Amy Grant Tennessee Christmas CD Review and Giveaway #TennesseeChristmas #FlyBy

Amy Grant is one of the most well known and cherished songwriters in Christian music. Tennessee Christmas is her first all new Christmas album in nearly 20 years. This album features an updated recording of the Amy Grant Christmas standard, Tennessee Christmas, 6 new songs and the traditional Christmas favorites: Baby, It's Cold Outside, O Come All Ye Faithful, & Joy To The World. This album wasn't recorded in a big music studio. Instead it was recorded in Amy's Nashville Tennessee home. Her husband and country singer, Vince Gill, sings with her in Baby, It’s Cold Outside. This brand new album shares Amy's classic vocals with a more intimate, mellow feel. Some of the songs are also mixed with personal stories and Amy's memories from the holidays. The liner notes inside the CD case have some fun family photos and each songs lyrics as well.

I have been to Tennessee, but only briefly. I know they have some gorgeous scenery and beautiful Smoky Mountains. It is also the birthplace of country music and where Elvis grew up. I pray now for the people in Gatlinburg, Tennessee where wildfires are burning homes, businesses and parts of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I hope that those affected can stay positive through this trial. I also hope these people stay safe and even in the midst of heartache and loss can rebuild when the fires are finally put out. Let's all pray for them.

This album is a lovely medley of Christmas music. Amy has personalized the music with her thoughts, and to some, like me, it sounds like a cheesy Christmas card. It feels a little too sentimental and a bit sappy for my taste, but that is just me. I know she meant well, but these thoughts would have been better in the liner notes. I do love the songs and the feel to this new CD of Amy Grant's, however; I also wish there were more songs about the Savior's birth. My favorite songs on this Album are To Be Together, Tennessee Christmas, and Joy To The World.

Track Listing:

1. Tennessee Christmas (4:27)
2. To Be Together (4:10)
3. Christmas For You And Me (3:03)
4. Melancholy Christmas (3:02)
5. December (3:29)
6. White Christmas (2:23)
7. Joy To The World (3:08)
8. I’ve Got My Love To Keep Me Warm (3:24)
9. Baby, It’s Cold Outside [feat. Vince Gill] (3:14)
10. Christmas Don’t Be Late (3:16)
11. Still Can’t Sleep (3:11)
12. Another Merry Christmas (2:22)
13. O Come, All Ye Faithful (3:07)

Album length: 13 tracks: 42 minutes, 16 seconds

Social Corner
Want to be on a video with Amy?? Amy is asking fans to upload any videos they may have of them surprising loved ones for the holidays to social media. Post these to socials using the hashtag #TNChristmasSurprise! Those chosen will be part of a compilation video that Amy herself will share on her large social media outlets! Check out this video to see an example of what they are looking for.

“To Be Together” Audio:


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iTunes Buy-link: http://smarturl.it/TNChristmasAlbum?IQid=flyby

WIN IT
Prize: Win a copy of the Amy Grant Tennessee Christmas CD {US Only}.

I run giveaways with Rafflecopter on my blog. Please click on this post link if you do not see the script for it below. Also, if there is anything that is wrong with it let me know by emailing me: finamoon AT gmail DOT com I will try my best at fixing it. Thanks for being awesome readers!

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DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER:  (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any other compensation for posting this blog review and giveaway. Affiliate links can be found in this post. Thank you for your support of this blog!

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

Oregon Zoo ZooLights 4 Tickets Giveaway #zoolightspdx

I have a fun giveaway for my local readers! The Oregon Zoo has provided me with 4 tickets for one of my local readers to visit the Oregon Zoo's annual winter festival, ZooLights, with their family!!

The ZooLights at the Oregon Zoo opens at 5:00 pm nightly from November 25th through January 1st (with the exception of Dec. 24th and 25th!), and runs until 8 or 9 pm, depending on the day. This year, ZooLights visitors will receive reduced admission on Mondays through Thursdays through December 15 (although these value nights end at 8pm instead of 9pm.

ZooLights at the Oregon Zoo. © Oregon Zoo / photo by Michael Durham.

This event is a lot of fun and features some really cool light displays for the holiday and winter season. The Zoo is transformed into a fantastic winter wonderland of over a million and a half twinkling lights. You can walk through about 95% of the ZooLights. Don't forget to bring your camera to capture this experience!

They also have a great train ride that goes through the park so you can see light displays that you would not be able to see otherwise. Trains begin running at 4:45 pm and tickets for the ride are $3.50 for members and $4 for all others per person.

Penguins in lights reflected in a fountain during ZooLights at the Oregon Zoo.

Besides your camera, don't forget to bundle up and dress warmly. I would recommend bringing: clothing with layers, warm coats/jackets, gloves/mittens, hats, scarves, thick insulated socks, and comfortable boots/shoes. I am going to be bringing my favorite reusable hand warmers and an umbrella in case it rains the next time I go with my family! You can purchase food, snacks, and drink while you are there and they have hot chocolate to warm you up as well!

ZooLights Admission

• Members: Free
• Adults (12–64): $14.95, $9.95 on value nights
• Seniors (65 and up): $12.95, $7.95 on value nights
• Children (3–11): $9.95, $4.95 on value nights
• 2 and under: Free

Train Admission

• Members: an additional $3.50 per person
• Others: an additional $4 per person

Schedule

• Monday through Thursday through Dec. 15th: gates open 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
• All other nights from Nov. 25th through Jan.1st: gates open 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
• Grounds remain open an hour after gates close.
• Closed on December 24, and 25.

Please see my other posts on the Oregon Zoo.We loved going to the ZooLights in 2012 and hope to go again soon!

WIN IT
Prize: Win 4 Oregon Zoo ZooLights Tickets. (please don't enter unless you know you will be able to go)

Winner will be notified via Crystal of Eccentric Eclectic Woman. Upon confirmation, tickets will be placed in will call at the zoo under the winner’s name. Tickets are valid for one-time use from completion of contest through the last night of ZooLights (January 1, 2017). Value of four tickets is $59.80.

I run giveaways with Rafflecopter on my blog. Please click on this post link if you do not see the script for it below. Also, if there is anything that is wrong with it let me know by emailing me: finamoon AT gmail DOT com I will try my best at fixing it. Thanks for being awesome readers!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER: I have been given an opportunity to giveaway 4 free tickets to the Oregon Zoo ZooLights. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any other compensation for doing this post.

#LIGHTtheWORLD In 25 Ways Over 25 Days Advent Calendar

“During Christmas, we are reminded that Jesus Christ is the light of the world. This year, we have an amazing opportunity to share that light by resolving to do the things Jesus Christ did. Every day leading up to Christmas, we will focus on a different Christ-like behavior and provide suggestions for ways we can emulate His example....” mormon.org

The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter Day Saints has provided each of us a way to #LIGHTtheWORLD from December 1st through Christmas Day. The Worldwide Day of Service is on December 1st and kicks off this Advent Calendar. For the Worldwide Day of Service people were given the opportunity to "serve anyone you want, any way you want" and "find a way to serve others as Jesus did". Just like this Christ-like day, each day following in the advent calendar has a theme and follows with suggestions of different ways you can get involved with small, but meaningful acts of service.

“When people think of Christmas, they often think of lights,” said Bruce Muir, director of emergency response for the Church. “Christmas lights, lighted store windows, tree lights. Christ taught ‘Ye are the light of the world,” and we hope that through small and simple acts of service, we can spread the light of Christ—helping others to feel the love of the Savior through genuine kindness.”

This Advent Calendar helps us get into the Christmas spirit and follow Christ's example this holiday season as we go about our busy daily lives. Just one act of kindness each day can make someones day or brighten their future. You can also see each video that goes with the theme as it posts each day. Videos and printables, including the advent calendar, are available in multiple languages so people from all over the globe can participate. Go download the advent calendar today!

BE SOCIAL
Please visit mormon.org for more information.
Fan on Facebook
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Also, here are some fabulous FREE printable kits to help you too.

DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER: I wrote this post to let my readers know about this opportunity of service. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else.

Learning Resources STEM Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set Review #learningresources

Learning Resources STEM Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set is a fun toy that teaches sequencing, coding, and programming. This toy challenges players to sharpen their analytical thinking, critical thinking, logical thinking, and problem solving skills. For ages 5 and up and grades Kindergarten and up.

STEM

• Science: exploring the science of coding and programming with hands-on activities!
• Technology: building and using tools for amazing discoveries!
• Engineering: designing solutions for real-world problems!
• Math: measuring, recording, and comparing data to draw conclusions!

83 Piece Set Includes:

• 1 Robot mouse named Colby: has a switch on the bottom with 3 positions (off and two speeds: normal to use on plastic maze base grid pieces and hyper for use on carpet and other more uneven surfaces). Colorful buttons on top make him do things in the order they are pressed and are: forward (blue arrow that points towards his nose, makes him move forward 5"), rotate right (purple arrow that points right when he is facing away from you, makes Colby rotate right 90 degrees), reverse (yellow arrow that points towards his tail end, makes him move backward 5"), rotate left (orange arrow that points left when he is facing away from you, makes Colby rotate left 90 degrees), action (red circle that makes him either: move forward and back, squeak loudly, or chirp 3 times with lit up eyes), clear (yellow circle clears all coding if you make a mistake or want to do another sequence, has confirmation tone), go (green circle that is the last command to be pressed when the sequence (up to 40 steps) is completed and Colby is set down on the maze). Takes 3 AAA batteries, not included.
• 16 Plastic maze base grid pieces: connect together to form a larger board or any configuration that goes together.
• 22 Plastic maze walls: to be placed around the grids in the crevices so that the mouse can go through the maze to get to the cheese.
• 3 Plastic tunnels: can be placed on the grid or surface for the mouse to go under and through.
• 1 Plastic cheese wedge: to be placed at the end of the maze for the mouse to find. This is magnetic and sticks to the mouses nose when touched by it.
• 30 Double-sided coding cards: have one side with just the arrow and the other side with the mouse and the arrow. These help you plot and track the mouse's path and order in which the code needs to be pressed on Colby for him to get to the cheese in the maze.
• 10 Double-sided activity cards: help you build the mazes from pictures on the cards. These are made in order of difficulty, 1 being the easiest and 20 being the hardest.
• 1 Multilingual activity guide: is instructions and directions for how to play.

How To Play:

1. Pick an activity card with one of the challenge mazes.
2. Build your maze from the picture on the card or just build your own: by connecting the maze grid pieces together and adding the walls, tunnels, and cheese.
3. Use either side of the coding cards to create a step-by-step path for Colby to find the cheese.
4. Program the sequence of steps with the buttons on the mouse.
5. Set Colby down where he is suppose to start in the maze, press go, and watch Colby race to find the cheese.

Teela and Zari playing with the Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set.

What We Thought:
My daughters who are 6 and 8 tried out the Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set. This is a neat toy. It teaches some very important skills and I love that it is educational and that my girls enjoyed it so much. We love bringing this toy out for when we need a break from book work during homeschooling. The girls liked making their own mazes and figuring out what code to program into Colby, the mouse. They also thought that it was funny that the mouse made little sounds occasionally and loved that you could program an action into it to make the mouse do random things. Someday we'd love to get the purple mouse, Jack, that is sold separately, so we can have even more fun with this set and race the two!

The Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set is fun and educational! I recommend it to people that love games, puzzles, and educational toys! This is also a great addition to any homeschool environment. It is a great family centered toy and wonderful to teach and improve STEM and mental skills.

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DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER: I received this product for free to facilitate this review. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any other compensation for doing this review. Affiliate links can be found in this post. Thank you for your support of this blog!