JumpStart Review and Giveaway!

I have to be honest...my boys were never really big computer/video game players. They have an educational game console and handheld educational video games, but they never really got that interested in them. And to be honest {again}, it never really bothered me that they weren't that into computer/video games.

Well, it didn't bother me until we went to Kindergarten pre-registration with Henry earlier this year. One of the teachers mentioned that the kids have computer time throughout the day, and I thought....Henry doesn't know how to do ANYTHING on the computer! The computer at our house is reserved for supermom {blogaddict} and superdad.

Computer time was just for the adults, until my boys discovered JumpStart!

We got the opportunity to try out a 3 month membership to JumpStart's virtual world of educational games. And now my boys are LOVING the computer!

Here is a little information about JumpStart from their website:
JumpStart is an award-winning adventure-based 3D virtual world that is super-personalized, wildly imaginative and really fun, but don't let that fool you - it also teaches math, reading, and critical thinking skills so kids get a real jump start in life.


Sounds pretty good! Award winning...personalized...and really fun! Plus the kids will be learning too! What's a kid {and a mom} not to like! Storyland is an area on their website that is made just for kids ages 3-5, so I figured this would be good for Henry and Grant!

The boys sat down to play with Jason while I was cooking dinner the other day. They had a great time playing all the games in Storyland and learning how to work the computer! Henry caught on really quickly, and after a little help from Jason, he was moving from game to game figuring out how to play them on his own! He really liked the Learning House and enjoyed playing Puzzle Surprise and Matching Duckies! They also like going down the slide and listening to the animals sing! They were both laughing and having a great time!

Jumpstart.com also has a ton of resources for parents. There is a blog that has all kinds of great information about the website as well as learning tips on how to make the most out of Jumpstart! There is also a Discussion Board where parents can post questions and look for answers to any questions that they may have about the Jumpstart 3D Virtual World.

My boys have had a blast with the JumpStart 3D Virtual World. I would recommend this website to anyone with kids who like to play computer/video games. And especially for kids who are getting ready to start school in the fall like Henry is!

And now for the Giveaway part of the post:

JumpStart has agreed to provide a free 3 month trial for one of my readers!

I am also adding in a little bonus for you mom's out there....because while your kiddo is quietly playing on the computer, you will be able to relax and soak up some rays on your SUPER Cute Personalized Towel! That's right, the winner will get a 3 month membership to JumpStart and one of my lovely towels to go along with it!

So here is how to enter:

For your first entry leave a comment telling me who you want to win the 3 month membership for!

For one extra entry, follow me and leave a comment telling me that you do.

For another entry, put my button on your blog and leave a comment telling me you did.

For two extra entries, blog about my giveaway linking back to this post, then leave two comments telling me you blogged.
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This giveaway will end Friday, July 10th at 10 pm Central time and the winner will be announced Saturday, July 11th.

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did NOT enjoy a SUPER quiet week while Henry and Grant attended VBS at my mom's church. I did NOT enjoy the quiet of only having one very happy and content little boy at home for a big majority of the week! I did NOT take a few trips to Target, Hobby Lobby, and Walmart. I also did NOT think how much easier it is to only unload one child from my car when I have to get in and out a million times! This did NOT make me look forward to Kindergarten and Preschool starting in the fall!

I did NOT let my children eat Peanut Butter Cookies for breakfast one morning as we were rushing around trying to get to VBS on time! I always make my children a nutritious breakfast with all the food groups represented...and I would never just let the eat a bunch of sugar and call it a day!

I did NOT eat hot dogs {TWICE} this week! Hot dogs are kiddie food and I would never enjoy eating them twice in one week! I always eat healthy adult food like salads and veggies and hummus!

I am NOT majorly behind on laundry. I do NOT have two baskets full of clothes sitting in my laundry room waiting patiently to be folded! They have NOT been sitting there since last week when I decided that I was going to wash and put up everything while the boys were gone to VBS! I always follow through on my housework, and would NEVER put off doing laundry for that long!

We did NOT go swimming yesterday at the river. The boys did NOT have a great time playing and swimming and building sand castles. We {mostly me} did NOT end up bringing half of the sand from the river home with us in our bathing suits! And we did NOT all get just a little too much sun while we were having so much fun! My boys are NOT slowly turning into Coppertone Babies with better tans than me!

Photostory Friday: Golf with Dad

The boys LOVE to play golf outside with their daddy!

Grant and Henry both have their own junior golf sets. As soon as Eli starts walking {which may not be too far in the future} ,we will have to break out the Little Tykes golf clubs so he can play along too!

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Dinner and Dessert

Eggplant Parmesan

My boys {and Jason and I} ate eggplant for the first time this week.And we ate {almost} every bite!

I told the boys it was lasagna....which it sort of is....and they dug right in. Grant cleaned his plate and Henry ate a pretty good size portion too.

Who knew eggplant could be so yummy!

Fresh Corn on the Cob

Peanut Butter Cookies

After dinner, the boys helped me make some of my mom's SUPER delicious Peanut Butter cookies. I made the dough, but they helped by rolling out the dough, putting it on the cookie sheet, and using the fork to squish the cookies! They turned out really yummy!

Wordless Wednesday: Water, Water Everywhere

For more Wordless Wednesday check out 5 Minutes for Mom!

J&K+8

Does anybody else feel a little ripped off by the whole Jon and Kate Plus 8 thing! I almost feel like I have been cheated out of all the hours that I invested wasted watching their show {plus the day that I spent listening to them speak at a church event}.

I thought I was watching a wholesome Christian family with two loving parents who were going to show me and the world that "Yeah, being a parent is tough {especially if you have 8 kids}, but we can do it!" Turns out, it was just a show about two people who wanted to make some money and are too selfish to work on their marriage{or at least that is how it looks to me}.

I know that they are on T.V. {which I'm sure put a major strain on their marriage}, but just 6 short months ago they seemed to be a completely happy couple! How do you go from happy to filing for legal termination of your marriage in 6 months?!? I just don't get that! Wouldn't you think 10 years of marriage would at least be worth a year of counselling and "working" on it.

I'm not judging their decision to get a divorce, I just think it seems like they gave up on their marriage really easily. And it makes me wonder if that is why the divorce rate is so high in the U.S. Because it's the EASY way out. Why work on your marriage {a bond that is instituted and ordained by God } when all you have to do is sign your name on the dotted line and you are free to go. I know people have many reasons for getting divorced {and I know that no one goes into a marriage thinking it will end in divorce}, I just wish more people would work on saving their marriages instead of giving up on them!

There are two things about their whole situation that really bother me:

#1 The Isaiah 40:31 { but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint} shirts that both Jon and Kate wore at some point over the last four seasons. They got weary awfully fast....and we have heard no mention of God or their faith in regards to their marriage {or lack thereof}!

#2 "Everything we do is for our kids" They kept saying this over and over...and all I could think is: Do something for you and your spouse! Leave the kids with a sitter {or nanny since you already have one} and do something for yourself...work on your marriage! It's your life too...not just your kids'!

Okay, sorry for the rant! I just wish things would have turned out better for this family that seemed like such a great Christian example! I guess seemed is probably the operative word in that sentence, because you never really know what is going on in other people's lives {even if you do feel like you know them from watching them on t.v.}! And I also know that it is much easier to see the bigger picture when you are looking from the outside {and not caught up in the storm}! I really do hope and pray that things work out for Jon and Kate and their kids....who knows, we may be watching a happy reunion{boy that would score some major ratings} in a few months!

I Heart Faces Week 24 Let's Hear it for the Boys!

Go check out the I Heart Faces blog to see more SUPER cute BOYS!

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did NOT have a SUPER busy week this week! I am NOT still exhausted from being so busy. And I did NOT choose to take a nap yesterday while everyone else went swimming because I was SO NOT exhausted!

I did NOT take all three of my boys to the doctor on Tuesday {Henry and Eli both needed well checkups}. I was NOT a little impressed that I made it in and out with all three of them and still felt somewhat sane! Henry is NOT growing like a weed, and ready {ears and eyes checked out} for Kindergarten to start. Eli is NOT above the 90% for weight, height, and head circumference {he did NOT weigh almost 25 pounds and was not almost 30 inches tall at only 9 months old}!

We did NOT go on two SUPER fun outings two days in a row this week. We are taking the summer easy, and I would NEVER overbook my kids!

We did NOT spend all day Thursday {the hottest day of the year so far} picking veggies at a U Pick Vegetable Farm, eating lunch at McDonald's, and swimming for hours! Then we did NOT spend all day Friday at a local water park playing in the kiddie pool, floating in the lazy river, and splashing down the slides!

While we were at the water park, I did NOT run out of sunscreen! I would NEVER forget to bring extra sunscreen with me when we were going to be out in the hot sun all day long! Because we did NOT run out of sunscreen, Jason and I did NOT both end up looking like red and white striped zebras! I am NOT still a little sore from the lovely sunburn, and I am NOT refusing to wear a real bra {gotta love a soft sports bra} until my shoulders aren't hurting anymore!

Yesterday was NOT my birthday! I am NOT 29 years old! I am NOT excited{really I'm not} about being another year closer to 30.....I mean only a year away from being 30!

Making Pudding Pops

Gather ingredients and supplies.

bowl, whisk, milk, pudding mix, popsicle molds, two very eager helpers

Add milk to the bowl.
Add pudding mix to the bowl.

Let eager helper #1 whisk the pudding very carefully.

Cautiously let eager helper #2{against your better judgement, because he is notoriously messy!} mix the pudding too.

Fill SUPER cool popsicle molds with pudding.

Sneak a lick while mom isn't looking.

Fill more popsicle molds with extra pudding {we used a big box}! Let eager helper #1 add the handle in his signature color.

Then let eager helper #2 add his handle...also in his signature color!

Place in the freezer and...

WAIT

FOUR

HOURS!

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ENJOY!

{And share with your little brother!}