I honestly can't believe how warm it's been in the south where we live.  The last couple weeks it has been in the 60's or 70's!  And it's only February!  The forecast for this week shows more of the same.  I know winter will probably be back before I know it.  Spring can't possibly be coming this early, can it?

Spring Is Coming

We planted the seed while the tears of our grief sowed the ground
The sky lost its sun and the world lost it’s green to lifeless brown
Now the chill in the wind has turned the earth hard as stone
And silent the seed lies beneath ice and snow
And my heart’s heavy now, but I’m not letting go
Of this hope I have that tells me

Spring is coming, Spring is coming
And all we’ve been hoping and longing for
Soon will appear
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
It won’t be long now
It’s just about here

Hear the birds start to sing
Feel the life in the breeze
Watch the ice melt away
The kids are coming out to play
Feel the sun on your skin
Growing strong and warm again
Watch the ground
There’s something moving
Something is breaking through
New life is breaking through

Spring is coming, Spring is coming
All we’ve been hoping and longing for
Soon will appear
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
And it won’t be long now
It’s just about here

Spring is coming (Out of these ashes beauty will rise)
Spring is coming (Sorrow will be turned to joy)
All we’ve been hoping and longing for (All we’ve hoped for)
Soon will appear (Soon will appear)
Spring is coming (Out of the darkness beauty will shine)
Spring is coming (All of earth and heaven rejoice)
It won’t be long (Spring is coming soon)
It’s just about here (Spring is coming soon)

Well, it's day 2 of the NC Mom Bloggers Beach Conference and I feel more comfortable.  The ladies here are all so nice and welcoming.  It has been fun getting to know them!  The picture above is of me and Malise from Carolina Mama.  I know a lot of y'all know her from her blog.  She is just as sweet as I thought she would be and very pretty too!


The sessions today were great!  We learned a lot about the Brunswick Islands.  I love it here!  We also had a session on Healthy Living and Healthy Blogging from Malise from Carolina Mama and Jen from One Mom's World.  Another session was on SEO, search engine optimization, and was led by Lisa from A Daily Pinch.  Wow, did she give out A TON of info on how to make our blogs easier to find by search engines.


We also had a little time to go and play on the beach before we came back to Ocean Isle Inn for a pasta buffet.  The food was delicious!  I loved the chicken the best!  Nope, actually what I loved best was the conversations I had with Carolyn, Liz, Barb, Angela, and Maricris.  They are amazing ladies!  I loved hearing all their cool stories and just getting to know them. 


I'm starting to miss my husband and kids, but it's nice just being away for a girls weekend!  I haven't done that in... maybe, ever?  It's been awesome and we still have sessions tomorrow.  I'll try to post back then!

Barbara and I are here at the NC Mom Bloggers Beach Conference at the lovely Ocean Isle Inn.  We got in this afternoon and unpacked and rested some before going downstairs to the welcome beach party. 


We had fun meeting some bloggers who we've only seen online and enjoyed a great buffet supper.  I was a little nervous, but some great ladies made me feel more comfortable.  We even got a couple bags of swag.  The ones above are courtesy of Eat. Think. Smile and contain lots of their snacks!  Tomorrow we start sessions to help us learn more about networking and blogging.


We're lucky, it's nice here.  A little chilly tonight, but it's supposed to be around 70 tomorrow!  I'm scared that winter will come back with a vengeance sometime soon.  I'll try to enjoy my time at Ocean Isle Beach until then!

My hubby surprised me on Saturday with an overnight shopping trip to Myrtle Beach!  We went really late on Saturday and had a little trouble finding somewhere to stay.  We thought we'd be okay without a reservation since it's February, but we had no idea that they were having a marathon in town!  We finally found a room and were glad to get some rest!


The next day we went to all our favorite shopping places like the Disney Store outlet and Bass Pro Shops.  Ronnie wanted to go there, but Mitchell and Hunter enjoyed it too.  Mitchell was able to paint his own fishing lure and Hunter loved the huge fish in the tank. 


We went to the beach for a while too.  I didn't even remember to take my camera, but Mitchell had his DSi, so we took some with that.  Hunter LOVED chasing those birds, it was so fun to watch!  Now I have to rest up to go back to the beach this Thursday, but this time to Ocean Isle Beach!

I am so excited!  I am going to my first ever blogging conference!  It's the NC Mom Bloggers Conference at Ocean Isle Inn.  Last week I signed up and paid to attend with my friend Barb.  Then, they had a drawing of all the people who signed up during that 5 day period last week and I won!  Which means I get to go to the conference for FREE!  That makes me even more excited!


If you remember my family and I went to Ocean Isle Inn a little over a year ago.  We were invited by the General Manager, Lee and we had such a wonderful time there.  I am so excited to be going back and to meet so many other wonderful ladies!

Are you going?  If so, leave a comment and let me know!  If you're not, I'll be live blogging from the conference next weekend!

Have you ever wanted to dress up your cupcakes?  Well, now you can with Roundabouts Cupcake Sleeves!  Roundabout Cupcake Sleeves are decorative,  self-adhesive, cupcake wrappers that transform ordinary cupcakes into something special.  They were developed by a stay at home mom who wanted to make something special for her child's birthday.  Today she has over 70 different cupcake sleeve designs.  So, there's something for everyone!

Here are some of the cool designs they have:

Gumball Machine

Treasure Chest

Easter Basket

I tried the Root Beer Float cupcake wrappers.  I was a little worried because I am not creative at all!  But, they were fairly easy to use.  First you take an iced cupcake, then you apply the self-adhesive wrapper, and lastly,  you put in a straw to make it look like a drink.   Of course different themes will have different instructions.


Each cupcake kit comes in an easy store case that is so small it fits right in a drawer, a quick reference guide, a suggestions and tips guide, and 12 themed cupcake sleeves.  These are great for special occasions like birthdays, holidays, and even weddings!  Prices for most kits are only $8.99


You can like Roundabouts Cupcake Sleeves on Facebook here.
You can follow Roundabouts on Twitter here.

• To enter, leave a comment on this post telling me what occasion you would like to try these for 1 entry
• For 2 extra entries like Southern Blessings on Facebook. (just click like on my right sidebar)
• For 3 extra entries mention this giveaway on your blog and link back to this post

Please leave a separate comment for each entry.  Giveaway is open to US residents only.  Giveaway will close Wednesday night February 23rd at midnight.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.Sponsored by Tomoson.com

 

 
The winner of the Kathryn The Grape book, as chosen by random.org is comment #4, Kristie from Kristie's Notes.  Congrats Kristie!

Sorry I haven't been around as much, but my life has been very busy lately. Good, but busy! I miss you all and hope to visit with you soon! 

Ladies, I have a weird question.  Do you like to snuggle with your honey or not?  I'm just trying to figure out if I'm weird or not, lol!  My husband loves to snuggle at night and I like my own space.  Don't get me wrong, I like to cuddle sometimes for a little bit, especially when it's cold.  But after awhile I like to slide over and go to sleep.  I think it hurts his feelings when I ask for space, but I don't mean to, I just can't sleep all wrapped up like that.

Don't forget my Kathryn The Grape children's book giveaway ends tonight, you can enter here.

The winners of the Screen Cleaning Wipes as chosen by random.org are comment #13 Brooke Anna and comment #23 humanecats. 

Congratulations!!!  Thanks to everyone who entered!  Please visit again soon!

I just finished reading God Gave Us The World by Lisa Tawn Bergren.  It's part of a series of books that you may have already read.  Some of the other titles include God Gave Us You, God Gave Us Heaven, and God Gave Us Love. 

In God Gave Us The World, Mama  polar Bear and Little Cub take a trip to a museum to see an exhibit of "Bears Around The World".  This brings up a lot of questions from Little Cub who is surprised to learn that there are bears in other parts of the world who are very different from her.  Her mama explains why they are different and how God made each bear perfectly for the places they live. 


Little Cub learns that even though there are many types of bears who live differently, that we all have a special place in God's creation.  It helps children learn about diversity, getting along with others who are different, and how wonderful it is to be different.


Hunter really loved this book.  He enjoyed that there were mama bears and baby bears.  He loves seeing families in pictures.  I hope through me reading this story to him he will learn to appreciate the differences in him and others and that we're all special to God.

God Gave Us The World can be purchased for $10.99 from RandomHouse.
You can also like Waterbrook Press on Facebook here.

I received God Gave us The World in exchange for a review from Random House in Association with Mama Bzz.

I recently read The Dragon and the Turtle Go On Safari by Donita K. Paul and Evangeline Denmark.

About the book-

At first it seems like Padraig and Roger are really camping out in the jungle somewhere, but later I realized they are only in their own backyard.  They use their imaginations to make up creatures and dangers.  But, together they face their fears and even have the courage to help a baby leopard (actually a kitten).

Most boys love dragons, and Hunter is no exception.  He enjoyed looking at the pictures and hearing the story of The Dragon and the Turtle Go On Safari.  However, the authors seem to use some old English/British terms which I don't think Hunter understands at age 3.  It would probably be better suited for a slightly older child.

The Dragon and the Turtle Go On Safari can be purchased for $11.99 from RandomHouse. 
You can also like Waterbrook Press on Facebook here.

I received The Dragon and the Turtle Go On Safari in exchange for a review from Random House in Association with Mama Bzz.