Mixbook Cyber Monday sale is on till Wednesday

Black Friday and Cyber Monday have come and gone, but the deals are still flying like snow in Wisconsin. Case in point: Mixbook, an online scrapbooking site that lets you collaborate with your friends to create photo books, photo cards and photo calendars, has extended their Cyber Monday Sale all the way until Wednesday. I've been invited to create...

Continue reading...

Giveaway: $10 off Leapster Explorer and a free Learning App

Did you miss the Black Friday sales? I don't blame you. I braved the crowds last year and ended up with nothing -- I couldn't find what I wanted, the lines were too long and I didn't succumb to the old bait-and-switch (well, the big sale item is all sold out but since I'm here, I might as well buy this.....). But I also get why people do it: they've...

Continue reading...

Dinosaur Train DVD giveaway

Get ready, Dinosaur Train fans! PBS Kids is airing a new episode on December 6. My kids love watching Buddy the T-Rex and his adopted Pteranodon family go on adventures and learn about natural history and natural science, and they love the paleontologist who appears at the end of every episode and compares the dinosaurs they saw in the program to...

Continue reading...

Playmobil Advent Calendars

Can you believe we still have buckets of Halloween candy? I don't want to throw it all away (what a waste!) but I don't want to give it all to the kids. I don't want to donate it all to a shelter either, because why would I want to give other people's kids cavities? I let them eat a piece every couple of daysWhen my dad was visiting he faithfully...

Continue reading...

Mail a Monkey (or a Grinch!) review

Who doesn't love The Grinch? We read this Dr. Seuss classic any time of the year, and when the holidays come around, our Grinch book gets read more than ever. There's no better character that embodies the spirit of Christmas better than green, grumpy old Grinchy Claus -- and no better idea for a holiday present! So when online gift company Mail...

Continue reading...

PhotoCardsDirect.com holiday cards review

Several weeks ago I reviewed some holiday cards from The Gallery Collection, and while I was impressed with the high quality of the cards, envelopes and printing, I was left longing for more contemporary photo designs for holiday cards. Lo and behold, The Gallery Collection contacted me again and introduced me to their new photo card site, www.PhotoCardsDirect.com....

Continue reading...

Whole Foods Holiday Dishes

Boy, did we have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Some close family friends invited us to their Thanksgiving dinner, and we feasted on roast Turkey and all the traditional sides, as well as my friend's special 3-bean salad and her husband's cheesy broccoli casserole. Dessert was the only non-traditional course; instead of the classic pumpkin pie, I brought...

Continue reading...

Bonggamom's Friday Finds -- List your Giveaways Here

Welcome to the Black Friday edition of Bonggamom's Friday Finds! I'm posting extra-early because I know many of you are up and about and shopping already :) Hopefully you'll spread some of that holiday cheer around the blogosphere by sharing all your great giveaways!As always, feel free to leave links to your giveaways, everyone. And don't forget...

Continue reading...

How would YOU use $100 to Perform some Random Acts of Kindness (and a Giveaway!)

Once upon a time, a woman realized she had forgotten her checkbook and was unable to pay for her groceries. The woman behind her at the checkout line paid her bill; she gave the first woman her address so she could send a payment check. The first woman repaid her, along with a little extra as a thank-you. The second woman decided to donate that...

Continue reading...

Review -- Backyard Sports Rookie Rush for Nintendo DS

Bonggamom's note: When 3Po saw that The Pea was getting her own guest review post, he insisted on doing one of his own. Since he's been enjoying Atari's Backyard Sports: Rookie Rush, a game for Nintendo DS that we were given to review last month, I decided to let him have a go at it. Given that he's 6 years old, I decided to let him dictate his...

Continue reading...

Black Friday Deals on Cardstore.com

It's not even Black Friday yet, and the sales have already begun! I received an email today with a great offer from Cardstore.com -- free shipping and 20% off with the code CYBERSALE. This is your chance to get your holiday cards done and save a little cash at the same time. The holiday cards I ordered from Cardstore.com arrived a few weeks ago and...

Continue reading...

Navigating the holidays with Pearltrees

Whoever said the holidays are for children was all too sadly correct. Every year I bake cookies, decorate the house, and wrap presents all so I can give my kids an experience they can file under "magical childhood memories". No wonder parents get so stressed. This year I've decided to be a little bit selfish and think of myself for a change. ...

Continue reading...

Despicable Me Prize Pack Giveaway

One summer movie we never got to watch was Despicable Me, the animated movie starring Steve Carell as the evil guy who recruits 3 orphan girls to do his dirty work, only to find that their innocence is changing him in a profound way. We were vacationing in England when the movie was showing in the US, so we have been waiting to see it on DVD.It looks...

Continue reading...

Baby Bunch -- Winter Bunch Review and Giveaway

'Tis the season to give presents, and when you do, don't forget the littlest ones on your list! The Baby Bunch has a beautiful gift idea for new parents this winter -- the Winter Bunch, an adorable bouquet of baby clothes for 0-6 months. The Baby Bunch sent me one of these gorgeous gifts so I could see for myself how beautifully a set of baby clothes...

Continue reading...

The Best Small Businesses in my Neighborhood

Thanks to American Express for sponsoring my writing today about small businesses. American Express is presenting Small Business Saturday, a way to honor the local merchants who are the backbone of the economy, this Saturday, November 27. They're offering statement credits to people who shop at small businesses, advertising for small-business owners,...

Continue reading...

Guest Review Post by The Pea: Imagine Fashion Stylist

Bonggamom's note: The review below was written by my nine year old daughter. I was sent a copy of Ubisoft's Imagine Fashion Stylist, and in exchange for sole rights to the game (i.e. her brothers are not allowed to play with it, otherwise they will suffer a long, painful death), she agreed to share, in her own words, what she likes and doesn't like...

Continue reading...

"...Featuring Norah Jones" cd Review

Norah Jones is an amazing singer. You don't have to take my word for it; 40 million albums and 9 Grammy awards says she's amazing. I love her smoky, sexy voice and jazzy, soulful tunes. We own three of her albums: Come Away With Me, Feels Like Home, and Not Too Late, and there isn't really a bad song in any of them. So when the One2One Network invited...

Continue reading...

Black Friday Decongesters Sweepstakes

Last year I finally took the bull by the horns and decided to drop by Walmart on Black Friday. I knew it would be crowded, but I wasn't expecting this:It was like being inside a subway train during rush hour in Tokyo. There was no room to walk, let alone push a cart, but somehow people were jostling and pushing their way around. It was wild and...

Continue reading...

Style Lab Fashion Design Review and Giveaway

I've always loved painting shirts. A custom painted shirt is one of the best ways to express individuality, and all it takes is a shirt and some fabric paint. I still have one of the first (and the best) shirts I've ever painted, of an elephant with red painted toenails, that I did when I was fourteen, and I've personalized many shirts since then....

Continue reading...