The Blog

Hit British Crime Drama Midsomer Murders, Set 22 on Blu-ray & DVD!

~I received a copy of Midsomer Murders for the purpose of reviewing. Opinions and stories are my own.~

I love bizarre and intriguing British comedy. They always seem to have this way of exaggerating their characters without belittling their realism. As my favorite genre of shows to watch is crime dramas, I had gotten completely sucked into MidSomer Murders. Based on books by Caroline Graham (Chief Inspector Barnaby series), this series is set in a rural town called MidSomer where Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby lives with his wife. Although a seemingly beautiful town with a picturesque landscape and a small-town close knit community, the village (and surrounding villages) has a slight problem with people winding up dead.

When I first started watching it had the feel of Murder She Wrote with better filming, but then all sorts of odd and estranged characters started popping up (some of which were pretty creepy!) and it took on a life of its own. It had the feel of a real serious crime drama where you had to watch very closely and pick up clues to try and solve the puzzle and yet also had perfectly pitched comedy woven in. There was just the right amount of disturbing circumstances to keep your interest piqued and the odd sense of dark British humor done with perfection.

What I find really unique about this crime drama specifically is the way they keep you wrapped into the investigation. There are multiple tiny elements of the show that you think are insignificant until something new pops up. The entire time I was trying to guess, just as the Inspector was, on who done it! And the greatest thing was that even with my guesses, most of the time I was wrong. Even the times I had it all figured out it was more of an accomplished feeling where you are so pumped that you got it, rather than some shows where everything seems expected.

It should be considered a fantastic Who Done It? series! MidSomer Murders, Set 22 are the episodes from Series 14 (2011-12) that never aired in the US, so it is a real treat to finally see it!

The Mysteries on Set 22 are:

The Sleeper under the Hill: Barnaby and Jones investigate a group of Druids in Midsomer Mow.
The Night of the Stag: Local bootleggers come under suspicion after the disappearance of a government inspector.
A Sacred Trust: Vandalism and violence send shock waves through Midsomer’s cloistered nunnery.
A Rare Bird: The detectives investigate whether competition between ornithology enthusiasts led to murder.

Bonus Feature included on Disc: “MidSomer Murders in Conversation”

I love this show and am completely, utterly, hooked on it! Just as a note, there are some disturbing images and adult situations, so this is definitely more an adult crime drama than something for families to watch. I assure you though, if you are into crime dramas, mysteries and who done it’s that you are going to be drawn right into MidSomer’s little violence driven village.

Purchase: You can purchase MidSomer Murders, Set 22 on Blu-ray for $49.79 or $33.64 on 4-Disc DVD.

MUNCH! Book Review and Giveaway {CLOSED}

Blog· Giveaways· Review

Chew on this: an interactive novelty book all about eating, from #1 New York Times bestselling creator Matthew Van Fleet!
From the creator of the New York Times bestselling Heads and Tails, a humorous look at how animals munch, crunch, and eat! In this hands-on read-aloud that’s sure to be a favorite, tabs and textures animate the madcap antics of a cast of frolicking critters whose mouths are made to do more than eat!

My little guy is right on the cusps of wanting to learn how to read on his own. I blame myself and his father, as we’re both avid readers. The only problem is, it’s difficult to keep a preschoolers attention span when there are no pictures or other fun interactive activities to keep focus. It’s also not the easiest thing to find books geared for ages 2-6 that are not “too young” or too aggressive in their teachings.

This is why I just adore MUNCH! by Matthew Van Fleet. It’s a simple, but very captivating board book featuring animals that your children love! With four pull tabs that help some animals munch on their meals, with our personal favorite being the beaver who sounds like he’s really buzzing away on a piece of wood, and seven different touchable textures, like a scruffy goat’s beard, your child will stay captivate.

Most importantly, small phrases, colors, actions, and sounds are introduced as you go through the story. You can have your child act out the animal and the sounds or noises they are making. You can also using the animals as a jumping off point to discuss what they are (we looked up the Tamarin) and the differences in similar animals, like a stork and a pelican!

Van Fleet has sold more than 3 million copies of his New York Times bestsellers including Tails, Dog, Cat, and Alphabet. In the clip below, he discusses his creative process:

MUNCH! is a perfect book for the whole family, preschoolers and their siblings alike. Not only is a great quick but fun read on it’s own, it gets children involved and active in the storytelling and learning process. I can’t wait to pick up the rest of Van Fleet’s interactive books and add them to our daily reading routine.

Connect

You can connect with Van Fleet on the Official Book Site and at Van Fleet Books

Buy It

You can pre-order a copy of MUNCH! on it’s official book site for $9.99. Books launches 8/27/13

The Giveaway

How would you like to win a Van Fleet Interactive Bundle? It includes a child’s pajama set and copies of MUNCH!, SNIFF!, LICK!, MOO, CAT, & ALPHABET. ?I have one bundle to giveaway to one lucky contestant. To enter the giveaway please follow all the directions below! If you do not follow the rules, you cannot win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a sample product for this review. All opinions expressed are my own and/or families. Take it or leave it. Click here to view the whole disclosure policy.

Van’s Natural Foods Review

Blog· Review

I, like a lot of you, are trying to help my family eat and snack a little bit healthier. It can be really hard but I find it starts by buying the right stuff and not even having the not so great for you stuff in the house at all! Van’s Natural Foods is one of those brands out there that are making food that is healthier for you to enjoy.

The Perfect 10 Crackers include six whole grains including brown rice, gluten-free oats, millet, teff, quinoa and amaranth, plus four seeds – flax, sesame, poppy and caraway. The Fire Roasted Veggie Crackers, with five whole grains, offer the delicious veggie-kissed flavor of bell pepper, onion, carrot, garlic and tomato.

I dipped these in hummus and they are very tasty. So full of flavor and crunch that I could have eaten them on their own but alas I am a dipping kind of girl.

Say Cheese! Snack Packs that are perfectly portioned for school lunches and snacks. Big Sis had one in her bag for her first snack on her first day of Preschool. She came home and said they were yummy! These snack packs did not last long as I really liked their cheese taste and I ate a few bags myself.

The Cranberry Almond Snack Bars are baked with real, all-natural ingredients, the bars (also available in Peanut Butter Chocolate and Chocolate Chip) have 8-10 grams of whole grains and 4 grams of fiber per serving.

I found that the snack bars were very filling and did a great job of curbing my hunger pains but I felt they were a little dry to me so they were not my favorite item in the group.

Cinnamon Heaven Cereal offers nutrient-rich whole grains, including gluten-free oats, brown rice, millet, quinoa and amaranth, and 5 grams of fiber per serving. Also available in Honey Nut Crunch and all without dairy, egg, corn, high fructose corn syrup, artificial ingredients, hydrogenated oils or GMO oils.

The cereal was by far the biggest hit with my girls as they absolutely loved it. They now ask only for the small cinnamon squares for breakfast. I had a bowl and I was surprised by how full of flavor it was while still maintaining some cereal crunch to it. These are way better for you than those boxes of sugar coated frosty noms at the grocery store and taste even better than the not good for you stuff. I have purchased several boxes of this cereal because we long since ate the review box.

Overall I think Van’s Natural Foods is another one of those brands that is nice to know they are making things out of healthier ingredients. I don’t feel guilty filling my kitchen shelves with their products!

Connect:

You can connect with Van’s Natural Foods on Facebook.

Buy It! Most of Van’s crackers, snack bars and cereals are available nationwide in Wal-mart, Safeway and Sprouts stores.

I received a sample product for this review. All opinions are my own and/or my family’s, take it or leave it. Click here to view my whole disclosure policy.

#ad Tyson Project A+ #Clip4School and Easy Sweet & Sour Chicken Quick Dinner Recipe

Blog· Recipes

Helping others is very important to my family and I. There are many ways that we help including giving to our local food pantry, donations for schools and just helping our family/friends in any way that we can. It’s a great feeling to know that we’re making a difference in the lives of others – whether it be large or small.

Now I understand that not everyone has the ability to give a whole lot – believe me, neither do I. That’s especially why I’m excited to share information about Tyson’s Back to School Project A+ Program with you. It’s a great way to give back by purchasing products that you already use! There are little Tyson Project A+ labels on many of their products – each one being worth 24 cents. That’s a lot higher than many of the other programs! Now imagine if you save 4 labels. That’s almost a dollar for your school! Multiply that over the year by other participating families and it really adds up!

Signing up is super easy too. You can see how to sign up for Tyson Project A+ in my Google+ album. Simply look up your school and if it’s not on the list, enroll your favorite school(s)! There are 4 easy click buttons to look up and/or enroll your school. They even have an updated resource section including tips on how to help achieve goals for your school. You can even find fun clip art to decorate donation boxes for the office or each classroom!

I signed my son’s elementary school up because they are always lacking extra supplies. The problem with that is, the teachers usually end up buying extra supplies out of their own pockets. That’s not very fair to them since teachers don’t generally make a great salary to begin with. We helped out this year by donating a whole bag full of supplies, but we’ll also be clipping our Tyson Project A+ labels to make an even bigger impact!

We cook dinner at home for our family almost every single day. Some evenings are busier than others, so I often look for quick mealtime solutions. Tyson offers many great products to help me make dinner quick and easy. Not only that, but they’re pretty darn delicious too! Last night’s solution was Sweet & Sour Chicken with Tyson Any’tizers Popcorn Chicken. I have to say that it was the best homemade Sweet & Sour Chicken we’ve ever served at our house too!

You can choose your favorite ingredients and even switch things up from time to time. We used Tyson Any’tizers Popcorn Chicken, baby corn, pineapple chunks and green pepper along with our favorite sweet & sour sauce and white rice. I’ve included a printable recipe for you below!

Click to print or save

How could your school benefit from Tyson Project A+ labels? Please let us know in the comments below!

Pajanimals Board Books and Toys Review

Blog· Review

THE JIM HENSON COMPANY?S PAJANIMALS ?GET CAUGHT READING?

National Literacy Campaign Coincides with August’s
Get Ready for Kindergarten Month and the Release of New PAJANIMALS Books from Running Press Kids while partnering with the Association of American Publishers (AAP)

The adorableness that is the Pajanimals and the awesomeness that is reading is now paired together with a set of books geared towards toddlers and preschoolers. School is starting and I can think of no better way to prepare my preschooler for school than by reading with her!

If you have not checked out the Pajanimals on Sprout TV yet than you are missing out. It is a fun show that both my girls enjoy watching and they always have messages that kids can understand and enjoy learning about all at the same time.

PAJANIMALS currently airs daily on
Sprout, the 24-hour preschool channel parents and kids share together
and also airs on Saturday mornings on NBC Kids, The PAJANIMALS series
follows the adventures of four cuddly musical puppets — Sweet Pea Sue,
Squacky, Cowbella and Apollo. Their journeys celebrate imagination and
tackle typical toddler issues such as the fear of the first day of
school, making new friends and learning how to share. The PAJANIMALS
end their day of play with a relaxing return to their cozy bedroom and
familiar night time routines, including bathing, brushing teeth and
story time, to develop a feeling of safety and structure.

I was sent a book and the new Pajanimal Pal to check out with my two girls. One is entering her first official year of Preschool and the other is turning 2 soon.

In Sweet Pea Sue Makes a New Friend,
Sweet Pea Sue can?t sleep because she’s scared of a picture of an
octopus she saw in a book. When the Pajanimals go to the Big, Blue Sea,
they meet Ellie, a real octopus. To Sweet Pea Sue’s surprise, Ellie is
scared of the Pajanimals. The two realize that there’s nothing to be
afraid of because they just want to be friends.

The pages each have bright and vibrant colors and this is what I would call a board book as all the pages are nice and thick making it super durable for younger kids that might be a little rough on their books.

Lil Sis didn’t want to put the blankie down with its super soft satin side and cuddly fleece on the other side. Available in each of the characters from the show with their matching pajama prints.

The Get Caught Reading
campaign was developed by the AAP and launched in 1999 to promote and
celebrate the joy of reading, and is embraced by thousands of
celebrities, booksellers, teachers and librarians who continue to
support this campaign across the country. The celebrity Get Caught
Reading posters, including PAJANIMALS, can be ordered for free here? all
you pay is shipping! http://www.getcaughtreading.org/

You can check out PBS Sprout online for games, videos and other activities on the Pajanimals. Get reading with your kids now to help them develop a lifelong love of reading.

Connect:

You can connect with Pajanimals on Facebook. The Jim Henson Company on Facebook and @hensonparents on twitter. Running Press on Facebook and @RP_Kids on twitter. Sprout on Facebook and @SproutTV on twitter. Get Caught Reading on Facebook and @ReadingWithAAP on twitter.

Buy It!

You can purchase the Pajanimals? board and sticker book, Sweet Pea Sue Makes a New Friend for $7.95. Currently on Amazon for $7.16. You can purchase the Pajanimal Pal by TOMY for $12.99 from Amazon and Walmart.

Giveaway Winner: Entry #189Yana R.

I received a sample product for this review. All opinions are my own and/or my family’s, take it or leave it. Click here to view my whole disclosure policy.

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