...Featuring Norah Jones :: Album Review

I have been given the opportunity through One2One Network to review Norah Jones' new album. ...Featuring.  I have long been in love with the vocal stylings of Ms. Jones and was eager to listen to her newest creation.

When I saw that it was duets, I immediately envisioned a CD full of her songs I already knew with other people singing with her.  I was pleasantly surprised however to find that they were songs I really didn't know, and was introduced to several new artists as well.

...Featuring is a star-studded collection of Norah Jones' collaborations spanning her entire career.  The result serves as a kind of parallel history to her four albums, which have sold over 40 million copies worldwide.

“A lot of the people on this record are people I've worshiped since I was a kid, and some of them are younger and more my contemporaries,” says Norah. “Even though the musicians are so varied, the vibe of the songs makes sense when we put them all together.”  

 While I love most of this CD, there are a few songs that aren't my favorite and will be removed from my playlist.  I am not a fan of Rap music at all, so I was not impressed with the songs featuring OutKast, Q-Tip and Talib Kweli.  But, with 18 songs on the CD, there really is something for everyone.

This CD is the perfect gift for the Norah Jones fan.  Check it out on YouTube, and Facebook. After you do that, I am sure you will want to go buy it and you really should.

*I received this CD from The One2One Network, but all words, opinions and sentiments are mine.

Best of Fest Winner!!!

And the winner is.....

#25, Jana!  Congrats Jana.  Email me with your address and which set you want and I will let the folks at Best of Fest know!

Thanks everyone for entering. 

Best of Fest :: Review and Giveaway

In May, I was contacted by Best of Fest and asked if I wanted to review the family and kids packs of DVD's.  I had no idea what Best of Fest was, so I did a little research.

Their tag line is: The Best Films You've Never Seen.

Every year there are hundreds of independent films made.  We see only a fraction of the films made come to the theaters.

Best of Fest takes the very best films shown at film festivals and puts them together into DVD sets for us!

I have deliberately waited a bit before doing this review for 1 reason.  My kids get really excited about new movies and then within a couple of weeks the newness wears off and they move on to something else.  I wanted to see what the staying power of these movies were.

Seth had to grow his hair out this summer so he could look like the boy in For All the Marbles (that movie also started a new craze of marble playing in my house).  Seth also decided he needed to have a poncho, mask, holster and cowboy hat like Tommy the Kid and would ride his bike around the neighborhood on the lookout for danger and unsightly hooligans.

Amelia pretends to be Ruby, or one of the girls from the Frog movie.

They love these movies and ask again and again to watch them.  I don't mind letting them either.  Every film shows initiative and makes the kids think.  There is a lesson to learn, a story to tell, and lots of laughs.

I love that these are not the typical cartoons or kid dramas that we see in the theater.  It is something new, something fresh, something to get my kids imaginations going and I adore that.

The great folks at Best of Fest want to give one of my lucky readers a box set of their choice!!!

What you need to do to enter...

1. Comment here (obviously) but tell me which set you'd want to win.
2. Tweet about the contest and include me @prairiemama and @bestoffest in your tweet
3. Comment about it on facebook.
4. Blog about it.
5. Follow Best of Fest on Twitter - @bestoffest
6. Follow Best of Fest on Facebook 

Please be sure to leave a comment for each item you complete.

That's it!  Tell your friends, enter to win and good luck!!!

Contest will end on Wednesday, September 22, 2010 at 9 PM MST.

Tiny Prints Review

Never in a million years would I have thought that as a blogger I would need business cards.  I mean seriously?  This isn't a business, it's a hobby.  For some people I could  see the need, but not me.

Well, last year when I went to Blogher, I was shocked at how many business cards I came home with.  I was glad that I had some with me, but I was not prepared at all for the mass quantities that I needed.

This year, I have 3 Conferences that I am (have) attending; Casual Blogger Conference, Blogher and Type A Mom. With these three conferences, plus an evening at EVO, I knew I needed to be prepared.

When Tiny Prints approached me about doing a review, I was over the moon.  I knew their work.  I had seen my friends and fellow bloggers not only get business and Mommy cards from them, but Holiday cards and Baby Announcements had also graced my mailbox.

I was able to go to their website and check out all the different designs for business cards.  I loved the design process.  It was easy and fun.  Being able to personalize my cards to reflect my personality was awesome!!!

I ordered 2 different designs for conferences...

And 1 for my Etsy Business

I love my Etsy cards, they have my Prairie Mama logo on the back.  With lots of colors and designs to choose from, it was pretty easy to find something that really fit my personality.

Go check them out and have fun designing your cards.  The prices are so affordable and the quality is amazing.  I have gotten cards from places that offered free cards, and the quality between those and these is astounding.

So, weather you want Mommy Cards, Business Cards, Greeting Cards, Holiday Cards, or Baby Announcements, Tiny Prints is the place for you!!  Go check them out today!

*I was given $150 worth of business cards for writing this review, however the words and sentiments are all mine and true.

Sarah McLachlan: Laws of Illusion

In 1995 I was a Freshman in College.  I was living an hour away from home and loved my independence.  That year I was introduced to a lot of things, but the one that has stuck with me to this day is Sarah McLachlan. 


My best friend was up visiting for a weekend and put in her very used tape of  Fumbling Toward Ecstasy and I was hooked.  I have been a fan ever since.


When I heard that Sarah had a new album coming out I was thrilled.  Laws of Illusion is her first studio album of new material in 7 years.


I was given the opportunity to get a copy of this CD before it was released and let me tell you, I was am not disappointed!  My children and I listen to this CD while making dinner and they love dancing to her.


In typical Sarah fashion, there are haunting melodies, beautiful harmonies and each song tells a story.


Sarah is co-founder of Lilith Fair and is touring this summer with this amazing group of women.  They will be in my area in July and I am doing what I can to score tickets, because really, I don't want to miss such an amazing opportunity to hear fabulous musicians.  From 1997-1999, Lilith Fair was one of the highest grossing touring festivals in the world, with over 2 million fans in attendance and raising over $10 million dollars for national and local women's charities.  I love getting behind something that supports women, and this does just that.

So, you want to get the album?  Well you should.  Don't take my word for it though, go check out previews of the songs.  You won't be disappointed.

**Thanks to One2One Network for sending me this CD and giving me this opportunity.  They gave me the CD and I have a chance of winning a gift card, but the words are all mine, blah blah blah :)

Birthday Winner!

According to Random.org the lucky winner of cake and frosting is....

#6

Jingle said...

I would like to make the Flower Cupcakes! They are so cute!

May 19, 2010 9:50 AM  

Email me with your name, address and phone number and I will pass it along to the powers that be!

Congrats!!

Firehouse Winner!!!

Oh my goodness friends, I am SO sorry I haven't chosen a winner until today!  I was so busy this week it wasn't even funny!  It wasn't until I was sitting at dinner after the Casual Blogger Conference was over and my dear Ryley asked if I had chosen a winner that I realized that I hadn't done it yet!  EEK!

So...drumroll please......the winner is......random number 16

Kathleen!!!

tinystitches said...

Ahhh, sweet friend! The 3yo would go crazy with the book and the playset. Hard to know which he'd go crazy for more. Have you read Cook-A-Doodle-Doo? Fantastic book. Bear Snores On the books in that little series are also big favorites around these parts.

May 17, 2010 11:02 AM

Email me with your address and I will forward the info on to the great folks at Scholastic.  Thank you everyone for entering and good luck next time!

Oh! And go over to enter to win the birthday giveaway!!