I'm a full-time mummy

My 3 years old boy is quite a cool kid in the sense that he doesn't smile unless he's doing something mischievous or unless you asked him to, or unless he's super happy with something. I guess he's pretty much like me, reserved and cool initially. So I know I just had to review this app when I saw the review pitch of this app as I wanted to know how I can make him smile next time! Anyway, my review as below...

* Title: A Smile for Elliot
* Price: $3.99
* Category: Books
* Released: Sept 14, 2012
* Version: 1.0
* Size: 157 MB
* Language: English
* Seller: Touchoo Ltd.
* Rated: 4+
* Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.2 or later

Description from the product page:

"This is a story of a little boy who tries to help his special friend find his smile again. Together they travel through colorful and fascinating experiences that can only be created in a child's imagination."

What's good?

* It is engaging and interactive and I love that some of the objects we touch on the pages animates pretty funny too! The illustrations are simple and yet captivating.

* I also appreciate the progress bar at the bottom which indicates how far along are we into the story.

* I like that the app featured a boy as one of the main character (other than Elliot the koala bear) as I feel my 3 years old boy can relate himself better with the storyline.

* I also find this app timely as my boy is in the pretend play stage currently and his imagination at the moment is just so astounding... so when I saw the pages with the characters imagining that they shrunk to the size of a mouse and eating the yummylicious cupcakes, I can't help but smile as my boy sometimes pretends he shrinks and enlarges (after watching the "Honey I shrunk the kids" movie)

* There are some pages which I also used the opportunity to teach my boy about seasons, fall, winter, spring and summer. It is cute and fun to see the environment and the characters changing as we pressed the 4 seasons icon at the bottom right on the screen.

* I have to admit I went 'Awwwwwww...' at the last page in this app. Just too cute to see the koala bear finally smiling with the little boy!

Room for Improvement?

* Nothing much I can think of other than I think the price of the app at $3.99 is a bit too pricey.

You can purchase the "A Smile for Elliot " app from the iTunes App Store.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the promo code to redeem the application for free from iTunes Store 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 iPad Apps reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My iPad App Reviews"

When you spend your years studying in college, the ultimate satisfaction lies in finding employment. Jobs are essential to help you earn an income to move on with your life. However, new graduates face a myriad of challenges. First of all, their resumes are lacking in a big way. This is natural. You were studying in college, not working. The other challenge new graduates face is scarcity off gainful employment. The cause of this is the weak global economy. This article gives you a number of tips to help you find easy to get a job after college.

1. Keep your resume up to date
The biggest winner for getting work is a resume. You need to keep your personal resume up to date with all new skills at all times. Remember to include all your GPA scores and other new skills you have acquired since you graduated.  An updated resume works best because it can give you undue advantage against other candidates. A good resume sample can help you learn to articulate a good one.

2. Connect with your professors
The role of your college professor doesn’t end just because you have graduated. They have to come along for the ride of your life. You can ask your professors to recommend you to potential employers. In their natural work, professors meet many employers. As such, they can be a great source of connection with potential employers. Professors can also give your valuable job interview tips that work for your potential employers.

3. Recruit those who already have jobs
Pride can seem like a great thing to have. Indeed, you need to be proud with your life’s mission. However, to get work, you need to swallow your pride. Keep your pride off limits and ask those people already with jobs to help you search for one. Naturally, people who are already working have a higher preview for new opportunities that may suit you.

4. Social media and internet
The social media and the internet are amassed with numerous opportunities. You need to leverage their prominence to grow your career. Make social professional profiles on sites like LinkedIn and Twitter. They can make your job hunting faster, targeted and more effective.

5. Never give up
Truth is if you are graduating now, there are little opportunities for you. When the going gets tougher, you shouldn’t despair. Many new graduates feel disillusioned according to experts. This should not be the case. Be hopeful that your search efforts will be repaid in full eventually. Keep searching. Being positive and hopeful is the least you can do if you want to succeed.

** Written by Scholar Advisor writer Sheryl L.

I received an email pitch from FavorDeal asking whether I would be interested to review some of their products and since they are OK with international bloggers, I proceeded to choose a few products of my choice from their website for my review!

1) Korea Modern Fashion Rhinestone Bling Tennis Bracelet - I love this bracelet! It looks so elegant and classy! One that I will definitely wear for formal functions.

It has an elastic string which can stretch a bit more if your hand is bigger in size compared to my skinny hand. The rhinestone gems looks like diamonds at a glance! I like that the bracelet has some weight on it, as in it is not light that it can slide along your hand easily. Even my 1 year old girl is attracted to the bracelet, maybe because it is bling-bling to her hahaha... Highly recommended!

2) Nice European Lovely Daisy Style Hair Clips - One thing I was disappointed with is the hair clip was not of the color I requested for. Picture below taken from their website. I wanted the one at the far right, wine color but instead I got beige.

I really think the wine colored hair clip would make a better impact as the color is more contrast and obvious. Nevertheless, the clip is strong and tough, tried bending and twisting it and it stays put and not bend in any way. Like the cute little crystal gemstone in the flower!

3) Simple Hollowed Heart Elegant Choker Pendant Necklace - I choose this necklace because it looks so simple and nice. I would have wanted one with a plain small cross but they don't have anything that I wanted, so I go for this. The length of the necklace chain is just right, I have worn longer necklace chain before and I don't like those, so I'm pretty happy with the length of this one. As for the heart pendant, I feel it is too light and there are scratches or what looks like blemishes on the pendant, so I'm not sure whether the design is supposed to be like that or the material is too flimsy and easily blemished? The picture on the website shows the pendant looking glossy and shiny.

4) Vintage Multicolor Bling Pendant Chain Necklace - To be honest, this is my least favorite item. Other than the multicolor pendant which looks awesome, I can't think of what other positive things to say about this necklace. The necklace chain is just a simple transparent string - like those fishing rod type of string. It bends and folds easily and the string makes the necklace looks ugly. It would have been prettier if the whole string is replaced with a plain silver thin chain. Currently, there is only a small portion of silver chain at the end of both clasps but that's all. The hook or clasp of this necklace is very difficult to operate and it took me quite sometime to open and close the clasps. I would not recommend this item unless they change the chain to a better and sturdy material.

In summary, the products are gorgeous, affordable and the company provides good shipping options especially for worldwide buyers but you do need to check the product description properly to ensure that the product is of good quality and practical.

You can browse for more selections at http://www.favordeal.com/

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the product by FavorDeal 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.