Father's Day gift idea- Books! {giveaway}

**Contest Closed**
Winner- #39 Joanna~ Congratulations!

It's hard to believe that Father's Day is just around the corner. It is not always easy picking out just the right gift for the important dads in our lives. My husband is a simple man and he is a big lover of books. Not just any books~ Business related books. He has a collection of business books he has acquired and gained a lot of knowledge from over the years. I really think it is the key to what has made him an expert salesperson and speaker. I received the 3 books pictured below. My husband was thrilled and has already cracked open Mind Gym. I know he will enjoy taking some important lessons from all 3 books. Why not give dad the Gift of Eloquence, Entrepreneurship, and Savvy Investment Strategies this Father's Day?!



Banker to the World / William Rhodes: A highly respected global banker who has been a major player in every global financial meltdown for the past 50 years, shares his 8 leadership lessons, demonstrated by compelling stories from the front lines.

What Works on Wall Street / James O'Shaughnessy: One of the bestselling investment books of all time—completely rewritten to provide the newest, most innovative strategies for the market as a whole, as well individual sectors. The fourth edition – completely revised and updated to reflect new statistics and information – will be released this fall 2011! More to come.

Mind Gym / Gary Mack and David Casstevens: Drawing on his work with some of the top teams in professional sports, noted sport psychology consultant Gary Mack shares with you the same techniques and exercises he uses to help elite athletes build mental "muscle." These 40 accessible lessons and inspirational anecdotes will help you gain the "head edge" over the competition.

How would you like to win all 3 books? Just leave a comment letting us know which title looks the most interesting. If you would like additional entries you can also:

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Giveaway ends June 10, 2011 at 9:00 PM EST. Please leave your email address if you do not have a Blogger profile. Open to US Residents only. Winner will be chosen via random and will be contacted via email. Good luck!

Pedigree Ambassador dog food trial {final update}

Hey guys! I wanted to give you one last update on how Milo had been doing with the Pedigree dog food trial. If Milo could speak he might tell you "My mommy needs to give me MORE!" I don't know what it is but ever since he started eating the Pedigree small breed formula it is as if his appetite has grown. He already is a voracious eater but he has gotten downright greedy! He practically stalks the side of the pantry where we keep his food and makes sure we don't forget when it's mealtime. At 8 am and 3 pm you will find him sitting in the same spot waiting patiently to be fed.

When we first began feeding him the Pedigree food he had just had his thick coat shaved down. We do that when the weather warms up (it helps with excess shedding). We have noticed that his fur has grown in really quickly and it is very soft and shiny. His teeth seem to be about the same which is average considering how old he is. Thank goodness he continues to do very well in the digestion department since his "potty time" is very regular. He is in great health and we love the fact that he is spending a lot more time outdoors with his dog friends. He normally is a bit of a couch potato. I really don't know if it has anything to do with his diet but I will take it!

We have decided to continue feeding Milo the Pedigree food and are considering purchasing the weight control variety since we have noticed he is slightly plumper than he should be. Of course when you have a really small dog you must watch their weight closely. After participating in this trial I would absolutely recommend Pedigree dog food to all my friends and family. Be sure to get your coupon to help save a few bucks. Did you know Pedigree was on Facebook and Twitter? Be sure to follow them for great tips and advice for keeping your dogs healthy and happy. Throughout the month of June, dog lovers can help dogs by logging onto Facebook and Twitter (#everydogdeserves) to say why they think “Every Dog Deserves” the very best. For each Like, comment, @reply, re-tweet, photo upload, etc. directed at Pedigree, they’ll donate one pound of food (up to 100,000 pounds total). Every single engagement with Pedigree on Facebook and Twitter helps feed dogs! I know I will certainly participate. We have been so pleased with knowing our furry family member is healthy and happy! #Pedigreerocks

I wrote this review while participating in an Ambassador campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Pedigree and received dog food to facilitate my reviews and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

My Internet is rude

I wanted to let you all know that I have been experiencing some issues with my internet. We are thinking it is our wireless router or maybe one of the cords. Dwayne will try to troubleshoot it tonight. I have had intermittent service so I try to do all I can whether I get on for 5 minutes or an hour. Seems like every time I have attempted to comment on blogs I get the boot. I try to be a consistent commenter so it bothers me to not be able to do so, especially to my regular spots. Just know that I have been reading blogs from my phone. I have at least 7 posts to get up so I better get cracking while I have this little window.

One last thing~ You see the computer William is playing with? It is the most annoying thing! It plays music and makes all kinds of noise. The batteries must be really good in them because he plays on the darn thing ALL day long. Does anyone need a computer?! Of course there goes a Carmex stick within reach. That's my boy :)

Go Brie!

We attended Briahnna's middle school athletic banquet last week to recognize all students that participated in the sports programs. For each sport the coach gave out 3 plaques to the athletes they thought were most deserving for a specific area. Briahnna was given the 'Coach's Award'. Her coach was pleased with Brie's readiness to work hard, perform well and be a team player. We are so proud of Brie and she certainly deserves this great honor. What a nice way to close out her middle school volleyball career. Next stop high school!

WTH Wednesday

I bet you are looking at this picture thinking WTH? My husband asked some random lady who owned a few trees that bare this fruit if he could have a few. She told him to take as many as he wanted. He tells her that he used to eat these "Chinese plums" as a kid growing up in Miami. She then tells him that if you drop a seed in the ground it will grow into a plum tree. Why the hell did she tell him that?
Now we have to keep these horrible looking things for him to plant. I am so annoyed because we already have some American plum trees in our yard that are getting ready to removed and now he wants to go plant more? WTH! I wish there was a way I could trash these things! I suggested he plants a couple in a big pot and go from there. I will kick his backside if we end up with a grove of those things! Has anyone even seen these doggone plums before?

Fun in the kitchen

On the Saturday before Mother's Day I got all my ingredients to bake up some loaves of pound cake for my neighbors. I used a Jacques Pepin recipe so I just knew it would be perfect. William was acting like a donkey that day. I called him into the kitchen and asked him if he wanted to help me bake a cake. He shot around the corner and back with his step stool in hand.

I had all of the ingredients measured out and ready to go. He enjoyed helping to add things and of course to mix them all up. He smiled the whole time. Sometimes during the day I will take the remote control and change the channel from Nick Jr. to the Cooking Channel or Food Network. William loves to watch Aaron McCargo Jr. and Guy Fieri (they are the only manly man chefs my husband approves of). William always yells out "He's cooking yummy food!!"


Although this photo is not all that great, it still warms my heart to know that my kid loves doing things like this with me. Guess what? The cakes came out delicious but sadly you needed a sip of water or milk after each bite. It would make you feel like you were about to choke. I will not be sharing this recipe with anyone! I was so disappointed that it was not what I was expecting. After all the butter and eggs that went into it I surely knew it would be moist. Nope, not this time. I did have fun with my boy and the girls gladly ate the cake. My ingredients and time did not go to waste :)