Regal always has a great summer program for the kids and this year is no different! This year it is $1 PG and G movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. A portion of the $1 will go to the Will Rogers Institute. Just put in either your zip code or your state to see a list of dates/theaters/movies.

I personally, am a big fan of the $1 charge instead of it just being free. This actually helps to keep it a little more orderly because people have to be just a little more serious. It cuts down on the kids running through the theater;).

This year there are some great movies! The movies are not just for little kids this year! What are you taking your kids to see?

Ok, I love Scout bags! I have one big one and it is great for taking to the park because I can put food and drinks in there and if anything leaks I just wipe it down. Easy peasy! And everything seems to hold so much relative to their size!!!

So in the spirit of parks, bbq’s, beaches and summer there is a sale going on! All Indigo Girl and Starstruck patterns (in a variety of bag types) are 20% off right now!

But don’t wait! Get these bargains by May 20th when the sale ends!

(Yes, these are affiliate links! It helps support this blog to get your fabulous deals through my links!)

So here is the deal. If you are hosting a giveaway or have a post about someone’s giveaway just leave a link. Make sure this link is to the giveaway post itself and not just the blog or it will be deleted. If you listed it last week but your giveaway is still open, list it again! Also your link must be to something family friendly or it will be deleted.
So now you need to add your giveaways and go enter some giveaways! Let them know that Contesting Monday sent you!

A great gift with a great blessing!

I know this is going to be a shock but Mother’s Day is Sunday;). I know, you were planning on shopping tomorrow of Saturday. It is a common story….

So let me recommend a great set of gifts. Get Mom a piece from Macy’s Heart of Haiti. Mom gets something beautiful(jewelry, decor, etc) and you all can feel good about supporting a great cause!

The products are actually made by artisans in Haiti! This beautiful work helps support and feed these artisans in Haiti! And we all know how economics work. So by introducing new capital into the society it will help the entire community!

This is an opportunity to be deliberate with our shopping and encourage new industry in an area that needs it desperately!

I love this metal heart that I received! And there is so many other well priced, beautiful pieces! You have some many choices both online and in many of the Macy’s stores. So what are you still doing here? Go shop!!!

(Disclosure: I was given this beautiful piece to review!)

Our Current Tablet Collection

Every time a major holiday comes up I hear a lot of questions about how to choose tablets for gifts. What is worth the money, what will perform the best, etc.

I am going to start off by saying what I tell every person that asks me my opinion, only you can make the choice! Tablets are fun and great. They all have up sides and down sides.

First analyze everything that it would be used for:

Email
Books
Games
Browsing
Working
Social Media

Then look at the different types of tablets and what each one is known for:

IPad is known for being a high end tablet with good resolution and camera. It has full integration with iPhones and Macs. I find them hard to get a lot of work done without an additional keyboard but they easily purchased. You can surf the web and watch movies. The iPad is also a pretty good e-reader but there is a glare on the screen so it is a little like reading of a computer that you can hold. But the iPad comes with a very large price tag and its accessories can be pretty pricey too.

10 inch Android is on par with an iPad except the price has a larger range. You can get the very expensive to the inexpensive. The quality and resolution can also vary. You can have all the same functionality as the iPad. The Android environment has a more open development field where apps don’t have to be approved by Apple. And if you like to tinker you can change operating systems on Android tablets.

7 inch Android tablets are extremely portable. They are good for social media and email. They are decent e-reader with the same issues as the iPad. Web surfing and movie viewing are a bit more cumbersome due to the smaller size.

Kindle Fire/Nook Tablets are very similar. While they carry the Kindle/Nook names, the are not dedicated e-readers. These are similar to the 7 inch Android tablets. Except they are built on an older stylized Android operating system. They are a very popular tablet but it isn’t as powerful as some the other tablets.

Readers (like the Kindle and Nook) are e-readers. That is what they do and that is pretty much it. My favorite is the Kindle. It is small and light. The magic though is e-ink. They don’t have a shiny screen and so the words show up like paper. You won’t get the same eye strain as reading off of a shiny tablet. And they are a lot cheaper than a traditional tablet. If the only reason you want a tablet is to read this is your best choice.

So there are a few things to look at. Tablets are fun just do a little thinking ahead so that you only spend as much as needed to get exactly what you want!

So here is the deal. If you are hosting a giveaway or have a post about someone’s giveaway just leave a link. Make sure this link is to the giveaway post itself and not just the blog or it will be deleted. If you listed it last week but your giveaway is still open, list it again! Also your link must be to something family friendly or it will be deleted.
So now you need to add your giveaways and go enter some giveaways! Let them know that Contesting Monday sent you!

But before you rush off, make sure you enter my giveaway for a Marvel The Avengers prize pack!!! The buttons and 3d glasses are not on sale anywhere so make sure that you enter!!!

To celebrate “May the Fourth” Amazon has some awesome Star Wars deals!

The all day Gold Box deal is Star Wars: The Complete Saga (Episodes I-VI) [Blu-ray] for only $78.99. They are also having Lightening Deals that become available through the day. Right now the deal is for the Old Republic video game for only $34.99! But that deal is only available until 10am (pst) and then there will be another deal.

Free Comic Book Day is tomorrow (May 5th)!!!

But what is Free Comic Book Day, you might ask. It is a day where you and your kids head down to your local comic book store and get a free comic book! Once you find the participating stores in your area it really is that simple. Free Comic Book Day is not just designed to get kids into comic books but to overall encourage reading in children.

We always hit Heroes here in Fresno. And while there is a line it moves super quick. And as you see, they bring out the characters;). The kids love that! They interact with the Star Wars guys every year.

The list of the “available” comics is posted ahead of time. I use quotes because sometimes they are out of one by the time you get there or didn’t get one of them. So I recommend you peruse the list and come up with a top 3 for every person. And person gets a comic, including the adults. They had some preview and special edition copies of some comics we were interested in last year.

We always have a ball and highly recommend you go! Let me know what decide you want to get!

I got to see Marvel’s The Avengers (in 3D) and there are so many thoughts, great thoughts, that it might be hard to organize them;). But I gotta give it a go and I am not giving details because I will not ruin this movie for you!!!

For those who don’t know, I am both a comic dork and a huge Joss Whedon fan girl. I like the shows, movies, comic books and wed shows that he has done;). So I have to say that my expectations were extremely high which means the odds were very high that I would be disappointed but alas, I wasn’t.

The Avengers started off with a bang! In true Whedon style we jump right into the action that sets up the premise for the whole movie, then we got a title sequence;). The action was glorious, as expected of a big blockbuster. Black Widow was wonderfully written as expected with Whedon’s wonderful talent for writing strong women. I had heard people bemoan the fact that Norton wasn’t returning as the Hulk but Ruffalo was perfect for the role. His little half smile fit the role so very well. And of course the rest of our stars were born for these roles. I think Robert Downey Jr. isn’t even actually acting in the Stark side of the role;).

But the thing I loved the most was the story and dialogue. With all of the other movies in this Marvel franchise once I knew who the hero and villains were, I basically could map out the movies. I mean, they were all done well with nice effects and some great lines but you kind of knew what was going to happen. That is what I expect of comic book hero movie. But this one is different. The plot had not twists that didn’t expect but also huge plot lines that I had no idea were coming!

The dialogue was fast in true Whedon fashion. You will not get bored waiting for the next action sequence. The dialogue you saw in the trailer pales in comparison. The dialogue actually got as many cheers and audible laughs in the theater as the action got. It makes the movie! It gives it a dimension and depth that really makes the movie phenomenal! I also the fact that it was so clean! Captain America had quite a bit of innuendo and was stoked that this didn’t! My kids will be so happy to see it. There may be a birthday surprise for them after the crowds die down!

Oh, and it my first 3D movie. It is so worth an extra few bucks! And if you have any idea how cheap I am that is saying something;). The 3D effects weren’t just water coming at you and cheesy stuff like that. It was awesome.

Did I mention that I really loved this movie;)? Marvel should do whatever it takes in order to get Whedon to write the rest of this series!!!

Have you seen it? Do you have plans to see it?

(Disclosure: I was given a press pass from Marvel to see The Avengers for free but the opinions are all mine!)

My friend Jaime recommended that I check out a book called Bicoastal Babe by Cynthia Langston for an easy and fun read. I hadn’t gotten a chance to pick it up yet when I found out….

It is going to be free for Kindle Thursday (5/3) and Friday (5/4)!!! Just pop over and put it on your Kindle or any Kindle reader app you use.

Here is the description from Amazon:

Not exactly what you’d call a goddess of cutting-edge culture, Lindsey Miller is shocked when she’s offered the über-hip job of writing for The Pulse, a newsletter that tracks white-hot trends in everything from fashion to cosmetics to entertainment. Before long, Lindsey finds herself on a whirlwind bicoastal romp as she jet-sets between New York and Los Angeles, fumbling to uncover what’s cool today, and what will be the next big thing tomorrow.

The grit and glamour of Manhattan are electrifying – and so is Victor Ragsdale, the slick Wall Street broker who charms Lindsey with his street-smart savvy. But the warmth and sunshine of L.A. are bliss – and so is Danny Wynn, the dreamy blond surfer who sweeps her into his strong, suntanned arms.

Lindsey’s two lives are both so exciting – and both so different. But disaster strikes when her evil trend-spotting partner begins to expose Lindsey for what she really is: tragically unhip and only one dirty martini away from being found out and fired.

Sounds cute! I personally can relate to feeling like I can figure out what is cool for the rest of the world but not myself;). Apparently Katherine Heigl loves it. So much she is developing/producing a show for the CW called Trending that is based on the book.

So grab a copy of the book and give it a read! In the near future I will be giving you my thoughts on it!!!