South Dakota Foodie Penpal #foodiepenpals

Ever heard of Foodie Penpals? Well I participated in June and it was a lot of fun! It is hosted by Lindsay @The Lean Green Bean. It is very easy to participate.

• On the 5th of the month you get your penpal paring.
• By the 15th of the month you mail your box and wait patiently for yours!
• On the last day of the month you blog about your foodie penpal!

If you’re interested in participating for July, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. 

You must submit your information by July 4th as pairings will be emailed on July 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!

Lucky me, I was sent a Foodie Penpal box by Rachel at Trampling Rose. Click her blog to find out more about her blog and see what she got from her Foodie Penpal. 

Rachel is from South Dakota and she sent me goodies from her State. I was thrilled with EVERYTHING! She had me pegged just right! 

• Dakota Style Dill Pickle Chips- they were kettle cooked to perfection! I love these! They were the best dill pickle chips that I have ever eaten! Notice I keep saying, "were" because they are ALL GONE!
• Wild Dutchmen Sunflower Seeds- My kids grabbed these and I have yet to find them. I did get to grab a handfull before the bag disappeared!
• Lakota Premier Native American Microwave Popcorn- Another weakness of mine! It was perfect and fresh tasting. 
• Old West BBQ & Dippin' Sauce- very tasty and came in handy because I made shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches and didn't pick up sauce at the store! How did she know all the way from South Dakota?
• Butter Crust Granola- This was very tasty! We loved it and I enjoyed it as a dessert on top of my greek yogurt! 

It really was fun getting a penpal package in the mail. I hope you sign up for July. 

Thank you Rachel and Lindsay for making it fun my first time!

Summer Meals with little effort Pinterest Link up

Summer Meals with little effort Recipe Board

Welcome back to a new Saturday Pinterest Party! My favorite board this week is Summer Meals with little effort. We've had record breaking 100+ weather all week and cooking hasn't been something I have enjoyed. I love easy recipes that involve the crockpot, grill and salads. Check out the board and find some new recipes. If you have quick, easy summer meals link them up below. I can't wait to check them out. Oh and if you want to know a bit about me, check my All About Me Pinterest Board. 

HOW TO JOIN THE LINKY below- (do any of the following)

1) Pin this Party Post to Pinterest- Please! Why? To let others know about the party. It advertises the party so more people see it which in turn more people will see what you pin and give you traffic.

2) Add your Pinterest name to the linky. If you aren't on Pinterest and want an invite, leave a comment and email addy.

3) Link up anything you want to be pinned! No limit. We just ask that you make sure your post has a decent picture.

4) In turn pin a few things on the linky.

5) If you want to host the party on your blog, scroll down and take the code. Make your own Pinterest Saturday page. That way you will get more attention to your blog.

Please follow my boards on Pinterest- SusieQTpies Scraps of Life and cohost  Crystal and Company and  3 Boys and a Dog. We do follow back.

National Waffle Iron Day Recipes

Yay! Today is National Waffle Iron Day. You know what that means, right? Time to dust it off and make some waffles. I use the Amish Friendship Bread Waffle Recipe recipe when I have starter available. Click the link to get the recipe and see more pictures & waffle ideas.

How about you? What is your favorite Waffle recipe. If you have one on your blog leave the link! If you don't just write it in the comments. I'd love to get some new ideas.

Here is the batter with mini Chocolate Chips added

If you want a cool treat, use the waffles to make an ice cream sandwich. Use any flavor of ice cream. We like to spread on margarita strawberry jam on the waffle and then add the ice cream. It is extremely good!

Share in the comments. I'd love to hear about your favorite!

Refreshing Blackberry Lemonade

Guest Chef, Suzanne is sharing a yummy drink with us today! This is the perfect summer drink for Momma! What are some of your favorite refreshing drinks for mom?

Blackberry Lemonade (for momma)

Add a few ice cubes to a glass

1-2 shots of Absolut Grapevine (try other flavors, too)

Fill glass with lemonade leaving room for 1-2 teaspoons of Torani Blackberry Syrup.

So what do you think about this? You going to try it? Do you have any other for momma only drinks? Feel free to share! 

More Drink Recipes

Bamboola/Frozen Slushy
Cake Batter Martini
Happy Margarita
Sangria 

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Amy Sherman’s Popcorn Crunch

I love movie theatre popcorn. Sometimes I'll call my movie buddy and ask her to go with me to the movies JUST SO that I can get popcorn! The only downside is that the popcorn is loaded with not-so-healthy fat and calories. At home I do make my own much healthier! Here is a sweet version that includes peanut butter! Hope you like it and check my recipe box for more tasty appetizer to serve at your next party!!! 

I wanted to share a sweet summer snack from foodie Amy Sherman that puts a fun twist on a traditional movie-theatre favorite. Popcorn can be a caloric bomb loaded with fat, and calories (up to 1220 calories per serving!) however, Amy’s grab n’ go Popcorn Crunch packs the punch with a flavor of caramel and toasty nuts that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth.  

Amy shares, “Sometimes the best recipes are happy accidents. I was trying to make a snack bar but over toasted the mixture of honey, sugar, peanut butter and popcorn. The result? Something much more delicious! A crunchy popcorn mix that is positively addictive.”

Instead of grabbing for the tub of buttery popcorn, package your Popcorn Crunch in cellophane bag as a healthier alternative, and it provides the perfect portion size. 

Oh! And when made in the ActiFry, your sweet treat isn’t popped in loads of saturated oils like concession stand popcorn. 

Amy Sherman’s Popcorn Crunch

1/4 sugar

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup natural peanut butter

4 cups popcorn

Cook sugar and honey until sugar dissolves about 3 minutes. Add peanut butter, one tablespoon at a time, to prevent it from clumping together. Cook another 2 minutes then stir and cook another 2 minutes. Add popcorn dispersing it evenly. Cook for 3 minutes then transfer to a greased sheet pan to cool.

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Provided recipe.

New Dallas & J.R. on TNT burnt my bacon

I grew up as a kid in the 80s watching Dallas. Over the past year I rewatched the entire series and could not believe that I, as a kid, watched the show. A few months ago I heard the New Dallas buzz and was counting down the week, then days to hours and minutes to catch the new series.

What do I think of the new series? I hate to admit it but I LOVE it! Just last week I was wondering about Pam and then she was mentioned in the show.  What do you think is up with that? She just disappeared? I'm not happy with that explanation and I sure hope we learn more.

Anyhow I was so engrossed in the show that I burnt my bacon. Darn you new Dallas and J.R. for making me do this! I never burn food and of course I never want my bacon burnt.

Do you watch the show? I'd love to hear your take on it! Leave your comments below. Have you blogged about the show? Leave your link and I'll stop over! Don't forget to watch the show.

4th of July Tips on Food Safety

How many of you are gong to be grilling and going on picnics during the 4th of July weekend? It is a common family event and holiday which will include food and drinks. All this food increases incidents of food poisoning. Don't get it! Here the tips and the photo is a cool visual.

If you want some new tasty recipes for the 4th of July, picnics or summer meals click here, SUMMER FOODS. If you have any food, blog post, crafts, etc that fits the theme of Red, White and/or Blue then link up here, PATRIOTIC!

George Washington says…CLEAN

John Adams says…SEPARATE

Thomas Jefferson says…COOK

Benjamin Franklin says…CHILL

As the 4th of July approaches, cases of foodborne illnesses are surging in the summer season. Key stats:

• Incidents of food poisoning surge over the summer months because bacteria multiply faster when it’s warm
• Americans spend $400 million on beef alone for July 4^th barbeques
• USDA research shows that 1 out of every 4 hamburgers turns brown before it has reached a safe internal temperature!
• New FDA research done in collaboration with USDA shows that only 23% of Americans who own a food thermometer actually use it when grilling hamburgers
• 48 million Americans (at least 1 in 6) will get sick from foodborne illness this year, resulting in roughly 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths

How can families avoid these serious public health threats during the July 4th holiday and summer months when they are at most risk? Just listen to the Founding Fathers.

For more tips, go to FoodSafety.gov and check out our ‘Ask Karen’ app, available in English (m.AskKaren.gov) and Spanish (m.PregunteleaKaren.gov), to get access to more than 1,300 answers to food safety questions.

This was a provided article.

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Del Monte Gold® Extra Sweet Pineapple Coupon & recipe

Happy Monday! Do you want a coupon so you can make this tasty recipe? Del Monte Fresh Produce is offer a special $.50 coupon for their customers in USA and Canada! They want to you try their Del Monte Gold Extra Sweet Pineapple.

Do you like pineapple? What type of recipes do you create? Do you use pineapple in drinks, cakes, pies, muffins, savory dishes, pizza, grilling, etc? I'd love to know! We just got a sparklin' new grill and would love to hear any recipes using the grill. 

Here is that coupon on their Facebook page that I promised you. Enjoy the below recipe from Del Monte Fresh Produce!

Pineapple Chicken Kabobs Recipe

(Makes 6 (2 kabob) appetizer servings)
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons lime juice, divided
3 tablespoons lite soy sauce, divided
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into (24) 1-inch pieces
Ground pepper to taste
2 cups DEL MONTE GOLD® EXTRA SWEET PINEAPPLE Chunks
1 medium Del Monte® red bell pepper, cut into (24) 1-inch squares
½ large Del Monte® sweet onion, cut into (24) 1-inch pieces
Peanut oil 

To make basting sauce, in a small bowl whisk together honey, 2 tbsp. lime juice, and 2 tbsp. soy sauce until smooth.
Sprinkle chicken pieces with remaining 1 tbsp. of lime juice and soy sauce. Sprinkle with pepper to taste. Marinate 15 to 30 minutes. 

Directions:
Preheat grill to medium-high. Thread chicken, pineapple, red pepper, and onion alternately on 12 (6-7-inch) skewers. Discard and leftover marinade. Brush lightly with peanut oil.
Grill for 10 to 15 minutes, turning to cook all sides. Brush with basting sauce the last 5 to 10 minutes. Serve any remaining sauce over kabobs. 

Note:
For a spicy variation, omit ground pepper and sprinkle chicken with Jamaican Jerk seasoning to taste.

My own tasty opinions are expressed here. This is a sponsor post.

Race Across America — with FedEx SenseAware

Photo from www.senseaware.tumblr.com

Have you ever heard of the 3000-mile Race Across America (RAAM) Bicycle Race? Have you ever watched it? The RAAM is known as the "World's Toughest Bicycle Race" and is one of the longest running sporting events in the world.  I'm always fascinated with events like this in our own country. I had heard of it but never really bonded with a team until this year. 

This year we tracked The Ohio CycleWorks bike team which was raising money for the Akron Children's Hospital. This team is sponsored by FedEx Custom Critical. They outfitted the team with SenseAware travel devices to provide near real-time GSP location and environmental conditions. 


This charity makes for a natural fit for SenseAware® because it allows healthcare providers to monitor critical shipments, the kind that can help save the lives of the very children that Ohio CycleWorks is riding to support. 


Have you ever heard of this tracking system? The tracking is web-based which allowed us to track the crews on their 3000-mile adventure. Below are the SenseAware devices that each rider had to wear.

Photo from www.senseaware.tumblr.com

We tracked them daily and were amazed at the conditions at which they traveled. We got to check their temperature and humidity levels, found out about the dry Kansas winds and no rest and no change of clothes day. Here is a snippet of their journey which you can go look at on tumblr www.senseaware.tumblr.com.

• Saturday June 16th they left Oceanside, CA at a temp of 81 degrees.
• Sunday June 17th in Wickeburg, AZ with 84.9 degrees.
• Monday June 18th at Highway 191 in Utah 77.9 degrees.
• Tuesday June 19th Bartlett, Kansas 91.6 degrees.
• Wednesday June 20th El Dorado Springs, Missouri 90 degrees.
• Thursday June 21st Bluff City, MO 91.4 degrees.
• Friday June 22nd Belpre, OH 92.4 degrees.
• The end! Annapolis, Maryland

Photo of their journey from www.senseaware.tumblr.com


For more information about the Ohio CycleWorks Charities or to donate to their cause, visit their website at http://ohiocycleworkscharities.org/

SenseAware is a new tracking and monitoring service powered by FedEx. This technology provides real-time data about their shipments. Customers can stay connected to their shipments by viewing these vital statistics-current location, temperature, barometric pressure, relative humidity and light sensitivity. Of course some customers will need this more than others.

What a wonderful service for industries such as healthcare, life sciences, aerospace, the arts, financial institutions an more! High-value, highly sensitive products can now be shipped giving security to all parties involved.  I personally needed to mail a scrapbook full of family photos a few years back but chose not too because I was too stressed about something happening to the book along the way. The SenseAware technology would have given me peace of mind.

I received compensation from FedEx for covering the use of SenseAware® technology during the 2012 Race Across America. My ideas and opinions relayed in this blog post and any related Twitter discussions are the my own and are not provided by FedEx or its affiliates and subsidiaries.

Summer Family Fun Discover Boating

Every summer all the boaters get together from our church and join up on Rend Lake for huge Sunday Armada. It is a yearly tradition and everyone looks forward to it each year. Besides this event, the boaters head out to the lake all throughout the summer. We don't personally own a boat but that doesn't stop our participation in these fun filled events!

Heading out on the water is a fun family event that is free of any type of electronic distractions. I don't even think cell phones are out which keeps all the texting and Facebook posting for after the event. Isn't that refreshing?

Do you have a boat? How often do you head out on the water. Do you have kids? Do you take them? Have you taught them about water safety? I just found a really helpful site that has games, activities and safety tips just for kids. There are a lot of resources here to teach them more about boating. On our Sunday Armada there are people of all ages- kids up to grandparents. Check out the boating education page before your next trip on the water. 


The site that I mentioned above is called DiscoverBoating.com which provides a lot of tools, tips and how-to guides to teach you more about boating. They have a very easy-to navigate website. I clicked to get the free, "Get Starting in Boating," DVD. They also have a boat selector tool allowing you to get to know the available boats before you head out and purchase one. If you are really serious about purchasing a boat use their Cost comparison tool and Boat Loan Calculator to help guide your purchase.

You have to check out the Discover Boating Facebook Movie Maker App after your next trip on the lake. It allows you to take your fun photos from the tip and turn it into your own short movie! I am so doing this with our next outing.

So you don't have a boat and now your really want one BUT your spouse doesn't? You have to check out their Spousal Conversion Kit! It will teach you how to convert him/her!

So who is ready to head to the lake?

I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Discover Boating and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Are you Happy? What makes you happy?

So tell me, are you happy? Do you need others to make you happy or do you just have an inner happiness bubbling inside of you? Are you content in your life? 


Have you heard of the book, What Happy People Know by Dan Baker, Ph.D.? He is an expert on happiness! He is so much the expert that he wrote the book on it! He is also the director of the Life Enhancement Program at Canyon Ranch, an executive life coach and more! Through his work on the study of happiness he discovered 12 qualities that are common among happy people.


So what does this have to do with you being happy and why am I writing this blog post? MOM brands has a new quiz on their Facebook page that they want you to take! It only takes about 10 seconds to complete and when finished you will find out your level of happiness! I did it and found that I am very happy. I do have to agree with the quiz! 

This the author, Dr. Baker and this quiz goes hand-in-hand with their best-selling Frosted Mini Spooners which has 12 delicious layers of whole grain biscuit goodness. Have you ever tried them? Everyone loves them in my home but I'm the only one that loves the "cereal dust" which is the bottom of the bag. Everyone carefully saves that for this mom! They know that makes mom happy and whatever makes mom happy makes everyone else happy! I wonder if MOM brands could sell just that cereal dust? I would buy it.


The Frosted Mini Spooners got top honors as best tasting shredded wheat cereal in a recent taste test from Cooking Light® magazine. Per serving, Frosted Mini Spooners has 6 grams of fiber, 44 grams of whole grain, low in fat and sodium. It also has 100% of the daily recommended Folic Acid and 90% value of Iron.


Those stats make me happy as a mom of 3 teen girls. How about you? Leave a comment and tell me something that make you happy! I went all out and shared with you my happy love for the "cereal dust" at the bottom of the Frosted Mini Spooners bag. Open up and share yours :)


Stop over and find out how Happy you are on Facebook! If you have time, stop back in and let me know the results of your happy quiz! 




This is a sponsored post. My own ideas and opinions are tastefully expressed here. Check my disclosure tab for more information.

Summer Family Road Trip ideas

Do you have all your summer plans already? If not I have a few suggestions for you. I know that we all are so busy but crave a small break from our daily routines. Most people do not have it in their budget to spend a lot of extra money in the summer. Here are a few of my ideas to help you get a needed break away from the house for a day or two. 

Do the 2 hour radius check-

1) Go museum touring- check the 2 hour radius around your town and you will find more than you even thought were there. Plan out your trip around these places. 

2) Check that 2 hour radius for all the local fairs and carnivals. Plan to go to these events. My family loves Renaissance Festivals and Fairs. Some of these type of events are free. Bring picnic lunches to keep the food cost down. Do splurge a little so you don't have to go home and cook. mall towns know how to a do the fair!  One of the fairs we found had a pie eating and hula hoop contest!  How fun! Check out The Weather Channel for a great search tool that they offer to help you find one! I love this one because they offer the expected weather of where you are going! Check out County Fairs and Festivals link, too! 

3) Check for local sporting events. Don't limit yourself to one sport. Did you know that your town has local sports teams? If you kids are in these events, head out and cheer on the kids. Check around for AAA Baseball teams, swim teams, etc. Take a picnic lunch and go enjoy a new sport.

4) Visit the old folks-Take the kids on a road trip to visit an older relative! This can be Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, Cousin, etc.  Old folks love it when the young come and visit! Make a day trip out of it.  Take them all out to dinner. Good times for all! Don't forget your camera on this vacation trip! You will want to follow up on the person you visited.  Best thing to do is send them snap shots of your time together!

So what are you going to do this summer? I'd really love to know what fun things you have planned. We are headed out East as an entire family for a wedding. It will be a lot of driving and bonding time with the teens! (oh brother!!)

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Patriotic Crafts & Recipes

Welcome back to a new Saturday Pinterest Party! I would LOVE for you to create your own Board to describe you! Some of you already have one and even linked up last week. I enjoyed checking out your board and following you back. If you have such a board or if you create one I sure hope you will link it up below so we can all visit and learn more about one other. 

Don't worry if you don't want to do this but I hope you will consider it for the future. Link up any post that you want us to pin. You can even grab the code and add the linky to your blog. If you do, let me know and I will come visit!

I'm featuring my All About Me Pinterest Board and my Patriotic Crafts & Recipes Pinterest Board. I'd love for you to follow. Again, if you link up anything related to my 2 boards I will repin them for you! 

HOW TO JOIN THE LINKY below- (do any of the following)

1) Pin this Party Post to Pinterest- Please! Why? To let others know about the party. It advertises the party so more people see it which in turn more people will see what you pin and give you traffic.

2) Add your Pinterest name to the linky. If you aren't on Pinterest and want an invite, leave a comment and email addy.

3) Link up anything you want to be pinned! No limit. We just ask that you make sure your post has a decent picture.

4) In turn pin a few things on the linky.

5) If you want to host the party on your blog, scroll down and take the code. Make your own Pinterest Saturday page. That way you will get more attention to your blog.

Please follow my boards on Pinterest- SusieQTpies Scraps of Life and cohost  Crystal and Company and  3 Boys and a Dog. We do follow back.

Evergreen Fridge Hunt #choosecartons

Do you ever think about what type of packaging you are purchasing at the store when you get your groceries? Do you ever wonder why one type of packaging is used instead of another? Which is better for your food- plastic or carton? Which is better for the environment- plastic or carton?


I just took on the challenge and joined the Evergreen Fridge Hunt. We had to go hunting in our fridge and take an inventory of food storage containers. We were searching for paper packaging, paper cartons, plastic packaging, plastic cartons as well as what was recyclable. Honestly, before this hunt I had not thought about it too much. Sometimes I just let the brands decide what is best and just go with it.


Here are how many of each product that my daughter and I found on the hunt:

• Glass-22
• Paper packaging-3 (would have been 4 but we always remove the butter from the paper packaging)
• Paper cartons-1 (sometimes we have egg whites or half & half)
• Plastic packaging-2
• Plastic cartons-5 but if you include salad dressings 25
• Recyclable containers-34

To answer one of our own questions, which is better? Paper or plastic cartons? According to Evergreen's website, carton are best that come from renewable resources like responsibly managed tree farms and manufactured with a renewable energy source. That carton then stores your food and can be recycled.  


Seriously all this knowledge is new to me. How about you? I am going to start being a smarter consumer instead of one that just lets a brand decide for me. I am going on a grocery store paper carton hunt next week to see what is all available to me locally. I do know that there are a lot of dairy products that are already carton. 


More quick facts that we learned:
*Cartons are made with renewable energy. More than 50 percent of the energy used to make the paper in Evergreen Packaging’s cartons comes from biomass.


*Over 41 million households have access to carton recycling, and that number is on the rise. In addition, cartons are made from renewable materials – more than 70 percent of the carton is made from paper, all from trees from responsibly managed forests.


*Packaging plays a very important role in keeping food and beverages fresh. The environmental impact of a package is just as important as the contents inside. 

What can you do? Go on your own Fridge Hunt with your kids and see what is in your fridge. Then check out Evergreen on Facebook and Twitter as well as Evergreen's website to learn more: www.choosecartons.com. Get your self educated!


Oh and if you are on Twitter, every carton fact shared, via Twitter, using the hashtag #choosecartons will help raise money for Habitat for Humanity® 


Click to check out The Carton Story!

I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Evergreen and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

10 Teen Budget Fashion Tips

I'm a mom with 3 teen girls. YES, 3 teen girls. Here are some of our tips that allow my teens to be fashionable on a budget especially at back to school time! 

1) Swap- Teens are great at swapping with friends! Need a prom dress? Ask an older classmate to let you wear one of her older dresses! Need prom shoes? Ask another friend! One of my girls did this just this year. They were also given dresses from a few older teens.

2) Consignment shops- These stores are great places to list your nice items for sale.  Once you make money use that money to buy clothes from that store. You often get a better return for your money if you do it this way!

3) Clearance Rack- You must always shop the clearance rack. I look at the sale rack at every store I go to.  My teens look, too! I will almost always buy something that they find on the clearance rack.  Always think ahead on what events are coming up when you shop.

4) Yard Sales- Jeans, jeans and more jeans! Teens=Jeans.  Yard sales are the best places to pick up jeans.  Make sure your friends know what sizes you are looking for and vice versa. When you see something in a friend's size call them! Give them heads up on where to go!

5) Payless Shoes- You must sign up for payless shoes phone coupon text. I get 1-2 messages a month for special sale offers like discounts and BOGO.  Teens love shoes and their feet are growing fast! I will always shop BOGO and discounts.

6) Outlet shopping- Name brand clothes to fit your budget! E'nuf said! 

7) Online shopping- Teens know to get online and compare prices! It only takes a few minutes to search around for best prices.  

8) Online coupons and codes- Did you know that you can get store sale codes to order online?  Check out a few that I use: Coupon Cabin and RetailMeNot . Don't forget to nab the coupons for beauty supplies, too! Make up and nail polish are a must for fashionable teens!

9) Mailing list- Get on the mailing list at the stores you shop. Do postal mail and email newsletters. Get catalogs, too! I love getting catalogs in the mail. They almost always carry a coupon or monthly special.

10) Accessories- It is all about the accessories! Sunglasses, rings, necklaces, ribbons, lace, earrings, bracelets, etc.  Swap out with friends and add on layers! This changes the look of any outfit!

More Back To School Resources

Back to School Security Issues for Kids
Free Common Core Standards eBooks
Get Back To School Organized
10 Teen Budget Saving Tips
Tips for Teen Back To Shopping Deals
Top 10 Ways to Save $ for Back to School
Wake Up Shake up the Morning Routine

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Young Adult Fiction- how to know what to read?

I'm all for Young Adult Fiction. As a 40 something adult, I do enjoy a lot of YA work. As a parent of 3 teens I find it my responsibility to know and even read what they are reading. They can read any book they want just as long as I know what it is. If I'm not familiar with the book then I will either read it or google search the book. This is our parenting policy and it applies to their music, friends on facebook, texting, hanging out,etc. Am I a controlling freak of a mom? Absolutely, NOT! LOL What I am though, is a concerned parent who wants to protect her children and help guide them through these teen years just as I did when they were in the newborn stage, toddler stage, etc.

http://www.teensreadandwrite.com/

Have you heard about the Teens Read and Write website? So who is behind Teens Read and Write?? It is a site where teens review books, movies, sports, and stuff they love! So go check them out for more teen resources.


What are your teens reading? Do you check up on what your kids are reading? Do you ever tell them, "No." to a book they want to read because everyone is reading it? 

FREE Coffeemaker deal from Gevalia

Get a FREE Coffeemaker When You Buy 4 Boxes of Coffee for just $9.99 on Auto Delivery at Gevalia.com!

I'm a U by Kotex Tween Brand Ambassador!

I'm so excited to be selected as a U by Kotex Tween Brand Ambassador. I was selected because I have 3 teen daughters. I believe that qualifies me as a mom who has had many talks with her daughters. I know that I haven't shared much on this topic in the past here on my blog. For the next 6 months I will be covering all sorts of topics on the subject so please check back each month for more information. I really encourage you to share in the comments your thoughts on whatever is discussed.


Do you have any daughters? What are their ages? Have you had any type of talk with them about puberty? Please share! I just watched a video by Aimee Teegarden in her Gets Real Video by Kotex & Nickelodeon. I love how open Aimee is in sharing her experience between her mom and other teens. Aimee said that her mom was always open, honest and straightforward in sharing with her about life, puberty and menstruation. This has made Aimee independent and self-confident.


As a mom of three girls (twins are just about 18 and the baby is 13 1/2), I have also always been open, honest and straightforward in anything that they have asked or that we have discussed. I remember learning in school what the period was all about. I didn't have a mom to tell me what to expect and always felt alone and that the "period" was some dirty little secret. I didn't want my daughters to feel that way so from early age they were taught correct body part names and we kept from using slang for those parts. From there we went into puberty change talks, menstruation and sex talks. It is all a process and as a mom you want to ge the one doing the talking when they are listening.


If you haven't had the actual talk about puberty changes and up and coming period, I do suggest that you check out the Kotex website because it is full of wonderful resources. Before you can have any talk with your daughter, you have to educate yourself. Don't be alarmed if your daughter looks at you like you are speaking a foreign language when you start discussing it. 


My twins- first daughters were young enough that they had not heard about it from their friends. We had our first talk about menstruation in 4th grade because one of the girls had started her period and I didn't want them to learn about it from that girl. So get your self educated before you speak to them. Don't be surprised if they don't ask questions, at first! 


I also suggest that you check out U by Kotex website page for period questions that could be helpful for you to discuss with your tweens and teens and a site for you to send them to for more information for them to read on their own. The site is Hello Period- www.ubykotex.com/helloperiod. As with any website or paper material, I strongly suggest that you check it out first to make sure you know what they will be reading about so you can be ready to discuss as they ask questions. 


My connection with Kotex is that I use their products, I've checked out their sites numerous times for information and that I'm now one of their Brand Ambassadors. I feel very comfortable speaking about what is on their above sites and what I'm blogging about. If you have any questions at all, please leave them in the comments or you can email me. I'd be happy to help you out in any way to make this a wonderful mother daughter experience for you both.  Feel free to check out my PR Contact page because you will find my email address there!




I wrote this review while participating in a Brand Ambassador Campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of U by KotexTween and received products to facilitate my post and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.