And The Winner Is...

It's 12:01 on Saturday, July 28th and my giveaway has officially ended. I was shocked at how many people entered. 201! This was a lot of fun and Shannon has said that she will be hosting this again in the fall. Keep your eyes here to see what I'll giveaway next.

Now on to the winner. I've used Random.org to get the winning number. Who knew how long it would take to enter 201 numbers. You may not be interested in that...you probably want to know who the lucky winner is. I do hope that you all know that I wanted every one of you to win. You were all so kind in all of your comments. Gee, there I go again. Rambling on and not giving you the winner.

Number 196 won! It's Stacey from JameeForever. I'll email her and also comment on her blog that she won. I also took the next two numbers and they will win something special. The numbers were 34 which is Teresa (I'll email her as she doesn't have a blog) and number 114 which is Sincerely Anna (I'll email her and also leave a comment on her blog). Three wonderful winners. I'll put a picture up on here later for the two runners up as I haven't had time to take them yet.

Thanks to everyone that participated. I had a great time and can't wait to do it again. Who knows...maybe I'll do this more often. :)

Now I'm off to visit every one of your sites. Maybe not all in one day but I will visit. I would love to have you all come back and visit me sometime.

Dog Days of Summer Bloggy Giveaway

If you are looking for Friday's Feast please scroll down below this post...unless you would like to enter my giveaway! You have nothing to lose.

Sticky Note: This will stay up here until the giveaway has ended.

Update: Since I have had such a great response I have decided to extend the deadline. You will now have until Saturday, July 28, 12:00pm CST, to enter. I am also considering having some more prizes. So you never know...you could win!

I am late in starting this giveaway but couldn't resist. I am going to be giving away some AVON merchandise. If you are interested here is a link to the most current catalog: AVON or this one AVON. You can also go to my website!


It's easy to enter! All you have to do is leave me a comment. You don't have to be a blogger as long as you leave me an email address to contact you in case you are the winner. You will have until Friday, July 27, 7:00pm CST, to enter. Then I will collect all the entries, write down the comment numbers and then have the drawing.

What will I win you ask? Here are some pictures.

Relaxing Foam Bath12 fl. oz., Whipped Body Oil12 fl. oz., Replenishing Body Lotion12 fl. oz., Moisturizing Shower Gel 5 fl. oz.

And.....

A lovely necklace and earring set. I will also throw in a $10 off coupon for your first order!

Remember to go back to Shannon's site to see all the other wonderful giveaways!

Friday's Feast is Served!

Click on the above image to view more feasts!

First and foremost...check out my giveaway by going here!!!!!

Now on to the feast....

Appetizer: Describe a toy you remember from your childhood.

Lite Brite. Loved it and now my son has mine. :) Now just to find some of the papers that go with it.

Soup: On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being highest) how observant are you?

I would consider myself around an 8 or a 9.

Salad: Where would you rather be at this very moment?

At the ocean along with a day spa. Now that would be nice.

Main Course: When was the last time you learned something new?

The only thing that is coming to my mind right now is learning how to knit two years ago when my son gave me the "Teach Yourself To Knit" kit for Christmas.

Or it would be putting a bike chain on Sam's bike along with tightening the tires so that the chain doesn't slip that much.

Dessert: Fill in the blank: I have ____________ but I haven’t ____________.

I have the urge to have some sushi but I haven't the money or the time right now since it is 11:00 p.m. Maybe sometime soon. :)

Bummed Son

As stated previously Sam had his first playoff game last night. They were in first place and very pumped up for the game.

THEY LOST.

Some of the team took it hard including Sam. He came up to me (I was the dugout Mom so I was right there) with tears in his eyes telling me that he was sad because they lost and that they wouldn't be able to play the championship game. They were a great team as they went back out and congratulated the other team on a game well played.

I am so proud of not only my son but the whole team. They played their hearts out and had fun doing it.

This season was Sam's first time at machine pitch baseball. He got hurt a couple of times including last night when he slid into home plate. By the end of this season he learned how to hit well and to field balls. He is a great player and will learn more as he continues to play the game of baseball.

What's next? Soccer season. This so far this his favorite sport and he can't wait to get started.

GoodReads and Baseball Games

Thanks to Kristie again I have added GoodReads to my sidebar. You can list the books you are currently reading and the books that you have read. You can also rate the books that you have read along with doing a review. Thought that this might give me that kick in the rear to get me reading more again. Here it is as it stands now.



I thought of adding books that I have previously read but it has been quite awhile since I've seriously read a book. So I opted out of listing those at this time.

Sam has a playoff baseball game this evening. They came in first place for the season. He will either play the 4th or 5th place team this evening. Keep your fingers crossed and say a little prayer for his team. In his last game he hit a triple. My parents were down here to see that game. I'll add more pictures and tell about their visit later. Here is a picture of him hitting his triple!
Playing third base and ready to make the play.
Going for the ball.

I'm off now to put Sam's baseball uniform that I forgot to wash until now into the dryer. Remember that you can enlarge the pictures by clicking on them.

The Golden Compass

Thanks to Kristie I have done my Daemon. In the upcoming movie The Golden Compass each person has their own Daemon. In this story a person's soul lives on the outside of their body, in the form of a daemon - an animal spirit that accompanies them through life (read more on the movie's website). I still need to read the book by Philip Pullman, especially since the movie is coming out in December. I have heard wonderful things about the book and the movie and have it on my list of books that I really want to read along with seeing it when it comes out. I am hoping that this rated at least PG so that I can take Sam to go see it. Now for the time that I ask for your help. Please help me figure out if this is the correct daemon for me.



Watch the trailer if you would like.

Friday's Feast is Served!

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Appetizer: On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being highest) how much do enjoy watching sports on television?
It would actually depend on the sport. For football (NFL) I would give it a 10. For baseball I would give it a 9.

Soup: If you could completely memorize any one work of fiction, which one would you pick?
Only because I can't wait to read it I guess the one on my mind right now would be the Harry Potter books.

Salad: What is your favorite breakfast food?
Gee...just to name one would be hard. I love breakfast so I'll have to name more than just one: Pancakes, eggs, waffles, french toast, breads, muffins, fresh fruit.


Main Course: Name something fun you can do for less than $10.00.
If you don't count the cost of gas then I can do quite a bit with $10. This summer alone I have done the following with Sam for $10 or less. Blueberry picking, toured the National Weather Station, gone to the lake, free movies with snacks, American Rose Society Gardens, Chimp Haven, and SciPort Discovery Center just to name a few.


Dessert: How long does it usually take you to fall asleep?
Depends on the night and if hubby is home or not. When hubby is home it can take anywhere from 10 minutes to 1 hour. When he is away it takes me way to long to fall asleep. Sometimes I don't fall asleep until after 1 a.m.

Rated G

Found this on Virtual Musotopianoforte today while over there reading her Friday's Feast. Great blog too!

Here's my blog rating:

Mingle² - Free Online Dating

Our Trip To Dallas

This last week we went to Dallas to visit my sister-in-law and her hubby. The main reason we went is to celebrate Sam's "Gotcha Day". This is the day that we got Sam from the adoption agency. July 7th is the magical day and we celebrate with him as a family every year.

First day in Dallas it was raining so we went to an arcade and played around. Second day we went back to the arcade to do the batting cages and go carts. Then it was off to meet one of Andy's old friends and his family for dinner, dessert and just some good ole fun. Third day, which was his actual "Gotcha Day" was spent lounging around at their pool with pizza and a movie later on.

Here are some pictures of Sam having a great time!

Friday's Feast Is Served

For more feasts please click on the picture above.

Appetizer: What is your favorite fruit?

Since I love fruit so much this is really a tough one for me. I'll go with the first one that popped into my mind after reading this question....mango.

Soup: Who is someone you consider as a great role model?
Probably my parents. I just hope I'm just as good to my own son as they were to me.

Salad: If you were to spend one night anywhere within an hour of your home, where would you choose?

There really is nothing within an hour from my home so I really can't answer this one.

EDIT: After reading a few others Friday Feasts I have realized that I didn't answer this one quite right. I was thinking of vacation type spots instead of what would be around here including my own home. The question stated spending one night anywhere WITHIN an hour of your home. I read it as saying spending one night anywhere an hour away. It helps to read the question and not interpret it. So with that being said I guess that I would love to spend a night away from home with hubby in a nice hotel. Our anniversary is coming up....hmmmm.

Main Course: Name something you do too often.

Probably working on the computer.

Dessert: Fill in the blank: I really like ___________ because ____________.

I really like to blog because I am making some really good friends.

Or....I really like weekends because I get to relax just a bit.

Visual DNA

Thanks to Infinite Pink I now have my Visual DNA to share with you. It's amazing how close it came to me. If you want to read more just click on the Read My VisualDNA and then click on the book. Once there you can read more about what these pictures say about me. If you do one please leave me a message so that I can check yours out!

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

Friday's Feast Is Served

Friday's Feast

To enjoy more feasts please click on the link above.

Friday Feast is taking a break this week so I went into the archives and found one from 2004 to answer. Enjoy!

Appetizer: Name 3 things that you are wearing today.

Tennis Shoes, Black Capri Pants and a Red Shirt

Soup: Who was the last person you hugged.

I guess that would be my son Sam before he went to bed tonight.

Salad: What do you like to order from your favorite fast food place?

I love French Fries from either McDonald's or Steak n Shake. Don't get them that often but boy do I love them.

Main Course: What time of day do you usually feel most energized?

Probably mid-morning.

Dessert: Using the letters in your first name, write a sentence.

Kids In Motion (Kim)

Blueberry Pancakes

Now what does one do when they have just picked blueberries? You must eat some right away! I made blueberry pancakes for dinner and I must say that they were probably some of the best pancakes that I have ever tasted! I only used 1 1/2 cups for these pancakes so I still have plenty left. Oh what shall I make next???

Blueberries!

Today Sam and I finally got to go blueberry picking! Sam has wanted to go since early this summer. We had it on our calendar but the day we were supposed to go he came down with a fever. The time was never right or we had something else scheduled. I realized last night that their last day open for picking was July 4th. So this morning I got up and decided that Sam and I would go. Then it started to rain. I quickly went to the computer to see what was going on and saw that there was a window where we could go and pick without being rained on. We had a lot of fun while we were picking but Sam did tire of it rather quickly. Once back home I weighed what I (we) had picked...4 pounds 6 ounces! Cost...$8.00! I will definitely go again. Of course I had my camera with me and took quite a few shots. Here they are for you and remember that you can click on them to enlarge.

Church Picnic

This past Sunday we spent the afternoon/evening out at one of the local lakes. It was the church picnic for the Fourth of July celebration. There was food, swimming, music and a short service. We had a lot of fun and will go back out to that lake again. Here are some pictures with descriptions to show some of what we did. Click on the pictures to enlarge.

Here is Sam shortly after we arrived. He couldn't stop asking when we were going to go down to the lake so that he could swim. He had never been in a lake before so this was a new experience for him.
Before going to the lake he had quite a bit of fun bouncing around in the big bouncy that the church had out there for the kids.
Now off to the lake! He found a muscle shell that he was so proud of. You can see it in his face. What a cute smile!
In the water. He told me later that it was different to swim in because he couldn't see anything. It had rained most of the day so the lake was a bit cloudy. He said that he liked swimming in a pool better. Well he'll get that opportunity soon enough!
COLD! He rinsed himself off before we headed back to the picnic.
On the way to the car I snapped another picture. You can really see how many teeth he is missing in this shot. If I remember correctly he has 3 or 4 missing teeth. All on the sides of his mouth.

Okay...now it was time for the silly shot.

Here is a picture of our Praise Band. I would have taken a picture of the Instrumental Ensemble but Andy and I were both playing in it and I forgot to give the camera to someone.

Here is Sam and our Associate Pastors daughter collecting shells. They had so much fun playing together while we enjoyed the sermon by her father.

As we left we saw this peacock. There is a small zoo at this lake and I hope to take Sam to it sometime soon.

Baseball

Here is a picture of Sam playing in the outfield during their second game.


Poising after the game.

Sam's team tied their first game 2-2, lost their second game 3-2 and won their third game 6-1. They are pulling together nicely as a team. Andy is one of the assistant coaches and I was asked to sit in the dugout to keep the kids in line and to make sure that they are ready when it is their turn to bat or go out to the field.

VBS

Here are some more pictures of our time at VBS last week. Sam and I both had a lot of fun. I enjoyed doing the crafts and will probably volunteer again. To activate the controld just click once on the slideshow and then you'll be able to read each comment and then forward to the next picture. Enjoy!