Mommy Brain

Featured DVD: I <3 Jonas

January 25, 2010 Categories: Reviews , TV on DVD | No Comments

Crushin’ on Jonas? Get ready to experience the lovable antics of three of the world’s most famous musicians with 7 specially selected episodes of the hit Disney Channel Original Series in I Heart Jonas.

Watch and see how Joe reacts when he discovers that Stella has a date with another guy, and check out what happens when the tables are turned and a struggling young actress makes a play for Joe. Plus, with the never-before-seen DVD feature, “You’ve Just Been JoBro’d! – Surprising Jordin Sparks,” I Heart Jonas is a must-have for any Jonas Brothers fan!

Natalie’s review: The Jonas series is pretty much the same as every other Disney TV show, but this series, I think, keeps you laughing a lot longer the any of the other shows. I think Kevin Jonas is the funniest guy on this TV show. I do recommend this series to people who are big Jonas Brothers fans!

I Heart Jonas is available now on DVD.

(I <3 Jonas was provided to me by Click Communications for the purpose of review. The above link is an Amazon affiliate link. If you click on it and subsequently purchase anything, I will receive a small percentage.)

At Books and Movies lately

January 23, 2010 Categories: Books , Movies | 2 Comments

I know, I know….

January 21, 2010 Categories: Blogging , Kid Stuff , This and That | 4 Comments

….it’s been a really long time since I posted here. My mom has informed me that she misses reading my posts and thinks that others probably do, too. I’m not so sure about that – but for the few of you that are still checking back here for updates about me and my life, here’s a quick bullet-points update:

~ We had a wonderful Christmas. Kevin and I and the kids headed south to Chewelah to my parents’ house on Christmas Eve afternoon. We had a wonderful dinner – homemade fried chicken a la Dad – and then headed to church for the Christmas Eve service, at which Natalie and I both sang. We stayed over at Mom and Dad’s and had Christmas morning there. The kids were thrilled with the Wii and played all day long – which resulted in a lot of sore arms the next day.

~ New Year’s Eve we spent with Michelle and Don. The boys played video games, while Michelle and Don and Kevin and I played Mad Gab and Scruples and enjoyed spinach dip and pomegranate martinis. I think that was the first time we were awake for ringing in the New Year in a while!

~ The latest Jonathan-ism occurred when we were having dinner at a friend’s house. He asked for a piece of “German shepherd cake,” rather than German chocolate.

~ The kids are getting ready to start second semester P.E. classes, which will include 10 weeks of bowling. They are all very excited.

~ Two of my sisters are dealing with health issues. Marni has been diagnosed with Graves’ disease, a thyroid condition. She’s on medication and hoping that it works and she doesn’t need more radical treatment. Andrea has Raynaud’s condition, which is lack of circulation to hands and feet that causes extreme cold. It sometimes occurs on its own; other times it can be an indicator of something else, like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis. We’re praying for the former.

~ Speaking of sisters, all three of my sisters, with their husbands and kids, will be visiting in June. I absolutely cannot wait.

Well, that’s all the personal stuff I can think of at the moment. Hope this finds all of you well in this first week of 2010.

Long overdue update post – and Merry Christmas!

December 23, 2009 Categories: This and That | 1 Comment

It started with NaNoWriMo – at least that was my excuse. And then even when I gave up on NaNoWriMo halfway through the month (I made it to 20,000 words), I still didn’t blog much, except for some promotional posts and reviews I had committed to. It’s not that there hasn’t been anything going on – I just haven’t felt like writing, I guess. I am still blogging, though – I’ve become completely addicted to book blogging – and it takes up most of my spare time. I never dreamed there would be a day when I would have different authors e-mailing me every week, asking to send me a copy of their book to review. It’s been amazing!

Mommy Brain will always be my first blogging home, though, and I feel guilty for letting so much time go by here without a post that was a bit more personal. So, if there are any of you actually left reading, here’s what’s been going on in our world.

~ Natalie turned 13. She sang at a community Christmas concert on her birthday, and hearing her introduce herself as ‘13 years old’ for the first time was quite a moment. She sang beautifully, by the way.

~ Noah, 11, decided maybe getting married didn’t sound like such a bad idea after seeing a particularly pretty girl from afar at a church we were visiting.

~ Jonathan, 10, and Josiah, 8, are very sad we don’t have much snow for Christmas. I, on the other hand, got enough snow during last year’s snowpocalypse to last me the rest of my life.

~ Kevin’s keeping busy – work is steady.

~ Kevin’s sister Carol is undergoing treatment for her liver cancer, and it seems to be working so far.

~ My sister Debra and her husband divorced earlier this year, but through prayer and counseling, they have reconciled, and will be remarried on Christmas Eve. Yay, God!

~ We will be spending Christmas Eve and day with my parents. Natalie and I are both singing for the Christmas Eve service, then we’ll sleep over and have the tree and presents in the morning. My grandma and aunt will join us for Christmas dinner.

That’s all that comes to mind for now. I hope this Christmas finds you surrounded by family and friends. See you in the new decade!

Bookish stuff

December 21, 2009 Categories: Books | No Comments

Young Scientists Club Kit Winner

December 19, 2009 Categories: Contests | No Comments

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Congratulations to Jonnie, who has won her choice of The Young Scientists Club Set 4: Bacteria & Fungi, Weight & Volume, Acids & Bases Science Kit. And thanks again to Jason from Toys and Games Online, a great resource for online toys, who made this giveaway possible.

Featured DVD: Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie

December 15, 2009 Categories: Movies , Reviews | No Comments

(Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie was provided to me by Click Communications for the purpose of review.)

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The most magical event of the year is now even bigger, with more thrilling adventure! Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie Extended Edition features exclusive footage, behind-the-scenes bonus and awesome extras that take you deeper into the mysterious world of wizardry!

Embark on a supernaturally exciting adventure as the Russos, your favorite family of wizards-in-training, join together on a quest full of heart-stopping action and hilarious magical mishaps! While on vacation, Alex (Selena Gomez) accidentally casts a spell that threatens her family’s existence! Max (Jake T. Austin) tries to keep his parents together while Alex and Justin (David Henrie) use every trick they know as they search for the “Stone of Dreams” to reverse the spell and save their family. You won’t want to miss one extraordinary moment of this extended, magic-filled and action-packed movie!

Natalie’s review: Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie is a very fun and exciting adventure movie for kids of all ages. I really enjoyed it. Wizards of Waverly Place has always been one of my favorite TV shows. I do recommend this to kids!

Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie is available now on DVD. The DVD special features include on-location featurettes about special effects, stunts, props, and more.

Happy Birthday, Natalie

December 13, 2009 Categories: Kid Stuff | 1 Comment

Thirteen years ago today, God gave us the incredible gift of a baby girl. Today, she is a teenager. I know that the adolescent years are supposed to be fraught with angst and rebellion and conflict – and I know there will probably be conflicts ahead – but so far, Natalie has been an utter and complete joy.

So, Natalie, I want you to know how proud your daddy and I are of you. You are a loving, vibrant, smart, beautiful girl, and I am so blessed to be your mom. Never forget that you are a treasure – not only to us, but to your Father who gave you life. I am so excited to watch you grow into the woman He wants you to be.

Happy Birthday, Natalie! I love you very much.

Young Scientists Club Giveaway

December 11, 2009 Categories: Contests , Homeschooling | 9 Comments

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I am so excited about this giveaway – and I know all of you will be, too. Whether you’re a homeschooler, like me, or a parent who likes to share educational activities with your children, you definitely need to enter this giveaway.

Toys and Games Online is a fantastic site, especially right now, when everyone is shopping for Christmas. If you’re shopping for online toys for your kids, you’ll definitely want to check out their site.

The Young Scientists Club kits are pretty much every homeschooling mom’s dream: they give you all the tools and simple instructions you need to perform interesting experiments with your kids. The idea was created by a mother of five with a degree in Biology – as a biologist, she knows her science, and as a mom, she knows the things we want most in a science kit.

Now, for the giveaway details:

1. Click on over to their Young Scientists Club section, and check out all the different kits.

2. Come back and leave a comment on this post telling me which kit you would like to win if your name is chosen. Only one entry per person, please.

3. This giveaway is open to readers in the US and Canada only.

4. All entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. PST, Friday, December 18th. I will used Random.org to draw a winner on Saturday, December 19th.

Good luck!

Jonathan’s food confusion

December 6, 2009 Categories: Kid Stuff | No Comments

For some reason, our third child has trouble remembering the names of foods. Or, to be more exact, he has trouble remembering how to say the names of foods. Here are a few of his most fun mistakes:

Hot-stickers (for pot-stickers)
Whack-a-moley (for guacamole)
Shirley Temper (for Shirley Temple)