2014/01/18

Calming Jars - DIY


So a friend of mine posted a link to these nifty little things on my Facebook page.  Seeing as I have two rather exuberant boys I thought we'd give this a try.  They both seemed to enjoy picking the colors they wanted, putting them together, and, of course, shaking them up.



I got the "recipe" from this website.  In my search on Pinterest to find it, I came across several recipes.  And several pins that were just a picture of the calming jar.  Anyway, the idea behind these is to give your child, and yourself, a little quiet time to settle down.  They shake up the jar and watch the glitter settle.

What you'll need:


A small jar with a tightly seal-able lid
2 tubes of glitter glue
Half a tube of regular glitter
Food coloring
Warm water to fill the jar

There are lots of different types of glitter glue and lots of brands/types of glitter from which to choose.  Since I have two boys I decided to go the economical route.  I'm also a craft hoarder so I'll just add the leftovers to my stash.  

All you do is dump everything into the jar together.  I will say that not much food coloring is needed to color the water.  We were generous and added a drop or two too many!  If you don't want to use glitter glue, you can get clear glue and use regular glitter.  I had my boys squeeze in the tubes of glitter glue and then I just guessed at how much glitter to add in on top of that.  After you get the water in and the lid on tight, shake, shake, shake to get all that glue mixed well. 



The boys seemed to have a good time making these jars.  They enjoyed watching the glitter swirl around after they shook up the jars.  I had a good time helping them as well.  My husband lent a helping hand too and was the only one who made a mess.  He now has a pretty glitter glue spot on his shirt!  :)

This is a very quick craft project.  We were done in 5 or so minutes.  The hardest part is getting all that glue mixed in well.  I may go back and add some superglue or gorilla glue to the lids to make sure they're sealed.  Thankfully as yet we haven't had to use them yet for calming down.  Hopefully this will bring some peace when they get upset!



**Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links and/or links to outside sites. By clicking on an affiliate link it is at no cost to you and helps run/maintain this blog. Posts for reviews are my own opinions and no additional compensation is given unless otherwise stated. Giveaways on this blog are under the discretion of the host of the giveaway.

2014/01/14

Pie and Other Brilliant Ideas - Book Excerpt



From the Award Winning Author of Millicent Marie is Not My Name

Ballet and baking pies – these are two of twelve year old Georgie Harris’ favorite things. When her parents decide to move closer to her grandmother’s nursing home, Georgie quickly learns the bad news: dance lessons are too expensive in this new town.

Instead, Georgie spends most of her time baking pies to bring to her grandmother at the Willow Lakes Nursing Home. There she meets Eve, who inspires Georgie with stories of having danced with a world famous Russian ballerina many years ago.

As Georgie and Eve’s friendship evolves, their tales intertwine in this feel good story showing dreams really can come true.

Buy on Amazon


Excerpt from the book:

“That’s Paulina Strofsky,” Eve says, pointing to the poster. “She was a famous Russian ballerina back in the day.”
“Yes,” I reply. “I have the same poster in my room. Well I used to, in my old house. I don’t have it anymore.”
“That’s right. Your grandmother told me you like to dance. What happened to your poster?”
 I walk over to Jane’s bed and sit down on the edge. “I don’t know. The movers lost some of our stuff. My poster was in the box that went missing. My mom says they’re trying to find it.” I shrug my shoulders.
“Oh, that’s too bad.”
“Do you like to dance, also?” I ask.
“Me? Well, I haven’t in years, but I love to watch and listen. When I was a very young girl, my mother used to take me to the ballet to watch the dancers perform when they came to town. When she saw how much I loved it, she sent me to classes. I danced for many years. I do miss it.”
“So do I,” I admit.
Eve laughs. “What do you mean? You’re so young, Kotik!”
“Kotik?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Every now and again my Russian sneaks back in. It means darling. Well, kitten really. It’s something my dance instructor used to call me.”
“I haven’t danced in months—except here sometimes with the class Jane takes—but it’s not the same. I’m talking about ballet. My parents can’t afford to send me to any real classes since we’ve moved here, so I guess my dancing days are coming to an end.”
“Nonsense! You have many years of dance ahead of you. Why Paulina danced for many, many, years. I still remember when we first danced together.”
I jump up and walk over to Eve. “Wait a minute ... you danced with Paulina? Paulina Strofsky? From the poster?”


**Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links and/or links to outside sites. By clicking on an affiliate link it is at no cost to you and helps run/maintain this blog. Posts for reviews are my own opinions and no additional compensation is given unless otherwise stated. Giveaways on this blog are under the discretion of the host of the giveaway.

2014/01/13

Bond of Love - Book Review





As a picturesque mother and wife, forty-one year old Avery Richards seems to have it all. Married to a successful veterinarian named Noah and mother to a spunky daughter named Kara, her life is far from awful but she is stuck. With the recent move of their daughter, who has just flown the coop for college, this story examines the deep and often-tumultuous bond between mother and child and the lengths we are willing to go to, as mothers, to sacrifice our own happiness for the ones we love.

As we watch Avery walk through her ‘new’ way of daily life, without her ambitious and stubborn child around to mother any longer, we are given a very unique opportunity to tip toe in the front row of their lives, from three very separate views. We will see life as it plays out through her mature and motherly eyes, through Kara’s young and sheltered heart, and then through ‘someone else’s eyes’ that has a vested interest in them both.

As Avery’s well-hidden web of lies come crashing down in an unexpected way, her secrets that she’s safeguarded for years will threaten to rip her peaceful world apart, as well as the world of the ones she loves most. As readers, we will watch how ONE single choice can alter everything. Each character will then be forced to examine what the true meaning of love and forgiveness means to them.

Every gamut of emotion will be explored: humor, sadness, love, joy, betrayal, hate, and forgiveness. Bond of Love will leave you pondering the age-old question: How well do YOU actually know the ones you love most?

Buy on Paperback | Kindle | B&N | Kobo | Apple | Sony


Review:

I received this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion.  I would rate it at 3 stars.  I found it very difficult to get into at the start.

The book was difficult for me to get into because of the way it is written.  Lots of similes and almost all of them are food related.  Getting through the beginning was ponderous.  Very heavy on the descriptors.  

So I will admit I began skimming through.  The novel has good bones.  The underlying story is a good one.  After I made it through about a third of the book, it finally became a little easier to read.  I was finally invested in the characters.

As the action picks up, I really felt for the main character.  Avery was scared and hurt and had no idea what was going on.  Why was she taken from everything she knew?  I then narrowed it down to two characters who might be the antagonist.  And then the unexpected happens.  And then it happens again.

I still had to skim through the extra wording.  I did have to read through to find out what happened to them all.  It's an interesting story filled with several twists I didn't expect and enjoyed.  It also explores the bond between mothers and daughters as well as the consequences of life choices.  I certainly enjoyed the plot, the story, but there was a bit too much extra stuff to wade through.



**Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links and/or links to outside sites. By clicking on an affiliate link it is at no cost to you and helps run/maintain this blog. Posts for reviews are my own opinions and no additional compensation is given unless otherwise stated. Giveaways on this blog are under the discretion of the host of the giveaway.

Pie and Other Brilliant Ideas - Book Tour and Giveaway




From the Award Winning Author of Millicent Marie is Not My Name

Ballet and baking pies – these are two of twelve year old Georgie Harris’ favorite things. When her parents decide to move closer to her grandmother’s nursing home, Georgie quickly learns the bad news: dance lessons are too expensive in this new town.

Instead, Georgie spends most of her time baking pies to bring to her grandmother at the Willow Lakes Nursing Home. There she meets Eve, who inspires Georgie with stories of having danced with a world famous Russian ballerina many years ago.

As Georgie and Eve’s friendship evolves, their tales intertwine in this feel good story showing dreams really can come true.

Buy on Amazon

About the author:

Karen Pokras Toz writes middle grade and adult contemporary fiction. Her books have won several awards including two Readers’ Favorite Book Awards, First Place in the Children’s Chapter Books category and the Grand Prize overall in the 2012 Purple Dragonfly Book Awards, as well as winning first for two Global E-Book Awards for Pre-Teen Literature, and placing Finalist in the USA Best Book Awards. Her books for children include the Nate Rocks series, Millicent Marie Is Not My Name, and Pie and Other Brilliant Ideas. For adults, she recently published Chasing Invisible. A native of Connecticut, Karen now lives outside of Philadelphia with her husband and three children. For more information, please visit www.karentoz.com.

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Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Literary Addicts / Goodreads
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The author is giving away the audiobook of Millicent Marie is Not My Name and a gorgeous ballet charm bracelet to one lucky reader.



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**Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links and/or links to outside sites. By clicking on an affiliate link it is at no cost to you and helps run/maintain this blog. Posts for reviews are my own opinions and no additional compensation is given unless otherwise stated. Giveaways on this blog are under the discretion of the host of the giveaway.