Pea of Sweetness

Sticky Icky Booger Bugs {Book Review}

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Disclosure: I received a PDF copy of the book to facilitate my book review. Regardless, all opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links.
book review
As a mom of special needs children, I am finding myself always explaining our kids’ differences or special needs or hoping more parents will share information with their children to help them understand that other children have special needs. Because of this, I also want to be sure I share resources with our children to help them understand other children’s special needs as well. When offered the opportunity to review Sticky Icky Booger Bugs by Sherry Frith, I was excited to share this resource with our children.
Sticky Icky Booger Bugs is a book written for young children (recommended Pre-K to age 7) to understand cystic fibrosis. It is written in a way that young children can understand and illustrated with appealing pictures that help tell the story as well. Sherry wrote Sticky Icky Booger Bugs after her sons, Kory and Kevin, were diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. She wanted to explain aspects of the disorder using words they could understand.
In Sticky Icky Booger Bugs a young boy named Kory shares a look into what a day for Kory looks like. He’s just like other little boys that love to play, but he has to do special things each day to keep the Sticky Icky Boogers Bugs away so he can stay healthy and avoid trips to the hospital.
I really appreciated that the book was written from Kory’s perspective because I felt like it was easier for our kids to relate and understand. It really helped open up conversation to help them understand that these are things people with cystic fibrosis have to do to stay healthy so they may not always be able to play at certain times or have the type of flexibility in their day that others do. It is a great introduction for children who are unfamiliar with cystic fibrosis.

About the Author:

Author bio

Author Sherry Frith is the mother of three boys and the founder of Helping Hearts, a nonprofit organization. She has patents and copyrights pending in various areas and lives each day full of new ideas and grace. Sherry lives in Bakersfield, CA, with her sons—Kyle, Kevin, and Kory.

About the Issutrator:

Illustrator Carol Newell Walter majored in fine arts at Wayne State University and earned a BA and teaching credentials from California State University– Bakerffield. Now retired, Carol and her husband live in Bakersfield, CA, where she continues to create all kinds of artwork.

You can purchase Sticky Icky Booger Bugs on Amazon: on paperback for $15.29 and Kindle for $3.99
For More Information visit beatsnot.com

I See Me! Personalized Children's Book {Review}

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Affiliate

Disclosure: I received the product mentioned to facilitate my review. Regardless, all opinions are my own and those of my family.
Visit ISeeMe.com for the best personalized children's gifts.
 
There is something special about personalized gifts. They’re special not only for the recipient but the gift giver as well! I See Me! offers a variety of personalized gifts such as: Personalized Children’s Books, lunch boxes, puzzles, coloring books and placemats as well as gift sets. They also have a great Holiday Gift Guide available to make shopping easy for the holiday season! Every child is unique, and personalized gifts really make them feel special!
For our review we received their new 1-2-3 Blast Off with Me – the first personalized book at I See Me to feature personalized photos! When I saw it, I knew it was something I definitely wanted for our preschooler.
Personalized Children's Book
I opened the package, and showed him the book, and his face lit up! He said “Look! It’s MY book!” It was so precious. Chaz is generally not one to express excitement, so to get a reaction like that meant he must really like it! He carried it with him that whole day. We read it that night, and he even took it to bed with him. He felt so special and loved his book.
1-2-3 Blast Off with Me is wonderfully personalized with the child’s picture and name on every page! Chaz is an astronaut, helicopter pilot, riding in a train, and so much more! He loved seeing himself in different places on every page! I loved that each page also had his name with the pictures, too, like “Chaz’s Airline” and “Chaz’s Helicopter Service.” One one page it even uses his birth date as the license plate number! How sweet and creative. I was extremely impressed with the depth of personalization in this book. It is SO much more than I expected!
1-2-3 Blast Off with Me also allows a personal message in the front of the book along with the child’s full name and date of birth. I left this page out of the pictures for privacy reasons, but you can see examples on the virtual tour of the book.
I feel that 1-2-3 Blast Off with Me is perfect for the preschool and Kindergarten age range because it talks about shapes, letters, numbers and colors. You could certainly get it for a younger child (or even slightly older if you believe they would enjoy it)! It is a fairly small size book, which is also perfect for little ones that like to flip the pages themselves! The pages are thick and sturdy, which is also perfect for this age range!
We are so happy with the 1-2-3 Blast Off with Me book, and even still Chaz is so excited to show everyone his book and asks us to read it to him regularly!
I See Me! has a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. If there is something that isn’t quite right like a misspelled name, they will remake the book for free! I was SO impressed with the customer service and their true Satisfaction Guarantee! They stand behind their products so that even if a page rips 10 years from now they will remake the book for free! How amazing is that?
If you have some little ones on your Christmas list, you will definitely want to check out I See Me! Be sure to sign up for their email updates to receive promotions and special alerts!

For More Information:

Visit the I See Me! Website
Connect with I See Me! on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest
Visit
 
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The Sparkle Box {Children's Christmas book Review}

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The Sparkle BoxWhen the holidays roll around, our family truly wants the focus of Christmas to stay on Jesus. So, when we had the opportunity to review The Sparkle Box I so excited to share it with our kids. I think it is such a wonderful idea to share the true meaning of the spirit by giving to others because that truly is the best gift we can give Jesus.
In The Sparkle Box a boy named Sam is all excited about Christmas like most kids! He’s thinking about his Christmas list and looking forward to the parties. One thing has him curious, though, a sparkly box that is sitting on the mantel. Throughout the season his family did a lot of kind things for others, which that alone was helping Sam to learn a valuable lesson! When Christmas morning came, though, and he finally got to open the sparkly box he found slips of papers with writing on them. They were all the kind things they had been doing for others throughout the holiday season! His mom explained that doing nice things for others is our gift to Jesus.

THE SPARKLE BOX – Official Book Trailer from Ideals Books on Vimeo.

It’s such a beautiful message! I love how the book not only got our kids thinking about kind things they could do for others, but it also included a sparkle box, so we could start one of our own! So although it won’t be a surprise for them on Christmas Day, I love that we can now use the sparkle box tradition every year! What a great way to bring the focus back to Jesus! We actually like to have a little birthday party, and that would be the perfect time for us to open our sparkle box and read over the gifts we gave Jesus in honor of His birthday.
The Sparkle Box
I think The Sparkle Box has given us an invaluable gift in its message because now we are looking for ways to be more helpful and be a blessing for others. Plus even though we work hard to keep our focus on Jesus for Christmas it does get hard. The kids get excited and overwhelmed by the parties and the presents, and The Sparkle Box helped them to realize even more so that it’s important to bless others and that when we do we give to Him as well.
I want to invite you to share your slips of paper for your sparkle box! How did you serve today? I will be sharing ours in the comments as well! I hope in this way we can also bless and encourage each other and remind each other what Christmas is really all about!

For More Information:

Visit The Sparkle Box Website
Find more information on The Sparkle Box at Ideals Books
Connect with Ideals Books on Facebook
Connect with The Sparkle Box on Facebook and author Jill Hardie on Twitter

*Giveaway!!!* {Ended 11/30/13} For more chances to win check out our current giveaways or head over to my sister site, Deals of Sweetness, for even more great giveaways.

Would you like to bless someone in your life with The Sparkle Box? One lucky reader will win the book with the included fold out sparkle box! The giveaway will run from November 16, 2013 through November 30, 2013 at 11:00pm Central Time. It is open to US and Canada ages 18 and over. Please refer to the full terms and conditions in the Giveaway Tools. All entries are optional, but you can’t win if you don’t enter! Good luck!

 
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Audrey Bunny {Children's Book Review}

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Disclosure: As a member of the Flyby Promotions Blogger Network I received the product mentioned to facilitate my review. Regardless, I only recommend products I feel would be good for my readers. My opinions are my own and those of my family.
Audrey Bunny

From best-selling women’s author Angie Smith (I Will Carry You, Mended) comes this sweet children’s book about a stuffed animal named Audrey Bunny who fears her imperfections make her unworthy of a little girl’s love. She’ll learn the truth soon enough, and young readers will learn that everyone is special and wonderfully made by God.

In today’s society it’s hard to feel comfortable just being who you are – especially for young girls. They’re often told what to wear (and modest is NOT it!), “thin is in,” the hairstyle to have, etc. Even little girls as young as my daughter, who is only 5, start to feel the pressure! It wasn’t that long ago that she cut her hair because she has curly hair and “wanted her hair to be pretty.” I was heartbroken for her. I LOVE her blonde curly hair! I would love it if it were any other color and wavy or straight, too! What a wonderful book Audrey Bunny is to remind young girls that they are special just the way they are! God made them special, and they are unique and beautiful!
In the book Audrey Bunny has a mark that kept her from being chosen by other children, and once she WAS chosen she did everything she could to hide her mark. Eventually she discovers she was actually chosen BECAUSE of that mark! It is such a beautiful portrayal of how we see ourselves versus how we are seen – particularly by our Maker. At the end of the book there are even questions to spark a discussion about points in the story. Our boys sat in on the story as well, but unfortunately, they weren’t sure how to answer the questions. Because of our kids’ special needs social type questions can be harder for them to answer. It actually took us a while to discover the reason sweet Aurora had cut her hair all those months ago because she had a hard time expressing it!
Audrey Bunny
Do you know what else I love about Audrey Bunny? It doesn’t just have to be about physical appearance. It can also be a great reminder that our children are special and wonderfully made by God, too, even though they may not be like other children because of their special needs. God created them to be unique. In fact, each child is unique, aren’t they? That’s how God designed us, and this story is such a great reminder that it’s not only OK – it’s how it’s supposed to be!
We really like Audrey Bunny, and I think it’s a great book to share with young girls because I think it holds an extremely important message!

About the Author:

Angie Smith is the wife of Todd Smith (lead singer of Dove Award winning group Selah), best-selling author of Mended, I Will Carry You, and What Women Fear, and one of the most popular speakers and blog writers in the country. She holds a Master’s degree in Developmental Psychology from Vanderbilt University and lives with her husband and daughters in Nashville, TN.

For More Information:

Visit the Audrey Bunny Information Page on B&H Publishing
Connect with B&H Publishing on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest

*Giveaway!!!* {ended 11/9/13} For more chances to win great prizes check out our current giveaways.

Would you like to give Audrey Bunny to a child in your life? One lucky reader will have a chance to win the Audrey Bunny Children’s Book! The giveaway will run from October 26, 2013 through November 9, 2013 at 11:00pm Central Time. It is open to US and Canada ages 18+. Simply answer the first question in the Giveaway Tools to begin, and more chances to gain entries will open up! Additional entries are optional but may increase your chances of winning! Please refer to the full terms and conditions in the Giveaway Tools.

 
review and giveaway