The Little Mermaid (A Giveaway!)

Lizzy loves The Little Mermaid. In fact, we don't own the movie, and last month she asked Grandma Joyce if she could borrow their copy 'until Halloween' which in her world is pretty much forever. We've watched it a number of times since then, and it seems to be one movie that can hold the attention of both Lizzy AND Becca for a few minutes at a time. In other words, it's a lifesaver for me right now!

So, when I was asked if I'd be interested in hosting a giveaway for the Diamond Edition Blu-Ray + DVD combo pack of The Little Mermaid that's being released on October 1st, it was a no-brainer. Of COURSE. I'm thrilled to be able to give away a copy--who doesn't love Disney movies?! In the interest of full disclosure, we will receive a copy of the Blu-Ray as well, and Lizzy will be so excited when it arrives.

So, here's the details:
1. The giveaway is open to U.S. and Canada residents age 18 and over.
2. The giveaway will run from today until 5pm Pacific Time on September 25th, 2013. Once the contest ends, I will pick one winner at random. The winner will need to provide their address (this giveaway is unable to ship to P.O. Boxes) by October 4th, 2013.
3. One entry per person, per day.
4. To enter, just leave a comment on this blog!
5. Please make sure that you have an email address linked to your account, OR that you leave your email address in your comment. If I don't have a way to contact you, I will have to select a different winner, and that would be sad!

Good luck :)

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED! CONGRATS TO THE WINNER, JUNE LISLE! 

Disclosure Statement: I will receive a copy of The Diamond Edition Little Mermaid Blu-Ray + DVD Combo Pack in exchange for hosting this giveaway. 

 

Be BRAVE: A Review and Giveaway

 

Lately, Lizzy's absolute favorite book is Princess Smarty Pants by Babette Cole--it's a story about a princess who doesn't want to get married despite her mother's pushing, and eventually avoids the issue by kissing her prince and turning him into a frog. Lizzy loves it, so I was also pretty confident that she would love the movie Brave, and had been excited for it to come out on video so that we could rent it. So when I was contacted about doing a review and giveaway of Brave, I totally jumped at the chance. If you've been living under a rock and haven't heard of the newest Disney/Pixar movie Brave, here's the description from the studio:

An original and thrilling journey set in the ancient and magical Highlands of Scotland, “Brave” follows the heroic journey of the headstrong, young adventurer Merida. Determined to carveher own path in life, Merida confronts tradition and defies an age old custom that inadvertentlyunleashes chaos, and forces her to discover the true meaning of bravery.

Essentially, the story is about Merida, a young adventurous girl, whose parents (especially her mother) want her to get married in order to join two highland clans together. Merida's mother arranges for the sons of other clan leaders to come and compete for Merida's hand in marriage. Merida is less than thrilled, and eventually decides to compete for her own hand--and blows the boys out of the water. Unsurprisingly, this causes a huge disagreement between Merida and her mother. A little while later, Merida visits a witch and asks for a spell to change her mother so that she doesn't have to get married--and is shocked to discover that the "change" it brings is to turn her mother into a bear...whom her father then attempts to kill.

Like Tangled, Disney/Pixar's Brave  showcases a strong female lead, which is something that I love to see, having a daughter (and quite a spunky one) myself. But Brave takes things even a step further than Tangled in that there is no romantic sub-plot whatsoever. No prince swoops in to save the day. The movie doesn't conclude with Merida thinking that maybe prince so-and-so isn't so bad after all. Heck, even Merida's big Scottish father doesn't play a huge part in the movie...it's mostly a movie about Merida and her mother...and I thought that was sort of refreshing.  Call me a fuddy duddy, but I just don't think that every movie targeted at the under 10 crowd needs to revolve around falling in love.

A few other notes: 

• Lizzy has quite a few older cousins, as well as some friends with older (elementary)  brothers and sisters. We'd heard from several of them that Brave was pretty scary, and I know a few of our friends actually had to leave the theater with their kids. I can see how some of the scenes with the bear may have been even scarier on the big screen at the movie theater (and especially in 3D), and how some kiddos may still have a hard time with them even at home...but they really didn't seem to phase Lizzy at all. Neither did the scenes with the "witch", who seemed to us to be far more eccentric and far less "evil" than in past Disney/Pixar movies. So as far as I'm concerned, the moral is to know your kids, and now that the movie is coming out on video, you could always pre-watch if you're unsure about how they'd do.
• I've also heard some comments from boys and their dads that this is more of a "chick flick", and that  they didn't like Brave because there wasn't as much action and adventure as some of the other Disney/Pixar movies. I'll tell you right up front that I don't put much credence in identifying things as "girl movies" and "boy movies" at this age--one of Lizzy's favorite movies is Cars--so I sort of tended to roll my eyes when I heard that feedback. That said, I asked Justin what he thought just to get a second perspective, and he said that he thought it was a great story and a good movie--not just a "chick flick" at all.
• How cool is it to have a princess with crazy hair? Is that just me? I loved Merida's hair!
• LOVED the soundtrack/score. It was absolutely beautiful!  

 Overall, we really liked Brave. We watched the Blu-Ray version, but we're excited to try out the Blu-Ray 3D version at my parents' house sometime, because I'm sure it's very well done. Brave will be released on Blu-Ray and DVD on November 13th, but can be pre-ordered from Amazon here (non-affiliate link). 

AND, I'm thrilled to have a copy of the 5 Disc Collectors Edition to giveaway to one of YOU!  The Collectors Edition includes a copy of the Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray 3D, DVD, and Digital Copy, and retails for about $35!

Here's the scoop:

(1) This giveaway is open to US Residents (or those with a US shipping address).To enter, simply leave a comment on this blog. That's it.  You don't need to be a blog follower, though I do appreciate it.

(2) You can enter once per day (three total entries per person) until 5pm PST on Thursday Nov 8th.

(3) For the love of all things holy, please make sure that you have an email attached to the account you are commenting with or that you leave your email address in your comment itself. If I don't have your email address, I WILL choose another winner. 

(4) Disney/Pixar needs the giveaway winner's address by November 12th at the latest, so please get back to me ASAP if you're the lucky winner. If I haven't heard from you by  6pm PST on Sunday November 11th, I will be forced to pick a new winner. 

 

 Disclosure Statement: I received a copy of the Brave 5-Disc Collectors Edition for review, but was not compensated in any other way. As always, all opinions included in the review are my own, and were not influenced by the review/giveaway sponsor.  Thanks so much to Eric and Disney/Pixar for sponsoring such a great giveaway!

Monday Morning Giveaway! {Fairhaven Health DreamBelly Butter}

After my pregnancy with Lizzy, I had a lot of stretch marks. Some moms don't seem to mind them, but I can remember looking at my stomach and just being so irritated--I'd faithfully applied all the cocoa butter stretch mark creams...I'd done all the things I was supposed to do, and I still ended up with a stomach full of angry red marks. I remember wondering if my stomach would always look like that--and for the record, it didn't. The stretch marks didn't go away, but they did fade from angry red to a white/silver color that wasn't as noticeable....but it took awhile. I think even at a year out when I was taking before and after photos for Insanity, they were still pretty noticeable, though definitely an improvement.

Anyway, the point is that I'm always a little suspicious when a product claims to "prevent" or "repair" stretch marks. So, when I was contacted by Fairhaven Health about reviewing (and giving away!) their DreamBelly Butter, which was described as a 'natural, nourishing formula to help soothe, protect and heal stretch marks'....I was super skeptical. That said, when I visited the website and saw that in the product description, Fairhaven Health straight-up said that some women are genetically more susceptible to stretch marks than others...I felt like this was a product I could possibly get behind, you know? They didn't make any fanciful claims about how if I used this product I'd never get any stretch marks or that all my existing ones would magically disappear--they were honest. Some women are going to get stretch marks during pregnancy no matter what (I'm one of them, apparently)...and I appreciated their honesty in that. Because I think that even if you are one of those people who are predisposed to stretch marks, there's still a lot of good sense in keeping your skin hydrated and moisturized. Between that and the fact that the product contained no parabens, artificial colors, or preservatives, I was interested. So, I agreed to give the DreamBelly Butter a try, and a few days later, it arrived on my doorstep. 

After using the DreamBelly Butter for a few weeks now, I can tell you a few things: 

• This product is probably not going to prevent stretch marks for someone who is genetically predisposed towards them...but it does help to keep my stomach hydrated, which definitely makes the stretch marks less uncomfortable and also seems to help them look less angry and noticeable. 
• I like that when I'm looking at the ingredient list, I actually recognize nearly all of the ingredients, like beeswax, rose hips, and sunflower seed oil.
• I don't normally enjoy scented lotions (because I'm allergic to everything under the sun and even natural ingredients like lavender can give me hives), this lotion is lightly scented and doesn't bother me at all. But honestly, I'm not sure that I could tell you what the scent is--maybe slightly sweet with a touch of rose?
• I can tell you that the lotion itself is rather thick, and I do feel like I need to wash my hands after applying it on my belly, but that may just be me. I tend to do that sort of thing.
• And lastly, I can also tell you that it's AWESOME for cracked elbows, heels, and just skin in general. I almost wonder if Fairhaven Health does a disservice to itself by marketing this product specifically for pregnant and postpartum moms...because I think it's actually a really great, high-quality product for anyone.

So, by now you guys should know that I don't sugar coat things on this blog just because I'm reviewing them. Book reviews aren't always positive. Neither are product reviews. One thing you'll get from me in terms of any reviews I do on this blog is my straight-up opinion, good or bad. This time, I was initially skeptical of Fairhaven Health's DreamBelly Butter, but ended up being pleasantly surprised. And ultimately, I'd definitely recommend it to a friend...which is why I'm happy to say that the good folks at Fairhaven Health are giving away some DreamBelly Butter to TWO readers!

Here's the fine print: 
-To enter, simply leave a comment on this blog. For the love, please make sure you either have an email address attached to your account, or that you leave it in the comment. If I don't have a way to get in touch with you, I'll have to pick another winner, and that would just suck. 
-You do NOT have to be pregnant in order to win!! As I mentioned before, it's a great product for everyone...but how sweet would it be as part of a care-package for a pregnant or postpartum friend? I promise that no one will assume you're secretly pregnant if you enter this giveaway ;)
-This contest will close Saturday August 25th at 5pm Pacific Time. I'll draw winners sometime over the weekend and contact winners by email. If you're selected, please make sure to get back to me by Monday at noon, or a new winner will be selected!

Good luck, and I hope you guys enjoy this as much as I do! 

Disclosure Statement: I was provided with DreamBelly Butter by Fairhaven Health to try and review. I was not compensated in any other way, and all opinions in the review are my own!

Redeemed- (In)spired Deals Review & Giveaway

A few years ago, I remember walking into an acquaintance's home, and noticing how many pieces of decor items talked about the fact that they were a Christian family. 'Wow, they must really want to make sure that everyone knows that they're Christians,' I thought with disdain.

At that point in my life and in my faith, that was honestly the only explanation that I could fathom--that generally, when people had Christian home decor up in their home, it was either (a) because they felt like they were "supposed" to have those items up or (b) because they wanted to make sure that every single person in their lives knew that they were Christian. To be totally honest, neither reason seemed like a particularly good reason to me, and for that reason, our home was fairly devoid of any references to our faith for the next several years.

However, this past December, I partnered with Dayspring and (in)courage to participate in a review and giveaway of a home decor item. To be honest, I thought that it would probably be something that I might display at Christmas time, and then put away for the rest of the year. But surprisingly, something happened--I noticed that the little tealight holder became an unexpected support and encouragement to me during a pretty hard experience in my life. And because of that, it has remained on display in our home ever since.

This past month, I've had another opportunity to partner with (in)courage and Dayspring to review a home decor item, and I think I'm ready to say that before, I was wrong. Totally, dead wrong. At least for me, displaying home decor items that have faith-based messages isn't at all about who else sees them. It's about me, and the fact that often, in the midst of chaos, I need those words written in my heart and whispered into my soul.

This month's (in)spired deals item comes from the Redeemed line:

Life is a patchwork of the meaningful things we keep with us—memories, moments, and connections that serve as daily reminders of where we’ve come from and who our loving Heavenly Father says we are in Jesus. The Redeemed collection celebrates the way God, in His generous grace, sews together every beautiful bit of our lives to form one masterpiece creation after another.

The items that I personally received to review were the "Beautiful in Its Time" Vintage Glass Vase and the Blessed Set of 6 Ceramic Coasters.

As always, the products seem to be very well-made--the ceramic coasters are beautiful (each one has a different image), and seem like they'll hold up very well. But my real favorite here is the vintage glass vase, which I could immediately imagine sitting atop my dream farmhouse table someday, acting as a vase for fresh-cut flowers from the backyard, or a carafe for orange juice at a Sunday morning breakfast. It's something that I can imagine standing the test of time well enough to pass down to one of my kiddos someday.

The vase includes the above verse etched on one side, and then raised glass letters that spell "Redeemed" on the other side...and boy, is it ever a good reminder for my soul lately--there's this song by a band called Late Tuesday that goes, "everything's broken, but it still can be redeemed", and that's exactly what this vase reminds me of every morning. That when I'm exhausted and grumbling about doing more dishes. Or when I'm feeling like our house or budget isn't the way I'd like it to be. I need that reminder sometimes that things will be not just okay, but more beautiful than I could ever imagine--in God's time, not my own.

So, because I genuinely love Dayspring products, I'm thrilled to be able to giveaway a coupon code for one of you to order this beautiful vase for yourself!

There's no fancy requirements in order to enter--simply leave a comment on this post between now, and 6:00am (PST) this Friday morning, the 20th!

The fine print: I was provided with a vase and coaster set to review and photograph, but was not compensated in any other way for this review, nor do I profit from the links to Dayspring included in this post. As always, all opinions included in this review are my own. The winner of this giveaway will be chosen on Friday the 20th, using Random.org, and will be given a coupon code specifically for the glass vase mentioned above. The winner will be responsible for shipping costs for the item.

Snippets + Giveaway Winner

-Justin and I got to go on a real "date" on Saturday night to his annual company Christmas party. Sorry for the crappy cell phone photo, but it was all we got! I had been stressing out a bit that morning about what to wear to the party, but in a stroke of perfect timing, Lisa had sent an early Christmas present that arrived that afternoon, which just happened to include a dress and beautiful necklace! Lizzy stayed with Ryan and Renee, and they texted us about 9 to tell us that she was asleep, and if we wanted, we could just pick her up in the morning. So we did. And she did fine. I'm glad we did that--it'll be one less thing for me to worry about when we go up to Portland next month.

-We took Lizzy to see Santa at the library yesterday. She went right up to him and said, "Hi Santa! Ho, ho Christmas! Happy birthday baby Jesus! I love cookies!" Santa and Mrs. Claus asked how old she was, and were very surprised that she wasn't two yet. Santa said that she has a "tremendous command of the English language." It made me smile.

-We also went to look at Christmas lights last night. I've mentioned before that Lizzy is still usually rear-facing, but we turned her around to forward facing just to go look at the lights. And I've gotta say--I'm excited to turn her around for real...she was so much more interactive with us in the car. She LOVED the lights. It was so much fun to hear her sing "Joy to the World" at the top of her lungs as we were looking.

Here's an interesting tidbit--the house above was listed for sale in Sept 2010 for $548,500. It sold in November for $359,500. Ouch. Looks like the real estate market here in Oregon is still hurting!

- Megan posted about this today on Facebook, and it is such an awesome deal (I bought one for when we go to Portland) that I thought I'd share. If you go to www.todayshowrestaurant.com and enter the code TodayRestaurant, you can get a $500 gift card to restaurant.com for $30. It's sponsored by the Today Show, and is up on their website as well.

-The winner of the Love Came Down Giveaway is:

Congrats! Hope you all have a great Tuesday!

Love Came Down: (In)spired Deals Review & Giveaway!

Yesterday was shaping up to be a really bad day.

Let's just be real here--getting a call that I have skin cancer (I still can't really believe that I'm even typing that) was not the highlight of my year, even in light of the fact that I have experienced a remarkable amount of peace about the whole situation or the fact that the prognosis is incredible. It's still just not a great experience.

Within an hour of receiving the call from the dermatologist, the FedEx man knocked on my door...with a huge box from DaySpring and (in)courage. Words cannot even begin to describe what a blessing it was to me that this box arrived at the precise moment it did. For the blessing of a gentle reminder that love came down, for me.

Inside, was the absolutely stunning Star Tea Light Holder:

I could probably write paragraphs upon paragraphs about the understated, simple beauty of this tea light holder, but I think the pictures can probably do it more justice than I could.

First side:

Second Side:

Really, could the stain be any more perfect? It's the perfect distressed, reclaimed wood look.
And if that weren't enough, they tossed in some coffee mugs, also from the Love Came Down line.



Really, there are just no words to adequately describe this gift that I have been given--these visual reminders that God is with me, always. Even now, even through this. It is a tremendous blessing to me to be able to have these ever-present reminders to see daily, early each morning as I shuffle to the kitchen to start my day with coffee.

Even better? DaySpring and (in)courage are allowing me to bless one of you with a $20 shop credit. And guys, there are some amazing things on clearance over at the DaySpring shop. Like these:

Bless This Home Wall Art-$15

Everyday Joy Gift Set-$19.99

Jesus is the Gift Platter- $6.25

To enter, simply leave a comment on this post. The giveaway will be open until Tuesday December 20th at 7am PST. For the love of all things good, please make sure that there's an email address attached to the account you use to enter, or that you leave some way for me to contact you in the event that you win! Good luck!

Fine Print and Disclosure Statement: The winner will have seven days to respond to my email. If I haven't heard back within seven calendar days, I'll pick a new winner. Winner will be responsible for paying their own postage. In addition, the coupon code will not activate unless the total in the cart meets or exceeds $20. I received both the Star Tea Light Holder and the mugs at no cost to me, for the purpose of review. I was not compensated for the review itself, and all opinions are my own, as always.

Shabby Apple Jewelry Winner...

And the winner of the Shabby Apple Through the Looking Glass necklace is:

Congrats Laura T!

Just A Reminder

I've had a couple of people tell me that {this post}for my Shabby Apple Jewelry giveaway never showed up in their Google Reader. So, I thought I'd post again today in hopes that it reaches everyone--you have until tomorrow to enter!

Click on through if you want to win some beautiful jewelry from Shabby Apple!

Shabby Apple Jewelry Giveaway

Y'all know Shabby Apple, right? THE go-to shop for beautiful dresses? {Their current Academia collection totally makes the not-so-secret book nerd in me swoon}. Well, they also have some pretty incredible jewelry and other accessories too...and the fine folks at Shabby Apple have offered to let me give this away to one of you lucky ducks:

Their Through the Looking Glass Necklace!

Now, here's the thing: while this necklace is beautiful just the way it is, it actually gets even better. See, it has a side clasp that allows you to slip something up to 4mm inside--like a photo, scrapbook paper, or a dried flower. Then, the glass has a fish-eye magnifying effect on whatever you've slipped inside! Cool, right? I love me a versatile piece of jewelry, and I'm jealous that y'all have the opportunity to win it!

Here's how to enter:
1. For your first entry, like Shabby Apple on Facebook. And just for kicks, I'd like to hear what you'd slip into the necklace if you were to win.
2 & 3. For your second and third entries, you can either follow Shabby Apple on Twitter, or follow their blog. You need to leave a separate comment for each action!!

Here's the fine print:
-This contest is open to US readers.
-The contest will remain open until Tuesday Oct 25th at 10am Pacific Time.
-The winner will be chosen via random.org
-You MUST have an email attached to your profile or leave an email address where you can be contacted.
-The winner will be contacted by email on the 25th and will have 72 hours to respond in order to claim their prize. If the winner has not responded within 72 hours, a new winner will be selected.

Snippets + BHG Giveaway Winner!

- Lizzy appears to be cutting her 2 year molars. Whoo Boy. We're talking fever, serious fussiness, etc. And yesterday? I changed like eight poopy diapers before noon. One day last week, I literally held her for her entire nap simply because she had been such a bear that day that I thought we could both use the snuggles. Also, all of a sudden she looks so much older to me.

-We watch Lizzy's cousin Logan on Monday and Wednesdays before he goes to afternoon Pre-K. On Wednesdays, all the kids wear a specific blue shirt for chapel, and Lizzy has definitely picked up on this, and noticed that she doesn't have a blue shirt like her older cousins and everyone else. The only problem? Right now, her rendition of "shirt" is "shit". So, almost every Wednesday when we get to church to drop Logan off, she runs through the church yelling, "I want blue shit!" at the top of her lungs. Awesome.

-The last two Saturdays, Justin's band has had practice on Friday night, and then a concert on Saturday, which is AWESOME for them, but has also definitely made it feel like we haven't had a weekend. I'm excited to have a weekend with nothing on the schedule this coming weekend!

-I'm almost three weeks into TurboFire now, and I do like it, even if I feel like an uncoordinated idiot most of the time trying to do the choreography.

-Let's just get right down to what you all are REALLY interested in, shall we? The WINNER of the Better Homes & Gardens New Decorating Book courtesy of Wiley Books is:

Congrats! Please shoot an email to labuenavidablog [at] gmail [dot] com with your shipping info (please include your phone number for the shipping label)!

Better Homes & Gardens New Decorating Book Giveaway!

When I was contacted recently about reviewing the Better Homes & Gardens New Decorating Book, I could hardly say yes fast enough. Since we bought our house in 2008, I've come to love Better Homes & Gardens magazine--I think their decorating suggestions often feel really do-able, whereas sometimes in other publications, I find myself thinking "Yeah, that looks pretty nice there, but could never translate into MY home."

The book arrived on our doorstep yesterday afternoon, and you can bet your booty I spent a block of time checking it out right then and there!

 

The book is split up into three sections. The first, "Room Views" is just like it sounds--lots of beautiful full-color photos of specific types of rooms in a variety of different styles. Each type of room (i.e. entry way, kitchen, living room) begins with "10 Design Basics" specific to that room. I love how they are real and practical suggestions, such as "direct traffic around and behind TV viewers" for the family room. I mean, how many times have we all seen decorating books and magazines that seem to pretend that no one has a TV in their home at all? Most of us do, so it's refreshing to see suggestions with how to handle it in our decor. I don't want to give it all away, but I do want to give a couple of glances at some of the great ideas this book contains. I especially love this feature, which shows the same vanity styled three different ways: 

The second section, "House Tours" showcases entire homes in a variety of styles--Modern Cottage, Open Plan, Classic Bungalow, Savvy Remodel, Today's Farmhouse, Small Space, Fresh Traditional, Personal Mix, Artistic Cottage, and Scandinavian Modern. Again, there are lots of beautiful full color photos that really allow you to understand how the family carried their style through their entire home. This section is my favorite, and I really wish that we had this book before we moved into our home, because I think it would have helped us identify a style that we both love more quickly. Sometimes men are more visual, and need to see a reference photo when we tell them that we'd like our house to be "comfy cottage with pops of color", and this section would be very helpful with that.

The third section, "Workroom" offers tons (and I mean TONS) of practical advice. From sample floor plans, to all types of gallery wall suggestions, this section really allows us to take what we see on the pages and implement it in our own homes.

The "Workroom" also includes lighting diagrams, diagrams of different sofa and chair styles, a grid of different types of flooring and their advantages/disadvantages, and suggested closet configurations. And that's just the beginning. There's seriously a wealth of information in this book, and I feel like it's the type of book that I could look at every week for a year, and find something new that I love each and every time.

And guess what? I'm blessed to be able to give away a copy of this incredible 300+ page book to one of you!

Did I mention that the book comes with a card you can tear out and drop in the mail for a year subscription to Better Homes & Gardens?! Seriously you guys, I am so excited about this, especially since I originally "met" many of you on the Decorating & Renovating board on The Nest. Shout out to my D&R nesties! Anyway, I hope you're as excited about this giveaway as I am! Here's what you need to do to be entered: 

1. Leave a comment on this post. Just for fun, tell me what the next decorating/renovation project you'd take on if money were no object. No, you aren't required to "follow" me to enter, though if you'd like to, I wouldn't object ;) Just please make sure that you have an email address linked to your account or that I have some way to contact you if you are the winner!

For additional entries (and please leave a separate comment for each additional entry): 

2. Like the Better Homes & Gardens Facebook page.

3. Follow @WileyCraft on Twitter. Wiley is the publishing company that publishes the Better Homes & Gardens New Decorating Book, but they also have lots of other decorating and craft books on the market, as well as an awesome website (click on the image below to go there) that offers tutorials from many of their different books. Following WileyCraft on Twitter is a great way to keep up to date on all they have to offer!

Have a great Thursday everyone!

The small print: The giveaway will close on Tuesday, September 27th at 5pm PST. A winner will be chosen through Random.org, and notified shortly thereafter. I was provided with a copy of Better Homes & Gardens New Decorating Book for review (and one to giveaway), but was not otherwise compensated for this post. All comments are my own, as always.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

Thanks so much for your interest in my first ever giveaway guys! I've been wanting to do a giveaway for some time, but I'm usually really hesitant to give out our home address on my blog, so this felt like a great compromise!

Also, this was in no way part of my plan (and honestly came as a bit of a shock to me since I'm not a graphic designer or anything of the sort), but a couple of people contacted me to ask about purchasing a family manifesto poster if they didn't win...so I've also created a very small etsy shop where you could do just that.  There are also a few other prints (including an 8 x 10 "House Rules" that's similar to the family manifesto) that I think are fun up on the shop. I'm new to this whole etsy thing, so I'm not sure whether or not it will be a temporary or a long term thing...we'll see how it goes. I'd love for you to check it out!

Without further adieu, the winner of the giveaway is Nessa from moments & impressions!

Can I just say that Random.org did pretty darn well on this one?! On Father's Day, Nessa and her husband opened their home to a little girl who needed it, and increased their little family from three to four. What a perfect time for a family manifesto, no?  And then that gave me the warm fuzzies, so I pushed the 'generate a random number' button again on Random.org and picked a second winner to receive an 8 x 10 version of their own custom family manifesto.

So, there you have it! Congrats to the winners! Nessa and Miss Erin, I'll be in touch soon. Hope you all have a great day!

A La Buena Vida First-- A Giveaway!

Not too shabby for a giant piece of artwork for $8.99, eh? You might notice that the turquoise turned out slightly darker than the online version, which didn't surprise me (even though I told Costco not to auto correct my print) because my monitor is not calibrated.

Anyway, this brings me to my next point--I'm not sure if you guys are as stoked about the idea of a family manifesto as I am, but I had a lot of fun making ours, and I'd like to make one for someone else.  So, I'm hosting a giveaway. This is a first here at La Buena Vida! Here are the details:

The randomly selected winner will receive a high resolution digital copy of their family manifesto (20 x 30, unless another size is requested) to have printed wherever you wish. You'll supply me with 16-18 phrases that you'd like to have included in your family manifesto. You'll also be able to pick your background color and select from several fonts that I provide. Please keep in mind that the final background color may vary slightly from your digital copy depending on the calibration of your monitor and where you have your manifesto printed.


So, if you'd like to enter, simply leave a comment telling me one thing that you'd include in your family manifesto. The giveaway will close Tuesday June 21st at 12pm Pacific Time. One entry per person please!