Discovery Education Streaming Plus~Free Subscription!

This FREE subscription ends on August 31st, 2015!

     Check it out today!

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!  Have you heard the news?  Homeschool Byers Co-op is giving away a FREE subscription to homeschoolers to Discovery Education Streaming Plus!  Are you ready for some more?  IT IS FOR THE ENTIRE SUMMER!  WOW!
WHO DOESN”T LIKE FREE?  I know I do!

   Summer break is only about 10 weeks long, traditionally.  With in that time kids can loose so much of the learning they did during the school year! Let you child’s education soar thru the summer!
Discovery Education Streaming Plus is a comprehensive, educational digital streaming service that has over 12,300 full length educational videos, plus tons of other educational content including games, interactives, images and more.   So, homeschoolers can have their kids engaged with educational content all summer long at no cost! 

  A 1 year subscription retails for $375, so this is a REALLY GOOD DEAL.  Think of it as getting over 90.00 of educational material for free!  (when you divide the total year subscription by 4 quarters in a year).  That is an Awesome deal, isn’t it!

Bring Your Homeschool Lessons to Life
      It's easy to see why homeschoolers rave about Discovery Education Streaming Plus. It's probably the most extensive and feature-rich educational video streaming service in the world.
It's much like having the entire DVD selection of your local public library available to you from the convenience of your home, 24/7/365.
But it's not just a collection of videos that you can watch from beginning to end. This library has been organized into useable video clips, organized and categorized, close-captioned, and supplemented with lesson plans, teaching guides, interactive simulations, images, audio resources, and other resources and materials that you can incorporate into virtually every aspect of your homeschool curriculum.
    
            Here are only SOME of the features of the program:

• Thousands of full-length videos from scores of producers, segmented into tens of thousands of content-specific clips tied directly to state and national standards.
• Supplemental resources such as Assignment Builder, Quiz Center, Writing Prompt Generator, lesson plans, and more
• The ability to customize and personalize lessons to different subjects, grades, and learning styles
• Comprehensive K-12 curriculum coverage in six core subject areas.
• Video series from trusted content providers such as BBC Worldwide, CBS News, Channel 4, Discovery Studios, Scholastic, TV Ontario, and Westin Woods
• Thousands of self-paced math tutorials spanning concepts from basic addition to calculus
• Thousands of audio files including podcasts, classic literature audiobooks, children's literature

 
                                                 You can check it out HERE!
                                            Remember this is only for the summer! 

I was given the opportunity to a sneak peak of this program and to share this promotion with you from Home and School Mosaics and the Homeschool Buyers Co-op.  I was not compensated in any other way for this promotion.

Frugal Friday!~ Refilling automatic soap Dispensers

 Everyone loves when you find your favorite product on sale don’t we all?  My favorite soaps and lotions are Bath and Body Works, Warm Vanilla Sugar and Kitchen Lemon my favorite ones. However, do you know how quickly 4 kiddos can empty one of those soaps?  Even though I purchase them on sale with a coupon it isn’t very economical to let them have one!

     I purchased one of those fancy no touch soap dispensers for their bathroom.  Yes we are saving money using those than the foam or Bath and Body Works dispensers, they aren’t that cheap either.  I thought I would try to take one apart and refill it.  I have burned up a couple of machines (again not very economical) trying to figure out what the formula should be.  I think I have found the perfect formula that works and has worked for the past 3 months when refilling my soap dispensers with blue Dawn!
     Do you have dispensers that you want to refill on your own?  Grab a screwdriver and your blue Dawn and let’s get started!
It is going to take a bit of elbow grease to get the top off but keep working it will come off!

Once you get it off, fill your container up to the top of the words.  Fill the rest of the bottle with water.  This is to thin out the Dawn.  Replace the lid and put back into your dispenser.  that is all there is to it!  I use the blue Dawn because it has more grease fighting power. You can never have too much cleaning power, right! 
Enjoy your refillable soap!

Happy 25th Birthday Beginner’s Bible and Giveaway!

It’s time for a celebration!  The Beginner’s Bible is turning 25 and you get a chance to win a present! Yes!  You read that correctly, you will get this entire set of books!  Awesome!  Thank you ZonderKids!
So lets get the partying started! 
How do we celebrate a birthday? Of course with snacks, crafts and gifts!  With this party you may be the one getting the gift!  Isn't that awesome!  For the birthday celebration, Zonderkids is giving away the entire collection listed below.  WOW!  Read on and follow the steps to be entered!

No Bible celebration would be complete with out themed snacks.  Check out some of my favorite!          
        Rainbow sugar cookies                2 x 2 cupcakes                        Fish and loves of bread  
                                                
Sugar cookies are so versatile!  You can ice them for any and all of your occasions!  Depending on the ages of the kiddos it would be fun for them to decorate their own cookies also! You could add multiple things to go with several stories!  Cupcakes are always welcome here, also!  For these I just took some animal cookies and place two of the same on each cupcake. Called two by two just like God asked Noah.  Baby goldfish and honey graham crackers make awesome fish and loaves!  (You could also use blue yogurt to dip the graham crakers for water)   

   No party is fun with out some great crafts or games.  Here (pictured below) are some activities and crafts that we came up with.  Some can be used as party favors also to remind everyone of their fun day!
      ONE of my favorite stories is the story of the good shepherd.  Every year during Sunday School we go over this story and make sheep out of cotton balls!  The kids love it!  You could make this adorable crafts with the kids as an activity or print them smaller and use them as name tags, place setting name cards, or to tag onto a favor bag! 
     Check out the fun alphabet fish craft from www.Catholicicing.com.  This would make a great party favor! All you need is pipe cleaners and colored beads.
   There are many printable pages on the web.  A favorite of the kids here is Daniel and the Lion's Den.  These would make great placemats that the kids can decorate themselves. Finally a craft that can be made ahead, added to the area as a decoration and then passed out for the kids to take home or made as a party activity!  All you need is a paper plate, a toilet paper roll and some construction paper.  The kids can decorate the candle any way they would like or cover it with construction paper.  Place a flame made out of construction paper at the top and to attach the roll to the tray (or plate) cut a hole in the center of the plate and  make tabs to glue into the bottom of the roll!  What a cute candle to remind us that he is the light of the world.

      

Check out the great books that Zonderkids is offering for the celebration of the Beginner Bible!  You can have a chance to win this entire collection!

The Beginner’s bible Collector’s Edition This set includes a Complete Book Animated on DVD and Audio CD’s.  The total running time is 120 minutes of 94 different animated videos!
Bible Stories Favorites (I Can Read Series: My First Shared Reading Book).  This book contains 5 different stories from the Beginner’s Bible and easy-to-read vocabulary perfect for children just learning to read!  Included is an aduio CD featuring each story told with a signal to let you know when it’s time to turn the page.  A great way for kids to hear and see the words as they are learning to read.
The Beginner’s Bible Holy Bible   The NIV Version of the Holy bible in a nice sturdy hard back edition.  The Bible comes with brightly illustrated pictures throughout (this is not a picture book) and also includes a dedication page to remember a special occasion.
Noah’s Ark This chunky sight word book is great for little hands made of thick sturdy pages.  it highlights the main words of the story of Noah’s Ark, like rainbow, build and land.  The story of Noah’s Ark is in the back of the book for you to read to your child.
Jesus Shows God’s Love  A book illustrating the story of Jesus’ life.  It starts with Jesus’ birth and goes thru his life illustrating his baptism, his choosing of his disciples and more in his ministry of sharing God’s love for us.


Super Duper Mighty Jumbo Activity Book This thick 382 page activity book is loaded with things for your little ones to do!  Coloring, counting, matching, drawing are only some of the fun things to do in this book.


Where can I purchase these great books or check out the other amazing things ZonderKids offers”"?
                    Check out their Website             Facebook
                                          To enter the Giveaway:
Comment below with your favorite bible story (and craft if you want)
  Become a follower of my blog
  Share this review/giveaway (comment below with your link, please)
Like Zondervan on Facebook
  each action equals one entry
All entries must be in my July 25 at 12 midnight!
Thanks for stopping by and Good Luck!

Disclaimer:  I received the above mentioned products in exchange for a frank and honest review.  A positive review is not guaranteed.  All opinions are my own.  Your results and opinions may vary.

Sleep Number DualTemp Layer~Smiley360

Do you know what your sleep number is?   Do you know what that even means?   I didn’t until last week!  I am going to share with you my journey to find that number. 
  I went into my local Sleep Store to check out the Sleep Number DualTemp^TM  Layer.  When I got there at about 10am , the associate told me she just opened the store.  I told her I was there on a Smiley360 mission to check out the DualTemp Layer.  Because she just opened the layer wasn’t ready.  It takes about 20 minutes to heat or cool.  While I was waiting, I was invited to check out the sleep number experience!  Please try to refrain from being jealous!  You can have your own experience too just by stopping by your local store! You can check to see where the closest store to you is by clicking here!  I hope that you can feel the comfort of the bed as your read on!
     So what is this whole sleep number thing anyway? 
Sleep Number beds give you total control over your sleep experience. At the touch of a button, you can increase or decrease your Sleep Number setting to achieve the exact level of comfort, firmness and support that’s ideal for you and your sleep partner. Yep you read that correctly!  The bed can be at two different comfort levels at the same time!  So your sleep number is the number that the mattress is at where you really feel as if you are sleeping on a cloud! 
     By using uniquely designed air-chamber technology, the Sleep Number bed provides an adjustable, gentle cushion of support, so that each person can find their precise comfort level. This personalized Sleep Number setting allows you to stay in the deepest stages of sleep longer, so you awake more energized and rejuvenated. Clinical studies show the Sleep Number bed relieves back pain and improves sleep quality.  Who doesn’t need a better quality of sleep?
     And so does the sleep number bed!  Life happens whether or not you sleep, doesn’t it?  However, the quality of sleep you have will affect how well your day, week or life goes.  Enter Sleep Store!    When you walk into a sleep store and lay on a sleep number bed, your sleeping experience is transformed.  You are on your way to a computerized analysis of your pressure points and where your mattress needs to be to get the best quality of sleep, something so many of us so desperately  need!

  Here is my first analysis on the sleep number bed. This is based on what I said was comfortable to me.

    When I first laid on their mattress I loved it!  It was so comfortable and just like my mattress at home!  I thought I prefered (until I stepped into their store) a firm mattress.  I can sleep anywhere: on the floor, in the car, on the couch, and have often said I could sleep standing up against a wall if gravity wouldn’t pull me down when I was relaxed and asleep!   This mattress was So Comfortable to me! 
    To find the perfect sleep number you adjust the bed until it is where you feel no more pressure.  So, she started adjusting the mattress to find my sleep number.  The firmness of the bed melted away as the bed contoured into the shape of my body and what I needed to relieve that pressure areas. 
     Oh my goodness!  It was such a Huge difference.  I am not a back sleeper and never have been.  I put my kiddos on their stomach as well because they slept better.  However, sleeping on this mattress would convert me in a heartbeat!  There have been studies done that prove back sleeping is better for you for many reasons.
Once she found out that my sleep number was a 40 here is what my pressure points looked like”

No more red or orange spots!  There will always be some color change as when you lay there your body is being pulled by gravity.  The pressure that I had when I laid down on the mattress was gone.  I didn’t know how much more comfortable this would be!  I always thought I liked or wanted the firmer mattress.  After all, I can sleep on the floor!  I was so wrong!  This bed is SO Comfortable!  This bed is so individualized and adjustable that you can have one number and your spouse (or the children in your bed) can have a separate! If you have any kind of back problems or arthritis or suffer from body aches or pains, you should give this a try!

After all this excitement, I was dying to try the DualTem Layer.  Could it get any better?  OF course!  So what is this temperature thing?   It is like a mattress pad that hooks to your bed and cools or heat your bed accordingly.  Yep you read that correctly!  It is going to cool your bed on those hot days and heat it on the cold days!  Don’t worry it has a motorized fan attached to it that is super quiet, and it has a time setting so that it doesn’t have to run all night.  The only real downside to it is that it does take 20 minutes to heat or cool.  Don’t worry so does that old electric blanket you use, and this one COOLS TOO!   
  Once you have it attached to your mattress, you will need to get your comforter or bedspread out again.  If you don’t have one of the two on your bed all your heating and cooling effort will go out into your bedroom, not with in your sheets!

 
  Here is the picture of the side view with the quiet machine.  The cord is attached at the side and you don’t feel the cord.  Did I mention you don’t hear the machine?  The motor should fit right under your bed, not out like this picture.  There was not under bed space for the display.   
     Just like the sleep number beds themselves this Dual Temp layer is totally customizable! I like for it to be cooler when I sleep and so does my husband. He however likes to be cocooned into his sheets, I do not.  With the Dual Temp Layer he can be cocooned and cool!  What a great idea Sleep Number!     
I want to thank Sleep Number Store in Eastgate Ohio for my sleep number search experience and allowing me to experience the comforts of the Dual Temp Layer!
Thank to you Smiley360 for this mission!  How can you be apart of this mission or have the opportunity for others?  You can check it out or more about Smiley360 HERE!
You can check out the Sleep Number website.
Check them out and like them on Facebook.

I will receive a free pillow from Smiley360 for completing this mission!