Scruble Cube-A TOS Review

Growing up with several Rubik's cubes in the house this cube really intrigued me and I couldn't wait to get my hands on the Scruble Cube and try it out but I had to wait my turn.  Makenzie (my 11 yr old daughter) had a house full of girls the day the Scruble Cube arrived in the mail and as soon as I opened it and explained what it was they took it and immediately started playing with it.  Of course they didn't wait for me to read the rules and already had it figured out before I found the instructions in the box.  I was happy to see they were spelling harder and harder words trying to beat the previous girls score.  Yep, it's a keeper 7 out of the 7 girls approved and thought it was a toy and NOT an educational toy either.  That made me smile to myself.

The Scruble Cube really reminds me of a cross between Rubik's cube with letters and Scrabble.  This product is recommended for ages 8 and up but I really think younger children would be able to use it with a little help from mom or dad.  It retails for $24.95 and comes with the cube, a score pad of paper and a sand timer and of course the instructions and a getting started guide.  Scruble Cube has been awarded the Seal of Excellence for the 2010 Creative Toy Awards by Creative Child Magazine and Best Picks New Products by Dr. Toy.

The other day I went outside and was checking on the kids to see what they were doing and they were playing Scruble Cube in our backyard during free time!  Kylan was playing while swinging in the hammock and Makenzie would then try to beat his word, good times at the Wedemeyer house!

Cooper and Me-a book review and giveaway!

UPDATE: Congratulations the winner is ShaRhonda.  It was your entry for following Cooper and Me on Twitter that won it for you!  Please private message me your info and I'll have the book sent to you!

Cooper and Me

by Monique & Alexa Peters
ISBN 987-0-9829418-0-5
Hardback, 31 pages
Retail Price: $12.99

Cooper and Me is such a neat book for younger children that are getting ready to start school or might be going through some changes in their life.  It's geared toward pre-school to kindergarten age children and was written by and illustrated by Alexa Peters with help from her mom Monique.  The idea for the book was inspired by Alexa's own experiences on her first day of school.  Alexa is a talented illustrator and writer and wanted to find a meaningful way to give back and help others through her art.

Cooper and Me tells the familiar story of a nervous child preparing to start school and not wanting to leave her best friend, her dog Cooper.  Her mom comes up with a way to help her cope with her first day of school by taking a small, stuffed animal version of Cooper to school with her.  The book talks about overcoming separation anxiety and trying new things.  These are all basic emotions people experience throughout their lives but this time , written by a child, for children.

Part of the proceeds from this book are donated to Happy Hearts Fund which is run and founded by Petra Nemcova, the supermodel who was directly affected by the tsunami in Thailand.  Happy Hearts helps to improve children's lives after a natural disaster.

Cooper and Me will be released in stores on October 14th, 2011.  Cooper and Me has a fun interactive website that your children will love, parent's and teacher's will love the reading guides and printables.


Now for the fun part.  Not only was I given a copy to review but I'm allowed to give ONE copy away to one of my readers!  Mandatory to enter go to Cooper and Me and tell me which book you think your child would like.
Additional entries (leave a separate comment for each)

Like Cooper and Me on Facebook

Like Just Wedeminute on Facebook

Blog about this post and send me the link

Email 4 friends about the giveaway and  CC me at JustWedeminute@cox.net

Follow Cooper and Me on Twitter

Follow Just Wedeminute on Twitter

Tweet about the giveaway

Pin this post to Pinterest

Follow Jennifer/Just Wedeminute on Pinterest

Drawing will be held on October 14th in honor of the book's release date and winner will be notified within 24 hours.

I Love Spaghetti Tacos?

Makenzie and Kylan had some of their BFF's Kammi and Cayden over to play today and for lunch I made the squid dogs which the kids all loved BUT I was then informed about spaghetti tacos.  I had never heard of such a thing because I don't watch iCarly.  Apparently iCarly's writers thought it would be a funny one time gag BUT it quickly became an almost overnight favorite among tweens.  So, tonight we are having SPAGHETTI TACOS for dinner.  I'll update and let you know what the consensus was in the Wedemeyer household.  Have you had them?  What did you think?  Leave me a comment and let me know how you feel about spaghetti tacos!

This is a picture of the famous episode!

UPDATE:  Move over mac n cheese or PBJ there's a new kid in town and it's called Spaghetti Tacos!  Makenzie loves them and Kylan doesn't but he likes the spaghetti, this is an easy meal to make when you have a house full of kids and want to please all of them.  3 out of the 4 kids gave them 2 thumbs up!

All I did was make spaghetti like normal but without meatballs and spooned it into some taco shells, the kids said it was perfect.

Perfect Iced Coffee-thanks Pioneer Woman

I'm not a big coffee drinker but I do like a cappuccino every now and then and I love a good frappe.  Everyone had been telling me I need to become a coffee drinker because it makes the homeschool mornings much easier but I just haven't been able to do it until I found the Pioneer Woman's perfect iced coffee.  I'm not even exaggerating when I say it's to die for delicious.  I'm so addicted to it now that I have to have a huge tumbler full of it almost every morning for breakfast.  Once you try it you won't look back.

Ree recommends that you use Cafe Bustelo coffee but I was trying to use up a can of coffee that my Grandma had left here when she stayed with us (I didn't want to waste it).

Ree uses these HUGE containers that will hold 12 qts but I just used a pitcher I had on hand and figured out the amount of coffee I would need compared to her large amount.  So you just add your coffee (however much you want I used about 1/3 of the can) and add cold water, cover, stir and let it sit overnight.  In the morning when you wake up run into the kitchen and stir again and take a deep sniff of that fragrant smell...it smells really good.  Now, you have to strain it.

Ree uses layers of cheesecloth inside a strainer but I used coffee filters inside my strainer and it worked out great.

It actually looks kinda gross right now and takes awhile to strain it all through the filters but in the end you have this wonderful smooth, rich concentrate.  I then fill my tumbler up with ice and add a little more then 1/2 of my cup of coffee, next comes skim milk, whole milk, or sometimes half and half.  I then drizzle vanilla (homemade vanilla), some sweetener of your choice and stir it all up!

Vietnamese Iced Coffee is good too!  All you have to do is add some sweetened condensed milk instead of sweetener but I still add some milk to it, stir and enjoy.  I only use this variation every so often because it's pretty sweet but OHHHHHH so good.

What is He Thinking???

What is He Thinking is a new book by Rebecca St. James.  We LOVE Rebecca St. James music so I was pleased when I was asked to review her latest book.  I'm married so I didn't really think this book would apply to me but it has helped me see things from a guys perspective and has brought up some interesting conversations between my husband and myself.  In the book Rebecca interviews a wide range of single men 20-35 years old and covers topics like modesty, purity, taking it slow, friendship and more.  This book gave these men the opportunity to say what they would REALLY like women to know.  They answered some of the following questions:

~What is the most attractive quality to you in a woman?

~How can we help you with boundaries physically?

~How can we depend on God and not you for our identity?

~What do you find beautiful?

~Does neediness turn you off?

Rebecca also talks about her own dating life.  Her struggles with loneliness and her hope for the future.  She challenges women to trust God with their dating lives.

To find Rebecca St. James click on the following links:

Facebook

Facebook for her book What is He Thinking

Twitter

You Tube

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog.  Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Warfare by Duct Tape

My friend Cheri shared a link with our homeschool group for a free Shield and Throwing Axe book from Warfare by Duct Tape.  After looking over the info I thought it would be perfect for a Boy's Club activity.  I'm always on the lookout for something for the boys to do.  Anything fun, rough, or that gets them dirty is always going to be a big hit with our group, this was no exception they LOVED making the throwing axe and shield.  So if you want to re-enact history, defend honor, vanquish the enemy and take dominion... or just plain have fun then check out Warfare by Duct Tape! 

Some of the boys got very creative

We had a battle in the front yard.

Some shields were plain, some had crosses and other embellishments but all were well loved!

 We are studying the Romans this year for homeschool and I found a Greco-Roman book on the Warfare by Duct Tape website...hmmm, wonder what we will be doing in school today?  Looks like making Roman weapons from duct tape, it's not going to be a boring day in our school house! 


At $7.95 per booklet you can help bring ancient history to life with a little bit of work and a lot of imagination.

(this picture is from the Warfare by Duct Tape website for more info and to purchase this book click here)

This glove book looks so cool and really looks like armor!

(this picture is from the Warfare by Duct Tape website for more info and to purchase this book click here) 

This book has the main sword, shield and battle axe that the boys used.

(this picture is from the Warfare by Duct Tape website for more info and to purchase this book click here) 

This is the newest book in the series and includes the Frankish helmet, the blowgun dagger and Celtic sword

(this picture is from the Warfare by Duct Tape website for more info and to purchase this book click here) 




If you have girls that want to make something fun and exciting check out the sister website Jewels by Julia!

Adventures with Aubrey

My cousin Aubrey has been in Cambodia on a mission trip with YWAM for the past couple of months and this is a video that she posted on her blog.  If you would like to follow along here's a link to Adventures with Aubrey and please keep her in your prayers!  We are very proud of her and so happy that she's following after what God wants her to do with her life.  We love you Aubrey!

Soda bottle = LIGHT

After playing around with electrical experiments yesterday my uncle showed us a really cool video about soda bottles and how they can help bring light into a dark place, it's pretty amazing!

AIMS Electrical Connections-TOS Review

I was so excited to receive the Electrical Connections book by AIMS in the mail and couldn't wait to get started.   Just in case you are wondering AIMS stands for "Activities Integrating Mathematics and Science."  The kids and I have been having so much fun playing around with all the electrical connections experiments in this book.  I HIGHLY recommend it to everyone, not only will you learn a lot but you will have fun doing it.  The first page of this book has this Chinese Proverb

I Hear and 

I Forget,

I See and 

I Remember,

I Do and 

I Understand.

It's so true!  We talked about circuits and how they work and the kids didn't really understand until they watched me complete a circuit and then when THEY made their lightbulb light up with only a paperclip or aluminum foil and a D cell battery you would just see it all clicked into place in their little heads.  Then, they started grabbing all types of stuff and trying to complete a circuit it's much fun when you see them exploring all the options and figuring out what works and what doesn't work.

This is just one of the many experiments in this book.  It's filled with a bunch of fun projects and also has little rubber band books that the children make and you rubber band them together at the spine.  One thing that I really liked was that a CD comes with the book and instead of tearing out the pages in my book I can just print up to 200 copies from the CD.  So, this would be great for a homeschool co-op science class, a school class or any other type of group with a large number of people that would need copies of an experiment.  This book is recommended for 4th-6th grade and is easily understood by my 4th grader and my 6th grader.

This books is divided into four sections-static electricity, circuits (our favorite), electromagnetism and the history of electricity.  The book is $24.95 and you can also get a PDF version that you download instantly for $24.95.  You can try Sparky's Light Kit as a free sample by clicking here.

Here are a couple of pictures of the kids enjoying Sparky's Light Kit.

I gave these items to the kids and told them to light up the bulb.  We then talked about completing a circuit and I showed them what to do but they both had it figured out already.

 Kylan lighting up his bulb with a paperclip.

 Kenzie lighting her bulb up with aluminum foil.

To read what others are saying about AIMS and to visit the TOS crew blog click,  HERE. 

Thank you to AIMS Education Foundation for the opportunity to review Electrical Connections it's been my pleasure to review this wonderful book.


A complimentary product/service was provided for this review, however, all opinions expressed are my own.  I was not compensated in any other way.  

Homemade cherry limeade

Every Saturday our DVR records The Pioneer Woman's cooking show and when Kenzie and I are both available we snuggle down on the couch and watch it.  This week Ree made some cherry limeade that looked so delicious and we just happened to have all the ingredients on hand.  So what's a girl to do? Kenzie and I jumped up off the couch and made it.

It's so much better then Sonic. I'm sure there are skeptics out there but it's true!

 Pioneer woman drinks out of jars so according to Kenzie we had to also.

Cherry Limeade 

Ingredients

• 2-liter bottle lemon-lime soda
• 1 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
• 1 cup sugar
• One 10-ounce jar maraschino cherries, with juice
• Thin lime slices

Directions

Chill all ingredients before mixing.

When cold, combine the lemon-lime soda, lime juice, sugar, cherries with their juice

 and lime slices in a large pitcher and stir. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Serve with a ladle, getting cherries and limes in each serving.

Bacon pancakes

A couple of months ago I saw this picture and drew some inspiration from the past.

 I thought that would be a fun surprise to make for Kevin and the kids one morning for breakfast.  I finally made it and it was as delicious as I thought it would be.  I tried a couple of different methods but I did cook all the bacon before making the pancakes.

The first method I tried was just like the picture shows, laying down the bacon and pouring the pancake mixture over the top.  It worked out well and was great BUT my favorite method was pouring some batter and then placing the bacon into it and then pouring a little more batter over the top.  I just love the saltiness of the bacon and then the sweetness of the maple syrup, I do seem to crave the salty sweet mixtures though.  One of my fav's is popcorn with Reese's pieces!

I do have to warn you that these pancakes are not your average size, they turn out to be pretty large!

Corn dog muffins

Sometimes lunch can be boring at our house it's either sandwiches, leftovers or kimchi noodles.  I was inspired by a rainy, nasty day to do a little bit of cooking with the kids and we made corn dog muffins.  I was reading Michele's blog My Blessing from Above and found this fun twist.  I've kept it in the back of my mind just thinking I would make it someday soon, well today just happened to be that day.  It was super easy and so YUMMY, much better then a normal corn dog and the kids approved and said they now prefer these over a store bought corn dog.  What you need is a box of corn muffin mix (if you want the easy version), some hotdogs, muffin/cupcake liners and some big smiles from your kiddos.

I didn't have a box of corm muffin mix so I just made this homemade version, it's quick and simple.  Then, we just cut a hot dog in thirds and plopped it in the middle of the corn muffin mix and baked them....easy peasy!

Ingredients

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 cup milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin pan or line with paper muffin liners.
2. In a large bowl, mix together corn meal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add egg, oil and milk; stir gently to combine. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Big IQ Kids-TOS Review

Pro's:
My kids were so excited about playing on the Big IQ Kids website which is a fun website where kids learn and play at the same time.  These two things, learning and playing don't always go hand in hand but when they do kids actually learn more quickly.  I was excited that they were excited, and it has been non-stop fun for math, spelling, vocabulary, and geography.  The kids even play on it when they are finished with school for the day.  They like the fact that they can earn coins to play other "fun" games that aren't educational.  Kylan is really good with geography and liked the States game a lot and he also likes to customize his "buddy" which is  what helps guide the children through the website.  Here's a picture of Kylan's buddy. Kylan is 10 years old and really enjoys video games so this was right up his alley.  I like that it was educational and he has been learning while having fun.

Makenzie, my 11 year old daughter liked it also.  She seemed to enjoy the math and spelling programs a lot and has easily passed all her spelling tests with 100% since playing the games.

What I loved about the program was the parental controls. With these controls I was able to change the programs to suit my child's needs in spelling and math.  This is only available with the premium membership but I feel it's well worth the money.  You also receive access to progress reports which can help you see areas that need improvement or areas that your child is excelling in. 

The program is designed for children K-8th grade and encourages independent learning through multimedia reinforcement. Big IQ Kids offers free and premium programs. Here is some info on some of  their pricing.

Bundle Package - Includes all 4 programs - this is a great deal!
SpellingTime.com       BigMathTime.com
BigStatesTime.com     BigVocabTime.com


Individual Bundle Account: $19.99 - 1 month membership or 

Individual Bundle Account: $99.99 - 1 year membership ON SALE now for $89.99 during the Once a Year Back to School Promotion!

For more info on pricing click here.

They also offer SAT and ACT vocabulary prep.  For more info click here.


Check them out on Facebook by clicking here.


Con's:
While my kids really enjoyed this program we did have a couple of things that we didn't like.  
1. The robotic voices really bothered my daughter and so she would get a little irritated and log off after a while but it didn't seem to bother my son at all.  As a matter of fact he thought it was kind of funny and would try to imitate the robotic voices.
2. It seemed to have little "glitches" in the system and the kids would accidentally be logged off and have to start over.  This wasn't a problem for me because they got more practice time in.  This may have just been a problem with our computer, I'm not sure.


Overall, we really liked the program a lot and will continue using it and do highly recommend it to others that are looking for some fun learning tools.  Don't just take my word for it check out what other homeschool mom's have to say about Big IQ Kids here.
  
I also want to say that I was having some problems setting up some spelling words so I emailed Big IQ Kids and they promptly got back to me with easy to understand directions that were helpful and this is the big thing they were very kind!  Great customer service says a lot and I was very impressed!


A complimentary product/service was provided for this review, however, all opinions expressed are my own.  I was not compensated in any other way.

The winner is...

The winner of the books from Ammo is Candice, so Candice if you will get me your contact info then I'll get your package sent out!