Category Archives: Giveaway

From Pea to Pumpkin: A Pregnancy Journal Giveaway

Posted on by

20

download4Mothers recently received a pregnancy journal for review, and it’s so lovely that it’s our pleasure to tell you about it and to offer one reader a giveaway copy.  It’s called From Pea to Pumpkin, and it’s beautiful.  Wistful watercolours of fruits and vegetables, appropriately sized for each of the 40 weeks of pregnancy, accompany gentle prompts for the expectant mother to note her thoughts and feelings during this unique time.

Each page starts with a simple sentence to be answered with multiple choices, followed by a few more fill in the blanks and sentences for the week.  If you are a natural at pregnancy, reflection, and scrapbooking, this journal may be a little rudimentary for you.  For the rest of us, though, it strikes me as a gentle call to record a distinctive time in an easy and accessible format.  And as all mothers know, a journal in the hand is better than two in the bush.

Something I like about From Pea to Pumpkin is space for feelings about pregnancy that aren’t as sweet as the watercolours (the artist says she learned to draw at 40!).  In week 9, the mom-to-be is asked what her moods of late resemble, and one of the choices is “those of a person I’d rather not know”.  If, let’s say, pregnancy didn’t come so naturally to a mother, it’s nice to know that one’s state of mind is common enough to make the top five answers, and that you can still participate in some variety of mother club.  Okay, let’s talk about me.  The truth is that I wish I’d had something like this journal at the beginning and actually used it because, as cranky as I was during my first pregnancy, now I’d love to revisit that period with more clarity than my memory affords.

We assume that most of our readers at 4Mothers already have children, but know that many of you are still in the game for more.  Wouldn’t you like a journal like this?  We also know that some of you are expecting yourselves, and well, almost everybody knows someone who is pregnant somewhere.  If you fall into any of these categories, just leave a comment to enter our giveaway for this pregnancy journal!  It would make a lovely gift, for yourself or for someone else who is special, and we are very pleased to offer it to you.

As always, there are no strings attached to this giveaway.   As we’ve mentioned about our giveaways before, there is no skill-testing question, you will not be charged for shipping, and you will not be peppered with spam.  It’s a simple, straightforward affair.  Just leave a comment before Sunday at 10 pm EST, then we’ll randomly pick and announce a winner on Monday morning, and that reader will get a copy of From Pea to Pumpkin in the mail shortly after that.  (Note that this giveaway is only open to readers in Canada and the United States.)

Please enter!  And good luck for the giveaway!  (Oh yes, and also best wishes for the little one coming your way…)

 

The winner of the giveaway for From Pea to Pumpkin:  A Pregnancy Journal is Carrie:

I would love to have this for round two! =) I really wish I had recorded my first journey of pregnancy…

Congratulations Carrie!  And thank you to everyone who played along with us!

My Pretty Playhouse Giveaway!

Posted on by

34

playhouse

Recently 4Mothers was sent a cardboard playhouse called My Pretty Playhouse, by Cascades, and I was the lucky one who got to try it out at my house.

Part of Cascade’s ecological boutique, the playhouse is made from 100% recycled paper, and was quite easy to set up.  It’s also quite sturdy, and didn’t get knocked over easily.  It also presents various play possibilities besides using it as a house:  as soon as my boys saw it, they grabbed their paints and for two days, we painted away, making the house our own.

059062

My boys found new ways to play with it when friends came over, and actually used it as a house.  The house is recommended for 3 years and up, but our 15 month old baby toodled in there and explored on his own terms quite comfortably.

It’s possible, of course, to create your own cardboard playhouse out of a big box, and we did do that a year or two ago.  But we rarely buy a new refrigerator or furnace, so My Pretty Playhouse is a delightful shortcut to some good old-fashioned fun with paper.  Plus, who would make sweet attic windows from a refrigerator box?

Also, sturdy as it is, being made of recycled paper also means the playhouse won’t last forever – ours didn’t survive a particularly rambunctious playdate – but for us, this is part of the charm of the cardboard playhouse.  Cascades’ lovely playhouse is big, and our house is small, so the fact that it wasn’t a permanent fixture worked well for us.

The bottom line?  The playhouse is a lot of fun, easy to put up, and comes down in its own time for the recycling bin:  a great toy.  And for every playhouse sold, Cascades donates $2 to Habitat for Humanity, thus helping to make real houses where they are needed too.  Other fun items, like cardboard Christmas trees and furniture, can be found in their ecological boutique.

It’s my pleasure to announce that Cascades is generously offering one My Pretty Playhouse to a 4Mothers reader!  Simply leave us a comment, and you will automatically be part of the pool from which we’ll randomly pick a winner and announce on Monday morning.  Cascades says that they can ship within 5 days, so with any luck, you could have this sweet toy over the holidays.  Please note this giveaway is available to readers in Canada.

Dear Readers, there are no strings to this giveaway.  There is no skill-testing question, you will not be charged for shipping, you will not be peppered with spam, you don’t have to sign up for anything, it is not a hoax.  You don’t have to do anything except leave your name and sit patiently while a playhouse makes its way to your door.  This is a gift from Cascades and a thank you from 4Mothers to you, because we love our readers.  Please enter!

ps.  We’ll keep the giveaway open until Sunday, December 16 at 10 pm EST.  Good luck!

 

Congratulations to Anna, our giveaway winner, who wrote:

Sounds wonderful! Crossing our fingers up here in Thunder Bay!!

And thank you to everyone who played along with us!

Win a Prize for Telling Us: What Do You Wish You Knew?

Posted on by

1

Were you surprised by some of the changes in your body when you were expecting?  Did you know what to expect when you were expecting?  Did you even have time to read that book?

That famous (or maybe you’d say infamous) book, What To Expect When You’re Expecting, has been turned into a blockbuster movie coming to theatres May 18, starring Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Matthew Morison, Dennis Quaid and Chris Rock.

To celebrate all you mothers, expecting or not, we’re giving away a Pregnancy Survival Kit, provided by the Spoke Agency.  This box is full of goodies sure to satisfy all your cravings, nourish your skin and put a little spice back in the bedroom.

To win, leave a comment sharing your ultimate pregnancy tip for the expectant mother – the one thing that you wish you knew to expect when you were expecting.

Make sure that you leave your comment before 11:59 pm on Sunday, May 6.  The 4mothers will announce the winner on Monday, May 7.

As much as we love our friends living outside Canada, this contest is open to those residing in Canada only. Residents of Quebec are excluded as well (sorry.)