Planet Weidknecht

7/16/11

Another 24 Hour Giveaway $25 Home Depot Gift Card

Use the Rafflecopter Form Below to Enter to win a $25 Home Depot Gift Card, purchased by me just because I love my followers and fans. Runs Midnight EST 7/16/2011 to Midnight EST 7/16.2011.

You only have 24 hours to enter so HURRY!!!!

Still Seeking Bloggers to Participate

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I'm Featured on Super Stalker Sunday

Super Stalker Sunday is a weekly blog hop hosted by

Marni of Marni’s Organized Mess

April of Mama on a Green Mission

Mariah of Formula Mom

Kortney of Kortney’s Krazy Life

and Emily of Naptime is My Time

How to Super Stalk

Follow each host at least one way. Don’t forget to let them know you did so by commenting on their blog. We will return all follows, but please be patient as we are busy mama’s it may take us a few days to return the visit and follow.
You will only have to link up on one of the host sites and your link will appear on all as we use the same linky.
After you follow the hosts, follow as many bloggers in as many ways as you are willing!
Already follow somebody? Consider visiting and following them in another way as well!

Remember: You will only get as much as you give. The more blogs you can visit, the more visits you will gain in return. We are all here to socialize and greet, not visit only your blog.
While we encourage sharing our button and hop with as many as possible, it is not required. The more you spread the word though, the more we socialize and all gain followers!

This week’s featured blogger is

Planet Weidknecht

Note from Lisa: Since I am the featured blogger this Sunday, the Planet Weidknecht Sunday Hop is on respite until next Sunday so as not to compete with this hop. I hope all my regulars on my Sunday Hop will join up here and meet new friends. Thanks so much for featuring Planet Weidknecht!

MindWare

MindWare has generously donated

THREE products from their line:

Imaginets ($29.95 value)

Skippity ($19.95 value)

Deluxe Mask Kit ($18.95 value)

MindWare on Facebook

MindWare on Twitter

Thank you to

MindWare for sponsoring Planet Weidknecht

for the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop.

Just nine more days til Christmas (in July)!

Announcing Two New Winners

Paper Scissors Rock Night Light Giveaway

Winner is Comment #50 by melanie johnson

Nachomamatees.com $15 Gift Card Giveaway

Winner is Comment #1 by jbsun40a

Thank you to my wonderful sponsors for donating prizes

and thank you to my fabulous readers who entered to win!

7/15/11

Review - Stouffer's Sautes for Two

I received a coupon from Stouffer's for a free Sautes for Two Dinner. Since the kids are all someplace else tonight, it's what's for dinner.

I chose the Grilled Chicken and Asiago Tortelloni and my beloved husband did the cooking while I photojournaled his adventure.

First, he poured the frozen stuff into a skillet and turned on the stove. Tricky, eh?

After defrosting the frozen sauce under a hot faucet, he poured it over the skillet contents. Again, easy.

Then, he stirred it, covered it for a few minutes, stirred it again, and served it up.

Here is one serving. There are, of course, two servings (since it's Sautes for Two). I personally think it's fabulous. One serving was plenty for me and it was absolutely delicious. Hubby also gave his stamp of approval. The price was around $6.00 and it tasted like it came from a restaurant. The dog loved pre-rinsing the plates after we were done eating. Thumbs up from all of us!

Halo Toys

Halo Toys has generously donated

a Gift Certificate ($50.00 value)

Check out -Muddy Buddy Pals

and Halo Toys on Facebook

Thank you to

Halo Toys for sponsoring Planet Weidknecht

for the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop!

Preschool Scientists Discover Plants

It's so important that children enjoy science at an early age. When I was in school, science was a drag. Just a bunch of information that I needed to remember. As a preschool teacher, I want the children to be excited to discover about their world. Today we were scientists discovering the plants in my backyard.

Using scientist tools, called magnifying glasses, the children set out to find the fun in science. Their observant little eyes discovered the veins that run through the leaves and the stem of the leaf gets bigger closer to where it touches the branches.

They saw tiny little bugs in the plants that they had never noticed before and oh the squeals of delight that caused. It took a few trials and errors for the younger children to learn to move the magnifying glass back and forth to adjust the focus. They also learned a whole host of new science words.

While examining the flowers up close, one of them discovered a real bunny hiding in the plants, who scampered off quickly when she shouted with joy. She also found a plastic Easter egg from our egg hunt several months ago. Imagine finding an egg where a bunny was hiding! I was rather surprised that the Starburst candies inside the egg weren't melted in our 100+ degree Texas heat.

The tree bark was an especially interesting discovery for one of the boys. He found a busy ant and used the magnifying glass to follow the ant's trail down the tree trunk. The ant was carrying a crumb and navigating his way around the rough parts of the bark. Once back inside, we printed the photos on paper and hung them on the wall with the words "magnifying glass" written underneath the photos so the children can see and discuss our adventures again.

Easy Queso (Chili Cheese Dip) Recipe

Last night I went to a childcare training class, the second in a series of six. All the students had decided to do a potluck dinner, since the training was 5-9pm. I realized at 4pm that I hadn't even thought about it. I walked into the pantry and grabbed six cans - two each of Wolf Brand Chili, Campbell's Fiesta Nacho Cheese Soup and Campbell's Cheddar Cheese Soup.

I poured all six cans into a saucepan and stirred them up together. Then I covered and simmered on low for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. I poured my easy queso into a casserole dish, grabbed two bags of Cabo tortilla chips and headed to the training. Apparently my Easy Queso was a huge hit and everyone wanted the recipe! I thought I would share it with you too.

Two Giveaways Ending Tonight

Beautiful Night Light from Paper Scissors Rock

$15 Gift Card from Nachomamatees.com

Both ending at midnight tonight.

Get your entries in now!

7/14/11

Baby Pop

Baby Pop Designs has generously donated a Superhero Costume ($54.00 value)

Baby Pop on Facebook

Baby Pop on Twitter

Thank you to Baby Pop for being one of our sponsors for the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop! Did you see the HUGE prize package that Planet Weidknecht is giving away?

Christmas in July is coming soon!!!!!

Confessions of a Daycare Provider

How to frustrate a childcare provider:

Move the baby wipes away from the diaper changing area.
Change all the clocks forward by ten minutes.
Tear a page out of the children’s favorite storybook.
Ring the doorbell during nap-time.
Schedule an early drop-off, then show up late.
Hide one piece of a preschool puzzle.
Turn off the coffee pot before the coffee is gone.

Special Request

When I changed from a blogspot address to my own dotcom, my Alexa reviews and ranking did not come with me. If you like my website, please give me a great review by clicking this button and filling in a tiny survey. Thank you so much!

Slotto

Thanks to Slotto for Kids for this fabulous prize ($59.99 value)!

Slotto for Kids is one of my sponsors for the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop, July 25-31.

7/13/11

Fear of Manhole Covers

Yes, you heard that right. I have a fear of manhole covers. It's not an unfounded fear though. When I was in middle school, one day after school I was walking out to get into my parent's car. I hopped up over a sewer opening on the curb and stepped on the edge of the manhole cover. Rather than a heavy metal manhole cover, there was a round piece of wood covering it. As my foot hit the edge of the circle of wood, it flipped up and without warning I dropped into the manhole. My elbows caught the sides of the manhole so that I didn't fall all the way in, but instead I hung there precariously with my legs swinging down. It was pure terror for a middle school girl. After a minute I felt the safety of my parent's hands helping me out of the manhole, but I've never gotten over that fear. Anytime I'm walking and see a manhole cover, I always deliberately walk around it, making sure my feet touch no part of it. Do you have any unusual fears? If so, what brought them on?

CrazyDogTShirts Amazing 24 Hour Giveaway

I'm always impressed with a company that helps to support charities. I was asked to review CrazyDogTShirts and was browsing around their website when I found this:

Boarding For Breast Cancer (B4BC) is a nonprofit that advocates early detection and an active lifestyle as a way to help prevent breast cancer. CrazyDogTShirts is featuring this great shirt design and the proceeds from the sales benefit the B4BC educational campaigns. Isn't that awesome? You can find out more at B4BC.org.

I love the super soft tshirts from CrazyDogTShirts! They have so many great designs, from classic Vintage Tees to funny Dog Tees.

Go check out their other great tshirts! Since I spend the majority of my free time on the internet, I chose this awesome Facebook tshirt from the Funny TShirts category. I made my strong and handsome hubby model it for you. He's such a good sport about my blogging!

CrazyDogTShirts is sponsoring a $15 Gift Card Giveaway right here on Planet Weidknecht! Fill out the quick and easy Rafflecopter form below to win. You only have 24 hours to enter, so hurry! Ends at 10am CST on 7/14/2011.

7/12/11

The Importance of Children's Play

Preschool Science - What Does Dissolve Mean?

Today I wanted to demonstrate to the children in concrete terms what the word "dissolve" means. I filled up the water table with water and then poured biodegradeable packing peanuts into the water. All seven children gathered around to learn and discover.

They were all eager to reach in and play. They discovered the peanuts were "squishy" in the water. They learned that if they squeeze the peanuts they begin to disappear or "dissolve." One of them discovered that stirring their hands in the water made bubbles and made the peanuts dissolve faster.

They found they could pick them up if they used their hands as scoops. They also discovered that splashing too hard gets clothing wet.

As the packing peanuts dissolved, the water became white and soapy. We talked about how bars of soap dissolve slowly and become smaller each time they are used. They decided to see if sand would dissolve, so a bucket was used to transport water from the water table to the sand table.

They learned that sand does not dissolve. They also discovered that they could make lakes and hills by moving the sand from one side to the other. They tried to build a sand bridge, but the sand was too wet. They remembered they could not build a sand bridge when it was too dry either. We talked about "between" when the sand was not too wet and not too dry, when a sand bridge will stand.

The children also learned that when the gooey peanut water specks dry on your arms, it pulls the little hairs when you rub off the dried goo. They had a busy morning of learning. Oh wait, it was just play!

Boogie Wipes Giveaway

Central Texas is filled with allergens. Someone’s nose is always running here in my home daycare, whether it’s the kids’ or mine. It doesn’t matter how much I clean and sanitize and disinfect, a daycare environment is full of germs. Texas childcare licensing requirements state I must wash my hands every time I assist a child with wiping their nose. I wash my hands close to 50 times a day! You can bet I teach them how to wipe their own noses at a young age. I’ve discovered a fabulous product that fits right into my daycare program - Boogie Wipes!

This is no ordinary tissue. This is an extra soft wipe, dampened with natural saline that cleans and moisturizes while it cleans up little noses. I was sent a package of 30 grape-scented Boogie Wipes to try out on my kids and they love to use the new “grapey wipeys.” They come in a soft-pack with a convenient pop-up lid. I also received some individually wrapped packets of the Minty Menthol and the Fresh Scent. The packets fit in my pocket perfectly for playground time, because as soon as we hit the outdoors, the seasonal allergies kick in. Look for the new 90 count canisters at Target and Toys R Us. There’s even a Bulk Boogie Program for daycares. And, if you’re looking for a wipe for a more grownup nose, check out their new Saline Soothers.

Come be nosy and check out the website at www.SaveTheSleeve.com for fun, interactive ways for kids to learn to use Boogie Wipes. You can also join the Boogie Bunch to get a coupon. While you’re on the website, be sure to read about their Extraordinary Kid contest (beginning August 1, 2011) because your adorable child could be one of three children featured on their Boogie Wipes canisters for the 2012 cough and cold season! Hook up on Facebook and Twitter too.

Hooray for The Giveaway!

Boogie Wipes is sponsoring a giveaway right here on Planet Weidknecht. You can win two packs of 30-count wipes (fresh, grape, menthol, or unscented). Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter. The giveaway is open to US, Canada and Australia. You can enter until midnight on July 20, 2011, and the randomly selected winner will be emailed for shipping information that will be provided to Boogie Wipes for prize fulfillment.

Winner - inFamous 2 PS3 Game

The randomly-selected winner is

Lawanna

Thank you to everyone for participating!

Stay tuned for more awesome 24 hour giveaways

plus check out our Current Giveaways.

Don't forget the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop

coming July 25th where you can win $1000s in prizes!

Win a $10K Scholarship for your Child

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of PBM Products for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

When my own children were young, I spent four years as a single mom and I realize how important it is to be able to provide excellence on a budget. Parent's Choice gives parents this great opportunity. For thirteen years, Parent's Choice Infant Formula has provided the same nutrition as the "big name" brands at half the price. Parent's Choice is distributed exclusively through Walmart and is subject to the same FDA standards, pursuant to the Infant Formula Act.

Parent's Choice and PBM Products, LLC, a Perrigo Company, are partnering up to provide one lucky winner a $10,000 scholarship as a College Savings 529 Plan through the Parent’s Choice Infant Formula Savings Sweepstakes! Talk about a great opportunity! All you have to do is fill out a simple entry form and you're entered!

Now that my daughter is in college, I can truly appreciate Parent's Choice fabulous sweepstakes prize. I wish I had started planning for her college education years ago, but it just seemed so far away. A 529 Plan is a great way to save for your child's future and this Sweepstakes is the perfect way to start on it! But hurry, because the sweepstakes ends on August 1, 2011.

7/11/11

24 Hour Giveaway - PS3 Game inFAMOUS 2

You have only 24 hours to enter.

Hurry!

Expires 9:00 a.m. (cst) July 12, 2011

Brand New PreRelease Copy!

Use the Rafflecopter Form Below to Enter!

The Gummy Bear Song

I received an email with this video and laughed all the way through it. The kids all crowded around me laughing and dancing with the Gummy Bear. They wanted to watch it over and over. I'll bet you even recognize some of his dance moves. This is going to make you smile. Call the kids over, then sit back and relax, here comes The Gummy Bear Song.

Want more?
Check out his website.
Like Gummibar on Facebook.
Follow Gummibar on his own YouTube Channel.
Follow Gummibar on Twitter.