John Deere Toy Giveaway Winner!!

I told my magic meatball to choose a number between 1 and 168 and he gave me number

28.

Lucky number 28 is Abby from Me and My Boys!

Congrats, Abby! Email me with your shipping info and I will get your John Deere loot to you right away.



In other news...guess what we've been up to. Here's a hint.

Sweet Smell of Summer

I wish you could smell this.


Oops. Not that. This.

The sweet smell of corn pollinating

is one of my favorite smells of summer.

It ranks right up there with freshly cut grass, peonies, steak on the grill, and sunscreen.

If you see corn starting to tassel, hop out of the car and take a whiff.

You'll thank me for it.

Surprise! It's another John Deere Toy Giveaway!

Have I got a deal for you!!! Our friends at Learning Curve have generously given us more amazing John Deere toys! Not just one or two...but three big prizes all in one giveaway!

First up is the My First Collectibles set. This is a 4 pack of sturdy die-cast tractor toys with durable plastic wheels. The set includes Johnny Tractor, Big John, Luke Loader, and Gary Gator.


Next up is the John Deere Animal Sounds Hayride. This is super cute, durable, easy to grasp, and helps your child learn matching skills. Each animal (and farmer) makes a sound when put in its correct place. Little Miss has loved listening to Old McDonald over and over again!


And last but certainly not least, the John Deere 3-in-1 power tool set. Let's just say my little man has been doing some major work with this set. It comes with one power " handle base" and 3 interchangeable tools including a vacuum, saw, and sander. It even comes with goggles! (Cole wore the goggles to Waffle House this morning in case of a food fight!)

One lucky reader will walk away with everything you see! That's right, the John Deere power tools, animal sounds hayride, and the first collectible tractors could be yours!

To enter to win:

Leave a comment telling me which toy is your favorite.

Bonus Entries (all separate comments):

*Go to this site and enter the Learning Curve Play and Learn Sweepstakes.
*Follow or subscribe to this blog. (If you already do, that counts too!)
*Blog about this giveaway and link back to me.
*Tweet about this giveaway and leave your Twitter link in your comment.
*Follow me on Twitter.

Fine Print:
*Winners are chosen by Random.Org. If you want all your chances counted, make sure you leave individual comments, not all of them in one!
*Winner will be contacted by email; be sure to include your email if it's not enabled
*Contest ends Friday, July 31, 2009 at 8:00 p.m. EDT
*Open to North American addresses only
*Rules for each entry must be followed to be valid
*Good luck!

Transformation

Super ugly garage sale cabinet: $10.00

1 bottle of black acrylic paint: $3.00

1 can polyurethane: $7.00

New hardware: $10.00


New cabinet that I love?



Priceless.

iheartfaces-Feet

iHeartFaces is taking a break from faces this week. The focus instead? Feet!
Or as we say in our house...pigs!



My princess...who's not afraid to get her pigs dirty.


Want to see more feet? Head over to iHeartFaces now!

Raspberry Cobbler

Warning: This is an ooey, gooey, chewy, sugary, buttery cobbler. It is delicious...our family's favorite raspberry cobbler recipe. But, if you want a more cake-like cobbler, try this recipe instead.

Ingredients:

2 cups raspberries
3/4 C butter
1 3/4 C sugar
3/4 C flour
3/4 C milk
1 pinch salt
2 tsp. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Take 3/4 C butter and put it in an 8X8 pan. Stick the pan of of butter in the oven to melt while it preheats.

Meanwhile, put the 2 cups of raspberries into a small bowl.

Add 3/4 C sugar. Mix well.

Now for the batter, pour 1 C sugar into a separate bowl.

Add 3/4 C flour.

Add 2 tsp. baking powder and a pinch of salt.

Finally, add 3/4 C milk to the dry mixture. Mix well.

Now get the melted butter pan from the oven.

Pour the batter into the butter. DO NOT STIR.

Pour the raspberry/sugar mixture into the buttery batter. DO NOT STIR.

Bake in the 350 degree oven for approximately 45 minutes. Be sure to put the pan on a baking sheet as it might bubble over.

Let sit to thicken.

Serve with a scoop of ice cream.

Yum!!

Edited to add: I have posted this recipe before. You guys have good memories! There were issues so I had to repost. :)

Rite of Passage

It all started with a simple sticker chart. Each kid has a chart and when a chore is completed without fussing or arguing, they get a sticker.

Not surprisingly, Little Miss filled her chore chart before Cole. Cole really only likes to work when a tractor or other large piece of machinery is involved. Otherwise he is very tired. And often...his back hurts. *eye roll*

So yesterday, when Little Miss filled her chart, we headed to the depths of Hell Wal-Mart so she could pick out her toy.

After an exhaustive search, she finally chose this.



A beautiful, Rapunzel Barbie complete with extensions that can be clipped in and "cut" off. Notice how the Mattel people were nice enough to include scissors.


Do you see where this is going?


Shortly after getting home, I was in the living room. The kids were playing in the back room. Or so I thought. Little Miss comes bounding in, huge smile on her face, "I cut my hair!" For a split second, I thought she meant with the Barbie scissors. And then I took a closer look.

Bangs? Shorter. Right side of her head? Notsomuch looking like the left side of her head. Bald spot in the back? I don't think that was there before.

Ruh-roh.

She is super proud of herself. Thankfully her hair is always a curly mess so it's not SO noticeable.



See? You can't even tell.