Book R & G - So Far Away by Christine W. Hartmann

'I am pleased to have been invited to review So Far Away: A Daughter's Memoir of Life, Loss, and Love by Christine W. Hartmann as part of her virtual book tour with TLC Books

From the Publisher:
Christine Hartmann’s mother valued control above all else, yet one event appeared beyond her command: the timing of her own death. Not to be denied there either, two decades in advance Irmgard Hartmann chose the date on which to end her life. And her next step was to tell her daughter all about it. For twenty years, Irmgard maintained an unwavering goal, to commit suicide at age seventy. She managed her chronic hypertension, stayed healthy and active, and lived life to the fullest. Meanwhile, Christine fought desperately against the decision. When Irmgard wouldn’t listen, the only way to remain part of her life was for Christine to swallow her mother’s plans–hook, line, and sinker.


Christine’s father, as it turned out, prepared too slowly for old age. Before he had made any decision, fate disabled him through a series of strokes. Confined to a nursing home, severely impaired by dementia and frustrated by his circumstances, his life epitomized the predicament her mother wanted to avoid.


So Far Away gives us an intimate view of a person interacting with and reacting to her parents at the end of their lives. In a richly detailed, poignant story of family members’ separate yet interwoven journeys, it underscores the complexities and opportunities that life presents each one of us.

Thirsty For Comments? - get great comments by linking up here!

Welcome to 

Thirsty for Comments Thursday! 

 

Hosted by Acting Balanced and SilverFaeries and Dragonflies 

Grab our badge for your sidebar or post:

<a href="http://www.actingbalanced.com/search/label/Thirsty%20for%20Comments"target="_blank"><img alt="Acting Balanced" src="http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m259/hloeffler/tc1.jpg" /></a>

We have TWO Featured Blogger this week:

and

Touristic

Please make sure you show them some comment love this week, 

in addition to visiting some of the other fabulous links!

Scoring fabulous fuelperks! at BI-LO with Gift Cards #CBIAS #fuelperksatBILO #ad

I love shopping for Collective Bias, especially when the rewards keep on piling up!  Today at BI-LO, I was able to score a great gift card for a friend's birthday this week AND get something for myself - TRIPLE fuelperks!

Check out my shopping trip here in my Google Plus Story: https://plus.google.com/photos/106937583463680127426/albums/5680954045402143553

BI-LO is issuing Triple fuelperks! bonus Rewards for certain Gift Cards from 11/30/11-12/06/11.

• fuelperks! are NOT issued on Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or BI-LO Gift Cards.
• To find out more information about the fuelperks! program you can visit http://www.bi-lo.com/fuelperks
• In order to locate stations in your area participating in fuelperks! you can visit the BI-LO website and utilize the fuelperks! locator http://www.bi-lo.com/pumps/

EXAMPLE: If a customer spends $10 on a gift card, the spend triples to $30. If the customer purchases a $50 Gift Card, the amount triples to $150 and the customer receives .15¢ off Per Gallon in fuelperks! Rewards.

I shopped for a great gift card for a friend, with Erik's help of course:

and picked this one:

This is a great way to get teacher gifts and those extra gift cards that I like to have in the house in case I need an emergency 'someone dropped in' gift - and get a gift for yourself!  And I love that it doesn't matter what denomination you choose - $10, $20, $50 - they all get rewarded!  


I would have bought more if the selection was better - I'd love to see their gift card section expanded so that I can continue to get the Gift Cards I need while shopping for my groceries!


The whole trip was fun... and in case you didn't see the link to the rest of my pictures - here's the google plus story link again: https://plus.google.com/photos/106937583463680127426/albums/5680954045402143553

Disclaimer: This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All opinions are my own.

Product Review: Mickey Mouse Limited Edition Collectors Tin Band-Aids

Ever since Robyn was really little, I've always had a drawer full of fun character band-aids... It's always fun watching Wayne root around to find a 'plain' one or at least one that is fairly inconspicuous (read: not Disney Princesses) so when I was asked to check out the new Band-Aid Brand Adhesive Bandages, Mickey Mouse Limited Edition Collector's Series Tin, Assorted Sizes, 20 Count , now available on Amazon.com, I knew I had to - right?

Wordless Wednesday - A Different View of Robyn

(Experimenting with the iPad Camera)

Mompact Giveaway!

For those of you who missed my earlier announcement - I'm one of the very first MOMPACT Associates in the country and what that means is that I've got the opportunity to showcase some fabulous Mompreneurs and offer those products to you all under one website!


Visit www.mompact.com/heathers to see everything we have to offer - or contact me to book a Social or Virtual Social and get FREE and Discounted Products by sharing MOMPACT with your friends!  Using the code HOLIDAYGIFT25 you'll save 25% on all of the featured products on the first page of the website AND these fabulous Baskets:


On top of that, as part of the launch, all of the Mompact Associates are getting together to give away one of two fabulous baskets!  The winner will be able to choose between the Boutique Baby Shower Basket or the Kids Collections Basket.  Win it for yourself, or send it as a gift.  Winner will be selected on December 21st in time for Christmas Shipping.

Holiday Gift Guide #Giveaway - Plan 2 Bee Planner

I reviewed the Plan 2 Bee Planner today and am pleased that Lisa has agreed to offer one of my readers their own copy of this fabulous planner:

Holiday Gift Guide - Plan 2 Bee Planner Review

Is there someone on your holiday shopping list who chronically adds "Be healthier, eat better, lose weight, make more time for myself" to their list of New Year's Resolutions?  Or are you that someone?  I want to introduce you to Plan 2 Bee - a different kind of planner and one that can help you set and track goals, change negative habits into positive ones and still keep track of your busy life...

Stumble Tumble Tuesday - Link up and Play with StumbleUpon!

Welcome to Stumble Tumble Tuesday hosted by Shopper Gal,Acting Balanced and Kelly’s Lucky You! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic.

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please read this post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren't showing up, thanks!

Fan Follow Festival!

Welcome To Acting Balanced 

and the Fan Follow Festival!

'

THREE lucky winners will each win $100 via Amazon GC, Wal-mart GC or Paypal Cash - winners choice.

*Enter below using the Rafflecopter form.

About our sponsor:

Meet Me on Monday!

I'm hanging out and sharing a little more of me with:

Questions:

1.  I really need to clean my _________?
2.  What food makes you think of Christmas?
3.  If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what age would it be? 
4.  What was your first paying job?
5.  Have you read the Twilight series?
---------------------------------------------------------------
My Answers!


1.  I really need to clean my _________?


Whole house... with the kids and hubby being sick over the weekend it is in bad shape...

2.  What food makes you think of Christmas?


Cranberry sauce, whipped shortbread cookies and buttery sugar cookies!

3.  If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what age would it be? 


Hmm... I'd pick 35 - if I could keep my kids at 12, 4 and infant stages...

4.  What was your first paying job?


Babysitting!  I used to make good money as a babysitter.... 

5.  Have you read the Twilight series?


I read the first and second book but struggled getting through the second one so I stopped ... my daughter on the other hand has all four books almost memorized....

MMMmonday - Hallee's Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix

It's been a while since I've shared a recipe that I got from my friend and fellow blogger, Hallee the Homemaker, but I've been starting to put together Christmas gifts and I found this one tucked into my notes from September of this year... 


Hallee is an inspiration to me - she's really worked hard to take food back to the basics and has cut out processed foods and more from her family's diet, she even grinds her own flour!


I knew this recipe would be fabulous because Hallee has a whole family of taste testers and the first time I made it, my family concurred:


Hallee said:

I’m not a fan of the packaged seasoning mixes only because they contain ingredients other than the spices.  I haven’t been using them now for about two years and haven’t missed using them yet.

and so I offer you her version of Taco Seasoning Mix (and my additions/substitutions)


Ingredients:
1 tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground oregano (or you can substituted dried/crushed)
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt - I substitute celery salt


I add:
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp turmeric 
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper - if you like some kick


Directions: Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container!


When I give this as a gift, I triple or better the recipe and fill a large spice jar or small mason jar.


Do you have any other great suggestions for holiday gifts?  Have a great recipe of any sort on your blog?
Link it up here and share it:

Preview and #Giveaway: Game of Your Life - P&G Family Movie Night!

I am always a huge fan of the movies that Proctor and Gamble and Walmart find for their Family Movie Night and although I've only seen the trailer of this one so far, I am sure that Game of Your Life is going to be another family hit!  

Watch Friday, December 2nd 8/7c on NBC!

Sundays in My City

With three sick kids, I'm not going very far this Sunday, so I'm heading back into my archives to show you a bit of Charleston from happier and healthier days...

Yep that's Bison... hanging out in Charlestowne Landing Animal Forest

If you want to see what other people are doing, check out

Using Rafflecopter to Give Sponsors Value Added Info

I've been a Rafflecopter fan since the beginning, well even before that - I spent some quality time on the phone with Greg going over how I ran my giveaways and what worked and what didn't for me... and now that I regularly use Rafflecopter, I can't say that I'll ever go back to the old ways... and one of the reasons is that I can easily provide value added information to my sponsors!

Holiday Gift Guide R & G - Lovable Labels

Those who have been following my blog for a while know that I am a huge fan of Lovable Labels!  They make great labels for kids, home and more!  Everything I've received from them has been of the highest quality and matches what they advertise, which is so important in a company that does business on the internet!


This month, I switched things up!  I took advantage of being a Lovebug, which enabled me to stock up on a whole variety of products by cashing in my rewards, so instead of reviewing the labels personally, I sent a special gift to my niece, Ella, in Toronto! 


Ella got sent a set of personalized labels from the Holly Jolly Gift Pack:

Get Cooking with Kindle!

I was bored earlier today and decided to explore more in the free section of Amazon.com for Kindle Books and I came across a huge number of yummy cookbooks!  You don't need to own a Kindle to make use of these books - you can download readers for your computer, your smartphone or even to read right online  - all free!


I'm working my way through more than a dozen yummy cookbooks - you can search through a list of 100 freebies by clicking here - Top 100 Free and Paid Cookbooks for Kindle

Protecting your Computer with Norton Small Business Products

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Norton Small Business by Symantec for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.


I live in fear... fear that one day I'll visit a web page or download a file that contains a catastrophic virus that will destroy my computer, or worse, that one of my children will do it!  I know that virus protection has come a long way in the last several years, but so have the hackers...
It's especially important to me now that I am relying heavily on my computer to earn money.  Beyond my blog, my part-time job as a mystery shopper and my new Mompact business require me to have access to the internet and stay in touch regularly!  That means I have even more incentive to make sure that my computer is protected 24-7!

Book Review: Song of the Nile (Daughter of Cleopatra)

If you've been an Acting Balanced reader for a while, you know that I am a sucker for a historical novel with a strong female character so I was immediately drawn to reading Song of the Nile (Cleopatra's Daughter) by Stephanie Dray.


From the publisher: 



Sorceress. Seductress. Schemer. Cleopatra's daughter is the one woman with the power to destroy an empire...

Friday Fragments

I slept until after 10 am today... of course I didn't go to bed until after 7 am... yep I was one of the hordes of people out Black Friday shopping.  I probably would have slept longer but one of my new neighbors has a dog that whines and he was being cooped up in their garage ... man does that sound echo...

I got a few really good deals - a new coat for Liam and some clothes for both boys - Robyn scored really cute boots for $15 and a new sweater and a sweater dress... picked up a couple of movies - Cars 2 for the boys, something for Wayne from Santa and New Moon for Robyn - all on great deals at Target...

Twelve Days of Gifts Galore Giveaway Hop - OPEN WORLDWIDE!

Welcome to Acting Balanced!

This post is part of the  12 Days of Gifts Galore Giveaway Hop hosted by Tales From the Nursery, Formula Mom, and Mama on a Green Misson. There's over $5,000 in prizes offered to help you get the gifts you need this holiday season. After you are done entering our giveaway you'll want to check out everyone else's AND enter for a chance to win one of three GRAND prizes sponsored by Kudzoom! Each blog you stop and enter at will be another entry!

Here at Acting Balanced, I'm giving away $25 CASH Via PAYPAL!!!!  This giveaway is open worldwide!
Please use the Rafflecopter entry form below to enter:

Tassimo Pro for your Office

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Tassimo for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.
I know that when I was working in an office on a regular basis we all had different tastes in coffee... both the way we liked it and when we wanted to drink it.  The last office I worked in had about a dozen people in at any one time, but not all of us were coffee drinkers and then some preferred decaf, some wanted high-octane and others wanted something fun and flavorful and that doesn't even delve into those of us who preferred tea or hot chocolate, so we rarely made a pot of coffee, even though the bosses had one available for us.  

Five Question Friday from @5crookedhalos #5QF

Once again, I am hooking up with

so that you can learn just a little more about me...

Holiday Gift Guide - DVD - Young Justice

I had the opportunity to review Young Justice Season 1 Volume 2 over the past few weeks with my family.  My husband is a big superhero cartoon fan, so he was pleased to be able to share Young Justice with our kids.

About the Series:

In Young Justice, being a teenager means proving yourself over and over—to peers, parents, teachers, mentors and, ultimately, to yourself. But what if you’re not just a normal teenager? What if you’re a teenage super hero? Are you ready to join the ranks of the great heroes and prove you’re worthy of the Justice League? That’s exactly what the members of Young Justice—Robin, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Superboy, Miss Martian and Artemis—will found out, whether they have what it takes to be a proven hero. Based upon characters from DC Comics.

Thanksgiving

I am spending today with my family... so I won't be posting Thirsty for Comments or any reviews...

Hope you are all having a wonderful Thanksgiving if you are celebrating or a fabulous Thursday if you are not.

Wordless Wednesday - Having a Ball?

Holiday Gift Guide Review: VTech LS6475-3 Multitasking Phone System

One of the toughest things about being the mom of 3 busy kids is trying to have an uninterrupted telephone conversation - or heaven forbid, talk on the phone and type on the computer at the same time!  It's also tough because we're so far away from friends and family - over 1000 miles from both sets of grandparents, so I also need phones that are easy for the kids to use and have a great speaker phone in them.

The LG DoublePlay for the Holidays!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of LG DoublePlay™ for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.
One of the things that I haven't kept up with technologically is my phone... really, I'm stuck at the turn of the millennium because my cell phone is still just a phone to me... I really only text a few people and only occasionally - primarily because my one girlfriend is four hours behind me time wise, since I'm on the East Coast and she's in Alaska, and secondarily because my daughter thinks that it's stupid to use her phone as a phone... it's a texting device that you could potentially talk into in a dire emergency...  I also don't use my phone to surf the web, update my facebook or twitter or anything else really... like I said, I'm a dinosaur...
But...

Stumble Tumble Tuesday - Link up and Play with StumbleUpon!

Welcome to Stumble Tumble Tuesday hosted by Shopper Gal,Acting Balanced and Kelly’s Lucky You! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic.

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please read this post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren't showing up, thanks!

Holiday Gift Guide - ChildUp Early Learning Game Cards and iCount iPad App Review

One of the things that I try to do for my kids is to make sure that they get a chance to make learning fun!  I try to ensure that the games and toys they play with have learning goals built in, at least part of the time, so when I got a chance to check out three great products for ChildUp, I jumped on the chance and want to share this with you as a great way to add a fun and educational gift to your preschooler's stocking this Christmas!

Meet Me on Monday

Yep, I've survived another weekend and my reward?  Linking up with MMOM of course...


Questions:

1.  I wish I had more time to _________?
2.  What is your favorite kind of soup?
3.  Where will you eat Thanksgiving dinner? 
4.  What is your favorite time of day?
5.  Did you start Christmas shopping yet?
---------------------------------------------------------------

MMMmonday - Twice Wild Turkey Dressing from Special Diets for Special Needs Kids (Review)

I love finding new recipes that are great for the whole family, but are GFCF for Liam and this is one of those truly yummy recipes that may just become a holiday classic in our house.  It's from Special Diets for Special Kids, Volumes 1 and 2 Combined: Over 200 REVISED and NEW gluten-free casein-free recipes, plus research on the positive ... ADHD, allergies, celiac disease, and more!, which I will tell you more about after the recipe.


Twice Wild Turkey Dressing  Makes 4–6 servings

Sundays in My City

I am participating in Unknown Mami's 

for the first time this week...
I am hoping to share some of my Charleston with you...but the first thing that struck me when I was looking through my pictures is how different it is from my birthplace in Canada, especially at this time of the year....
Right now, in Toronto, there are very few green leaves left on the trees, but here in Charleston the trees are either green or have started to drop their leaves - without them changing color at all:

Ready for the Holidays - Get Energizer Batteries (G!VEAWAY)

One of the things that Santa always brings to our house is batteries!  It's gotten worse every year.... and now with three kids in the house, it's guaranteed that we'll be going through batteries faster than ever... which is why Santa has started bringing rechargeable batteries to our house for all of the toys!  And this year Santa is getting help for Energizer!

Energizer has just the solution to help you get a jump start on the holidays -- batteries for the gifts and a free online movie on demand rental to help with the relaxation.  Simply purchase a package of specially-marked Energizer® Ultimate Lithium, Energizer® Advanced Lithium orEnergizer® Recharge AA batteries and you will receive a free online movie on demand rental reward that can be redeemed at Blockbuster.com, Amazon.com, iTunes.com, or the YouTube store.

Five Question Friday from @5crookedhalos #5QF

Once again, I let you take a quick peek into my brain and out comes answers to Five Question Friday:

Friday Fragments

OMG!  I need to get off this ride... life is passing me by way too fast and I'm not keeping up...

And part of that is I keep taking on new projects... this week I got a job as a Mystery Shopper - that's been fun... and the best part is that I can't take the kids, so it's a double win... Wayne gets to parent and I get to shop kid free!

I've also started working with Mompact - which is a great new company that is helping to bring together Mompreneurs and market their great products!   Watch for my reviews of many of the products coming up!  And if you check out the site and are interested in learning more - just let me know!

I went through Kindle withdrawl for two days this week...  Tuesday, I turned it on to read after charging it and the screen was all wonky... tried resetting it to no avail... but the wonderful Amazon Kindle Support person I chatted with online was able to send me a replacement that arrived this afternoon!  Fabulous customer service!

Robyn came home and announced that they're having a semi-formal 'Snow Ball' at school before it lets out for the holidays... so it looks like we're heading out dress shopping... maybe that will be one of our goals for Black Friday...

Do you shop Black Friday sales?  I made the mistake of taking Robyn out the first year we were here in SC, and now she thinks it's an every year event... although it is fun to have some 'girl time'... I'm not sure if I'll be awake enough this year after Liam's surgery on Wednesday and Thanksgiving on Thursday, but knowing me, I'll be out at the Outlets at midnight, just to say we were there...

I'm actually pretty far along with shopping for Christmas... I've gotten almost everything for the boys, Robyn wants one big gift, and I've even managed to stash away a few things for Wayne... I have a few stocking stuffers left, but then I can concentrate on making sure I have great things for the rest of the family!

Erik has been babbling up a storm lately - it's so nice to see him talking gibberish.... I have to say that after our experience with Liam and language, I wait with baited breath for Erik to reach each of his milestones...

And speaking of Liam and language, I had a meeting with his teacher and the Autism Itinerant and they both let me know that he's talking a lot more in class... regularly using 3 and 4 word phrases!

I've picked up two turkeys so far... one for Thanksgiving and another just because it's meat for $0.59!  I figure that I can always cook it up and make a ton of casseroles and soup with it one day in the winter...  I'm trying to clean out the freezer so I can scoop up a few more!

Wayne thought his schedule would lighten up after his night course ended... no such luck... the end of the night course coincided with the start of advising, and he's been building up a reputation with the kids for actually taking the time to help them work out what they need AND want... so he's busier than ever.... but he's also sticking to his goal of blogging every day and he's got his own Friday Fragments post up at www.waynewsmith.com

Well all, the ever growing pile of laundry is calling me and I still have to make Liam's lunch for tomorrow, so I'll leave you to visit Mrs. 4444 and the rest of the fragmented bloggers who hook up with her at:

Holiday Gift Guide - Heelys

When Heelys first came out, Robyn really wanted a pair, so when the opportunity came up to review a pair for Acting Balanced, I let her pick out what she wanted and waited for them to arrive!  Within a day she was out trying them... but she never got into the groove, so for once, the fact that she wears the same size shoe as I do worked in my favor!

The Heelys that we were sent were H2 Jazzys in black and white!

Holiday Gift Guide - Book Review - Seeing Ezra

If you are looking for a book for someone in your life who as been touched by Autism Spectrum Disorders, or you enjoy reading parenting stories about dealing with extraordinary circumstances, then I recommend that you check out Seeing Ezra: A Mother's Story of Autism, Unconditional Love, and the Meaning of Normal

Holiday Gift Guide - R&G - Relax Intuit (US only)

I don't know about you, but one of the most stressful times in my life seems to be the holidays... Emotions run high, I miss my family and the budget is stretched thinner than at other times in the year... and I'm never the best sleeper in the world, so when I had the chance to review Your Present: A Half Hour of Peace, I knew it was something that, if it worked, would add real balance to my world.

Thirsty For Comments Thursday - link your fave posts

Welcome to 

Thirsty for Comments Thursday! 

 

Hosted by Acting Balanced and SilverFaeries and Dragonflies 

Grab our badge for your sidebar or post:

<a href="http://www.actingbalanced.com/search/label/Thirsty%20for%20Comments"target="_blank"><img alt="Acting Balanced" src="http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m259/hloeffler/tc1.jpg" /></a>

Heather's Note:Once again, I have let the real world overtake the blogging one, and I've failed to get my ducks in a row to contact the featured blogger... Brandina did her job, but my computer has been acting up and I failed to contact the Featured Blogger - or even get this post up on time... so we'll have two Featured Blogs again next week ... I'm sorry everyone!

If you want to be featured in the near future, visit your fellow participants and give good comment!

What is Thirsty for Comments?

Gratitude Giveaway

 Welcome to Acting Balanced!

For this giveaway, you must be a follower of Acting Balanced in any one way that you like:

Google Friend Connect
Subscribe to Acting Balanced by Email
Facebook
Twitter

Wordless Wednesday - A new place to hang out....

R & G - Book: It's Simple (US/Canada)

I am always searching for new authors and I'm pleased to introduce you to Michelle Richardson, and her new book, It's Simple!  For those of you who missed the first part of her visit, click here to see her guest post!  To see where else she is stopping on the rest of her tour, and for her very own giveaways, click here:

I am lucky enough to have a giveaway copy here on Acting Balanced - and you can win it by completing the rafflecopter form at the end of this post, but before that, let me tell you about It's Simple:

Stumble Tumble Tuesday - Link up and Play with StumbleUpon!

Welcome to Stumble Tumble Tuesday hosted by Shopper Gal, Acting Balanced and Kelly’s Lucky You! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic.

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please read this post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren't showing up, thanks!

Auntie Anne's Pretzel Mix - Not Just for Pretzels!

You'd think that a box of Auntie Anne's Pretzel Mix would be a straightforward opportunity to make yummy soft pretzels in your home, and in a way you'd be right, but the blue and gold box hides many more secrets!  You can use the same mix to make dozens of other recipes - everything from pizza dough to what I baked up in my kitchen - cinnamon rolls!

Holiday Gift Guide - R&G - Toyland Express (Picture Puzzles)

I love getting books for my kids, nieces and well, everyone!  We're a big reading family and I always look for great books that will keep everyone entertained.  

Right now, Liam is in that wonderful pre-reading phase and finding books that help us to interact with him and keep him engaged are great, so I'm so glad that I've got the opportunity to share our experience with Can You See What I See?: Toyland Express: Picture Puzzles to Search and Solve and offer a giveaway to THREE lucky US readers!

Meet Me on Monday

It's that time again... time to learn more about me as I participate in:






Questions:

1.  Do your family/friends know about your blog?
2.  What is your favorite card game?
3.  What do you wear to bed? 
4.  What is your favorite kind of French Fry?
5.  What is your usual bed time?

Guest Post: 5 Reasons + An Extra on Why You’ll Love It’s Simple

I am pleased to invite Michelle Richardson, author of It's Simple to guest post here on Acting Balanced as part of her

5 Reasons  + An Extra on Why You’ll Love It’s Simple

MMMmonday - Three Grain Pilaf

I love using my slow cooker... and this is a perfect side for any time of the year, but I especially like it in Autumn... this can be easily be vegetarian or vegan, or have that extra snap from using chicken stock.


Three-Grain Pilaf

#Win Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Pt. 2 #DVD

Yep, it's all over... the last installment of Harry Potter is now on DVD... seven books, eight movies ... here's your chance to win a copy of the final DVD in the series - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 2...

DVD #Giveaway - Three fabulous Christmas Movies!

I can't think of a better way to get into the holiday spirit than to sit down with my kids and watch classic children's Christmas Movies... I'll be adding a review of these three great titles to my holiday gift guide later in the month but I had the opportunity to give one lucky US reader a chance to win these three great titles now so here they are:

Book Review - Seal of My Dreams

Every once in a while, I stumble across a book that not only piques my interest but also goes to a great cause and that's the case with SEAL of My Dreams, which is an anthology containing Eighteen short novellas that all feature ... Navy Seals!

Remembrance Day and Veterans Day - In Flanders Fields

In high school, we always had a moving Remembrance Day celebration, as during WWII one of the teachers from Danforth Tech had corresponded with many former students who went off to serve.  Reading the correspondence from the front, from hospitals and from family members helped us understand more about the world they lived in and died for... Another important part of Remembrance Day was always the reading of In Flanders Fields by Lt. Col. John McCrae, who was from Guelph, Ontario, not far from where I grew up... although I think his poem is now one of the most recognized of WWI:

Five Question Friday from @5crookedhalos #5QF

Because I know that you desperately need to know more about me... I'm hooking up with Five Question Friday again!

1. What's the last thing you spent too much money on?

An iPad for my 5 year old... although it's been totally worth it.

2. What celeb chef would you want to make you dinner?\

hmm... if we're really wishing... Julia Child ... but someone who is still alive, I'd have to say it'd be a toss up between Jamie Oliver and Curtis Stone

3. Where do you hide things when visitors pop over or do you let them see the real deal?

No where to run, nowhere to hide... I usually let most things hang out, although the master bedroom door stays closed at all times...

4. Who is your oldest living family member?

I have a great-uncle in his 90's

5. What is your favorite DQ treat and/or Sonic drink combo (ie: cherry vanilla dr. pepper)?

I'm not really a DQ or Sonic regular, so I have no idea... now if you asked about Starbucks....

Friday Fragments!

Happy 11-11-11 everyone!  Stop back by for my Remembrance Day/Veterans Day post that will go live at 11:11 AM EST


Speaking of 11-11-11 Today is the very last official binary date (ones and zeroes only in a MM/DD/YY configuration) of this century ... hoping I'll be around in 2100 to see the next one!


Another interesting fact for my numerically interesting friends...
The number eleven has a special characteristic in mathematics where it is the sixth prime number. It contains some interesting peculiarities where the number eleven times itself equals a palindrome:

(2 digits) 11 x 11 = 121 (6 digits) 111111 x 111111 = 12345654321 (9 digits) 111111111 x 111111111 = 12345678987654321

There is only one more auspicious date left in this century... 12/12/12... have you already made plans?


Do you have any specific plans for today?


I want to shout out again to all of my wonderful GFC fans - I hit and quickly surpassed the 4000 follower milestone this week and hope to cruise all the way to 5000 soon!


I'm not that far from hitting the 5000 mark on twitter either (only need 365 more!)... and as soon as that happens, I'll have another great giveaway!


If you haven't had a chance to peruse my giveaways lately - you should... lots of great prizes including CASH!  GIFT CERTIFICATES and More - Just scroll back up to the top of the page and see what's current!


Okay, I'm all fragged out... so head on over to Mrs. 4444's place and see what other wonderful fragments there are: