Merry Christmas!

Reindeer Ranch

On Saturday, we visited Hardy's Reindeer Ranch. It was our first time visiting the Reindeer Ranch, and we had a great time! There sure are a lot of fun things to do there. There's even a gift shop, which is full of cute Christmas decorations, and a cafe, too. The highlight of our visit was going on the Reindeer tour, where we had the opportunity to feed the reindeer and learn a bit about them.

Here are some pictures from our visit:

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ready for Thanksgiving

We invited family over to our house to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, and I'm really looking forward to it. The food is pretty much planned out, and I've decorated our living room (you can see our mantel in the photo above), so we're ready to go! Bring on good food, fun times with family, and, of course, Black Friday shopping!!!

(And, as you may have noticed, I spruced up the blog with a new design for fall/Thanksgiving, too.)

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends!

13 Months Old

Happy Veterans Day!

Veterans Day Pictures - Quotes - Photobucket

My Memories Suite Review and Giveaway

I love scrapbooking, but the truth is that I just don't seem to have that much time for it (or really a lot of the crafty things that I would love to do, for that matter) these days. So, when I was contacted by My Memories with the opportunity to review the My Memories Suite digital scrapbooking software, I jumped at the chance (since I figured I could complete a project much easier and faster than traditional scrapbooking and I'd simply be able to "save" my progress if I only had a few minutes to work on something). 

This scrapbook software is easy to use, and you can create an amazing looking scrapbook page relativity quickly! It comes with a variety papers, layouts, embellishments, and more already loaded on it to help you get started. Plus, their website offers a ton of affordable digital scrapbooking kits and items that you can purchase to use with the software (there's several free items, as well)!

Riley has a ton of photos marking her first birthday (photos of her one her birthday, smash cakes photos by two wonderful photographers, photos from her first birthday party, etc.) that I haven't really gotten to do much with yet, so one of the first things I just had to do was create a little something using some of those photos! I decided to use one of their pre-made birthday designer templates (the And Many More - Pink template), and in just a few minutes, I was able to create this cute page:

 

I also created my very own page from scratch - a pretty fall layout - to compliment photos from our recent visit to a local pumpkin patch. I LOVE LOVE LOVE how it turned out!

My Memories Suite is so much fun! This software allows you to do more than just digital scrapbooking, too. There's a ton of things you can do and create -- from printables to blog buttons and more! And I love that if I'm ever in need of inspiration or tutorials, I can just visit the MyMemories Gallery or their YouTube channel for a ton of ideas.

Where to Buy:
www.mymemories.com

Connect:
You can find My Memories on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, PINTEREST, and YOUTUBE. Be sure to check out their BLOG, as well!

Giveaway Time!
One lucky reader will win a copy of the My Memories Suite Digital Scrapbooking Software. To enter the giveaway, simply fill out the Rafflecopter form below! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a free download of this program in exchange for this review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Jessa's Sunshine Crochet Review

I love crocheted items!

Just take a look at these precious little things I got in the mail the other day:

 

  

Aren't they cute?! 

The Crochet Pumpkin Hat and Count Batty are from Jessa's Sunshine Crochet. (I was lucky to win not one but TWO giveaways on her blog during her weekly giveaways last month/October Celebration!! I was soooo happily surprised!) Both of them are beautifully crocheted. The pumpkin hat, topped off with a stem, curly vine, and leaf, is amazing. The ribbed texture is a such a nice detail. And Riley just loved Count Batty! I wouldn't normally use the word "adorable" to describe a bat, but, in this case, I definitely would! 

The talented lady behind Jessa's Sunshine Crochet makes crochet hats, headbands, clothing, photo props, and more! You can see photos of her other great creations on her Facebook page.

Connect:

You can find Jessa's Sunshine Crochet on FACEBOOK. Be sure to check out her BLOG, too!

Disclosure: I won these items from a giveaway, and I just wanted to share my thoughts on them with you. All opinions are 100% my own.

VTech Crazy Legs Learning Bug Review

Riley received some wonderful gifts at her birthday party, and, of course, that includes the favorite gift of practically all children -- TOYS. One toy that she has taken a particular liking to is the VTech Crazy Legs Learning Bug. 

This cute ladybug toy is educational and loads of fun! From a shape sorter to a pull toy, there's certainly a lot packed into it and so many ways to play. My favorite feature is that the shapes are attached to the toy so that they can't get lost. Plus, it has two modes - a learning mode and a music mode. Riley gets so excited when it lights up and the fun little melodies play. She just loves to clap and dance along with the music!

My only complaint is that a lot of toys have a volume control, but this one does not. I would love to see this toy have some sort of volume control on it, as it can be quite loud. Other than that, I think it's a toy is great! Riley hasn't had it all that long, but she has played with it quite a bit and it seems to be one of her favorites already!

Connect:
You can find VTech on FACEBOOK and TWITTER.

Where to Buy:
You can find the VTech Crazy Legs Learning Bug in stores and at online retailers.

Disclosure: This toy was received as a gift at her party, and I thought that I'd shared my thoughts on it with you. All opinions are 100% my own.

Riley's "Cute as a Button" 1st Birthday Party

To kick off this fun event celebrating Riley's birthday, I thought I would share some photos from her birthday party with you. (Be sure to check back for more "birthday bash" posts over the next few days.)

 

Chris Mann "Roads" Album Review

If you're a fan of NBC's The Voice, then you may already be familiar with Chris Mann. As a finalist on the show last season, he competed on Christina Aguilera's team, and by the end of the season, he had TWO songs on the iTunes Top 10 Pop Singles Chart. 

Now, he has an album out! 

His debut album, Roads, was released on October 30th, and I've been listening to it all throughout the week!

Roads boasts a wildly eclectic assortment of songs, ranging from Willie Nelson’s “Always on My Mind” and Lady Antebellum’s “Need You Now” to “Ave Maria” and Damien Rice’s “The Blowers’ Daughter,” with the latter featuring a special guest appearance from Christina Aguilera. Mann co-wrote two songs, “Cuore,” based on Bach’s “Air on a G String,” and the contemporary ballad “Falling.”

My Thoughts!
This is a great album! His voice is full of emotion and power and is simply beautiful to listen to. The Blowers’ Daughter is my top favorite from the album. It's a song that I've liked for quite some time, and this version is amazing.
 

Where to buy:
You can find Roads on iTunes and Amazon.com.

Connect:
For the latest news about Chris Mann, visit ChrisMannMusic.com. You can also check out Chris on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

This is a review post from One2One Network. I was provided with a copy of the album and I am eligible for a prize drawing. All opinions stated are my own.