Getting into the Spirit of #Halloween with a "Kidz Bop Halloween Hits!" Fan Video

We are huge fans of Kidz Bop here; in fact, I think we own every CD they’ve made. When we got the chance to checkout the new Kidz Bop Halloween Hits! CD, we didn’t even consider turning it down.

Kidz Bop turns radio songs into kid-friendly versions, so your children can listen to popular music without inappropriate content. I love Kidz Bop too because it’s not as cutesy as other children’s music and some of the songs are even better than the originals, in my opinion. This Halloween version has songs like "Thriller", "Monster Mash", "Disturbia", "I Want Candy", "Ghostbusters", and more. My kids have really enjoyed listening to old favorites along with learning songs they’d never heard before. They’ve held many dance parties while dancing to Kidz Bop Halloween Hits!.


You can purchase the new Kidz Bop Halloween Hits! at most major retailers nationwide. Learn more about this CD or listen to song clips on their website, www.kidzbop.com.


Thank you to Kidz Bop for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon.

Silly Monkey Stories: Queen's "We Will Rock You" Rewritten

Our 5 year old son may possibly be the youngest Queen fan in existence.  I am fairly certain that he first heard the hit song "We Will Rock You" by Queen on a television commercial.  However, I do not remember seeing this commercial recently.  So it surprised me a bit to hear our son singing the song the other day.  Of course, he only knows one line of the song, but he does sing it well, except for one little thing.


If you do not recall the song, here is the music video to refresh your memory . . . 




Our son's tribute to this classic had one little change in it.  He revised the lyrics to say:

"We will, we will WONK you!"

Click here to learn how to participate in Silly Monkey Stories.

Click here to read all my Silly Monkey Stories!

If you have a Silly Monkey Story to share, sign Mr. Linky below with the link to your blog post (not the link to your main blog page). Please do not forget to visit the other participants and leave them comments to let them know you stopped by!

Review: "Life As We Know It" is a Fun Date Night Movie

Last Saturday night, my husband and I attended a screening of the movie Life As We Know It, which opens nationwide on Friday, October 8th. I really wanted to see this film because I have been a big fan of Josh Duhamel since his days on All My Children. I had to practically drag my husband to the movie and I do not think he would have gone if I did not have passes for the screening. In the end, he was glad he went and had to admit that he enjoyed the movie very much.

Life As We Know It is a romantic comedy starring Josh Duhamel (Transformers) and Katherine Heigl (Grey's Anatomy) that achieved what many romantic comedies do not . . . it offers a male character that not only appeals to women, but also to the men in the audience. The character of Messer (Josh Duhamel) is a lady's man who somewhat lacks class, but is still well-liked. After one blind date gone wrong, Messer and Holly (Katherine Heigl) found themselves to be Godparents to their best friends' baby girl. Following a tragic car accident, these arch nemeses are promoted to co-guardians of the little girl Sophie, creating an instant family neither wanted. Both actors were well-casted, as were the supporting roles. Without the quirky neighbors and social worker, this film would not have been as much fun as it was.

Below is a trailer, which gives you a sample of what to expect from this film . . .

I think Life As We Know It makes an excellent date night movie. As an experienced parent, there is nothing more fun than watching first time parents discover the ups and downs of caring for an infant.

Thank you to Gofobo.com for providing passes to a screening of the movie reviewed in this article.

Holiday 2010 Giveaway: Find Your Magic at Macy's ($50 GC) [CLOSED]

Do you recall all the celebrities that took part in the Macy's Come Together campaign last fall to support Feeding America and to show us how magical Macy's can be? Donald Trump, Martha Stewart, Jessica Simpson, and more famous faces can be seen in the recently unveiled Macy's "Find Your Magic" TV Commercial. This ad is light, dazzling, and "magical", giving consumers a taste of how many celebrity designers contribute to the experience that is Macy's.

If you have not caught this new Find Your Magic commercial, feel free to take a minute to view it below . . .

Select Macy's department stores across the country will be offering their customers daily chances to win a $100 Macy's gift card by participating in a fun "Fashion Director Daily Fashion Challenge". Participants will be asked to outfit and style a model with a winning look. Visit Macy's Find Your Magic website for details.

Thank you to M80 for providing the information and images shared in this post and the gift card for our contest prize.

What you can win:
One lucky reader will receive a $50 Macy's gift card.

Limitations:

This giveaway is open to U.S. entries only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.

How to Gain Entries:

Watch the 1-minute

Macy's "Find Your Magic" TV Commercial

. Then leave a comment telling me which part of the commercial you found to be the most magical. You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest.

Extra Entries:

1) For 5 extra entries, leave a relevant comment on one of my non-giveaway posts. Then leave FIVE separate comments with the name of the post on which you commented. You will earn 5 extra entries for each different non-contest post you comment on.

2)

For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.

3) For 10 extra entries, blog about this contest linking back to this post AND Macy's Find Your Magic . Then come back here and leave TEN separate comments with the link to your blog post.

4)

For 1 extra entry each, if you are a Friend of mine on Facebook and/or if you have "liked" the 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires Facebook page, then leave a separate comment here telling me so with the link to your Facebook profile.

5) For 1 extra entry each, follow Macy's on Twitter and/or "Like" Macy's on Facebook. Then leave a separate comment for each with the link to your Twitter or Facebook profile.

6)

Follow me on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.

7)

Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.

8)

Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

9)

Subscribe to A Blog of Goodies' feed (the sister site to 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

10)

Add my button or blog link to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.

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(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)


Random Drawing:

This contest will be closed on Monday, October 11th, 2010 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.

Good luck in the drawing!

A Chuggington Party!

As a Chuggington Conductor, I was invited to throw a Chuggington party for our children and some of their preschool-aged friends. Since preschool had not started for the twins yet, we had to downgrade our party to a playdate. Hopefully next time we will have more than enough preschoolers to attend.

To help us with our event, we received a basket of goodies, containing conductor hats, coloring sheets, crayons, music CDs, a screener DVD, popcorn, and even a Chuggington logo Flip camcorder to make a music video. I bought some popcorn tubs for the DVD screening and made some goodie bags containing the following:

• Coloring Pages
• Crayons
• Chuggington Theme Song CDs
• Lollipop Whistles
• Daffy Taffy

If you would like your children to sit quietly and perfectly still, put in a Chuggington DVD and serve some popcorn . . .

After the children all filled up on carbs from the popcorn and juice boxes, it was time to dance! Our daughter always seems to be too dignified to let loose and dance, even when I do not have a camera in my hand. Luckily, the other children had a blast dancing to the "Chuggington Theme Song" . . .

After our guest left, the children could not wait to dig into their goodie bags. Yes, they were excited about the candy, but they also wanted to start on their Chuggington coloring pages right away. I was so impressed. The twins cannot remember all their ABC's, but they can remember the name of every Chuggington train.

This fall, you can catch Chuggington 7 days a week on Playhouse Disney at 6am EST and weekdays at 11:30am EST. You can also play fun free online Chuggington games with your children on UK.Chuggington.com and find free printable Chuggington coloring pages on Chuggington.com . Chuggington toys are currently available to order online, but be sure to look for them in your local stores in time for Holiday 2010.

As a Chuggington Conductor, I received supplies to help me throw a Chuggington party and to create a "Chuggington Theme Song" music video.

Review: Febreze Home Collection "No Spill Wood Diffuser"

I am a huge fan of flameless home fragrances. I use to burn candles all the time, but now I think it's too risky with three young children plus four cats in the house. I was never able to try diffusers for the same reason I cannot display vases of flowers . . . the cats. They seem to be drawn to anything that looks like stems and are overcome with the urge to swat at these stems, causing the holder to tip over and spill. I am thrilled to report that our cats do not pay any attention to the new No Spill Wood Diffuser from the Febreze Home Collection. It's simple geometric shape, not only makes this diffuser family-friendly, but it also fits in with many types of decor.

This wood diffuser uses a thick wooden dowel as the wick to absorb the Febreze scented oil right into the stopper, which is a block of wood. It is a simple concept, yet ingenious at the same time. It only took less than a minute for the oil to start soaking through the wood. Of course, you do not want to handle the top once the oil has come through completely. I placed ours out of the way on our kitchen windowsill.

We requested something that was not too flowery or sweet. We received the Green Tea Citrus and I highly recommend it if you like an earthy citrus scent. We have an open floor plan on our main level and the scent reaches from the kitchen, through the dining room, through the living room, all the way to the stairs. It is wonderful to go downstairs to be greeted by this pleasant scent first thing in the morning. It might even be better than the aroma of coffee brewing.

Celebrity Brooke Burke recommends the Febreze No Spill Wood Diffuser as a family-friendly addition to your decor . . .

In addition to Green Tea Citrus, you can also find Willow Blossom, Pomegranate Mango, Cranberry Pear, and Honeysuckle Orchid. The suggested retail price for the Febreze No Spill Wood Diffusers is $14.99 to $16.99, but the price could vary depending on the retailer. You can find this product at most major retailers of Febreze products nationwide.

To keep up with the latest Febreze products, fragrances, and coupons, visit Febreze on Facebook and follow Febreze Fresh on Twitter.

Thank you to Febreze for sending us a sample diffuser free of charge to base this review upon.

Review: 4 Troops CD (To Be Released May 11th)

When I first caught a glimpse of the musical group 4 Troops in February, I knew I wanted to hear more. I was lucky enough to receive a preview of their new CD, which is due to be released on May 11th, 2010 during Armed Forces Week. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this CD will be donated to Iraq and Afghanistan of America, the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, and the USO by Sony Music.

The voices behind 4 Troops are those of Former Cpt. Meredith Melcher, Former Sgt. Daniel Jens, Staff Sgt. (Ret.) Ron Henry and Former Sgt. David Clemo, all of whom served on the front lines of Afghanistan and Iraq. These experiences add to the meaning and the soulfulness in their songs. As a civilian, their music moved me quite a bit. I cannot imagine how much it touches the men and women serving in the armed forces and their families.

Take a minute to watch the 4 Troops performing their single "For Freedom" . . .

I first listened to this CD with my 6yr old son. Even though it was not the rock 'n' roll music he normally gravitates towards, he said that he really liked it. I think it was because this foursome sounded so good together and the songs were both patriotic, uplifting, and sung with feeling. As an adult, I was able to follow the lyrics, which were a large part of why these songs were so moving to me. While my son's favorite tracks were "Raise Your Glasses" and a medley of the "Hymn of the Republic", "Grand Old Flag", and "America the Beautiful", my favorites were "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue", the remake of Sarah McLachlan's "Angel", and "You Raise Me Up".

Through May 10th, 2010, you can pre-order the 4 Troops CD for $19.99 in the 4 Troops Store and receive a free limited edition 4 Troops t-shirt along with an immediate download of the song "For Freedom". Remember that a portion of the proceeds goes towards various charitable organizations. You can also find 4 Troops on Facebook and 4 Troops on Twitter.

Special Presale Offer:

4TROOPS - 4 US Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans sing uplifting songs on behalf of troops everywhere

As seen on Good Morning America and Fox & Friends

Valid April 27th thru May 10th

Use coupon code 4troopsm for $2 off the new CD at Amazon.com

Thank you to Sony Music for sending us a sample CD free of charge to base this review upon.

Review: Laughing Pizza Music CD & DVD

If you've seen Laughing Pizza on PBS, then you'll be happy to know that this kid-friendly band has recently released a new music CD and music video DVD. "Let's Go Play!", the title track, is my 6yr old son's favorite song from both the Let's Go Play! CD and the It's Pizza Time DVD. I have to say that I agree. It is a great song for getting your feet and body moving.

This parent-daughter trio offers a wide range of songs and musical styles, including pop and country. The lyrics are suitable for children, but the music is main stream. This is perfect for children who are too old for cutesy children's songs. Second to "Let's Go Play!", my favorite dance song on this CD would be "Rock Girl".

I was surprised that the DVD featured almost a completely different list of songs than the music CD. There were two music videos that stood out to me. The first was "Breakfast Jive". Both my children and myself stopped dancing to watch the video, which featured animated eggs with legs. It was so well-done that we were all captivated.

The other video that stood out to me was "Daddy". Both the video and the song were very moving tributes to the first man a little girl falls in love with. In fact, I told my husband that this was the song he was going to dance to with our daughter at her wedding (in 25 years or so).

The energy from Laugh Pizza's music is contagious. It got the whole family (my husband included) up and dancing. I cannot remember the last time all five of us were laughing and giggling so hard and having fun without a care in the world.

You can find both this Laughing Pizza CD and DVD in the Laughing Pizza Shop, on Amazon.com, and at other retailers of children's music.

Thank you to Laughing Pizza for sending us a sample CD and DVD free of charge to base this review upon.

The 4 Troops Debut CD Available in May 2010

Something to look forward to this spring is the upcoming debut album of 4 Troops, a foursome of young military verterans who have joined together to form a musical group. Members include Former Cpt. Meredith Melcher, Sgt. Daniel Jens, Staff Sgt. (Ret.) Ron Henry and Former Sgt. David Clemo.

4 Troops offers listeners positive and inspirational music, some of which are popular well-known songs and some brand new. Take a few minutes to watch the music video below of their first single titled "For Freedom" written by Matt Moran.

Look for the 4 Troops debut album beginning May 25th, 2010. You can also look for airings of their February military base concert during the summer on participating PBS stations.

Thank you to Sony Music for providing the information used in this article. No compensation was received for sharing this information with my readers.

I Don't Want To Miss . . . Contest

The school year is only half over and my son has missed a handful of school days already. He loves school, so missing anything school-related is disappointing to him. There was one event he had to miss recently that was not school-related which saddened him greatly. It was a birthday party for one of his classmates. We decided that it would be best to keep him home because he had been coughing quite a bit. Although he understood, he was still very disappointed.

My son is only 6! He mostly has school, taekwon do class, and a play date here and there. I imagine that illness would affect a tween or a teen much more than my son since they would have many more extracurricular activities and social obligations. That is why the Clorox Company is bringing students and teachers the second annual I Don't Want To Miss . . . contest.

To enter this contest, your child has been challenged to work with their teacher or school musical group to create a music video performance of Will Wells' "I Don't Want To Miss . . . " Entries will be accepted through the beginning of March 2010. To make entering even more worthwhile, Clorox will donate $100 for every video submitted to the Sofia's Heart Foundation to support musical training in children. One grand prize winner will have Danny Gokey (former American Idol finalist) teach a music class in the winner's school. The first through fourth place winners will each win a framed autographed photo of Danny Gokey.

Please visit SchoolTube.com to read the complete contest details. To educate yourself about flu prevention, visit Clorox on Facebook.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Clorox and received $20 thank-you gift certificate.

Giveaway: Baby Bunch Bouquet (2 Winners) [CLOSED]

Spring is coming in less than two months. That means everything will be in bloom, including lots of mommies-to-be. If you have a baby shower coming up that you will be hosting or attending, then I encourage you to take a look at these Baby Bunch Bouquets. This could very well be the coolest baby gift since the invention of the diaper cake.

If you look closely at the pink medium bouquet pictured below, you will notice that not all those flowers are the same. Some of them are actually made of 100% cotton baby items. This particular bouquet comes with a bib, a t-shirt, a hat, two pairs of socks, and two onesies. The items included are sized for newborns 0-6mos. These bouquets come in two sizes, in three colors, and comes in a ready-to-wrap box.

Take two minutes to watch Bryony Boxer, owner of The Baby Bunch, showing the audience of The Martha Stewart Show how to create their own "baby bunch" . . .

The selection of unique baby gifts on The Baby Bunch are not limited to bouquets. Take a look at some of the other creative items offered on BabyBunch.com . . .

My Baby Bunch has generously extended a promotional code to 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires' readers. Through March 31st, 2010, you can receive 15% off your entire purchase (excluding S&H) when you use Code: BUNCHGW10 at checkout.

Thank you to The Baby Bunch for providing two bouquets for our contest prizes.

What you can win:
Two lucky readers will each receive their choice of one pink, blue, or yellow Medium Baby Bunch Bouquet (a $59.95 value).

Limitations:
This giveaway is open to U.S. addresses only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.

How to Gain Entries:
Browse the selection of baby shower gifts on The Baby Bunch. Then leave a comment telling me what one item you would love to give as a gift (aside from the Baby Bunch Bouquets). You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest.

Extra Entries:

1) For 5 extra entries, leave a relevant comment on one of my non-giveaway posts. Then leave FIVE separate comments with the name of the post on which you commented. You will earn 5 extra entries for each different non-contest post you comment on.

2) For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.

3) For 10 extra entries, blog about this contest linking back to this post AND BabyBunch.com . Then come back here and leave TEN separate comments with the link to your blog post.

4) Friend me on Facebook. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Facebook profile.

5) For 2 extra entries, share the link to this contest post on Facebook. Then leave TWO separate comments with the link to your Facebook profile.

6) Follow The Baby Bunch on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.

7) Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.

8) Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

9) Subscribe to A Blog of Goodies' feed (the sister site to 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

10) Add my button or blog link to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.

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(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)


Random Drawing:
This contest will be closed on Monday, February 15th, 2010 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.

Good luck in the drawing!

Review: Mariah Carey Christmas Classics - The Yule Log Edition (DVD)

In anticipation for the incoming blizzard yesterday, my family decided to hunker down in the house for some quality family time. I did a little baking and then we worked on some jigsaw puzzles while we listened to Christmas music by Mariah Carey.

This music DVD is part of Sony Music's Yule Log series, in which Christmas music plays along to one of three holiday scenes. You can choose to listen to holiday music with either a yule log burning in the fireplace, the inside of a cozy cottage decorated for the holidays, or an evening outdoor snow scene with a cabin lit from within. We played ours on a Sony Playstation console rather than a DVD player, so we had difficulties figuring out which button would allow us to switch between the scenes. We ended up just enjoying the fireplace, which is the default scene.

Because this DVD is meant to play in the background, I do wish that there were more than ten holiday songs. Since we were not sitting with our attention focused on the television as we would if we were watching a movie, the music seemed to end quickly.

There are at least 17 different Christmas Classics - The Yule Log Edition DVDs available. Artists include Celine Dion, Kenny G, Kenny Chesney, and more.

I think these DVDs are a great idea for a hostess gift because they are ideal for playing in the background and creating some ambiance during a holiday party. I also think these DVDs would be perfect to send to someone who cannot be home for Christmas due to work or being away at school.

In addition to the Legacy Recordings Store, you should be able to find these holiday music DVDs on Amazon.com and at your local music retailer.

Thank you to Sony Music for providing us with a sample Yule Log DVD to review.

Giveaway & Review: The Jimmies - Trying Funny Stuff on DVD (2 Winners) [CLOSED]

My kindergartner and two toddlers have always preferred children's songs that resemble main stream music over anything that is too cutesy. That is why the music brought to us by The Jimmies was a big hit with my children.

Last month, The Jimmies released a DVD titled The Jimmies present Trying Funny Stuff, which consists of music videos, a live concert, and karaoke music. Although my children are a little young for karaoke, they did thoroughly enjoy the music videos. They were very visually appealing to young children.

The majority of The Jimmies music is upbeat and covers a wide array of genres. On this one DVD, pop, folk, rock, Latin, country, just to name a few, were all represented. The songs also cover a wide range of subject matters, such as the names of animals, the names of musical instruments, how not to spread germs, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. These are all topics children can relate to easily.

Although my children loved to watch the music videos, the live concert footage lost about 2/3 of their attention. They still enjoyed the music, but they no longer wanted to give the TV screen their undivided attention. I personally cannot sit through a televised concert either, unless it is a highly choreographed show.

You can only find this DVD at your local Barnes & Noble bookstore or on BarnesAndNoble.com . You can also purchase The Jimmies newest music CD Make Your Own Someday on GimmeJimmies.com .

Thank you to Sacks & Co. for sending us a sample DVD and a sample CD plus providing two DVDs for the contest prizes.

What you can win:
Two lucky readers will each receive a copy of the Barnes & Noble Exclusive "The Jimmies - Trying Funny Stuff" musical DVD.


Limitations:
This giveaway is open to U.S. addresses only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.


How to Gain Entries:
Visit The Jimmies Bios Page. Then leave a comment telling me one fun thing you learned about any one of the five band members. You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest.

Extra Entries:

1) For 5 extra entries, leave a relevant comment on one of my non-giveaway posts. Then leave FIVE separate comments with the name of the post on which you commented. You will earn 5 extra entries for each different non-contest post you comment on.

2) For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.

3) For 10 extra entries, blog about this contest linking back to this post AND GimmeJimmies.com . Then come back here and leave TEN separate comments with the link to your blog post.

4) Friend me on Facebook. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Facebook profile.

5) For 2 extra entries, share the link to this contest post on Facebook. Then leave TWO separate comments with the link to your Facebook profile.

6) Follow me on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.

7) Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.

8) Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.

9) Add my button or blog link to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.

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(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)


Random Drawing:
This contest will be closed on Thursday, December 17th, 2009 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.

Good luck in the drawing!