Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado

I have been so excited about the Max Lucado books on Booksneeze lately!  I just love Max Lucado and his kids books, DVDs, and the adult books I've read so far.  This time I had a chance to read and review his new book "Outlive Your Life: You were made to make a difference." 

From the very first chapter of this book, I definitely felt a conviction.  We live in a world where we don't DO enough for each other, and that needs to change.  Here is one of my favorite parts of the book:

"Before Jesus came along, the disciples were loading trucks, coaching soccer,

and selling Slurpee drinks at the convenience store.  Their collars were blue,

and their hands were callousesd, and there is no evidence

 that Jesus chose them because they were smarter or nicer than

the guy next door.  The one thing they had going for them was a

willingness to take a step when Jesus said, "Follow me.""

I just loved this part.  We don't have to be qualified to go out and help others.  God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the ones he calls.  So we have to be willing to step out, qualified or not, and trust Him to do the rest.  Max Lucado has a wonderful way of writing that I just love.  He writes as if he's just telling you all of these things at lunch or dinner.  Very easy to read and understand, and before you know it, God starts convicting you.  I don't know how Max Lucado keeps turning out such wonderful books other than with God's help, but he does it again and again.

I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone.  It tells how God can use anyone to make a difference, no matter how small, how little schooling, where you live, or where you work.  Everyone can make a difference.  If you've never read a Max Lucado book, this is a great one to start with!  If you're looking for a good quality kids DVD, be sure to check out Hermie and Friends by Max Lucado as well!

**I received this book from Booksneeze in exchange for my honest review, which I have given.**

Another Sneak Peek...on an upcoming giveaway!

Anyone need any new dining sets, room decor, or maybe even something fun like new shoes?  If so, this giveaway is for you!

If you like to shop online, you have to check out CSNstores!  They have 200+ stores with pretty much anything you could possibly need (seriously!)  I received a giftcard from them awhile back to do a review, and they had so many items to choose from that I was amazed.  Don't worry- it's all very organized so that you can easily search for specific items. 

This time they are offering one of my readers a giftcard to use in one of their stores!  So start looking through their stores to find what you want - you just might win!

Keep an eye out for the giveaway coming up later this month!

"One Hand, Two Hands" by Max Lucado - Book Review

How many of you have heard of Max Lucado?  I'm sure many of you have...he has written kids books, such as "Just in Case You Ever Wonder" (a book I personally love), several books for adults, bible studies, and many of you may know him from the kids "Hermie and Friends" DVD series.  Anytime I pick up a book or movie by Max Lucado, I expect great things. 

When I received a hardback copy of his new children's book "One Hand, Two Hands" from Booksneeze I was excited.  I immediately grabbed Sydney and told her we were going to read a new book (she loves to read just like her mommy).  It starts with a letter to parents on how to use this book to teach your child.  I love it when authors do this!  It gives a little insight as to why they wrote the book the way they did.  This book is all about the things hands can do.  It is written in rhymes, with short sentences and large print.  Sydney loved the colorful pictures and animals throughout the book.  She loved clapping and snapping and waving her hands with the words in the book.  They story ends with a short prayer to God about using their hands again.

The last page in the book is a great way to take this book to the next level for older toddlers.  It helps them learn what helping hands, kind hands, and loving hands can do and gives them a chance to say ways their hands can be helping hands to others. 

As usual, I love this book by Max Lucado!  The pictures and the message are both great!  The short story can be enjoyed by young toddlers, and as they get older you can let them help tell how hands can be helping.  



*I received this book from Booksneeze in exchange for my honest review, which I have given.**

Cable Turtle Winners List

The 3 winners of the Cable Turtles are...

Tonya, who said, "I already "like" So Mommy on fb. tt4....@gmail.com"

Amanda, who said, "I "like" So Mommy on Facebook :) abos.....@gmail.com"

Tess, who said, "i like you on fb tcog....@live.com"

Congratulations! I will email you all and should be shipping these out to you early next week!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's a sneak peek at a review I will be posting soon from a great company.

This is my sweet Sydney next to a suprise message for Daddy last month.  If you can't read it, it says "We are pregnant."  This is why I've been MIA a lot lately.  I am 8 weeks and 3 days pregnant, and morning sickness has been horrible with this pregnancy (and the doctor's office keeps calling in the wrong medicine...long story)!  I have been eating as many cheerios as I can lately since that has been the only thing that was ok with my stomach....guess I'll have good cholesterol? 

Anyways, I'm hoping to be feeling (much) better soon so that I can get back on track with my reviews and giveaways!  Speaking of giveaways....I have 2 great ones coming up soon so be on the look out for those! 

Cable Turtle - Review and Giveaway

Are you an organization freak? I am...ok, well I used to be.  And then I had Sydney and less free time to organize.  But I still REALLY love it when I have some free time to organize (I know-I'm a little weird).  I love to go through the bins/organization areas in stores just to see what new products they have.  One of the things that bugs me at our house is CORDS.  They are everywhere...tv, computer, phone chargers, lamps, you get the picture...almost everything has a cord!  My husband has a habit of rolling up his phone chargers and sitting them on the kitchen counter.  They almost always come unrolled and drive me crazy!  I have finally found the solution!

CableOrganizers.com sent me a mini Cable Turtle to try out, and I knew immediately that I was going to try it on our cell phone chargers.  The cable turtles flip open easily so that you can loosely wrap the cord around it.  Then you can twist the top and bottom so that the cord openings are in the correct place.  Now snap it shut and you're done!  It looks so much neater, and the cords stay in place!  These would be great for traveling or to stick in your bag to carry to work or any other place you charge your phone!  They have 3 different sizes-mini, small, and large to help you organize pretty much any cord you have!  They come in a variety of colors as well! 

I love this little Cable Turtle...and Sydney does, too!  When we don't have a cord on it, we stick it in her diaper bag so she can play with it.  She loves to try to open it and roll it around.   So it doubles as a child entertainer haha!

GIVEAWAY

Now the good part!  THREE of you will win your own mini cable turtle!

How to Enter:

*Be sure to leave an email address you check regularly**

(1 entry) Tell me what cords bother you the most at your house

(1 entry) "Like" So Mommy on Facebook HERE
(1 entry) Follow So Mommy through Google Friend

**Giveaway will end Friday, September 3rd at 5 p.m. CST.  Winner will be drawn by a random number generator and contacted by email.  If winner doesn't respond in 48 hours, another winner will be drawn. **

**I received a Cable Turtle in exchange for my honest review.  See full disclaimer for more information.**

Dapple Baby

What do you use to clean your baby's bottles and toys?  Ever wonder what exactly is in those products?  Ever wonder if  you need to rinse and re-rinse after cleaning, but before your child touches/licks all over it?  I have used the clorox spray to clean many of Sydney's toys, but I always felt like I should wash them off with water before I gave them back to her...I didn't want to think about any residue getting in her mouth.  Yes, maybe I'm a little paranoid about some things.  I used regular dish liquid to wash all of her bottles / nipples and never really thought anything about it.  Until I came across Dapple Baby.  After seeing how gentle and safe their products are, I wondered why it never occurred to me that dish liquid may leave a residue that could end up in her mouth.  She never had any problems while I was using the Clroox/Dawn/Etc, but once I realized there were baby safe products out there (other than baby laundry detergent), I was so excited!!  One less thing for me to have to worry about!

I was very excited to be able to review the Dapple Baby Safe Dish liquid and toy wipes, because as we all know, being baby safe doesn't always mean that it is strong enough to get things clean.  Some "baby safe" products don't clean very well at all.  I've been using the Dapple Baby Dish liquid for a few weeks now on Sydney's sippy cups and straw cups, and it has definitely done it's job!  It cleans very well!!  At first, I didn't really like the smell - it's kind of an herb kind of smell - I have gotten used to the fragrance free stuff that has no smell at all.  After a few uses, I decided that I actually like the smell.  It helps combat the milk smell in her cups, which is GREAT!

I would recommend Dapple Baby products to anyone with kids, but especially if you have a sensitive child.  It would probably also be great for getting the formula smell out of bottles.  You can buy Dapple Baby in large quantities from their website HERE or in smaller quantities from diapers.com or toysrus.com.

**I received Dapple Baby Products in exchange for my honest review, which I have given.  No other compensation was received.  See full disclaimer for more information.**

Sock 'n Boots - Winners!

Winner #1 - Jennifer S., who said, "I would like to see 1 about telling the truth"


Winner #2 - Shawna, who said, "Entry 1: I have already "liked" So Mommy
Entry 2 : I would love to see more manners i.e. Yes Ma'am, No Ma'am, Please and thank you. I think it is soo sweet to see little ones use these. Entry 3: I have learned that Boots and I should get along quiet well. We both love Chocolate Cake! LOL"


Winner #3 - Jgmulligan, who said, "socks is younger"

Thanks for entering! Look for another giveaway this week!  Plus I will have a special post about why I have been a little slower on reviews and giveaways lately :)