Caption this contest

What would you caption this photo? The best answer (as determined by me) wins a prize. Prize value will increase with each unique person who offers a suggestion. Winner to be determined by the 22nd and announced on the 23rd.

(Yes, that is a Lego fish in the handle of his light saber.)

Lunchbox Giveaway

Just in time for school I'm giving away a set of 2 colorful lunchboxes. These are divided into three sections and you can choose if you want to use all 3, less than 3, or just the outside part of the box. I simplify lunches by packing a fruit, a vegetable, and an entree. Many people create cute foods (just search bento and you will be amazed), but I don't have time for that.






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Chocolate Giveaway AGAIN!

Everyone knows I love chocolate. When Color Earth wanted me to try their chocolates and do a review I was thrilled. These aren't just any chocolates. These are dark chocolate multivitamins. Yes, you read that right. These are multivitamins hidden inside a dark chocolate.

I tried them and honestly, they taste like dark chocolate. I passed them around work and everyone who likes dark chocolate loves them. Everyone who doesn't like dark chocolate hates them. That makes it easy to predict if you will like these.

I will mention one negative things about these. You don't want to let your kids sneak too many of these because it can cause a laxative effect. The recommended dosage for a child is one per day and for an adult they recommend between 1-4 per day. That's one way to make sure you limit your intake.

The best part is that Color Earth is doing a giveaway of a year's supply worth of chocolates to 20 winners! You can go to their web page to enter. Click here to visit Color Earth

Chocolate Giveaway!

Everyone knows I love chocolate. When Color Earth wanted me to try their chocolates and do a review I was thrilled. These aren't just any chocolates. These are dark chocolate multivitamins. Yes, you read that right. These are multivitamins hidden inside a dark chocolate.

I tried them and honestly, they taste like dark chocolate. I passed them around work and everyone who likes dark chocolate loves them. Everyone who doesn't like dark chocolate hates them. That makes it easy to predict if you will like these.

I will mention one negative things about these. You don't want to let your kids sneak too many of these because it can cause a laxative effect. The recommended dosage for a child is one per day and for an adult they recommend between 1-4 per day. That's one way to make sure you limit your intake.

The best part is that Color Earth is doing a giveaway of a year's supply worth of chocolates to 20 winners! You can go to their web page to enter. Click here to visit Color Earth

FREE educational downloads for all of my followers!!

I told you I was going to have some awesome giveaways coming up in November. Let's start with something for everyone. That's right everyone who enters will win!

So, what is it? $54 worth of educational downloads.

16 different downloads for young learners - Frozen ABC unit, Rhyming Bunnies, sight words, author study, and so much more! This offer is only good for 4 days, so enter soon and share with everyone.


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Giveaway worth $250 of family fun!!!

We are launching a brand new giveaway worth $250 in prizes celebrating family fun! It is in celebration of the book, 101 Kids Activities That Are the Bestest, Funnest Ever!

Win A Whole Ton of Family Fun!

We are giving away:

• 101 Kids Activities That Are the Bestest, Funnest Ever!
• 8 Piece Ice Cream Bowl Set With Spoons
• Junket Ice Cream Mix
• Cuisinart Slow Churn Soft Serve Ice Cream Dispenser
• Popcorn Scoop
• 100 Popcorn Bags
• Theater Popcorn Kit
• Vintage Kettle Popcorn Maker

These are affiliate links. These are all our FAVORITES for family fun!

Enter to Win

Simply use the box below to enter to win this prize pack worth $250. This contest is open to North America only due to shipping costs. Each entry helps spread the word about the fun we have here at Kids Activities Blog...and we thank you! $250 Family Fun Night Popcorn and Ice Cream Goodies Giveaway From Kids Activities Blog Good luck!

Magic School Bus Giveaway!

About half of the giveaways I sponsor are things I love and want to share with my readers. Today's kit is exactly that. This is not a corporate sponsorship, there are no affiliate links, just something we love.

My kids LOVE Science. That may be a bit of an understatement. They will complain on days when we "only" do 4 experiments. Because of their interest and me wanting to encourage it, we have a lot of Science kits. I know when they go on sale and I stalk the best prices. Today I'm going to giveaway a Magic School Bus Weather Lab.



How awesome is this? 28 experiments inside a bus. Here is the description:

Ms. Frizzle and her students take Young Scientists on a wild ride with The Magic School Bus as they explore the weather. Young Scientists learn about the weather by spinning a pinwheel, making a tornado in a bottle, swirling a paper snake, recreating the water cycle, creating a rain cloud, using a sun dial, constructing a barometer, catching a rainbow, and learning about the greenhouse effect. Young Scientists become their own meteorologist by building the bus-shaped weather station with a thermometer, rain gauge, wind meter, wind vane, and compass. The weather is then tracked on the enclosed weather chart with colorful stickers. This captivating bus-shaped kit comes packed with lots of science components, 28 colorful experiment cards, weather station, weather chart, stickers, and data notebook to record observations. Seatbelts, everyone! Get ready to become a meteorologist with Weather Lab! (Ages: 5 and up)

 This kit retails for $39.99 plus you have to pay shipping. I'm giving it away for free with no shipping (if you live in the U.S. - Sorry everyone else, but I can't afford international shipping).


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Ultimate Blog Party 2014

It's time for my favorite virtual party! Ok, I admit I don't attend a lot of virtual parties, however this is my 3rd year doing this party and it is always worth it.

So for those of you new to my blog, I'm Jessica. That's my family in the top right corner. I don't use the names of the rest of my family so they are known as Wonderful Husband, Sweet Son, and Sweet Daughter. I'm creative like that.

My posts cover things that I do with my kids, neurological research, a couple of ongoing series, and complete randomness. Here are some of the most popular posts:

Using Eye Droppers
Screen Time for Babies and Toddlers
A Tale of Two Beds
Kid Photographers
Homemade Zamboni

As part of the party, I am sponsoring two giveaways. If you go over to the party page you can read about how to enter for the thousands of dollars in prizes they are giving away. You can also discover many other awesome blogs. I would love if you would

I also have a couple of giveaways happening on my blog. (Magic School Bus giveaway doesn't start until the 5th.)
$50 HoneyBaked Ham giftcard
Magic School Bus Science Kit

Educents Anniversary

Let's Celebrate! It's the Educents 1-Year Anniversary!

Have you heard of Educents.com? It's the first group deal website for Educators where you can save up to 90% on curriculum, educational toys, and other learning products. They are turning 1 year old on April 2, 2014 and to celebrate, they are giving an additional 20% off, site wide until April 7, 2014! Just use code "Anniversary20." In addition, they are SO EXCITED to kick off an AMAZING month of fun activities to celebrate. They will have 30 giveaways (one per day) in the month of April! And, their grand prize winner will receive a family vacation in Florida (thanks to Wyndham Vacation Rentals) & with a runner-up prize of a $1,000 Educents Gift Card!

Just a few of the companies that will be giving products away in April: Math Mammoth, SayPlease, Systematic Mathematics, DNA Educational Games, Red Apple Reading, Critical Thinking Co., Times Tales, Seat Sack, The Latin Road, Intelli-Tunes, Simply Fun, Institute for Excellence in Writing, Luv Chicken, Center for Hands-On Learning, Classical Academic Press, Your Story Hour, Wordsmiths, American High School, Middlebury Interactive Languages, My Year Look, The Latin Road, Intelli-Tunes, The learning Journey International & MORE!

The mission of Educents is to provide affordable education to all. In just 1 year, Educents has saved educators over $5 million dollars and over 150,000 products have made it into homes and classrooms all around the world.

So, what are you waiting for? Go save an additional 20% and enter to win tons of giveaways

. For every giveaway you enter, you get an entry for the two grand prizes!

www.Educents.com -- The Best Place for Educational Products at a discount!

I am not being paid for this post, but it does include affiliate links. These are free for you, but help me support my addiction to buying curriculum from Educents.

HoneyBaked Ham Store Review and Giveaway!

HoneyBaked Ham provided me with a giftcard to spend in their store. I bought the rest from them with my own money. The opinions I share about the food are my own, and HoneyBaked Ham did not tell me what to say. In fact, they won't agree with some of my opinions.

Here's my to do list:
Run a 1/2 marathon
Make sure kids get to music class
Grandma comes in town for a visit
Our city Easter Egg Hunt
Go with the kids to a friend's birthday party at a bounce house place
Promote two giveaways that are happening on my blog
Promote two giveaways I'm doing on another blog
Do homework for my Coursera class
Complete lesson plans for upcoming week

That's a pretty crazy list for a week, but that's actually my list for one specific day. The biggest issue? My family still expects to eat. I know it's crazy, but they want 3 complete meals and a snack. Turns out explaining the importance of fruits and vegetables has made this even more complicated. They won't let me serve cereal for every meal.

That's why I was so happy to learn about the HoneyBaked Ham store in Plano, TX. I had never been to one and didn't realize the variety of things they have. Of course they have ham, but they also have turkey, sides, desserts, mixes, and condiments. I don't like ham and neither does anyone else in my immediate family. I'm fairly certain I'm not supposed to say that in my review, but it is true. However, my family loves turkey. We were able to pick up fully cooked turkey breast - baked in the honey glaze - already sliced. This seems like a simple thing, but having it already sliced saves me time.

We also bought mashed potatoes, spinach artichoke dip, broccoli rice casserole, and cornbread stuffing. Each of these is individually packaged and can be heated in the oven or in the microwave. Another great benefit - all of them can be frozen and cooked from frozen. I have a deep freeze with plenty of storage space, but my refrigerator is often full so this saves me space. Once again it's the little things that help.

The most difficult decision to be made at the HoneyBaked Ham store is which dessert to pick. We were good and only picked one, though they were all tempting. We passed over the cheesecake, pecan pie, and chocolate mousse cake. We decided to get a coffee cake. Then we had to pick a flavor. We ended up with the banana walnut, but were tempted by the other flavors as well.

We also picked up a couple of other items because one stop shopping is more efficient! We needed some pancake mix (made with real blueberries) and some mustard. The food was all excellent and so easy to prepare. For a formal family meal, I highly suggest the HoneyBaked Ham store. If you are as busy as I am, you should buy your Easter meal from here. If you aren't as busy as I am, would you like to help me? I could really use it...

There are some specials going on that I wanted to tell you about.

• In-Store Specials
• $54.99 Easter Ham & Turkey Combo – Pair a Turkey Breast (approx. 3 lbs.) with your choice of a Boneless Ham (approx. 3.5 lbs.) or Quarter Ham (approx. 4.5 lbs.)
• $22.99 Turkey Breast (with any Half or Whole Ham purchase)
• $24.99 Easter Brunch Bundle – Cinnamon Walnut Coffee Cake and Honey-Spice Bacon
• Heat & Share Sides: Two for $13.99, three for $19.99

They are also offering a coupon off Ham to all of my readers just go here: Coupon.

HoneyBaked Ham is sponsoring a giveaway! 20 people will win a $50 giftcard to spend on anything at their closest HoneyBaked Ham store.

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MyCausora and a Giveaway

Have you heard about MyCausora? I just recently learned about them. It's a simple concept and one I think we should all support.

Donate Now On Causora And Get Rewards!
 

First you pick a charity to donate money - I selected Donors Choose, but there are many great ones to choose if you would prefer something else. When you donate money, you get a one for one credit match. So if you donate $20, they give you a $20 credit. The credit can be spent at over 150 merchants. My favorite merchants listed include Novica and Creativebug. If you really want to stretch your money, you can use your credit to donate more to charity. How else could you sit at home and buy Shakespeare books for a class and feed a gibbon fresh fruit within minutes?

MyCausora has generously offered to host a giveaway for my readers so you can try it out for free!  10 winners will each get $20 to donate and the winner will get to keep the reward.


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Math Giveaway!

Another giveaway just for my readers! This time it is 65 Short Mysteries You Solve With Math!

This book is for 11-15 year olds and is recommended by the National Science Teachers Association and endorsed by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.


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Another Science Giveaway!

Today's giveaway is the next book in the series of one minute mysteries - 65 MORE Short Mysteries You Solve With Science. It can stand on its own or be used after finishing the first book.

Recommended for ages 8-12, this book was a finalist in the National Best Books Awards, is recommended by Science Magazine! and has been mentioned on NPR's Science Friday.


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Science giveaway!

Today I'm hosting the first of 3 giveaways this month! One Minute Mysteries series has published a book called 65 Short Mysteries You Can Solve with Science! It is recommended by the National Science Teachers Association for ages 8-12.

 

The book includes mysteries from Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical and Chemical Science, General Science, and two bonus sections with 5 more mysteries from the other two books in the series.

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Fun Pasta!

I was given a box of pasta goodies from The Pasta Shoppe to review. All opinions are my own and there is a surprise at the end of the post!

First I let Sweet Son which he wanted to start with. He picked the Down on the Farm easy cheesy pasta.

There were chickens, cows, and barns mixed together in three different colors. That alone amused my kids. However, I will say it really was a 10 minute meal and the ingredients were much better than typical mac and cheese. It is made with real cheese and I was thrilled to see they didn't use any Red Dye #40 (Sweet Son breaks out in hives if he eat it). 

The next surprise was discovering a coloring sheet on the inside of the packaging. This kept my kids entertained while I cooked the quick meal. This seems like such a simple idea, but really helped me get the meal on the table quickly.

The next day Sweet Daughter selected the Cat Lovers pasta. This included cat faces and paws. It was not an entire meal so I served it with our favorite sauces. This was another hit with my family. The pasta is good quality and the shapes just make you smile while you are eating.

This was my choice to try. I love the idea of pasta nests, but have never seen them done this way. I was concerned about how they would hold up to boiling. There were two different sets of directions - one for maintaining the nest shape and one for making typical angel hair pasta.

The nests held up remarkably well. Here they were served with meatball eggs and sauce. My kids both commented on how cute this meal was. This was the only pasta I was slightly disappointed in the flavor of. It was ok, but it wasn't up to the same standards as the shaped pastas.

Next up was the Texas Longhorn pasta salad. (My alma mater hasn't released the licensing rights.) They have an entire line of collegiate pasta salads. They also state that they do use food dyes in these in order to get the college colors perfect. These are all officially licensed.

You can clearly see the shapes even after cooking. The pasta salad only takes 15 minutes to make and comes with 3 different recipes. The shapes and colors were accurate, but I wasn't a fan of the recipe I selected. That was my fault though for trying something new - my family isn't great about new sauces on pasta.

The Pasta Shoppe doesn't just sell pasta. They also sent us some of these meringues to try. At only 7 calories per serving they were amazingly sweet and filling. They also sell chili, formaggio, gluten free pasta, and soup. 

I highly recommend trying their pasta, but it's always better to share with friends. They have a fundraising program that is perfect for schools, church groups, and other organizations. The organization will make 40-50% of the profits. If that isn't impressive enough, they offer free brochures and order forms so the start up cost of doing the fundraiser is 0! They allow for selling online to out-of-town family and friends, increasing your potential market. If anyone has ever done a cookie dough fundraiser (and haven't we all), you will love that this fundraiser requires no freezer space. It also helps support better nutrition goals among students. With prices starting at only $5.50, this is a great way to support your community.

I'm guessing at this point you are hungry and can't wait to try some Pasta with Personality. They have agreed to let me giveaway a box of fun pastas ($30 value)!

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Ultimate Back to School Bash

Welcome to the Ultimate Back to School Bash #bts2013!

This is my first year participating in the Ultimate Back to School Bash, but I knew my readers would love it. There are some amazing prizes for everyone (even those of you without kids). From preschool to Algebra curriculum, healthy snacks, even a $100 Visa card. I'm excited to be a part of this and I hope some of my readers win!

3BoysandaDog has teamed up with A+ Interactive Math and some fabulous other brands to bring you this giveaway.

Prizes:

• A+ Interactive Math - 1 year FREE Online Full Curriculum - A+ Interactive Math - 1 winner (choice of: grades K - Algebra I) Value $124.99 . A+ Interactive Math is dedicated to making math enjoyable and learnable for all ages. A+ Interactive is perfect for homeschooling parents or parents that just want to give the child some extra math help. A + Interactive Math offers full curriculum books, workbooks, online education and interactive math CD's. You can purchase A+ Interactive Math or view their catalog here.
  Door Prize for all participants:
  Multiplication for Elementary & Middle School - download (value $21.99)
  link: http://aplustutorsoft.com/SpecialOffers.do
  Code: enter 3DOGSMATH upon checkout

• $100 Visa Card - This fabulous gift card is being brought to you by www.learntobloghangouts.com! This is the perfect way to get a great jump start on your back to school shopping! You can use this $100 Visa gift card at any location that accepts Visa.

• Back to School Survival Guide - This back to school guide is brought to you by The Confident Mom. In this Back to School Survival Guide you will find everything you need to help you ensure the school year runs seamlessly. This guide is an 80 page printable that will help you keep your child safe while using the internet, help with homework, making packing school lunches easier, become a savvy back to school shopper and much more! You can read more about the Back to School Survival Guide or purchase one here.

• Office Depot Sackpack of School Supplies -Office Depot is committed to providing affordable school supplies! You will find $25 worth of school supplies in this sack pack. The Office Depot Foundation donates over 30,000 backpacks to school children each and every year!

• BYOU Magazine Subscription

• Go Picnic Ready to Eat Meals - Go Picnic makes packing lunches and snacks a breeze. They offer gluten-free, kosher, all-natural and a variety of other snacks that are perfect for back to school lunches and snacks. You can view the large variety of products they offer here.

• Tummy Calm - Have a little one with an upset stomach? Tummy Calm is a safe option to helping your child feel better. Tummy Calm is made with all-natural FDA regulated ingredients. You can read more about Tummy Calm and place an order here.

• BIC School Supplies - BIC offers a wide range of back to school items from pens, pencils, markers, highlighters and much more! BIC is your one stop shop for your back to school supplies.

• Teach My Preschooler - Teach My is your one stop solution for giving babies, toddlers and preschoolers a jump start on education. You will find interactive learning products that promote learning in a fun manner. You can order a Teach My learning program here.

• Texas Instruments - Texas Instruments should be your go to supplies when it comes to tools for math and science calculators. One lucky winner will be receiving this http://education.ti.com/en/us/nspire-family/cx-handhelds. This is a colorful and engaging way for to learn math and science!

• Wild Planet Foods - Wild Planet Foods has tuna like you have never tasted before. This tuna is the perfect ingredient for a healthy and delicious school lunch. Wild Planet offers tuna that has 6 times the Omega 3 and 1/2 the mercury other brands have. Order up your own supply of Wild Planet Foods here.

• GHCretors - GHCretors offers all-natural, non-GMO and gluten-free popcorn in a variety of flavors! You will love that a healthy snack can taste so good. This might just be the best popcorn you have ever tasted. Get your order placed here.

• ListPlanIt - Are you ready to get your life organized? If so then ListPlanIt is the place to visit! Any kind of list you can imagine you will find on ListPlanIt. The winner is going to receive 2 ePlanners (Student ePlanner and Home Education ePlanner, value $10) + a coupon code for a 3-month trial to ListPlanIt! This is a fantastic prize to get the school year started off. You can also sign up for ListPlanIt here.

 

Go to The Ultimate Back to School Bash (<<----click there) post to enter for your chance to win this HUGE giveaway worth well over $350 dollars!

Why are you still reading? Go enter!!!

Big June Giveaway!

Hosted by Feisty Mom

Special Thanks goes to our Sponsors Simply Glittered, Itty Bitty Clay Creations, Glitzy Glamour Girls, Cali Couture Tuts & More, Chelldons Inspired Designs, Bows by Chelsea, Wreaths & Things, Crocheted Design, The Quilt Handler, Sensual Delight Scents, The Traveling Classroom

It's June already! Time for our Big June Giveaway! Bringing you prizes from some great sponsors valued at over $150! Please take the time to visit each sponsor and thank them for donating to this giveaway. We've got some great prizes up for grabs!

Here are some coupon codes you can use right now!

Use Coupon Code FEISTY10OFF for 10% off at Simply Glittered

Use Coupon Code GrandOpening20 at Southern Girl Prints

Prizes:

$10 credit for Simply Glittered

4th of July Wreath from Wreathes & Things

Small Metro Jar from Sensual Delight Scents

DIY digital customized 3 pack wedding suite from Southern Girl Prints

$10.00 credit to The Traveling Classroom

2 Coupon Codes from Crocheted Design

$10 gift code for Itty Bitty Clay Creations

Hair feather headband from Glitzy Glamour Girls

$10 gift code from Cali Couture Tutus & More

$10 gift code from Chelldon’s Inspired Designs

Neon Bow Set, Nautical Bow Set, Wine Glass Set from Bows by Chelsea

Key Fob & Cosmetic Case from The Quilt Handler

This Giveaway is open to U.S. only. Please enter using the rafflecopter form below. Good luck everyone! Giveaway will run from 6/10-6/28. All winners must reply within 48 hours of winning. ALL entries will be verified. I keep a list of all entrants that do not enter correctly. It's not fair to those that do.

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