CarolesArt Quartz Pendant Giveaway

GIVEAWAY!

Cherry Quartz
Single Stone Necklace


from CarolesArt


Any piece from CarolesArt is certainly a treasure. The pendant necklaces and other jewelry pieces are unlike any others you'll find. With an earthy, artisan quality, these pendants and stones simply shimmer with beauty and exquisiteness!


Take a look at some of the other available items:








Up for grabs in this giveaway!

A beautiful Cherry Quartz pendant -- so pretty with its soft melon color. This one is a puffed square stone and is wrapped at the top. Including the bail it measures approximately 1.5" x 1.2". It hangs from a lovely stainless delicate 18" chain. ($39 ARV).





Connect with CarolesArt online!

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WANT TO WIN? Contest ends on September 13, 2015. Open to U.S. entrants only.
Please fill out the Rafflecopter form below to submit your entries.

a Rafflecopter giveaway [This giveaway promotion has been made possible by the BERRY HANDMADE blogging team.]

The Winner is Kim R. Congrats!

HipFits Backpack Hangers Review and Giveaway

HipFits

HipFits Backpack Hangers are stylish accessories. They are plush, dress shaped hangers that dangle on your pocket books, book bags, diaper bags, or key chains. There are 21 dresses to choose from. I received the Cotton Candy Dress, Birthday Dress, Sweetheart Dress, and the Sparkle Dress.

HipFits Sweetheart Dress Packaging

Each box has a poem on the back. This is a really cute idea for the children going back to school. You can give them a little first day back gift or maybe each time they get an A on a test. A little pick me up could mean all the difference to a child or teen in school. These are not just for kids though. Ladies, you can put them on your purse or key chain, to add a little fun to your outfit.

HipFits (back of dress)

This is what the back of the dress looks like. It has a little tag telling your the name of the dress. If you give it a squeeze, it feels like a hard gel. The outside fabric is very soft.

HipFits Cotton Candy Dress

Let me tell you why this Cotton Candy dress is special. There are 3 dresses in the collection that are for charity. It makes me happy when brands and businesses give back or give to a charity. Each dress cost $9.99 and for every Cotton Candy dress, Sweetheart dress, and Taffy dress that is purchased, $3.00 will be given to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. BCRF is a nonprofit dedicated to raising funds for breast cancer research. Besides being a super cute dress, the money goes to a good cause.

Birthday Dress

The Birthday Dress would make a cute gift. Dare I say it, for someone's birthday.

Sparkle Dress

This one is my favorite out of the four. Purple is my favorite color. I put this one right on my purse.

I love how each dress is different, because we are all unique and special in our own way. We each have our own style. 

Time for the fun! You have a chance to win 4 HipFits (randomly chosen). Fill out the rafflecopter form below. All entries are optional. You could do one or all of them. This giveaway is open to the US and 18+. The prize will be mailed from the sponsor.

The Winner is Audra. Congrats!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Gift Guide Submission For 2015

Barefoot and Loving It is accepting submissions for the 2015 Holiday Gift Guide. Holiday season is coming up fast. Many people will need gift ideas to help aide in their shopping this year.

Barefoot and Loving It will accept submissions in the following areas: Toys, Games, Natural Products, For the Home, gifts for Dad/Husband, gifts for Mom/Wife.

Fill out the Typeform and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

The Holiday Gift Guide will be posted the end of November.

Products can be promoted through review and/or giveaway.

Zing Firetek Bow Review

Zing Firetek Zeon Bow

The Zing Firetek Zeon Bow is fun to play inside and out. The arrows light up! You can play during the day or night. We love the fast load loops. They make it easy to fire away.

Firetek Bow by Zing Toys

This bow came with three arrows. Each arrow has a switch that you can turn on and off. It lights up for night time play.

Target practice

I made a target on our chalk board door. My husband and son had a good laugh at my drawing. My son told me it wasn't that good of a bulls eye. Oh, the honesty of children. I told them it was just for fun. You can see where the arrows landed. The arrows have suction cups on them. It will stick to the walls.

Arrows Light Up

The Firetek bow comes in different colors. This is a fun toy for both boys and girls. Both my husband and I enjoyed it also. I want to bring it outside with us and see how far the arrows go. Christmas and the holidays are coming up soon, Santa may want to stock up on these. These also make a good birthday gift.

Another added bonus is that it helps with fine motor skills and strengthening hand muscles. Since you have to pull back and aim. My son has weak arm muscles and used to receive OT therapy. I think this toy is good for him to use. 

Do you know someone who would enjoy this toy? 

Zing Toys on Social Media

- Like them on Facebook

-Follow them on Twitter

(*I received a complimentary product for review. All thoughts are my own.*)

Decorate With Silk Plants

Phalaenopsis Orchid Silk Plants

When it comes to indoor flowers and plant growth I am known to have a black thumb. I can't even keep the cactus alive indoors. For me, silk plants work really well around the home and office.

People may think fake plants won't look good but they do blend in nicely. My husband took them to work and put them around his office. His coworkers and clients always compliment him on how calming his office is and a place of serenity. The orchids look real from a far. I think they give it a nice touch. 

Silk orchids from Silk Plants Direct

He tried putting them in different locations. Here they are next to another "fake" plant. I like when he has them spread out. We thought the water feature was cool too. The water looks real! 

These orchids came in a set of 4. You can find them here. Silk Plants Direct has a wide range of flowers, plants, and trees. They even have wedding floral arrangements. You could use this as decoration. They make great gifts for us black thumb people. They also sell containers. If you get separate stems you could mix and match and put them into fancy containers to put around your home. 

We were very pleased with Silk Plants Direct and would buy other decor from them. 

Have you ever decorated with Silk plants before? Would you try using them in your home?

Silk Plants Direct on Social Media:

You can like them on Facebook

Follow them on Twitter 

(*I received a complimentary product for review purposes. All thoughts are 100% my own.*)

Back To School With Netflix

Reading Rainbow on Netflix

It's getting to be that time again. My son will be going back to school in the beginning of September. There are some fun new shows on Netflix, and even some old ones. Do you remember Reading Rainbow? I do. I'm so glad they put it on Netflix. This summer I had a hard time getting my son in the mood to read again. I know he can do it and he has gotten so much better at reading. "Take a look, it's in a book, a reading rainbow."

Dinotrux 

Another Netflix Original is here. Dreamworks Dinotrux is an animated series that features half dinosaur, half mechanical construction vehicle. This will be a hit with the kids. Check out this page where they have free coloring pages you can print out for the kids.

Ever After High: Way Too Wonderland

It may be back to school for my son but my daughter will be home with me. There is a new Ever After High Way Too Wonderland Series on Netflix. You can watch the fun trailer to this Netflix Original Series. You'll recognize fairy tale friends from other well know stories.

What new shows are you excited to watch this fall season? Good luck to everyone who has kids going back to school soon.

3 Ways To Help Your Child Love Reading

A big thanks to Shauna for having me on the blog today! With summer wrapping up, and school just around the corner, many of our thoughts turn to learning and perhaps even reading. Some kids are naturally excited about reading, and you’ll find them ravenously reading or begging to be read to year round. Others, however, are less enthusiastic.

Did you know that reading to newborns increases their math capabilities? Or that the average children’s book has more words than prime time television? That 26% of children who were read to 3 to 4 times per week could recognize all the letters of the alphabet, versus 14% of those who weren’t? Or that for every year a child is read regularly between infancy and preschool their expected lifetime earnings increases by $50,000? Reading is a big deal! It can be hard to get kids excited about it, but it doesn’t have to be--here’s three easy ways you can help your child to love reading!

1. Point out reading role models

Your little princess may find reading more enticing when she’s reminded that Belle LOVED to read, and always had her nose stuck in a book. And does your rambunctious superhero remember how fast Iron Man cruises through his reading homework? The role models you point out don’t have to be fictional either--find someone that your child admires who enjoys reading and point it out to them. Remember, it may very well be you!

2. Make it a family activity

Kids look up to their parents and older siblings! Let them catch you reading. Talk to them about what you’re reading and in turn ask them about what books they’re reading/like when you read to them. Take time to read aloud to your children, even when they’re old enough to read on their own. Sitting close together and spending quality time together reading is a unique bonding experience for parents and children.

3. Gift books

To help your children love to read, it helps to increase the excitement associated with reading. One way to do this is to give books as gifts! Wrap them up as gifts for birthdays, holidays, and rewards for accomplishing goals and reaching milestones. The anticipation of unwrapping, and the message you subconsciously communicate to them that reading is fun, exciting and that books are gift-worthy will work wonders!

Want some help in the book gifting department? Bookroo sends a curated box of individually wrapped board or picture books to your house each month for less than the retail value of the books. Just yesterday, I had a customer write in to report her young daughter had asked her: “Mama, when does my next book box come in? I want to see what kind of awesome books I have from them.” This little girl is excited about getting books. She’s anticipating with delight the prospect of having new books to read.

We believe every child can love to read, and we want to help this become a reality for as many children as possible. Until the end of August, we’re hosting a Buy One, Give One promotion, where each new Bookroo customer will be given a coupon for a free one-month subscription to gift to a friend. More details here: bookroo.com/summer-reading

Toy Review: Unicorn Popper By Hog Wild

Unicorn Popper

Hog Wild is a toy and gift company that makes these adorable poppers. This Unicorn Popper is a squeezable soft foam shooter. It comes with 6 small foam balls that are rainbow colored. This toy is safe for indoor use. If you squeeze it hard, the balls will shoot further.

Unicorn Popper with the rainbow balls

When we first got the popper, my daughter would not let it out of her hand. She walked all around the apartment with this cute unicorn. The popper we got is called White Sunshine. There are a ton of different poppers you can choose from. They even have soft and squeezable plush poppers. How cool is that? Check out all the poppers here.

Front View of Unicorn Popper

Here he is in all his glory. Okay, I keep calling this popper a "he" and my son says no it's a "she".

I think it's perfect that we got a fantasy creature, because as a family we love that kind of stuff.

Side View with ball

You just squeeze the belly area/the sides and the ball pops out. And it makes a fun pop sound. The foam balls are safe and do not hurt.

They also make key chain poppers which I think would make great stocking stuffers or easter basket fillers. Overall, I would definitely buy these as gifts for my kids and for others. They make so many fun toys besides the poppers.

Find Hog Wild on Social Media

-Like them on Facebook

-Follow them on Twitter

(*I received a complimentary product for review. All thoughts are 100% my own.*)

Sara Lee Snacks and Entenmanns Little Bites Back To School Giveaway

ABC's of Back to School Prize Pack

(*I received a prize pack for this campaign. All thoughts are 100% my own.*)

Back to school season is here. Sara Lee Snacks and Entenmann's Little Bites baked snacks want to help de-stress the morning routine with the ABC's of back to school. These are really yummy. My kids went through the Little Bites Party Cakes super fast. I think they are great as a snack to put in the lunch too. Of course, we love to eat healthy but sweet treats are nice as well. When I was younger my family called them "goodies." I now use that term with my kids. This is a great prize pack to win.

Here is a fun video that gives you DIY ideas to make Party Cake Cater Pillars. These are seriously adorable and look fun to make. You can even get the kids involved. I know my son enjoys helping me bake.

Party Cake Cater Pillars

I'm sort of looking forward to the back to school time. I will still have my daughter at home with me but one is easier to manage. So I tell myself.

Sara Lee Brownie Chocolate Chip Cakes

The Sara Lee snacks are rich and sweet. Have a glass of cold milk on hand. I like how they are wrapped in individual packages too. I can throw them in my pocket book when we are at the park.

Little Bites Party Cakes

Entenmann's Little Bites are such a great treat. They come in a variety of flavors. I want to try the Little Bites Crumb Cakes. I think those would be good with my coffee in the morning.

Also, Little Bites have teamed up with TerraCycle to turn trash into cash. Where with the Little Bites trash go? They will be recycled into things like park benches and bike racks. How cool is that? 

Now for the part you have been waiting for. The yummy giveaway. You can win a prize pack which will include: everything in the first picture above. The giveaway is open to the US, and 18+. Use the rafflecopter for entries. All entries are optional but the more the better. Prize pack will be shipped to the winner from the sponsor.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Gourmet Gifter Review

Gourmet Gifter

(*This post includes affiliate links.*)

Gourmet Gifter is an online store where you can buy delicious gourmet treats, chocolates, and healthy snacks too. This is a good place to find gift baskets to send to loved ones for holidays and birthdays. Both of my parents live in different states, so I am always trying to figure out new things to send them.

Peanut Brittle

The Peanut Brittle was very good. I had a couple of bites. It had a nice buttery taste. My husband consumed most of this. You can find this sweet treat here.

Chili Cheese Puffs

The Chili Cheese Puffs was another thing the hubby liked. These days I'm not too big on the spicy stuff but my husband is all for it. These make a great snack for movie time or game time. You can find them here.

Salty Sweet Addiction

We found a family favorite. Everyone in the family enjoyed the Salty Sweet Addiction  the best. 

It is gluten free, low in sodium, and low calorie. They use non GMO butterfly popcorn and corn oil. This popcorn is kettle popped and hand sifted. I love snacks that are salty and sweet at the same time. Probably because I like salt and sugar way too much. If you want to have popcorn for your next movie night at home, go here and buy some. 

Gourmet Gifter also sells healthy snacks too. PurEarth bars can be used as meal replacement bars. They are cold pressed, which I learned is when nothing is baked, cooked, or heated. They are made with all natural prebiotic fiber that is derived from the tapioca plant. These bars would be great for people to take for after a workout or hiking. Check out the different flavors here. 

Overall, I think Gourmet Gifter offers some really good snack items. They also have different size gift baskets pre made and ready to ship out for any special occasion.

Right now they have a special offer. For your first purchase of $30.00 or more, you get the Kettle Corn Trio free. This sounds like a perfect deal to me. Use the code "FIRSTORDER" at checkout.

What delicious snack would you try first?

(*I received complimentary products for this review. All thoughts are 100% my own.*)

Make Coloring Pages With Picmonkey

Hearts

I've been playing around with PicMonkey lately and realized what a great resource it is. Besides editing photos or creating pretty graphics for social media, you can make coloring pages for your kids.

You can also use it to practice cutting as well. Make the graphics any size you want. Print it out and let the little ones color or cut out the images. This is a helpful activity for fine motor skills. My son had OT therapy for a few years. He is getting much better but still needs help with writing.

I made this quick little hearts coloring page. It can be a lot of fun to create your own. 

Try it and tell me what you made in the comments.

Click here for free hearts printable.

Acure Organics For The Kids

Acure Organics Baby line

Acure Organics is a family owned and operated company that provides natural and organic personal care products. I am always on the look out for new natural products for my family. Ever since my children were born I wanted to make sure I bathed them in natural or organic soaps. I was excited to try Acure Organic's Baby Line products. They make lotion, 4-in-1 wash, and other great products.

Bare Baby Lotion is fragrance free, which is good for those who may be allergic to fragrances. It is made with ingredients such as colloidal oatmeal, cucumber, and calendula. 

Acure Organics Baby's Day Out

Baby's Day Out has three sticks. Baby Fix It stick is for the boo boo's. If your little one gets hurt, this balm is supposed to make it feel better. We haven't used it yet but when they get hurt I will make sure to put it on them. I'm all for natural remedies. And if a natural remedy can make a boo boo better, I say lets try it. Baby Bug stick will help keep the bugs away. I think I'm going to start using this myself because every time I sit on the patio I get bitten by a mosquito. Baby Sun SPF stick is non nano uncoated zinc oxide. I have to be honest, we do not use natural sun screen protection. But we should. This is great for all of us. More for my daughter and hubby because they both get red pretty fast. Always re-apply as the directions say. Or even more so, never take a chance. 

What I really love about these sticks is they are the perfect size to throw in a pocket book or diaper bag.

Acure Yummy Baby 

My favorite out of all of these baby products is the Yummy Baby 4-in-1 Foamer. We use this the most. You can use it as bubble bath, shampoo, body wash, and hand soap. It is also paraben free, sulfate free, and phthalate free. It has a nice citrus scent. I like the foam dispenser, it makes washing easier. The kids can press down on it themselves and not make a huge mess.

Overall, I am very satisfied with these natural products for my children. They are natural and many products are also USDA organic. They carry skin care, body care, lip care, and hair care products also. Another thing I love about this company is they are environmentally friendly. Green office, green products, and green packaging is something I like to stand behind as a customer. Finding brands and businesses that care about the environment is important in my opinion. 

Like Acure Organics on Facebook for more information and news. 

Follow them on Twitter here.

(*I received complimentary products for the review. All thoughts are 100% my own.*)