Alphabetown USA Children’s Book Line Review & Giveaway

Posted on June 1, 2012 by

Alphabetown USA recently introduced a children’s book line.  The creation of this wonderful series was truly a family affair.  Husband and wife, Ryan and Nicole Mayer, created this engaging series with the help of their children.  The authors’ children inspired many story ideas for these books and their daughter also inspired her parents to donate a portion of all proceeds to each book to a specific non-profit organization.  For example, Hannah’s Homework, aids McDonald House of Southern New Jersey and each purchase of Catena Goes Camping benefits Miracle Flights for Kids.  With Alphabetown USA books you can teach your child while supporting a good cause!

  

The fun illustrations in the Alphabetown USA series are by family friend, Russ Simons.  Each letter of the alphabet has a name starting with that very letter as well as eyes, mouth, and limbs.  We  have a copy of Catena Goes Camping, and my 4-year-old son loves this book.  The first page of the book lists the entire alphabet and it’s characters.  He makes sure that we never miss this page!  As you may have guessed, letter ‘C’ is named Catena.  In the book, Catena Goes Camping, Catena and her brother Dominic go on a family camping trip.  During the camping trip Catena and Dominic partake in a lot of fun activities in the great outdoors.  They discovery many different words that begin with the letter ‘C’ and Catena teaches her brother that the letter ‘C’ can make two different sounds.  This was a great way for my son learn about the ‘S’ and ‘K’ sounds that ‘C’ can make in different words.  The special thing about this book is that it teaches my children letter recognition and word-formation while telling a fun story that also teaches different life lessons.  A children’s book can’t get more well-rounded than that!

If you are looking for a fun way to help your child learn, Alphabetown USA is the place to be!  The Alphabetown USA series engages your child in the story.  The author asks your child questions during the story to keep your child involved and to encourage critical thinking.  I am not surprised to hear many educators find these books to be a great teaching tool as well!  I have found Catena Goes Camping to be a great resource for teaching my son many great lessons and look forward to reading many more of these books with my children.

Buy It!

You can purchase Alphabetown USA books online at Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and the Alphabetown USA website.  The Alphabetown USA series is also available for purchase in select Barnes & Noble and Brilliant Sky retail stores.  Alphabetown USA has a special launch promotion for the summer 2012 for books purchased at their website.  If you purchase both Where is Ziggy? and Hannah’s Homework, you will receive Catena Goes Camping for FREE!

Win It!

One lucky reader at The Children’s Nook is going to win a copy of one book from the Alphabetown USA series!  Mandatory Entry: Visit Alphabetown USA and come back here leaving me a comment sharing which book you would love to own.

Extra Entries (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

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  • Tweet the following: “Enter to #Win a book from the new Alphabetown USA series @childrensnook http://wp.me/pX9wg-1Dh” (Leave a link to your tweet. You may tweet once a day for 1 entry per day)
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  • Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 entry per giveaway)
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Giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. (central time) on June 30, 2012.  This giveaway is open to residents in the U.S.  The winner will be selected by random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

I was provided a copy of Catena Goes Camping for review purposes.  All opinions are mine alone.

Posted in General | 23 Comments

PROBAR Fruition Review & Giveaway

Posted on May 29, 2012 by

PROBAR is an innovative company that creates convenient all natural foods.  They simply want to make it easy for you to grab a healthy snack on the go.  Living in a country where convenience often results in the consumption of empty calories, I am thrilled to discover a company that actually wants to make it easier for us to make a healthier choice when a hunger craving strikes.  It is no surprise that Prevention Magazine chose Fruition as “Best Bar” in their 2012 Healthy Food Awards.  PROBAR Fruition was chosen out of over 500  submissions!

PROBAR recently introduced its first Gluten FREE product line!  To the delight of everyone searching for a super snack food, PROBAR Fruition products hit shelves on March 2012.  Fruition fruit-dense snack bars contain one full serving of fruit and are made of 100% vegan, organic, non-GMO, gluten-free medley of dates, oats, chia seeds, and cashews.

PROBAR Fruition snack bars come in a variety of different flavors.  I strongly suggest you try them all because you may be surprised by which flavors you enjoy the most.  When I first saw the Fruition Lemon snack bar, I quickly assumed it was going to be my least favorite flavor.  I completely surprised myself by truly enjoying this snack bar.  I think the unique combination of cashews, chia seeds, and fruit meld together for a great chewy snack!

I am so happy that PROBAR included chia seeds in their fruition snack bars because I am always looking for ways to get more Omega-3 in my diet.  I seem to have a weakness for all of the flavors with red fruit, Cherry, Strawberry, and Cran-Raspberry.  However, they offer plenty of other fruit flavors representing many other shades of the rainbow!

Buy It!

PROBAR has generously offered a coupon for The Children’s Nook readers!  This coupon will get you 40% off of your first PROBAR purchase! Use the code: BLOGGER at checkout.  Fruition Snack Bars are available in 7 different flavors:

  • Blueberry
  • Cherry
  • Cran-Raspberry
  • Peach
  • Lemon
  • Strawberry
  • Chocolate Orange

Win It!              

One lucky reader at The Children’s Nook is going to win a box of PROBAR Fruition Snack Bars!  Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment below sharing which PROBAR flavor you would like to try first.

Extra Entries (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

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  • Follow PROBAR on Twitter (1 entry)
  • Tweet the following: “Enter to #Win a package of @thePROBAR Fruition Snack Bars @childrensnook http://wp.me/pX9wg-1CZ Organic, Gluten-Free, Non-GMO….” (Leave a link to your tweet. You may tweet once a day for 1 entry per day)
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  • Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 entry per giveaway)
  • Place my button from this website on your blog (2 entries)

Giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. (central time) on June 6, 2012.  This giveaway is open to residents in both U.S. and Canada.  The winner will be selected by random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Thanks to PROBAR and FamilyReviewNetwork I was provided product information and a variety pack of PROBAR Fruition Snack Bars for review purposes.  All opinions are mine alone and based off of my experience with the product I reviewed.

Posted in Giveaways, Reviews | 79 Comments

Get Stoked for Summer with Old Navy Shorts!

Posted on May 27, 2012 by

Old Navy has a great selection of summer shorts this year.  I think I tried on every pair in the store!  I can honestly say it was too hard choosing just one pair, so I ended up buying another pair as well during this shopping trip.  Since I am fairly tall, I tend to enjoy wearing Bermuda style shorts the most. However, I must say I was very tempted to buy the Linen-Blend Tie-Belt Shorts in the Bright Nite color.  These shorts hit high in the thigh yet I still found them to be very comfortable and the tie-belt was really fun.

 

My mom joined me on my exploration of Old Navy shorts and I must say that we were both quite successful.  Not only did she get the pair of jean shorts she is wearing in the photo above but she also found another great pair of shorts and some cute tops to go with them!

In the end I could not resist the comfort of the Roll-Tab Bermudas at Old Navy.  I went home with a pair of these light weight shorts in the surplus Khaki color and have worn them many many times.  I already wish I had a pair in every color because these shorts have quickly become my go to pair of shorts. The neutral color goes with almost anything and the soft light weight fabric allows for maximum comfort.

 

I also left Old Navy with a second pair of shorts and many other items.  If you remember from my recent post about the great selection of dresses Old Navy has this Spring, you will not be surprised to hear that I bought yet another Old Navy dress during this shopping trip.  I guess you can say I am well on my way to having a well-rounded Old Navy summer wardrobe!

Buy It!

Feel stylish and comfortable in Old Navy shorts this season!  Old Navy has a great selection of shorts available in stores and an even better selection available online.  Also, don’t forget to check out their colorful collection of pop kicks.  These shoes are amazing!  I have should know, I have two pair!) You can also visit Crowdtap and join to get in touch with great companies such as Old Navy.  It is a great way to earn money and try great products!

Thanks to CrowdTap and Old Navy for choosing me to be a part of the Old Navy Style Council, myself and a friend were able to each take one pair of Old Navy shorts home free of charge.  All opinions are mine alone based off of my shopping experience and the dresses I reviewed.

Posted in General | 1 Comment

StyleUnited: New View, New You! Plus a Giveaway!

Posted on May 21, 2012 by

Style United Blogger Badge

Want to be in the know about all the newest styles and makeup trends?  P&G recently launched a new website that is designed to allow you to get expert fashion and beauty tips from the comfort of your own home.  StyleUnited has many features that allow you to truly have a personalized experience when using their website.  They have fun style tools such as the Style360 which allows you to complete several fashion and beauty profiles.  Once you complete your profiles, they recommend products that would suit you.  Here is a little hint: when you pick your answers to the questions on the beauty and fashion profiles, read the tips that pop up on the right side of the screen.

I recently joined StyleUnited myself and immediately took the Cosmetics Profile quiz.  I was delighted learn that I just bought the exact concealer they recommended for me.  Let me just say it is sad how many weeks I researched under eye concealers before making this purchase.  If I had just joined StyleUnited a few weeks ago, I could have had my answer in seconds and spent that time getting a pedicure or most likely washing dishes.  A girl can dream!

I adore clothing so I have already spent a lot time exploring the the fashion areas of StyleUnited.  After completing my fashion profile, I was provided a slide show of recommended clothing and accessories.  Which brings me to my next favorite part of StyleUnited.  When you find an item you are drooling over on your list of recommended products, you can save it to your collection.  Near the bottom right corner of the page you will also find a small list of items for each beauty and fashion category listed under: Women Like You Most Loved.  I found this list to be fun.

I also really enjoy the Tips and Trends section of StyleUnited.  These tips are useful, fun, and to the point.  Since we all tend to be so busy, I love that you can get fun and informative info here in so little time.

Join StyleUnited today and enter to win the StyleUnited New View, New You Giveaway!  TWO lucky winners will be chosen at random to win $500 shopping sprees to Macy’s or Nordstrom!  Also, get your friends, sisters, mothers, or any other fashion buddy to join because you can add each other to your InnerCircle.  This allows you to get feedback fashion and beauty from those you trust!

I had the opportunity to be one of the first to use StyleUnited thanks to being a VIP Blogger with SheSpeaks.  I will receive a P&G product for providing honest feedback.  All opinions are mine alone.

Posted in General | Leave a comment

20 Winners Announced!

Posted on May 21, 2012 by

Since Thermal-Aid has been so generous and offered 20 of their amazing products for the readers at The Children’s Nook, I have the pleasure of announcing 20 winners for this one fabulous giveaway!  I know you are all excited, so here they are:

10 Winners of a Thermal Aid Bear

1. Amy V

2. Pam L

3. Farrah M

4. Amy B

5. Sweet Panda

6. Susan

7. Kristi P

8. Eva B

9. Kathleen W

10. Charity L

10 Winners of a Thermal-Aid Medium Sectional

1. Kristen eby

2. Nicole T

3. Amanda Starr

4. Domestic Diva

5. journeyofthezoo

6. Svitlanna

7. Laurie

8. Jackie

9. Kelly D

10. Tiffany G

All 20 winners are being emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.  Congrats!

Posted in General | 4 Comments

Add Some Life: Build a Better Salad with Olives and Olive Oil

Posted on May 16, 2012 by

About a year ago we made the decision to start eating healthier in my household.  One ingredient that is used in nearly every dinner we prepare is olive oil.  My love of olive oil has only increased since we have begun eating healthier because there are simply so many different ways that it can help make a healthy meal taste fabulous!  One challenge we have discovered with eating healthier is coming up with a good variety of healthy yet also delicious meal recipes.  Olive oil has been the key ingredient in helping us prepare a good variety of tasty healthy meals.

Add Some Life with Olives and Olive Oil is a great campaign that is an excellent resource for eating healthier with olives.  Their goal is to inspire you to discover the taste and versatility of making olives and olive oil a staple of your diet.  Add Some Life with Olives and Olive Oil provides great information on the benefits of consuming olives and olive oil as well as providing an organized selection of recipes for you to try.  My boys love to help make popcorn for our Friday night family movie nights almost as much as they love eating it.  I am planning on trying one of the Add Some Life yummy popcorn recipes very soon!  For even more recipes using olives or olive oil, you can check out the list of Food websites Add Some Life recommends on their website.  You can find this list near the bottom left of the Professionals page.

Add Some Life has truly inspired me to look for ways to incorporate olives and olive oil into my daily life.  I recently came across a new salad recipe that I couldn’t resist trying, so I thought I would share it with you in hopes of inspiring you to try something new!

Marinated Olive Chicken Salad

1 (6 oz) can whole, pitted black olives. Drain

2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

1 tsp. dried oregano

8 oz. chopped romaine lettuce

1/2 lb. chopped roasted chicken

2 oz. crumbled feta cheese.

Preparation:

Toss olives with lemon juice, vinegar, and oregano.  We find oregano can be overpowering, so we only used 1/2 tsp.   Allow this to marinate 30 minutes or overnight.

Once the olive mixture marinated for 30 minutes, I added it to the romaine lettuce.  You can buy the pre chopped lettuce in bags for convenience, but we bought a fresh head of romaine at our grocery store.

We then tossed in our chicken and crumbled feta cheese.

Once all of the ingredients were added to our the bowl of our salad spinner, we placed the cover over the bowl.  My son loves this part because he gets to push down the button to spin the salad!  This is a fun and easy way to get your children involved in creating a healthy meal.

The final result was a very yummy salad!  This recipe serves 4, so my hubby and I even had some leftovers for lunch the next day.

Keep up with new inspiring ideas and recipes from Add Some Life by following them on Twitter and Facebook!

Buy It!

Olives and olive oil are available at most grocery and specialty food stores in varying price ranges.

Disclosure: The author received a premium gift package from the International Olive Council,including a Williams-Sonoma Salad Spinner, Crate and Barrel Salad Dressing Mixer and Crate and Barrel Serving Tongs for recipe development and review purposes. All opinions are my own.

Posted in General | Leave a comment

Naturalizer Shoes Spring Collection Review & Giveaway

Posted on May 11, 2012 by

Naturalizer Payton  

Looking for some fabulous shoes that will knock your socks off and have you sliding your toes right into sandals this Spring? If your answer is yes, and of course it is, then you will want to check ou the Naturalizer shoe spring collection.  They have fabulous shoes in many different styles.  They even have some fabulous boat shoes.  I am loving those canvas shoes because you don’t need to wear socks with them yet they keep your toes warm on cooler days!  I also like wearing this style when I want to hide the fact that I need to freshen up my toe nail polish!

Naturalizer Posh   Naturalizer Fira   Naturalizer Decade

This spring Naturalizer has also introduced several fabulous wedges.  I have the Peyton wedge sandals.  They are available in several different colors but I chose the shiny red/brown leather pair.  I am loving these shoes.  The splash of color is really fun but there is still enough neutral to them that I can wear them with a lot of different outfits.  I have been extremely impressed with how comfortable these shoes feel.  These shoes have a bit of cushion to them which provides extra support.  The adjustable strap also allows for a custom fit around the ankle.  Most importantly the wedge heel of this shoe makes your legs look great yet it is much more stable and comfortable than a spiked heel for us moms chasing little ones around!  Now at least my feet can look stylish while I am running around with baby drool on my shirt!

The Naturalizer Shoes Spring Collection is a great way to freshen up your woredrobe for Spring and Summer.  I know I feel bright and happy each time I put on my new Peyton wedges!

Buy It!

You can purchase the Payton shoes I reviewed as well as any other shoes, bags, or accessories online at the Naturalizer website.

Win It!

One lucky reader at The Children’s Nook is going to win a Gift Card for a FREE pair of shoes purchased in-store or online at Naturalizer.com!  Mandatory Entry:  Visit Naturalizer and come back here to leave me a comment sharing which pair of shoes are your favorite.

Extra Entries (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

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  • Tweet the following: “Enter to #Win a pair of fabulous shoes from the Naturalizer Spring Collection @childrensnook http://wp.me/pX9wg-1C3 #myblogspark” (Leave a link to your tweet. You may tweet once a day for 1 entry per day)
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  • Comment on any other non-giveaway post on this blog and leave a comment here telling me which post you commented on (1 entry)
  • Share this giveaway on Facebook, Pinterest or your Blog and post a link to your post in the comments below (2 entries)
  • Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 entry per giveaway)
  • Place my button from this website on your blog (2 entries)

Giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. (central time) on May 29, 2012.  This giveaway is open to residents in the U.S.  The winner will be selected by random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

The shoes, information, and gift card for the giveaway were all provided by Naturalizer via MyBlogSpark.  All opinions are mine alone and based off of my experience with the product I reviewed.

Posted in Giveaways, Reviews | 396 Comments

Birthday Bash: Shirts That Go Review & Giveaway

Posted on May 10, 2012 by

Fire Truck T-Shirts Full Color Shipping Box 2

Buckle your seat belts, because you are about to explore a website that specializes in vehicles on the go!   Shirts That Go is a company that makes vehicle themed children’s shirts.  This fabulous company was created by a father who I suspect may have heard a few vrrrrooom, vrrrrooooms and chooo choos over the years.  As a mother of two boys, I am always on alert for all things that travel on roads, train tracks, or fly.  Any of you out there with a son or grandson know exactly what I am talking about.  Boys simply love vehicles on the go!  Now I catch myself getting excited when I see a dump truck or hot air balloon because I know I will see the delight and wonder on my boys’ faces once they see them as well.  Thanks to Shirts That Go my boys now get that same excited facial expression each time we pull their vehicle themed t-shirts out of the closet.

  

Shirts That Go is a one stop shop for some very cool vehicle themed t-shirts.   If you have a toddler who jumps for joy every time that big yellow bus drives by your house, then you will want to check out the Shirts That Go School Bus t-shirt.  For all those rescue vehicle loving kids out there, Shirts That Go has a variety of fire and rescue shirts including an Ambulance t-shirt.  My son has two Shirts That Go t-shirts.  He has the Steam Train t-shirt and the Pirate Ship t-shirt from Shirts That Go.  I must say both of these shirts are pretty cool.  They have very realistic images and my son absolutely loves them.  In fact, he is very proud of his shirts and will tell anyone who will listen about his train or pirate shirt.  Therefore, I feel the need to thank any of you out there who have seen my son wearing his Shirts That Go t-shirts and responded with appropriate enthusiasm for his beloved shirts.  We, meaning all of us parents and grandparents of vehicle loving children, should also thank Nick, the creator of Shirts That Go, for creating such fun vehicle shirts.  He is making a lot of little boys out there happy by creating these cute shirts!

Shirts That Go offers a 100% guarantee on their products and they really do have very high quality standards.  All Shirts That Go tees are made in the U.S.  I have been very impressed with the quality of my son’s shirts.  The material is very soft and my son finds them very comfortable to wear.  Their shirts are available in both long sleeve and short sleeve.  I love our short sleeve Shirts That Go tees because of their versatility.  On warm days my son can simply wear the tees with a pair of shorts or pants and on cooler days I simply throw a long sleeve shirt underneath his train or pirate tee.  This also gives the shirt a bit of a different look to add a little variety to his vehicle themed wordrobe!

Buy It!

Full Color Shipping Box 1

You can purchase your little go getter a shirt online at Shirts That Go.  At first glance, the price of their t-shirts may seem a bit high but make note that all orders are shipped to you free of charge and usually arrive within 4 days.  Plus, all orders of 3 or more shirts get packaged in their custom packaging.  These boxes look really cool and could even be used later on for toy storage!  Shirts That Go is a company that cares about their customers and the product they represent, so you can make a Shirts That Go purchase with confidence. Happy Shopping!

Win It!

One lucky reader at The Children’s Nook is going to win the shirt of his or her choice from Shirts That Go!  Mandatory Entry:  Visit Shirts That Go and come back here to leave me a comment sharing which item is your favorite.

Extra Entries (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

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  • Follow The Children’s Nook on Twitter (1 entry)
  • Follow Shirts That Go on Twitter (1 entry)
  • Tweet the following: “Enter to #Win the shirt of your choice from @shirtsthatgo at the @childrensnook http://wp.me/pX9wg-1BB ” (Leave a link to your tweet. You may tweet once a day for 1 entry per day)
  • Follow me on Pinterest (2 entries)
  • Follow Shirts That Go on Pinterest (2 entries)
  • “Like” The Children’s Nook on Facebook (2 entries)
  • “Like” Shirts That Go on Facebook (2 entries)
  • Comment on any other non-giveaway post on this blog and leave a comment here telling me which post you commented on (1 entry)
  • Share this giveaway on Facebook, Pinterest or your Blog and post a link to your post in the comments below (2 entries)
  • Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 entry per giveaway)
  • Place my button from this website on your blog (2 entries)
  • If you pinned the Birthday Bash post before May 1st (1 entry)

Giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. (central time) on June 9, 2012.  This giveaway is open to residents in the U.S.  The winner will be selected by random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Shirts That Go provided two shirts for review purposes.  All opinions are mine alone.

Posted in Giveaways, Reviews | 218 Comments

Birthday Bash: The Orb Factory Curse of the Treasure Chest Review & Giveaway

Posted on May 9, 2012 by

 

Looking for some fun products that will keep those little hands and active minds occupied? The Orb Factory is the place to go!  This fabulous company has a large variety of products that will keep your child busy for hours.  The Orb Factory offers fun craft and activity products for children 3 years and up.  The possibilities seem endless when browsing the products at The Orb Factory.  Your little diva can create stunning shades with the new Fancy Nancy Sunglasses kit.  Your little hero can create his own armor with the Cardboard Adventures Hero Pack.  Many of these great activities not only entertain children while working on their creations but also result in fun creative play with the creation they made!  For those of you shopping for young pre-schoolers, I really love the Veggie Tales Sticky Mosaics product line.  These are great for introducing young children to stick and match number activities that teach and perfect new skills!

One of my favorite product lines offered by The Orb Factory is their Sticky Mosaics.  We have the new Curse of the Treasure Chest which is part of the Sticky Mosaics Room Decor collection.  This treasure chest is super fun.  My son has spent many hours applying each sticker and has loved every minute of it!  I was surprised at how well my 4-year-old could apply the small stickers on his treasure chest.  The only assistance he needed from me was to help remove the stickers from the sticker sheet.  Basically, I would take the stickers off of the sheet one at a time and hand them to him to apply on his treasure chest.  Occasionally, A few of his stickers fell off because he didn’t press down hard enough, so I just pushed down on all of his stickers when we were done to be sure they would stay on.  I was really happy that the Curse of the Treasure Chest came with extra stickers.  Down the road if he happens to break off a sticker we can simply apply a new one.  The Orb Factory and Sticky Mosaics covered their bases!

Applying the stickers was great for working on hand/eye coordination as well as hours of entertainment.  My son is very proud of how he decorated his treasure chest.  I am extremely impressed with the functionality of this treasure chest.  It has a rustic looking latch that allows your child to securely close his or her treasure chest.  After opening his treasure chest, my son immediately filled it with his “treasures” AKA his toys!  However, the fun doesn’t stop there.  The Curse of the Treasure Chest has a secret compartment with a Flipmotion moving secret inside!  My son loves to hide his favorite treasures from his baby brother in the secret compartment of his treasure chest.  This chest is very cool.  I wish I had one when I was little!

  

Buy It!

You can purchase the Curse of the Treasure Chest or any other craft and activity products at The Orb Factory.  We love our treasure chest so much that I just bought another Sticky Mosaics product last night!

Win It!

One lucky reader at The Children’s Nook is going to win the product of his or her choice from The Orb Factory!  Mandatory Entry:  Visit The Orb Factory and come back here to leave me a comment sharing which item is your favorite.

Extra Entries (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

  • New! Follow The Children’s Nook on Google+ (2 entries)
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  • Follow The Children’s Nook on Twitter (1 entry)
  • Follow Orb Factory on Twitter (1 entry)
  • Tweet the following: “Enter to #Win the product of your choice from @orbfactory at @childrensnook Birthday Bash! http://wp.me/pX9wg-1Bf #Giveaway open to US/CAN” (Leave a link to your tweet. You may tweet once a day for 1 entry per day)
  • Follow me on Pinterest (2 entries)
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  • “Like” The Orb Factory on Facebook (2 entries)
  • Comment on any other non-giveaway post on this blog and leave a comment here telling me which post you commented on (1 entry)
  • Share this giveaway on Facebook, Pinterest or your Blog and post a link to your post in the comments below (2 entries)
  • Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 entry per giveaway)
  • Place my button from this website on your blog (2 entries)
  • If you pinned the Birthday Bash post before May 1st (1 entry)

Giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. (central time) on June 8, 2012.  This giveaway is open to residents in both U.S. and Canada!  The winner will be selected by random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

The Orb Factory provided the Curse of the Treasure Chest for review purposes.  All opinions are mine alone.

Posted in Giveaways, Reviews | 164 Comments

Birthday Bash: Splash Box Review & Giveaway (3 winners!)

Posted on May 7, 2012 by

Invitation and Party Printables

Looking for high quality party invitations?  Check out Splash Box!  Splash Box designs offers a variety of customizable designs for high quality printable invitations and party packages for birthdays and baby showers.  Most of the designs allow you to add a custom photo on the invitation for a personal touch.  Plus, if you are a business owner, you may be interested to know that Splash box offers custom Big Cartel themes, logo design, Facebook fan page, and business cards.

Image of Dr. Seuss Printable DIY Baby Shower Package (Cat in the Hat) Image of Dr. Seuss Printable DIY Baby Shower Package (Cat in the Hat) Image of Dr. Seuss Printable DIY Baby Shower Package (Cat in the Hat)

For the past few years, I have been getting more and more frustrated with birthday invitations.  Whether I am purchasing photo invitations from a photo website or purchasing the party themed invitations at a party store, I end up having to purchase way more invitations than I need.  One year I needed 10 invitations and each pack of invitations contained 8 invitations, so I had to buy 16 invitations.  Another year I ordered custom photo invitations and there was a purchase minimum of 20 invitations.  Needless, to say over the years I have bought way more invitations than I needed, and many of them were not the best of quality.  This year I did some research and had my son’s birthday party invitations designed by Splash Box.  It was a joy to work with them.  The invitation was completed quickly and the design was amazing!  Not only did I not have to purchase more invitations than I needed, but our  Splash Box invitation was great quality and very unique!

I am so happy I used Splash Box to design my son’s birthday invitations.  As you can see in the photo above, they turned out fabulous!  For privacy reasons, I did white out our home address and my phone number off of the invitation, but you get the idea!  Once Splash Box completed the design of my son’s invitation, they emailed me the invitation in both a 4×6 and a 5×7 digital file.  I simply purchased a package of card stock at my local hobby store and printed my son’s invitations on that paper.  I was able to print two invitations per page and they printed onto the paper great.  I also liked having the digital copy so I could email people the invitation.  This worked great for people who tend to lose invitations or simply prefer email as a form of communication.  I must say I am now in love with printable invitations.  They are very fun and unique, yet they don’t cost very much!  I already have my eye on the Mickey Mouse invitation for my baby boy’s birthday later this year.  He is a big Mickey fan and would love to see a picture of himself on the Splash Box Mickey Mouse Clubhouse birthday invitation!

Buy It!

You can purchase custom printable invitations and party packages online at Splash Box Designs.  If you enjoy shopping Etsy, you can also visit the Splash Box Printables Etsy shop.

Win It!

THREE lucky readers at The Children’s Nook are going to win his or her choice of a printable invitation!  Mandatory Entry:  Visit Splash Box Designs and come back here to leave me a comment sharing which item is your favorite.

Extra Entries (Leave a separate comment for each extra entry)

  • New! Follow The Children’s Nook on Google+ (2 entries)
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  • Tweet the following: “#Win Custom Invitations from Splash Box @childrensnook Birthday Bash! http://wp.me/pX9wg-1AU 3 Winners! #Giveaway open to US/CAN” (Leave a link to your tweet. You may tweet once a day for 1 entry per day)
  • Follow me on Pinterest (2 entries)
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  • Comment on any other non-giveaway post on this blog and leave a comment here telling me which post you commented on (1 entry)
  • Share this giveaway on Facebook, Pinterest or your Blog and post a link to your post in the comments below (2 entries)
  • Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 entry per giveaway)
  • Place my button from this website on your blog (2 entries)
  • If you pinned the Birthday Bash post before May 1st (1 entry)

Giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. (central time) on June 6, 2012.  This giveaway is open to residents in both U.S. and Canada!  The winner will be selected by random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Splash Box provided a printable Thomas the train invitation for review purposes.  All opinions are mine alone.

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