Saturday, January 25, 2014

Sing, Sing a Song Saturday

Sing, Sing a Song Saturday is all about me discovering something that is different to post. I don't want to post things that you and I have more than likely heard before. I want to find something different. It could be from another country, someone singing from the streets of NY, and more.

This week I'm posting a video I saw on Facebook. The singer is Boggie. Her name is actually Csemer Boglárka.

Source
Boggie is Hungarian. She grew up singing folk, but later started singing jazz. Her house was very musical. Her grandma used to sing her lullabies to sleep, her dad would hike mountains with her and play (the Beatles, Abba, Mommas and the Papas, Queen, The Animals and more) tapes for them, and her Mom would watch Tina Turner dancing at night. She sings in Hungarian, French and English.

This is the video that stood out to me. Boggie is changing her appearance in real time on the computer.

Nouveau Parfum

BOGGIE - NOUVEAU PARFUM (official music video) from THE SOUP on Vimeo.

16 year old David Thibault of Quebec, Canada
16 year old David Thibault of Quebec, Canada
16 year old David Thibault of Quebec, Canada
16 year old David Thibault of Quebec, Canada.
16 year old David Thibault of Quebec, Canada.
16 year old David Thibault of Quebec, Canada.
This one cuts off funny at the end because it's not a video of her, it's a recording, but she sings well in it. 

Every Day I Have the Blues


Check out Boggie's Website
Connect with Boggie on Facebook.
Like Boggie on Twitter.
Check out Boggie's YouTube Channel.

Friday, January 24, 2014

Random Tid Bits

  1. Isaak got a cold on Tuesday. It started with a light sneeze. He's felt warm, but has had no fever. I've put him to bed slightly early the last few nights. I've been flushing his sinuses out morning, and night; trying to prevent a worse infection. With kids the Neti Pot works wonders. They just don't blow their noses when they should.

  2. I got Isaak's head cold on Wednesday. I'm now the one that's dragging.

  3. We had to postpone yet another play date. Two weeks ago Daddy had tummy issues. Our boys couldn't play with their cousins because of that, then last weekend they couldn't play because everyone was too busy, and now we have colds. It's hard when a family member (Emerson) has a compromised immune system. Someone's always sick this time of year it seems.

  4. I find that some relationships are odd on Facebook. In my opinion some people should just refrain from putting a relationship status at all; if they can't stay in one. A few people I know have decided they are getting a divorce, or out of a serious relationship. They often make it sound like the other person was so bad. Maybe they were bad. Often times it's like BOOM they are with another person in no time. How do people turn off and on feelings so fast? We're not light switches. Maybe they just know what they want, and have found "that true love". I hope that's the case.


  5. I found a bunch of videos of our boys when they were just itty bitty. I thought I'd share some.

Tent Fun! The one with the blue onesie is cousin Elijah.

Daddy was tapping, Mica was dancing, and Mica stopped him to tell him he was being too loud! I just thought it was funny because Mica is a talkative, loud child himself.

No Use For His Spoon

Beat on the Brat by The Ramones. Our boys love this song. The video quality is horrible, but it's so funny!

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Back and Forth

The weather is going crazy!

Last Sunday I was out washing my car. There was a record high of 65! I asked the boys, "Who wants to help me?" They both said, "Not me, and ran inside." Daddy said, "Don't involve me I'm watching sports." I felt my eyes throw them a negative eye roll.


Monday was cold! The winds were high, and it's been that way since. We've had negative temps, and flurries.

On Friday it's supposed to get up to 50 degrees.

This weather is something else! Back and forth, back and forth.

I just wish if it's going to be cold, it would snow already! We need the moisture. It will help the farmers out to have some rain, or snow come our way.

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

WW: Dirt {Linky}


Isaak was doing his Aunt and Uncle a "favor" by cleaning wood chips that were in their driveway. He had no clue his face had dirt all over it.




Silly Face



If you have a moment please enter Shaking Behind the Microphone Overcoming the Fear of Public Speaking Book Giveaway.
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Monday, January 20, 2014

Language

One Saturday morning a week ago I was watching some wonderful vlogs on Sakura Haruka blog. Please go check them out. It was fun to see what she bought in a Korean Market. Ai speaks English. She has a little different accent than we do in Nebraska. To her family we probably have a little different accent. I could understand perfectly what she was saying. She was talking about Korean foods, and other products that she purchased.

Isaak came up to me. He likes to watch the videos I'm watching. He said, "Mom I can't understand that language."

I don't know if he heard Ai rattling off the Korean product names, or if he heard her accent, and couldn't understand it.

Later that morning he said, "Do we still have that bird puppet?" I said, "Isaak I guess I don't know what puppet you are referring to." He said, "You know the one that goes to the movie that's in that other language. I think English."



I said, "Isaak it's called Boca Beth. It's Spanish, not English. We speak English already." He said, "Oh!"

Abe's Market Review

Good quality food comes with a major cost it seems. That is why I shop online much of the time. Abe's Market has sales a lot of the time. Recently I won a gift certificate on their Facebook page.

The hardest thing for me is picking out what I want. There are so many good choices. Everything I got had a code to go with it, or was on sale. So the prices reflected are not what I spent. They are just the actual prices on their site.

I've been wanting small glass containers for afternoon snacks. I really don't need to go to the vending machine to chow down. That's so bad, such a waist of money, and horrible for me! I often have Protein Balls, or Aussie Bites for a snack. They are healthier than many other snacks. Really I just need a few to tide me over. The total for the glass Wean Tubs (comes with 2) is $10.99. They have other color choices as well. I think they are meant for babies and toddlers, but the suit my needs well!


Daddy and I have been in love with Indian food. Many of the recipes that we find calls for Garam Masala. This spice is difficult to find in a typical grocery store. I ordered it through AbesMarket. We are putting the spice to use in the slow cooker today. It will be nice going home, and having dinner already made. I found the recipe, and Daddy put together Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala. Value for this spice is $6.01.



I love reusing things. Therefore I have reusable grocery bags, reusable sandwich bags, but I've never had reusable produce bags. The pack came with 4 bags. They are breathable, and washable. The total came to $14.44.


I'm always looking for soaps of all kinds. I keep telling myself that I'm going to make my own laundry and dishwasher soap, but I keep finding brands that I want to try out. I've heard so much about Seventh Generation. Their small container washes up to 66 loads. It's 4 x ultra concentrated. It's valued at $18.99.

The boys both have sensitive skin. I'm still careful about the soap I use on them. I don't want anything too harsh. The one featured below is $15.99.


What is Abe's Market?

It's an online marketplace for super natural products. They've been featured on: The New York Times, CNN, Lucky, Good Housekeeping and more. They've done their research for you, so there's no need to search the net, and pay for different shipping fees. In fact Abe's Market has free shipping above $49.

They have the story behind their products. Ingredients are not hidden. All these questions are answered:
  • Who makes the product? 
  • What's in it? 
  • Where is it made? 
  • How? 
You can ask questions about the products you are looking at directly with the seller.

Like Abe's Market:
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Disclaimer: The opinions on the post are my personal take on the product. This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review. The company did not ask me to write this review.  

Shaking Behind the Microphone #Giveaway

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

I used to be so shy. When I was younger I wouldn't even order my own food at a restaurant. Now I stand in front of 30, 40+ college students three times a week, 2 hours each time, and lecture. Somehow I managed to get over the shyness.

I still get shy during certain situations. When I lecture to an audience that's older than me I get nervous. Such as making a speech at graduation time, a day where parents come to see the college (I'm supposed to be social), and at a time when I spoke to a room full of high school art teachers.

Daddy can't speak in crowds. He literally freezes up. I can. For some odd reason I like speaking to a full house, than a half of one. I find that there's more interaction if there's more people in the room.

I got Shaking Behind the Microphone Overcoming the Fear of Public Speaking By: Jill Ammon Vanderwood to review, and giveaway.

I read it to relay information over to Daddy, share tips with my students, and seek out tips for myself.


About the Book:

The book has different segments from a variety of people. They talk about their fears in regards to public speaking, and ways to overcome them.

Some Tips from the Book:
  • Go to Toastmasters. My boss has talked about me going there. They focus on public speaking.
  • Keep hydrated, and eat normal hours. This couldn't be more true. I drink so much when I lecture. It helps to not have a dry mouth.  When I had to fast, I could barely function. You don't want to faint when you are lecturing.
  • Be yourself. When I first started teaching I was trying to act strict. I wanted to come off as a hard instructor, that expects a lot. That isn't me. Now I can joke around, and guess what? My students still work hard. They know what I want because I show them examples.
  • Practice to yourself. I don't always have time before every lecture to practice. In the beginning I had to go over things a lot! Now that I've been doing this teaching gig for 10 years, I can skip the lectures I know.
  • The more you do it, the better it gets. It's true!
  • Know the material. Most things I do know. There are times I cover things I don't. I have to research and practice those things more.
  • Get comfortable with the room you will be speaking in. Don't let the equipment in the room get in the way with your presentation. I see this happening a lot with freelance instructors. They don't know how to plug their computers into the monitor, and sound is foreign to them.
  • Ask if there are questions in the end. This opens the room up for further dialog.
  • Write down basics if needed on note cards. There is no need to write a book when presenting. Just the basics to keep things going.
  • Don't rely on the PowerPoint, or Keynote to present. This is the one I need to work on! Teaching in an art college, things can get pretty visual sometimes. I have to show students what I'm talking about to relay what I expect out of their work. I'm doing better about not looking at the screen when I talk.
About the Author: 

Jill Ammon Vanderwood is an author and speaker from Utah. She has written award winning nonfiction books, What's It Like, Living Green? Kids Teaching Kids, by the Way They Live and Drugs Make You Un-Smarter, co-authored with her teenage granddaughter. 

Jill takes on environmental and literacy causes, and she is an active fundraiser. Her husband is a professional Santa Claus, she is Mrs. Claus. 

Who Want to Win This Book?  

It's a really good read! Open to the US. A $12.99 value. On sale for $10.99.


a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Disclaimer: The opinions on the post are my personal take on the product. This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review. I did get products to help with the review.  

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

The Powers of Facebook

I hear a lot of people bash Facebook. Many say it's such a waste of time. Of course there is online bullies to. I can agree with all that. It is however a great way to keep in touch with people.

Last week one of my friends posted that her friend that has a son who has special needs was getting rid of a walker. She wanted to know if anyone could use the walker? Special needs equipment can add up in cost. Yes health insurance covers most of it. What in the heck do you do with it when your child has outgrown it? All anyone would have to pay for this walker is shipping. I thought of my nephew Emerson right away. I messaged my sister Terra. She was interested.

Since the owner of the walker lives here, Terra paid no shipping. Instead she paid them a visit, and picked it up. Their special needs son kept crossing Emerson's arms to his chest. To him that means, "I love you." So sweet!

Source
 They gave her a special seat for the bathtub that he outgrew to.

How great is that? 
  
Then one of my past students had a design on FB that was denied by a band. He does work for Katy Perry, Cher, 'N Sync and more. I'm impressed with who he's worked for since he's graduated. I saw the design and thought, "Damn that's pretty good!" 

I can't share the design with you. I can tell you that it has a coat of armor. I thought, That would go perfect with Warrior Poet Clothier! I did a review/giveaway for them some time ago.


I told my past student to contact them. I had no clue if the owner at Warrior Poet Clothier creates his own designs, or not. I just knew my past student's design fits right into what they sell. My past student contacted them, and bam! They are buying his design + they want to work with him more on other designs.

Greatness x 2 last week!



Pine Bros. Softish Throat Drops (Review}

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial. Whenever we get done with a school break, and I start teaching again I get a dry raspy voice from projecting my voice during lecture time. I drink a ton of water, but the raspy voice continues.

I was given Pine Bros. Softish Throat Drops to review. I just had one of them, and my voice seemed to clear up.

They have a texture that I'm not used to. They are soft.  I'm used to the hard cough drops. With Pine Bros. Softish Throat Drops you suck on them to get them to work. They have 5 calories per drop. I like that they are for ages 3 and up. A lot of other cough drops are for ages 6 and up. I know when my boys need a cough drop, they can have one of these.

This is what they look like.


They have different flavors to choose from:
  • Natural Honey
  • Wild Cherry
  • Black Licorice
I chose Black Licorice. It was good! It wasn't too overpowering, yet still had that old time black licorice taste.


I love the reusable bag it came with!


 A Little History From Pine Bros.

Ulysses S. Grant was President, the population of America hovered at 39 million, and the telephone was still a pipe dream, when in 1870 J. Herman Pine hung out a confectionery shingle on 8th Street above Walnut in Philadelphia and, along with his brother, sold their first batch of what they called 'Pine Brothers Glycerine Tablets.' In an attempt to relieve his own sore throat and those of his family members, Mr. Pine, a former German confectionery maker, determined that by combining the soothing natural qualities of glycerin with the healing properties of gum acacia, he could sooth and mitigate the mild discomfort of a sore throat. Add in some natural flavoring and a sweetener and voila, Pine Brothers Softish Throat Drops were born. "I have discovered something," Pine wrote, "which will give quick throat relief to thousands afflicted as I was." He added,"Perhaps I won't make much money out of this. But I can make people happy, and that's more important than money." Mr. Pine was being unduly modest, as his "discovery" would become one of the most successful, most delicious and most unique throat lozenges in the world. Nor has the recipe changed appreciably since it was first introduced to the public over 140 years ago.

Fast Forward to Now

Recently, Pine Brothers was acquired by the creator and former owner of Airborne, Victoria Knight-McDowell, for her new company 3 Sisters Home Products™. Much time and effort has been spent locating the original Pine Brothers recipes, redesigning the packaging, and creating an exciting yet classic new look. The natural product is once again being made in America, and is launching nationally in fall 2011. At which time old Mr. Pine, will succeed once again in "making people happy." 

Like Them
  • Like Pine Bros. Softish Throat Drops on Facebook
  • Follow Pine Bros. Softish Throat Drops on Twitter.  
Disclaimer: The opinions on the post are my personal take on the product. This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review. I did get products to help with the review.


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  I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Disclaimer

The opinions on this blog are my personal take on products and topics relating to motherhood. This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me.

I am not compensated to provide opinions on a variety of topics. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are my own. If I claim to show knowledge of certain topic or product I will only endorse products or services that I feel, based on my expertise, are worthy of such endorsement.

If you have any questions about this blog, or want to get in contact with me please email me at: anapeladay@gmail.com