It Was Almost the Ultimate Moment For Me

About a week ago I received a really cool goodies pack from Myblogspark. It contained a set of orange bowls, black and white plates an orange and grey serving spoon, all bpa-free, a box of Ultimate Betty Crocker Cheddar mashed potatoes and 3 boxes of Ultimate Hamburger Helper Three Cheese Marinara.

It's the Ultimate thing because on work days, things can get pretty crazy around and I'm always looking looking for something fast and simple for dinner.

Now I must admit, I'm not a huge fan of the color orange or flower patterns, but still, the serving set is pretty cool.

I really have to be honest ,however. I did not like the three cheese marinara pasta mix, from hamburger helper. It was just way too much tomato flavor for me. But my family thought it was pretty good. I haven't tried the mashed potatoes, but I'm not a fan of instant. I thought maybe I could use them in a meatloaf recipe or combine with real potatoes, for some cheesy flavor. What do you think? Have you tried any of the new Ultimates?

What if I gave away a similar pack to mine? Would anyone be interested? If so leave me a comment and maybe I'll let my kids draw a winner by Saturday. Don't forget your email address so I can contact you cause without it, your Ultimate days will be non-existent.

UPrinting Customizable Stickers Giveaway!

Hey, guess what this Insane Writer is able to share with one of my readers? UPrinting is offering me the chance to host a giveaway for 250 Personalized Stickers! How insanely cool is that? I mean, can you imagine the possibilities with this fantastic prize from UPrinting? And I've already heard some great things about this company from other friends. Not to mention, it's great to be able to create your own Custom Stickers and see the results right there before you. I'm thinking these would be great to promote my novel, "The Generation." What would you do with your stickers?

So here are the details of the giveaway: 

• One (1) very lucky reader will get 250 Customizable Stickers
• The stickers are 2" x 3.5" and are printed (front side only) on 70lb Label Matte stock.
• And, there is a 4 Business Days Turnaround, which is really good in my opinion. 
• Giveaway Ends Friday September 9th at 10pm CST
• This giveaway is Only Open to US residents 18 years old and above only.
• Also, in order to qualify as a winner, you cannot already have won a giveaway from Uprinting in the past 6 months. 

There are two ways you can win: 

1.  Simply leave a comment with your email address and tell me why you want to win these stickers.
2. Or, share this giveaway on your own blog or tweet about it and share the link in the comments on this post.

Pretty darn simple don't you think?

And I must let you know there is a Disclaimer:

This giveaway is sponsored by UPrinting, I was not given any money as compensation, but I will receive Stickers for hosting. I am so darn excited about receiving my own stickers! Check out the standard label templates on UPrinting, why don't you?

Yanni Music Review and CD Giveaway!

And the Winner is: Dr. Di! Hope you enjoy the CD!

I haven't heard Yanni in years (it's been more than 8 years since his last album), but I'll be honest, I never get tired of hearing his astounding music, even today with his latest album, "Truth of Touch."

But let me warn you, just as most musicians do over the years, Yanni has updated his music somewhat with a little more rhythm and a little bit of electronic sound thrown into the mix. Still, even with the new sounds, his music is still worth listening to. His album, "Truth of Touch" is compiled of 15 beautiful songs that include:

1. Truth of Touch
2. Echo of a Dream
3. Seasons
4. Voyage
5. Flash of Color
6. Vertigo
7. Nine
8. Can’t Wait
9. Guilty Pleasure
10. O Luce Che Brilla Nell’ Oscurità
11. I’m So
12. Long Way Home
13. Yanni & Arturo
14. Mist of a Kiss 
15. Secret

And while each song is beautiful in it's own way, I must say my favorite is,  "Echo of a Dream."  I must admit, this album is very relaxing and I can easily see myself getting into writing mode with one of my stories while this CD plays in the background.

In addition to his latest CD, Yanni is also playing live with tour-dates available on his official website at: http://www.yanni.com/tour/ So if he happens to be in your area, you should definitely check him out.

Yanni also has an official Twitter account and a Facebook page. How insanely cool is that?

Or if you really want more, thanks to One2One Network, I have the privilege of giving away Yanni's CD, Truth of Touch, to one lucky reader of my blog. Interested? I'll make it simple. Just leave a comment in this blog post with your email address and tell me why you want this CD. I'll draw a winner on April 11th, 2011 at 5pm CST. This Giveaway is only available to U.S Residents. Sorry. Good Luck!

Please Note: This blogpost is my opinion of Yanni's  latest CD, Truth of Touch and I was given a CD to review by One2One Network.


Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter.










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The Cinnamon Burst Cheerios Giveaway is Officially Here!

Update: Congrats to Amanda of A Day In the Life Of Manda who is the winner of this giveaway! And a big thank you to all who entered this contest. Please be sure to visit my blog in the near future for more great giveaways!

Update: I received an email about the broken bowl that was noted in this post. I am going to receive two new bowls from the wonderful people at General Mills and Myblogspark, which I am told are on their way! I had not expected this and wanted to share this note with my readers!



There's a new Cheerios in town and Cinnamon Burst is the name, sent to me by General Mills and Myblogspark. And since mornings are not a real mad house around here, the entire and I mean entire family, has been eating breakfast. It's amazing what a box of cereal and new jobs can do.

Thankfully however, there's no toy in this box of cereal, so the kids won't end up in a fight over who gets to claim the prize. Instead, they'll be fighting over who gets to try the cereal first.lol

In addition to my box of Cinnamon Burst Cheerios cereal, I received a 4-pack of cereal bowls (sadly only three because one of the bowls was cracked in shipment), a travel cereal chiller and a cinnamon scented candle. And of course this was all thanks to General Mills and Myblogspark. How insane is that?

So here's the deal, I'm able to giveaway to one of my lucky readers, another Cinnamon Burst Cheerios cereal prize pack, which will include the same items I received, all thanks of course to General Mills and Myblogspark!

Want to Win? Here's What to Do:

1. Leave me a comment on this post with your email address, so I can get in touch with you if you are my winner. In addition to your email address, I'd like to know how you found my blog!

2. Want a second chance at winning? Follow me on twitter! Then, leave me a comment here and let me know.

3. How about a third? Just link this post to you blog post with the words The Insane Writer as part of your link title, then leave a comment here letting me know, and it's a done deal!

This Contest ends at 8am CST on March 4th, 2011, so you have to hurry if you want to win. Open to USA Residents ONLY. Good Luck and now, check out this video from other mom's who received and tried Cinnamon Burst Cheerios.









Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter.







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Who Wants to go to Hawaii?

I'm getting a late start on this project, but as some of you already know, I'm a big fan of a program called Socialspark that was created by the company IZEA.

And right now, IZEA is offering a trip for two to Hawaii, when you sign up and become a member of Socialspark.

So, how does it work? What's the deal? What's the catch? 

Let's  clear up the what's the catch first. There is no catch. You don't pay anything to become a member, it's totally free and in addition, with each opportunity you're approved for, you get paid for writing articles of your choosing and your price set. 

I've been with Socialspark for a little while now and I've already made $12.00 from them, just from one simple article. Now that might not seem like much, but as busy as I've been away from my blog and with my health, I haven't really done much for them either. So imagine if you were willing to write 3 simple articles a week at let's say ohh $10.00, that's $30.00 a week that you could put towards gas, groceries, etc. And if you're a real go getter who puts a lot of heart and soul in your blog or website, you may even be able to earn a lot more.

So what's the deal?  Well, currently Socialspark is looking for more bloggers and website owners who wouldn't mind writing about products and making some money in the process. And to sweeten the deal, they're asking old Socialspark pros like myself, to help others get started and give me a chance and even you if you can get others to join your team quickly, to win a trip to Hawaii. How insane and sweet is that?

In addition, for everyone that's referred,  the referrer gets up to a 15 % commission.  Sweet! I get paid, you get paid, we all get paid, when we become a part of this!

Okay, so here's the real deal. For me this Hawaii vacation, would be the dream of a lifetime, because I would really like to treat my family to a real vacation, something that's never happened and before the kids are grown. Of course the trip is only for two, but I'm thinking if I can beat out the other competition and get enough people referred, I can use the commissions to take my entire family to Hawaii!

So who's ready to join my team and how does it work? Well, first, you need to be a blogger, whether it be with a free blogging service like the one I use, or a website you own that includes a blog. Then, once you submit your blog link to them, you're ready to get started. You'll find that all of the articles are based on a point system, but don't worry, those points actually equal dollars. For example, 1, 200 points = $12.00 and so forth. Pretty simple stuff if you ask me.

Okay, so now that you know more about this great program/opportunity,what do you say? Do you want to be a part of my team and get in on the deal of a lifetime? If so, let's get started!


Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter.



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The Big G Hot Wheels Cereal Giveaway

Update: The winner of my Big G Hot Wheels Cereal Giveaway is Sheliza of http://www.momfiles.com/. 

A big thank you to all of my readers who entered. I'll be hosting another giveaway soon, so please be sure to check back!


Breakfast around here generally happens on the weekends because the kids eat at school. But when they do eat breakfast at home, it's a real madhouse with more than one bowl of cereal per a kid being gobbled down. And when it comes to the toy in the box, well look out because they'll have the entire box gone in one setting just to get to the toy!

So when General Mills, Hot Wheels and Myblogspark sent me 5 boxes of General Mills cereal that included a hot wheels pull-back racer in each box of cereal and a code to play a racing game online, I knew there'd be trouble! But, hey who can say no to the fun of General Mills and the kids love their cereals.

So I received Cheerios® 14 oz, Cinnamon Toast Crunch® 17 oz, Lucky Charms® 16 oz, Reese’s Puffs® 18 oz, and Cookie Crisp® 15.6 oz, courtesy of General Mills, Hot Wheels and Myblogspark! Yum, Yum, Yum!

Now if that isn't a sweet enough deal, one of my lucky readers will also receive the same Cereal gift pack as I did, all thanks of course to General Mills, Hot Wheels and Myblogspark!

Want to Win? Here's What to Do:

1. Leave me a comment with your email address, so I can get in touch with you if you are my winner. In addition to your email address, I'd like to know which cereal is your kid's favorite or yours if you don't plan on sharing!

2. Want a second chance at winning? Follow me on twitter! Then, leave me a comment here and let me know.
3. How about a third? Just link this post to you blog post with The Insane Writer as part of your link title, then leave a comment here letting me know, and it's a done deal!

This Contest ends at 7pm CST on Febuary 17th, 2011. Open to USA Residents ONLY. Good Luck!



Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter.







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Here's Two a New Healthy Start and Soon Another Giveaway!

So this morning as I was headed to break at work, the weirdest, yet greatest thing happened to me. I felt like running, and no not away from work. I mean, I actually felt like just simply running! I felt fantastic and I'm not really sure why.

Maybe it was what I had for breakfast, maybe it's the medication the doctor has me on or maybe it's the freakin' great weather we had today, but something had me full of energy and I'm still feeling great and I love that feeling.

And if you love feeling great, why not try something new? Try running, or try having a great breakfast to help jump start a healthy morning. And it will be easy to do since I'll be hosting another great giveaway soon from Cheerios! So, please be sure to keep checking back and maybe you'll be on your way to winning an insanely cool prize pack and new healthy start!

Uhh ohh I feel a song coming on!!!!


Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter.



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Look to Be Racing in My Next Giveaway

Hold on to your dogs, cats, tables tops or anything you can't keep away from the youngsters because my next giveaway involves your kids racing their way to the breakfast table for Hot Wheels and a General Mills kind of breakfast for at least a week or two! So get, ready and check back here soon for a chance to win!!!!!



Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter and you visit her official website at www.theinsanewriter.com.



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CSN Stores is in Full Swing with a Giveaway to One of My Readers!

And the winner is.... Janet Faye of Janet's Book Place.

Thank you to everyone who entered and I hope you'll visit my blog again for more future giveaways!

With spring just around the corner, the kids will be outside playing on their new swing set, while you're spring cleaning and daydreaming about a nice little shopping spree as a big reward after all that hard work. Hey, a girl can daydream, can't she?

Well, thanks to CSN Stores, that daydream can become a reality because I'm allowed to giveaway a gift certificate (courtesy of CSN) to use at CSN Stores, where you can find anything and everything you could ever want, even that new swing set for the kids!

Now, one thing I should note: I wasn't told how much the gift certificate would be for, but in the past, I was offered a similar giveaway to review their products and received a gift certificate of around $50. But, as I noted, I have no way of knowing what the gift certificate is worth, until one of my readers win.
However, please do not let that stop you from entering this contest. Many of the CSN Stores have free shipping and handling on their products, which really sweetens the deal and they've got some great prices, which is even more sweet. And besides, the contest is FREE, so you really have nothing to lose, but a simple comment.

1. Yep, that's right. If you want to win, you know the drill. You have to leave me a comment with your email address, so I can get in touch with you if you are my winner. In addition to your email, I'd like to know which item would you love to buy from the CSN Stores, so you'll want to visit their website, and yep, I'm nosey like that.
2. Want a second chance at winning? Follow me on twitter! Then, leave me a comment here and let me know.
3. How about a third? Just link this post to you blog post with The Insane Writer as part of your link title, then leave a comment here letting me know, and it's a done deal!

This Contest ends at 7pm CST on Febuary 4th, 2011. Open to USA and Canada Residents ONLY. Good Luck and let's make that dream a reality, courtesy of CSN Stores!




Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter and you visit her official website at www.theinsanewriter.com.





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Chex Party Mix Giveaway!

And the Winner is ToyStory of Virginia.

Thanks to everyone who entered this giveaway and be sure to check back for more giveaways!


It's time for another giveaway, this time sponsored by General Mills and Myblogspark.

I'm a tad bit late running this contest due to the insane holidays. So, I'll be making this a 24 hr giveaway to one lucky reader of mine!

But first, let me tell you, I love this prize pack. As you can see from the photo at the right, I received:

1. A box of Chex
2. A set of measuring cups
3. A Chex Party mix tote bag that closes by a zipper

Now I'll be quite honest here, the kids got to the cereal before I could attempt to make the party mix, but hey at least we know just how much the kiddos love Chex! And the measuring cups have already been put to good use when my oldest son created his famous mocktails for family at Christmas.




So now that you've seen how we put our Chex mix goody pack to good use, how will you put yours? If you want to win it, simply leave me a comment on this post with your email address. If you want a second chance at winning, just follow me on twitter and let me know in a comment on this post that you've followed me. Want a third chance to win? Just tweet, facebook or blog about my giveaway and leave the link in a comment on this post.

Three easy ways to win, but hurry because this giveaway ends at 6pm Central Standard Time Thursday January 6th, 2011. Open to U.S Residents Only. Good luck.




Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter and you visit her official website at www.theinsanewriter.com.



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A 24 hour Grilling Giveaway With Lawry's

10/23/10 And the Winner is Russell Hills of Nampa, Idaho. Thank you to all who entered! I'm hoping to have more contests again soon!!!


Recently I was given the chance to review Lawry's new seasoning blends and marinades. It was pretty darn cool because I received two marinades: Szechuan Sweet & Sour BBQ and Tuscan Sun-Dried Tomato, four seasoning mixes: Asian Style Beef & Broccoli, Chimichurri Burrito Casserole, Mediterranean Sundried Tomato & Garlic Chicken and Tuscan Style Chicken Marsala with Garlic and Basil and a bottle of Lawry's famous seasoned salt. I also received a pyrex baking/marinating dish with cover big enough to serve a casserole in and a set of skewers for the grill.

I have tried both the Mediterranean Sundried Tomato & Garlic Chicken and Tuscan Style Chicken Marsala with Garlic and Basil seasoning mix in a turkey pot roast which turned out really yummy and a chicken dish, which was just a delicious. The pyrex dish was put to good use in the oven and is so much better than trying to scrub a metal baking dish. Plus better for the environment in my opinion.

I haven't had time to try the marinades or other seasonings, but I am very sure they're just as good as the two I did get to try.

Now, here's the really good news, I am able to giveaway the very same items I received from Lawry's to one of my readers thanks to Lawry's and MyBlogSpark.

Want to win it? I'll make it simple. Just leave me a comment on this post with your email address and I will randomly draw a winner. Contest is only open to US residents and ends October 21st, 2010 at 7:30pm Central Standard Time. Good Luck!






Joy Smith also known as The Insane Writer, is the author of the Sci-Fi novel, The Generation. You can email her at silent_beautie@yahoo.com She can also be found on Twitter @theinsanewriter and you visit her official website at www.theinsanewriter.com.



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A Weekend Away You Say?

Okay, so I have to let you know, which is a good thing because I love my own thoughts as they are my own,

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Hampton Hotels. All opinions are 100% mine.

Want to know more? Then you must take a look and




Last weekend I actually spent a night away from my house. It was only in a hotel in our local town, but it was a night away from my somewhat crazy life!

So would I do it again? Well, maybe under different circumstances and if it were away from Independence, KS. Like right now I noticed that Hampton Hotel is giving away a free weekend stay at any of their locations with daily giveaways. Hey, I think to myself, there's one in Bartlesville, OK. Hmmm.

So, how do I enter? Or wait how can you enter??? Simple. Just visit their website! Or even simpler, just go to Hampton Chain of Friends Sweepstakes.

So what next, I'm thinking. Hmm. Well, I could always take the other half or hang out with my best friend for her birthday and hold a birthday bash there. Hey, that would be a blast!

You know it's always good to get out with friends, even for a weekend vacation and just do a little traveling, even if the trip is just an hour or so away. It's been years since I've done that and I miss it. So, what would you do to escape life for a weekend?

XR and John Chow Giving Away $6000 for a Wonderful Cause

When I first decided to launch an official site, I worried that the URL would be too long. Then, I realized that it wasn't so bad compared to my blogger url. For those that have blogger accounts you could easily redirect your url using a domain name, but what if you can't afford a domain name?

If you're like me and trying to make ends meet, XR.com allows you to create a TINY URL for free.
All you need to do is head to their website and sign up for an account. There are no fees involved. Once you have signed up, you can type in your blogger URL and reduce it to a smaller link for visitors to click on.

Once a visitor clicks on that URL it takes you to your page. Through XR's website you can select whether you want your page to be framed or non-framed. For those that want to keep the page framed, visitors can easily click a link that will allow them to remove the frame from your page.

You can also use them to shorten all of your bookmark links if you wanted to. For me, it really doesn't make much of a difference whether they are short or long.

The only disadvantage that I saw with this company is that my page took a few seconds longer than normal to load. This might be a problem if you use dial up, however for those that use anything faster it shouldn't be very noticeable.

Now, the best part about XR is they are giving away $6,000 along with the help of my favorite blogging entrepreneur John Chow. $5,000 will go to a charity of your choice and the remaining $1,000 can be spent on whatever you want to spend it on. Deadline for the giveaway is December 24th and the winner will be drawn on December 27th.

Now I'm really not expecting to win, but if I did I think I would want the $5,000 to go locally to the food bank here in Independence, Kansas. I'm not even sure that is possible, but I think it would be a wonderful way for our small town to share with those here who do not have enough food for the holidays.

Each year the Independence, Kansas food bank runs out of food around Christmas and they are always needing donations. Unfortunately we're a small town, so not many people are able to help as much as they would like. And with the economy in shambles, more and more people are losing their jobs or they are being laid off until next year.

I think donating to the bigger charities is wonderful, but there are some smaller charities who need just as much help as the bigger ones do and $5,000 would do so much for our community!