Crayola Gift Giveaway!

By now, you've probably seen the commercials on television, featuring the latest products from Crayola that would make great gifts for Christmas. Crayola sent me three different new toys for my own children this Christmas and I can't wait until they open them!

• The Crayola Beginnings Color Me A Song lets little ones draw to the beat of their own drum, trumpet, piano or guitar. This portable drawing and music creation station features a pressure-sensitive board that matches a melody to the artist´s pace. Draw fast, and the tempo picks up. Slow down, and so does the music. Four instrument buttons let kids pick their favorite sound. Color Me a Song was named a "Toy of the Year" by FamilyFun magazine and one of American Baby magazine´s picks for "Best Toys of the Year." For children 24 months and up; suggested retail price is $24.99.
  
  This toy is going to be a HUGE hit with both kids, but I'm particularly excited for my 2 1/2-year-old son to play with it. He has begun to draw quite a bit and this will be right up his alley!
  

• The Crayola Color Explosion Glow Dome is sure to bring wide-eyed wonder to kids´ faces when the lights go out and they watch their artwork glow and spin on a moving, two-layered dome of light. Kids control the "glow-motion" fun and can dial up slow, medium or warp speed to create a wild, animated scene. For ages six and up; suggested retail price is $29.99.
  
  I think this is going to be the hit of the holiday season. I can't wait for my kids to create their own masterpieces and then watch them glow and rotate when they go to bed each night. They are going to absolutely love this one.
  

• The Crayola Glow Station illuminates children´s imaginations through the magic of drawing with light on a large-size glow-in-the-dark canvas. Using a light wand, children can either draw freehand or use stencils and texture sheets to create more realistic drawings. A diamond-shaped tip can be snapped on the end of the light wand for stamping unique starburst designs on the canvas. Drawings magically disappear over time, or can be "erased" by turning on the lights, so kids can create again and again for limitless fun. For children ages six and up; suggested retail price is $29.99.
  
  For your budding artist, does it get any better than a glow-in-the-dark canvas? I THINK NOT!

Best of all, one lucky Suburban Turmoil is going to win a Crayola Color Explosion Glow Dome, just in time for Christmas! All you have to do is leave a comment on this post between now and Saturday, December 5th at 11:59pm, CST, telling me what you plan to do with your Glow Dome if you win it. Be sure and leave your e-mail address in the comment so that I can contact you if you've won.

Good luck!

Disclosure: Crayola provided me with the free Beginnings Color Me A Song, Color Explosion Glow Dome, and Glow Station, in addition to the information, and Color Explosion Glow Dome to give away through MyBlogSpark.

Gift Idea: Hickory Farms Gift Boxes

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Hickory Farms and received a Hickory Farms gift basket to facilitate my review.

I was asked to participate in a Hickory Farms blog tour through Mom Central and I was so excited, because I have been ordering Hickory Farms gift boxes for family members each Christmas for years, and we have never gotten one of our own!

We were thrilled to receive our own Hickory Farms gift box to sample last week, even though it was on the week my husband and I were on Atkins- The Hickory Farms box happened to be a tool bag filled with sausages and cheese, all Atkins approved! AWESOME.

Even better, for a limited time this holiday season, for each Party Planner Gift Box sold, Hickory Farms will donate $5 to Share Our Strength, a leading national non-profit organization working to end childhood hunger in America. Additionally, for 40 of these gift items, Hickory Farms provides free military shipping, allowing our troops across the globe to share in holiday traditions. You can visit hickoryfarms.com to learn more about these two opportunities as well as the variety of gift boxes available!

And I can now personally vouch for the delicious flavor of the food inside. Our box was wonderful and I will definitely be ordering more this holiday season for family members across the country!

Avon Winter 2009 Fairytales Collection Giveaway!

Disclosure: I received a sweater from the Avon Winter 2009 Fairytales Collection as a thank you for hosting this giveaway.

Avon is expanding its selection with its first-ever kid's line! The line debuts with the Winter 2009 Fairytales Collection. Featuring cozy knits, dressy ensembles, and fashionable flair, Avon's first-ever Kid's Collection has everything you need to make your little one's holiday dreams come true! The new Avon Winter 2009 Fairytales Collection has gifts for both girls and boys. Sizes range for 4/5-10/12 and no gift is over $49.99, keeping plenty of extra money for that winter getaway you're planning later in the season!

Best of all, in order to introduce you to the new Collection, one lucky Suburban Turmoil reader will get to choose an item from the Collection for their own favorite child. To enter this contest, just leave a comment with your favorite item from the Winter 2009 Fairytales Collection between now and Saturday, December 5th at 11:59pm, CST. Be sure and leave your e-mail address in your comment so that I can contact you if you've won.

Good luck!

Paperspring

It's not too late to order and send out holiday cards if you haven't done so already.

One place to place your order is Paperspring, a stationer that's currently offering a discount of 20% off all holiday cards. All you have to do to get the discount is enter the code HOLIDAYCARD at checkout.

I received a gift certificate to try out Paperspring and ordered a set of stationery as a Christmas present for one of my stepdaughters-- I can't wait to see how it turns out. I'll let you know. Right off the bat, though, I love the ease with which I was able to personalize and order the stationery. I have to admit, though, that my favorite part was that shipping is free. There are no hidden personalization costs and envelopes are included in the price, so basically, what you see is what you get. That was a nice switch from most websites!

Check it out for yourself at Paperspring.com.

Tiny Prints

Disclosure: Tiny Prints has provided me with a gift certificate to try out products on its site and write about them.

Each year, my family has a holiday party. We invite everyone we know, fill our house to capacity (and beyond!) with our friends, and have a fabulous time. I think we've hit on three things that make our party popular- One, everyone brings a dessert so the selection is decadent and mind-boggling, Two, we provide plenty of wine and beer and mixed drinks, and Three, kids are welcome- We have a playroom, all the kids head up there and run around and watch Christmas movies and have a blast.

Anyway, we invite enough people that I've always resorted to ordering my invitations off of Ebay and having them laser printed, in an effort to cut costs, which was fine except that they always looked sort of cheesy. But thanks to my Tiny Prints gift certificate, this year, I ordered a nice set of professionally done invitations and people, they were marvelous!

Tiny Prints processed and printed the order very quickly (like within a day or two) and I had my invitations within a week. Excellent for people who procrastinate, like me! The quality is perfect and I'm very, very happy with them. Also? It was only about $15-$20 more than my cheesy Ebay invitations, so what the heck was I THINKING? I'm ordering from Tiny Prints from now on!

Check out the site here- They have very stylish personalized stationery for adults and kids in addition to many, many, many choices for invitations for all occasions.

There's No Place Like Umi for the Holidays

It's the holidays and if you're looking for the perfect pair of shoes to compliment your child's festive attire, you really can't go wrong with Umis.

As some of you know, Umi Shoes and I go way back. They've been letting my children try out their shoes for a few years now and I make no bones about the fact that I'm in love. Their shoes last and last and last and always end up being my kids' absolute favorite shoes.

For the holidays, I chose this pair of boots for Punky. She has them in brown, too, and since the kids have to wear uniforms at her school, boots are a major way for the kids to show off their personalities. These boots definitely fit the bill!

In addition, they are supremely comfortable, which is even more important to a five-year-old and Punky absolutely loves them.

Bruiser has this pair of shoes from Umi for the holidays, which I love because he can put them on himself! Yahoo! They are sturdy and comfortable and the day he got them, he refused to put them down all afternoon!

Best of all, now through November 20th, use the code SWEET30 to take 30% off your order at www.umishoes.com!

Umi sells out quickly when they release their new shoes, so check out the website now to see what they still have left, and be sure and act quickly when the spring shoe line comes out!

Shabby Apple Girls' Clothes

I've been hearing a lot about Shabby Apple lately, so I was very excited about reviewing a Shabby apple dress for Punky. We tried this one, which is called "45 Words Per Minute," and comes in fuschia, apple green, and turquoise.

Right out of the mailer, I loved it. It is a soft jersey knit, it has plenty of growing room, it was incredibly comfortable for Punky, and after wearing it to an event, she proclaimed it, "My favoritest dress EVER!" That's high praise!

The down side is that it has to be handwashed or dry cleaned. Since it's a knit, I plan to dry clean it at home with my Dryel, which is how I handle all my knit shirts and dresses. But that does limit when and where I'll let Punky wear it. Ice cream ventures, in other words, are totally off limits.

All in all, I'm loving the Shabby Apple kids line, largely because it features boutique-style dresses at affordable prices. It also has women's dresses which look totally cool and vintagey, but are also totally affordable. Check Shabby Apple out for yourself here.

The Great Thirty-One Giveaway!

My friend Shelley sells the Thirty-One product line, which consists of bags in every different size and design, with options to have them personalized with a name or initials. If you need a stylish bag and you're having trouble finding what you're looking for, Thirty-One is a great place to look.

And let me add that Shelley is one of my favorite people in Nashville- She's always got a smile on her face, she's got limitless energy, and she's one of those people who's always got something exciting going on. She's found lots of creative ways to contribute to her family's finances and stay home with her boys (this business being one of them) and I really admire her. So with that said, I'm more than happy to help get the word out about her business any way that I can.

Take a look at the Thirty-One Fall catalog, leave a comment telling me what you like in it, and one of you will win this great "bubble pop" zipper pouch, pictured above! I use this size bag for a few different things. It's the perfect size for a diaper or two and wipes when you have a toddler and you don't need the full-on Diaper Bag. It's also a great size for my daughter, to send in her backpack when she needs an extra change of clothing for school or is bringing her ballet things to school with her. There are lots of different potential uses for a bag this size- Use your imagination! This giveaway will run from today through Saturday, November 22nd at 11:59pm, CST. Be sure and leave your e-mail address in your comment so that I can contact you if you've won.

For the rest of you, Shelley is offering a 10% discount on all Thirty-One merchandise between now and November 22nd. Just tell her you came from Suburban Turmoil when placing your order and she'll take it off your total!

Happy shopping!

Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure

The newest installment in the wildly popular Tinker Bell series has just been released on DVD and it does not disappoint.

I have to admit that I LOVE the Tinker Bell movies and so do my kids. "Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure" has been on continuous rotation since it arrived at our house- Not only does my daughter love it, but so does my son! He requests it all the time and he typically isn't interested in "girl" movies.

I can see why he likes it- Just like the original Tinker Bell, this new movie has amazing, vibrant CGI animation, a gorgeous soundtrack and a compelling storyline. I find myself stopping what I'm doing to watch. It looks particularly good in Blu-Ray and like many other Disney releases, it comes in a set that includes both a Blu-Ray disc and a standard DVD, so that you can watch it on any DVD player you happen to have.

For those interested in a synopsis of this film, here's one from the studio:

In Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure Tinker Bell’s greatest adventure yet takes place in
Autumn, as the fairies are on the mainland changing the colors of the leaves, tending to
pumpkin patches, and helping geese fly south for the winter. The rare Blue Moon will rise, and
when its light passes through the magical Fall Scepter that Tinker Bell has been summoned to
create, Pixie Hollow’s supply of pixie dust will be restored. But when Tinker Bell accidentally
puts all of Pixie Hollow in jeopardy, she must venture out across the sea on a secret quest to set
things right.

Along her journey Tink meets new friends, including Blaze, a cute and courageous firefly that
helps Tinker Bell complete her mission. It’s a long and dangerous journey, full of astonishing
encounters, a few narrow escapes and a daring rescue by Tink’s friend Terence. Tinker Bell
and the Lost Treasure is an exciting adventure and a once-in-a-blue-moon experience for the
entire family.

This is one that's worth the money. Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure is available now on DVD!