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RSSArchive for the ‘giveaways’ CategoryStocking Stuffer Giveaway for the Sports Fan!Posted December 10th, 2011 by Jen in giveaways, holidays, sports, the office3 Comments » Hey Sports Fan! Diary of 1 and TeamMASCOT.com would like to give you a FREE stocking stuffer! TeamMASCOT is our family business, and you can read about it here, and then there’s Business 101 From an Eight-Year-Old to prove there’s nothing better than a family business to create savvy little entrepreneurs. Here’s how to win a sports-themed stocking stuffer: be one of the first ten people to go to TeamMASCOT.com and click the “Follow us on Twitter” button. Tweet the stocking stuffer you’d like, choosing from one of the following items, any team that is currently in stock: [NFL, College, MLB, NHL, NBA, NASCAR] Bumper Sticker Then, leave a comment here on this post telling me what you did…and I will contact you via email for your shipping address, and get your stocking stuffer on its merry way! Hurry, Christmas is coming! Merry Christmas!! ~ Jen p.s., I will ship International if you also post your own tweet mentioning TeamMASCOT.com! Technorati Tags: family business, stocking stuffers, TeamMASCOT, sports memorabilia, bumper stickers, temporary tattoos, decals, sports  Baseball GiveawayPosted July 7th, 2009 by Jen in giveaways, sports, the office0 Comments
It’s time for another sports giveaway. I haven’t done one in a long time, but judging from the hundreds of hits I still get on my old sports contests, folks like them. And baseball is the theme, given the season is well underway and what is summer without baseball? What is America without baseball? Today in baseball history, Satchel Paige was born in Mobile, Alabama in 1906. On his 42nd birthday, July 7, 1948, he was signed by the Cleveland Indians, a historic first for this amazing veteran Negro League pitcher. What a birthday gift. In honor of this great moment from the archives of baseball, TeamMASCOT.com is giving away a baseball. Visit the TeamMASCOT baseball page to pick your team, and leave a comment right here on this post by Saturday, June 11, including your team choice. Two winners will be randomly chosen. Be sure to leave an email for me to contact you. Your information is secure and is never shared. The Hometown Girl WinsPosted June 7th, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, giveaways5 Comments » I just drew the lucky winner of my Father’s Day Giveaway – commenter #13, Julie from Pounding the Pavement, who is an Oregon State University fan. People, this was not staged, I really did a random draw! But this is the same Julie who is my good friend, about whom I just wrote that music article, and I can actually hand deliver her prize! Julie, you will be receiving the Oregon State Beavers hat and pewter keychain.
Debi still has her Father’s Day Giveaway open, so you can give it another shot over at Stroller Strides of Bend. I gotta say, these Central Oregon bloggers are pretty impressive! I just met another one yesterday. Christy happened to be at the same homeschool swim group I attended, and I’d been reading her blog for a while (which I would direct you to except that she shut it down a while back), and had never met her. I’ve gotten used to introducing myself in my new social-media-fashion: “Hi, I’m Jen, from Diary of 1.” Just like when I first met MooBeeMa, PebbleChaser, and Mrs. Darling, it was like meeting up with an old friend. Technorati Tags: blog contest, giveaway, Oregon State University, sports business, TeamMASCOT Father’s Day GiveawayPosted June 5th, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, giveaways0 Comments Hey, a reminder about my Father’s Day Giveaway! Leave a comment on this post, letting me know your favorite team logo item under $30 from my online sports store, TeamMASCOT.com. Goodness, only one more day for this contest, enter by the end of tomorrow, Friday, June 6! AND, Debi S. of Stroller Strides in Bend, OR, is also running a fabulous Father’s Day Giveaway. Click on this post, and leave a comment about why you love your dad (read her story, it’s wonderful!), and you have a chance to win a hammer with your dad’s favorite team logo! Enter by the end of Thursday, June 12 – hurry! June random stuff. Blogging, Ranching, Giving Away.Posted June 1st, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, giveaways, the office, the ranch16 Comments » Yesterday was an interesting day of firsts. The kiddos found a chirping nest full of baby birds (children, do NOT touch!) and happened upon (cued by loud barking from the dog) a nest of wild baby bunnies jackrabbits (children, do NOT touch!). As we drove home late in the evening, I came within inches of smashing a great horned owl into my windshield, as it was concentrating on the baby field mouse it had snatched off the road. And finally I pulled into our house to see a yard full of little deer. It’s spring in the Oregon high desert. All of the childhood exploring was possible because my husband and I were busy breaking our backs trying to get the yard prepared to plant some grass. I snapped off my shovel handle just above the spade (is that a bad sign?) trying to pry up a boulder and I bent the prongs of my husband’s $50 rake. I’ll go soak my weary bones in a hot bath and try to focus on how green that grass will be in a few months. ****** Please be sure the item is in-stock (noted after the product description), because I’ll need to get this shipped by the end of the week to guarantee arrival for Father’s Day. CONTEST CLOSES Friday, June 6. TO ENTER, leave a comment on this post, letting me know which product you would like. Open to U.S. and APO addresses. Make sure you leave a way for me to contact you, so I can notify the winner and get this shipped to the correct address. Marriage Monday, hosted by Chrysalis blog coming tomorrow! Submit your post after today on any aspect of your wedding here. There are several blog carnivals that you may want to catch up on. Just topical collections of blog articles. Christian Carnival and up again Wednesday at Ancient Hebrew Poetry. Technorati Tags: blogging, family life, blog contest, giveaway, Father’s Day, outdoor play, outdoors, parenting, baby jackrabbits, ranch, sports business, spring Some Blog BusinessPosted April 22nd, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, carnivals, giveaways2 Comments » The blog carnivals are great places to browse for topical subjects. Here’s the latest: Carnival of the Insanities Do you know of another fabulous blog carnival? Let me know! The winner of my ziplock-bag-books (The Child’s Spring Book) is commenter #9, Shannon at Song of my heart!! These will be on the way shortly. Email me with an address, Enjoy! Technorati Tags: blog carnival, blogging, giveaway Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots Winner!Posted April 15th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, blog stuff, carnivals, giveaways, product review0 Comments I’m pleased to announce the winner of my Gardening with Children book: commenter #17, AreWeThereYetMom, your book will be on the way shortly! Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: Gardening Together With Children is sure to delight your whole family! Thank you so much, everyone who left me a comment on that post. Thanks to Laura for mentioning this book giveaway!
My current book giveaway is two homemade books from the Diary of 1 family, for those interested in native plant life. You may leave me a comment on The Child’s Spring Book by this Sunday to learn about these books and enter the drawing.This giveaway actually has a project attached to it – my kids are putting together an Oregon plant/nature book – a cute ziplock-bag-book – to pass on to a child who lives anywhere other than where we live. And I hope that child will then create a book highlighting his/her region to pass on to another child, and so on. It’s a very simple book, so don’t be intimidated to try it! -P.S., our Oregon book will have some child-intriguing extra odds and ends from our property, like these:
One more note about contests: I actually won something!! SmallWorld had a spring poetry contest, and my mom’s poem, Morning, was chosen, and I hear that I have a basket of spring goodies on the way to me, which of course I’ll share with my mom – can’t wait to show you! And those blog carnivals: The Carnival of Homeschooling, the Carnival of Homesteading, the Carnival of Family Life, the Christian Carnival, the Make it From Scratch Carnival. Technorati Tags: children, contest, garden, gardening with children, giveaway, Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots The Child’s Spring BookPosted April 13th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, book reviews, education, family life, features, giveaways, science17 Comments »
I present to you today the fruit of our outdoor adventure. We made several ziplock-bag-books yesterday, full of specimens of Central Oregon, in particular, Smith Rock State Park, where we had our outing. For those of you who already have your children keep a nature journal, you’ll find this project to be a perfect companion. (I’m giving away two of our books – an Oregon one and a blank one; leave a comment below by next Sunday if you’d like to enter!) The Zip-Lock Bag Book Supplies:
How To: The Pages:
Assembling the Book:
JoJo is so proud of her book, and slept with it last night. She couldn’t wait to decorate the cover with the foamy letters she received for her birthday. The other kids chose to use markers and pens to create their cover art. Some other ideas:
The hardest part about this project was the identification. Now, is that an arnica mollis or an arnica parryi? Sometimes, we just made our best guess. The rest of the project took no external motivation at all – this was such a delight for them. But certainly, the identification was one of the most valuable pieces of this book. The kids learned to look critically at a plant and really notice things they hadn’t before. The shape of a leaf, the texture, the number of petals. By the way, we are not done with the identifying – we need to check out a few books from the library. Like I said above, I’m giving away two of our homemade books, one filled with Central Oregon specimens and the other one blank for your region. Keep in mind that when I do crafts, it’s a fairly practical endeavor – just whatever is on hand – so these books will not be perfect, beautiful things! My 8 year old son will probably be doing most of the work. This is my plan: I’d like to give these two books to someone with a child who’s interesting in learning about Oregon plant life, and who will use the blank book to create his own regional book. I’m hoping that this child will then create an extra ziplock-bag-book from his region, and another blank one, and pass them on as well. And so on. Leave a comment below by next Sunday, April 20, if you’d like to win these books. My son will draw a random name and I’ll email the winner. I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about our spring ziplock-bag-book! I think this is an ideal science/nature/art project for students of all ages. If you have any ideas to add, let me know. Resources:
Technorati Tags: art activities, art for children, Central Oregon, giveaway, home education, homeschool, outdoor play, ziplock bag book, nature journal, Smith Rock, spring Gardening With ChildrenPosted April 6th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, book reviews, education, family life, features, giveaways, parenting37 Comments »
This picture here is my little JoJo who spent several hours last week with her pint-sized rake and shovel. I was working on the main garden area, while she staked out a small spot of her own. The other children were doing likewise. I hesitated a moment when suddenly all the children wanted their own garden space in addition to the main garden. Was this okay? Would I be teaching them to be selfish and looking out only for themselves? I ended up deciding that the sense of community and family in the main garden would not at all be diminished by each child’s ownership in their own scratch of earth. In fact, it would probably deepen their respect for the family garden, knowing the responsibility and effort their own gardens require. I found a wonderful book to guide me through some activities to do in the garden with children. It’s called Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: gardening together with children, by Sharon Lovejoy. The book covers not only the basics of how to plan, plant, and care for your garden, but the top 20 plants for kids, theme garden ideas, and many little bits of garden wisdom. (I’m giving away a copy – leave me a comment on this post to enter.)
I would say that my first tip for gardening with children is to involve them in every decision. Where should we put the garden? Is this spot too shady or too sunny? This area is nice and level, but we’ll have to dig up some rocks, is that okay? What shape do we want the garden to be? What should we plant that will thrive in our region? Let’s test the soil and decide what supplements we may need. All of the issues that arise in the planning of the garden are incredible teaching tools, and there’s no better way for your kids to really understand the complexity – and joy – of it all than to walk through it with you step by step. And the sense of ownership will be there from the start – the greatest motivator I know. I never have to twist their arms to go work on the garden. Let’s jump right in to the top 20 plants for children to grow. This list comes from Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots, based on the fact they are proven winners:
1. Pumpkins Do keep in mind your climate – some of these will fare better than others depending on where you live. In Central Oregon, for example, root crops like potatoes and carrots grow well with our short growing season and cool nights; but for some vegetables like corn or tomatoes, a short-season variety is a must for your plant to mature. Theme gardens can be a joy for children, and I’ll highlight just one of the themes from Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: the pizza patch. The Pizza Patch: gardening in the round is sure to delight children who are used to seeing a straight-row vegetable garden. This pizza patch garden is a giant sized six-foot-wide wheel shaped plot, divided into seven great wedges and edged with a thick rock crust. Ms. Lovejoy suggests the following ingredients for your pizza patch garden, but you can add other favorites as well:
Divide the garden into slices: mark spots at 32 inch intervals along the outer edge. Draw a line with a stick from each of the seven marks to the center stake, to denote the seven slices. Then place rocks along those lines for a permanent boundary, and you can remove the center stake. Place the five tall vegetables in each of the five slices on the northern side of the wheel – the plum tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, and zucchini. In a slice on the south side, plant the herbs, onions, and garlic. Set aside one slice to be the pathway for the little feet tending the garden. The bright gold marigolds and Calendulas can be filled in around the vegetables and herbs, the “cheese” of the pizza. To plant each slice, start from the center and work your way out. Plant tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, and zucchini 12-18 inches apart. In the small herb slice, space them 6 inches apart from the onions and garlic. The flowers are scattered throughout each slice, but allow 3 inches between them and other plants. When harvest time comes, you can throw a big pizza party with toppings straight from the garden!
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, children, dirt, garden, gardening with children, giveaway, homesteading, outdoor play, Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots, pizza patch garden Hello Sports Fan, Doesn’t Anyone Want Free Stuff??Posted March 13th, 2008 by Jen in giveaways, the office4 Comments » I’ve had a dismal response to my Sports Giveaway, which ends tomorrow! (I’ll extend it if I have to). I shouldn’t complain, I’ve done next to nothing to promote it, and my main readers (Christian-women-moms-teachers-homeschoolers) are clearly not big sports fans. Ladies, I don’t blame you a bit, I just have a business to run. The products and information are posted HERE (read down past the “blog party” stuff). I’ve done several giveaways, but never including so many high quality products – check it out and support a family business. Technorati Tags: contest, Dallas Cowboys tire cover, giveaway, New York Giants rug, Pittsburgh Steelers thermos, prizes, Ohio State watch, Georgia Tech Trailer Hitch Cover, sports business New York Giants Win Super Bowl; but my contest winner is a Patriots fan!Posted February 4th, 2008 by Jen in carnivals, giveaways, sports, the office3 Comments » Great big giant congratulations to the New York Giants on their stunning Super Bowl XLII win!! And huge congratulations to the WINNER of my Super Bowl Giveaway: Shannon Jordan at A Reforming Mom, who is a true blue New England Patriots fan (despite her husband not being). I hope this soothes the pain of the loss. Way to go Shannon, and if you can sneak this auto accessories package onto the family van, go for it! Shannon will be receiving a Patriots license plate frame, a Patriots auto emblem, and a Patriots sheet of removable decals. In the case of a house divided, it may be a good thing they are removable. Thanks to everyone who participated in my Super Bowl Giveaway! The items in my giveaway were all from my online store, TeamMASCOT.com, and if you are a sports fan, you might want to take a look. Keep an eye out, I’ll always have more contests! The winners of the Bloggy Giveaway Carnival (890 giveaways!) are being posted HERE-Rocks in My Dryer-, so if you’re not sure if you won something, take a peek! That Contest and Some LinksPosted January 31st, 2008 by Jen in carnivals, giveaways, sports1 Comment » Thanks to everyone who has entered my Super Bowl Giveaway of NFL auto accessories! Go HERE to enter, you have until this Saturday. Just leave a comment to enter, and read the post for details. Be sure to visit the Rocks in My Dryer Bloggy Carnival where hundreds are giveaways have been going on all week. It’s nuts over there. Count them. 890 GIVEAWAYS!! FREE STUFF!! And if you’re like me and don’t really want more stuff, many of the giveaways are CASH. Can Shannon make it into the Guinness Book of World Records? There would surely have been even more giveaways but for the nemesis of all bloggers–spammers, which forced Shannon to shut down Mr. Linky early. Thanks are in order as well to some great bloggers who also hosted my giveaway – and I would recommend posting your giveaways here. The point is exposure, especially if you own a small business you are promoting, and many blogggers also simply want traffic. Whatever the reason, here are a few good places to submit your contests: Laura Williams’ Musings: A Christian homeschooling mom of seven, Laura regularly posts giveaways, writes fabulous book reviews, and has quite the recipe roundup! The Contest Beat (which is for sale, by the way – anyone want to add to their internet holdings?): This is contest central, where you can find everything from cold cash to a Nintendo Wii. MyBlogContest: Sweepstakes, contests, giveaways, free stuff. An Island Review: Kailani always has great lists of contests and giveaways. I forgot to submit my giveaway here, but I have in the past. I love this site -it’s clean, pretty, and easy to navigate. Prize-A-Tron: Angela and baby Connor have tons of good stuff to give away, and don’t miss more of Angela’s contests at Seven Dogs And a Baby – it seems she really does have seven chihuahuas. Can they be trained to change diapers? I know there’s more – let me know where you post your giveaways. Recent carnival activity of interest: And I have a few blog awards!! I’ve missed some and forgotten others in the craziness of the past season, and it’s taken me a full month to get “sort of” back on track. I’ll pass these awards on later, I’m just going to mention them now and give myself time to think! And seriously, if I’ve missed something you intended for me, feel free to remind me. :-) First, Grace at Sandier Pastures has blessed me with many awards, and one of them is the “I’ve Got a Friend Award,” which I was very honored to receive. If you’d like to get a taste of Dubai through the eyes of an expat from Japan via the Philippines, then go visit Sandier Pastures! e-Mom at Chrysalis has also given me some awards, the most recent one being the “E for Excellent Award.”. e-Mom has a wonderful, inviting blog, full of encouragement, reviews, humor, marriage and family tips, and so much more. Drop in for a cup of coffee (this IS where I won my Starbucks gift card). Coming soon: my review of Suite Francaise (oh, how do I get those little French accents to work on my keyboard??!). I KNOW that little mark goes under the “c.” Anyway, if there’s one book you read this year on war, this should be it. It’s historical fiction set in France during the German Occupation (early/pre WWII), and the story behind the story is even more fascinating. I will leave you hanging with this: the author, Irene Nemirovsky (a Russian Jew whose family had emigrated to France to escape the Bolsheviks), was murdered in Auschwitz and the manuscript of Suite Francaise survived the war and wasn’t discovered for over 60 years, and was just published in 2004 in France, where it was an immediate bestseller, and in 2006 in the U.S. I was almost shaking when I first laid hands on this book just over a week ago. I have a few chapters left and will report soon. Super Bowl XLII Giveaway: Auto AccessoriesPosted January 28th, 2008 by Jen in carnivals, giveaways, product review, sports, the office58 Comments »
Super Bowl XLII is set for February 3, 2008 in Arizona, a showdown between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots!! Diary of 1 and TeamMASCOT are hosting another giveaway right here, right now, in honor of this great football tradition! This Super Bowl Giveaway is an auto accessories package for the team of your choice: The Patriots or the Giants of course — and I will even let you choose a different NFL team, because I know those team loyalties run very deep! The package will contain the following three items: 1. An auto emblem: an officially licensed auto emblem made of hard plastic with a metallic finish and adhesive on the back to stick to your car or truck, or any hard surface – refrigerator, RV, door, etc. Measures approximately 3×3 inches and 1/4 inch thick. 2. A sheet of static cling decals: Better than a sticker, remove and reuse these team logo window decorations whenever you like. Each sheet contains five decals with team logos and graphics, of various size and design. Removable and fade-resistent. The sizes of the static clings are: One is 2.5″x4.75″, one is 4.75″x6.5″, two are 5″x9″, and one is 3.75″x19″. 3. A plastic license plate frame: These team logo license plate frames attach easily to any vehicle and feature bright graphics and team colors. The license plate holders are 6.25″x12.25″ and meet the vehicle standards for display of registration tags. These auto tags are made of hard, sturdy plastic. How to win: Simply leave a comment below, and include the name of the NFL team you want for the auto accessories package, and I will randomly choose a winner on Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008! I will notify the winner via email on Sunday, Feb. 3. If you are a blogger and would like to have an extra entry included in the drawing, just mention this contest on your blog with a link back to this post. You must have a U.S. mailing address to win this contest. For hundreds of NFL and other team-logo products (NCAA, MLB, NASCAR, NHL, and NBA), please visit my family business, TeamMASCOT.com – support America’s small businesses! This contest is part of the Bloggy Giveaway Carnival at Rocks in My Dryer. Head over there for literally hundreds of amazing giveaways all week!! Thursday Thirteen: Holiday Sports Giveaway WinnersPosted December 6th, 2007 by Jen in giveaways9 Comments » I just met the ultimate sports fan, folks. None of the winners below can beat this guy. I’m posting this from my warehouse where I just received a shipment from FedEx. The FedEx guy says, “Wow, do you have any NASCAR stuff here?” Of course I do, I say, and show him a few racing products. When I came to a felt pennant for driver Kevin Harvick, #29, he exclaims, “He’s my favorite driver! I have his number tattooed on me!” You’ve got to be kidding, I say. “No, look, it’s right here,” he assures me, pulling up his pant leg and exposing his ankle, where indeed there was prominently tattooed “29.” Oh my, I say, what do you do when Kevin Harvick changes his number? It happens all the time. FedEx Man looks at me as though I’m just not that smart and says, “Heck, I’ve got a whole leg.” I sent him away with a free #29 pennant, telling him he is indeed the ultimate fan. Here are the thirteen winners. Please contact me, you wonderful winners, with your mailing address, so I can ship you your prize. You can email me at blessedinthewest at yahoo dot com. If you still need to do holiday shopping for your favorite sports fan, be sure to visit TeamMASCOT.com. 1. Boston Red Sox Wall Clock – Natalie 2. Detroit Red Wings Flag – Melissa 3. Detroit Lions Blanket – Ginny 4. North Carolina Tarheels Steel License Plate – Frannie 5. New York Yankees Banner – Sandy Carlson 6. Chicago Cubs Glow Pen – knupNET 7. Atlanta Hawks Pennant – Betty 8. Michigan State Lapel Pin – Laura 9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Trash Can – Christi 10. Dallas Cowboys Stainless Steel Water Bottle – aBookworm 11. Texas Longhorns Stainless Steel Travel Mug – Toblerone 12. Oregon Ducks Chrome License Plate Frame – Dee 13. New Orleans Saints Auto Emblem – Tonya Many thanks for playing along! Merry Christmas! By the way, Betty and Laura, your prize isn’t your first choice item, I apologize. I had already given those items away, and was left with the Atlanta Hawks Pennant and the Michigan State Lapel Pin, as no one had specifically requested those items. So, you two lucky gals still received something and hopefully you have a special person in your life who will enjoy these products! Giveaway UpdatePosted December 5th, 2007 by Jen in carnivals, giveaways, sports3 Comments » Thanks to all of you who have left a comment on my Holiday Sports Giveaway – you have until midnight tonight, then tomorrow I’ll announce the winners! I really appreciate the blogs who have mentioned my Holiday Sports-Themed Giveaway. Thank you to to following wonderful bloggers: Laura William’s Musings – Daily Contest Roundups, Book & Product Reviews, Recipes, and More. Check out her blog and you’ll be a winner! Contests Anonymous – This contest addict spends hours each night surfing the net looking for contests that other moms will enjoy! Wow, all her findings will leave you reeling. My Blog Contest – Get tons of free stuff over here, always a new contest, always great prizes. 5 Minutes for Mom – Bringing moms the best in blogging, shopping, parenting, and entertainment. Thanks to Kailani for including me in her list of contests and giveaways. Be sure to check out the Mom Owned Stores while you’re at the 5 Minutes for Mom site…you especially don’t want to miss A Rocking Horse to Love, where you’ll find every imaginable sit-on creature and adorable decor for your child’s room, and also Pedal Cars and Retro Collectibles, a fun blast to the past with unique gifts like the pedal cars and Crosley Radios, 1930s Coke Machines, and everything for the vintage lover! One more place to stop is the 5 Minutes for Mom Readers’ Blogs – featuring blogs submitted by readers, and a great place to meet a new blogging friend, and of course, get your own blog listed! Daily Thoughts Contest Roundup – More amazing giveaways! This blogger is an eBayer, scrapbooker, avid reader and stay-at-home mom to two wonderful daughters. Check out her offerings. The Contest Beat – A great place to submit your contests and see other giveaways as well. Take a look over here, you could win an iPod Nano or a 42 inch HDTV! If I missed anyone, let me know! ALSO, a few carnivals have passed me by…I’ve been so busy, as all of you have, I’m sure! The Carnival of Family Life – G’day from Down Under! Help is on the Way!Posted December 2nd, 2007 by Jen in family life, giveaways13 Comments » Live from the Portland Airport in rainy Oregon! I’m waiting for my niece to fly in from Michigan. The wifi here is touchy and I’m in and out, so this’ll be quick. I do have two hours to sit here, so good thing I brought some books. So, my big sister agreed to let her daughter come and be my “nanny” for three weeks! My niece D. is almost 16, and a real gem. She is also homeschooled, and her flexibility has allowed her to come right now. I was in a panic because it’s the holiday season, and as anyone in retail knows, this is your one chance. My business, TeamMASCOT, is doing well, and that’s good and bad. Normally, we have extra seasonal help, but circumstances are such that we don’t at the moment. I’m having to work many long hours, and…the children. I need to care for the kids, do their schooling, take care of the business, the house, the holiday activities. It’s too much. So, D. will be staying with us until Christmas, and we are so excited to have her! She is also excited, having only been to Oregon for my wedding when she was about five years old. While she’ll be very busy with taking care of all the children’s needs, she’ll be earning some Christmas money! D. has a lot of experience with helping her little brothers with school and with handling daily life with younger children. ONE more quick note – I’m getting a lot of new comments on my contest post, below, and since most of the commenters are new to Diary of 1, I have to moderate the comments. I apologize, but I get a terrible amount of spam without the moderation. I will get to all those when I’m back home, so don’t worry if you don’t see your entry show up. I have a long trip back over snowy Mt. Hood and it may be tomorrow before I get to it. AND, finally, tomorrow I will also thank (and link) the many bloggers who have highlighted my sports contest on their blogs, so don’t think I’ve forgotten about you! I’m very grateful. Thursday Thirteen: Holiday Giveaway of Sports StuffPosted November 29th, 2007 by Jen in giveaways, product review, the office48 Comments »
To win, just leave a comment below, letting me know which item you’d like to win. You have until next Wednesday, December 5, at midnight, to post your comment. U.S. and Canada bloggers only, please. I’ll have a random drawing and announce the thirteen winners in next week’s Thursday Thirteen! I’m offering free shipping and delivery guaranteed before Christmas. Links back to TeamMASCOT and this Diary of 1 post would be appreciated. Merry Christmas to all, and let your blogger friends know about the Diary of 1/TeamMASCOT Holiday Giveaway! 1. Boston Red Sox Wall Clock 2. Detroit Red Wings 3×5 Flag 3. Detroit Lions Blanket: Woven Tapestry Throw 4. North Carolina Tarheels Stainless Steel License plate 5. New York Yankees 27×37 Vertical Hanging Flag 6. Chicago Cubs Glow Pen 7. Atlanta Hawks Pennant 8. Michigan State Lapel Pin 9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. #8 Trash Can 10. Dallas Cowboys Stainless Steel Water Bottle 11. Texas Longhorns Stainless Steel Travel Mug
12. Oregon Ducks Chrome License Plate Frame 13. New Orleans Saints Auto Emblem Thanks for visiting the Diary of 1 Holiday Giveaway of Sports Stuff! You can visit the Thursday Thirteen meme hub here. |
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Spring is here! It came, then ducked under a series of freak hailstorms and a blanket of snow, only to emerge this weekend for good. The kids and I basked in a perfect April day on Friday, obeying the chipper call of the season to go for a hike.
Voila, you have a lovely child’s spring book! One neat thing about this style of book is that it allows such easy access to the items. Each piece of cardstock can be taken out and handled (as children can’t help but do), and easily returned to its proper place. And of course, the see-through ziplock bag is an essential as well, giving full visual stimulation.
We’ve been spending some time in the dirt getting the soil ready to start a garden. And no surprise, children are drawn to dirt like nothing else! You mean you want me to dig holes? I’m allowed to get filthy and mucky? To direct that childish energy and wonder into a productive endeavor like a garden is not only smart on the part of the parent, it’s a lifelong gift to both of you.
Here in Central Oregon, we’re still in the planning stages. We’re working with virgin land that’s never been planted and we have our own obstacles to maneuver. We have a lot of land to work with and can experiment with several ideas, but the ground itself has some limitations. Giant boulders being one. A very short growing season being another. 
To begin this project, select a flat 10×10 foot plot of ground that gets at least 6 hours of sun a day. Place a stake in the center of the area, and tie a 3-foot string to it. Your child can take hold of the very end of the string and walk in a circle, while another child walks behind with a hoe to mark what will be the outer boundary of the garden bed.
You can find more fabulous garden ideas and activities to do with children, such as a sunflower house, container gardens, and a moon garden, in Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots. Would you like to win a free copy? Leave me a comment and let me know you’d like this book! I’ll draw a random winner next week.
