Congratulations to Chantel the winner of the Bedtime Prayers and Promises recordable book!

Thanks to all who participated in the fun giveaway!

(Chantel's comment was 14, the number chosen by random.org)

Father's Day Giveaway: Bedtime Prayers and Promises Recordable Book

My girls miss their daddy during the day when he's at work. I love that the book for this giveaway allows him to be a little more "present" in our home when he's not here.

When I was contacted by Dayspring to do the review for Bedtime Prayers and Promises I wasn't really sure what to expect. I'd heard a lot of hype about recordable books, but didn't know if it would just end up being a gimicky kind of thing that didn't have lasting value to children.


Here is a video of the girls when I first gave them Bedtime Prayers and Promises

M looks a little dazed in most of this video, but I have really been surprised by how much she has taken to the book. She listened to the pages for a long time, and even after an hour it was hard to pull her away to come to lunch. She has listened to it for long periods during her afternoon rest time for many days since then. When R came home the first day she thanked him over and over for making her the "wonderful book." :-)

The recording of the pages is easy to do, but it is set up in such a way that the children are not able to accidentally record over what has been done. My husband did say that the amount of time given to record on each page caused him to have to rush a little in the reading of each page, but it didn't cause a major difficulty.

One of the things I really like about it too is the flexibility. You as the reader have the choice to include or leave out whatever you would like from the text of the book or even to add your own little touches.

The content of Bedtime Prayers and Promises has a lot of nice things about it (each page contains a poem, a Scripture verse, and a prayer), but the thing we like most are the Scripture passages. We are planning to replace what is recorded right now with just the Scripture passages (expanded to include the context). I really like the thought of M being able to listen to her daddy read her the Bible during her nap.

Dayspring has provided one copy of Bedtime Prayers and Promises for me to give away to a reader here at Having Fun at Home. To be entered in the giveaway, just leave a comment on this post.

For additional entries:

1. Write about this giveaway from your Facebook or Twitter account.
2. "Like" Dayspring on Facebook (you will receive a coupon code for 10% off your next order).
2. "Like" Having Fun at Home on Facebook.

For each additional entry, write an extra comment saying what you did.

On Monday, June 6, I will choose the winner using Random.org. All readers in the USA and Canada are eligible.

Giveaway Winner: Pemberley Seamstress

Congratulations to Connie Gruning NutButterandWhine at aol dot com winner of the lovely giveaway from the Pemberley Seamstress!

Connie, you should receive an email soon. If for some reason you do not hear from us in the next couple of days let me know. :-)

Lovely Giveaway from the Pemberley Seamstress

UPDATE:  I edited the Facebook link.  Should work now! :-)

I received a very fun package in the mail yesterday- a silky little bag tied up with blue ribbon and filled with sweet morsels of wool blend play food for a children's teatime set.  It was from The Pemberley Seamstress, a friend of a dear friend who sells Jane Austen/Anne of Green Gables themed play food on etsy.

It's actually the first felted play food we've ever owned.  I've always admired the bloggers I've seen who make their own play food instead of giving their children the chintzy plastic fare that is the norm, but I've never gotten around to fashioning any myself.  These from The Pemberley Seamstress are made to last and embellished with delicate decorative stitching.  M's pronouncement: "They're LUH-vuh-ly!"

One especially fun touch is that the muslin tea bags are filled with real tea!  (So they smell authentic, and when they are soaked in water make a little actual "tea" for the drinker)
 
 

 As you can imagine, M and G wasted no time having a tea party with their new treasures.   (It was the first time I had ever let G drink from a real cup on her own- you can see how excited she is :-)

So, if you'd like a LUH-vuh-ly felted play food set of your own just leave a comment with your email address telling which set from The Pemberley Seamstress' shop you'd like to receive if you win.  (The one pictured here is "Emma's Tea Party Set")

For additional entries:
1.  "Like" the Pemberley Seamstress on Facebook
2.  Become a friend of this blog through Goodle Friend Connect (If you are already a friend that counts too)
3.  Subscribe to this blog through an RSS feed (If you already subscribe that counts too)
(Be sure to leave an additional comment for each of these that you do)

This giveaway ends at midnight on Wednesday, February 23rd.  

Giveaway Winner: Bughouse Playtent

Congratulations to Apryl at Christian Clippers- winner of the Bughouse Playtent giveaway!

Fun Giveaway: Bughouse Play Tent

Giveways are so much fun at Christmas time! CSN (a company of online stores that is currently promoting sling backpacks) will be giving away another fun product to one of you just in time for holiday gift-giving.

The Bazoongi Kids Special Edition Bughouse Play Tent is unique and looks like lots of fun. It can be used indoors or outdoors and looks to be a perfect hideaway for little "bugs." I can just imagine the fun M and G would have crawling through it, peeking through the windows, and pretending to be bumblebees. :-)

To enter the giveaway simply leave a comment on this post (and make sure to leave an email address so that I can contact you if you win!).

For additional entries: (1 each)

1. Subscribe to the RSS for this blog
2. Become a friend of Havingfunathome through Google friend follower.
If you are already a subscriber or a friend through friend connect that counts too! Just make sure to leave an additional comment for each entry!

This giveaway ends at midnight on December 13th when I will choose a comment using random.org and email the winner!

Giveaway Winner: Melissa and Doug Blocks

Random.org generated the number 38 for this giveaway which means that Katrina (ykatrina at hotmail dot com) is the winner! Congratulations, Katrina! Thanks to all who entered.

Fun Giveaway: Melissa and Doug Wooden Blocks

Just in time for Christmas, CSN (a company of online stores that is currently running a special on dining chairs) will be giving away to one of the readers here a 100ct box of Melissa and Doug wooden blocks.

We have this set at our house and really like it. The blocks are just the right weight and size (small enough for little hands but big enough to build nice, tall towers quickly). These would make a great gift; even a good gift for a family that already has a set (two sets mean even MORE creative potential :-)

To enter the giveaway simply leave a comment at the end of this post. Be sure to include your email address so I can contact you if you win!

For additional entries:

1. Subscribe to the RSS feed here and leave an extra comment to that effect.
2. Become a follower with Google friend connect, and leave an extra comment to that effect.

The giveaway will end on Tuesday, November 16th at midnight.
This giveaway is open to all US and Canadian entrants.

Giveaway Winner: Building Character from the Start

Congratulations to Aysha, winner of the Building Character from the Start giveaway!

Fun Giveaway: Book filled with Activity Ideas for Children K-3

Building Character from the Start: 201 Activities to foster creativity, literacy, and play in K-3 by Susan Ragsdale and Ann Saylor is full of ideas for sparking meaningful conversations between children and adults. It seeks to engage children holistically, by letting them create, read, and play.

The first part of the book (the section that concentrates on "creating") is a set of "finish the picture" type worksheets with suggestions for discussion based on the pictures.

Next, the authors describe favorite picture books and give ideas for activities and conversations connected to each. (I tried one of the fun book activities, and wrote about it here)

Unit three, "Play and Move" is my favorite part of the book. Lots of fun and creative group activities and games here! Not only is there great variety, but the activities seem like they've been tried in real life and are well thought-out.

Many of the activities in sections one and three are tied to the picture books discussed in the middle of the book, making it easy for a teacher to easily create a book themed, multi-faceted day of character-building.

This book has useful ideas for parents, but would be especially helpful for teachers, daycare workers, and afterschool programs.

Susan Ragsdale and Ann Saylor have generously provided a copy of this book (with a companion CD full of hand-outs) for a giveaway. For a chance to win it, just leave a comment in the section below, making sure to leave your email address so I can contact you if you win!

For additional chances to win:

1. Visit Ragsdale and Saylor's blog Great Group Games, and leave a comment for them. When you have left a comment on their blog, come back here and leave an additional comment on this post saying that you have done so.

2. Subscribe to the RSS feed here and leave an extra comment to that effect (if you already subscribe, leave a comment with that fact)

3. Become a friend of Having Fun at Home with Google friend connect and leave an extra comment to that effect.

The giveaway will end at midnight on November 2nd.

PlayShell Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to the writer of comment #46- Kate (katemgoodall at gmail dot com) who is the winner of the Bilibo Play Shell Giveaway!

Kate, I have sent an email to your address giving you instructions on how to proceed. If, for some reason you did not receive that email, please contact me.

Thank you to all who participated!

Fun Giveaway: Bilibo Play Shell

I have such fun news! CSN, (a company of online stores that is currently featuring a line of dinnerware sets) is giving away a Bilibo Play Shell to one of you in the color of your choice!

I have read a lot of interesting things about this toy and am so eager to hear from you whether it is as fun and versatile as people say.

The bilibo play shell is a simple toy for ages 2-7 that was designed in Switzerland and won the Dr. Toy prize in 2002 for Best Active Toy. The thing I like about it is that it doesn't "do" anything on its own, but it is basically a well-crafted prop for imaginative and active toddler play. Toddlers use it for rocking, spinning, filling, stacking, climbing, etc.

The play shells are available in pink, blue, orange, yellow, red, and green.
To be entered in the giveaway, simply leave your name and email address in the comments section of this post. If you would like a second entry, become a follower of this blog (using google friend connect on the bottom right hand side of the screen) and leave a second comment saying that you are a follower now (or if you are already a follower, leave a comment to that effect)

I will randomly choose a comment number a week from now and will announce the winner next Thursday.

Contest ends Wednesday, August 18 at midnight, central time.

Giveaway Winner

According to the random integer generator at random.org the winner for the Nursery Rhymes giveaway is

Jeremiah and Stephenie

Congratulations Stephenie! This is actually the second giveaway she has won from this blog. Good for her!

Classic Nursery Rhymes Book Giveaway

It's been a while since we've had a giveaway on Having Fun at Home, but this week, I'm giving away something really nice! It's a book of beautifully illustrated classic nursery rhymes, originally published in 1911.
You can see that the pictures are really sweet; they have a bit of a Kate Greenaway feel to them, I think. (The actual illustrator is Henriette Willebeek le Mair).

To be entered in this giveaway just leave a comment below and include your email so I can contact you if you win. I will randomly choose a winner one week from today. If you would like a second entry, feel free to write about this giveaway on your blog and then leave a second comment with a link to the post.

Giveaway Winner!

This week the random number that random.org came up with was #7. That means that Jenna is the winner of the Dr. Seuss Marble Magnet Set!

Jenna said:

These are really cute magnets. My niece likes Dr. Seuss books, so I am sure she would love to get these for Christmas. Thanks for the giveaway!

I hope your niece enjoys these, Jenna! I contacted you by email, but if you didn't receive it for some reason, please contact me.

Thank you to all who participated in the giveaway and also to those of you who helped get my etsy shop off to a great start this week!

Givewaway: Dr. Seuss Marble Magnet Set

To kick off the start of my new Etsy shop O The Lemon Tree, I'm giving away a set of 12 of my handmade Dr. Seuss marble magnets. These magnets feature a wide range of creatures, expressions, and objects from Seuss' well-loved books.

Isn't it amazing how those illustrations have captured the imaginations of so many different kinds of people? Young and old alike can't help but smile when they see the simple, ridiculous creatures with their amazingly subtle range of human expression. I'll bet you know someone who would thoroughly enjoy having little snippets of Seuss in range of their everyday life. This set might be the perfect stocking stuffer for that person this Christmas!

The magnets are approximately 3/4 inch in diameter and can securely hold at least three regular sheets of paper.

Please note that marble magnets are not suitable for young children as they could pose a choking hazard. But older children or high school students might love having them for locker decorations!

To be entered in the giveaway, simply leave a comment below, and please include an email address or some way for me to contact you if you win. I will choose the winner next Tuesday night by selecting a random number through random.org and will post the name shortly thereafter.

If you would like a second entry, you may write about this giveaway on your blog and leave a second comment giving the link for the post.

Giveaway Winner: 2 Classic Children's books

Thanks to all who participated in this week's giveaway. Here's the report from random.org:

Here are your random numbers:

103 

Timestamp: 2008-11-04 14:29:51 UTC

That means that this week's winner is lmkirb who said:

I adore Margaret Brown Wise books. The Runaway Bunny and Bunny's Noisy Book are 2 favorite here. I believe there can never be too many children's books in a home that has children.
Thanks for an amazing giveaway!!

lmkirb, please contact me within 48 hours so I can get your books sent out to you!

Be sure to come back in a few days when I will have another great giveaway!

Giveaway: Two Classic Children's Books

Does your child ever get tired of the wonderful words and pictures in Goodnight Moon? This week's giveaway includes a lesser-known book by classic children's author Margaret Wise Brown. The Seven Little Postmen is full of sweet pictures and a simple rhyming story. Your children are sure to love it!

Some of you like me may remember Frog and Toad are Friends as one of the first books you read by yourself as a young child. It is a Caldecott Honor Book, and is just the right mix of whimsy and simplicity.

To be entered into the giveaway, just leave a comment below and include your email address so that I will be able to contact you if you win. (feel free to write the email address out in words if you like) If you would like a second entry, you may blog about this giveaway and leave a second comment with the link.

On Monday, November 3rd the winner will be chosen through random.org, and I will post the name late that night.

Bunny Book Winner

Congratulations to this week's winner:

Briana (Comment #47)

As soon as I hear from you, Briana, with your snail mail address I will send those books right out to you!

Be sure to check back on Monday when I will have another great giveaway!

Giveaway: Two Children's Books about Bunnies

This giveaway has ended. Thanks for all who participated! To see who won this week, check here.

For this week's giveaway I have two, sweet children's books about bunnies.

The first one, I Love You, My Bunnies is a nice hardback book by Disney. I'm not usually a big fan of Disney books, but this one is really nice. The pictures are simple and show lots of tender moments between mommas and babies (and it has very little to do with any movie- which is nice).

The second book, The Bunnies Ball is colorful, fun and frolicking. Any fan of bunnies will like this book!

To be entered in the giveaway just leave a comment below along with your email address so that I have a way to contact you if you win.

If you would like to have a second entry, write about this giveaway on your site and put a link to the post on a second comment.

I will go to random.org to get a random number for determining the winner and will post that person's name on Friday (10/24). I hope it goes to a family with a true bunny lover in it! (or at least someone who loves books! :-) )