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The Wandering Reader Review and Giveaway

Last December I was stumped. I needed a gift for my son’s 4th grade teacher and the only thing I knew for sure was that she LOVED to read. In my quest for an unique, meaningful, and affordable gift, I happened upon The Wandering Reader. This online store offers “cool stuff for the incurably curious” including necklaces, bookmarks, cards, and prints, all with a bookish theme.

I ordered this read necklace for my son’s teacher. She loved it!

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“read” necklace from The Wandering Reader

Today I’m pleased to offer you a chance to win one item of your choice from The Wandering Reader! Besides jewelry, they offer many unique and fun items:

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Print from The Wandering Reader:
Drama is life with the dull bits cut out. Hitchcock

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Birthday card from The Wandering Reader:
Pride and Prejudice and Cupcakes

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Bookmark from The Wandering Reader:
Bookish is the new sexy

When I ordered the read necklace, I was impressed by owners Erin and Ducky Johnson’s customer service. Here’s why:

the necklace arrived beautifully packaged,
the necklace arrived quickly so my son could give it to his teacher before Winter Break (even though I ordered it only 1 week before! {ahem}),
the necklace was fresh and fun,
the necklace did not cost me an arm and a leg. (It was $19.95 with a reasonable shipping charge.)

I think their “cool stuff for the incurably curious” would make an awesome Mother’s Day gift or year-end teacher’s gift. Or pick something just for you! They will even ship internationally, so the giveaway is open to everyone.

The Wandering Reader can be found online and on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr.

Good luck winning some ”cool stuff” from The Wandering Reader! Enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. The giveaway ends Saturday, April 27 at midnight EST.

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Disclosure: all opinions are mine. I did not receive compensation for hosting this giveaway.

April 23, 2013 By Katy15 CommentsFiled Under: giveaway, Review Tagged With: giveaway, The Wandering Reader

Happy Doodles Custom Stuffed Animals – Review and Giveaway!

A couple months ago, I posted a tongue-in-cheek Help Wanted ad. I desperately wanted someone who could throw out my kids’ artwork, so I wouldn’t feel guilty doing it.

Many of you stepped up, commiserating or offering your services. One mompreneur, Heather, introduced herself and her business, Happy Doodles. I love the idea of Happy Doodles and am so excited to tell you about this product and give one away to a lucky reader.

Happy Doodles takes children’s artwork and transforms it into soft, huggable stuffed animals.

A sweet blue piggy

A pretty pink kitty

After mailing or emailing your child’s artwork to Happy Doodles, the artwork is digitally printed on soft cotton, then backed with soft and furry fleece, and finally stuffed with polyester fiberfill. The final product is available in two sizes:

Large, approximately 18” long or wide, 4” thick, for $60
Medium, about 12″ long or wide, 3″ thick, for $40

Each Happy Doodle is unique, since it is made in the shape of the character that a child draws. And Happy Doodles are great for big kids, too. I know many tweens and teens who would love to see their art come alive!

A super bunny

Besides the custom stuffed animals, Happy Doodles will soon be offering key chains/backpack decorations and Christmas ornaments. What fun ideas!

Happy Doodles is a company I love to support, too. Heather’s goal is to grow the business enough so that she can employ mothers of children with disabilities:

Heather, founder of Happy Doodles

“I know from personal experience that when a mom takes a child to over 200 doctor’s appointments in one year, or spends weeks sleeping on a chair next to her child’s hospital bed, that it is hard to imagine an employer that will tolerate that schedule. I also know that this mom needs a creative outlet, a way to earn some money, and (not least) a legitimate reason to take a break from the worries about her child, the endless medical appointments and calls to straighten out insurance claims, the struggle to find an academic environment where her child can thrive.” – Heather, founder of Happy Doodles

Heather has graciously offered 1 gift certificate for a medium Happy Doodle for this giveaway. Just think how excited your child or grandchild will be when he sees his very own masterpiece transformed into a soft friend!

Use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter. Note the easiest and most entries you can get is for liking Happy Doodles on Facebook. Don’t forget to leave a blog post comment below outside of the Rafflecopter widget, then go back in and click “+1 Leave a blog post comment” if you want to earn an entry via that method. This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only. One lucky winner will be randomly selected and announced next Monday, August 20.

Good luck!
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Disclosure: the opinion expressed in this review is my own. I did not receive compensation in exchange for this review.

August 13, 2012 By Katy18 CommentsFiled Under: giveaway, good mom Tagged With: giveaway, Happy Doodles, throwing art away, throwing kids' art away

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted

It’s time to load up the family truckster and head out for some rest and relaxation.

Wait. Who am I kidding? There’s really no such thing as a vacation when you have kids. Someone still has to do laundry, feed everyone, and make sure everyone uses the bathroom at the most opportune times/rest stops.

Vacations are fun, though, and I’m looking forward to our adventure. Something will inevitably go wrong, I know. Last summer we had an enjoyable camping trip to Mackinaw City, Michigan. My “bad mom” vacation moment happened after the trip when I returned home, left the roof bubble attached to my roof rack, forgot it was there, and drove it into our carport.

Just a few dents and pieces of roof rack still attached…

And let’s not forget what happened this winter when my family went to Disneyworld. We watched a giant hawk swoop down to the Boardwalk Resort swimming pool, scoop up not one but two baby ducklings, and rip them to shreds outside our hotel room.

I feel like duck tonight…

Good times, good times!

Can’t wait to see what adventures are in store for us in the coming week. Don’t despair, though. I’ve got a fantastic guest post lined up from Adrienne over at The Mommy Mess on Tuesday and a “killer” home movie on Thursday. When I get back, I’ll be ready to host my second ever giveaway featuring a Happy Doodles custom stuffed toy.

’til then!

August 4, 2012 By Katy3 CommentsFiled Under: camping, Disneyworld, giveaway, guest post, vacation Tagged With: ducks, giveaway, guest post, hawk, vacation

Dino-Fizz and Dino-Bubbles Winner

Thanks to everyone for entering my first giveaway! The winner of the Dino-Fizz and Dino-Bubbles from Smith and Vandiver is…

Donna!

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Watch for an email from me today!

April 27, 2012 By KatyLeave a CommentFiled Under: giveaway, Sydney, Will Tagged With: bath, Dino-Bubbles, Dino-Fizz, giveaway, kids

Dino-Fizz and Dino-Bubbles Giveaway

I’m excited to be hosting my first giveaway!

As my loyal readers know, I have two kids: Will, age 8, and Sydney, age 5. Will is a big fan of Legos and Beyblades while Sydney enjoys American Girl dolls, Barbies, and various Disney princess toys.

Why should you care?

Well, I like finding (and sharing) something that they BOTH enjoy.

Dino-Fizz is one such product. Shaped like an egg, Dino-Fizz is a bath bomb that fizzes and colors the water when dropped in the bath. When it completely dissolves, the egg “hatches” a baby dinosaur. It comes in 3 colors:

Orange hatches a StegasaurusPurple hatches an ApatosaurusGreen hatches a Tyrannosaurus

Dino-Fizz is fun and leaves my kids’ skin smelling great. Plus, the colored water does NOT leave a ring in the bathtub. The little hatched dinosaurs are about the size of a nickel, so not appropriate for kids under 3.

Smith & Vandiver, the makers of Dino-Fizz, generously donated 3 Dino-Fizz eggs for my giveaway, one in each color. They also donated Dino-Bubbles, a 99% natural bubble bath in Jungle Grape scent. My kids haven’t even tried this product yet, but 1 lucky winner will win the 12.5 fluid oz Dino-Bubbles and 3 Dino-Fizz eggs, one in each color.

It’s perfect to be giving away these products around Earth Day 2012 because Smith & Vandiver makes their products in the USA and promises them to be paraben free, sulfate free, vegan, using recyclable packaging, an OASIS, Certified Organic Product, with no synthetic fragrances, harsh or harmful chemical ingredients, and not tested on animals.

A fun product that both boys and girls like, that’s safe to use, and does not harm the environment? Dino-Fizz actually makes me feel like a good mom! So, what are you waiting for? Enter below! Sorry, this giveaway is only open to U.S. residents. The lucky winner will be announced Friday, April 27!

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