giveaway Archives - Home With The Boys

What I Wore: Spring & Map Necklaces

May 1, 2013 By Erin 25 Comments

Last week I was wearing long sleeves and boots. We’re supposed to have several days of rain starting now. But when I took these pictures less than 24 hours ago, it was a lovely 75 degrees, a little windy, but just lovely…

WIWW Spring Is Here Full

A bright new tank from Target and a denim skirt were just perfect for the gorgeous weather!

WIWW Redeemed Cuff

My Redeemed cuff from DaySpring is a great bracelet to wear that the boys can’t easily break!

WIWW Orange Flip Flops

And a little color and bling on my feet made me smile…

WIWW Spring is Here Head

See that lovely piece hanging around my neck? It’s another gorgeous KraftyKash necklace!

You’ve seen my Philippians 4:8 necklace and three J’s necklace, and at the Jumping Tandem Retreat, I received a dictionary pendant with the word “passion” on it.

When I thought about picking out a location for my map necklace, I knew exactly the place…

WIWW KraftyKash Map Necklace

The Hubby and I started dating in Dublin 13 years ago this past St. Patrick’s Day and it is extra special for me with my Irish heritage! Just perfect, don’t you think?! I love the idea of wearing a special place around my neck and close to my heart!

A necklace from KraftyKash would make the most wonderful Mother’s Day present! Here a few ideas:

Put all of the kids and grandkids initials on one necklace.
Pick a special place on the map, such as where she grew up or where she had her babies or the location of a wonderful trip!
Get a dictionary pendant with the word “mother” or “caring” or “love” or anything else!

To celebrate all of you lovely mothers and women out there, my friend Kashoan {who I FINALLY met in real life at Jumping Tandem!} is giving away two map pendants – one for you and one for a friend!

Just enter through Friday night using the widget below to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I was provided this lovely necklace for review purposes, but I was not compensated in any other for this post and all opinions are 100% my own!

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Filed Under: fashion, gifts, giveaway, what i wore

Deny Yourself: A New True Beauty Film from Lisa Chan

April 24, 2013 By Erin Leave a Comment

The True Beauty Films from Lisa Chan have truly been a breath of fresh air for me.

Lisa speaks with such calm and confidence. And her love for the Lord comes through in every word.

Deny Yourself is the latest installment and I hate to admit just how much I need this message right now. Like, even as I write this right now.

God has been speaking to me all over the place about less of me and more of Him. In order to move towards that space, I need to start saying a lot more hard “no’s” to myself.

I needed Lisa’s voice to remind me of this once again. And the story Irene tells of her life throughout the DVD pulled me along as well and reminded me that HIS plan is always so much greater then MY plan. The lives impacted by Irene’s decision to follow Him just floored me. {You might need a few Kleenex}

“Love God, love others” has been resonating in my head big time this past week. Doing both requires a lot of denying of oneself. And I want to do both well.

Take a look at this beautiful trailer for Deny Yourself…

True Beauty Deny Yourself TRAILER from Flannel Staff on Vimeo.

The True Beauty films come with discussion materials that would make them perfect for a women’s event or Bible study, but just watching them at home on my own as I fold laundry or cook dinner has been a blessing to me.

I would love to bless one of you with this newest True Beauty DVD, Deny Yourself! Just leave a comment below to be entered! The giveaway will close tomorrow {Thursday} at midnight!

*I received this DVD to review. I was not compensated in any way for this post and all opinions are 100% my own.

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Filed Under: DVD review, giveaway

Talking Truth With Our Kids + DVD Giveaway!

April 17, 2013 By Erin 17 Comments

Honesty

April is National Honesty Month. Honesty is such an important virtue to teach our children, but it is also important for us to be honest with them. And our honesty about our own struggles can be life-giving to them. You can read more about how I chose to be honest with my children about my battle with lying over at the Tommy Nelson blog today.

And as we try to establish these important character traits early on, I am so thankful for the resources being provided by companies like Tommy Nelson to help us get these messages through in fun and engaging ways!

This month, we had the privilege of viewing two fun DVDs from Tommy Nelson that the boys and I just loved!

I Will Tell the Truth is a collection of two classic Hermie episodes emphasizing the importance of honesty and the words we say. We love the Hermie books and movies here! The episode, “Flo the Lyin’ Fly,” was especially impacting to the kids and I. The story is similar to the Boy Who Cried Wolf, and we had a great discussion about how we build a reputation through our words, whether they are true or lies. Flo had gained a reputation as a liar so no one would believe her when she DID finally tell the truth. What a hard lesson to learn and the boys were really upset that no one would believe Flo – so many great conversations can come out of this DVD!

Cocka Doodle Doo

We also greatly enjoyed Cocka Doodle Doo the Right Thing, a fabulous story about the Golden Rule set on a farm! This DVD features the voice talents of two singers I adore, Amy Grant and Vince Gill, and the cast of characters is such fun! Hercules the Rooster is at the center of the story as a full-of-himself rooster who thinks he is too important to help clean up around the farm. Hercules treats those around him quite rudely as the day goes on, but Hercules is the one who gets an unpleasant surprise at the end of the day because of his bad attitude! In addition to a great lesson, there is also fun music and lots of laughs!

You can win a set of these two great Tommy Nelson DVDs right here, right now!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I received these DVDs to review as a Tommy Mommy. I was not compensated in any other way for this post and all opinions are 100% my own!

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Filed Under: DVD review, giveaway, kiddos

Favorite Family Easter Books {Old & New}

March 20, 2013 By Erin 9 Comments

Christmas is such an easy time to get the kids excited about Jesus. We celebrate His birth with much happiness and fanfare. The books and activities are full of joy and hope and wonder. It’s not hard to gather the family around to talk about such beautiful things.

Easter is a different story. It involves death. A really ugly, horrible death. The story also includes hate and betrayal and many other hard subjects for us as parents to explain and for kids to understand.

But as hard as it may be, the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus is the most important story we will ever tell to our children. And while the Easter season gets cluttered with candy, bunnies, eggs, and all sorts of other harmless fun, there are plenty of resources for making Jesus central to this holiday.

Easter Books

We have some old and new favorite family Easter books to help us do just that…

The Tale of Three Trees by Angela E. Hunt

I just keep this book out year-round because it applies to Easter, Christmas, and any time! I’ve read it many, many times, but I still got all choked up reading it to the boys yesterday! The thing I love the most about this book is that the dreams of each tree turn out differently than they imagined, but so much more wonderful because they happened with God and to glorify Him. Talk about God-sized dreams, right?!

The Easter Story for Children by Max Lucado

This goes along with The Story, which we are reading as a family this year. I feel like the illustrations in this book capture a lot of intense emotion not shown in other children’s books about Jesus’s death and resurrection. I found it very powerful.

Jesus Enters Jerusalem and He Is Risen: The Beginner’s Bible Easter Flip Book

This book tells the story of Jesus’s last days on one side, then the story of His resurrection when you flip it over, all in the style of The Beginner’s Bible. The book also includes stickers that represent each part of the story. I think this would be a great sequence activity with kids – cut out the stickers and have them line them up on paper in the correct order of the story! Great discussion opportunity! {The teacher in me never stops thinking!}

The Story of Easter

This is a new board book from Tommy Nelson this year and it is SO cute! The bright illustrations and little handle have our one-year-old carrying it around as he goes! The story is short and rhyming – great for keeping his attention – but it also covers the key parts of the Easter message. It’s never too early to help our children know of the love Jesus had for us when He died on the cross.

The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones

{As I’m writing this, the Kindle versionis only $1.99! These prices change without notice, so please check before buying! And you don’t have to have a Kindle to read it! There are Kindle apps for all devices and computers!}

Well, you already know how much I love this Bible and how we read through the first 24 stories leading up to Christmas, but the New Testament portion is just as wonderful and powerful. If you’re reading in the week leading up to Easter, start with “The Servant King” on Wednesday, “A dark night in the garden” on Thursday, and “The sun stops shining” on Friday. Take Saturday to reflect, and then wake up bright and early Sunday morning to read “God’s wonderful surprise” together! And bring your Kleenex. This story Bible makes me cry EVERY. TIME.

I learned of Resurrection Eggs at our MOPS group a few years back, but only last year did I learn of a book to go along with them! And this year, another Resurrection Eggs book was released. If you’re looking for a book to use as a guide, check out these two:

Lily’s Easter Party: The Story of the Resurrection Eggs by Crystal Bowman

Benjamin’s Box: The Story of the Resurrection Eggs by Melody Carlson

I also wanted to let you know about a wonderful new Easter family devotion ebook written by my friend, Katie Orr!

Find More Jesus: How to Make Easter All about Jesus is an 8-day devotional for keeping Christ at the center of the holiday. You can also do all of the activities together on Easter morning – it is very adaptable! Katie’s heart for helping children see the real meaning of Easter shines through in this easy-to-read, easy-to-use book for the whole family.

Katie includes a supply list, Scripture readings for each day, a personal focus to emphasize with each activity, and discussion ideas. I think this is the PERFECT book for families, especially those with young children just starting to learn of Easter and those who want to change the way they have normally celebrated the Easter holiday.

I look forward to starting this with our boys on Sunday and you can join us! The ebook is only $2.99 both for PDF and on Kindle!

And you could win one of five copies TODAY ONLY! Enter below to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I was provided review copies of some of these books, but was not compensated in any way for their inclusion in this post. They were included simply because our family enjoys them! All opinions are 100% my own!

**This post contains affiliate links.

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Filed Under: book review, children's book, Easter, giveaway, kiddos, Uncategorized

We Choose Virtues {Review & Giveaway}

March 15, 2013 By Erin 62 Comments

Let’s be honest: there are a LOT of good ideas and programs out there for teaching our children character and Biblical virtues. I have not gone looking for any program and still I have heard about four to five new-to-me programs since the beginning of 2013.

I actually tend to get overwhelmed when this subject comes up because as soon as I start one method, I hear about something else and want to switch to that!

So, all that to say this post is NOT telling you to switch from something that is already working for your family. This is simply me telling you about a program we have recently started and fallen in love with!

We Choose Virtues caught my attention when a few online friends mentioned it, and as I look around their site, it was statements like this that made me very interested…

It has been said that character is not one more thing to add to your plate, character IS the plate. This system is not a curriculum or a unit study, it is a language that that you rehearse and demonstrate for the first 10-15 minutes every time you get together no matter what else you are teaching!

Creator Heather McMillan observed a need for more effective character instruction in her role as a teacher and pastor. Here’s more about why We Choose Virtues came to be…

As her passion continued to grow, she realized that she wanted to teach children how to change. Not just a momentary change of actions, but a more lasting change in their attitudes as well. Her observation is that children needed to be inspired by simple, positive and consistent instructions, and parents and teachers needed an effective language with which to communicate these instructions.

Our boys are very verbal and visual. They love to talk and they love to read. We Choose Virtues utilizes both to help families incorporate the twelve virtues into everyday life!

Simple sentences are used to help children learn what the virtue IS and what it IS NOT. Bible verses are included to reinforce each virtue. Cute illustrations and stories of “Kids of VirtueVille” help make each virtue come to life!

We’ve been using We Choose Virtues for three weeks now and we are using the phrases we’ve learned so far all the time! For example, I asked the boys to help with a quick full house clean-up before dinner last night, and I heard Little J say, “Ok, whatever you say, I will obey right away!” It was so cute AND he remembered that phrase from our first week!

All of the virtue posters are hung up with clothespins and twine in our school room where the boys can see them often. The Three Rules poster is also hanging in our school room. And the virtue poster of the week is clipped on to the calendar in our kitchen, with the parent card stuck in the pocket behind it!

We Choose Virtues Three Rules

We have been using the homeschool kit, the most comprehensive kit available from We Choose Virtues. It is an investment, but a worthy one as it includes…

Reusable tools

Parenting Cards (Teacher cards for families!)
Virtue Flash Cards for families
Kids Virtue Poster
Three Rules Poster
Kids of VirtueVille MINI Posters

Consumable tools

100 Days of Virtue Chart and Butterfly Stickers
25ct pad Virtue User Reviews

Downloadable/reproducible PDF tools

Teacher’s Handbook (no need to print this handbook. Just read and save for easy reference)
Butterfly Awards
Family Character Assessment
Kids of VirtueVille Coloring Pages

This has seriously been a great experience for us so far! I’ve been working on the virtues along with the boys, particularly the virtues of diligence and self-control! I love that We Choose Virtues emphasizes these virtues are for the whole family, not just the kids!

To celebrate March as Homeschool Month, We Choose Virtues is offering the code HOME20 which gives you 20% off the homeschool kit! This sale has actually been extended through April as well!

To get more inspiration for how to use this in your home, you MUST check out the We Choose Virtues Pinterest boards! GREAT stuff there! And connect on their Facebook page for lots of discussion and specials!

Today, I have the pleasure of giving away a set of We Choose Virtues Parenting Cards! Just enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I was provided the homeschool kit for review purposes. I was not compensated in any other way for this post and all opinions are 100% my own.

**This post contains affiliate links.

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Filed Under: giveaway, homeschool, kiddos, parenting, product review, reviews

What I Wore: Mercy House Kenya

March 13, 2013 By Erin 15 Comments

New awesome shirt. New fabulous bag. One great cause.

Love Mercy Full Love Mercy Me and Bag

My heart has been with Mercy House Kenya since Kristen and her family shared their vision a few years ago. The Mercy House is a maternity home that rescues pregnant girls who are without hope, and often without homes. There currently eight girls and their eight miracle babies living in the Rehema House. Following the Welch family’s vision come to life and seeing pregnant girls rescued one by one has brought tears to my eyes and hope to my soul more times than I can count.

The Mercy House shop is one of the ways the maternity home is supported. There are beautiful items handmade by the girls living in the home, as well as t-shirts and bags bearing the “Love Mercy” message, found in Micah 6:8.

I’m totally digging this new shirt…

Love Mercy Shirt

This Heart & Wings shirt is stinking cool. I love it so much, and I love the opportunity to people about Mercy House when I wear it! As an FYI, the ladies’ shirts run a little small – I usually wear a small in shirts and the medium is just right for me.

Being the Welch family is from Texas, I had to pull this outfit together with cowboy boots, of course!

Love Mercy Boots

Sorry, those aren’t from Mercy House. Just good ol’ Target. And so are the pants.

But this awesome Freeset bag is!

Love Mercy Bag

It has become my “writing night” bag to take with me to the coffee shop! Freeset bags are so sturdy and each one is handmade and unique!

These products and more, like jewelry and ornaments, are such wonderful ways to bless your friends and family AND support an amazing ministry at the same time! Great gift ideas for Easter, Mother’s Day, and more! Please go check out the site and store for more information and to get involved with the Mercy House!

Love Mercy Giveaway

For fun, we get to give away a t-shirt and bag set to one of you! Just enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Filed Under: fashion, giveaway, mercy house, Uncategorized, what i wore

I Love You No Matter What: The Story of the Prodigal For Kids

February 21, 2013 By Erin 20 Comments

The story of the prodigal son is popping up all over my world right now.

Nathan Clarkson has written some FABULOUS posts about it over at The MOB Society lately – this one is my favorite.

We talked about it at our Bible study this week as we’re going through Desperate. We even watched The Wonderful Wizard of Ha’s, the Veggie Tales retelling of the parable!

And then this book from Tommy Nelson arrived…

I Love You No Matter What

A little bit about I Love You No Matter What:

Prince Chirpio likes growing up as royalty, but his selfishness and thirst for adventure prompts him to leave the kingdom and fly off to where he can make his own rules. He soon discovers that adventures can be lonely, and he misses the love and protection of his father. Can he go back home? Will his father still love him? Luckily, his father the king is eager to welcome Chirpio back and to convince his young prince that he will always love him—no matter what.

I became very emotional as we read this book because THIS is what I want my children to know, both about my husband and I, and about their Heavenly Father.

The story is sweet and adorably illustrated, but more importantly is offers an age-appropriate illustration of unconditional love. We’ve been talking about love all month because of Valentine’s Day, but not romantic love. We’ve talked about loving one another through actions, loving each other with words, loving our enemies, and this love that God has shown us.

I was so pleased when the boys recognized this parable from reading it during previous Bible times, but even if your children have not heard it before, I Love You No Matter What is a great introduction to the story of prodigal son for young children. And it is a great way to end a hard day, reminding your children that YOU love them no matter what they have done!

I would love to bless one of you with a copy of this precious book! Just enter the giveaway below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I received this book to review as a Tommy Mommy. I was not compensated in any other way for this review, and all opinions are 100% my own!

**This post contains affiliate links.

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Filed Under: book review, children's book, giveaway, reviews

LullaBible: Baby’s First Bible Stories & Songs {Giveaway!}

January 31, 2013 By Erin 13 Comments

When I was pregnant with our first child, I dreamed about rocking him to sleep, singing lullaby after lullaby from the vast repertoire of children’s music in my music-teacher brain…

Big J Sleeping

It was a sweet thought, but after he was born, mommy brain set in and, even though he loved to be held and rocked, I would sit in that chair with not a single song coming to mind! Not. Even. Kidding.

Little J Sleeping

Little J didn’t like to be rocked and didn’t really care whether I sang to him or not, so I was kind of off the hook there!

Double J Sleeping

And fast forward to baby #3 – he won’t have anything to do with being rocked to sleep either, BUT he loves it when I sing to him, so I am loving the adorable LullaBible: Baby’s First Bible Stories & Songs from Tommy Nelson!

LullaBible

This sweet book is full of Bible stories and lullabies to share with your little one! To make it a special keepsake, the LullaBible also includes journaling pages to record those beautiful memories you make with your child! Go ahead, take a look inside the book by clicking here!

The lullabies in the LullaBible include hymns, old favorites, and some new songs by the author, Stephen Elkins. I have so enjoyed curling up in the rocking chair with Double J to read and sing about our wonderful God and His love for us as we get him ready for bed!

For music types like myself, the sheet music is included for each song. And for those who would rather not sing the songs themselves, all of the songs are on the enclosed CD as well!

You can purchase the LullaBible on Amazon or Christian Book!

And you could win one copy here today! Just follow the directions below to be entered!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I received a copy of this book to review as a Tommy Mommy. I was not compensated in any other way for this post, and all opinions are 100% my own!

**This post contains affiliate links.

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Filed Under: baby, book review, children's book, faith, giveaway, motherhood, music, reviews

The No Brainer Blog: An Interview with The Tiny Twig!

December 6, 2012 By Erin

I love anything with “no brainer” in the title.

My mind seems to think lack of sleep is an excuse to go on strike, so anything that claims I can do whatever it is without much thought is a win in my book!

My friend Hayley, author at The Tiny Twig, proved that “no-brainer” is a great thing with her first ebook, The No Brainer Wardrobe. I adore that book. I used it religiously while restocking my wardrobe this fall after a significant weight loss and it was a life- and budget-saver!

Hayley has followed up The No Brainer Wardrobe with a book any blogger – or wanna-be blogger – will be blessed to read!

The No Brainer Blog is just like Hayley – full of passion without much fuss. Blogging should be something we ENJOY! Hayley offers a wealth of knowledge for putting together a blog you love and that works for you! And with such a successful blog, Hayley knows a thing or two about this subject!

I was blessed to be able to ask Hayley a few questions about blogging lately. I think you’ll really appreciate her answers!

What are your best tips for engaging readers?

Hayley: Engaging readers starts with understanding yourself, I think. I always remind myself that you have to keep them around with what you attracted them with in the first place. If you offered deals and giveaways and DIYs and tutorials to draw readers, but that isn’t true to your voice then you will have a hard time sustaining that readership. However, if you love to write lovely words and you draw readers in that way, then you will have created a readership that LOVES your real voice. This, of course, is a learning curve and you won’t always get it right. However, with time and experience, it will get easier and you’ll find you have drawn a committed and loyal group of readers.

How do you feel about weekly link-ups?

Hayley: I’ve tried weekly linkups in the past. I’ve hosted them and I’ve participated in them. Both were unnatural for me in a sustainable way. I can’t host them because I get bored easily and want to move on to a new idea. :) I learned that by trying and failing at maintaining my own link-up.

I like joining in on them occasionally. I can’t commit to it being a regular part of my blog, simply because of my personality. However, they are great “filler” posts that still engage and connect with readers but don’t take developing a brand new idea or a lot of time to execute.

I don’t think there is a right or wrong, but be selective in the linkups you participate in. Don’t over do it or you will be speaking with a voice that is everyone’s but your own.

What is your favorite thing about blogging?

Hayley: I love blogging because it’s the perfect place to test out ideas. You get a response, good or bad or indifferent, and you know better then how to pivot for your next iteration of the idea. There is no barrier to entry, so anyone with something to say can join in the conversation. It is such a democratized medium that it is up to the blogger to succeed or fail, not up to the capital they can raise or the people who will believe in them.

I also love how easily connections are forged online. I feel like blogging is almost the eHarmony of friendships. You can easily see if you are kindred with someone because you can read their words and see their hearts fairly transparently. I have made some of the greatest friends through blogging, and it’s all about putting yourself out there, accepting the fact that not everyone will end up being a best friend, and forging the relationships that come your way.

Yep. That’s why I think she’s pretty fabulous!

For more of this wisdom, you can get your copy of The No Brainer Blog here! And The No Brainer Wardrobe is available here!

Hayley is also giving away one copy of The No Brainer Blog today! To enter, just leave a comment telling us your favorite thing about blogging!

*I was provided with a review copy of this book. I was not compensated in any other way for this post, and all opinions are 100% my own!

**This post contains affiliate links, but I only share what I love!

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Filed Under: blogging, book review, giveaway, interview

Nerdy Ned + The Bible = Stories Your Boys Will Love! {Giveaway}

November 30, 2012 By Erin

Friday sounds like a good day for a giveaway, don’t you think?! I’ve got one from Tommy Nelson that your elementary-age boys will LOVE!

Totally Awesome, Super-Cool Bible Stories as Drawn by Nerdy Ned has been a big hit with six-year-old Big J!

Perfect for ages 6-10, this breakthrough product in the super-popular sketch comic art genre shares Bible stories from the International Children’s Bible with commentary by “Ned!” The boys have been reading and laughing out loud at Ned’s take on Bible stories!

The illustrations look like they are right out of any kid’s doodling notebook and the book includes blank pages for your guy or gal to do some doodling himself…

Such a fun, engaging idea for visual learners and artistic types!

We’re giving away one copy of Totally Awesome, Super-Cool Bible Stories as Drawn by Nerdy Ned to one of you!

To enter, just answer this question:

Do you keep every piece of art/craft your child creates in Sunday School?

And for a fun extra {optional} entry, post a picture of your chlid’s Bible artwork on the Home with the Boys Facebook wall! Leave an additional comment letting me know you posted a picture!

This giveaway will be open until Monday, December 3rd at 9:00 p.m. CST. One winner will be chosen at random and notified by email.

*I received this book to review as a Tommy Mommy. I was not compensated in any way for this post, and all opinions are 100% my own.

**This post contains affiliate links.

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Filed Under: book review, boys, children's book, giveaway, reviews