Look at these beautiful red mini Lenovo speakers!

They are Lenovo M0520 speakers on sale now for only $11.99 until May 21! The original price is $29.99 so it’s quite a deal. We need some speakers for our kitchen computer (I use it to Skype the kids and we also play cooking videos and music) because the old ones don’t work anymore. These are very small– a perfect fit for a kitchen computer or a desktop or laptop. They also make terrific mp3/mp4 player speakers because they are so small and portable. And I just love them because they are red and shiny! :D

OK, now for the tech specs: They produce a full, rich sound on 4 watts of power. The speakers have built-in amplifiers and a sub-speaker, so no tinny sounds here. They have wire spools (!) which I love– so no messy tangled wires all over the place. The Lenovo speaker set has it’s own volume control dial. They have a USB cabled connection so you don’t need to plug them into an outlet and they don’t need an endless supply of batteries. All in all, it’s a terrific deal for such a high-quality mini speaker set. They have a 1-year warranty and are “plug and play.” All you have to do is plug them in, turn up your volume. Very, very nice!

It’s a really great deal, but if you want them, you’d better hurry. They are on sale until 5/21. Check out the specs and order now. Estimated ship date is 5/25. This would also make a really nice gift for a young person, too. The speakers are beautiful. And it’s nice when you find something on sale like this.

I have a friend who lives in Tel Aviv. I actually haven’t emailed him in EONS, may I should do that, sheesh! I often think of him. Tel Aviv is kind of like the “New York City” of Israel. It’s beautifully kept, full of interesting things to see and do, and is a huge tourist destination. My friend has repeatedly invited us over to see the city (that was years ago, though). There are scads of Tel Aviv Luxury Apartments there, all available for the taking. Oh how I would LOVE to see Israel, especially Tel Aviv! The city is actually the ancient Jaffa of the Bible, where the prophet Jonah departed on his now-famous journey over (and into) the sea. Historians think Jaffa/Tel Aviv has been inhabited for over 9,500 years. WOW! Imagine the history! You could dig a hole in the backyard and probably pull up an old coin or pottery sherd!

Anyway, Luxury Real estate in Israel is hot right now. If I had the dough, I’d do it. Tel Aviv is off the Mediterranean Sea, and one of my lifelong dreams is to see that sea. And Tel Aviv is very close to so many of the other beautiful sights in Israel, just a drive’s away from many of the major cities in Israel. I’d also go see the tree planted in honor of my step-grandfather when he died in the 1980s. Many luxury apartments have three bedrooms and BEAUTIFUL views of the city and the sea. Who knows, maybe someday our family of six will show up on the doorstep of my Israelite pal, and we’ll snack on some falafel and catch up on things.

If you could buy a second home or vacation home, where would it be?

Got kids? Then you’ve got dirt! So SHOUT IT OUT!

The DIRT. Not the kids. lol

Shout® has been a round a long time, hasn’t it? I remember seeing ads for the product on TV when I was a kid, back when my mom used to SHOUT it out, too. But back then, it wasn’t just the dirt getting shouted at. Ha ha!!

Stain removal is serious business. Have you seen the cost of clothing?! It’s not like we all can go out and simply replace grass-stained jeans and chocolate-splattered t-shirts. It’s much more economical to get the stains out, but I’ll admit that some stains are really tough. And that’s why we love Shout®. It has a “triple acting formula” that grasps that grimy crud and wrests it away from the clothing fibers. It’s safe for ALL colorfast washable clothing, too, and works in cold, warm or hot water temperatures. I love how it’s so adaptable. It’s pretty much a no-brainer to use. Perfect for me!

And even better, it’s EASY to use. No pouring a messy liquid or juggling pastes or powders– Shout® has a nice new trigger-activated bottle. So you don’t only remove stains, you blast them into oblivion with each squirt! Since Shout® has been around so long, the brand is synonymous with quality as an effective stain removal. It’s become one of the staples of the laundry room: detergent, bleach, fabric softener, and Shout® stain removal.

Shout® is available at just about every grocery store in the country! I can’t imagine a store not selling it. And if you’re looking for a deal, go to the Walmart Shout® Trigger product website to get a coupon. So Shout® now only saves clothing, it saves cash, too.

And the next time your kids tumble in from the mud puddle or the “hands on” creative art class, don’t raise your voice. Raise the trigger, and Shout®  it out!

Thanks for the guest post by Kristofer Bartlett

I have been trying to plan the most romantic Valentine’s day for my boyfriend. He broke his leg playing football a couple weeks ago and has been pretty depressed about it. He won’t get to finish the season with his team and this is his senior year. I really want to do something for him to make him feel special and show him how much I love him. He isn’t really in to getting out of the house though because his leg is in a lot of pain. The doctor has given him pain medicine, but he said he doesn’t like the way that it makes him feel, so he hasn’t been taking it. So, I am planning a great night in for us to spend together. I asked him mom for his favorite recipe and I am planning on making it for him. I also plan on surprising him with a scrapbook of all of his football pictures that I made for him. I am hoping that he really loves it because I put a lot of time into it! Then I just plan on us watching something on directv anaheim and snuggling on the couch together!

I’ve done a little searching around and I have found a true gem of a website!!! I love this site!!! It’s WhyCall.Me. It’s a website where we can search the phone numbers of the calls we get, to see if these numbers are telemarketers or from real companies. I found out that one person who keeps calling me was not a telemarketer– they were from the medical office needing to make an appointment. At the WhyCall.Me website, we have a voice. We can search for numbers, leave a comment to help others know if the call is a fraud, and more. It’s a very good resource to bookmark.

WhyCall.Me also has some great resources to help you combat unwanted calls. Some of them are pretty humorous. I love the Top 14 Ways to Annoy a Telemarketer (only 14, huh? lol). I especially like #7 and #9.

There’s also information on current known scams, how to file complaints with the governing authorities, how to deal with harassing calls and SMS spam (a VERY good article), how to report phone numbers and how to get “reverse phone number” information. I am now the “official” spam and telemarketing expert in the family, believe me! I highly recommend this site.

It’s time to FIGHT BACK against the onslaught of unwanted calls and texts. I have had enough!!!! How about you?

Flooding does much more than dump tons of water on your property, I have found out. It spreads seeds from uphill, depositing zillions of weeds into the yard. It fills low areas of the lawn and garden with heavy, mucky silt. It basically wrecks the yard. I used to have such a beautiful yard and garden, but after a half dozen floods wiping out my yard in the past 6 years, my yard is now a disaster. I have some heavy-duty rehabilitation to do. My soil is heavy clay (common in water-logged areas) so that makes gardening even more challenging.

There’s a new garden product for folks like me who have poor soil. This stuff looks really good. It’s called Expand ‘n Gro™, from the Miracle-Gro® folks. It’s a concentrated plant soil amendment mix made from coir. Coir is the stuff from coconuts, that fiber, hairy husk. In the past, the short hairs of the husk were thrown away as an unimportant by-product from coconut harvesting, but now they hairs are being recycled. They are perfect for amending the soil.

The Miracle-Gro® Expand ‘n Gro™ mix expands to about three times in size when water is added. The material improves soil by retaining about 50% more moisture than those conventional potting soils AND makes the soil lighter and flufflier. It’s basically perfect for clay soils. With Expand ‘n Gro™, plant roots can expand more readily and obtain water and nutrients more efficiently. Additionally, the added plant nutrients feed plants for up to six months.

Go to the Miracle-Gro® Expand ‘n Gro™ website to get a free coupon for this product. It’s just in time for spring planting!

Did you know that May is National Mobility Awareness Month? I had no idea until now! The month is set aside to show all people, disabled or not, that people with disabilities and mobility problems can live a very active, healthy, fulfilling life. Ever hear on Joni Erickson Tada? I saw a film about her when I was a girl, and I always recall her story when I think of this topic. As a young teenager, she went diving in a shallow body of water. Her head hit a rock and her neck snapped. She was paralyzed from the neck down. She didn’t give up on life, however. Even though she was confined to a wheelchair, Joni was determined to keep moving. She even learned to paint using her teeth! She is such a shining example of courage and determination.

Maybe you know someone who is disabled or you have mobility problems yourself. This is your chance to shine or to shine some light on others. The National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association (NMEDA), Chrysler, Toyota, BraunAbility, and other companies are teaming up to celebrate National Mobility Awareness Month. Submit your story or the story of a “local hero” who doesn’t let their mobility issue keep them from living a wonderful life, and you or your candidate can win a new, customized wheelchair accessible vehicle as well as rub elbows with a few famous TV personalities.   And who knows, your story may deeply inspire another. Check it out!

I’m a computer monitor FREAK. Some people obsess over their floors, others over their clothing. Me, I am a monitor NUT. I suppose it’s because a large chunk of my day, every day, is spent staring at the 23-inch screen on my desk. I work here, I teach the kids here, I play games and blog here. So several years ago, after suffering eye strain from lousy monitors, I decided to buy ONLY the best. And I’ve always got my eyes on monitor technology. Enter Lenovo ThinkVision. This is pretty neat! See how slim it is.

It’s marketed as a portable monitor. It’s sleek 14 inches, 2 pounds, comes with a case, and is made of durable materials for carting around. It’s USB-powered, which means there’s no frustrating power cord to pack up and carry around. Sweet! This is perfect for the business person, both as an extra monitor for improved productivity or as a great way to share stuff with clients (spreadsheets, presentations, etc). No more need for a big projector or being squeezed between clients as they squint at your tiny laptop screen. Very nice.

I also see this as a terrific addition to a homeschool. When the kids and I work on projects or papers together, we often have to shuffle our chairs closely to work together on the computer. The ThinkVision creates a very nice additional tool for kids to see what your doing. It also saves you from having to buy another computer JUST to share a screen with the other students.

The monitor is extremely reasonably priced (retail right now is only $199). If you are interested, you can get 10% off with a coupon code from Lenovo:

Code: LENOVOMONITOR10
Dates: 3/1/12 – 3/31/12
Discount: 10% off
Part number: 1452DS6

Check it out. Very nice!

In case you haven’t heard, Clipix is a little tool that you use to save all the cool stuff you find online. Let’s say you are surfing the web and see an awesome deal at your favorite store. Click the little Clipix button on the browser to save it to Clipix. And let’s say that later, while reading my blog, you find an awesome story you want to share with all your pals– again, just click the Clipix button. Oh, and let’s say your pal on Facebook mentions a great deal on train tickets or a hotel or a pair of shoes you’ve been looking for– click Clipix! Later, just go to your Clipix account and VOILA! There everything is!

The dudes from Clipix made a video that shows all the things you can do with Clipix.

Here’s a sneak peek of one of my Clipix boards. Isn’t it pretty?

So far, I’m using to store stuff like vacation ideas, gift ideas, books I want to read, and cool videos and photos I find on Facebook for reposting here on the blog. It’s been a real godsend because it allows me to save everything I like and access it later from other computers.

One of the best parts about Clipx is that there’s an APP FOR THAT! Woohooo! So now I can access all the stuff I like from my phone. Very, very cool. I am liking Clipix more and more. It’s a great time saver and it also helps me remember things I would otherwise forget or have to look for all over again.

I highly recommend Clipix. Go check it out for yourself. What will your Clipix board look like?

Promoted Post

You can find ANYTHING on the Internet, anything. Some stuff is great, others are junk on par with the snake oil of the 19th century. Mobility equipment is one of them. There’s a lot of stuff out there “guaranteed” and “certified,” but is it really? How do you know that the wheelchair or scooter or handicap van is truly a high-quality product that will provide years of comfort and function?

There’s really only one way to know for sure: Check with NMEDA. NMEDA, the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association, is a non-profit trade association. They don’t sell equipment, they help the consumer choose the best equipment. NMEDA maintains a list of high-quality, customer-friendly, authorized dealers in mobility equipment. All members are required by NMEDA to meet or exceed safety standards set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. So think of NMEDA as a kind of consumer education group.

Additionally, NMEDA also maintains the Quality Assurance Program (QAP). This program, recognized nationally for providing exceptional quality to consumers, connects customers with the highest quality and ethical manufacturers and dealers in the mobility business. The standards are stringent! No snake oil dealers here!

Purchasing mobility equipment takes careful consideration. There is no “one size fits all” product when it comes to disability vehicles and mobility equipment. Everyone is treated as an individual with the highest quality care. If you are looking for quality products, check out the NMEDA website and search for a dealer near you. Where is your closest dealer?