Winnie the Pooh Coming to Theaters

When I took Doodle to see Cars 2 with his friends on Saturday, we saw the trailer for Winnie the Pooh. Let’s just say the music, that sounds very Beattlesque, (think Paul McCartney) made me long to watch the movie. Makes me wish my girls were still 3 and 5.

I’m not sure if I’ll be able to convince my boys to go see this movie with me, but I’m sure going to try!

This movie looks like it is going to be so precious and become a classic like every other Winnie the Pooh movie. Doesn’t it just make you sigh?

Walt Disney Animation Studios returns to the Hundred Acre Wood with “Winnie the Pooh.” Featuring the timeless charm, wit and whimsy of the original short films, this all-new movie reunites audiences with the philosophical “bear of very little brain” and friends Tigger, Rabbit, Piglet, Owl, Kanga, Roo—and last, but certainly not least, Eeyore, who has lost his tail.  “Ever have one of those days where you just can’t win, Eeyore?” asks Pooh.  Owl sends the whole gang on a wild quest to save Christopher Robin from an imaginary culprit. It turns out to be a very busy day for a bear who simply set out to find some honey. Inspired by three stories from A.A. Milne’s books in Disney’s classic, hand-drawn art style, “Winnie the Pooh” hits theaters in the U.S. on July 15, 2011.

Can you remember the last time you watched a Winnie the Pooh movie?

Plum District: Waterpark of America Deal ~Minneapolis

Today I learned about Plum District for the first time! My boys have been talking about going to the Waterpark of America for a couple of years. My daughter & her BFF celebrated their birthdays there a few years ago and to say it was a hit is putting it mildly!
Have you heard about Plum District? Here’s a little blurb about them:
Plum District is a daily deal site geared towards smart, savvy moms. Each day, Plum District sends members a deal that relates to them and their busy lives–everything from spa treatments and restaurants to family outings and kids' activities. Plum District is unique in that it is solely focused on moms and deals are sourced by moms that will make their lives easier or more enjoyable.
You can also find them on Facebook!
Right now, Plum District has passes to the Waterpark of America!! Ahhhh How awesome is that? This offer ends at 11:59pm Central Time. Here’s the information:

$19 for One Water Park Pass: Full Day or Half Day – a $38.54 Value

You know, there's really one way to (fully) enjoy the summer scorchers: suit up and hit the water — all 300,000 gallons of it!
Water Park of America has it all. Thrill and spill with a variety of activities suitable for all ages, including our favorite, the Flow Rider! Plan for hours of major fun splashing around, taking a thrilling ride or three down the body and tube water slides, or just floating on America’s longest indoor family raft ride. There are so many wet and wild attractions here. Use this deal for a discount on admission on as many vouchers as you like.
All set? Let's get wet!

WATER PARK OF AMERICA/RADISSON

NO CHILLS & ALL THRILLS at America's Biggest Indoor Water Park Hotel! Located inside the Radisson Hotel Bloomington, near Mall of America and soaring 90 feet above the Twin Cities' skyline, Water Park of America entertains both the young and young at heart. Surf on Minnesota's only Flow Rider Surf Simulator, catch a wave in the Lake Superior wave pool or challenge your fears in America's longest indoor family raft ride at ten stories tall and over a mile long! The Water Park of America offers a spa, two restaurants, 5,800 sq. ft arcade, cafe, wireless internet and much more.
Water Park of America/Radisson Website
(952) 229-5766
Today’s deal ends TOMORROW and on top of that, by making this purchase you will automatically be entered to win a $250 Nordstrom Gift Card!
*By sharing about Plum District I will receive tickets for the Waterpark of America!

eBeanstalk.com Site Review & $25 G.C. Giveaway

Have you ever visited eBeanstalk.com? They are a fun site for toys for kids! It’s bright and engaging! When you visit the site you’ll find these are broken up into workable categories to navigate through the website.

Finding children’s toys at Ebeanstalk.com is easy and introduces you to unique toys you might not find anywhere else. My favorite way to find toys that fit m

y boys is to search by age on the left sidebar. Because I’m not always sure what I’m looking for, finding a toy geared towards their age makes it easier for me get an idea of what they’d like.

This summer I’d like my boys to get more connected to arts and crafts. They spend a lot of time playing sports outside, which I think is awesome, and a lot of time indoors playing with electronics. When I look at the most popular arts & crafts for my boys there is one that really sticks out to me that they’d LOVE! This is from their Travel Arts Kits category: From the 8 & 12 yr old category I found some awesome toys and gadgets that would fit my boys. I find it so hard to come across toys for boys and they have a great selection that I think my boys would find engaging!

Now if you have younger kids you might be interested in the best wooden toys at eBeanstalk.com. They have a fantastic selection for all ages. I mean my daughter, who is now too old for this, would’ve loved the horse puzzle when she was a little girl! They have gorgeous dollhouses and young girl would fall in love with. If you have a toddler they have fun musical toys like xylophones and tambourines!

Now that I’ve given you an awesome glimpse into what’s waiting for you at eBeanstalk.com I’m going to give you the chance to win a $25 Gift Certificate to their site!

Required: Visit Ebeanstalk and tell me which toy(s) you’d spend your Gift Certificate on.

Giveaway open to US residents only 18 yrs or older. Please leave your email in the required entry or have it available in your profile. No email/contact = No entry. Winner has 48 hours to respond. Giveaway ends 7/14/11 at 11:59 PDT

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*I have not received any product or compensation for this website review. The opinions expressed are my own and are never influenced by the company

Wordless Wednesday: Picked Berries

I have June-bearing strawberries, but they came in super late this year, and now the harvest is plenty. The boys aren’t here to help me pick so my bowl overflowed, I had to make a pouch in my shirt, and I STILL didn’t pick them all. Anyone want to come over and help? Yes, that huge bowl is FULL! Make sure to check out these other WW participants: The Misplaced Midwesterner, My Wee View, and Crazy About My Baybah.

Project 52: Week 25

Lucky you, you’ll be getting 2 of my Project 52’s this week. I didn’t get one up last Fri/Sat because it was a nutty weekend. Took my son & his buddies to see Cars 2 on Saturday. Then Sunday my oldest son played for the first time at church with 2 of his other bandmates. He played at both services. Then I took my Doodle to camp that’s about 1 1/2 hours away. So, this weekend, my weekend off, was blown running around doing crazy things.

Here’s a glimpse at our week:

Doodle leading off, but he’s standing funny. =) From Doodle’s game we rushed over to Buddy’s game already in progress. What an intense game! And they finally won their 2nd game of the season! Running the bases:Getting buzzed at my friend’s house. Cheaper than a salon!!

Buddy celebrated his 12th birthday on Wednesday. It was a rather uneventful day, but he has a party coming up that we are still planning!

Went to Cars 2 on Saturday for Doodle’s 8th birthday: Buddy and his 2 band mates played during the special music time for both services. They’ve been taking lessons from our Worship pastor since September. They did a spectacular job! And yes, I’m utterly biased! After church we went home, finished packing Doodle for camp and he and I headed out for our drive. To say that he was excited is putting it mildy. Hope everyone had a great week last week! If you’re participating in a weekly or daily photo posting, leave your link here so I can visit!

Murphy USA & The One That Got Away

On my way home from work yesterday I figured I’d better fill up for cheap gas at Murphy USA, just outside of Walmart. It’s a few miles from work and typically the cheapest in town. Since I always shop at Walmart, it’s a natural stop for me.

I documented the gas station prices between my work and Murphy USA and aside from one other gas station, they were the cheapest. The Holiday gas station was the same price.I was turning my phone on as I left work, listening to messages and I completely spaced that the short road to my work is shared with a gas station! I have no clue what it was going for. So, that meant my first stop was about 1/2 a mile away at SuperAmerica. Their price was $3.59/gallon. The only thing I have to say about SA is that on Tuesdays they double coupons and take competitor coupons! At least on Tuesdays they’re cheaper than any other gas station in town.Next I headed a couple blocks down to Cenex. They’re on a frontage road and their gas was the same as SuperAmerica at $3.59/gallon. A nice perk they have at Cenex is the old fashioned way of the attendant coming out and pumping your gas for you. Now, I have to say, in the dead of a Minnesota winter, it’s worth giving a tip to have someone stand in the biting cold, filling up your gas tank!Off I headed to get my gas and see if I needed anything from inside. I was in a hurry because there was so much to do to get ready for our upcoming weekend. As I was pumping the gas I saw that they had a Buy 2 Pepsi products get 1 FREE. Got me thinking about our trip to take Doodle to camp on Sunday. These long drives have us stopping at least once to pick up a snack and bottle of pop. I decided to cut out that stop and grab the pop while I was there.While getting the gas, I noticed an advertisement of their QR code. You can scan their code or visit http://social.murphyusa.com for more savings! I thought it was so cool that they had a featured Member. The blue circle in the bottom right corner is a FourSquare check in Special! I’ve checked in there before with a different Android app that is no longer in existence so now I’ll have to get some specials by checking in with FourSquare!

One of the nice perks, that I always forget until I’ve gotten my gas, is if you use a Walmart Credit Card you get 5 cents off/gallon and with a Walmart MoneyCard or Walmart Shopping Card you get 3 cents off/gallon! I have purchased a Walmart Shopping Card a couple of times specifically for this purpose. Easy way to save a few pennies here and there!

I headed in and explained to the clerk what I was up to because I wanted to take a picture inside the little shop. I showed her the email I received from Collective Bias because I was in my work shirt and she was concerned that I was shopping the competition. Too bad there wasn’t a power tool in sight because it might’ve been an option. Once she realized I was on the up and up she let me take my photo.As I was paying, she realized I was using the camera on my phone and asked me if I had taken a photo with the car that had been pumping a couple pumps over. Apparently they’d just had a drive off! A crime happened right in front of my face and guess what? I didn’t get one photo of her car in it! I was trying to purposely keep everything out of my photos unless it had to do with Murphy USA!

The funny thing was, the gal really got my attention. Her phone rang while she was there and it sounded like she was talking to a “client”. I only say that because of how odd the conversation was. Trust me, she wasn’t a quiet woman. I took note of her car, because I love cars and just happened to check it out. I had driven around a different pump as I was getting ready to head inside and as I went to take a photo, I watched her drive behind me. All this watching I’m doing and I have no clue what’s about to happen.

I did look through my photos as I was there, but alas I had no evidence for her. Thankfully they have surveillance there and will be able to get the gal’s license plate.As I headed out of town, a couple blocks away from Murphy USA, is the last light as you leave. At that 4 way corner is a Holiday Station. I rarely go there because of their location. It’s a pain to get out of during rush hour. Then you have to time it right or you sit at the light for ages! Their gas prices were the same as Murphy USA.

My one pet peeve about gas stations is how large their tobacco ads are. Right smack dab on the top of each gas pump were large signs promoting tobacco. I didn’t take photos because I didn’t want to promote it on my blog. I’m sure it’s a big money maker, but I’d rather not see them larger than life as the main ad over the gas pumps.

Be sure to keep up with Murph E-Offers:

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Do you shop around for cheaper gas? Do you have one gas station in your area that you like particularly?

*This shop/project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All views/opinions are my own and are never influenced by the company.

Cars 2 “V12 TV” Video Clip

How excited are you that Cars 2 came out Friday? Taking my Doodle and his friends to see it this afternoon! We’re all pretty excited, yes, even me! Look at this new clip from Disney Pixar.

*No compensation for sharing this amusing video

The Bachelorette: If Ashley Says The “B" Word One More Time…

Let’s just start off by me stating that if Ashley says “Bentley” one more time I’m going to scream. I think the producers of The Bachelorette are trying to make us insane! Well, it’s working.

And we’re off to talk about the rest of Monday’s The Bachelorette.

I was excited to see Ashley go on a date with Ben F. because I actually hadn’t gotten a feel for him yet. When they were at the orphanage on the last show I thought they meshed well while painting the elephant scene. It seemed like a nice relaxed date. It was very cute while they were sitting outside the temple wishing they could kiss. I guess the custom was that it wasn’t allowed. So they had a mental kiss. I thought it was very cute. They did finally kiss at their dinner, but I didn’t see much passion, but she said it was there.

Next they were off on the group date. This was my favorite part of the evening. All these guys working out getting ready for who-knows-what. I think I felt most concerned about Ames because he’d rather talk through a problem than physically fight. I was pretty amused that he ended up with the pink boxing attire!

I think the fighting they do is good for them to burn off their pent up energy, but I’d hate seeing these guys beat the snot out of each other to impress me. What if one of them got hurt, you’d have to carry that weight around. On the other hand, if you’re one of the guys, you have to live with the guy who kicked your butt. Unfortunately, Ames gets clocked and is down for the count. Thankfully he comes back during the evening time and guys are so cool to welcome him back! You can tell they really like him. You know, the more I look at Ames, the more he looks like Harry Connick Jr.

Ok, we need to pause here while I say one name…LUCAS!

Now that I’ve got that off my chest:

SCREAM Yep, you guessed it. Ashley has started saying the “B” word. Here she’s chatting with the guys who are still there and she’s bringing up “his” name. Oh for Pete’s sake.

Then it was time for the 2-on-1 date. William & Ben C headed out for a not so romantic date. I have to admit, William who had me from “hello” has become a thumbs-down dude for me. His appeal tanked for me during the roast and he hasn’t redeemed himself yet. In fact, this date has caused him to seriously take a downward spiral for me. He calls out Ben for saying he’s going to check out online dating when he gets home or some such business. It annoyed me, but Ashley took action and sent Ben home. What cracked me up is a short time later as William is trying to rekindle the flame, Ashley seems bored and sends him home.

Hmmm, picture this…me SCREAMING again.

I can’t remember anyone from past Bachelor & Bachelorette shows pining for someone that they let go so early and who was warned against. If I were on Twitter, I’d use a hashtag that said, #sobeyondme

As they went into the rose ceremony I just couldn’t figure out who the guy would be that she’d let go. Right now my favorites are Lucas and J.P. I’m fickle and that could change with the next episode! In the end, I wasn’t surprised at all that Nick went home. I never saw him on a date alone with Ashley and have no idea what the guy is like.

Next week I have a feeling we will actually see “B” and Ashley get some closure. At least as much closure as she’ll give it. I swear if he’s all she talks about after she sees him I will throw my keyboard at the tv. I’m done with the guy, the world is done with the guy, it’s time for little Miss Ashley to be done with him too! Goodbye and good riddance!

Who do you think will end up going on the home town dates?

Have You Blog Hopped Today?

I’ve never participated in a Twitter Blog Hop until Wed/Thurs this week. So, we’ll see how this goes. Not even sure if I’m doing this linking up thing right.

I love Twitter and “plan” on doing some blog posts about it and how I’ve used it!

Until then, if you’re on Twitter, come hop with us!

Welcome to Twitter Hop Thursday, hosted by The King’s Court IV, Little Yaya’s, and Kelly’s Lucky You.

Would you like more Twitter followers and be introduced to more neat blogs and businesses out there? Come and join us!!

1. Add your Twitter to the MckLinky (you only have to add it to one and it will appear on all).

2. Click on the Twitter for the four hostesses and follow each of them on Twitter. We will follow you back.

3. Follow as many people on Twitter as you like, but make sure to leave comments with links so they’ll know where to follow you!

Spread the word and add this MckLinky to your blog! Write your own post or copy and paste this one. Below the MckLinky box, you’ll see “Want to be a part of this Blog Hop? Click here for instructions and code”. Have fun Twitter-Hopping along!

Rayovac Sportsman Xtreme™ Mini LED Flashlight Giveaway: 2 Winners

Ok, let’s just get one thing clear from the start. I’m NOT an extreme sportsman, sportswoman, or sports anything. I am competitive, but I definitely fall into the “play like a girl” category.

That said, the Rayovac Sportsman Xtreme™ Mini LED Flashlight has come in handy for so many reasons lately it’s

not funny. About a month ago we were coming into tornado season here in Minnesota. It was

super late at night and my shed doors were flying open. I had to go out to the spooky wooded back”yard” and close those doors. Grabbed my flashlight, put it on High mode and off I went. Lit up that back”yard” and closing those doors was no problem!

Then, and this could be considered Xtreme, I had to search for a big, black, fat, hair spider that had fallen into my lap while getting my mail from my car a couple weeks ago! It fell into my car seat. There was no way I was going to be able to sit on that chair again without searching for the beast. Grabbed my Rayovac flashlight and the search was on. I was able to see every nook and cranny underneath the seat, but couldn’t find Mr. Spider!

My son is heading to camp for the first time this coming Sunday and they’re asked to bring a flashlight along with them. Now this kid is probably going to fall into the extreme sports category one day and this flashlight fits him to a “T”. He’ll be taking this along with him. If they go on any walking trails late at night, the flashlight will probably be the brightest one in

the group.

Here’s a bit of information about the flashlight:

“Rayovac Sportsman Xtreme flashlights are rugged and high performance lights for the xtreme sportsman in everyone. Superior quality at an excellent value

. Rayovac combined cutting edge technology, practicality, style, and value to create the amazing Sportsman Xtreme line of lights. Whatever the activity, Sportsman Xtreme is the perfect fit. Rayovac is a trusted brand of Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc., a top manufacturer of consumer batteries in the United States and Latin America.”

Features:

• High Performance super bright 1W LED
• High and Low Modes
• Beam Brightness: 80 Lumens on High Mode, 30 Lumens on Low Mode
• LED lasts 100,000 hours, never needs replacing
• Battery Run Time: 6 hours on High Mode, 22 hours on Low Mode (with alkaline batteries)
• Impact Resistant to 9 feet
• Water Resistant
• Beam Distance: 47 meters
• Anodized Aluminum Body with Rubber Silicon Grip
• Holster Included
• Lifetime warranty

Uses 3 AA Alkaline Batteries (included)

Here’s your chance to win a Rayovac Sportsman Xtreme™

Mini LED Flashlight of your own and there will be 2 winners!

Required: Visit Rayovac and tell me which other Xtreme Light you’d like to own.

Giveaway open to US residents only 18 yrs or older. Please leave your email in the required entry or have it available in your profile. No email/contact = No entry. Winner has 48 hours to respond. Giveaway ends 7/6/11 at 11:59 PDT

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*I received a flashlight for review. The opinions expressed are my own and are never influenced by the company

Wordless Wednesday: Peonies & A Cat In A Box

Do you say “pee-uh-nees” or “pee-OH-nees”? I think this is a regional thing. I say the first one. Here in MN they say the 2nd one. This is the first year they’ve bloomed!Simba loves his box. We closed the lid for about 15 seconds and it was pretty amusing.  Make sure you check out these other Wordless Wednesday participants: 7 on a Shoestring, 3 Princes And A Princess 2, and My Wee View.

Project 52: Week 24

I didn’t think it had been a busy week, but I stand corrected. We started out the week at Target Field going to the Twins game for my boys’ birthdays courtesy of Grandma & Grandpa C. That’s TC Bear they’re standing with.

When we came home from the game we had time to make s’mores. Those blackened marshmallows were intentional. Gag!

 

Doodle started baseball, but his 2nd day was rained out on Wednesday.

A yellow Goldfinch has been driving my cats crazy. It “tinks” against the windows and Sammy runs from one side of the house to the other trying to “catch” it. It’s pretty amusing to say the least! What’s your week been like? Did you share about it in photos? If so, leave a comment so I can come visit!

Say S’mores With Hershey & Facebook Prizes!

When the warm weather hits, the first thing the boys ask is, “When can we have a bonfire?” That means it’s time for me to go get our s’mores fixin’s: Hershey’s chocolate candy bars, marshmallows, and graham crackers.The weather has been good off and on here in Minnesota, so when we have a good afternoon or evening, we get the fire going and pull out the extension forks. Of course, we don’t ever do s’mores on our own. The neighbor kids always come over. Somehow our firepit became the place to make s’mores! Works for me.I thought I’d try something different this time and put cooking spray on the extension fork tines. It worked, but the kids were so anxious to keep roasting marshmallows, I couldn’t really keep up. One kid would get their marshmallows ready, then I’d be breaking the Hershey to fit the graham cracker, and by the time I finished with that, the next kid would be ready for their s’more to be made. In the meantime, kid #1 already grabbed marshmallows and had them back on the tines. So, the cooking spray was a good idea, but I need a better system!

The kids grabbed all of our gear for our first s’more cookout of the year and I grabbed the hose. I had just cut down all the weeds that had grown up around the firepit and thought since it was so dry I better water it down as well. I err on the side of caution and leave the hose near the fire for safety reasons.When it comes to boys being boys, my 8 yr old, Doodle, fits the bill. He decided after he’d eaten a couple s’mores that he wanted to burn a couple of marshmallows and then eat one as a s’more. Gah, but ok.This summer, the Hershey Company is encouraging families to create their own S’mores memories with the Say S’mores campaign. Starting June 15, families are invited to capture and share their favorite S’mores moments on the Hershey’s brand Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/hersheys for a chance to win S’mores-themed prizes.  The grand-prize is a Canon Rebel Camera, slate marble outdoor firebowl, $250 SnapFish gift card, roasting skewers set and all of the ingredients needed to make S’mores, including Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bars.

Families who visit the Hershey’s brand Facebook page on or after June 15 can download the Say S’mores application to participate in monthly photo contests and receive a $1 coupon good toward the purchase of any two Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bar 6-packs.

I’m so excited to be part of the Hershey’s Say S’mores campaign and will be posting later this summer about a surprise theme involving Hershey’s and S’mores.