Saturday, December 31, 2011

Stuff to Scrap Road Trip: Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!!!

Enjoy the New Year Road Trip with Stuff to Scrap - Winter Formal!  Click image to download.  PU/S4H/S4O.


Check out all the travel stops below. You came here from Pizazz Pixels. Next stop: HD Creations!

JMC Designs
Scraps by Andrea
Busy Crafting Mommy
Just For Fun Designs
CutieFruity
Scrappin Serenity
Saphira's Scraps
The Scrappy Kat
Tinadell's Tags
scraphannah
Monkey'sMusings
Leaving a Legacy
The Digi Scrapping Mama
DoubleTrouble Scraps
Queen Wild Scraps
Shel Belle Scraps
A Fish Design
Pizazz Pixels
Note-able Scraps
HD Creations
Let Me Scrapbook!


Happy 2012!

New Website for Sprouting Seeds Studio

Hello Everyone! We hope you are enjoying the holidays with your family and friends. Just wanted to remind you that Sprouting Seeds Studio has transitioned to their new website - Dandelion Dust Designs - as they will be taking down the Sprouting Seeds Studio website on December 31, 2011.

If you'd like to continue following their website, downloading their freebies and/or purchasing their resale kits, you will need to now visit them on their new website. We'd love to have you join the Dandelion Dust Designs Facebook Page, where they currently have an Exclusive Facebook Freebie for you to download. They also have 2 Freebies on the new website, available for a very limited time.

Thank you so much for being a customer, fan, follower and/or reader of Sprouting Seeds Studio these past few years!

Best wishes to you and yours in 2012! Happy New Year!!!!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

"My Memories" Freebie

If you are interested in digital scrapbooking but just don't know where to start, check out the all-in-one-stop-shop at My Memories, where you can purchase both your software and your digital scrapbooking kits.  Don't know quite what you are doing yet?  Try some of the many freebies offered, like this one.  Click on the image to download from My Memories:


USE THIS CODE: STMMMS79285

Use This Code: STMMMS79285

to get $10 off My Memories Suite Software! (in the US and Canada)


Happy Scrapping!  :)

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

TOS Review: The World's Greatest Stories


My husband and I have always thought that not only is the Bible important for spiritual growth, but it also contains some of the greatest literature on earth.  Why wouldn't it?  It was written by the Author of Authors, and every word is true!  If you want a happy story, a sad story, a comedy, a tragedy, an adventure story, a topic for your report on ancient literature, or a great plot for a new movie, it's all there.  The story of Abraham and Sarah alone is a saga unequaled by modern romantic adventures.  So why should kids grow up thinking it's boring?  For some reason, that is a common misconception among children, perhaps because they have heard it read in dry monotone voices, or perhaps because they just haven't been exposed to these stories enough.  Stories such as "Daniel and The Lions' Den" and "Jonah and The Great Fish" have fed the minds of children for generations.

In our search for children's Biblical materials, however, we have been frustrated by the inaccuracy of so many retellings.  Oh, I enjoy a good novel of historical fiction, and I love cartoon anachronisms showing familiar Bible stories in the present day.  But when it really comes to teaching, I was having a hard time finding enjoyable children's materials that did not change parts of the stories and create confusion for the children.  We finally found the - perhaps obvious - solution of simply reading to the children straight from the Bible.



George W. Sarris of The World's Greatest Stories came to the same conclusion.  Why rewrite the greatest stories of all time?  In his series of audio CDs, he tells the old favorites verbatim from both the New International and the King James Versions.  Nothing added, nothing taken away.  He is a dynamic story-teller who uses voice characterizations, sound effects, and some background music to truly make the stories come alive.  I received Volume 1: The Prophets, in the NIV, to review.  It includes the stories "The Blazing Furnace," "Daniel in the Lions' Den," "The Prophecy of Jonah," and others.  There are six volumes available all together.  These CDs are fantastic for children of any age who enjoy listening to stories, especially those who are not yet good readers or who are simply better auditory learners.  They are great for car trips, bedtime listening, or as a supplemental activity for one child to use while the busy parent/teacher is working with someone else.  Truthfully, though, I would enjoy them most simply gathering around the fireplace and listening as a family.

Each CD or cassette tape is $7.95 and is about an hour long.  If you order six or more items in one transaction, the shipping is free!  See more about George W. Sarris, order a cassette tape or CD in the NIV or KJV, and even listen to some audio clips for yourself at http://www.worldsgreateststories.com/.

To find out what other members of the crew thought about The World's Greatest Stories CDs in both versions, click here.

Disclaimer:  I received a free copy of Volume 1 of The World's Greatest Stories on CD in exchange for a fair review.  No other compensation was given, and all opinions are my own.

Merry Christmas!

Another Freebie from My Memories!

Here is a great gift from My Memories, just in time for Christmas!  Click image to go to the download page.


Quickpages make it easy to scrap your memories any time of the year!  Enjoy!

Use the code STMMMS79285 to receive $10 off the My Memories Suite Software and a $10 gift certificate to the store.

Merry CHRISTmas!  :)

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Heather Jolly's New Blog

Are any of you followers of Heather Jolly?  I discovered her recently and have greatly enjoyed the freebies I have downloaded from her blog.  Recently, however, she had to shut down her blog because of technical difficulties, and I was very sad until I found her new location here!  She already has a new kit posted, Olive Juice, and she is working on a Christmas kit.  So if you've been missing her blog and looking for her on the web, or if you have never heard of her and would like to check out her freebies, visit her new blog!  Preview below is linked to her blog:


Happy Scrapping!  :)

Friday, December 16, 2011

TOS Review: Fractazmic


Today's review goes back to one of my favorite themes: learning through games!  Fractions can be one of the most frustrating and difficult math concepts to learn and to teach.  One of my favorite practical applications when teaching fractions is to go in the kitchen and make a big ol' batch of cookies.  Double or triple the recipe and have the kids measure out the ingredients (hey, Mom, two 1/4 cups are the same as 1/2 cup!!)  Just make sure you double check the accuracy before you let them dump in the salt!!  Up until now, though, I did not have any fun games for teaching fractions.  Fractazmic has filled the void!

Fractazmic consists of a deck of cards divided into three color-coded suits.  The object of the game is to combine cards within each suit to equal one (1).  When one player runs out of cards, the player with the most "hands," or combinations of cards equaling one (1), wins.  This encourages kids to learn to add those fractions together quickly!


My family loves the Fractazmic game from I See Cards.  The game can be played with 2-4 players and is ideal for any age that is learning fractions.  The bright colors and eye-catching illustrations are probably best for upper elementary, when you are starting to teach fractions, but if you have older kids who could still use some practice on those beastly little parts-of-a-whole, I think they would enjoy it, too.  The 60-card deck is only $6.95 and would make a great stocking stuffer.  (You know all you homeschool moms are looking for educational Christmas gifts!)  The game's usefulness is certainly not limited to homeschooling, as it would be great for any kid struggling with or just learning fractions, and it would be a great classroom aid as well.


Find out more about Fractazmic and purchase the game at www.fractazmic.com.  To see what other crew members thought about Fractazmic and other I See Cards games, click here.

Disclaimer:  I received a free Fractazmic game for the purpose of a fair review.  No other compensation was given, and all opinions are my own.


Saturday, December 3, 2011

TOS Christmas Digital Issue

The TOS Christmas Digital Issue is live and absolutely free!  Click the image below to view!


Merry Christmas!  :)

"Winter'ish" by Sprouting Seeds Studio

In the midst of downloading all the lovely goodies from the December/Christmas Blog Trains for the beginning of the month, I was excited to also see that Sprouting Seeds Studio released "Winter'ish."  This versatile kit can be used for all your winter and snow pictures, but with its deep reds and greens and golds, is also perfect for Christmas photos or cards!


You can get the kit exclusively at ScrapDelicious:


Click image below to download my freebie from Mediafire (PU only), and also jump over to Sprouting Seeds Studio's blog to download another little freebie!


Merry Christmas and Happy Scrapping!  :)

Disclaimer:  I received a free copy of this kit in exchange for a layout showcasing the kit.  No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.