Miracle in Sumatra: The Story of Gutsy Gus
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VINIFERA wine education collection
Our VINIFERA, The World's Great Wine Grapes collection consists of the Vinifera Deck of 45 Wine Grape Reference Cards, two Vinifera Posters and Our 2010 Vinifera, The World's Great Wine Grapes Wall Calendar.
Full of rich history and lore, as well as descriptions of the wines produced, current DNA information when applicable and wine and food pairings our Vinifera deck is informative and entertaining. In use by several Sommelier and training programs these are serious wine education with rare photos of 45 wine producing varieties.
VINIFERA, The World's Great Wine Grapes
boxed reference deck $15.95
VINIFERA, The World's Great Wine Grapes
2010 Calendar $13.95
COFFEE history and recipe collection
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I think I have wine and coffee running through my veins so I was excited to received these products for review. And let me tell you, these are beautiful calendars. The spice calendar has a page for spices such as bay leaf, vanilla, capers (did you know they are a spice?!), lavender and saffron, with stories and wine and cuisine suggestions for them all. The coffee calendar features coffee drinks such as espresso romano, Cafe au lait, and cappuccino, with stories and recipes. And the wine calendar features some of your favorite wines (with their pairings): Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Riesling, Syrah and more! The pictures are gorgeous too. The reference cards are amazing - illustrated photos with the histories of various spices, wines and coffee, and more recipes and pairings - a real education! If you have a wine, coffee or spice (cooking) fan on your holiday gift list, you can't go wrong with Ghigo Press - check them out - shop online today.
From the sponsor: We are excited to share with you that two of our amazing brands, Sheer Cover and Wen, have been awarded by Shecky's Beauty at Its Best! Although you may be familiar, Shecky's is one of the first and most popular "shopping clubs" for beauty-craving fashionistas in NYC and various major cities, with a strong online following that informs readers on the latest and greatest in products, brands, and events. Become a Shecky’s Insider today and start experiencing fashion, beauty & fun with Shecky’s in your social circle: On Twitter: http://twitter.com/sheckys; On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/girlsnightout
My take: I was sent three items for review:
Sheer Cover’s Sheer Cover Mineral Foundation (selected as a Best Foundation award winner) and Duo Tone Concealer in 2 blendable shades:
In this economy, duality definitely floats our boat! We love the way this sweet almond oil product shampoos and conditions, all while leaving us smelling sweet.
Where to Buy: www.wenhaircare.com
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (Two-Disc Monkey Mischief Pack)
From returning director Shawn Levy (Cheaper By The Dozen), the film also stars Amy Adams (Enchanted), Robin Williams (Good Will Hunting), Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers), Hank Azaria (“The Simpsons”), Ricky Gervais (“The Office”), Steve Coogan (Tropic Thunder) and Jonah Hill (Super Bad).
Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack
The Night At The Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack includes a high definition version of the film with over an hour of mayhem, mischief and monumental magic of outrageously funny features – including an interactive museum scavenger hunt game, gag reel, 12 deleted scenes with an alternate ending, “Cherub Bootcamp,” “Phinding Pharaoh With Hank Azaria” featurettes – a Digital Copy and a standard DVD. The pack is available for the gift-giving price of $39.99 U.S. / $49.99 Canada.
This post was written for Click Communications who provided the movie for review. I was not compensated in any way except for the complimentary DVD (we received the two disk set of DVD and Monkey Mischief in plain envelopes without DVD packaging).
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Clorox Green Works and received a bottle of Green Works Natural Detergent and Stain Remover to facilitate my review and a $20 thank-you gift certificate. 
Really, no matter what kind of gift card you are looking for, I would bet you'll find it on snapgifts.com! Perfect for all of 
Product Description from Amazon.com: 2009 debut solo album from the singer/songwriter. Hearing Kristina Train for the first time is nothing less than a revelation: her sunny, easygoing demeanor and youthful good looks belie the heart-wrenching power of her voice. Train's Blue Note debut, Spilt Milk, is urbane and soulful, lush in its arrangements but intimate in its emotions, built on a foundation of classic and deeply felt Southern Soul.
From the producer: Blue Note Records presents soulful newcomer Kristina Train’s debut album, Spilt Milk, available October 20th 2009. Spilt Milk was produced by Jimmy Hogarth, whose recent credits include Duffy, Corinne Bailey Rae and James Blunt.
“I always had a feeling that music wouldn’t just be in my life,” declares singer Kristina Train. “It would be my life.”
Hearing Kristina Train for the first time is nothing less than a revelation: her sunny, easygoing demeanor and youthful good looks belie the heart-wrenching power of her voice. Train’s Blue Note debut, Spilt Milk, is urbane and soulful, lush in its arrangements but intimate in its emotions, built on a foundation of classic and deeply felt southern soul. The title track unfolds with an almost cinematic grandeur, its string-laden chorus swelling with widescreen melancholy. Balancing the sultry with the strong, Train excels on bittersweet breakup/makeup numbers like “Don’t Remember” and “It’s Over Now.” As the aphorism of the album title suggests, the album tells the story of an indomitable spirit. Train knows how, over the course of a song, to walk away from a relationship with tremendous style.
For inspiration, Train turns to Aretha Franklin – “There is not a song that Aretha has sung or will ever sing that doesn’t just melt me” – along with blues/R&B cult figures like former Stax star/Raelette Mable John and Bob Dylan-favorite Karen Dalton. Says Train, “I wanted my album to offer glimpses of my influences, not sound like my influences. I hope the album is a nod to the music I love, while still being modern.”
Music has been at the center of Train’s world since she was a toddler, when her mother encouraged her to play the violin. Train took to the instrument, but, more importantly, she also discovered an innate aptitude as a singer, with unerring pitch and a preternaturally mature delivery from a very young age. Says Train, “There’s depth to my voice and I think it comes from a lot of different places. But the way I sound today is the way I always sounded -- except in a tinier body.”
As an artist, Train could never simply be described as a product of her times and that has allowed her, on Spilt Milk, to create music that can arguably be called timeless. Her mom, who raised Train alone, fashioned what some might view as a sheltered existence for the young Train, keeping her away from television and pop radio. But what she really did was provide a fertile laboratory for Train to freely grow as a young woman and a singer, apart from the vagaries of trends. Train took music and ballet lessons and listened to classical music and opera, along with jazz and blues. Her violin training definitely came in handy: Train has arranging credits on three of her tracks and overdubbed strings on two of them.
Though born in New York City , Train was raised in Savannah , Georgia, and southern soul and gospel, which she sang in church and school choirs growing up, has had the most profound effect on her work. Almost as significant was the moment when, as a teenager, she unearthed her mom’s tucked-away stash of vinyl albums from the sixties and seventies: Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin. Say Train,” I remember hearing Janis Joplin’s records and thinking, what is that all about? We lived in downtown Savannah , in a house kind of like a New York City brownstone. When we had thunderstorms I would go up to the roof and scream at the top of my lungs because I wanted to make my voice raspier. God only knows what that’s done to me!”
By the time Train was 19, she was already singing professionally, albeit locally. A producer based in the south who’d spotted Train arranged to bring her up to New York City to showcase for Blue Note. The label chiefs offered Train a development deal – but her mom had other ideas. She insisted her daughter go to college first. Many a confident and headstrong young artist would rebel and go it alone, accept the deal and take their chances. But Train – reluctantly, she now admits – listened to her mom. She agreed to attend college in Athens , Ga. , keeping her hand in music by joining a band and spending far more time rehearsing and gigging than hitting the books. And when she was ready to return to her career full-time, Blue Note was still waiting.
It was time well-spent, Train now realizes: “I know that at 19, I would not have made this record, which is the record I always wanted to make. This is the album that defines who I am. At 19, I don’t know what I would have put out. I believe everything happened for a reason. It took this amount of time for me to get here and to make this record. I always knew it would happen. “
Train’s confidence and faith in what she has created is part of what makes Spilt Milk so thrilling: “There’s just this magic thing that happens sometimes and you think, I want to sing this song for the rest of my life – I want to live in it, I want to bury myself in it, I want to wriggle around in it.. Every time I finished one, it was like, I can’t believe that, at this point in my life I finally have a song I would fight for, that I believe in 100% percent. And now I have all these songs together on an entire album that I feel this way about. For me, that’s my college degree.”
More information:
My take: My taste in music can best be described as eclectic. I own hundreds of CDs from Country music (Brooks and Dunn, Reba, Garth Brooks) to Andrea Bocelli and Josh Groban to Keb Mo' and Meatloaf. So I'm open to most any style (except for violent lyrics) and was eager to hear this new artist, Kristina Train. Her debut CD, Spilt Milk, does not disappoint. It's tough for me to categorize her music - is it pop? blues? soul? jazz? A bit of all of the above. One thing I do know, the entire CD is beautiful music produced by a very talented young woman. I'm reminded of the dulcet tones of Diana Krall and Norah Jones when I listened to the tracks but really, Kristina has a style all her own, one I'm sure will lead her straight to the top. And not only does she have an amazing voice, she writes, plays the violin, and was instrumental in the arrangement and production of her debut album. Bravo Ms. Train on a job well done. I can't wait to hear more from you as your career progresses!
This post was written for Blue Note Records who provided the CD for review. I was not compensated in any way except for the complimentary CD.
THIS HOLIDAY SEASON,GET THEM A TOY THAT WILL LAST A LIFETIME
GEO Toys GeoPuzzle Animals • Ages 4+ • $14.95 As children assemble this 68-piece puzzle they learn which animals are found on which continents. Made in Germany.
GEO Toys GeoPuzzle Animals - GeoPuzzles are jigsaw puzzles that make learning world geography fun! The pieces of a GeoPuzzle are shaped like individual countries, so children learn as they put the puzzle together!
AnimalsGeoPuzzles are durable and come with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. They are made from recycled material, because we wouldn't want to tear up the earth to teach kids about it :-)
GeoPuzzles help to build fine motor, cognitive, language, and problem-solving skills, and are a great introduction to world geography for children 4 and up. Designed by an art professor, jumbo sized and brightly colored GeoPuzzles are available for all 5 major continents.
Maukilo’s relationship with HABA means that every purchase helps HABA, and other European brands, thrive and stay in business in the United States. Although European toy companies are known for their high quality and safety standards, new U.S. toy safety testing has put a strain on many of those companies. All European products must first pass stringent European testing, so the added expense of additional US toy testing is making it financially difficult for those companies to survive in the US. One German toy company, Selecta, has already pulled out of the United States due to the increased cost of importing and reselling children’s products in the USA. It seems especially important this year to support European toy brands, so that they can remain in the United States and continue inspiring creativity and play for this generation, and future generations.
My take: You may recall my recent review of HABA games. HABA is just one of the many brands sold by Maukilo toys. We received the GEO Toys GeoPuzzle Animals you see above to try out. I requested the puzzle because my 7 year old son would play with puzzles all day long if you let him and I was intrigued by the thought of a puzzle that would not only challenge his mind in the construction of it, but would also teach him after it was put together! Much like the United States puzzle we already own, assembling the GeoPuzzle helps my son learn what the different countries in the world look like and where they are in location to one another. With this puzzle he also learns some of the animals indigenous to the countries as well. If you have a child who loves puzzles, you can't go wrong with this one under your tree this year. Now I'm off to check out the other cool toys maukilo.com has to offer this Christmas...Santa needs some help from his elves you know!
About Maukilo: Maukilo.com got its start in 2000 when a German-born woman, Alexandra Goedrich, couldn’t find any of the toys, that she herself grew up playing with, for sale in the United States. So, she began an ecommerce site specializing in the sale of European toys. The business quickly outgrew the small California apartment it started in, as Americans discovered (and in some cases, rediscovered) brands including Sigikid and HABA. Now, Maukilo offers a wide selection of wooden and PVC-free plastic toys and games from more than 40 European- and American-based companies. Visit Maukilo’s website at http://www.maukilo.com/.
The giveaway: One lucky winner will win a $25 gift card to spend as he or she likes on http://www.maukilo.com/ (the code won't expire until 5/31/10 either - plenty of time for shopping for the holidays or well after)!
To win: Visit the www.maukilo.com site, and come back and tell me the name of one of their Top 100 Bestsellers. Be sure to leave your email address with your comment if you are not a blogger or your email is not easily found on your blog. This giveaway is open until 11:59 p.m., EST, Monday, December 21, 2009. Good Luck!
Bonus entries: Get up to 8 extra entries for a total of 9 entries (please leave a separate comment for each extra entry):
• Follow Maukilo on Twitter (http://twitter.com/maukilo)
• Fan Maukilo on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Maukilo-Toys/261176310362)
• Blog about this giveaway (don't forget to leave the link in your comment)
• Twitter, Stumble or Digg this giveaway
• Subscribe to my blog via RSS or Email (see top left sidebar)
• Add my blog to your blogroll or my button to your sidebar (leave your website address for verification)
• On Technorati - click on this link, then on Fan or Fav (or use the green link on the top left sidebar)
• Follow me on Blogger (see top left sidebar)
This review was sponsored by
THESE KINDERGARTENERS EARN GOLD STARS
When I opened the box, I literally gasped. The quality of this doll and attention to detail is THAT amazing. From the braids on her head to the teddy bear in hand, Dulce looks just like my daughter. I can tell already that I'm going to need to purchase some of the clothes to go with her since there is nothing my daughter likes more than a doll she can dress up. And you know what else I really loved about Adorable Kinders is the variety - there is a doll literally from A to Z - and each looks different from the last - in all skin tones and in both genders. You will find a doll to match your child (or totally opposite if you want). And the Kinders (AK) eSchool that you have access to with your purchase is a welcome addition to our at-home reinforcement of school learning. It will be perfect for my daughter to work on during the long Christmas/Winter break so she's ready when school starts up again in January. So if you have a little girl or boy on your list who loves soft, cuddly dolls like these, be sure to check them out in time for Christmas this year!
About Granza, Inc: GRANZA’s mission is to create high-quality products that are not only fun for children, but that spark their imaginations. The company’s Adorable Kinders® soft-cloth rag dolls were created as a lasting legacy of creator Aranza Zamora-Goodenbury’s late son, Ivan. The 26 ethnically diverse dolls are a variation of the rag doll Aranza has been making by hand since she was 16 years old.
Bonus: Use the coupon code AKBLOG25, good through December 31, 2009, for 25% off the entire purchase price on www.adorablekinders.com.
The giveaway: Win any one of the 26 dolls (winner's choice)!
To win: Leave me a comment telling me which of the 26 dolls you would pick if you won! Be sure to leave your email address with your comment if you are not a blogger or your email is not easily found on your blog. This giveaway is open until 11:59 p.m., EST, Friday, December 18, 2009. Good Luck!
Bonus entries: Get up to 7 extra entries for a total of 8 entries (please leave a separate comment for each extra entry):
• Become a fan of Adorable Kinders on Facebook (http://bit.ly/2b9krR)
• Blog about this giveaway (don't forget to leave the link in your comment)
• Twitter about this giveaway (leave link to your tweet in your comment)
• Subscribe to my blog via RSS or Email (see top left sidebar)
• Add my blog to your blogroll or my button to your sidebar (leave your website address for verification)
• On Technorati - click on this link, then on Fan or Fav (or use the green link on the top left sidebar)
• Follow me on Blogger (see top left sidebar)
This post was written for Granza and KidStuff PR who provided the product for review and giveaway. I was not compensated in any way except for the complimentary product.
This reviewed was sponsored by
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