Category Archives: Reviews

Interview & Giveaway: Liberty by Annie Laurie Cechini

Written on January 13, 2013 by Simply Heidi in Books, Reviews, Special Giveaways

A STOLEN VIAL
Eternigen is the miracle drug that allows humans to travel in deep space. Seventeen-year-old space captain Tabitha “Dix” Dixon has the only vial of Eternigen in existence.

A RELENTLESS ENEMY
Eira Ninge always gets what she wants. She wants the Eternigen, and she’ll do anything—and kill anyone—to get it.

A DEADLY CURSE
Since Dix stole the vial, everyone she loves seems fated to die. When young resistance messenger Jordan Berrett steals her heart, she has to decide if it’s worth risking his life to let him get close. When Dix is involved, even falling in love can turn deadly.

A CHANCE FOR FREEDOM
If Dix can get her hands on more Eternigen, she and her crew can escape the solar system, leaving her dark past behind. But getting the Eternigen won’t be easy, and the bodies keep piling up. In the end, the cost of freedom may be too high.

As one of Annie’s critique partners, I’ve been lucky enough to to see Dix and her world evolve from an early version and I have to tell you: This story is so much fun.
It’s a Firefly-esque adventure for the YA crowd, with a tough and sassy female protagonist and a great cast of supporting characters. I love that Liberty is not your typical girl-blows-up-her-spaceship-and-is-rescued-by-a-cute-boy story. There is certainly romance, but it gladly takes a backseat (no pun intended) to all the action.

Available February 1st from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and your local bookstore.

Interview with Liberty’s Author, Annie Laurie Cechini

I love Liberty. Congratulations and good job! Dix has such a great, distinctive voice. Did she come to you all at once, or did she evolve in the writing?

Well thank you! You know, her voice and personality was always there from the very beginning, but the choices that she makes evolved and changed over the course of drafts and revisions, and I think her character has more depth now than when I started. I think.

I know that the setting certainly evolved as you wrote. You posted sketches on your blog of an early version of Dix standing at the wheel of her ship. It has a very steampunk, Jules Verne vibe. How did Liberty’s world and setting change?

Oh gosh, I only really had the image of her ship, and Berrett’s rocket pack when I started out, so it changed a LOT. In fact, my editor kept saying, “WORLD. BUILDING. And also, fewer all caps.” No lie. I really had to think about the kind of world I wanted Dix to inhabit, and how that would impact her choices and her story. Doing that, and then writing about that in a way that would feel like an effortless part of the story was my biggest struggle with Liberty.

Freedom and family are big themes in your book. Would you say they are central themes in your life as well?

They are my life. There is nothing in the world I personally value more. Aside from, possibly, Nutella.

Liberty is populated by some really fun characters. I think my favorite (next to Dix, of course) is CiCi. Who was the most fun to write?

DUDE. Tough question! Um…I’m going to say it’s a toss up between Hobs and CiCi.

Flark! You came up with some great new psuedo-swears in Liberty. Can you tell us a bit more about that? Do you find them creeping in to your own speech?

I haven’t started using my own swear words yet, but my friends and family have started using them, which I find incredibly weird and surreal. I grew up around very intelligent, extroverted family and they made up words and stories all the time, so creating random pseudo-swears was fun. I felt Dix was the kind of character who would readily use swear words, but I didn’t want to alienate part of my audience. Flark and skud seemed like a good compromise.

lint licker

Can you share a little about your writing process?

Hmm, how honest do you want me to be, here? Because if I’m being really honest, it takes me most of the morning to overcome the I CAN’T DO IT resistance. And then I sit down at my desk with my cup of hot chocolate and a blanket and a space heater (why oh why did I ever leave California?) and then I stare at the screen, and play with my phone (read: TWITTER!). And then I get my playlist going, and eventually I start trying to tackle a scene or two. Once I get going, I can crank out the words pretty fast, and I love having a draft to fiddle with and revise. It’s just getting that draft that slays me. Every. Single. Time. Bribery and SUPER awesome fellow writers sprinting with me helps me stay motivated when I want to be all like: INTERNET. FOREVER.

What does a typical day in the life of Author Annie look like?

Oh my. Lots of writing, revising, pacing, praying, more revising, trying to think up clever jokes to wow my friends with on social media, the occasional meltdown over whether or not I’m a lousy writer…the usual. It’s surprising to discover the kinds of mind games I have to use on myself to weasel out a fun story. I do spend a part of every day telling my inner critic to stuff it until the first draft is done, and sometimes I go for walks to try and work out kinks in the plot or dialogue. I may or may not be seen mumbling to myself as I walk along fixing said plot or dialogue. There is a very good reason why people think writers are crazy. Hint: WE ARE.

If Liberty were to be made into a movie, who would be your dream cast?

Wow. You know, I’ve never actually thought about this. I would love to have Charlize Theron play Eira.

I will say this, I would want actual teenagers playing the parts of the kids, none of this hi-I’m-really-in-my-twenties nonsense. Not that I’m opinionated on the subject or anything.

Is there anything else you would like us to know?

GEESE ARE EVIL.

(You asked. People should know. Parks should come with warning signs: Here resides the Spawn of Evil. Do not throw bread crumbs or they will attack your children and scar them for ALL ETERNITY).

Also, Liberty comes out February 1st. There may be laser tag. Thanks for checking it out! And thanks for the interview, Heidi!

Liberty Giveaway

Note: The giveaway is now closed. Congratulations Marian! You are going to love it.

Want to win your own ebook copy? All you have to do in answer the following question in the comments:

What is your favorite constellation?

I’ll choose a winner at random next Monday, January 21st.

Annie Laurie Cechini is a connoisseur of every type of geekery. She signs books with a sonic screwdriver, owns a Tribble named Nimoy, and often threatens in all seriousness to name a child after a character from the Star Wars lexicon. Her first novel, LIBERTY, will be released through Rhemalda Publishing on February 1st, 2013. Annie also co-authored and produced CHRISTMAS WISHES, an anthology that benefits the family of murder victim Sam LaCara.

Connect with Annie on her blog, Twitter, and Facebook.

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P.S. I just heard from Annie’s publisher that the ebook of Liberty is available early. If you don’t win it, head over to Amazon or Barnes and Noble to pick up a copy or pre-order it in print.

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Heidi Homeschools: Chores (Again!)

Written on January 4, 2012 by Simply Heidi in Reviews

Good morning everyone. I hope you had a good night’s sleep.
Yes, you there. You in the back – did you have a question?
Heidi, what in the world does doing chores have to do with homeschooling?
Good question. The answer, I suppose, has to do with your views on homeschooling and parenting, as well as how much beauty you find in vacuum lines. For our family, chores are an important part of the educational process. Learning to stick with a task, ~~even when~~ especially when it feels tedious, and complete it with excellency is a very important skill to develop. And one that will certainly come in handy in school.
Plus, I love vacuum lines.
But Heidi, haven’t you covered all this before?
Yup. But even great chore systems become stagnant after awhile. Change can be very motivating. And here we are, in a brand new year, the holidays behind us. We’re ready for some change.
When it comes to chores, our little clipboard system has been pretty successful, but sadly, it is no longer all that motivating. In fact, the clipboards haven’t even left their hooks since before the great flood. It’s time to shake things up a bit.
The people behind Goal for It, an online chore chart, couldn’t have had better timing when they asked me to check them out and offer my opinion.
Well folks, check out the chore chart I did. (When I reread that sentence, my inner voice sounded a lot like Yoda, but strange like that, I am).
As for my opinion? I like it.
Here’s why.
1. The site is simple to use. I can easily pick what type of chart I want (for myself, a young child, or a tween/teen). Then I simply choose goals/chores from their menu or create my own.
2. It goes beyond the typical. Here is a screenshot I took while creating Newt’s chart.

On the left is a menu with items to add. I have it open to the section listing usual household chores. But if you look above that, you’ll see drop down menus for Health (Example: Eat More Veggies), Traits (Be Patient), and Fulfillment (Nurture Faith). I love that there is motivation to set goals beyond Pick Up Your Socks.
Sidenote: I’ve decided to use this in conjunction with our clipboards. I added Manage To Do List to Newt’s chart. Her clipboard will hold that information.
2 1/2. (I think I like this one.) I have the option to assign points to each item on the chart and create rewards that the points can be redeemed for. When the items are complete, Newt can check them off on her chart and Goal For It will place her points in a bank until she is ready to cash in.

I’m not crazy about external rewards for chores. However, I have kept the points low and the rewards simple, so we’ll see how it goes. If I find that I don’t like it, I can remove all points and awards and not use that part of the program.
3. You don’t have to do it all online. I have printed copies of our charts (of course, I made one for myself). Every few days, when convenient, we’ll log on and update the online version. If I had to remember to to do it every day, ~~I’d get distracted by facebook or pinterest and~~ it just wouldn’t happen.
4. Newt seems to like the system too. She added plenty of input as to the things she would like on her chart (like Study and Think Positive. I was happy to see that she was all fired up to try it out, starting Monday (because she is a starting Monday kind of gal). Sadly, Monday was the day that she was hit with that yucky stomach bug. (I guess she’ll have to be a starting Wednesday kind of gal this week.)
If her excitement over her chart is any indication, I think it will be a success.
Until it’s not anymore, and we have to change things up again…
Let’s hope that’s not for a good, long time.
And also that I get to see some vacuum lines around here more often.

This post has been sponsored by Goal For It. All text and opinions are my own.

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Gift Idea: Easy Canvas Prints {and a Giveaway}

Written on December 6, 2011 by Simply Heidi in Reviews

I love this time of year for oh so many reasons. Not least of all is the parade of packages that get delivered from Thanksgiving on. I do most of my shopping online, so we tend to get a lot of things delivered. Even though they are not usually for me, I still get a thrill every time I see big brown drive up.
Last week something extra special arrived – extra special because it was for me! Hurray!

Easy Canvas Prints asked me to review one of their photos on canvas and I said, “yes please”. I have been wanting to have this picture of Newt printed on canvas anyway. I added the quote in picnik and love how it turned out.

Easy Canvas Prints makes it easy to design your canvas. You can upload images from your computer or albums on facebook. They offer three different options for edging your photo: the image can wrap around the frame, have a mirror image edge or a solid color of your choosing. I went with a black edge.

Though not exactly razor sharp, the edge is still fairly clean. If you are picky about that sort of thing, I’d suggest going with one of the other options. They aren’t likely to show any slight edge imperfections.

Last year, I bought a canvas from another company. I really like them both. However, I did notice a couple of differences between the companies. My Easy Canvas Print‘s canvas is heavier; it seems more solidly put together. It also came with a bracket for hanging on the wall; my other one did not.
I’m happy to recommend this company. A photo on canvas could be a great holiday gift for someone on your list. Or even better: for yourself.
Giveaway Time
I have three $10 Easy Canvas Prints gift cards for one of you. Simply comment to enter. No flaming hoops of death or facebook likes required (though if you do like Easy Canvas Prints on facebook, you’ll get 50% off your next order, so you might want to think about doing that). I’ll choose a winner on Friday sometime and drop them in the mail as soon as the winner confirms his/her address.
Good luck!

Disclaimer: This has been a sponsored post by Easy Canvas Prints. In exchange for this review, they gave me a free 11×14 canvas print. All text and opinions are my own.

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Educational Gift Idea: ThinkSmart River Crossing

Written on November 7, 2011 by Simply Heidi in Homeschooling, Reviews

Yesterday afternoon, my family found ourselves on the wrong side of a snake and alligator infested river. There was no bridge, but there were stumps sticking up out of the water. Unfortunately, they were too far apart to attempt jumping, but we had some planks of various lengths that we could use to connect the stumps and cross, if we could just figure out how…

ThinkFun River Crossing is one of our favorite games. Solving the puzzles is great for encouraging strategic thinking, planning ahead and thinking visually, but who cares about all that? We like it becasue it’s super fun.
The game comes with a deck of 40 puzzle cards, from easy to expert. You lay the card on its platform and place the stumps and planks where indicated.

The hiker moves by walking along a plank to get to a stump. He can’t jump; when he reaches a gap, he has to go back, pick up a plank and move it. This is made easy by the magnet in his boots.

The hiker keeps moving planks around until he reaches the other side of the river.

Hurray! He made it!

Don’t look so smug, little plastic hiker-man. That was an easy one. This one was much harder:

Sometimes the hiker has to abandon a plank somewhere and hope that he will be able to pick it up later. Sometimes, he has to make several moves just to get a plank out of his way. If you really get stuck trying to help him cross, check the booklet for the answer:

You just need to solve the code first.
So far, we have only broken down and used the answer booklet once. The cards are plenty challenging, but we prefer to try to solve them on our own, even if we have to stop and start over multiple times. Eventually we get our little man to safety.
Added bonus: when we are done playing all the pieces go in (and stay in) a drawstring storage bag until next time.

ThinkFun River Crossing is recommended for ages 8 and up and sells for about $15. Once you have worked through all 40 puzzle cards, you can get new challenges in River Crossing 2
(about $6). I think Santa might be bringing that one to us this year.
There is also a ThinkFun River Crossing Jr. for children aged 6 – 8.

Disclaimer: This was not a sponsored review. No one sent me anything. No one asked me my opinion. We just really like this game and thought you might too. However, I am using Amazon affiliate links so if you purchase from my links I get a small commission.

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Need a gorgoeous holiday gift?

Written on November 27, 2010 by Simply Heidi in Reviews

My niece, Lindsey, has just opened a lovely little online shop specializing in knitted hats, headbands and adorable fabric flowers.
Newt agreed to do a bit of modeling for her website so we headed to the park this morning for a photo shoot.
Here she is modeling the Libby-Lou hat and it is even more gorgeous in person. You should feel how soft it is. Heaven. Oh, and the little flower is a detachable pin that could go on a sweater, purse, barrette for your hair… You get the idea. Get your own at Petals and Posh.

Legal Disclaimer: Newt received the hat free in exchange for her services, but I have not received any sort of compensation for this “review”.
It was absolutely unsolicited.
In fact, Lindsey doesn’t even know I’m posting it.
Hope that’s okay…
Maybe I should have asked first…

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Review – Fashion Playtes

Written on March 1, 2010 by Simply Heidi in Reviews

Sometimes, Newt and I like to look at blogs about re-purposing or re-designing clothing. I see all of the fabulous things that talented bloggers have done to create a fun, custom look and think “I could do that!”
And then I think about taking a nap instead.
As much as I like sewing, I just have too many other obligations and interests in the way right now. But that doesn’t keep Newt and I from dreaming. That’s why, when I was asked to do a review of Fashion Playes, a “virtual design studio for girls ages 6 -12″, I happily said yes. This was a chance for Newt to design her own clothing and for me to have someone else sew it. Win-win!
I logged Newt on the the site and she got started designing. Big surprise, she chose a dress. Then she added an understated, non-girly ruffle at the bottom and a large silver dog across the chest.
When did pink and sparkly become, and I quote “evil”? I remember when she used to sleep in a tiara…
Anyway…
I did have to admit that her design, though lacking in bling, was cute.

She even got to design the label:

Her dress was cute, but there were so many other fun things to choose from. Ribbons, rhinestones, appliques! I booted my girl over and took my own turn.
Here’s what I designed:

Newt said it was too frilly (what?!) and she wasn’t digging the purple.
We ordered her design. with shipping, it came to $35.50. It arrived about 3 weeks later.
It was fun to see her design brought to life, though the silver dog didn’t show up very well on the blue background. She still liked it; it was understated. I liked it too. Very cute.
She tried it on and it looked great and fit well. However, she had no growing room – we should have ordered up a size. My fault, not Fashion Playtes. Unfortunately, before I could take her picture in it, she washed it. Probably in warm.
Sidenote: How can I get it through to her, that putting clean clothes in the hamper, washing and drying them, and then putting them away are really a lot more work than just putting it away to begin with?
Newt put the dress on today and… it was a bit snug. I didn’t check the washing instructions, but I’m willing to bet they say “cold”.

Next time, I’d recommend going a size up to ensure that shrinkage isn’t an issue (or perhaps I could just read and follow the washing instructions.)
All in all, this was a fun experience. The site was easy to use and we both enjoyed creating our different fashions. Thirty-five dollars is more than than I would normally spend for a play dress, but I think what you’re really paying for here is the entertainment value. Compare it to going to a paint-your-own ceramics studio and the price doesn’t seem unreasonable. I’d consider giving a gift certificate to Newt for a special occasion like her birthday or a Christmas gift.

Newt’s review:
Me: What did you think of Fashion Playtes?
Newt: It was fun.
Me: Do you have any suggestions for them?
Newt: They should have stripes. And pictures of newts.
Me: If you could, what would you like to get next?
Newt: A backpack. Can I get a backpack?
Me: We’ll see.
Newt: Please?
Me: This interview is over.

Disclosure: Fashion-Playes sent me a $25 gift card to use on their site in exchange for this review. However, they did not tell me what to say. If I had hated the product, I was free to say so. Lucky for them, I didn’t.

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Classic Beauty

Written on October 18, 2009 by Simply Heidi in Homeschooling, Reviews

In my last post, I mentioned that Newt and I have been studying different composers. What I didn’t mention is that I am quite musically ignorant. I can barely tell a Mozart from a matzo ball. And the only instrument I can play is my iPod.
But that doesn’t mean I can’t teach the classics. I just means that I will be learning as much as my girl, sometimes more.
We have set aside Fridays as our Arts and Humanities day. This includes our weekly composer study.
It is far easier than it sounds, even for a novice like me.
I grab my laptop and we cuddle up together while listening to a free six minute “radio show” on Classics for Kids. A different composer is featured each month. The radio show gives information about the composer’s life and music in an upbeat, kid friendly way. I also check out CDs from our library that feature that composer’s work. We listen to them while doing schoolwork or cleaning the house. Occasionally, we will talk about how the music makes us feel. At the end of the month, Newt completes Classics for Kids’s monthly activity sheet. It’s fun. We both enjoy those months that include a listening map. What a fun way to train your ear.
If you’d like to see an example, here is one on Edvard Grieg, this month’s featured composer.
That’s it. Easy, right?
This method has worked well for us for several months, but this month I decided to add a bit to it. I wanted a record of what Newt was learning so she could go back and review. I created a notebooking page for her to record her thoughts on. I think we will be doing this from now on. If you are interested, you can download a PDF of my page on Edvard Grieg here.
Simple but effective.
Last spring we studied Giacomo Puchini. Neither one of us had ever listed to opera before. In fact, it is quite possible that the only exposure I’d ever had to opera was this:

Secretly, I thought it would be a bit boring, even if ~~Cher~~ Loretta did not. But, I felt it was my duty to remain neutral and let my girl make up her own mind.
In addition to the CDs, I checked out a DVD of Madame Butterfly from the library. I intended to show Newt a few minutes worth so she could get a more complete picture of what the opera is all about. I put in the DVD and was surprised to find that I was enjoying myself. I was even more surprised to find that Newt was as well. She begged to watch all 2-plus hours of it. If you are not familiar with Madame Butterfly, I should tell you that every bit of dialog is sung.
In Italian.
Of course, there were English subtitles, and those kept us up with what was happening in the story, but it was the music that was so moving. By the time Madame Butterfly reached her tragic conclusion, Newt and I were both in tears.
Who knew?
A couple of weeks ago I was driving along and happened to hear on the radio that another Puccini opera, La Boheme, was playing the next weekend in Portland. I went home and looked online for tickets, but it appeared as though all the cheap ones were sold out and I did not have an extra $260 lying around for a pair of the good ones. Truthfully, these days I am hard pressed to find any extra money lying around, but I digress.

Luckily, I happen to know a secret to getting what you want.
Ask for it. The worst that can happen is a no.
I wrote a letter to the Portland Opera explaining my desire to take my eight year old to see La Boheme. I told them of her interest in Puccini and her love for Madame Butterfly. I explained that I am a poor homeschoolin’ mama and asked if they would be willing to offer me a couple of discounted seats. You know, to encourage a future patron of the arts? For good measure, I threw in this picture of my girl:

Two days after I mailed it off, I received a call from the lovely woman in charge of the Portland Opera’s Education and Outreach Department. I had no idea they even had such a department. It turns out that the Portland Opera is very supportive of educators.
She offered me student tickets for $20 each.
They were Orchestra, Row H.
Yes, please!
The day before the show, Newt and I went back to the Classics for Kids website spent some time playing with their interactive orchestra chart.
The next evening, we entered the auditorium and she made a beeline for the orchestra pit.
“Mom, look! That’s the percussion section! And there are the strings! And the brass!”
The performers continued to tune their instruments as they smiled up at this enthusiastic young girl.
We took out seats moments before the lights dimmed. The show was breathtakingly beautiful. The music, the acting, the sets: it was simply amazing.
Between acts, I whispered to Newt from the program what would be happening next. She also followed along with the subtitles they had projected above the stage.
She didn’t fidget. She didn’t look away. I’m not sure if she even blinked.
It was magical.
Last week Newt wrote a wonderful little thank you note to the Portland Opera. We both got a response. For her, some encouraging words and an invitation to write or email and discuss opera anytime. She is already drafting a response. For me, an offer for another pair of discounted tickets.
We will be going to Orphee next month. I paid $30 for the pair of tickets.
Lessons learned?
You are never too old, or too young, to appreciate beauty.
I don’t need to know everything in order to teach my daughter well. Learning together is really enjoyable for both of us.
Quality educational experiences do not have to be expensive or complicated.
Always ask for what you want; you may be surprised at how much you receive.
~~Cher~~ Loretta was right. Opera is actually really cool – even if, as in my case, your date is holding your hand with one of hers and a stuffed animal with the other.

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Sounds Resonable to Me

Written on May 21, 2009 by Simply Heidi in Homeschooling, Reviews

Over the last month, Newt has been experimenting with radish seeds.
No, that is not like smoking banana peels.
She has been using Tops Learning Systems radish seed science booklet.
It was a wonderful study and I would highly recommend it. We both learned new things: geotropism, anyone?
And the things Newt learned definitely seemed to stick. We were doing review questions today and she amazed me with her grasp of the material.
Except… there was this one question going back to an experiment sprouting seeds both in dark and light conditions. At the end of a week, the seedlings in the dark were much taller than the seedlings in the light.
So the review question was:

An empty box has been laying in a grassy field for several weeks, open side down. If you lift it up and peek underneath, predict what you might see.

Newt hardly waited for me to answer when she shouted out “Rats!”
Remind me not to look under any boxes I see lying around.

If you want to read a great a review of this product, Heather from OMSH posted one here.

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The "Look Ma! No Cavities, Just a lot of Stress" Giveaway

Written on July 27, 2008 by Simply Heidi in Reviews

Contest now closed. Congratulations to Cassandra, comment #65:

What stresses me out? Driving–too many aggressive drivers and drivers that don’t obey traffic laws–makes me nervous and stressed, and sometimes I end up resorting to the same road rage tactics that annoy and stress me out.

What do I do to relax? Breathe deeply and try to refocus. Music and aromatherapy help out a lot. Sometimes I need to give myself an adult time out.

The details are on the way; check your email. After you get out of time out.

**********

If you are just here for the Bloggy Giveaway Carnival, I must apologize. I am about to tell you a long story that you really don’t care about. Feel free to skip ahead.
But for my faithful, regular readers (Hi, Mom!) I thought I’d ~~ramble on unceasingly~~ give you some background on why I chose this particular item to giveaway.

So, ahem…
Two months ago I went to the dentist for a cleaning and an exam.
Maybe he’s just nice.
Maybe he says it to all the girls.
But…
He glowingly praised my beautiful gums and went into raptures over my advanced flossing skills!
Okay, maybe not quite raptures, but he did say I was doing a very good job.
Which is why I was more than a little startled when I developed a tooth-ache, or rather a sharp pain, in one of my molars.
Did I mention, I floss?
I do have a filling in that tooth (and several others), due to a childhood diet of pilfered jello straight from the box. I wondered if that old filling had come loose since my exam.
Last week I returned to the dentist to have the tooth looked at.
It turns out that I have probably given myself a hairline fracture from clenching my teeth. It’s small enough that it does not even show up on an x-ray, but if I don’t take care I will eventually need to get a crown.
And flossing won’t do a thing to stop it.
I clench my teeth in my sleep when I am stressed. And once I start, it’s hard to stop.
Apparently, I am not alone in this habit. My dentist mentioned that he is seeing a sharp increase in these kind of tooth fractures. Blame it on the economy, gas prices, terrorism, or the fact that Jim didn’t propose to Pam, we are a stressed-out bunch.
There was little he could do for me than give me some Sensodine and advise me to try to reduce my stress level.
In the car on the way home, I turned on a movie for my girl so I could make a couple of phone calls. When I picked up my cell phone, I realized that it was broken.
Talk about stress! I was a full ten minutes from home.
I might have said “Crap!” or something like that.
I might have tried frantically to fix it before throwing it across the car.
And then I might have pulled over so I could pick it up and try to fix it again.
But it still did not work.
To take my mind off the phone, I grabbed a random CD and put it in. In moments my car was filled with soothing music and a soft voice counseling me to get comfortable and take some deep breaths.
It was a copy of a meditation that a friend had given me about a year ago. I had never made time to listen to it and it ended up in the car.
Let me just say – meditating in the car? Not so relaxing, but it did get my mind off my broken phone.
When I got home I looked up the website that the meditation had come from.
Stin Hansen created My Thought Coach. And, um? Wow. (How’s that for articulate?)
After listening to some samples, I subscribed.
For $6.95 a month, here’s what I get (quoted from MyThoughtCoach.com):

Membership includes unlimited streaming and downloads of every MP3 on the entire site.
You can:
· log in and listen as often as you want from any online computer,
· download and place files onto your MP3 player
· burn your own individualized CD
New content will be added regularly to each section of the library. You will receive an email notification each time a new MP3 is added.
· Easy and secure payment via PayPal.
· Cancel subscription any time.
· No hidden fees or obligations.
· We will never sell or distribute your e-mail address to anyone.

Member or not, send or listen to the growing list of free e-mp3s at any time.

The site has guided affirmations for everything from becoming motivated to work out to letting go of anger or ending emotional eating.
There are also MP3s to listen to while you exercise. I can’t wait to try those out.
My daughter has been enjoying the relaxation exercises for children; in one she gets to visualize soaring on the back of an eagle. She is listening to them at bedtime every night.
Go check it out, there are lots of samples to listen to.
And I am trying to set aside time to meditate and release stress each day. Next to flossing, it’s the best thing I can do for my smile.

My long winded story is over; you can stop scrolling now.
I’ll be giving one of you lucky readers an entire year of stress relief, healthier living, and just all around happiness an $83.40 value.
The winner of this giveaway will receive a year’s subscription to My Thought Coach, generously sponsored by Stin herself.
Go there and look around. Find your inner peace. Then come back here and enter to win!
Contest is open to anyone with a valid email address.
To enter, please leave me a comment about one or more of the following:

What stresses you out
Things you do to relax
Your favorite brand of floss

Please do not say, “Count me in.” That’s just boring.
I will randomly choose a winner on Saturday, August 2nd sometime in the afternoon.
Good luck!

PS: Will I need a crown? Will I continue to floss? What other adventures will I have?

Subscribe to my feed to find out.

or….
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Four out of five dentists agree, Frantically Simple is good for your smile.
The fifth one? He’s just mean.

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Category Archives: Reviews

Interview with Liberty’s Author, Annie Laurie Cechini

Liberty Giveaway

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