I'm a full-time mummy

You have no idea how hard it is for us to keep this to ourself! I've been contacted by Nathalie from the Musebox a couple of weeks ago to do a review for her latest project, The Rattles, a lively band of furry, family-friendly critters who released their debut album, 'Rattle On' on August 17th.

Excerpt from Nathalie's email to me:

"With a fresh, modern fusion of classic rock and power pop, similar to The Beatles, They Might Be Giants, and The Monkees, this colorful quartet has set themselves apart from the average children's music group by creating a listening experience that parents and adults can enjoy as well. Similar to the music of Yo Gabba Gabba, this project is about creating music EVERYONE can groove out to!"

The moment I clicked on to the link given (sample 3 songs provided in The Rattles website), Ben just got down to dancing and shaking and nodding his head. I've never seen my boy reacted so quickly to a song!

Believe me, even just by listening to the 3 songs provided in The Rattles website are enough proof for us that this music album is totally awesome!

If you don't believe me, see for yourself by clicking the following thumbnails to view Youtube videos of Ben dancing to one of the songs.

Pictures below are taken when I received the actual music CD from Nathalie for my full review. 

Ben checking out the album cover and brochure inside.

Picture from left to right: Back cover, CD cover and the "Made with Recycled Materials" symbol.

What I love about this music album?

* Ben gets down to dancing and grooving to the songs!

* The members in the band are a band of furry, family-friendly critters, all cutely illustrated

* The music video and sound is perfect for Ben at this age who loves fun, groovy and cartoonish stuff now!

* The music is not just for children. Even hubby and I are dancing along to the songs too!

* Their music CD is made of recycled materials! How eco friendly is that?!

* Our favorite songs: Rattle On, R-A-T-T-L-E-S, Lucky Sam's Banana Stand, Wavy Lane, Goodbye Yesterday.

You can purchase the album at: http://www.rattlesrock.com/Shop.html

But wait... did I mentioned I received another copy of the music CD for a giveaway to one of my lucky awesome blog reader/visitor?

Yup! You read that right!

Your awesome bloggy pal here has got the greenlight to hold a giveaway for a copy of The Rattles music CD!

Okay,

First condition:

The giveaway copy of The Rattles music CD is with me now (all sealed nicely and beautifully), so I can only open up this giveaway to my blog readers and visitors with mailing adress in MALAYSIA only as I'm actually bearing the delivery charges myself.

Now, I repeat, this giveaway is only for people with mailing address in MALAYSIA.

Second condition:

Just leave me a comment in this post telling me "I DESERVE THIS MUSIC ALBUM BECAUSE...". Make sure your email address is valid so that I can contact you if you win! (Don't worry, only admin can view the email addresses and I don't have time to collect and sell your email addresses :P)

I will accept comments from now until 31st October 2010.

The lucky winner will be selected based on the best entry on why you think you deserve to win the giveaway music CD. If I find out your mailing address is not based in Malaysia, I have the right to pick another winner!

Simple right? One comment to me on why you deserved to win. No need to be my blog follower (althought that would be a sweet gesture), no need to do extra things for additional entries or whatsoever. And selection of 1 lucky winner is based on the best entry instead of random draw. So what are you waiting for? Go and think of an awesome reason for winning this and submit your comment in this post.

(*Note: Internet Explorer users please comment via the Google Comment widget on the top right sidebar)

Our whole family would like to give a note of thanks to Nathalie from the Musebox for this wonderful opportunity to review this fantastic album! You have no idea how much Ben loves dancing along to The Rattles's songs!

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with an actual The Rattles music CD to assist my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine.

I am so thrilled to review this compilation book of informative (and hilarious) letters from 50 precocious toddlers by Jeremy Greenberg called: "Sorry I Peed on You".

I was totally attracted by the cute cover picture. Reminds me of the time Ben did a similar thing...

(Ben sucking his toes at 6 months old)

Author: Jeremy Greenberg
Publisher:  Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 978-1449401856
Paperback: 64 pages
Dimension: 6 X 6 inches

* Scheduled to publish on March 22, 2011

Excerpts from the marketing copy:

"MSN's resident parenting blogger Jeremy Greenberg, who also travels the world performing stand-up comedy, combines cute, informative letters from 50 precocious toddlers with accompanying full-color photographs inside Sorry I Peed on You (and Other Heartwarming Letters to Mommy).

Wouldn't you love to know what your toddler's thinking when he refuses to stop jumping on the couch? Jeremy Greenberg's hilarious and thoughtful letters give parents a glimpse into the minds of their little ones. Finally, we can hear "first person" how a kid really isn't fooled by broccoli buried in cheese, how he'd really appreciate it if he could start going down the slide by himself, or how he'd like to apologize for peeing on you during the two seconds it took for you to reach for a fresh diaper. From Daddy's latest four-letter vocab lessons to the dog's (not the toddler's) repeated milk dribbles on the carpet, this hilarious book answers a question every mother of a toddler wants to know: What in the world are they thinking?! "

Firstly, love love love the cute cover!

Next, as you flipped the pages in the book, you will get to see cute pictures of babies and toddlers, accompanied by their 'letters' to their mummies, explaining why they behave in a certain way.

I love how the author explains in a humorous way why babies and toddlers behave strangely differently. For example, in one of the letters, a toddler explains how the act of tossing the marinara sauce against the wall is actually an act of creative expression and wondered why mummy is not happy at all while daddy seems to be thirsty and 'need a drink' after seeing his masterpiece on the wall! Just super hilarious!

This is just one of many many more hilarious letters from the children to their mummies. You really should watch out for this book when it's out (scheduled 22nd March 2011)

If you are planning to get a book for a new parents, you should consider this book! As for parents like us, when you read the letters and look at the pictures of the babies and toddlers, it will definitely brings a smile and chuckle as you reminisced back to those scary-heart-attack funny days when your own child is acting just like the one you saw in the book.

You can purchase this book from  Amazon.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with a galley proof of the book via my association with netGalley as a reviewer in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine.

And if you'd like to read my previous book reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My Book Reviews"

I am so thrilled to be able to review this crafts and hobbies book by Tina Barseghian called: "A Homemade Christmas".

Author: Tina Barseghian
Publisher:  Harlequin
ISBN: 9780373892228
Product Dimensions: 5.13in x 8in
Paperback: 128 pages

"A Homemade Christmas" is chock-full of projects, recipes, tips, and helpful hints that are guaranteed to add a homemade touch to your holiday season. Open this charming volume to any page and discover a wealth of practical and easy-to-accomplish ideas for a homemade holiday:
* create personal, distinctive holiday greetings
* deck the halls with festive, handmade trimmings
* cook simple but memorable homemade dishes
* make unique, handcrafted gifts
* share the joy of the season with friends and family

Packed with inspiration and how-tos for ideas that are family-friendly and eco-conscious, festive and meaningful, A Homemade Christmas will put homemade back into your holidays!

Ever since Ben came along in March 2009, Christmas (oh, and other festivities of course!) just seem so much more meaningful, fun and lively! I actually did some DIY decoration for last year's Christmas and am pretty proud of that. Just look at the pictures below:

My simple DIY decoration using old greeting cards and deco items which I tied with strings of wool to each staircase railings. I got this idea from Martha Stewart's website last year. And this tip was also mentioned in this book.

This is a snapshot of one of the DIY Christmas gifts we made for hubby's clients. We bought the glass jars from Ikea, throw in some candies and chocolates and I tied each glass jars with golden stripped red ribbons, attaching a mini greeting cards as well.

Anyway, back to this review. This book was categorised into 5 chapters:

* Greeting - there's a couple of cool ideas in this chapter such as making a photo card and stitching up your own greetings card which I find creative and worth to try!

* Trimming - I particularly love the tutorials on how to make your own snow globe and the idea on a non traditional way of making a Christmas tree is just too cool! You really got to read this book to find out what it is!

* Cooking - there are some simple recipes given for us to try to make. I'm going to try the shortbread sugar cookies this year hopefully!

* Giving - there are a variety of creative and clever ideas on how to decorate our gifts which I like.

* Celebrating - In this chapter, there are ideas on creating new and continuing the old traditions and also connecting with our community.

I love the simplicity of the book, the instructions and tutorials given are easy to understand though I do prefer if there are more illustrations provided (thanks to Ben, I love books with tons of pictures in it!). The fact that most of the tips given can be easily done at the comfort of our home is just awe-inspiring!

With this book now, I am able to get more ideas for this year's Christmas!

You can purchase this book from Amazon or the eHarlequin store.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with a galley proof of the book by eHarlequin via my association with netGalley as a reviewer in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine.

And if you'd like to read my previous book reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My Book Reviews"