Over $140 worth of gifts and savings for $39!! Homeschooling Magazine

I was so excited about this I had to share. The Homeschooling Magazine is offering over $140 worth of gifts and savings for $39!!  Right now during there spring special, you can renew or subscribe for 50% off—only $39—and get 8 issues PLUS their current issue of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. In addition you will receive the Homeschooling with Heart tote bag and over $100 worth of free gifts and savings available immediately at checkout. This offer is for U.S. and Canada only, from now until May 31 at midnight!
 Freebies include:

E-Book: Dreams and Designs—Homemade Supplies to Complement Your Homeschool. Design fun and easy-to-make learning aids and organizational tools using household items.

E-Book: Schoolhouse Planner modules—6 in all! For example, one of the educationally filled E-Books is Summer Fun—July 2009 Schoolhouse Planner module. It is full of games, activities, and ideas for summer fun and entertainment for the entire family


Sign up Here

Win a $35 Jiffy Lube Card!

                                            Congrats to our winner Bleatham

April is both National Car Care and National Informed Women Month and a perfect opportunity to get empowered to care for your car! Did you know that in the United States the average age of cars and light trucks on the roads today has reached a record high of 9.4 years? That means it’s more important than ever to take proper care of your vehicle.

With the informative Web site www.MotorOilMatters.org (created by the maker of industry-leading brands Pennzoil and Quaker State) you can easily locate key information about how quality motor oils can help prolong your engine’s life and improve overall efficiency, as well as help answer other questions you may have about motor oil. In addition, the site offers a fun, educational game for you to play called “M.O.M. Knows Best” where you can put your motor mind to the test with an interactive quiz.

Did you know?

* According to a recent survey from the Automotive Service Association, more than 54 percent of customers who take their vehicles for service and repair are women

* Using a high-quality motor oil in the right grade can help maximize fuel economy

* Low-quality oils that do not meet industry standards or the vehicle manufacturer’s requirements could cost consumers in the long run by potentially damaging the vehicle’s engine or possibly voiding the manufacturer’s warranty

* Another reason to look to a high-quality motor oil – like Pennzoil and Quaker State - is that it is designed to meet the demands of today’s engines   Play the M.O.M. Knows Best game!
MotorOilMatters.org and Shell Lubricants are allowing me to give a reader of Taking Time for Mommy a $35 Gift Card to Jiffy Lube. Want to win? Mandatory Entry Please be a follower via GFC, twitter, facebook, OR subscribe to Taking Time for Mommy's newsletter and tell me what you found most interesting on the Motoroilmatters.org
Extra Entry - Follow Taking Time for Mommy on Twitter HERE & tweet about it (can tweet once a day)
Extra Entry - Follow Taking Time for Mommy on FaceBook HERE
Extra Entry - Follow Taking Time for Mommy on Google Friend Connect
Extra Entry - Follow my other blog Mommy Reads too Much on Google Friend Connect
+5 Extra Entries - Signing up for our weekly Newsletter (form to the right)
+3 Extra Entries -Fan our writer Tawdra Kandle on Associated Content and comment on one of her articles Here
+2 Extra Entries - Comment on any non-giveaway post on either Taking time for Mommy or Mommy Reads Too Much - You can do this as much as you want :)

Giveaway will end on May 16th at 11:59pm. The winners will be chosen by random.org and emailed. The winner will have 48 hours to contact me or respond to notification or a new winner will be chosen. Giveaway open to U.S. residents 18+ only.

MotorOilMatters.org and Shell Lubricants provided me with the gift card and information through MyBlogSpark

Perfect Mother's Day Present 40% Flirty Aprons

Flirty Aprons has the cutest aprons EVER and so many to choose from!
Just in time for Mother's Day.Here is a
40% off coupon
Code FA-4110B
Expires 5/12
HERE

Mother's Day Romance Book Pack - 3 Winners!!

                                Winners are - #26 - Lisa R. #47 Angie & # 105 Anita Yancey
                                                                        Congrats!!

Yes, I know I usually put all of the book Giveaways on TTFM's Sister site Mommy Reads too Much but this giveaway is so awesome it's going on BOTH sites!! What a great giveaway to celebrate Mother's Day. You know you deserve it!



MONTANA DESTINY
By R.C. Ryan
ISBN 9780446548632, Mass Market, US$6.99/CAN$8.99
RAVISHED BY A HIGHLANDER
By Paula Quinn
ISBN 9780446552387, Mass Market, US$6.99/CAN$8.99

STILL THE ONE
By Robin Wells
ISBN 9780446555982, Mass Market, US$6.99/CAN$8.99

DESIRE ME
By Robyn DeHart
ISBN 9780446541978, Mass Market, US$6.99/CAN$8.99

KNIGHT OF PASSION
By Margaret Mallory
ISBN 9780446559867, Mass Market, US$6.99/CAN$8.99

TO SURRENDER TO A ROGUE
By Cara Elliott
ISBN 9780446541312, Mass Market, US$6.99/CAN$8.99 Anna from Hatchett Book Group is allowing me to give 3 packs including all of these great books toTaking Time for Mommy Readers!! Want to win? Mandatory Entry Please be a follower via GFC, twitter, facebook, OR subscribe to Taking Time for Mommy's newsletter AND tell me something wonderful about being a Mother!

Extra Entry - Follow Taking Time for Mommy on Twitter HERE tweet about it for 1 extra entry per day!
Extra Entry - Follow Taking Time for Mommy on FaceBook HERE
Extra Entry - Follow Taking Time for Mommy on Google Friend Connect
Extra Entry - Follow my other blog Mommy Reads too Much on Google Friend Connect
5 Extra Entries - Signing up for our weekly Newsletter (form to the right)
3 Extra Entries -Fan our writer Tawdra Kandle on Associated Content and comment on one of her articles Here
2 Extra Entries - Comment on any non-giveaway post on either Taking time for Mommy or Mommy Reads Too Much

Giveaway will end on May 9th On Mother's Day at 11:59pm. The winners will be chosen by random.org and emailed. The winner will have 48 hours to contact me or respond to notification or a new winner will be chosen. Giveaway open to U.S. &Canadian residents 18+ only.
Disclosure - A product was given for my honest opinion, no other compensation was given

15 FREE Mini Workouts-Video Download

Jillian Michaels is intense, but her workouts really do work. Here are 15 FREE mini Workouts. Enjoy!HERE

Is There Housework After a New Baby?

Congratulations on your new little bundle! This is a precious and wonderful season in your life. But if you find yourself knee deep in laundry and scared to walk around the house without your shoes on, read on for some tips on keeping up with the housework with a new baby.

First things first

You must take good care of yourself so you can care for your baby. Experts say it takes an entire year for your body to return to normal after having a baby. Even though you've recuperated from childbirth, you're probably not getting as much sleep as you did before and you're working new sets of muscles as you lift and carry baby around.

Housework is simply is not urgent in the grand scheme of things. Many midwives have the following advice for new Moms: spend the first few days in bed even if you feel great. If you feel good enough to putz around a little after the first week, go ahead and try some light housework, but don’t do anything strenuous or anything that involves a lot of twisting or that might injure your back. Remember that your muscles are still stretched out (especially your tummy muscles) and your joints loose, and your hormones are still making you a little accident prone, just as when you were pregnant. You don’t need to risk hurting your back so forget cleaning the shower or mopping floors for several more weeks.

Practical tips

If you didn't do so before, do a thorough de-cluttering now. Enlist the help of your husband or a friend. It's more fun and your friend will help you let go of your attachment to things. Cleaning experts say that around 50% of the total time spent in housework involves dealing with too much stuff: moving it around, picking it up off the floor, rearranging it, dusting it. You simply can't organize clutter!

You may find that a baby sling or other baby carrier is absolutely essential if you want to get things done around the house. Using a baby sling means that your hands can be free to take care of tasks but baby is safe and happy next to his favorite person in the world. Vacuuming is especially easy while wearing a baby. If the dishes pile up at least you can have really clean floors.

Some Moms even learn the knack of breastfeeding hands free in the sling. Talk about multitasking!

While your baby is a very young she will be sleeping a lot, so take advantage of this to finish a quick chore or two. Just don’t use all of baby’s sleep time to get work done. It’s very important for you to nap with baby if you can manage it. At the very least, spend some time resting on the couch with a refreshing drink and maybe a book. Or call a friend and have an adult conversation. You need to recharge your batteries as much as you need a clean home… maybe more.

This too shall pass…

Remember these oft repeated words because you’ll need to say them a lot during your mothering years! The newborn period is so precious. And to be perfectly honest, when it comes to housework, you ain’t seen nothing yet. A new baby may generate a lot of laundry, but she is hardly responsible for dirtying up the house. Wait until she’s toddling around with peanut butter-y hands. The housework can take a backseat while you ooh and aah over your baby’s tiny toes and fingers. Enjoy your babymoon!

Carrie Lauth is the host of www.NaturalMomsTalkRadio.com/blog, a free Internet talk radio show and podcast for families doing things the natural way.

Baby Steps: Moving A Family To Whole Foods Part 2: What’s to Fear about Kefir?

In part 1, I mentioned that one of my baby steps in moving my family toward a healthier, whole foods diet was keeping my own kefir grains. You might have wondered what I was talking about; when I first heard of them, I thought kefir grains were used to make a new kind of bread. Isn’t that what grains usually are?

Kefir, which is pronounced either ke FEAR or KEY fer (depending I think on where you live and how the person who introduces you to it says the word) is “a cultured, enzyme-rich food filled with friendly micro-organisms that help balance your ‘inner ecosystem’” according to www.kefir.net, one the premier web sites devoted to educating people about this wonder food. Made from kefir grains (more about those later), kefir is not unlike yogurt, although they contain different types of good bacteria. While yogurt can help keep the digestive tract clean, kefir can go further.

Kefir contains a lot of friendly bacteria which is very good for us, but more importantly, it also has beneficial yeasts that combat the “bad” yeasts in the body and help the body to resist E. coli and intestinal parasites. It’s easier to digest than is yogurt and is great for all ages—especially for people who are immuno-compromised.

When Lee brought me my first batch of kefir grain, I was more than little intimidated. It all seemed so complicated. And what exactly were these squiggly little things that resembled rice pudding?


I followed the directions carefully: I poured two cups of milk and a half cup cream over the grains, which were in a small mason jar. I covered the jar with a paper towel and secured it with a rubber band, left it on my counter. . and waited.

Two days later, I used a strainer over a glass bowl to “harvest” my first batch of kefir. The grains stayed in the strainer, and what fell into the bowl beneath was kefir. Later I learned that if I strained the kefir again, this time using cheese cloth, what stayed above would be kefir cheese and the thin liquid in the bowl would be whey.

But for the time being, I was simply elated to have a small jar of kefir to put into the refrigerator. I poured more milk and cream over the grains, and we began the cycle again.

As I went on, I learned that shortening the initial culture time makes the kefir less tart. The minimum culture time is 12 hours, and it shouldn’t go longer than every other day. I also learned that the grains can be put into temporary suspended animation by covering them with a little milk and putting them into the refrigerator.

So once I had mastered the art of culturing kefir, the big question was. . what do I do with this stuff? It was smooth and white, and it looked like either thin sour cream or yogurt. I knew from my friends that I could use it to make smoothies, and those were definitely a hit with my kids. But I still wasn’t using all of the kefir I made.

I was relieved when I found out that kefir stays good in the refrigerator for weeks on end. I was even happier when the first few attempts at new recipes with kefir turned out well. I used kefir in place of sour cream in my mother-in-law’s famous chocolate chip cake. Yum! I used it in pancakes, pasta dishes and in a Mexican cheese sauce.

I also followed Lee’s recipe for soaked brown rice, using a water and kefir mix. It was without a doubt the best rice I had ever eaten in my life, full of flavor and richness—and really good for us to boot.

If you’re wondering how my family reacted to this strange new part of our diet. . well, that’s a good question. They were skeptical at first. The younger kids loved the smoothies right away and so were my first converts. And everyone loved the rice. Slowly, everyone is jumping on the kefir bandwagon and coming up with ideas for using it in different recipes. I’m proud of them!

If you want to learn more about the benefits of kefir and how to make your own from kefir grains, go to www.kefir.net. For lots of recipes using kefir, you might try http://dairygoatinfo.com/index.php?topic=50.0;wap2 If you need more hands-on instruction, go to www.youtube.com and search milk kefir.

 Part one of the Series 
  

Tawdra Kandle is stay-at-home, homeschooling mom of four children who range in age from 9 years to almost 21 years. She and her husband of over 22 years live in central Florida, where he is in seminary. Tawdra spends most of her precious free time writing and reading, and she loves to travel. She is also a resident writer for Taking Time for Mommy. View more of her Articles HERE