My Memories Suite 2.0 Scrapbook Software - Review and Giveaway!!! Enter by 10/28

I would like to preface this review by disclosing that I am NOT a scrapbooker!!! I have tried it in the past, I made them for friends and family members, but no matter how I tried I just could not get into it. I am however a photographer - in case you haven't seen the immense number of photos I have on my blog, I can tell you that I easily take hundreds if not thousands of pics a month. I don't know what I would do if I ever had to settle for film cameras....but back to my point...this scrapbooking software is not something that I would have ever blinked twice at, but I am glad that I was approached to try it out and host this giveaway for My Memories Suite.

So the program was super easy to install and like many other programs you have the option from the get go to design your own or use designer templates.
For the first run through I decided to do with the designer set. You then are given a screen where you can choose how many pages and which pages you would like to use. 

Next you are given the template. There are also many options on the sidebars to customize the pages utilizing the included pages, buttons, artwork etc. or you can purchase additional options in the gallery sidebar. For anyone who has been checking out my blog lately you will have noticed we had been enjoyed our unusually warm weather by going to the beach and of course I took tons of pics so I figured I would use these to make a few pages. 







When I was ready to start uploading pictures you can either upload one at a time or use the fast fill option - which took me quite some time to find when I was browsing through the toolbar. I was a bit disappointed with the small size of the picture icons - even in the preview screen there is no way to make them larger. This is an issue for me since I tend to take a lot of quickshots that have minute details so I could have between four and ten shots that are difficult to tell which is the one I want. 






Once you have your pics on the page you can twist, turn, crop,  make notes, journal, or add embellishments at the touch of a button. For the first 6 pages I picked each pic individually, but for the last 4 used the fast fill. It was really easy and quick. I do recommend knowing which pics you want to use ahead of time in order to avoid the small tile problem. 






In just over an hour and a half, here is what I had produced - 

 

 
 

 




I have not had a chance to experiment more with this software, but am interested to do so as it has some great sharing and interactive enhancement features - You can make a beautiful scrapbook an interactive memory experience for anyone who sees it. Use simple one-click options to enhance your scrapbooks, with music, narration, video, and even the Internet. Go beyond pictures by showing off video of the birthday party, or record a narration to capture the memories that pictures alone cannot. With My Memories Suite you simply don't look at a scrapbook-you experience it! Take advantage of a full suite of sharing options and turn your scrapbook into a movie to watch on a DVD-or view on an iPod. My Memories Suite allows you to share an interactive album on a disc (DVD or CD) that will automatically play on a computer (PC or Mac). Viewers can interact with your scrapbook by clicking on video, playing narration or navigating through your scrapbook like a website. You can even place in web links for them to visit or embed hidden files like Grandma's secret cookie recipe.

Now for the GIVEAWAY!!!

First we have special bonus just for reading - 

A code that provides a $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - $20 value! The code is - STMMMS47520

Before you run off and purchase this great scrapbooking software you can enter here for a chance to win. We have a number of ways for you to enter, but be sure to leave a separate comment for each one and to leave contact info! - feel free to break it up in a { name at host dot com} format - 

1. Mandatory entry - Pop on over to MyMemories.com and take a look around, then come back here and let everyone know which Digital Scrapbook Kit is your favorite 
2. Become a follower of this blog - link on the right hand tool bar or click here if you already are a follower - let me know
3. Follow me on twitter - @gckhomeschool - if you already do just let me know
4. Follow My Memories on twitter - @MyMemoriesSuite
5. Tweet about this giveaway with both @gckhomeschool and @mymemoriessuite in the message 
6. Post an entry about this giveaway on your blog or website and come back here to link it! 

Do any - at least #1 - or all of these by Friday Oct. 28th at 11:59p EST to be entered to win a FREE Full version of My Memories Suite 2.0 - 

My Memories Suite Version 2.0 digital scrapbooking software is a fun and creative way to keep and share memories, whether you have a Mac or PC. The software's design tools will help you to build entire albums effortlessly using one of the many installed templates, or designing your very own pages from scratch. 

Available worldwide. Intended for English-language computers. Technical support is English-only. This product is retail valued at $39.97.

Disclaimer: I was contacted to review this product and was given the software for free, but this did not bias this review in anyway. All opinions are mine alone and represent my personal experience with the product. The winner will be contacted through link they provide no later than Tuesday 11/1/11 and will be given a code to download software directly from the site.

Congrats to @blakepro  the winner of our giveaway!!!!

Winner of itty bitty HeartBeats prize pack is....

Kathryn at Cummins Life the winner of this great prize pack! Congrats and hope your kids enjoy!!!

itty bitty HeartBeats™ - Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

My nieces came in handy for this incredibly cute review!!!  itty bitty HeartBeats™ is a super cute animated musical series for girls and boys ages 2-6 - just so happens SC is 4 and GC is 2!

Through humor, friendship and original songs, the itty bitty HeartBeats help children on Earth solve problems and "do things from the heart."

With engaging animation and upbeat melodies this series touches on a variety of subjects such as long distance friendships, sharing troubles, and being afraid of the dark. The itty bitty HeartBeats™ emphasizes three core values:

• Living a healthy, nutritious lifestyle
• Having a healthy heart, both physically and emotionally
• Teaching positive life lessons

SC was engaged from the get go, but when I took out the SweetHeart doll, she was even more on board. GC stayed engaged for a short time while watching the video, but really liked the coloring book and the music. They both declared that BabyHeart was their favorite! I think that SC really understood most of the concepts, while they definitely went flying over the head of GC, but exposure is sure to bring results and help to set expecations! The emphasis on being kind and caring for others is what really resonated with us. This is truly a wholesome kids show, with great values, morals and viewpoints! CJ said it reminded him of a very well done cross between the smurfs and the care bears! I am very hopeful that this series will be expanded. 

BabyHeart - The Girls Favorite!

Now for the giveaway!!!
One lucky reader will receive - 
1 itty bitty HeartBeats DVD
1 plush doll - CoolHeart or SweetHeart
5 sheets of stickers


I have a few ways you can enter, please submit separate comments for each method so that I will have a number for each one and make sure that I have a way to contact you! 

1. Head on over to itty bitty HeartBeats™, watch an episode and come back here to let us know what you think, who your favorite character is or what your favorite song was! 
2. Tweet about this giveaway making sure to mention both @theittybittys & @gckhomeschool
3. Follow @theittybittys & @gckhomeschool on twitter - or let me know if you already do! 
4. Share this giveaway by linking it through a blog or website.
5. Share this giveaway on Facebook.
6. Share this giveaway with Google+1. 

Entries will be accepted from Tuesday 9/27/11 through Tuesday 10/11/11 10/4/11 10pm EST. Winner will be chosen on Wednesday 10/12/11 10/5/11 and announced no later than Friday 10/14/11 10/7/11.


CONGRATS TO Kathryn at Cummins Life the winner of this great prize pack! Hope your kids enjoy!!!




~~~Disclaimer: I was contacted to do this review and giveaway, but this review is completely unbiased. I was given materials to review, but was not compensated in any other way for this review. Itty Bitty HeartBeats will be filling the giveaway and is solely responsible once the winner's information is sent to them. 

FREE Books From Scholastic & Kumon - Learn And Earn

Who doesn't like FREE books?

Scholastic and Kumon have partnered to encourage the development of reading and math skills and unlock your child's learning potential.
Your child can complete MATH and READING activities and earn up to five FREE BOOKS from Scholastic! 

Giveaway from Friendly Chemistry: A $100 Teacher & Student Curriculum Set! - Freely Educate

Giveaway from Friendly Chemistry: A $100 Teacher & Student Curriculum Set! - Freely Educate

Giveaway from Salem Ridge Press for 5 Winners! - Freely Educate

Giveaway from Salem Ridge Press for 5 Winners! - Freely Educate

Freely Educate has an ENORMOUS wealth of educational resources and they are have a great week of giveaways as well!

Be sure to check it out!

Drum Roll Please......

To the winner of the Ko's Journey Giveaway - Ami!!!

Thanks to all who participated! If you didn't win, you really should think about getting an individual subscription as it is a FANTASTIC program and one of the only ones that I have seen recently that is TRULY worth the money!

LAST DAY ----

FOR A CHANCE TO WIN......

BEFORE TIME RUNS OUT

Only 3 days left

...to get in on this giveaway!!!! Be sure to check it out ----

HERE!!!!

Ko's Journey - Math Curriculum Supplement

REVIEW & GIVEAWAY!!!

Yes, you read that write I have an incredible giveaway for one lucky winner! The product that is up for grabs is a one year license to a fantastic new online program called - Ko's Journey 5th -8th grade Math Improvement with Story Playing. - Instructions for giveaway at the end of the review...

Ko’s Journey covers the core concepts in middle-school math, comprising about 20% of a comprehensive curriculum. By going deep into a set of approximately 10 main areas of learning, students gain a rich, contextual understanding of essential concepts including number lines, fractions with non-common denominators, multiplication, division, rounding, percentage of numbers, applying scales, graphing comprehension, linear equations, Cartesian coordinate mapping, area of a circle, ratios, determining unknown variables, volume, complementary/supplementary angles, slope, addition/subtraction of decimals, multi-step problems and conversion of units of measure.

This program is fantastic! It is super simple to setup an account, which they have at many different levels including individual for $39 or Intervention Homeschool (up to 3 players) for $59. To me this is an extremely reasonable price for this very unique and engaging supplement to your middle school math curriculum.

This program features -

• 15-hour curriculum of core middle school math embedded in rich story
• Easy on-line set-up and administration
• Automatically tracks student progress and assignments
• Aligned with NCTM standards
• Excellent preparation for state testing (includes pre and post tests)
• Interactive learning environment with peer teaching
• Creative tool aimed at addressing emotional resistance to math
• Empower students comprehension of fundamental concepts

Some of the reasons that KM says she has been enjoying are:

• "using math in a virtual real life simulation helps me to understand why it works"
• "the graphics are great!"
• "it is really easy to use"
• "it saves my progress and tracks my scores"
• "each new level brings some new challenge or puzzle to solve"

Some things that I have noticed - both good and bad -

• Pre-test and post-test features are great to really be able to tell if they have learned new concepts by using the product or if previously covered concepts have been reinforce.
• Entertaining storyline to help keeps the wanting to work with the program
• Set-up was super easy
• Tracking of grades and progress is done automatically so you can ask your student to work on it and will know how they did from your own log in screen.
• It is possible to change the student information so that if you have more than one child you could purchase the individual program and they could either work through it together or once one child has completed it - as it is only a 15 hour curriculum - another child could restart it, as you have access to the program for one full year
• When using it on different computers it takes a VERY long time to load. This is not a big deal when we are at home, but when we are out and about and she wants to play it on the laptop it can be a bit annoying

Here are some screen shots -

I am very excited about the direction of this program and am hopeful that we will see more things to come of this high quality!

Now for the giveaway! Imagine Education has been generous enough to offer one lucky reader a full year individual license for this incredible math game! All you have to do is post a comment and you will be entered! Please be sure to leave an email address or blog link for me to be able to connect you through.

Also if you have a blog, mention this giveaway, come back and submit a link to the mention you will have a second chance to win! This will be limited to two entries per email address or blog link.

All comments or posts must be submitted no later than 8pm EDT on Friday 5/21 - I will announce the winner on Monday May 24th!

And the winner is....

Out of the 12 entries -




there could be only one winner-

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Thanks to all who have entered!

FIRST GIVEAWAY - EVER!!! SpellQuizzer license

I was contacted to review this product ~SpellQuizzer~ and they have also offered a license to giveaway to a very lucky lurker!

SO COME ON OUT!!!

We have slowly but surely shied away from spelling programs as KM has gotten older, but this is far better than any other off-line spelling program that I have seen! This program allows you to create your own spelling lists, record the word so that they can hear and then spell it, and enter definitions of the words to increase vocabulary. While there are pre-made spelling lists available to use, I think one of the biggest benefits for an older child would be for them to be able to set the lists up themselves, adding the typing element to it. For younger kids it would be a great way for them to practice their spelling as well as getting more familiar with the keyboard! Though I have not tried this yet, another feature that truly intrigues me is the ability to import and export lists so that homeschool families or co-op groups could share their lists instead of having to create them independently! So whether you are homeschooling, creating your own lists, using a curriculum list, going to school and using their lists this program would surely be a safe and convenient way to encourage more spelling and vocabulary practice!


Now as for the giveaway - I am new to all this so I am going to do it the old-fashioned way - leave a comment on this message by Sunday July 26th 10pm EST and you will be entered to win a license for this incredible spelling software. Then Monday 7/27 KM will draw a name out of a bowl of some sort to pick the winner! Simple enough -

GOOD LUCK!

ADDED AFTER POST--- OH YEAH! I said I was new to this, I need away to contact you as well, so either a link to your blog, email address or something of that sort would be fantastic!!
I will of course post the winner here on the 27th as well!
Thanks!