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!
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. :)
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.
Before kids, my husband and I often took little weekend trips together, often with another couple. We would spend the weekend sight-seeing, going out to dinner, staying in cozy little hotel rooms.
I think that must have been about 1,000 years ago.
Or maybe longer.
We have yet to go on any sort of vacation as a family. Quite honestly, I can barely maintain my sanity during an hour-long drive to the "big city" with the children. The thought of a long drive somewhere makes me want to jab sharp things in my ears.
But we have decided it's time. Time to get away. The four of us are going to take a little 2 day, overnight trip together.
Nothing big. About 2.5 hours away. But it will be Cole's dream vacation.
A couple of fun facts about our vacation site:
*There are 30,000 cows *80,000 milkings occur every day, 24 hours a day *Each cow produces 10 gallons of milk each day *An average of 80 calves are born each day
I don't think our kids could love a place more than they will love Fair Oaks Farm.
Yes, I do see the irony in a farm family going to a farm for vacation. But this is like no other farm in the country. Check out this video. It's awesome. I can't wait to go to the "birthing theater." (about 4:00 into the video.) And the milking wheel? (2:10 in the video) So cool!
Oh, sure. I could have entered a picture of one of the three dogs in this house for the iheartfaces pet photo contest. Or maybe one of the seven cats lazing around the yard. But, I decided there were probably plenty of dogs and cats already entered.
But a cow? With a big, sloppy, pink tongue?
Perfect.
Want to see more adorable pet pics? Head on over to iheartfaces to check out all of the awesome entries this week!
I love seeing the searches that bring people here. Most of them are John Deere related. I get several from recipes. And then there are some special ones that crack me up.
Last night? Apparently a frustrated 7 year old found his way to my blog with this search:
"how to anoy a mom in away 7 yearald can understand"
If only my kids had seen this. They could have helped him out.
As you can probably imagine, going to Target or Wal-Mart to pick out a backpack or lunch box for my son is underwhelming, to say the least. Transformers, Spider-Man...he couldn't be less interested. Thankfully, there are some great John Deere school supplies available (even after the big order I just placed from here!)
You can find backpacks for boys and girls. (You can click on each picture to take you to the direct Rungreen link for that product.)
There are John Deere pencils, pens, and erasers.
You can even find John Deere calculators and rulers!
Rungreen has many coolers and lunch boxes to choose from. They even carry metal ones for those of you who like to kick it old school.
My little John Deere lovin' boy is super excited for kindergarten now. And the Little Miss? BEGGING to go to school so she can have the pink backpack! :)
is one of my favorite smells of summer.
