, something that will keep you smiling as you duel with the other PTA moms for the best spot in the pick up line.

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 GIVEAWAY CLOSED!

Each person may express their own creativity differently but not many display theirs on their feet or….. socks to be exact. Here’s a little about how Laurie turned her passion for fashion into Ozone Socks. 

About Ozone, the company:

Laurie founded ozone design in 2000. She strongly believed that socks were one of the only items untouched by fashion.

“Ozone Design is devoted entirely to putting fashion and fun into socks and tights. Amazingly, they were still looked upon as undergarments.” Laurie’s goal was to bring spirit and passion to one of the most intimate and neglected parts of our wardrobe. “For too long the sock has been ignored by the world of fashion and we’re going to change that.”

During the past seven years Ozone has set the benchmarks for what’s cool and hip in footwear. “There have been more innovative and new design concepts that have come out of Ozone than any other sock company in history.” The list is impressive: shoe socks, safe sox, hemp socks, radionic socks, tattoo socks, motorcycle socks, the replacement sock, etc.

Though Ozone also feature the “classic” socks in plain colours, argyles and stripes, what I truly love is the various super funky designs which are just great for expressing your own individuality.  I thought the knee high ”Biker Chick Forbidden Fruit“, a motorcycle inspired themed sock featuring poison fruits on the vine definitely screams attention and would be a great pick for the lady who wants to make a bold statement. Simple, yet equally tasteful in style is the knee high “Bling” in black (pictured right). If you’re a fashionista, you would have noticed that knee highs are currently the latest must-have fashion accessory seen at this seasons hottest catwalk shows. You can wear them pulled up for full on sophistication or scruched down for laid-back cool

Nevertheless, my absolute favourite is the ”Cut Up Jambiere” in red (topmost picture in this post). Not only is the dense geometric pattern unique, this over the knee sock is so versatile, you can actually cut along the yellow lines to make it a knee high, regular length sock, ankle sock, or legwarmers and wristbands! Now, how cool is that. 

Ozone socks are not only fashionable, they are just as comfortable too. Their socks are constructed of natural cotton fiber, at the highest industry standard with heels, toes, seams and designs all knit into the socks. Ozone cotton guarantees comfort and softness and at the same time, it is blended with spandex for stretch, and nylon for durability.

BUY IT :  Ozone ’s fashionable socks for men and women include cotton rich knee-highs, essential leg warmers as well as cool basics which comes in various vibrant colours and patterns. Whether you need an ultra-comfortable pair for chilling out at home, or a gorgeous, stylish pair for that dramatic and elegantly edgy look, you know you’ll find them at Ozone Socks.

WIN IT : To all lovers of fashionable feet, here’s your chance to win a favourite pair of socks. There will be TWO WINNERS.  To enter and win, this is what is required:

• One mandatory entry – Visit www.ozonesocks.com and tell us which style of socks you love best.
• Three additional entries - If you Subscribe to Parent Reviewers
• Three additional entries – If you place our Mega Xmas & New Year Giveaway badge on your site (please leave blog url)
• Entry is open to all shipping addresses.
• Giveaway closes on  18th November 2009 and a winner will be picked using Random.org. We will not be emailing winners, so please make sure you subscribe to our feed or check back here for the winner announcement post.

Disclosure of material connection : : http://cmp.ly/2

Congratulations to the 12 winners of our email subscriber draw for the month of October. We were excited to give away so many prizes this round. Here are the lucky subscribers who have won the following books:

Chicken Soup for the Soul: What I Learned from the Dog

1. Michelle Lloyd
2. Janet Carpentar
3. Summer Flood
4. Nicole Green
5. Tamara Bennington
6. Waiting for subscriber to reply

Chicken Soup for the Soul: What I Learned from the Cat

1. Jenna Gaskill
2. Rachel Coe
3. Erin Lane
4. M. Haque
5. Rebekah Crain
6. Waiting for subscriber to reply

For November’s draw, we’re giving away a copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul: All in the Family to SIX lucky subscribers. Here’s a peek at what this new title is all about:

We all think that we have dysfunctional families, or at least some wacky relatives, and Chicken Soup for the Soul: All in the Family (Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing, LLC, 978-1-935096-39-9, October 2009, $14.95) offers 101 candid and often hilarious stories about real families in all their dysfunctional glory. With chapters about eccentrics, in-laws, family vacations, holiday meltdowns, sibling issues, family secrets, forgiveness, and many other issues, everyone will recognize their own families in some stories or discover a new respect for their relative normalcy.

Who wouldn’t think their family was relatively normal after reading about the Thanksgiving dinner in the more liberal 1970s when Anastasia Ashman’s father baked marijuana into the stuffing and turned his in-laws into unusually happy and hungry guests? And how do your relatives look after reading about Tolly Moseley’s beloved aunt, who broke into her house to redecorate her Christmas tree? Your Christmas might seem a little saner after reading about Anne Crawley’s mother-in-law who “guilted” her family into driving through waist-high snow on Christmas Day to eat her pasta, and then complained that it was getting cold after they almost killed themselves getting there.

Theresa Hupp recounts how she learned from her adult daughter that the girl had thought she was adopted for years because her older brother told her so. And the book contains more serious stories too, such as June Waters’ tale of visiting her paranoid, mentally ill sister, reluctantly wearing tin foil around her head so “they” couldn’t listen, and finally escaping in the middle of the night, fearing for her safety. Numerous stories explore abandonment, forgiveness, and reunions, such as Robynn Ashwood’s discovery of numerous unknown half-siblings from the four marriages of her father, who had walked out on her family (his second) four decades earlier.

Family secrets and personal confessions – hilarious anecdotes and poignant reflections – quirky yet lovable relatives and real nightmares – Chicken Soup for the Soul: All in the Family has it all.

Hurry, sign up as our email subscriber and you’ll stand a chance to win these awesome books plus other fabulous gifts during our monthly draw.

Disclosure : Prizes are sponsored by www.chickensoup.com

GIVEAWAY CLOSED!

I’ve known about Sleepy Wrap since a group of Parent Reviewers had a chance to review it, back in July 2008. It prompted me to get my very own Sleepy Wrap in dark olive green. When I first opened it up, there was just so much fabric everywhere! I have quite a small frame, and wondered if I’d be wrapped up like a mummy?!

But, for some reason, while I was wrapping myself up, the fabric was just enough to go around twice. With my bubba in place, I could see why there were so many fans of the Sleepy Wrap. I found the weight evenly distributed. my lil guy was snug as a bug, and was extremely comfortable in it. My hands were free to do anything they wanted.

After awhile, I did get abit adventurous and did try to do a wrap at the back, as he was growing bigger and lankier. I googled a video and was glad to find it. It was easy as 123 and again, the lil guy was a happy camper!

This time, I was given the opportunity to review the organic version. It comes in Natural or Khaki Color and it’s made of Organic Exchange 100 certified organic cotton. The folks at NAP Inc, sent me the Natural colored wrap, and since I already know how great it was, I decided to let a  friend, Emma, try it out for herself. She has 2 boys, and her youngest, Oscar, is about 10 1/2months of age. She often slings him, with the Baby Bjorn and her self-made ring sling. I thought it would be a great opportunity for her to try the wrap out and share her experiences.

She found the weight was evenly distributed and her blue-eyed bubba was very happy just being with momma. With the ring-sling, there was a pressure point on her left shoulder which left her abit sore. With the wrap, she felt much more comfortable. She did find that there was a lot of fabric..and initially, there was a lot of huffin’ and puffin’ trying to get it around her, but she prevailed! She loved how the fabric was so so so soft, and was amazed at how stretchy it was. By the time, I met her for a photoshoot, she was quite an expert in tying it up and making it a snug fit. She also felt this would be fantastic for newborns, keeping them close to mom/dad.

Buy it! : SleepyWrap is available at their online store : SleepyWrap.com or you can easily find the nearest store to you, right here. They even have international store locations, so, do check them out! It is currently retailing for $59.95 and to get 10% off, you just key in the Promo Code “PR10″!

Win it! : For this Mega Xmas & New Year Giveaway, 1 Organic Sleepy Wrap will be given away to 1 lucky reader and all you have to do is :

• One mandatory entry- visit the SleepyWrap website and tell us one pro fact about the wrap.
• Three additional entries- if you have our badge up on your blog or you can grab our Mega Giveaway badge from our sidebar. Please leave your blog url to qualify.
• Three additional entries – Tweet this giveaway (please leave your twitter id)
• Giveaway is open to ALL shipping address and closes on 14th November 2009.  The winner will be picked using Random.org. We will not be emailing winners, so please make sure you subscribe to our feed or check back here for the winner announcement post.

Disclosure of Material Connection : http://cmp.ly/0

 
Parenting Spike: The seriously difficult child- the neighborhood

by Andrew d Gibson, Ph.D.

Spike, a ten year old out-of-control kid, is a menace. It would be one thing if he just confined his maladjustments to this family. Terrorizing them is bad enough. But he takes his unhappiness out on the neighborhood as well. Nobody is particular likes him and he knows it, so he doesn’t have any problem getting into any unlocked car or back porch to see what he can swipe. He isn’t generally destructive though people invariably know he has been there. He has been known to cut down the decorative blue spruce in someone’s front yard for the family Christmas tree. If something is missing, his parents are the first that the neighbors call.

Spike has been a problem for his family for a long time. He must either have gotten bored or bold. He evidentially thought there was no new territory to conquer at home, so he’d spread out and see what the world offered. It has plenty. He takes a perverse pleasure in seeing what he can get away with. Sometimes it isn’t much and then someone calls the police. But the stuff he does is petty so the police don’t do a whole lot. They will show up at his parent’s door and threaten both Spike and his folks. Spike just swears at them which irritates them into more threatening but Spike knows they aren’t likely to do much. Spike knows how much he can get away with and how much he can’t so he plays things up to the edge.

The police are practically family members except they get annoyed with Spike’s parents and lecture them on how to be parents which is galling. There isn’t a whole lot his folks can do about the embarrassment except say they are sorry Spike is the way he is and that they would change things if they knew what to do. They don’t know, of course. and neither do the police. Everybody thinks if his folks would just get tough on him then, by golly, things would change. They assume that the police could scare him straight as in, “I’m gonna call the cops!” but it doesn’t faze him. He promises again to behave, the police leave and Spike heads out the back door to see what else he can rustle up. Spike doesn’t know it but he is on a long slide to a detention center. A sooner or later the system will catch up with him. Unfortunately, detention has the reputation of making things worse, not better. It will just give Spike another forum to be defiant.

About The Author

 
Dr. Andrew Gibson was born in Detroit at the close of WWII. He grew up in the midst of farming country in central Michigan. Both parents were teachers. He keeps a picture of his childhood companion, Wags, to this day (you had to see the tail to appreciate the name). After discharge from the Navy after the Viet Name war, he graduated with a BA and MA from San Diego State University and earned his Ph. D from the University of Connecticut. He has taught at Portland State University, n Portland Oregon, at the University of Maine, Presque Isle and at SUNY New Paltz. He resides in Eastern Connecticut, with his wife of 41 years, where he conducts a private practice in parenting seriously difficult children. His book “Got An Angry Kid? Parenting Spike-A Seriously Difficult Child’ is the first of a series examining seriously difficult children at various age and emotional disturbance levels. He invites you to find him on the web at DrAGibson.com.

TO THE WINNERS OF

Jota Sox Giveaway

Chelsea #43

and

Tina B. #13

If I Were A Fish & Other Ocean Songs CD

Lori #25

The winner is required to do the following:

1. Submit your relevant info via the Winner’s Submission Form Below; AND
2. Leave a comment in this post to let us know you have submitted.
3. If any winner does not claim her prize by the 7th November 2009, we will do a second draw.

THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HAD PARTICIPATED!

cforms contact form by delicious:days

GIVEAWAY CLOSED!

My son loves Science very much and needless to say, he was pretty excited when he found out that we were asked to review Rock N Learn’s Earth Science and Physical Science DVDs. Both my kids enjoyed the Life Science DVD, another title from Rock N Learn’s series of Science DVDs which we had tried and tested a few months back. We were all keen to see whether these two other titles were equally as good as the first one.

We started with the Earth Science DVD which featured the same main characters (as in Life Science DVD), Kevin and Marko The Pencil. Together with Terra, the animated globe, who was also Marko’s friend, they went on a fascinating journey to Marko’s Super Science Station. The DVD  covers topics like the Solar System, weather and the water cycle, types of rocks, properties of minerals, volcanoes and plate tectonics, weathering, and alternative energy. The contents may seemed a little overwhelming but honestly, it wasn’t the least that way. Mind you, my son is only in the 3rd Grade and he could understand most of the Science concepts. I can only attribute this to the wonderful animation in the DVD and the fact that the contents were presented in a fun, entertaining and humourous way. I’m not sure whether it’s the catchy music and songs or the rap-like rhymes used but Rock N Learn has certainly found the right formula to retain both my hyperactive kids’ attention as well as help them remember the facts!

In the Physical Science DVD, Kevin prepares for his Physical Science test with the help of Marko as his study partner was unable to make it. Being a parent, I like that lab safety was emphasized early in the video before they moved on to other topics. A new character called Lumina, an animated light bulb taught Kevin how to remember the 6 steps of the scientific method: Question, Gather, Hypothesize, Experiment, Conclude, and Report. Other basic topics covered by the video included molecules, electricity, motion and energy. While I have to admit that my 5 year old daughter was too young to fully understand the contents, she had a fantastic time dancing and singing along with the test tubes characters in the video. My son, on the other hand,  played the DVD over and over the last couple of days as he wanted to make sure he could ace the practice tests available in the bonus section!

BUY IT : The Earth Science and Physical Science DVDs stand out as awesome educational products that appeal to younger chidren as well as kids up to their pre-teen. Without a doubt, they are a delight for kids like my son, who couldn’t get enough of Science! Even parents will be surprised with what they could learn or refresh their knowledge through these videos. Did I mention these DVDs have also received numerous awards such as 2009 DVD of the Year by Creative Child Magazine, Parents’ Choice Award, iParenting Media and Mom’s Choice Award? Yes, they have!

WIN IT : We’re giving away a Rock ‘N Learn DVD of choice to two lucky readers. The two DVDs to choose from are Earth Science and Physical Science. To enter to win, here’s what you need to do:

• One mandatory entry – Visit www.rocknlearn.com and let us know which DVD you would like to win.
• Three additional entries – Check out our other reviews and name one other product which we have reviewed and tell us what you like about it
• Three additional entries – if you have our badge up on your blog or you can grab our Mega Giveaway badge from our sidebar. Please leave your blog url to qualify.
• Entry is open to all shipping addresses.
• Giveaway closes on  10th November 2009 and a winner will be picked using Random.org. We will not be emailing winners, so please make sure you subscribe to our feed or check back here for the winner announcement post.

Disclosure of Material Connection : http://cmp.ly/0