The Knit Wit By Shair: 8/1/11

August 31, 2011

SnoozeShade Review

When my middle son was a baby who would sleep anywhere, at anytime. It didn't matter what was going on around him, if he was tired he would sleep. Even now at 3 years old, if he has been really active and is tired, he will say "Mommy I am going for a nap", and will go up to bed.

However, his brothers were not like that.

If my oldest finally crashed in his stroller, and we stopped, took him out or anything changed, he would crack his eyes open. If we were home, he would continue to sleep, but if not he would wake up again.

And now our youngest, if he can see anything stimulating, he will keep crying because he wants to go to sleep but can't. Since 4 months old he would cry to go to sleep in his crib, in his bedroom. I couldn't put him in his bassinet, since it wasn't in his room.

When I heard about the SnoozeShade, I thought it was a great idea, but sometimes a great idea isn't executed well, so I was excited to get it and see if it really was a great product.

Some info about SnoozeShade Products:

SnoozeShade products are for you when you want to:

maintain your child’s sleep schedule when you are away from home
encourage good sleeping habits for even the most alert baby
protect your baby's delicate skin from the sun with UPF50+

No more . . .

baby waking up due to bright sun or other distractions
pegging muslins or draping blankets over your pram or stroller
wasting money on different products for different strollers

Great benefits include:

universal fit for all popular strollers
simple and easy to attach with Velcro straps
breathable, soft and porous fabric allows great air circulation
94% of light blocked to create a darkened and cosy sleep environment
'sneak-a-peek’ access to quietly check on baby
UPF50+ protects against 98%+ of UVA and UVB rays
great for holidays, in restaurants or anytime you are out during baby’s naptime
lightweight, compact and portable with a free storage bag
protection against mosquitos and other insects
endorsed by Jo Tantum, the UK’s leading baby sleep expert

This is a great product that is really well made. It is breathable, which I was always worried about when putting a blanket over the stroller. It always fell off too, and put wake the baby by landing on his face, or by letting sun on it. This is universal so should fit almost all strollers. It has velcro strips and is stretchable.

It comes in a really cute little mesh bag. The best part about the bag? It actually fits back in when you have taken it out! You know you have had those products where you take it out of the bag, and you can't get it back in no matter what you do. You start to question if they made the bag around the item instead of stuffing it in after! LOL

The product itself is great quality, that you can feel. It is very easy to use, and seems like it would last quite a while.

I wish I had this when the boys were younger, as I feel like it would've been a MUST for me.

Couture Clips Boutique Review

So I have 3 little boys, and I love having boys. I realize that I am meant to have boys, and probably couldn't handle a girl LOL! But when I was pregnant (and even now when I see super cute girly things), wanted a little girl so I could get all the cutesy girly things that I saw for little girls.

I love shopping for little girly things as gifts. People know if they have a little girl, and it's a gift from Shari, it's going to be froo-froo-frilly-pink and girly! When hubby and I are strolling thru a department store, I always stop and looking at the little dresses and hair clips. He lets me look for a minute, and then says "Which of our boys are you shopping for?", and gently pulls my arm along! LOL So when I was asked to check out Couture Clips Boutique's Hair Clips, I was very excited! As you can imagine, I don't get a lot of pitches for girl items, but doesn't mean I can't try them out. I am also trying to find a friend in the area who will write for my blog as well, and try out some of these items.

Jennifer has her daughter to thank for the creation of Couture Clips. In 2004, after Lauren was born, Jennifer's search for the perfect hair accessory for her little girl’s jet black hair began. Unable to find great-looking, quality clips for her daughter, Jennifer decided to design and create her own.

What started out as simply a mere search for the perfect hair accessory has turned into a full–scale product line featuring exquisite ribbons, sequins, beads and silk flowers. Along with her sister-in-law and business partner Lisa, also a mother of two little girls with a passion for dressing and accessorizing them, Jennifer has built Couture Clips into a business that’s capturing the interest of more stores every month.

They sell: Pinch Clips, Snap Clips, Barrettes, Headbands, Soft Headbands, Hats, Pony O's, and they even do Custom Orders and Special Occasion items!

I was sent 3 different clips:

Aren't they cute??

Ok, at the risk of losing my Mother of The Year award...here is a picture of my son wearing the couture clip!

These are really good quality, and securely made. Despite, his trying to pull it off, and shaking his head it stuck in there pretty good, and he has super fine hair.

BUY IT: You can purchase some great super cute products for yourself and your little girl, by either calling their number found: https://coutureclipsboutique.com/products.html, or you can use their find us page and find them online or in a store near you.

August 30, 2011

Tasty Tuesdays - Pavlova

INGREDIENTS

4 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch

Topping:

1 cup whipping cream
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Fresh fruit - kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, passion fruit, peaches, pineapple, or other fruit of your choice

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (130 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw a 7 inch (18 cm) circle on the paper.

IIn the bowl of your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until foamy.

Add the cream of tartar and continue to beat on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks.

Start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks. (Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers).

Using a large rubber spatula, fold in the vinegar and vanilla extract. In a small strainer, sift the cornstarch over the top of the meringue and, with the rubber spatula, fold in.

Gently spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges, making sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher than the center. (You want a slight well in the center of the meringue to place the whipped cream and fruit.)

Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the outside is dry and takes on a very pale cream color. Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar, and let the meringue cool completely in the oven. (The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch, if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and you will see that the inside is soft and marshmallowy.)

The cooled meringue can be made and stored in a cool dry place for a few days.

Just before serving gently place the meringue onto a serving plate. Whip the cream in your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, until soft peaks form. Sweeten with the sugar and vanilla and then mound the softly whipped cream into the center of the meringue. Arrange the fruit randomly, or in a decorative pattern, on top of the cream. Serve immediately as this dessert does not hold for more than a few hours.

Contributed by: Carolynn from Carolynns Recipe Box, and all recipes are used with permission.

Low-Entry Giveaways for August 30th, 2011

If you have any low-entry giveaways, please be sure to pass them along to me, and I will post them (email them to me at: theknitwitbyshair@hotmail.com). I will post a new one every day at 9 am (or try)!

Teach my Preschooler Kit, http://collegepark.macaronikid.com/article/167781/teach-my-preschooler-kit-giveaway, 9/6, CAN/US – very very low entries!!

Previously Posted

Baby Banana Brush Giveaway, http://lifeonmanitoulinreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/baby-banana-brush-review-and-giveaway.html, CAN/US, 9/9

Seventh Generation Eco-Friendly Products, http://lifeonmanitoulinreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/seventh-generation-giveaway.html CAN, 9/16

6x6 Personalized Collage, http://www.didyouknowcanada.ca/2011/08/giveaway-burnish-brush-art-studio.html, CAN, 9/5

HIlroy School Supplies , http://canadian-natural-mama.blogspot.com/2011/08/going-back-to-school-green-with-hilroy.html, CAN, 9/6

Endangerables Plush, http://brandonyuen.blogspot.com/2011/07/endangerbles-review-giveaway.html, CAN/US, 8/31, rafflecopter

7th Generation Prize Pack, http://www.talesofarantingginger.com/2011/08/seventh-generation-giveaway.html, CAN, 9/16

Art, http://www.didyouknowcanada.ca/2011/08/giveaway-burnish-brush-art-studio.html, CAN, 9/5

$40 to Frecklebox, http://multi-testingmommy.blogspot.com/2011/08/freckleboxcom-personalized-gifts.html, 9/1, CAN/US

7^th Generation Prize Pack, http://multi-testingmommy.blogspot.com/2011/08/7th-generation-gift-pack-giveaway.html, CAN, 9/16

Money Tree Guide - http://multi-testingmommy.blogspot.com/2011/08/do-you-see-money-tree-review-and.html, 8/30, CAN

bond girl 007 50 ml parfum spray CAN only 8/31 http://t.co/IUA2Idu

Avon Footworks package CAN/US 8/31 http://t.co/IUA2Idu

August 28, 2011

We Are Canadian Blog Hop

Welcome to the weekly "We are Canadian Blog Hop!!" Your co-hosts for this fun weekly Monday Hop are:

Each week we pull on blog from the previous week's hop, to be the Featured Blogger of the Week. We use random.org, and will email the winner that they won as soon as we can.

This Week's Featured Blogger is:

http://www.jenandjoeygogreen.blogspot.com/

Please feel free to grab the button, and spread the word to all your fellow Canadians!

Rules:
1. Canadians Only! (Sorry Americans, we wanted to give the Canadians some love for this one.)2. Follow the Co-hosts, and leave a comment so we will follow you back!
3. Follow the Featured Blogger, and leave a comment so they can follow you back!
get the InLinkz code

Top 10 referring sites for week of August 28, 2011

This week's top referrers! If you do one, please post the link in comments, so we can all see!:

stumbleupon.com – This is from using stumble upon a lot!

makobiscribe.com – She hosts a forum I am a part of

(direct) / (none) – This is people who have bookmarked me or just remember my url!

feedburner / feed – I have recently been told that this is how triberr shows up, as they use your feed. So that would make sense as to why this is up here

google – Google Searches, nuff said

t.co / referral - this is from twitter

facebook.com / referral

blogger.com / referral

contestgirl.com / referral – Contest Girl contacted me directly to put my contests on her site. She claimed lots of traffic to my giveaways for the steep fee of FREE!!! So I thought “Ok Contest Girl.... I will take a gamble on you”. I did it this week sometime, and voila! She delivers what she promises. Worth more than what I pay ;) But don’t tell her...she might jack up my cost!

feedburner / email – This is great b/c this is people clicking the email newsletter. I had a problem with my feed and it was down for like a week!! But it is up now, and apparently still giving me traffic.

August 27, 2011

Book Review: Blue Skies Tomorrow

Enter 8/22 - 9/22!

I love to read but with three little guys at home I don't get a long time to read, but it seems like lately I have gotten a lot of reviews for books. I have been doing my best to make time for the books I need to review. When I picked up Blue Skies Tomorrow by Sarah Sundin I couldn't put it down!! I have to say my house was very neglected that day! I read it in just over 1 day.

About the book:

Lt. Raymond Novak prefers the pulpit to the cockpit, but at least his stateside job training B-17 pilots allows him the luxury of a personal life. As he courts Helen Carlisle, a young war widow and mother who conceals her pain under a frenzy of volunteer work, the sparks of their romance set a fire that flings them both into peril. After Ray leaves to fly a combat mission at the peak of the air war over Europe, Helen takes a job in a dangerous munitions yard and confronts an even graver menace in her own home. Will they find the courage to face their challenges? And can their young love survive until blue skies return?

Want more? Read the press release.

About Sarah:

Sarah Sundin received the 2011 Writer of the Year Award from the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference, and her second novel A Memory Between Us is a finalist for an Inspirational Readers' Choice Award. Her stories are inspired by her great-uncle who flew with the U.S. Eighth Air Force in England during World War II.

Sarah lives in California with her husband and three children. Visit with Sarah online at www.sarahsundin.com.

To celebrate the release of Blue Skies Tomorrow, the final installment of the Wings of Glory series, Sarah is giving one lucky winner A Vintage Kindle Prize Package! Read what the reviewers are saying here.

One winner will receive:

* Kindle with Wi-Fi * Handmade vintage apron for you and a friend (see a photo here) * Blue Skies Tomorrow (for Kindle)

To enter just click one of the icons below. But, hurry, giveaway ends on 9/10. Winner will be announced on 9/12 at Sarah Sundin's blog. Details and official rules can be found when entering the contest.

Blog Tour Schedule: http://litfusegroup.com/blogtours/text/13422832

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I laughed, and cried, and couldn't dare put it down! I highly recommend this book! And will be going back to read the others in the series for sure!!

Disclosure: I was sent a free copy of this book for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

August 26, 2011

Book Tour: Mugabe and the White African Review and Giveaway

I have always heard about how we need to help Africa, but never really heard anything about the politics, and some of the reasons for their struggles. I learned so much from reading the book Mugabe and the White African.

About Mugabe and the White African:

Ben Freeth has an extraordinary story to tell. Like that of many white farmers, his family's land was "reclaimed" for redistribution by Mugabe's government.

But Ben's family fought back. Appealing to international law, they instigated a suit against Mugabe's government in the SADC, the Southern African equivalent of NATO. The case was deferred time and again while Mugabe's men pulled strings. But after Freeth and his parents-in-law were abducted and beaten within inches of death in 2008, the SADC deemed any further delay to be an obstruction of justice. The case was heard, and was successful on all counts.

But the story doesn't end there. In 2009 the family farm was burned to the ground. The fight for justice in Zimbabwe is far from over--this book is for anyone who wants to see into the heart of one of today's hardest places and how human dignity flourishes even in the most adverse circumstances.

Read the press release for more: http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs019/1101807863309/archive/1106690411054.html

The PBS debut of Mugabe and the White African, the award-winning documentary of the same name, was on July 26. Watch now at PBS: http://www.pbs.org/pov/mugabe/.

About Ben Freeth

Ben Freeth, MBE, is a British-born Zimbabwean farmer. He has lived in Zimbabwe most of his life and is raising his three young children there, together with his wife Laura. Ben's story has already been the subject of an award-winning documentary which won Best Documentary 2009 (British Independent Film Awards), was nominated for the BAFTA Outstanding Debut Film 2010, and shortlisted for an Oscar in 2010.

Blog Tour Schedule: http://litfusegroup.com/blogtours/text/13422041)

About the Giveaway!
Do you want to win $50 to Amazon.com?? I Here is what you have to do:

To enter all you have to do is send a tweet (using @litfuse) about Mugabe and the White African or share about it on Facebook!

If you tweet we'll capture your entry when you use @litfuse. If you share it on Facebook or your blog, just email us and let us know (info@litfusegroup.com). Easy. (All Litfuse bloggers who post a review are automatically entered and do NOT need to email us.)

Not sure what to tweet/post? Here's an idea.

TWEET THIS: Mugabe and the White African – one family’s stand for justice in the face of evil! @litfuse http://ow.ly/61JDW RT 4 a chance at $50

FACEBOOK THIS: Ben Freeth has an extraordinary story to tell about one family’s stand for justice in the face of evil. The fight for justice in Zimbabwe is far from over—Mugabe and the White African is for anyone who wants to see into the heart of one of today's hardest places and how human dignity flourishes even in the most adverse circumstances. http://litfusegroup.com/blogtours/text/13422041

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for honest review. All opinions are my own.