My kids love playing games, so I was thrilled recently to be able to review the newer game – UNO Roboto. I wasn’t really familiar with the game, but my kids had loved before when we had played a more traditional UNO, so I was hoping that it would be at least as much fun as that.

I was delighted that not only was it just as much fun as a traditional UNO game, but it was much more fun!  We had the opportunity to invite some friends over for a special UNO Roboto party (with pizza, drinks, and special cupcakes), as well as to later take it along with us when we went to visit family for Thanksgiving.  Every time we introduced it to someone new, it was a hit.  (After our UNO Roboto party, our friends even asked their Mom if they might be able to get an UNO Roboto game for Christmas.)

Yum! Don't you just love our special numbered cupcakes?

The game is easy to use, and UNO Roboto helps to lead you through some of the start-up directions.  To begin, each player (there can be between 2 – 6 players) is asked to record their names.  While people have typically been recording their real names, every so often, someone decided to record something funny, like “Jack the Great” and “Grace the Champion.”

Recording Her Name

Our only “complaint,” which is really hardly even a complaint, is that it doesn’t really sound like the person’s voice that has recorded it.  It sounds much lighter and younger.  (This added to some of the hilarity, but I don’t think that was intentional.)  Plus, it did cause a slight problem at our party that the game could only accomodate six players, as we had eight people.

After all players record their names, then one player is asked to record a House Rule (they ask a specific player to do that).  Our house rules have been everything from “Make a Fish Face” to “Rub Your Tummy and Pat Your Head,” and more. During different points in the game, it will then randomly tell you to do the House Rule (and plays the original recording of it back to everyone).  There is also an option to skip having a House Rule, if you prefer.

The house rule was to stick out their tongues

Game play begins after the House Rule is made, and then is played just like traditional UNO.  Well, except for the fact that every so often, UNO Roboto will break into play with some decree, such as saying the name of a certain player and telling them to discard all of their yellow cards or swap cards with a specific other player.  There are so many different options that I still don’t think we’ve heard them all.

The kids especially enjoy when it’s time for a duel.  UNO Roboto names two players, tells them it’s time for a duel, and then announces what they both must do, such as touch their toes.  It then tells whomever was last to do it to draw two cards.

We really enjoyed UNO Roboto, and I’m so excited that we were able to add it to our collection of games.  Not only did the kids have a blast at our UNO Roboto party with friends, but we even had some times at Thanksgiving when only adults were playing together.

Playing UNO Roboto

I would definitely recommend this game as a great addition to the Christmas gifts that you give this year.  I know it is a game that we’ll play over and over again!

Want a free Shutterfly book?  Check out a deal that Toys R Us is currently running (through the end of the year) in conjunction with Mattel games!

Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of UNO Roboto and received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Are You Ready to Play UNO? Roboto Style! is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I’m super excited to share about the steam mop that I have recently been able to try out – The Steam-It by Oreck!  And, not only am I excited to share about our experiences with the Steam-It, but I’m thrilled that one of you will be able to win your very own Steam-It Steam Mop too!

This steam mop is so cool and versatile.  The Steam-It comes with six different attachments making it not just a mop, but a tool that is truly useful throughout the house.  The six attachments make it possible to clean all of the following with the Oreck Steam-It Steam Mop:

• Drapes, crown molding, and ceiling fans (Yes, this means it can be held up over your head and it still works!)
• Upholstery
• Floors (most flooring surfaces including marble, ceramic, stone, vinyl, linoleum and sealed hardwood floors)
• Kitchen and bathroom counters, sinks and appliances
• Shower Grout
• Windows

I just love it when I can get one product that can serve so many purposes.  When I first heard about the Steam-It Steam Mop, I was really pleased at the thought of trying it out.  But, then when I heard that it was so versatile, that’s when I got really excited!  If you’re like me, you don’t need anything else taking up space in your house, so having an appliance that can serve multiple purposes is such a blessing.

Besides serving multiple purposes, two of my favorite features about the Steam-It steam mop are:

1. No Harsh Chemicals – This steam mop cleans with steam, obviously.  So, you know what that means?  It’s just hot water.  Love it!  Great for the health of my family (and the environment).

2. Reusable Pads – A couple of the attachments use microfiber pads, such as for mopping.  There are two of each pad, which is great for when one is in the wash.  I love that this isn’t a product where you have to keep buying pads over and over again.  Again – great for my family (on our budget) and great for the environment.

Mopping is definitely the thing that we’ve used the Oreck Steam-It for the most often.  I had never been able to find a mop that I liked enough to save me from just getting on my hands and knees to clean the kitchen floor.  (This is especially tough for me, with one knee that is bad.)  The Steam-It is definitely saving my knee!  And, at just about 10 pounds, the Steam-It is even easy enough for all of my kids to use it to mop!

(Did you notice?  Even the seven year old is able to use it one handed!  However, this is the point where I have to say – really, this is some hot steam.  So, only let someone use it who would know better than to touch the steam area.)

Check out how gross the pad is after cleaning our small kitchen…

But, of course, like I already mentioned – I just threw the pad in the wash after using it.  (And, I had a clean one, in case I wanted to mop again before that pad was clean.)

Now is the point where I show you another area of my house that I would normally not show anyone…

I’m not sure why, but the grout in one of our showers always stays nice and white.  But, in our other shower – it’s just gross.  And, because I’m domestically challenged, I have a special way of dealing with that.  I ignore it.

The Steam-It made me not ignore that grout any longer.  Because we had ignored it for so long, we had to put in some serious work on the shower.  (Eric worked with me.)  We also decided that with a smaller attachment on the Steam-It, we felt like we were using some sort of Sci-Fi/Storm Trooper kind of weapon.  I asked Eric, “Do you think this is what they use the clean the bathrooms on the Death Star?”

As I mentioned already, the Steam-It can be used in an upside down position, which is great for so many of the non-mopping uses.

Seriously -- it kind of looks like a weapon, doesn't it?

It even made my shower cry! (Or, you know, something like that.)

While the first cleaning didn’t get my grout sparkling white all over (it was really bad to start with, that’s not the Steam-It’s fault), it made such a huge improvement!  When I showered the next time after cleaning, I was shocked when I pushed back the shower curtain.  Not every inch was sparkling white, but most of it was.  With a second cleaning, I would fully expect it to be completely clean.  (Yeah, I’ll admit it, I haven’t done a second cleaning of the shower with the Steam-It.  But, I am sure that I’m not going to ignore the grout any longer.  It was actually kind of fun cleaning it with the Steam-It.)

I’m really thrilled with our Oreck Steam-It Steam Mop!  I love that it’s well made and so versatile.  I can see us using this for many years to come.

Now, here’s the extra fun part — I get to give one of these awesome Steam-It steam mops away, which retails for $179.99. (Even if you don’t think you need one of these, you probably do.  But, if you really, really think you don’t need it, think about what an awesome Christmas gift this could be!)

The giveaway will be open until Sunday, November 20th at 11:59 pm EST. There are multiple ways to win, and you’ll need to leave a separate comment for each entry.  (The winner will be randomly chosen using the And the Winner Is… plugin.  Please note: To enter, you must be a resident of the U.S. 48 contiguous states and at least 18 years of age.)

How to enter to win a Steam-It Steam Mop:

Required Entry:

1. Visit Oreck.com and tell us one thing you learned about the Steam-It.

Optional Entries (leave a separate comment for each):

2. Follow @oreck on Twitter.

3. Like Oreck on Facebook.*

4. Sign up for Oreck’s email list by clicking on “Sign up for Email” in the top navigation bar and entering your email address.

5. Tweet about this giveaway, mentioning both @angie76 and @oreck with a link to this post ( http://bit.ly/viS0Oq ).

6. Subscribe to Many Little Blessings via RSS feed or right into your email inbox.

7. Follow @angie76 on Twitter or become a friend via Google Friend Connect.  (Pick only one of these options.)

——-

Disclosure: I received an Oreck Steam-It Steam Mop (to keep) in order to review the product.  I was not otherwise compensated for this review.  I was asked to share my honest opinions and experiences with the Steam-It.

Please Note: Oreck Corporation provided the prize for the sweepstakes but is not the sponsor of the sweepstakes.

Terms and Conditions for Giveaways/Sweepstakes on Many Little Blessings.

* Facebook does not sponsor or endorse this giveaway. They are not affiliated with this blog in any way.

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday, because this steam mop definitely works for me!

Oreck Steam-It Steam Mop Review and Giveaway is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I was recently contacted by Loyola Press to review the First Communion kit that they have available – Adaptive First Eucharist Preparation Kit (which has a subtitle of: For Children with Autism and Other Special Needs). The people at Loyola Press had read about my own personal experience with having a child with Autism making his First Holy Communion, and they knew it held a special place in my heart.

I agreed to review the product, knowing that I didn’t personal have a need for it anymore, but just because I knew the worry of preparing for something so sacred while thinking things like, “What if he refuses?” or “What if he doesn’t like the taste and spits it out?”  Those worries can change what is supposed to be such a beautiful day into a day of worry.

I will admit that I didn’t really have any expectations about the kit.  Not that I expected it to be bad, I just didn’t have a strong feeling either way.  However, when I opened it and started looking through it — I loved it! And, mind you, that’s not just me as a Mom of someone with Autism (especially since my son is very high functioning), but it was me as someone with a masters degree in special education and having worked with kids with more needs than my own.  As a matter of fact, I had to call Eric over and was excited to show off the whole kit to him too.

From the back of the box:

It can be difficult for children with autism and other special needs to meet USCCB Eucharist requirements for individuals with disabilities – to distinguish the Holy Eucharist from ordinary food and to receive Eucharist reverently.

The learning tools in this kit have been used successfully by many children to enter fully into the faith experience and become prepared to receive the Eucharist.”

This kit definitely meets all of those intentions!  It includes the following cards or books: a helper guide, My Picture Missal, Mass Cards, Bless Yourself, Who is Jesus?, Communion is Not the Same as Food, How to Receive Communion, I Receive Communion, and a backpack.

All of these items are extremely friendly for children with special needs preparing for First Communion. Really, I also thought that most of this kit would be fabulous for small children, as not everything focuses on First Communion.  (The pieces that I thought would be especially good for small children would be Who is Jesus?, My Picture Missal, and Bless Yourself.

The items in this kit are very hands on, and make a lot of use of PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System).  (PECS for First Communion?  Awesome!)

I really loved the My Picture Missal, as it has the order of the Mass in PECS, having what we do on the page (in picture form) with whether we sit, stand, or kneel next to it.  This, along with several of the other parts of the kit, make it perfect for small children or those with special needs (even adults with lower cognitive function). In fact, I think many of the parts of this kit make it perfect for someone with special needs (especially someone who normally uses PECS) even if they are unable to receive Holy Communion.

You can read more about each element in the Adaptive First Communion Kit on Loyola Press’ website.

I was really impressed with the thought that went into this kit. It brings up several things that might be of concern to kids with Autism about Communion, that I might not have thought of.  In the removable piece “How to Take Communion” board, one of the items is standing in line, for example.

In the  I Receive Communion book, there were two things that I really loved that showed a lot of thought.  One is that it tells the children that sometimes the priest gives Communion, and sometimes it is a man or a woman, and then follows that up with “It’s OK.  It is still Jesus.”  The very next page also acknowledges what I think a lot of parents with kids with Autism (and some other special needs) worry about, “Sometimes I don’t like the taste.”  But, then the next page says, “But I eat it all up.”

I never imagined that this review would end up sounding so much like gushing about the kit, but really – I can’t help it.  This is well made, and I think it can be a blessing to so many families. The only downfall, perhaps, is that the kit currently costs $59.99, with discounts for more kits being bought.  However, if this is something your child really needs, you might be able to ask your parish if they would purchase a kit (or multiple kits at a discount) for use by their religious education department.  I will add, however, that I don’t think the pricing is out of line.  This is a well made kit, and I was very impressed with it.

Thank you so much to Loyola Press for sending me a copy to review, and also for taking the time to mass produce this kit, as I know it something that is needed by so many families.

Disclosure: I received this kit at no cost from Loyola Press, and was not otherwise compensated.  (After reviewing the kit, I donated it to my parish.)   All opinions are my own.

Need more information on preparing for First Communion?  From banners to homemade dresses, from do it yourself themed First Communion cakes to learning ideas – check out the First Communion Resource Page!

First Communion Preparation for Kids with Autism (and Other Special Needs) is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I was very pleased recently to get a chance to try out the Dish Drying Mats from Garden Botanika.  Well, hang on.  That’s not exactly true.  Actually – I was going to try them out, but I kind of thought, “I’m not exactly sure what I’m going to do with these, since I don’t even use a dish drying rack.”

Imagine my surprise when I found so many different ways that I was using my mats!  With double sided microfiber and a woven pattern that pulls water away, it was easy to find lots of uses when I just left it sitting next to the sink.

Since we’ve been trying hard to eat more fruits and vegetables around our house, my favorite usage for the mats was definitely being able to put washed produce on it.  Loved that!  Because of this, I could definitely see how it would be very useful to have multiple mats.  That way, you could have a specific mat just for food usage.  (This is possible because the mats are machine washable.  When I washed mine, all the red from the strawberries and blue from the blueberries came right out.)

As I already mentioned, I do all of my dishes in the dishwasher.  However, the mat has been great to use with pans, as well as with my favorite cups (which need to be hand washed and it is recommended that you air dry them).  In fact, I was surprised to be able to fit both of my favorite cups as well as two pans onto the smallest of the dish mats (which is 16″ x 18″).  Check it out!

These mats are definitely not just for dish drying!  Being available in three different sizes (16×18, 18×24, and 18×32), as well as in six different colors, the mats lend themselves well to having multiple sizes and colors all around the house.

I’m very excited that not only am I giving away three mats in sage green here on my blog, but some of my wonderful blogging friends are also giving away mats in a variety of colors on their blogs!

To enter for a chance to win one of three sage green mats (in the 16×18 size), leave a comment about what you would use a mat for in your home (whether it be for dish drying, under a fish tank…whatever!).

That’s it — easy peasy!

The comments section will close at 10 pm EST on Thursday, October 20, 2011.  Three winners will be chosen on October 20th and each winner will receive one sage green dish mat.

If sage green isn’t your thing (or you just want to increase your chances of winning, maybe even to be able to give some Christmas gifts), be sure to check out all of the colors that some of my friends are also giving away:

A Slob Comes Clean –Coastal Blue

Spell Outloud — Coastal Blue

Finding Joy — Sage Green

Jimmie’s Collage — Gray

Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers — Gray

Raising Arrows –Red

Crispy Not Crunchy — Black

Feels Like Home –Red

An Oregon Cottage — Cream

Mama’s Learning Corner — Black

RULES: Prizes can be shipped only to continental US addresses. You will be contacted by email and must reply within 48 hours to claim your prize. If you do not claim your prize, another winner will be chosen.

Disclosure: I received three mats in order to review this product.  I was also compensated for my time in reviewing the mats and writing a review.  All opinions are honest and my own.  (This post also contains an affiliate link.)

A Dish Mat That Does A Lot More Than Drying Dishes (Plus a Giveaway) is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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~ 1 ~

As I already mentioned, Molly had a birthday this week! How did it happen that I’m now the mother of kids ages 7 – 12?

Molly decided to forgo receiving an actual gift from us, and instead opted for going out for a manicure (it was a first for both of us!) and then to get her ears pierced.

She has been so excited for months to get her ears pierced, so it was pretty heart breaking when she sat in the chair shaking with sweaty hands and a quivering chin.  I told her she didn’t have to do it, but she finally decided that she really wanted to do it and would feel sad to tell one of her best girlfriends (who just got her ears pierced) that she had decided not to.

She was quite a trooper, and was very glad that she went through with it.

~ 2 ~

During the ear piercing, Molly sat on my Mom’s lap (while she also held my hands).  One of my favorite things about it was that afterwards, she looked lovingly at my Mom and said, “I couldn’t have done it without you, Grandma.”

~ 3 ~

Last week, I broke down and bought a steam cleaner that I had on my Amazon wishlist for a while.  I hadn’t had my carpets cleaned in several years, and just had a strong urge to have them cleaned in a way that vacuuming just doesn’t do.  So, I got a Hoover SteamVac and made plans to clean the carpet over the weekend.

I can’t believe that I’m going to show you the worst area of my carpet, but just for this, I will.  But, I must first say that: (1) This is actually behind a place that the kids sometime sit, so it is not readily visible to people who come to our house; (2) I have no idea what made these marks; (3) They’ve been there a while.  I think it’s from juice cups that fell over years ago.  Okay, so here it is:

Blech, right?

While I would love to say that all of the spots came up, you have to keep in mind that this was a really bad area and the spots have been there for years now.  Here it was after the steam cleaner:

Awesome, huh?  I was pretty psyched!  And, my carpet looks and feels great.  Yeah!

Want to see another gross thing?  Here’s some of the dirty water (and there was a bunch of sludge looking stuff at the bottom):

~ 4 ~

Have you visited the post about Personal Hygiene for Tweens and Teens that I wrote over at The Homeschool Classroom?  Go check it out, and enter for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card plus a prize pack!

~ 5 ~

I have noticed that I’ve had a really difficult time staying focused on tasks lately. Do you ever get like this?  What things do you do when you just can’t seem to stay focused?

~ 6 ~

Although we’re PC users around our house, we are pretty die hard Apple fans – owning a variety of iPods, an iPad, and iPhones.  But, you know what?  Even if we weren’t, we’d still be sad about the news of Steve Jobs’ passing.

I still remember my very first iPod.  It was one of the 30 gb video ones many years ago.  I put off getting an iPod for a long time, though I love music.  I bought some cheap MP3 player and filled it with my own CDs and Napster (when Napster was a paid service – I’m not into stealing music).  That MP3 player was such a pain, but I kept using it.

This is going to sound overly dramatic, but then I got that iPod for Christmas, and it was life changing.  I’m such a music junkie.  I knew I would never go back to cheap MP3 players again.  I was an iPod girl.

Check it out — I even have a blog category devoted just to iPods, iPads, iPhones, and Apps.

~ 7 ~

“Almost everything–all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure–these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” – Steve Jobs

This post is linked to 7 Quick Takes and Weekly Wrap Up.

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7 Quick Takes: October 7, 2011 (Vol. 99) is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I was recently able to review the ebook Feast in 15 by Tiffany King, which is available both as an ebook download or as a Kindle book.  I was really excited to have a chance to do that, especially after being able to spend some time with Tiffany (and hear about the book) while we were both at Savvy Blogging Summit.

Even though I used to do an amazing job of menu planning (planning even a whole month at a time), I have really fallen off the wagon as far as that’s concerned.  For whatever reason, I just can’t seem to manage to get back into the swing of things where menu planning is concerned.  This is why I was especially interested in the ebook when I heard about it!

I really like that there are a good variety of types of recipes included in the ebook – from soups to quesadillas to pastas and more. For me, I have to admit that I would have preferred to have seen pictures of each recipe, but that’s just how I roll.  I’m pretty visual like that, especially when it comes to recipes and deciding what I really want to make.  On the plus side, since the recipes aren’t complicated, it’s easy to picture them in your head and make menu planning decisions.

A real hallmark to this ready in 15 minutes part is having meat already cooked, just waiting in the freezer for your use.  But, Tiffany is very upfront in the book that some of the recipes are only 15 minute meals because of the precooked meat.  Not having the meat precooked can mean either making it without meat or just spend more than 15 minutes.  (This is not true with all recipes, however.)  Meat can easily be precooked by doing things like browning three pounds of ground beef when you are making a recipe that calls for one pound.  Then, just freeze the other two pounds.

In the book, Tiffany also compiles two weekly grocery shopping lists for each of two menus (based on dinners from the book).  Although I don’t know that I would use it like that, that’s probably only because my kids are too picky to introduce that many new meals to them all at once.

I did like, however, that the meals weren’t all crazy and out there.  There were definitely quite a few of them that even my picky kids would eat.  That is always a plus, for us, with any cookbook.

Thank you so much to Tiffany for sending me a copy to review.  I’m thrilled to share that I have an ebook to giveaway as well! But, don’t worry about waiting to buy until the end of the giveaway – Tiffany has promised to refund the money of the winner, if they buy the book and then find out that they won.  (Bonus!)

To enter, just do one (or all) of the following by Monday, September 12, 2011 at 11:59 pm EST:

1. Leave a comment on this post, and tell me your family’s favorite go-to dinner idea.

2. Follow Tiffany on Twitter or Facebook – come back and comment that you have.

3. Subscribe to Many Little Blessings via RSS Feed or Email.  Post to let me know that you subscribe.  (If you already subscribe, just let me know that too.)

This post contains affiliate links.  They don’t cost you any extra, but they help to support this site.  Thanks!

Feast in 15 Ebook Review and Giveaway is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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~ 1 ~

I’ve been in a writing slump lately.

Oh, you noticed?  Yeah, it’s hard to hide when I’m only posting a couple of times a week.  I’m going to make an attempt to whittle down my to-do list to see if it clears up my mind, and makes me feel more at ease.

But, if there is something that you want me to write about or just a question that you’ve always wondered about (or just wondered about right at this moment), feel free to leave it in the comments too.

~ 2 ~

I briefly mentioned it last week, but will mention it more now — Molly and Jack got to see their very first concert!

All of us (except Noah, who wouldn’t deal well with the noise) went to see Matt Maher in concert (at a church, but it definitely felt like a real concert), and it was so awesome!  We went with two other families we know (that also homeschool), and that made it even more wonderful!  Really — how could it have been anything less than wonderful?  Good friends, good music, and a wonderful message.

If you like Christian music and aren’t familiar with Matt Maher, here are a couple of my favorite songs by him (links to YouTube):

Christ is Risen

Hold Us Together (and here it is being performed live by Matt on K-LOVE)

~ 3 ~

Since going to the concert, I can’t seem to stop listening to the Matt Maher songs that I have on my iPod.  Then again, I do tend to find certain songs or albums that I just listen to until it gets to the point that I have to take a break from them.  (Obsessive much?)

Some other recent albums that I listened so much that I’m surprised it didn’t corrupt the files on my iPod are the Christmas album by Relient K (which I will listen to at all times of the year) and the soundtrack to Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.

What have you been listening to lately?

~ 4 ~

Speaking of great things — I tried a new hair product that I really like!  (How’s that for changing subjects?)  Yes, you might be thinking, “Angie, when do you write about hair products?”"

Yeah, I know!  That must mean that I really like this one then, huh?

Paul Mitchell Quick Slip

Not only did it cut down on my drying time (which I noticed before I even saw that it was supposed to do that), but it also has made my hair feel soft and shiny.  I’ve only used it a few times so far, but I’m really pleased to have found it (thanks to my hair dresser).  Plus, it’s super quick to use — just put a little in the palm of your hand and then run your hands through your damp hair (just out of the shower).

~ 5 ~

We only have about 20 more official instructional days before we’ve met the state’s 180 school days requirement!  We’re all thrilled for that.  (Don’t tell — but I think I’m most excited.)

Now, that doesn’t mean that we aren’t learning every day, but it’s just always nice to make that 180th mark on our attendance calendar.  Then, I think we’ll take some time off, and then hopefully get into officially working on school a couple of times  a week throughout the summer.

~ 6 ~

Every year, I plan on working on some school during the summer.  Every year, we just enjoy our free time too much and don’t do any formal instruction.

Like I already said though, of course, we’re learning all summer long.  From Vacation Bible School to 4-H projects to taking care of the garden to science videos to just living life.

So, let’s see if I actually break down and do some formal instruction over the summer.  What’s your guess?  Will we do it or won’t we?

~ 7 ~

Unlike many, many homeschoolers, we have steered clear of studying Latin.

Yes, I know — it’s shocking.  It makes us the black sheep at our Catholic homeschooling group.  (That and the fact that we only have three children and clearly don’t seem to intend to add to that number.)

Then, all of the sudden the other day, Noah was working on reading some genus and species names (since all of the kids love animals) and he just turned to me and said, “Mom – I would really like it if we could study Latin.”

What?

This is, of course, coming from the child that took half a year of Latin at our co-op and then told the instructor that while he really liked her, he just didn’t feel “like Latin was [his] thing.”

Now I’m left wondering whether that means that I actually have to look into doing Latin, especially since we’ve already been working on French and I have a lot of materials for that.

This post is linked to 7 Quick Takes and Weekly Wrap Up.

7 Quick Takes: April 21, 2011 (Vol. 78) is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I’ve been pretty open about my prior complete lack of domestic skills, and the fact that it’s an area that I’ve really been trying to grow in over the last few years.  Given this, I was thrilled to be given the chance to review the book Home-Ec 101: Skills for Everyday Living by Heather Solos.  It’s like taking a Home-Ec 101 class from the comfort of your own home!

Side Note: Did I ever mention that Heather and I are practically best friends?  Oh, I didn’t?  It’s probably because that’s not entirely true (you know, at all).  But, I have met her in person and talked to her while we ate breakfast on the steps at Blissdom 2010.  (We also ate with Meredith and Jordana.  I miss Meredith’s blog, don’t you?)

The book is broken up into sections called Cook It, Clean It, Fix It, and Wash It. I really enjoyed each section of the book, and couldn’t believe how many times I said, “Hey Eric – listen to this!”  (I did most of my reading while we were on a car trip.)  Some of these mentions included me saying things like, “Did you know we’re supposed to clean (whatever)?”  To which he would say something like, “Uh…no.”  Luckily, not only did we now know that we had to clean things we didn’t even know we had, but there were also directions.

One of the ones I was most excited about was the shower drain.  We’ve been having trouble off and on with a funky smell in our bathroom.  After not figuring out where it was coming from for a while, we finally wondered about the shower drain.  Imagine my delight to read about it in the book, complete with directions on the best way to clean it out.

There were so many wonderful tips and gems that I found throughout the book — I can’t wait to try them all out. I have already been implementing some of her laundry tips, and I’m seeing some nice results.  I plan on trying some more tips from throughout the book soon, and I’m positive that this will be one of those books that I pull off the bookshelf from time to time when I need to read about how to do something around the house.

I love the conversational tone of Heather’s book, as well as all of the humorous remarks throughout.  Who knew I would laugh so many times while reading a book called Home-Ec 101: Skills for Everyday Living?  How can you go wrong with a book that quotes Sheldon Cooper and the Choppin’ Broccoli song from Dana Carvey?

I think this book would be an amazing gift to give to someone who is newly starting a household, as a wedding shower gift, to someone leaving home for the first time, or for a friend or relative who struggles in this area.  (Of course, it would be best if that last one was also someone that you knew would appreciate it and not take it as a hint that you think they are Home Ec Challenged.)

Is there an area of Home Economics that you feel like you lack skills?  What is something that you would like to learn how to do (or just do better)?

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday, because this book definitely works for me!

Disclosure Policy

I received this book for free to review.  I was not given any other compensation for this review.  All opinions are my own.

Home-Ec 101 in the Comfort of Your Own Home is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I’ve been a do-it-yourself kind of gal in the area of making First Communion Banners.  We just used the banner provided to us by our church and then decorated it ourselves with felt, puffy paints, and Tacky Glue.  (Our banners look very similar though, I have to admit.  First Communion banner from 2008 and First Communion banner from 2009.)

This year, although we are not celebrating a First Communion in our house, I was provided (at no cost to me) with two First Communion Banner Kits from Catholic Child Catalog.  They wanted me to try my hand at putting one of them together, and then they sent another one so that I could give it away.

(Keep reading, even if you also don’t have a First Communion in your house this year.  I put a spin on the one that I put together so that these kits aren’t only great for First Communion banners, they are also great as a wonderful and inspirational craft project!  You might just want to win one of these after all!)

Catholic Child Catalog carries a great variety of First Communion Banner Kits!  With the kits costing under $20, it is definitely a reasonable investment to save yourself from the time and money of putting together the supplies yourself, especially if you’re not naturally inclined in that area.

I received two kits of the Ten Commandments Design Banner Kit.  Here’s the front of the box:

And check out all those supplies inside (I was actually pretty shocked at everything that was included):

I also liked that there were several pages of written instructions.  Not only does it help those who are a bit craft-challenged, but it gives ideas for multiple ways that you can put your banner together.  My favorite part of the instruction sheets, however, is that it is set up for a parent to do this with their child.  There are things for the parent to read to the child throughout the banner making process.  Even something as simple as putting on six tabs at the top becomes a reminder to your child about the six days of creation before a day of rest.  Both Eric and I were really impressed by those notes.

There are many times throughout this project that you will be leaving things to dry.  So, while I think (in theory) this could be completed the day before it was due, that just might be pushing it.  Leave yourself a little time so that neither you or your child gets frustrated while putting these together.  It is supposed to be an enjoyable family time, not a “Hurry up, Susie, or you’re going to your room” kind of thing.  (With that being said, why not just go order a First Communion banner kit right now?)

My point in telling you this is not only to let you know that you will spend a little time on this project, but also so you understand why some of my pictures look different.  I actually did this project over a several day period.  Doing a step, letting it dry, and then coming back to it later.  I really enjoyed doing it like that, and you probably will too.  (Trust me.)

Here’s where I give you another tip — I was impressed with everything in the box, but as I started putting it together I thought, “I’m not going to like this.”  I don’t know why.  I just thought that.  (Want to know a secret?  I really love the finished product, and I can’t believe that I thought I wasn’t going to like it.  I’m thrilled with it!)

While I’m not going to give a step by step on this banner kit, I’m going to give you some previews of it.  The first thing I did was make the chalice.  I liked that they sent two shapes of different colors.  Then it was up to me as to how I wanted to decorate it, with them giving a suggestion.  I used pinking sheers to mix it up a bit.  (This is code for: All I could find were my pinking sheers.)

I was getting pretty close to being done here, but not quite.  I had to wait for everything to dry (that’s why the grapes all look a little funny).  After they dried, I would be able to use glitter glue to jazz it up.  I had already used glitter glue to decorate the Ten Commandments tablet.  Pretty cool, huh?  (The kit included a template so that I was easily able to make it with a more layered effect around the edges.)

The kids loved the jewels that came to decorate the chalice.  (I did too!)

After I jazzed the leaves and grapes up with glitter (which made a huge difference), I was left with a big open spot.  This was the spot to put in someone’s name.  But, then my deliemma was that I loved the banner, but didn’t have a use for it if I put a name on it.  I realized that I could put a twist on this and have it be something we could hang in our house all of the time.

I went out in search for something else to write in my open space.  I also went out in search of the hanging ribbon that came in the kit.  I don’t know where it went, as it went missing somewhere on my kitchen counter and was never to be found again.  (My fault, not the kit’s fault.)

Finally, I was able to finish up this First Communion Banner Kit, but with my own special twist to make it a great family banner:

I’m afraid that this last picture just might not do it justice.  I love it.  I love it enough that I might just have to buy another First Communion Banner Kit sometime, but use it was a family banner again.  I even thought it might be great for homeschooling families (such as ours) to decorate with their homeschool name!

I really had a good time with this project, and I think you might too!

So, if you are celebrating a First Communion this year or if you just want to decorate it as an inspirational banner for your home, I’ve got a giveaway for you!  From now until Thursday, March 24th at 11:59 pm EST, I’ll have the comments open for you to enter to win a First Communion Banner Kit from Catholic Child — The Deluxe Ten Commandments Kit.

How to enter (leave each as a separate comment):

1. Leave a Comment (easy peasy!)

2. Go to Catholic Child Catalog’s website and share what you would buy if you could buy anything.

3. Subscribe to Many Little Blessings via RSS feed or email.  (If you already subscribe, just leave a comment that you already subscribe.)

Good luck!  Winner will be announced at the end of next week!

If you are preparing for a First Communion in your house, make sure to check out my First Communion Resources page for tips, ideas, and projects.

Disclosure: I received two free kits from Catholic Child Catalog for this post.  One was for me to keep and use, while the other was to be given away.  Catholic Child Catalog is also helping to sponsor my trip to Savvy Blogging Summit this year.  All opinions are my own, however, and I was not advised how or what to post in any way.

Using a Kit to Make Your First Communion Banner (Plus a Giveaway) is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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I have resisted getting an iPhone for years now. I’d play it off, “Oh, I don’t mind.  I’m with Verizon and don’t really want to switch.”  Then, of course, Verizon got the iPhone.  Once that argument was gone, I’d say, “Well, I already have an iPod Touch and an iPad, so an iPhone just seems superfluous.”

I continued with my “no need for an iPhone” as we looked at phones over the last several months.  We had phone upgrades available to us, and the EnV2 phones that we had had been riddled with problems over the entire two (plus) years that we’d had them. To me, the problems were not a huge deal.  Eric’s phone, however, was likely possessed.  It constantly turned off all by itself, especially of the last six months.  He was desperate for us to just decide on some new phones.

The problem was – we didn’t really like any of the phones with no additional data packages needed.  We tried to like them.  We read reviews, looked at features, but nothing.  So, we set our eyes on something in the $10/month data range.  This weekend, however, I casually said, “Maybe I should just get an iPhone.”  Eric quickly said, “Sure.”

I wasn’t sold on it, but we went to Verizon to look at phones.  We had agreed that I would get an iPhone (maybe) and Eric would get a much less expensive phone.  As we started looking at the iPhones, I saw a glint in Eric’s eyes that surprised me. “You know, you could get an iPhone, if you really wanted,” I offered up, in a way that I thought Eric would say, “There’s no need for that.”

Instead, he said, “Okay!”

I cringed (on the inside) the whole time we were buying them.  But, in less than 24 hours, I loved it.  (Really — probably in less than 24 minutes.)

So, after acting like I didn’t want one for several years, here are 10 reasons why I already love my iPhone:

An Instagram photo of a drawing of Molly's

1.I love Instagram! (It’s a free picture app.) – I have to admit, I think this is my very favorite part of the iPhone.  (You can use it with a newer iPod Touch and I imagine with the iPad 2, but I haven’t had either of these that included a camera.)  I’m having so much fun taking pictures, sharing them with friends, and seeing what they’re taking pictures of too.

2. I always have my calendar with me. I am pretty good about bringing my iPod Touch around with me because I have it (and my iPad) connected to my Google Calendar.  Now that I have my iPhone, I will have my calendar with me even more often (since I rarely forget my phone at home).

3. Facetime is a hoot. We have only used it to call each other, and also let the kids join in, but it’s still a hoot.  I think it will especially be nice when one of us is out of town.  Then we’ll be able to not only talk, but also see each other.  That will make it extra special to say goodnight to the kids when I’m away.

4. My music is always with me too! Again, I usually had my iPod Touch with me, but I certainly did forget it sometimes.  Since I’m crazy about music, it’s just one of those things that I love having with me.

Mine looks like this, except it's pink and pink.

5. I have a cute case. I know this sounds dumb, but I love the light pink and dark pink case that I picked out.  It makes me smile when I see it.

6. I can look up information while we’re out. Right after we left Verizon, we wanted to go to a big hardware store.  We weren’t sure about what time they closed.  Rather than driving out of the way to find a closed store, I just looked up their website and found out what time they closed.  Yeah!

7. It will be nice to have at blog conferences. It seems like almost everyone has a smart phone at blog conferences.  While I didn’t mind not having one before, there were the occasional, “Let’s decide on a time to meet up later.  I’ll post on Twitter.”  While that was fine for everyone with smart phones, for me it meant either having to get someone to text me the information or needing to get out my computer to check.  Not a huge deal, but a nice benefit as long as I have the phone anyway.

8. Apps! I’m a big fan of apps, and now I can share the apps that I already bought for my iPod Touch and iPad (in some instances) with my phone.  As long as I bought them (or downloaded them free) anyway, why not have them on my phone.  Yeah for apps!  What are your very favorite apps?

9. So much more fun for text messaging! Well, I will admit — I miss my QWERTY keyboard.  Not only do I miss typing on it, but I miss saying the word QWERTY.  So, apart from the lack of real keyboard (just touch screen), I like that I can scroll through a whole conversation, and not have to open individual texts.

10. Auto correct can make me giggle.  Of course, it’s only going to be funny as long as I catch when it changes my words to something crazy.  (And I love it when it fixes things for me.)  Just today, it wanted to switch “WooHoo” to “Elohim.”  And, while I suppose the middle two letters are the same, and I do like to say a nice “WooHoo” for God, I just don’t get the correction.  It made me giggle.

This post is linked to Top Ten Tuesday.

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10 Reasons I Love My New iPhone 4 is a post from: Many Little Blessings

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